Thanks for checking out A Collection of Shiny Objects and for reading more about the fantastical trifecta of theater pieces I am developing for presentation in Summer 2010, along with my collaborators Jennifer Barclay, Maureen Huskey, Colin Wambsgans, Katie Shook, Sean Cawelti and Rogue Artists Ensemble, and some yet to be named.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Petie DeLarge
Original artwork by Rik Rawling (via 'Rik Rawling's Psych Skull')
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Announcing the Director for THE EXILE OF PETIE DELARGE
Beautiful, exciting, ground-breaking Maureen Huskey, who I had the pleasure of working with previously at CalArts, has agreed to lead the workshop of The Exile of Petie DeLarge by Jennifer Barclay!
More about Maureen:
Maureen Huskey is an award-winning theater director based in Los Angeles since 2006. Most recently, she was the Assistant Director for Lenka Udovicki for UCLA Live's Medea starring Annette Bening. Maureen received the 2008-09 Princess Grace Honorarium Award for Theater Directing. As co-creator and director of the New York based, site-specific theater group Red Dive (1996-2006), she brought audiences down Brooklyn's Gowanus Canal via pontoon boat (Peripheral City), through narrow streets of Lower Manhattan, and to historic landmarks like the Lower East Side Tenement Building to re-envision the buried stories of New York landscapes. This cross-disciplinary, experimental work that incorporated the work of dozens of New York's emerging artists garnered her a Bessie Award for 'performance installation and new media' and support by the Creative Capital Foundation, Franklin Furnace Foundation, The Greenwall Foundation, The Puffin Foundation, The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Meet the Composer's Fund, The Heathcote Foundation, and the Foundry Theatre's Emerging Artist Award among others.
Maureen's original movement-theater projects in New York have been supported by Voice & Vision's Envision Development Program for Women theater artists, New Dance Alliance, The Brooklyn Arts Exchange and the New York State Council for the Arts, BRIC Studios, the Brooklyn Arts Council and through independent artist residencies through The Field, and others. Her New York directing collaborations with dance artists and small companies have been presented in such venues as The Kitchen, Dance Theater Workshop, Joe's Pub, Joyce SOHO, PS122, New Dance Alliance and HERE Arts Center. In addition to New York and Los Angeles, Maureen's directing work has been presented in festivals in Chicago, Vancouver, San Francisco and Vienna, Austria. She is currently a national workshop leader for the Creative Capital Foundation's Professional Development Program. As a Rotary Fellow she received a Diploma with Merit in Drama from the University of Kent at Canterbury in England. She holds a MFA in Theater Directing from California Institute of the Arts (2009).
Maureen has taught directing to undergraduate and graduate students at the California Institute for the Arts and led workshops in acting, movement/voice and site-specific installation to students at Western State College in Colorado, Bard College in New York through the Voice & Vision Envision Retreat, and the Brooklyn Arts Exchange.
Maureen has taught directing to undergraduate and graduate students at the California Institute for the Arts and led workshops in acting, movement/voice and site-specific installation to students at Western State College in Colorado, Bard College in New York through the Voice & Vision Envision Retreat, and the Brooklyn Arts Exchange.
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Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Progress Report, Week #9
Final Project, Week of November 16th:
- Still hashing out a few little details with a director for "Exile" re: duties & responsibilities. I know, developing new work can raise a lot of questions about who owes what to whom, and who is willing to commit what. Trying to lay that out in writing for "Exile" so there will not be miscommunications later. Call me "little-miss-responsible".
- Submitted my first application for some grant money. Hoping for an interdisciplinary grant from the CalArts' Provost's Office for the "Exile" workshop. Every little bit helps.
- Approached video designer Roz Fulton for "Exile" and to engineer and oversee the project as a whole. She's up for it. Now I just need to find her some LA housing/transportation for the workshop & performance period.
- The Hollywood Fringe's application site went live this week. Deadline for applications is April.
And then I came down with some lingering sickness that I could not shake for days and days and days.
Next week is Thanksgiving so I am not optimistic about getting very much accomplished. Mostly thinking of ways to ask people for money.
"for the vision" -- Liz E
- Still hashing out a few little details with a director for "Exile" re: duties & responsibilities. I know, developing new work can raise a lot of questions about who owes what to whom, and who is willing to commit what. Trying to lay that out in writing for "Exile" so there will not be miscommunications later. Call me "little-miss-responsible".
- Submitted my first application for some grant money. Hoping for an interdisciplinary grant from the CalArts' Provost's Office for the "Exile" workshop. Every little bit helps.
- Approached video designer Roz Fulton for "Exile" and to engineer and oversee the project as a whole. She's up for it. Now I just need to find her some LA housing/transportation for the workshop & performance period.
- The Hollywood Fringe's application site went live this week. Deadline for applications is April.
And then I came down with some lingering sickness that I could not shake for days and days and days.
Next week is Thanksgiving so I am not optimistic about getting very much accomplished. Mostly thinking of ways to ask people for money.
"for the vision" -- Liz E
Friday, November 13, 2009
Progress Report Week #8
Final Project, Week of November 9th:
This has felt a bit like a "phone tag" week.
- I have engaged in multiple rounds of phone/email tag with various collaborators since last week. Good news is that we have stuff to talk about and want to talk about it. The tricky part is actually reaching each other on top of busy lives and a 3 hour time difference. I hope to actually have some substantive conversations over the weekend.
- I continued researching venues in earnest, and began inquiring about availability and fees. My working assumption is that I am looking for a venue that I can program for the Hollywood Fringe in June. Not necessarily exclusively, but that is the scope. One location, multiple presentatations within it.
- I drafted the following working "Problem Statement" (not that it's a problem, that's just my preferred method of attack) along with a Goals & Objectives/Timetable:
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I continue to be a work-in-progress
-- Liz E
This has felt a bit like a "phone tag" week.
- I have engaged in multiple rounds of phone/email tag with various collaborators since last week. Good news is that we have stuff to talk about and want to talk about it. The tricky part is actually reaching each other on top of busy lives and a 3 hour time difference. I hope to actually have some substantive conversations over the weekend.
- I continued researching venues in earnest, and began inquiring about availability and fees. My working assumption is that I am looking for a venue that I can program for the Hollywood Fringe in June. Not necessarily exclusively, but that is the scope. One location, multiple presentatations within it.
- I drafted the following working "Problem Statement" (not that it's a problem, that's just my preferred method of attack) along with a Goals & Objectives/Timetable:
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Project: MFA Final Project, Tentatively Collectively Titled "Elektra, Petie & Other Misunderstood Girls"
Problem Statement: Artists of multiple performance disciplines sometimes need a reason to reach beyond their comfort zone, to collaborate with other artists whom they might not have known or with whom they might not have imagined working. Audiences may not realize that they have an interest in new and experimental work unless something gives them a point of entry, and audience members tastes will vary. Will a variety of offerings stimulate their interest, and encourage their participation?
Questions I Seek to Answer: How can I as a creative producer jump-start new collaboration partnerships and set a tangible destination for a "work-in-progress"? What is a comfortable environment to create and present new work, and to invite participation from audiences at an early stage? And conversely, how can I program multiple performances by artists of different mediums in a "tasting menu" of sorts that an audience will find engaging enough to explore and visit repeatedly? Is this a presentation model that will encourage dialogue and participation across disciplines, backgrounds and the spectator-spectacle divide?
Goal: To commission and collaboratively develop new experimental performances through a workshop process, organized around a theme. To present these new performance pieces together as "works-in-progress" in a shared performance space, along with pre-show art installation and post-show musical entertainment to create a total experience for the audience. To use this informal workshop and presentation model as a means of encouraging interaction and dialogue between the artists working on different projects and between the artists and the audience, and give all a sense of participation in the ultimate event.
Objectives/Timetable:
- Commission of 3 Performance Pieces + 2 Performance Art Installations, Fall 2009-Winter 2010
- One workshop per performance piece to take place April-May 2010
- Inclusion of post-performance programming (Musical Acts), Spring 2010
- Presentation of All Pieces & Installations together in one venue (possibly as part of Hollywood Fringe), June 2010
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I continue to be a work-in-progress
-- Liz E
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Progress Report, Week #7
Final Project, Week of November 2nd:
- I have working title for the project, "Elektra, Petie & Other Misunderstood Girls". That seems to encapsulate the themes behind the pieces in the project in a way that I can communicate clearly.
- I have a lead on a venue. Need to follow up.
- Jen Barclay (Exile playwright) has a suggestion for a composer/songwriter she has just shared with me. Plan to look him up. I realized that some of my hesitation about working with people I don't know at all, is about expectation. 1) Getting them on-board with my vision, and 2) getting them to go along without any guarantee of financial resources. This has proven to be a stumbling block in confirming a director for "Exile".
- Now I'm working with a tentative budget. That's good, I guess, since now I have a clearer idea of the real scope of the project. And now I need to find away to raise the money. Sean (Rogue Artists) and I have been sending each other messages but haven't had a chance to talk. My assumption has been that we will be able to share the cost of producing their project. I also need to have a budget talk with Katie (puppetry project).
- Fundraising: Years ago I raised some money for a film project with a friend of mine. We never made the film, and we've held onto the money thinking maybe some day we would. It's only a few hundred dollars, but I have been told I can have what's left of the money. Baby steps.
- I've looked into setting up a small business account and made a comparison about creating a "Fictitious Business Name" (aka a D.B.A.) in either Los Angeles County of Kings County, NY. Considering I don't need a fictitious name to open a small business account as a sole proprietor I think it's more hassle to do now than it would be worth. I may change my mind in a few months, who knows?
- Working on a well-written project description to use for potential fundraisers and grant proposals.
That's all for now -- Liz E
- I have working title for the project, "Elektra, Petie & Other Misunderstood Girls". That seems to encapsulate the themes behind the pieces in the project in a way that I can communicate clearly.
- I have a lead on a venue. Need to follow up.
- Jen Barclay (Exile playwright) has a suggestion for a composer/songwriter she has just shared with me. Plan to look him up. I realized that some of my hesitation about working with people I don't know at all, is about expectation. 1) Getting them on-board with my vision, and 2) getting them to go along without any guarantee of financial resources. This has proven to be a stumbling block in confirming a director for "Exile".
- Now I'm working with a tentative budget. That's good, I guess, since now I have a clearer idea of the real scope of the project. And now I need to find away to raise the money. Sean (Rogue Artists) and I have been sending each other messages but haven't had a chance to talk. My assumption has been that we will be able to share the cost of producing their project. I also need to have a budget talk with Katie (puppetry project).
- Fundraising: Years ago I raised some money for a film project with a friend of mine. We never made the film, and we've held onto the money thinking maybe some day we would. It's only a few hundred dollars, but I have been told I can have what's left of the money. Baby steps.
- I've looked into setting up a small business account and made a comparison about creating a "Fictitious Business Name" (aka a D.B.A.) in either Los Angeles County of Kings County, NY. Considering I don't need a fictitious name to open a small business account as a sole proprietor I think it's more hassle to do now than it would be worth. I may change my mind in a few months, who knows?
- Working on a well-written project description to use for potential fundraisers and grant proposals.
That's all for now -- Liz E
Monday, November 2, 2009
Mission Paradox says something I wish I'd said: it's all about The Whales
All the questions we ask about many arts organizations:
Why don't they diversify their organizations more?
Why don't they do more interesting programming?
What don't they change their connection to the consumer?
All of them have the same answer.
It's because of the whales.
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Stay with me on this.
Let's imagine a fictional arts organization that has a budget of say, $7 million dollars a year. Let's say that 50% of that money from ticket sales. That means they have to raise 3.5 million from other sources.
3.5 million is a LOT of money to get via fundraising.
I know it may not seem like much, but really it is a LOT. Particularly when you need that 3.5 million EVERY YEAR.
Where are you going to get that sort of cash from?
Corporate funding/sponsorship? Not anymore.
Your endowment? That will be good for some of it, but not nearly enough.
Foundations? Please. Sure, they may give that big arts organization 50,000 a year, but that's a drop in the bucket.
Where is the money coming from?
The whales.
Or at least that's where they hope the money is coming from.
So the arts organization go whale hunting.
Most of their major decisions, the programming, who the Artistic Director is, etc. are all seen through this prism:
What will make the whales happy?
Read the full post here at Mission Paradox.
Why don't they diversify their organizations more?
Why don't they do more interesting programming?
What don't they change their connection to the consumer?
All of them have the same answer.
It's because of the whales.
-----------------------------------------
Stay with me on this.
Let's imagine a fictional arts organization that has a budget of say, $7 million dollars a year. Let's say that 50% of that money from ticket sales. That means they have to raise 3.5 million from other sources.
3.5 million is a LOT of money to get via fundraising.
I know it may not seem like much, but really it is a LOT. Particularly when you need that 3.5 million EVERY YEAR.
Where are you going to get that sort of cash from?
Corporate funding/sponsorship? Not anymore.
Your endowment? That will be good for some of it, but not nearly enough.
Foundations? Please. Sure, they may give that big arts organization 50,000 a year, but that's a drop in the bucket.
Where is the money coming from?
The whales.
Or at least that's where they hope the money is coming from.
So the arts organization go whale hunting.
Most of their major decisions, the programming, who the Artistic Director is, etc. are all seen through this prism:
What will make the whales happy?
Read the full post here at Mission Paradox.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Week #6 - Week of Budgeting
Week of October 26th
It's not that writing a budget takes a week in itself. Although for me, I admit, there is a lot of staring at the wall. And rubbing my forehead or temples. It's like if I rub my brain just right I will think better.
I also find that I need an hour or so of decompression from other concerns (read: my day job) that muddy my thinking before I actually can write down anything useful.
First there are my assumptions. You know what they say happens when one assumes. Except that making assumptions about the project is really helpful in shaping my thinking.
There's also the deciding which line item goes where. This is a non-traditional project that breaks down into smaller projects. I feel that differentiating between them in "micro" and then putting them together under one "macro" umbrella is the way to go. Knowing the budget of each component should make it easier to target fundraising, and hopefully make the accounting easier in the long run.
It's just that right now it makes my head hurt.
So there you have it, it's just me duking it out with a spreadsheet this week. My ideals vs my parsimony. I've posted my weekly blog early this week because it somehow makes me feel better. I don't have a budget completely written down yet, but I plan to my the end of the weekend.
Pass the ibuproefen -- Liz E
It's not that writing a budget takes a week in itself. Although for me, I admit, there is a lot of staring at the wall. And rubbing my forehead or temples. It's like if I rub my brain just right I will think better.
I also find that I need an hour or so of decompression from other concerns (read: my day job) that muddy my thinking before I actually can write down anything useful.
First there are my assumptions. You know what they say happens when one assumes. Except that making assumptions about the project is really helpful in shaping my thinking.
There's also the deciding which line item goes where. This is a non-traditional project that breaks down into smaller projects. I feel that differentiating between them in "micro" and then putting them together under one "macro" umbrella is the way to go. Knowing the budget of each component should make it easier to target fundraising, and hopefully make the accounting easier in the long run.
It's just that right now it makes my head hurt.
So there you have it, it's just me duking it out with a spreadsheet this week. My ideals vs my parsimony. I've posted my weekly blog early this week because it somehow makes me feel better. I don't have a budget completely written down yet, but I plan to my the end of the weekend.
Pass the ibuproefen -- Liz E
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Progress Report Weeks #4 & #5
Final Project, weeks of October 12 - October 19
Week of October 12th I had practically nothing to report. Some weeks are like that. I'd sent out letters of inquiry and follow-up emails and just hadn't gotten any response.
This past week things picked up.
- Katie Shook, puppet princess, is officially on board. She has two pieces she is currently working on, one with playwright Sibyl O'Malley, who I love and would like to work with. Having worked with Katie before I more or less know what to expect from her, so having her committed to the project was for me the important thing. We will talk in a few months about which project she is gravitating towards and focus on its specifics then.
- Closer to a director/collaborator for Jennifer Barclay on THE EXILE OF PETIE DELARGE. Maureen Huskey is interested in the piece. She and I are in discussion about the play and its parameters. Feeling optimistic.
- Got confirmation that Rogue Artists Ensemble is definitely in. That's exciting! And apparently THE GOGOL PROJECT which they are doing now is doing very well and they have extended.
- I've begun a dialogue with the Hollywood Fringe Executive Director, Ben Hill. The Fringe is still not open for submissions. What I am proposing essentially is to program a venue, and now I am on their radar. Ben gave me a list of suggestions, and a geographic guideline for where the venue would need to be located for inclusion. Like Edinburgh the Fringe organizers will do what they can to help me find and secure a venue, however also like Edinburgh I am 100% responsible for the cost. I'm just not sure that a rental is something I can afford, even in an alternative space. Or should I say, especially in an alternative space where I may have to provide lighting, sound & video equipment.
- Dates for the Hollywood Fringe are June 17-27, 2010.
- Next steps. For me, I just need to keep all these conversations going. I need to spend some time researching potential venues in the Hollywood area and see what looks like a good fit. I need to write out a preliminary budget and start strategizing my fundraising. You know, if anyone has a couple of thousand dollars lying around that they're not using, I'm a worthy cause.
More later -- Liz E
Week of October 12th I had practically nothing to report. Some weeks are like that. I'd sent out letters of inquiry and follow-up emails and just hadn't gotten any response.
This past week things picked up.
- Katie Shook, puppet princess, is officially on board. She has two pieces she is currently working on, one with playwright Sibyl O'Malley, who I love and would like to work with. Having worked with Katie before I more or less know what to expect from her, so having her committed to the project was for me the important thing. We will talk in a few months about which project she is gravitating towards and focus on its specifics then.
- Closer to a director/collaborator for Jennifer Barclay on THE EXILE OF PETIE DELARGE. Maureen Huskey is interested in the piece. She and I are in discussion about the play and its parameters. Feeling optimistic.
- Got confirmation that Rogue Artists Ensemble is definitely in. That's exciting! And apparently THE GOGOL PROJECT which they are doing now is doing very well and they have extended.
- I've begun a dialogue with the Hollywood Fringe Executive Director, Ben Hill. The Fringe is still not open for submissions. What I am proposing essentially is to program a venue, and now I am on their radar. Ben gave me a list of suggestions, and a geographic guideline for where the venue would need to be located for inclusion. Like Edinburgh the Fringe organizers will do what they can to help me find and secure a venue, however also like Edinburgh I am 100% responsible for the cost. I'm just not sure that a rental is something I can afford, even in an alternative space. Or should I say, especially in an alternative space where I may have to provide lighting, sound & video equipment.
- Dates for the Hollywood Fringe are June 17-27, 2010.
- Next steps. For me, I just need to keep all these conversations going. I need to spend some time researching potential venues in the Hollywood area and see what looks like a good fit. I need to write out a preliminary budget and start strategizing my fundraising. You know, if anyone has a couple of thousand dollars lying around that they're not using, I'm a worthy cause.
More later -- Liz E
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Progress Report Wk #3
Final Project, week of Oct. 5:
Feeling a little stalled. Trying not to fall behind on my timetable.
- Sent letter of inquiry to Jesse S. at Poor Dog Group, still waiting to hear back.
- Rogue Artists Ensemble was supposed to have met last week and Sean to present my proposal for collaboration. Haven't heard back.
- Did have some more in-depth exchange with Jen Barclay re: "Exile". Sharing ideas about directors, music, video, and other directions we would like to see the project go.
- Have part of a letter of inquiry to the Hollywood Fringe that I *have* to finish and send off. Every time I sit down to finish it something interrupts.
- Read through Karole Foreman's "Venus Hottentot" draft and I need to give her some feedback.
- Wrote a bio/artistic statement to add to this blog page, with the intention of sharing this blog with more people and using it as a tool to communicate about this project.
Feeling a little stalled. Trying not to fall behind on my timetable.
- Sent letter of inquiry to Jesse S. at Poor Dog Group, still waiting to hear back.
- Rogue Artists Ensemble was supposed to have met last week and Sean to present my proposal for collaboration. Haven't heard back.
- Did have some more in-depth exchange with Jen Barclay re: "Exile". Sharing ideas about directors, music, video, and other directions we would like to see the project go.
- Have part of a letter of inquiry to the Hollywood Fringe that I *have* to finish and send off. Every time I sit down to finish it something interrupts.
- Read through Karole Foreman's "Venus Hottentot" draft and I need to give her some feedback.
- Wrote a bio/artistic statement to add to this blog page, with the intention of sharing this blog with more people and using it as a tool to communicate about this project.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Alternate EXILE Blurb
Courtesy of the playwright --
Petie DeLarge, the great leader of the campus coup, has been exiled and the faculty of BumBums has once again taken their corrupted control of the Rummy student body. If Petie and her gang of Borgies and Bessies are going to regain leadership, they must first infiltrate campus under cover and get to bottom of the splattering suicide of sweet, flighty Wendy. An ensemble of actor/musicians rocks this tale of revolt. A Peter Pan/ Lord of the Flies/ Clockwork Orange remix with live music, mask and video.
Petie DeLarge, the great leader of the campus coup, has been exiled and the faculty of BumBums has once again taken their corrupted control of the Rummy student body. If Petie and her gang of Borgies and Bessies are going to regain leadership, they must first infiltrate campus under cover and get to bottom of the splattering suicide of sweet, flighty Wendy. An ensemble of actor/musicians rocks this tale of revolt. A Peter Pan/ Lord of the Flies/ Clockwork Orange remix with live music, mask and video.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Collaborator Bios & Project Synopses
Jennifer Barclay
Jennifer is a playwright and screenwriter. She presented her one-woman show based on the life of Olympian and professional golfer Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Clearing Hedges, at the San Francsico Fringe, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the International Theatre of Vienna, Austria. Her play Red Helen received a Kennedy Center workshop in 2009. Her plays have been produced and/or developed at Steppenwolf, Northlight, Piven, Remy Bumppo, Teatro Vista, Stage Left, American Theatre Company, Dog and Pony, among others. Jennifer has also had residencies at the Hawthornden International Writers Retreat in Scotland and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. Recently she has been named a finalist for the Samuel Goldwyn Award for screenwriting. Jennifer has an MFA in Playwriting from the University of California at San Diego and is a graduate of Northwestern University. She is currently the Playwright-in-Residence at South Coast Repertory Theater.
Sean Cawelti & Rogue Artists Ensemble
Rogue Artists Ensemble is a collective of multi-disciplinary artists who create “Hyper-theater”, an innovative hybrid of theater traditions, puppetry, mask work, dance, music, and modern technology. Through a collaborative development process, with an emphasis on design and storytelling, the Rogues create original, thought-provoking performances. Since its inception in 2001, Rogue Artists Ensemble has garnered critical acclaim, being dubbed "the most buzzed about new arrival on the Orange County theater scene" by the Los Angeles Times in 2004 and called by the OC Weekly “a genuinely imaginative and gleefully creative troupe of theater artists.” Their 2008 production of Mr. Punch received three LA Drama Critics Circle Awards, and is featured in a book on novelist and comic book writer, Neil Gaiman. The Rogues were nominated by the Los Angeles Weekly for an award for Mask Design for their production HYPERBOLE: epiphany, and presented with a special award for “Theater Oriented Puppet Design” by the Orange County Weekly. Their mission is to deliver storytelling and spectacle that piques the interest of theatergoers and non-theatergoers alike.
Designer and Director Sean Cawelti graduated from the University of California Irvine, where he received his BA in Drama with honors in Stage Direction. Sean studied puppetry at Tisch School of the Arts at NYU and has been a puppeteer since he was just a boy. In 2006 Sean was awarded the Technical Achievement Honor for Puppet Oriented Theater Design by the OC Weekly, and was nominated for a Los Angeles Ovation Award for his mask design work on HYPERBOLE: epiphany. He serves as the Artistic Director for the performance group the Rogue Artists Ensemble, which creates “Hyper-theatrical“ productions, incorporating puppetry, masked acting, original music scores and theatrical effects. Sean has designed puppets and masks for Cornerstone Theatre Company, International City Theater, The Rude Guerrilla Theater, Opera Pacific, NYU and many others. He has been awarded a Puppeteers of America 2003 National Festival scholarship and his articles have been featured in several national journals.
Aaron Raz Link
Aaron is a writer, a traveler, a philosopher, a performance artist, an educator, and the Director of the Museum of Nature. His memoir, What Becomes You, was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award in 2008. He has studied physical theater at the Dell'Arte School and Creative Writing at the California Institute of the Arts. His interactive traveling exhibition on the Outremer people was originally presented in Seattle, Washington, but the project is continuing to grow.
Katie Shook
Katie is a puppet and performance artist. She has a background in visual art, dance and physical theater, and is active in the movement toward more ecologically sustainable theatrical practice. Her production of Erik Ehn’s adaptation of the Godzilla myth, One Eye Gone, was presented at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe. Katie designed and created the puppets for Oh My Tiger! at Highways Performance Space. As a performer she has worked with the Manual Archives, the Velaslavasay Panorama and with the Little Fakers, as well as at the Santa Monica Museum of Art, the Los Angeles Toy Theater Festival and the New York Toy Theater Festival. Katie holds an MFA in Puppetry and Integrated Media from the California Institute of the Arts.
Elizabeth English
Elizabeth produces theater and multidisciplinary performance with the intention of transcending boundaries and subverting paradigms. In her artistic life she has pursued many interests from punk rock radio dj to opera stage manager. In 2009 she produced Erik Ehn and Katie Shook’s object theater and multimedia adaptation of Godzilla, One Eye Gone, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She produced the Chicago premiere of John Patrick Shanley’s The Big Funk, nominated for two Joseph Jefferson Awards, and the Los Angeles premiere of Thomas Bradshaw’s Strom Thurmond Is Not A Racist, which The Village Voice described as “wickedly shocking” and “unapologetically flaunts racial conflict”. Elizabeth has a BS in Theater from Northwestern University and is about to complete her MFA in Producing at the California Institute of the Arts.
THE EXILE OF PETIE DELARGE by Jennifer Barclay
In The Exile of Petie DeLarge a student protest takes an unexpectedly violent turn with deadly consequences in a dystopian near-future. A young woman finds herself thrust from the role of student agitator into that of a revolutionary outlaw and potential murderer. When Wendy fell from the window was it suicide or was she pushed? An ensemble of actor/musicians rocks this tale of revolt playing both students and faculty, with live music, mask and video.
THE COWBOY ELEKTRA adapted by Rogue Artists Ensemble
Set in a nineteenth century bordello, The Cowboy Elektra juxtaposes the classical Greek story of Elektra, who conspired with her brother Orestes to murder her mother and avenge her father’s death, against the backdrop of Spanish/Mexican colonial California. It is a fanciful exploration of the forgotten histories and myths of old Los Angeles centered around a young woman torn between family loyalty and revenge. To be told through Rogue Artists’ signature technique of combining music, mask, puppetry and multimedia.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Just Cuz
I got up this morning and read 2 Lynn Nottage plays. Just cuz. Because they were there.
It was refreshing. I read so many new scripts, plays-in-development. I was reminded what a play I really like and can zip through feels like.
And Lynn is also a total sweetheart of a person.
It was refreshing. I read so many new scripts, plays-in-development. I was reminded what a play I really like and can zip through feels like.
And Lynn is also a total sweetheart of a person.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Phone chat with Sean
Just got off the phone with Sean from Rogue Artists. Great chat, especially about the 'Elektra' project. Sounds right up my alley, and a workshop of it in May/June might be a really good opportunity for them. I was worried that they wanted to save it for the Autry, but with current budget constraints for the museum, this might be a collaboration that benefits everybody.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Progress Report Wk#1
Final Project, week of Sept. 21:
- Exchanged emails with Juli Crockett. She is still reading the draft of 'Exile' I sent her. I plan to give her a little more time and then check back in. I need to think of plan B for director and lyricist/composer. Maybe 2 people.
- Exchanged emails with Sean Cawelti. He's still interested in workshopping a piece on California history/women's mythology. I had been thinking "Ramona" and he's thinking "Elektra". Interesting. The plan is to talk on the phone tomorrow.
- Exchanged emails with Aaron Link about incorporating an art installation of his, and whether or not he is still interested. He is on a leave-of-absence from CalArts, but he is interested. To be honest, the art installations are of lower concern to me now than securing the performance pieces, but I hadn't spoken to Aaron since May and I wanted to re-open the lines of communication.
- Had a very interesting phone conversation with playwright/performer, Karole Foreman, who is currently based in LA. She sent me a couple of scripts with accompanying demo tracks to listen to. Don't know if I can fit a workshop of one of her pieces in.
- Still need to get in touch with Poor Dog. Struggling with saying "hello".
- Really gravitating towards working this final project of mine into the Hollywood Fringe. The dates are complimentary. My vision is very fringe-like, and it could get me a larger audience and a larger context for presentation. However, it might change the structure of the project. The Fringe hasn't opened its submission process yet. I need to write a letter of inquiry to Ben who is running the Fringe and get us into conversation.
- Need to compile bios of potential artists (and myself) and synopses of potential projects as soon as possible.
- I'm finding that the more I have to talk about my final project; what it is, what I want to do with it, the easier it's becoming to talk about it. I hope that writing about it feels the same way.
- Exchanged emails with Juli Crockett. She is still reading the draft of 'Exile' I sent her. I plan to give her a little more time and then check back in. I need to think of plan B for director and lyricist/composer. Maybe 2 people.
- Exchanged emails with Sean Cawelti. He's still interested in workshopping a piece on California history/women's mythology. I had been thinking "Ramona" and he's thinking "Elektra". Interesting. The plan is to talk on the phone tomorrow.
- Exchanged emails with Aaron Link about incorporating an art installation of his, and whether or not he is still interested. He is on a leave-of-absence from CalArts, but he is interested. To be honest, the art installations are of lower concern to me now than securing the performance pieces, but I hadn't spoken to Aaron since May and I wanted to re-open the lines of communication.
- Had a very interesting phone conversation with playwright/performer, Karole Foreman, who is currently based in LA. She sent me a couple of scripts with accompanying demo tracks to listen to. Don't know if I can fit a workshop of one of her pieces in.
- Still need to get in touch with Poor Dog. Struggling with saying "hello".
- Really gravitating towards working this final project of mine into the Hollywood Fringe. The dates are complimentary. My vision is very fringe-like, and it could get me a larger audience and a larger context for presentation. However, it might change the structure of the project. The Fringe hasn't opened its submission process yet. I need to write a letter of inquiry to Ben who is running the Fringe and get us into conversation.
- Need to compile bios of potential artists (and myself) and synopses of potential projects as soon as possible.
- I'm finding that the more I have to talk about my final project; what it is, what I want to do with it, the easier it's becoming to talk about it. I hope that writing about it feels the same way.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Is This Play Any Good? (July Fragment)
Having been an usher at a 320+ seat regional theater for the last two seasons, this is a question I've been asked a lot; "is this play any good?" I mean, our patrons are well meaning. In a city with a lot of potential leisure opportunities they choose to attend the theater. Tickets are $20-40 a piece, sometimes more for a 'hot' ticket. Many of our patrons subscribe or even donate additional money. Don't they have a right to expect that they will enjoy at least a percentage of the productions they see at a theater they support?
"Is this play any good?" they ask me. They cite reviews. And they complain about the last play they saw at (fill in the blank) and enumerate the ways in which it was disappointing. "I didn't understand it", "I was insulted by", "it tried to change my views about... but I just can't believe in that", and "I just want to be entertained". I hear these sentiments over and over. A recent favorite was the woman who walked out of 'Bengal Tiger in Baghdad Zoo'; "this is not a pleasant play", she said.
How to answer them? To be honest there aren't that many pieces of theater that I can wholeheartedly endorse. I sit down to watch a play with the cynical eyes of someone who has trained and studied and worked in the medium for 24 years (wow that feels pretentious to say. But it's true I started studying acting and performing semi-professionally at the age of 8). I don't want to discourage the audience members, and I don't want to patronize them either. Sometimes I fall back on citing reviews or the positive feedback I?ve heard from other patrons. I try to highlight aspects of the production that I think they will or should appreciate. But when it comes down to it, I didn't like 'The Little Dog Laughed'; although I thought Julie White gave a great performance, and I thought thematically that it was a good fit for the KDT, being just a block from a major movie studio and with a lot of audience members who work or have worked in the entertainment industry. I didn't like 'Taking Over', although I think Danny Hoch is a very talented performer. I didn't like 'Lydia', although I respect the time and effort that CTG and the Denver Center Theatre put in to developing the play in a time where a lot of lip service is given to new play development but plays and playwrights languish in staged reading hell.
...end of fragment
"Is this play any good?" they ask me. They cite reviews. And they complain about the last play they saw at (fill in the blank) and enumerate the ways in which it was disappointing. "I didn't understand it", "I was insulted by", "it tried to change my views about... but I just can't believe in that", and "I just want to be entertained". I hear these sentiments over and over. A recent favorite was the woman who walked out of 'Bengal Tiger in Baghdad Zoo'; "this is not a pleasant play", she said.
How to answer them? To be honest there aren't that many pieces of theater that I can wholeheartedly endorse. I sit down to watch a play with the cynical eyes of someone who has trained and studied and worked in the medium for 24 years (wow that feels pretentious to say. But it's true I started studying acting and performing semi-professionally at the age of 8). I don't want to discourage the audience members, and I don't want to patronize them either. Sometimes I fall back on citing reviews or the positive feedback I?ve heard from other patrons. I try to highlight aspects of the production that I think they will or should appreciate. But when it comes down to it, I didn't like 'The Little Dog Laughed'; although I thought Julie White gave a great performance, and I thought thematically that it was a good fit for the KDT, being just a block from a major movie studio and with a lot of audience members who work or have worked in the entertainment industry. I didn't like 'Taking Over', although I think Danny Hoch is a very talented performer. I didn't like 'Lydia', although I respect the time and effort that CTG and the Denver Center Theatre put in to developing the play in a time where a lot of lip service is given to new play development but plays and playwrights languish in staged reading hell.
...end of fragment
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Summer Theater Round-Up
Before I lose track of the performances I have been seeing lately:
- Studio @ REDCAT (May '09)
- Bengal Tiger at Baghdad Zoo @ Kirk Douglas Theater (where I work, or did)
- The Langston Hughes Project @ Watts Village Theater Co.
- OceanFlight/Oh My Tiger! @ Highways Performance Space
- Oleanna @ The Mark Taper Forum
- Stranger @ Bootleg Theater
- Imagined Spaces/Imagined Lives pt. 1 @ The Manual Archives/Automata
- La Didone - The Wooster Group @ REDCAT
- RoS Indexical/Spiraling Down - Yvonne Rainer @ REDCAT
Sorry, not critiquing or opining on them. Just recording for future reflection. Maybe.
- Studio @ REDCAT (May '09)
- Bengal Tiger at Baghdad Zoo @ Kirk Douglas Theater (where I work, or did)
- The Langston Hughes Project @ Watts Village Theater Co.
- OceanFlight/Oh My Tiger! @ Highways Performance Space
- Oleanna @ The Mark Taper Forum
- Stranger @ Bootleg Theater
- Imagined Spaces/Imagined Lives pt. 1 @ The Manual Archives/Automata
- La Didone - The Wooster Group @ REDCAT
- RoS Indexical/Spiraling Down - Yvonne Rainer @ REDCAT
Sorry, not critiquing or opining on them. Just recording for future reflection. Maybe.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Savvy Social Networking 101 - copied from Guidestar
Social networking, yeah, I use it every day. And so do my friends. But allegedly we are "early adopters". So I copied this from Guidestar, a site devoted to fundraising for Non-Profits. Food for thought, especially in advocating for the use of "Web 2.0".
Five Steps to Savvy Social Networking 101
During the process of attempting to "get found" on social networks, many nonprofits are instead finding themselves getting lost. How will supporters find us on Facebook? Should we be on LinkedIn? What’s a Tweet? How can we reach our base most effectively?
First, let’s back up a moment to define what the terms "Web 2.0," "social media" and "social networking" mean. For those of you who feel like you missed Web "1.0," think of the Internet in its infancy: companies and organizations translating printed collateral, brochure and "about us" information into Web sites. Static, one-way communication. Since then, the Web has evolved to a point where users want to be seen, heard and connected. Ta-da: Dynamic, two-way communication.
Rather than thinking "setting up a Facebook page" as a goal, slow down for a moment and take these five steps to make sure your organization is headed in a positive direction and on its way to helping you "get found":
- Before you worry about "being found," find others. There are people out there already talking about your cause. They might even be talking about your organization in particular. You needn't put a glass to the door to hear what they're saying; take advantage of free Web tools that will help you listen in, such as Google Alerts (see what's being said on the Web), Tweetbeep (see what’s being said on Twitter) and Technorati (see what's being said in the blog-o-sphere).
- Avoid feeling overwhelmed by taking baby steps. You needn’t be a social-media maven right off the bat. If you have no idea which resources are a good fit for your organization, check them out first! Put an hour on your calendar every week, two weeks, month, et cetera, to check out a different resource. Facebook today. MySpace next week. Twitter next month. Whatever the case is, answer the question, "What does my organization aim to gain through social media?" first. If you’re in a goal-oriented, strategic mindset, this trial-and-error exercise will make a lot more sense.
- Determine which outlets make sense for your supporter base. Even if you think Facebook is the greatest thing since sliced bread, your donors might not. Maybe they’re all spending their Internet time somewhere else. Rather than trying to attract people to where you are, go where the people are. If 80 percent of your donor database is 75-year-old folks, MySpace may (just may) not be the best for your on-line presence. Just saying.
- Get your act together. This means, "Get your content squared away." Though social-networking messages often appear to be off-the-cuff, a little planning can go a long way. For example, if you’ve decided that a blog is the appropriate place to dabble on-line, spontaneous blog entries may only get you through the first couple of weeks. Then, writer’s block strikes and your new readers are left wanting more while you’re out of steam. Prepare a library of content beforehand. You can even consider preparing content to give to your supporters to spread to their own networks on your organization’s behalf.
- Make sure your other supporters know you’re there. There are a number of your current supporters that may not be looking for you on Web site aside from your organization’s home page. Make sure you communicate the various options you have available for staying connected: create links in your e-mail marketing campaigns; include links and information in your personal e-mail signature; mention your social media presence at the end of your next event. Putting a "Find us on Facebook" button on your Web site is not a social media strategy in and of itself, but it’s still valid to give your supporters options.
For additional thoughts on the pros & cons of social networking as a (non-for-profit) business tool: Network for Good has this article.
For more information on Guidestar: here's the link. You can also find the 990s for any U.S. Not-for-Profit there.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Want this book
With thanks to my dramaturgy classmate, John D., who sent me the excerpt.
From our discussion.
From our discussion.
Re-dressing the Canon
By Alisa SolomonBook ReviewRe-Dressing the Canon: Essays on Theater and GenderRe-Dressing the Canon: Essays on Theater and Gender. Alisa Solomon. London: Routledge, 1997; pp. 208. $65.00 cloth, $19.95 paper. Re-Dressing the Canon, Alisa Solomon's important new collection of essays on theatre and gender, confidently spans the history of Western theatre. Solomon, a veteran feminist critic whose writings on theatre and politics regularly appear in the Village Voice, addresses the continuing debates concerning the politics of producing and staging the classics and invigorates a critical discussion that for many has reached a standstill. Her book sets out to demonstrate the historical relationship between theatre and gender--along with the shifting cultural ramifications of this dynamic relationship--from antiquity to the contemporary scene. She is interested in producing "a feminist criticism that investigates the way in which particular plays, presented in particular theatrical styles, encourages us to think about--and think against--social conventions of gender" (10). From Aristophanes to Split Britches, Solomon argues, theatre and gender have commented upon each other's artificiality, providing spectators ways of seeing and restructuring the distinct cultural investments that are upheld in each. Solomon's introduction unravels the links between gender and theatre and, in the process, provides a concise history of feminist theatre criticism. She rejects feminist criticism's often unchecked enthusiasm for Lacan and psychoanalysis and prefers a methodology that combines a Brechtian-based political engagement with a more comprehensive attention to actual theatre practice. In the five chapters that follow, she offers detailed close readings of specific historical case studies: Shakespeare, Ibsen, Brecht, Yiddish theatre, and three contemporary American off-Broadway "canonical crossings." Solomon's lively discussions of these playwrights and periods include critical engagements with historical and archival materials and focused readings of select performances; she demonstrates a welcome concern with making both of these relevant to a contemporary audience. Consider her discussion of Shakespeare's As You Like It. Solomon begins her account of the play's multiple cross-dressings and multiple marriages by examining Declan Donnellan's celebrated 1994 all-male production of the play with London's Cheek by Jowl Company at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The chapter begins with a snapshot review of the production, which includes a discussion of the production's staging, design, and acting; Donnellan's interpretation of the play's central motifs, ideas, and scenes; and an overview of the politics of staging Shakespeare in the 1990s. This provides the foundation for Solomon's larger speculations on the effects of Renaissance stage conventions and their relation to gender and sexuality. Solomon's ability to maintain her focus on a central thesis allows her to maneuver though the voluminous Shakespeare bibliography without getting lost in the metacommentary that often obscures contemporary Shakespeare scholarship. Such attention to the topic at hand--gender and theatre--pays off in her analysis of As You Like It's famous epilogue: Not only does the epilogue suggest that because men love women, the play should please both of them, in addition, the actor offers the play both as a mediator between men and women, and as an event that separates them from each other. It may even suggest that there is some territory, neither male nor female, between men and women, some non- or anti-gendered space that the boy-actress both occupies and signifies. Thus in the last forty lines, the play's pretty endings come unglued, heterosexual closure is rendered suspect, and erotic options become diffuse again, even extending to the audience. [25-26] Subsequent chapters follow this model of historical scholarship combined with close attention to theatrical production. Throughout Re-Dressing the Canon, I was struck by two things. First, I began to appreciate Solomon's unwavering commitment to theatre. Her chapters are animated, enhanced by provocative readings of actual theatre events, many of which are contemporary revisionist adaptations of canonical works. In a brilliant chapter on Yiddish theatre, she discusses historical productions and performances such as Jacob Adler's 1892 Jewish King Lear, various productions of Scholem Asch's 1906 play God of Vengeanceincluding its scandalous 1923 Broadway [End Page 549] run, the controversial performances of Sarah Bernhardt as Salome and Hamlet, and neo-Yiddish performances of the 1990s. Solomon devotes much of her attention here to the elements of theatrical production, vividly describing each event under question; her writing successfully negotiates the difficult challenge of combining plot description with critical thinking. Second, I was impressed by how helpful Re-Dressing the Canon would be in the classroom. This is a book that will be equally effective in introductory undergraduate theatre and drama courses and in advanced graduate seminars. It is generous in its survey of critical issues and historical facts, rehearsing the points necessary for an understanding of the specific era under discussion. For example, Solomon's discussion of Ibsen and the "New Woman" first presents an introduction to Ibsen scholarship and fin-de-siècle Europe, then details how Ibsen's explosive dramaturgy necessitated new representational strategies especially concerning women. Ibsen's innovative dramaturgy, she argues persuasively, "reveals the artificiality of the well-made play, and, as a consequence, the artificiality of the era's well-made woman. It questions the reliability of the artistic order and, as a result, the reliability of the social, even epistemological, order" (53). Solomon includes beautifully rendered readings of A Doll House and Hedda Gabler. These multiple critical maneuvers--literary criticism, performance-based review, new historicism, materialist feminist theory, queer theory--introduce students to the various ways we can begin to think and write about theatre, drama, and performance. Re-dressing the Canon confirms what I have long suspected: Alisa Solomon is one of our most important cultural critics, whose writings on the theatre consistently display an ever-expanding base of knowledge. Who else can write so extensively and with such pleasure on such a wide range of topics including Aristophanes' Thesmophoriazusa David Román |
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Oh, what a busy girl...
I see a lot of theater. Fancy that. In fact, I even hiked to NoHo today to a rehearsal hall that I would've mistaken for a funeral home if I hadn't been told differently, to see what I thought was supposed to be a workshop of a new musical. No dice, but that's a whole story unto itself.
Anyway, scorecard, the last two weeks:
Friday, April 10: 'Forgotten World' by Deborah Asiimwe, directed by Laurie Carlos, at CalArts
Monday, April 13: 'Much Ado About Nothing' directed by Mirjana Jokovic, at CalArts
Wednesday, April 15: Opening Night of 'Lydia' by Octavio Solis, directed by Juliette Carrillo, at the Mark Taper Forum
Friday, April 17: I participated in the MFA2 Critical Studies readings, as the voice of a rabbit, at Skylight Books
Friday Late Night: Irate phone call re: 'Lydia' at the Taper which necessitated the consumption of alcohol
Saturday, April 18: Trip down to the New Playwrights Festival at UCSD. Saw 'Clementine and the Cyber Ducks' by Krista Knight, and 'Obscura' by my pal Jen Barclay.
Sunday, April 19: 'Land of the Tigers' by Matt Almos and the Burglars of Hamm, at Sacred Fools
And, at intermission of "Tigers" I actually tore a page out of my program to write this list. I was afraid I was going to forget something.
This Friday coming I am going to the Opening of 'The Internationalists' at Poor Dog Group, which I am actually looking forward to. It sounds cool, and ambitious. I admire those Poor Dog Boys, and it was sweet of them to invite me personally. Their plan is to tour it to Eastern Europe this summer. I do want to open up a dialogue. If I can make my grand NY plan work, they'd be a great group to collaborate with.
Anyway, scorecard, the last two weeks:
Friday, April 10: 'Forgotten World' by Deborah Asiimwe, directed by Laurie Carlos, at CalArts
Monday, April 13: 'Much Ado About Nothing' directed by Mirjana Jokovic, at CalArts
Wednesday, April 15: Opening Night of 'Lydia' by Octavio Solis, directed by Juliette Carrillo, at the Mark Taper Forum
Friday, April 17: I participated in the MFA2 Critical Studies readings, as the voice of a rabbit, at Skylight Books
Friday Late Night: Irate phone call re: 'Lydia' at the Taper which necessitated the consumption of alcohol
Saturday, April 18: Trip down to the New Playwrights Festival at UCSD. Saw 'Clementine and the Cyber Ducks' by Krista Knight, and 'Obscura' by my pal Jen Barclay.
Sunday, April 19: 'Land of the Tigers' by Matt Almos and the Burglars of Hamm, at Sacred Fools
And, at intermission of "Tigers" I actually tore a page out of my program to write this list. I was afraid I was going to forget something.
This Friday coming I am going to the Opening of 'The Internationalists' at Poor Dog Group, which I am actually looking forward to. It sounds cool, and ambitious. I admire those Poor Dog Boys, and it was sweet of them to invite me personally. Their plan is to tour it to Eastern Europe this summer. I do want to open up a dialogue. If I can make my grand NY plan work, they'd be a great group to collaborate with.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Dramaturgy Notes 4/14 ... an alchemical 6th grade puppet/diorama on Greek religious themes
Theater: it's somewhere between storytelling and ritual, religious practice, invocation. Descended from harvest festival god supplications, the ancient Greek "theatron". To represent it physically I would need people, or representations of people. Some would be "spectators" watching, and the rest would comprise the "spectacle", that being watched. I mean, I personally have made the argument that you can have theatre without 1.) story, 2.) spectators, or 3.) actors; but in this semiotic reduction I hesitate to get that complicated. The space or container in which the "theater" was to happen would have to have a feeling of otherness, as if the space was only intended to be used for that purpose, or the act of having theater inside it set it apart as special, if only for the period of time that the theater was happening there.
I don't know why writing this reminds me of sixth grade and having to do a project on Greek mythology, and building a proscenium theater (with black curtain, no less) out of a shoe box and creating puppet cut-outs of god/characters to make my presentation. Showing was easier than explaining, and I remember the end result as a cross between a diorama and a puppet show. And that is a memory I didn't even know I had, by the way.
I struggle to define concisely what theater is without drawing a distinction with what it is not. I return to my interest in the relationship between theater (or substitute "live performance") and time. Once it is recorded it becomes something else; if written, literature, if filmed, film/video. The essence of theater is that it is a mutually experienced intangible, and how do you make a model of an intangible? I feel like I can measure and define some of its component parts, but not its whole.
I guess if I created a model there would be these two groups of people looking at each other in an empty space. The people's individual thought bubbles would be visible and would also feed into group thought bubbles. One group would move in a choreographed way, and there thought bubbles would remain relatively constant, at least at first. The other group would not move at first, but might move as individuals in response/reflection of what they were observing. Eventually through shifting individual thought bubbles the group thought bubbles would seem to form a kind of feedback loop, feeding off each other. Somehow it's this feedback, incredibly difficult to diagram or define because it is constantly in flux, that is really the theater part. The rest is just the preparation for making it happen, like an alchemical reaction.
I don't know why writing this reminds me of sixth grade and having to do a project on Greek mythology, and building a proscenium theater (with black curtain, no less) out of a shoe box and creating puppet cut-outs of god/characters to make my presentation. Showing was easier than explaining, and I remember the end result as a cross between a diorama and a puppet show. And that is a memory I didn't even know I had, by the way.
I struggle to define concisely what theater is without drawing a distinction with what it is not. I return to my interest in the relationship between theater (or substitute "live performance") and time. Once it is recorded it becomes something else; if written, literature, if filmed, film/video. The essence of theater is that it is a mutually experienced intangible, and how do you make a model of an intangible? I feel like I can measure and define some of its component parts, but not its whole.
I guess if I created a model there would be these two groups of people looking at each other in an empty space. The people's individual thought bubbles would be visible and would also feed into group thought bubbles. One group would move in a choreographed way, and there thought bubbles would remain relatively constant, at least at first. The other group would not move at first, but might move as individuals in response/reflection of what they were observing. Eventually through shifting individual thought bubbles the group thought bubbles would seem to form a kind of feedback loop, feeding off each other. Somehow it's this feedback, incredibly difficult to diagram or define because it is constantly in flux, that is really the theater part. The rest is just the preparation for making it happen, like an alchemical reaction.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Dramaturgy Notes 3/18/09
Since last week’s class I have been reflecting on Norman Frisch’s conversation with our class. One phrase that has stuck out to me is “going into a room together”. I think he said that, or something like that, several times. There is something so time and location based in that idea that encapsulates theater, and all live performance, for me. I was reminded of that when I went to see Frost/Nixon earlier this week. What I found so poignant about the performance was watching it, and these actors giving incredibly committed performances, in front of me in real time. I frequently do not enjoy watching theater at the Ahmanson. It‘s a cavern. I was drawn in to the performance anyway, and I can only imagine the impact of such a production in a space as comparatively intimate as the Donmar Warehouse (which I love). Film has many good qualities, but there is something about having the awareness when one views live performance and knowing instinctually that we the audience are in the same space and sharing the same oxygen with the action unfolding on the stage that has the potential to be arresting and transformative. Time can move at a different pace for all participants, and I can think of few other media in which that is possible.
I ran into Norman again Wednesday night on my way to work at the Kirk Douglas Theater. He was on his way to watch his friend, Mike Daisey, perform his monologue “How Theatre Failed America”. I confessed that Peter Sellars has been an inspiration to me, that seeing what he was able to do with the Mozart/Da Ponte trilogy was part of what motivated me to want to be a Producer, despite the fact that I have never had the opportunity to see any of Sellars’ work live (something I regret). Norman commented on how his work is much more supported and produced in Europe (something I also regret, I happen to think that American audiences might be into it if they had more of the chance to see it) . I think that Daisey’s piece would be more appropriately titled “How *Regional* Theatre (or the regional theatre movement) Failed America”, and I agree with him. My career working in the theater demonstrated to me that the system was defunct and that the institutionalization of art has created a self-perpetuating cycle that inhibits progress for artists and arts communities around the country. That Daisey at 35 looks to artists younger than he is to effect some kind of change depresses me a little bit, since I am already 33, and I think that is somewhat defeatist. We all want to find some way to sustain ourselves as artists and create viable arts communities, and yes that means with adequate wages and healthcare for ourselves and for our families (by adequate I do not mean “above minimum wage”, I mean income from artistic production affords a middle class American lifestyle with the potential for home ownership, the expense of raising children, and an annual vacation). Yes, being both an artist and a parent in this country becomes a revolutionary act; we need these basic supports, how do we go about demanding them? How do we communicate to our supporters that infrastructure is more than buildings and administrative staff? And now, in a period of intense potential economic and social change do we champion new possibilities or cling to the scraps of support we can find?
Maybe this isn’t the purview of a class on Dramaturgy. But if the point of the exercise of recording our thoughts on a weekly basis, this is what I have been thinking about. For me these are not new revelations, they are why I felt stifled as a stage manager, going from contract to contract trying to keep the rent and the insurance paid, without being able to contribute to the bigger picture of reshaping the artistic climate of this country. I see the structures, I see the cracks in their foundations, I feel this compulsion to produce in order to challenge the system, to come up with a new way. Now I find myself being offered opportunities in a commercial arena, which I never expected to have. Perhaps putting 25‘ tall dinosaurs into arenas or light rock musicals on the Broadway stage is not the highest expression of artistic excellence, but it employs artists, and if successful may allow me the financial means and backing to take greater artistic risks. Is this some type of Machiavellian cop-out of means justifying ends? I don’t know. This is what I wrestle with, I want to fulfill my artistic potential which seems to be tied to supporting the artistic potential of others, not unlike the rising river lifting all boats. I don’t know if it’s narcissism to think that I could make enough of an impact with a little commercial success.
I ran into Norman again Wednesday night on my way to work at the Kirk Douglas Theater. He was on his way to watch his friend, Mike Daisey, perform his monologue “How Theatre Failed America”. I confessed that Peter Sellars has been an inspiration to me, that seeing what he was able to do with the Mozart/Da Ponte trilogy was part of what motivated me to want to be a Producer, despite the fact that I have never had the opportunity to see any of Sellars’ work live (something I regret). Norman commented on how his work is much more supported and produced in Europe (something I also regret, I happen to think that American audiences might be into it if they had more of the chance to see it) . I think that Daisey’s piece would be more appropriately titled “How *Regional* Theatre (or the regional theatre movement) Failed America”, and I agree with him. My career working in the theater demonstrated to me that the system was defunct and that the institutionalization of art has created a self-perpetuating cycle that inhibits progress for artists and arts communities around the country. That Daisey at 35 looks to artists younger than he is to effect some kind of change depresses me a little bit, since I am already 33, and I think that is somewhat defeatist. We all want to find some way to sustain ourselves as artists and create viable arts communities, and yes that means with adequate wages and healthcare for ourselves and for our families (by adequate I do not mean “above minimum wage”, I mean income from artistic production affords a middle class American lifestyle with the potential for home ownership, the expense of raising children, and an annual vacation). Yes, being both an artist and a parent in this country becomes a revolutionary act; we need these basic supports, how do we go about demanding them? How do we communicate to our supporters that infrastructure is more than buildings and administrative staff? And now, in a period of intense potential economic and social change do we champion new possibilities or cling to the scraps of support we can find?
Maybe this isn’t the purview of a class on Dramaturgy. But if the point of the exercise of recording our thoughts on a weekly basis, this is what I have been thinking about. For me these are not new revelations, they are why I felt stifled as a stage manager, going from contract to contract trying to keep the rent and the insurance paid, without being able to contribute to the bigger picture of reshaping the artistic climate of this country. I see the structures, I see the cracks in their foundations, I feel this compulsion to produce in order to challenge the system, to come up with a new way. Now I find myself being offered opportunities in a commercial arena, which I never expected to have. Perhaps putting 25‘ tall dinosaurs into arenas or light rock musicals on the Broadway stage is not the highest expression of artistic excellence, but it employs artists, and if successful may allow me the financial means and backing to take greater artistic risks. Is this some type of Machiavellian cop-out of means justifying ends? I don’t know. This is what I wrestle with, I want to fulfill my artistic potential which seems to be tied to supporting the artistic potential of others, not unlike the rising river lifting all boats. I don’t know if it’s narcissism to think that I could make enough of an impact with a little commercial success.
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