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American Teacher Features the Arts
American Teacher Magazine features arts education on its cover this month. I find the article to be a bit milquetoasty. It doesn’t make much of a compelling argument for arts education, mainly relying on anecdotal evidence. It also lacks a resource list for anyone looking to increase the amount of...
Working in the Arts – And Proud of it
So, apparently artists aren’t supposed to make money. Making money is bad. This mind-boggling concept, to me at least, has recently caught my eye as I roam the internets. Caught my eye and hit me over the head with a sledge hammer. Apparently, you can’t be both a entrepreneur and...
The Lasting Impact Of Our Town
Raise your hand if you’ve read, seen, or been in a production of Our Town. If you’re a lover of theatre then I’m guessing your hand is up. No, I’m not a psychic. Our Town has just passed its 72nd birthday and continues to be one of the most popular plays in...
I’ve never been to Arkansas before. I was invited to teach playwriting workshops and judge at the Arkansas State Thespian Festival this past weekend, which worked out smashingly well because I got to see a production of our musical Shout! So, let’s be frank here. Like most people, I was a...
Spread the Love: Among Friends and Clutter by Lindsay Price
This week we spread the love for Among Friends and Clutter, Lindsay’s very first play. Filmed live on location at the 2010 Missouri State Thespian Conference surrounded by teenagers embarking on their first theatrical journey. Click here if you can’t see the video above. Transcript Welcome to this week’s Spread the Love. This...
See Every Shakespeare Play in 40 Days???
Are you a Shakespeare fan? I mean, a BIG fan? As in, you’d be willing to watch every single play over the course of a summer? Meet Chris Judson, English teacher from Concord High School in Elkhart, Indiana, who did just that. Judson received a grant to travel the US...
Theatre is Territory
I just learned that Charles Nolte has passed on (January 14, 2010). My condolences to his family, friends, fans, students and colleagues. I had the pleasure of interviewing Charles for this blog back in October 2007. It was easily one of the most rewarding interviews I’ve ever done. He had been...
Toronto-based web wizards Haley Fiege and Chris Averginos have put together an awesome little teaser for our upcoming show. Please turn on your speakers and check it out here....
A cool theatre promo image that never saw the light of day
Or I guess it did . . . right here. This is a stock image combined with a found image. Ultimately, we rejected it because we felt it sets up expectations around “slasher”, when our piece is more a study of the meat of the brain. Cool image though. The genius...
5 shallow and unfocused thoughts about theatre
Thanks for stopping by. Sorry for the shortage of posts in the space. Been working on some different theatre and non-theatre projects. How the heck are you? Here’s some theatre stuff I’m thinking about: 1. The imagination gap is caused by the resource gap which is caused by the imagination gap ....
The second part of The Room’s experiment on the brain premieres at SummerWorks in Toronto. Check it out....
Address to the Jury @ Toronto Fringe
The story behind this Fringe postcard: “Designers are like secret weapons. Tricky to secure in low/no budget theatre but invaluable when they put their minds to it. DMeister Creative has clients like Microsoft, HP and SoftChoice (the same company that through our lead actor offered us free rehearsal space in...
Parabasis
But Let Me Also Scoop The Theatrosphere
By linking to this other Ta-Nehisi post (ha! take that!) in which he says this: I also think two things: 1.) There are assholes in the world who delight in being offensive. 2.) The presence of said assholes should not......
One of the problems of having the theatrosphere expand and become so exciting of late is that I'll save something in my "link to this and discuss it later" file only to find out smart people beat me to it.......
When I was a kid, snow in DC meant watching the Star Wars Trilogy in a marathon, with a blazing fire going in the fireplace, and shitloads of popcorn. Sometimes it also meant I got the real treat of going......
Just In Case You Weren't Sick of My Mouthing Off
Time Out's Helen Shaw interviewed me about the black playwrights convening. You can read it here. Enjoy!...
where my day job and my blogging life have collided, as we're talking about issues of bias and discrimination in theatre. It's weird, now when i read something for work, I can't wait to blog about it on Parabasis....
How Bias Works: Social-Role Theory and Role Incongruity Theory
"The most popular... explanation of the origin of stereotypes comes from Eagly's social-role theory, and Eagly and Karau's role incongruity theory, which focus on social roles as the initiators of gender stereotypes: `social roles are socially shared expectations [about people]......
Theater News
Reed Birney, left, and Marin Ireland in a oeBlasteda at Soho Rep. "Neighbors," a new work by the playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, "may come as one of the most sustained shocks of this theater season," writes Patrick Healy ....
As with awards' telecasts, beauty pageants can be a long slog through stage patter, swimsuit malfunctions, broken heels, and fire baton twirling-and yet, if an audience is lucky, there is sometimes one talent number that galvanizes the crowd into a spontaneous eruption of wild cheers and fanatical applause....
Jungle Theater Opens 20th Anniversary Season
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Super Sunday is not about football at `Faith Bowl'
It's tied by its name and air date to Super Bowl Sunday, but the Catholic "Faith Bowl" being broadcast nationwide has no link to football, unless you count talk about the saints....
Theater troupes stage murder thriller, interactive mystery
Audience members are likely to feel like they're on the party guest list when they take their seats at Barefoot Productions' upcoming production of Rope....
Pool, former jail among Texas' endangered places
Texas' most endangered historic places range from a former county jail to a drive-in theater to a swimming pool, a preservation group said Thursday....
FringeFamous
RENT! RENT! RENT! RENT! RENT! Hey, didja hear? Andrew...
RENT! RENT! RENT! RENT! RENT! Hey, didja hear? Andrew Rasmussen’s production of Rent has finally opened over at The Lab. It even got a nifty review in the Strib. Remember that wish that Jonathan Larson wished before he died that there would always be affordable tickets to see this musical…and then they...
PUTTING THINGS INTO PERSPECTIVE
PUTTING THINGS INTO PERSPECTIVE...
ANOTHER G CORP. VID BLOG...
OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE BLOG-A-THON
OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE BLOG-A-THON: Follow this. It’s good stuff....
THE BIG BLUE BLOG IS ALL GROWS UP! Ladies and gentlemen, the...
THE BIG BLUE BLOG IS ALL GROWS UP! Ladies and gentlemen, the above posted video is the first in what seems to be a series called Backstage with Romeo and Juliet. In it, we see actual Guthrie Corporation backstage happenings — things that normals wouldn’t usually get to see. And it’s...
Mmmmmmmm! Them’s some good Tuesday reads! Theatre Ideas Angry White Guy...
The Playgoer
It should obviously not come as a surprise that one of the exceptions to the President's proposed "spending freeze" beginning next year will not be the National Endowment for the Arts. In fact the proposed NEA budget in his 2011 plan is $6 million lower than the current level (still...
Spaceship Lands atop Lincoln Center Theatre
Welcome to the future--where apparently Lincoln Center will always be a balmy 70 degrees and patrons will all be smiling and somewhat medically sedated. Actually, like a slick ad graphic, the focus here is not meant to be the surroundings but that little rectangle on top of what we know...
Many of us rail against the functionality of the nonprofit business model in the theatre, but seasoned arts administrator James Undercofler has a nice provocative post providing an actual reasoned argument: Is the traditional not-for-profit, 501(c)3 (NFP) so cumbersome in its structure as to actually impede the very promise of its...
Little nugget of interest buried in Patrick Healy's front page Times article yesterday on the downsizing of Broadway musicals: For another major revival of his this season, “Dreamgirls,” which played at the Apollo Theater in the fall and is now on a national tour, [director Robert] Longbottom said he had the...
-Coming attractions of note: director Ivo Van Hove and actress Liz Marvel team up again on another great diva role in The Little Foxes at NYTW; the all-female Queens Players resurrects a real rarity, 18th century playwright Susan Centlivre's The Wonder; Melvin Van Peeples is alive and well and adapting...
-New statistical study of the Off Off Broadway scene (e.g. budgets, demographics, general "state of the field") now available from NY Innovative Theatre Awards. Haven't had a chance to look over it myself, but will soon. -Speaking of which, the Off-Off community is actively lobbying for a tax-break to their landlords....
Theatreforte
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Many of us in the theatre community are excited about the new Obama administration and what it could mean for future support and funding of the arts. Playgoer has a really great post on the subject: I'd rather put......
The Harrowing Demise of Jeune Lune
An incredible video interview with Dominique Serrand of Theatre de la Jeune Lune....
3 Shows, 4 Cities, 4 Weeks: Part the Second
Next up, The Internationalist opens in Columbus, after about 3 rehearsals....
3 Shows, 3 Cities, 3 Weeks: Part the First
Foolin' Around With Infinity by Steven Dietz - Granville, Ohio - December 20...
Harvey Pekar jazz-opera at Oberlin
On Jan. 31, Harvey's opera, "Leave Me Alone" makes its world debut at Oberlin College, just a 45-minute drive from Cleveland, Ohio. And as Pekar might say, if you can't make it, don't sweat it. The production will be......
Jane Fonda
The other night at the Paley Center, my friend Pat Mitchell who is President and CEO of the Center, invited Richard and me to attend the photo exhibit and screening of “The Black List Project.” This was the third part of the series of extraordinary interviews with African Americans who...
G-CAPP BOARD RETREAT AND CLIVE DAVIS’ PRE-GRAMMY GALA
Talk about going from one extreme… Friday and Saturday I chaired G-CAPP’s annual board retreat. It was cold and raining in Atlanta so it was nice on many levels to be hunkered down with this wonderful group of committed friends and co-workers. We had a very productive meeting including making the...
Associated Press My friend, the great historian, Howard Zinn died in his Santa Monica hotel room on January 27th. I was going to have dinner with him next Sunday. His “A People’s History of the United States” was a classic. I am told Matt Damon is planning on making a documentary...
RT @womensmediacntr Tell @CBS and @NFL to scrap Focus on the Family's anti-choice #superbowl ad! #underthebus http://bit.ly/7Zs8jq #...
Tell CBS and NFL to scrap Focus on the Family’s anti-choice Superbowl ad!
PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Rebekah Spicuglia, Media Director Women’s Media Center (office) 212-563-0680; (cell) 415-290-2970 rebekah@womensmediacenter.com Coalition of Progressive Organizations Demand CBS Pull Divisive Anti-Choice Super Bowl Ad January 26, 2010 (New York, NY) – The Women’s Media Center and united organizations dedicated to reproductive rights, tolerance, and social justice have launched...
How come time seems to be going so much faster. Man oh man! I had lunch with Billy Blanks today. I had never met him before. Billy is a former World Champ Karate, boxer, martial arts master. He made (and continues to make) workout videos called Tae Bo. We both felt...
London Theatre Blog
A Practical Guide to Theatre and the Web: Blogging
Writing a blog can be a powerful learning tool, it can promote critical and analytical thinking, both with regard to your artistic process and to issues at stake in the wider world....
Viewed in context, HALL is a necessary step in the evolution of audio-instructed performance to a form capable of telling big, sprawling stories as well as brief, compact ones....
Mischa Twitchin on the history of SHUNT and their new show Money
The conversations around Money started before Easter last year, so before Northern Rock, but after the Enron scandal....
A Practical Guide to Theatre and the Web: Introducing Social Media
One of the main reasons why you might use social media tools is that the entry barriers are low, both technologically and financially....
Alan Lane on Slung Low and They Only Come Out at Night
We're clearly part of a recent interest and enthusiasm for installations, of being put in immersive environments....
Even-handed and humane, Alison’s House is another timely and thought-provoking find from The Orange Tree....
THE BARKSDALE BUZZ: Behind the Scenes at Barksdale Theatre in Central VA
The Song (or Whatever) of Mulan
Posted by Bruce MillerEvery time I think of The Song of Mulan, I remember what happened eight years ago when we first contracted Paul Deiss to create the show for our touring operation. Schools were crying out for a fun way to support the new SOLs on ancient China, and...
Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful
Posted by Bruce MillerThere's good news and there's bad news.Let's do the good news first. Yesterday in sunny Las Vegas, a 22-year-old VCU broadcast journalism major named Caressa Cameron won a $50,000 scholarship as she was crowned Miss America 2010. Many congratulations to Ms Cameron for representing Richmond, her home...
Posted by Bruce MillerTwenty-one nonprofit arts organizations with annual operating budgets in excess of $1,000,000 currently receive funding from the Virginia Commission for the Arts. These 21 organizations are referred to by the VCA as "the majors." They are invited to come together twice a year for roundtable discussions concerning...
Time Again for "Acts of Faith"
Posted by Bruce MillerIt is time once again for Central Virginia's Acts of Faith Festival--the largest faith inspired theatre event in America. Now in its sixth year, Acts of Faith is a collaboration between faith communities and Richmond's professional theatre companies. This year's Festival began on Jan 15 and will...
Posted by Bruce MillerWhen First Baptist of Ivy Gap plays at Hanover Tavern from Feb 5 through Mar 14, it will once again connect Barksdale with Barter Theatre, the State Theatre of Virginia and our sister stage company in Abingdon.Barksdale and Barter have been close ever since 1967 when Barter's...
Posted by Bruce MillerI had a great morning today delivering two "Meet the Author" workshops at Luxford Elementary in Virginia Beach. I got up at 3 a.m., pulled out of Bon Air at 4 a.m., and made it through the tunnel by 5:30. Then everything came to a stop. Why...
Unscripted - A Blog for Actors - Backstage
We have to celebrate them, right? I recently auditioned for one of those pay to play networks where you can take classes with agents and casting directors, and sometimes they like you enough to give you auditions you would otherwise......
I have an audition for a major feature film in a few short hours. It's only my second feature film audition since I've lived in Los Angeles and my last one, I believe, was nearly two years ago. Oddly enough,......
"Okay, first you're going to slate and then show us your profiles." When I was about 16 years old, I came to a crossroads in my life: Do I look at state schools and major in creative writing or do......
I've started taking at least one targeted CD workshop every week or every other week for the past couple of months, and I'm hesitant to admit that I'm actually enjoying them, learning a lot and even gaining a little traction......
For those of you who are actively going out during pilot season or those of you who, like me, aren't there yet but one day dream of booking a series regular role this fantastic article by comedy writer Ken Levine......
The assistant director of the national commercial that my family & I were on avail for called me last week to ask if we were willing to work as extras. Of course we were! I can't say that I wasn't......
The Theater Loop
Black History Month: An exciting February should instead be an exciting year
Phillip James Brannon, Glenn Davis and K. Todd Freeman in "The Brother Size," part of Steppenwolf’s "The Brother/Sister Plays." • Getting to know Cheryl Lynn Bruce (published Feb. 5 by Lauren R. Harrison) In the last week or so, I've......
'Rush Limbaugh! The Musical' at Second City: It's Rush 1, Second City 0
THEATER REVIEW: "Rush Limbaugh! The Musical" ★★ Through March 24 at Second City e.t.c., 1608 N. Wells St.; Tickets: $25 at 312-337-3992 or www.secondcity.com At the top of Second City Theatricals' “Rush Limbaugh! The Musical,” we meet the show's hero......
TimeLine Theatre has snagged the Chicago premiere of Peter Morgan's "Frost/Nixon," the juicy drama based on the TV interviews wherein the colorful British journalist David Frost secured the first public apology for the Watergate debacle from the former President Richard......
'The Island' by Remy Bumppo: Athol Fugard's prison story is artistry in need of urgency
THEATER REVIEW: "The Island" ★★½ Through March 7 at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Ave.; Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes; Tickets: $25-$40 at 773-404-7336 or www.remybumppo.org. With Kamal Angelo Bolden and LaShawn Banks. When a repressive regime......
'August' at Cadillac Palace: Dysfunctional Westons still deliver a four-star pummeling
THEATER REVIEW: "August: Osage County" ★★★★ Through Feb. 14 at Cadillac Palace Theatre, 151 W. Randolph St.; Running time: 3 hours, 30 minutes; Tickets: $25-$80 at 800-775-2000 or www.broadwayinchicago.com • Estelle Parsons is bringing the family home (published Jan. 29,......
'Blue Door' at VG: Despite poetry, play about African-American anxieties doesn't add up
THEATER REVIEW: "Blue Door" ★★ Through Feb. 28 at Victory Gardens Biograph Theater, 2433 N. Lincoln Ave.; Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes; Tickets: $20-$48 at 773-871-3000 and www.victorygardens.org Louis, the highly educated central character in Tanya Barfield's drama “Blue......
Blog Stage - Acting in Film, TV, Theatre - Backstage
Entertainment Industry Opportunities - 2/5/10
Every week Back Stage posts hundreds of casting notices and entertainment-industry opportunities in the BackStage.com Casting/Jobs Database. Check out the following selection of new notices -- film festivals calling for entries, staff/tech/crew jobs, casting workshops, and more: 1. The Gallery Players: 'CITY OF ANGELS': (Brooklyn, NY) Seeking staff for City...
West Coast Casting Highlights - 2/5/10
Every week Back Stage publishes hundreds of notices -- casting notices, entertainment-industry job notices, and calls for submissions to talent contests and film festivals. Back Stage is the premier resource for actors, dancers, singers, comedians, and all performing artists -- plus those talented individuals working behind-the-scenes, including writers and crew...
Earlier this week, I encountered two very different theatrical events and two very different audiences. Tuesday I was reviewing Betty Buckley's new cabaret show For the Love of Broadway at Feinstein's at Loews Regency. Wednesday I was catching up with Young Jean Lee's Lear, an avant-garde take on Shakespeare's tragedy...
The Emmy-winning Fox comedy "Glee" will add three new cast members in its second season. Creator Ryan Murphy told Michael Ausiello of EW.com that the new roles will be an athlete boyfriend for Kurt, a rival for Rachel, and an R&B-singing "male Mercedes." The show will hold a nationwide casting...
Submissions are being accepted for the 2010 Francesca Primus Prize. The $10,000 prize is given each year by the Francesca Ronnie Primus Foundation and the American Theatre Critics Association to an emerging female playwright, artistic director, or director. Playwright applicants must have had a fully staged professional production of their...
The Guardian recently proposed that fake accents, because they are more often distracting than engaging, be eliminated from theater. Bad accents are extremely detrimental, of course, and an accent need not be necessarily "bad" to hold a performance back. In the Sydney Theater Company's recent production of A Streetcar Named...
The Sill
Ars Nova Announces 2010 Programming
Ars Nova Announces 2010 Programming Three World Premiere Productions: Missed Connections NYC Written by the Ars Nova Play Group Bloodsong of Love: The Rock'N'Roll Spaghetti Western Book, Music & Lyrics by Joe Iconis, Directed by John Simpkins A new play by Carly Mensch, Directed by Jason Eagan Four Workshop Productions: Outré Island Written and Performed by Christopher...
FOUND Continues its Sold-Out Run Feb 5
After four sold out shows in a row, FOUND is back at Ars Nova on February 5! The Story Pirates dig through the Lost and Found bin for this night of musical sketches based on the eponymous popular magazine. Imagining the stories behind lost gloves, discarded love letters, and even the...
Spend a Night on Outré Island!
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Ars Nova Announces Play Group 2010
New York, NY--Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jon Steingart and Jenny Wiener Steingart, Executive Producers) proudly announce new members for its 2010 Play Group. Play Group 2010 Play Group is Ars Nova's vibrant and eclectic group of emerging writers who gather twice a month at Ars Nova to share new...
A Special Offer From Ars Nova Veterans!
Congratulations to Ars Nova's Play Group member Annie Baker and Jollyship the Whiz-bang director Sam Gold on their hit new play, Circle Mirror Transformation, now playing at Playwrights Horizons. The show has received raves across the board and has now extended to November 15th. Friends of Ars Nova...
Ars Nova Offers Former Tony Voters Off-Off Broadway Consolation Package
New York, NY--In an effort to provide comfort to the theater critics and journalists no longer eligible to cast their ballots for the Tony's, Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director; Jon Steingart and Jenny Wiener Steingart, Executive Producers) will offer every former voter a Super Nova membership along with a...
'kül
59E59 is the most inconsistent theaters in New York City, a hotbox for theater festivals that almost always has three shows playing at once. This is actually a complement--they're putting on so much of what's new in this city--downtown stuff in at an uptown (and upscale, at least from an...
The Debate Society's You're Welcome; info here.2/5 @ 8:00Catherine Filloux's Dog and Wolf; info here.2/7 @ 3:30 Theater for a New Audience's Measure for Measure; info here.2/9 @ 8:00Patrick Link and Sharyn Rothstein's Prescription Strength Theater; info here. 2/23 @ 8:00Jon Maran's The Temperamentals; info here.2/26 @ 8:00...
A Brief History of Murder: Victims
There are a great deal of talented people involved in the Sneaky Snake Productions. There are also--joyously--a lot of nerds, who revel in making niche shows, like last year's riotous Adventure Quest, a spot-on send-up of classic text-based PC games. But Richard Lovejoy bites off way too much in his...
Photo/Aaron EpsteinEven if they've already grown up and left home, the question "It's 2:00 in the morning; do you know where your children are?" can leave some in a panic. Not so for the Carters: for the last six years, their twins, Lacy (Lauren Glover) and Skip (Nick Lehane), have...
Photo/Amanda CulpIf there's anything Clay MacLeod Chapman should have learned from researching the horrible deeds of the fast-food and livestock industries (to say nothing of the theatrical industry), it's that you can't rush it. Using a teaser cow's artificial vagina to capture prime bull semen may seem like a good...
Photo/Aaron EpsteinNot since Jollyship the Whiz-Bang has such an outlandish concept actually worked, but between Jonathan A. Goldberg's eccentrically beautiful narrative and Tom Ridgely's lavishly inventive aesthetic, The Luck of the IBIS is a top-flight production. Always one comically clever step ahead of the audience, Goldberg (who could just as...
Trish Short Lewis's Blogs
One small town in Minnesota...
The adventures of a Toy Theatre novice......
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Ruminations of a Decidedly Modern Lady...
...Contemplations on those who left, by those left behind...
I grew up somewhere near Lake Wobegon, but not too far from Walton's Mountain......
Blogway Baby
I believe! Last weekend I went to Santa Ana, California to see Shanna Palmer starring as Peter Pan in 3-D Theatricals' PETER PAN at the OC Pavillion. PETER PAN, a musical production of the play by Sir James Barrie,......
THE TALE OF PIGLING BLAND IN MISSOURI
We're Pigs! A production of the musical THE TALE OF PIGLING BLAND (book and lyrics by moi, Suzy Conn, and music by Mitchell Kitz) just finished at State Fair Community College in Sedalia, Missouri. They performed for over 4,600......
Clang, clang, clang went the Trolley! Last night I had my walk-on role in Village Theatre's production of MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS. Last May when I bid and won the walk-on role at the Village Theatre Gala, the......
I went to see the first preview of EQUIVOCATION at the Seattle Rep last week, (thanks Kathryn!). I loved it! EQUIVOCATION, written by Bill Cain and directed by Bill Rauch, had its world premiere at The Oregon Shakespeare Festival......
STEPHEN SONDHEIM AND FRANK RICH
Monday October 26 I had a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet both Stephen Sondheim and Frank Rich. I attended STEPHEN SONDHEIM A LIFE IN THE THEATER, AN ONSTAGE CONVERSATION WITH FRANK RICH at Benaroya Hall. We (of......
ENCHANTED APRIL AT TAPROOT THEATRE
I was lucky enough to catch one of the last two performances of Taproot Theatre's ENCHANTED APRIL. Despite a devastating fire last week, Taproot Theatre, with the generous support of Seattle Children's Theatre, was able to mount two final......