Some days the internet seems like nothing more than a jargon factory. It pops out new words, phrases and memes that we are somehow supposed to instinctively know moments after coinage and knowledge of the day’s watchword becomes a hard demarcation of inclusion or exclusion. It is imperative for those pockets of the internet that [...]
Indulge me in a little rhetorical drama, I have, on occasion, so indulged many of you. The USA needs theatre. We are a potentially free and democratic people, but when the citizens become disenchanted and politically disengaged, we disenfranchise ourselves and cede leadership to those who can tolerate swimming in a political cesspool. Theatre makes [...]
Mr. Landesman has responded personally on the NEA blog (did you know the NEA had a blog? I did not.) to the conversation/controversy regarding his statements about the supply and demand of the American theater. Its a great read, I highly recommend it, with much to agree with actually. After reading it, I have the [...]
FROM SOUTHERN REP, New Orleans, LA A CONVERSATION IN RESPONSE TO NEW PLAY PANEL When you talk about diversity – what does that really mean? If your audience doesn’t reflect that – what is diverse? If you want a diverse audience, are you doing work that would reflect that? Only the institution knows what kinds [...]
This week marks the third year of the city-wide new works festival I founded in Portland: The Fertile Ground Festival. It’s happening as I type this: 70 world premiere works of theater, dance, comedy and multimedia all over the Portland area for the next 10 days. And I will not be there. I will be [...]
I attended an inspiring and provoking event last night, the New York Theatre Experiment’s second “Generations” event, where Michael Mayer, Denis O’Hare, and Annie Baker talked about the future of theater. A lot of juicy topics came up, many of which I think would be fodder for their own panel – one of which was [...]
In the past twelve months, I have been a candidate in several searches for a new artistic director, and in three cases, I have been one of the last two or three standing. These experiences – these cover letters, interviews, meetings, discussions and also the crushing disappointments of that final phone call or email [...]
We all have regrets. We have the shows we almost saw, the times when we didn’t quite make it out the door, didn’t cross town, and then the show we wanted to see existed on Earth no more. It happened without us. We so wanted to go. We were tired, or we were distracted, or the cost was too [...]
Ah, the way a conversation develops in today’s online media world. To track the current conversation happening within the theater blogosphere about the ethical ramifications of dynamic pricing on the missions and non-profit status of arts organizations, you’d have to start with a #2amt Twitter conversation from over a year ago (now largely lost to [...]
My last 2AMT post – on civil discourse around the subject of pricing – generated a great deal of lively commentary. While some of what was said flirted with the gray area between “passionate” and “heated” – the former I consider intense and devoted, the latter inflammatory and aggressive – there were a great many [...]
Every Friday—really, consistently, every Friday—at noon, you’ll find a line around the corner at Hot Doug’s. Folks in line take photos. Here are a few. Every Friday night—really, consistently, every Friday—at 11 p.m. you’ll find a line around the corner at the Neo Futurists, for their 30-plays-in-an-hour show Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go [...]
Performance Art. Spoken Word. Don’t stop reading yet. David Sedaris comes to my town fairly often, once or twice a year. He can fill up a 4,000-seat theater, or quickly sell out an eight-night run at a smaller one. Last year, the Associating Writing Programs conference, a gathering of folks affiliated with BFA and MFA writing programs, [...]