Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Maria Alexandria Beech, Season Three | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, Maria Alexandria Beech, New work, NYC, NYC Theatre, Playwright, Season Three, Theatre, TheatreNow! Artists
Congratulations to Maria Alexandria Beech, whose new play HOMEBODIES will be read tomorrow in New York City. Alex was a guest on Season Three of TheatreNow! You can read a transcript of the interview at http://hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com/season-three/maria-alexandria-beech/
You’re invited to a reading of
HOMEBODIES
By Alex Beech
Directed by Michelle Bossy
The cast includes Socorro Santiago, Florencia Lozano, Cathy Curtin, Omar Koury, and Jorge Cordova
Primary Stages Studio, 307 W 38th St, #1510
Sunday, April 28th, 3pm
It’s a sort of farce. About upstairs/downstairs neighbors in a brownstone.
To rsvp, write readings@primarystages.org
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Murielle Borst Tarrant, Season Three, TheatreNow! Artists | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, La MaMa ETC, Murielle Borst Tarrant, Native American Theatre, New work, NYC, NYC Theatre, Season Three, TheatreNow! Artists
Tune in to a new show directed by TheatreNow! guest Murielle Borst Tarrant. Murielle’s episode will be posted soon.
LIVE STREAM PERFORMANCE COMING TO YOU FROM LA MAMA & CULTUREHUB
“Dante’s Inferno, a journey into hell, a life in Indian show business”
Tune in on Monday April 29th at 11AM EST
Streaming to you live at http://www.culturehub.org/live1
Directed by Murielle Borst-Tarrant
Featuring Nicholson Billey, Tanis Parenteau, Josephine Tarrant and Kevin Tarrant
Watch out when Indian show business meets the “Doctrine of Discovery”. A raucous political satire loosely based on Dante’s Inferno. A comedic, hard hitting look at the marginalization of Indigenous Peoples and appropriation of Indigenous cultural property in show business. Watch this 30 minute workshop piece and join us afterward for a panel discussion with the cast on “Self-Determination and the Arts.”
With special guests:
Tonya Gonnella Frichner, ESQ ( Onondaga Nation, Snipe Clan) President and Founder American Indian Law Alliance
Karmenlara Ely Artistic Director of The Norwegian Theater Academy
And
Muriel Miguel ( Kuna, Rappahannock) Artistic Director of Spiderwoman Theater
http://www.murielleborsttarrant.com
Filed under: Maria Alexandria Beech, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists | Tags: Adaptations, Anne Hamilton, Columbia University School of the Arts, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, Maria Alexandria Beech, Maria Irene Fornes, Musicals, NYU, Season One, Women Theatre Artists
Profile of Maria Alexandria Beech
By Anne M. Hamilton, MFA
Maria Alexandria Beech is a playwright and librettist living in New York. She has written over fifteen full-length plays, several as a member of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages Theatre, which co-produced her play LITTLE MONSTERS at Brandeis Theatre Company. Her full-length musical titled CLASS, with Karl Michael Johnson, was presented in a reading in May, 2012 at NYU.
AH: Alex, I know that you hold an MFA from Columbia University. Now you have a second, this time from NYU.
MB: It’s in musical theatre writing. It is a true honor. One would think that writing a musical and writing a play are similar processes, but in fact they’re not. They each require their own craft and their own knowledge base.
AH: What is CLASS about?
MB: It’s based on a play that I wrote in the writers group at Primary Stages, about a girl who is struggling with alcoholism and she signs up for a summer school class in New Orleans in 1987. And so this girl walks into the situation, and the professor has recently learned that she doesn’t have much longer to live.
It was a real challenge to adapt as a musical, in the sense that it is very much a play as it exists. It was an homage not only to a professor that I had, who was dying of cancer and who had to face students who wanted to use her illness against her, but it was an homage to professors and teachers I had had growing up.
AH: Tell us about your reading at NYU.
One of the things that I learned is that musical theatre is still very much about that well-made musical, that traditional structure of the well-made musical, and the opening number and the closing number. One of my goals is to still honor that tradition, but kind of also do other things and explore more. [I’d like to] not look at the book or the dialogue just as a bridge between the songs. I think the songs could be little kind of poems that stand alone.
Anne Hamilton has 22 years of experience in the professional theatre in NYC, across the nation, and internationally. She is available for script consultations and career advising through hamiltonlit@hotmail.com. Season Three of Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! launched with an interview with Kate Valk, a leading actress with The Wooster Group.
Download the interview here: BCWJ Profile of Maria Alexandria Beech by Anne Hamilton
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Season One, Yvette Heyliger | Tags: African-American Theatre, Anne Hamilton, Dramaturg, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, League of Professional Theatre Women, Los Angeles Theatre, LPTW, New work, NYC Theatre, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists, Twinbiz, Women Theatre Artists, Yvette Heyliger
Congratulations to Season One Guest Yvette Heyliger, who continues to perform her one woman show BRIDGE TO BARAKA. Catch her in NY or LA. Yvette completed an MFA in Playwrighting from Queens College a couple of years ago, and has returned to the stage as well as continuing as an active producer.
1 More Show in NY for Black History Month
1 Show in LA for Women’s History Month
Playwright/actor Yvette Heyliger is pleased to announce that during Back History Month she will be performing 30 minutes of her solo show, Bridge to Baraka, directed by Mario Giacalone in John Chatterton’s Midwinter Madness Short Play Festival. The remaining show is on Sunday, February 24th @ 4:15pm, Roy Arias Theatre, 300 West 43rd Street # 402 (at 8th Avenue). Tickets are $13.00. Click here to purchase your tickets today! A Talk back with the playwright following the show can be arranged upon request
Emboldened by the 1960′s Black Arts Movement, Yvette X stakes her claim as a female dramatist coming of age during the ongoing fight for parity in the American Theatre. Bridge to Baraka is Yvette’s first one-woman show and marks her return to performing since appearing on the NBC hit, Cosby Show. Martin Denton, nytheatre.com critic, said, “Heyliger has clearly carved out a successful life for herself since then as actor and then playwright/activist (she’s a notable campaigner for parity for women playwrights on the American stage).”
During Women’s History Month, Yvette is pleased to announce that she will be heading to the West Coast to perform Bridge to Baraka in the Los Angeles Women’s Theatre Festival. The show will be at the Renberg Theater on Friday, March 22nd @ 8pm. For tickets and information visit http://www.lawtf.org.
Photo by Miriam Berkley
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Kristin Marting, Season One | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Culturemart, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, Here, Kristin Marting, New work, NYC Theatre, Season One, TheatreNow! Artists
Congratulations to Season One guest Kristin Marting, who is developing a new show at Culturemart 2013 at HERE in NYC. It closes Feb. 10th.
Trade Practices is an interactive live art event, created by Kristin Marting and David Morris, which drops audiences into a living market in the trade of short, serialized performances wherein they examine the means by which they determine value and become actors—rational or otherwise—on an economic stage. Collaborators include Oana Botez Ban, Erin Courtney, Eisa Davis, Xander Duell, Chris Kuhl, Robert Lyons, Jared Mezzocchi, Qui Nguyen, KJ Sanchez, Jane Shaw, and Chris Wells.
Credits: Created by David Morris & Kristin Marting
Photo: Dan Nguyen
Tickets: All Shows in CULTUREMART:
$10 | Advance
$15 | 24-hours prior
Student Rush FREE with ID. Click here for more info.
Feb 9 & 10 | 8:30 pm
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Season One, Valentina Fratti | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Director, Dramaturg, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, League of Professional Theatre Women, NYC Theatre, Season One, Valentina Fratti, Women Theatre Artists
Congratulations to Season One guest Valentina Fratti, who will direct a production of the classic play R.U.R. on Theatre Row in January.
Resonance Theatre Ensemble presents:
R.U.R.
By Karel Čapek
Adapted By Lee Eric Shackleford
Directed By Valentina Fratti
January 9-30, 2012
http://www.resonanceensemble.org/season.htm
Featuring Kevin Bernard*, Mac Brydon*, Christine Bullen*, Tyler Caffall, Chris Ceraso*, Matt W. Cody*, Jane Cortney*, Charlotte Hampden*, Meg Heus, Brad Makarowski*, Sean Philips*, Corey Tazmania*, James Ware
Karel Čapek’s classic R.U.R. originated the word “robot,” and for nearly a hundred years, the play has been considered a classic, translated into every major language on the face of the planet. The plot is centered on a factory that makes artificial beings used in the service of humans. While at first these “robots” seem content with their function as domestic servants, a hostile rebellion soon arises that threatens the very existence of the human race. Lee Eric Shackleford’s adaptation brings the play’s characters, language, and themes into a modern vernacular while remaining as faithful as possible to Čapek’s intentions and vision.
*Appearing Courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association
An Equity Approved Showcase
Theatre Row – The Beckett Theatre
410 West 42nd Street
New York NY
Filed under: TheatreNow! Artists | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Dramaturg, Fan Mail, Gender Parity, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com
I received this wonderful email from T. Scott Wooten. It’s great to find likeminded theatremakers.
Dear Ann Hamilton,
First off, as a Theatre Worker i confess to being constantly remiss in reading American Theatre Magazine as soon as i receive it. Now finally reading the October ’12 issue, i came across the article showcasing your wonderful Podcast Show. Though i haven’t heard of or listened to your show previously, i am intrigued to do so.
The article compelled me to find your email address and write you. i am a 31 year old man who has worked in the theatre professionally and followed trends for the last ten years & it is my opinion that we must be creating new opportunities/jobs for Women in the Theatre.
it has long been an observation in my career that — for Actors — there are more Women in this business than there are roles. Also, i have observed 4 different educational settings for children (of myriad ages) to be introduced to theatre and overwhelmingly, the majority is female. Bottom line: the majority of the current/next generation of Theatre Workers WILL be Women.
For my part, i will, as a some-time playwright, create more roles for Women and i will spread this word to as many colleagues as i can to urge them to do so as well. But EVERY playwright regardless of their gender should keep this in mind — Women are & will be the majority of the talent pool.
i am most likely spouting opinions you already share, but i want you to know that for myself, as a Man, i will be championing Women as the Theatre Workers of the future.
Bravo to your Podcast, and i am looking forward to listening.
Happy Thanksgiving,
tscottw
T. Scott Wooten
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Maria Alexandria Beech, Season Three, TheatreNow! Artists | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Columbia University School of the Arts, Hamilton Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, Librettist, Lyricist, Maria Alexandria Beech, Maria Irene Fornes, NYC Theatre, Playwright, Season Three, TheatreNow! Artists
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! is a podcast series featuring some of the most exciting women artists working in the theatre today. Anne Hamilton is the producer and host. You may listen to the podcasts and read the transcripts at http://hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com
(Season 3, Episode 4, Recorded July 10, 2012)
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! Interview with Maria Alexandria Beech
Maria Alexandria Beech is a playwright and librettist living in New York. She has written over fifteen full-length plays, several as a member of the Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group at Primary Stages Theatre, which co-produced her play LITTLE MONSTERS at Brandeis Theatre Company. Her full-length musical titled CLASS, with Karl Michael Johnson, was presented in a reading in May, 2012 at NYU.
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions for the purposes of Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! must be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
Filed under: Season Three | Tags: Anne Hamilton, Dramaturgy, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, Natalie Pandya, St. Catherine's College
Welcome to Natalie Pandya, who joins our staff as the UK Program Assistant. I met Natalie through Dr. Roger Ainsworth, The Master of St. Catherine’s College, Oxford University. I studied the Philosophy of Aesthetics there as a visiting student while I was an undergraduate. St. Catz is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year. Natalie has completed research for the podcast on leading UK female theatre artists, and also on leading theatre training programs in the UK. We will approach the training programs to let them know about TheatreNow! this fall, and expand our audience overseas. Welcome, Natalie.
Here is her bio:
Natalie Pandya has just completed her degree at St Catherine’s
College, Oxford, where she studied History. Whilst at University she
produced a number of student-plays, interned at a production company
and has since begun work her own a screenplay. Her interests include
reading historical and historical fiction works and cinema. She is
extremely excited to be a part of TheatreNow! and hopes to contribute
much, with her passion and enthusiasm for the industry.
Filed under: Anne Hamilton, Margo Jefferson, Season Three, TheatreNow! Artists | Tags: African-American Theatre, Anne Hamilton, Columbia University School of the Arts, Cultural Critic, Hamilton Dramaturgy's TheatreNow!, hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com, Margo Jefferson, NYC Theatre, Pulitzer Prize Winner, The New York Times, Theatre Critic, TheatreNow! Artists
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! Is a podcast series featuring some of the most exciting women artists working in the theatre today. Anne Hamilton is the producer and host. You may listen to the podcasts and read the transcripts at http://hamiltondramaturgystheatrenow.com
Interview with Margo Jefferson, Theatre and Cultural Critic
(Season 3, Episode 3, Recorded June 26, 2012)
Dowload the podcast here:
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! Podcast with Margo Jefferson
Margo Jefferson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning cultural critic who wrote about books, theatre, and the arts for The New York Times for 13 years. Her writing has also appeared in Bookforum, Salon, The Nation, The Washington Post, New York Magazine, Vogue, and Newsweek, among other publications. Her book On Michael Jackson was published by Pantheon in 2005 and Vintage in 2006. And the essay she wrote on Michelle Obama, “Movin’ On Up”, was published in Best African American Essays: 2010. She also wrote and performed SIXTY MINUTES IN NEGROLAND at The Cherry Lane Theater and The Culture Project.
Download the transcript here:
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! Interview with Margo Jefferson
Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions for the purposes of Hamilton Dramaturgy’s TheatreNow! must be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
