In Boston, I saw a production of Hamlet
where three actors played all of the parts. They wore black
clothes and seamlessly moved into the characters. They all
remained on the stage during the entire performance, and when
not performing, they sat in chairs on three sides. It was very
interesting, moody, reverent. Also, when the Gate Theatre
brought their Uncle Vanya to Lincoln Center, their set
was so memorable. It was set within a wheat field. There were
paths cut into the 2-3 foot high reeds and covered the entire
stage except for the interior of the house, which was upstage
center. When the actors moved, the wheat chaffs swayed in the
drafts. Really beautiful.
Gabrielle Bernard
Chair, Theatre Department
Episcopal Academy
Merion, PA
There is a small company here in DC that is
dedicated to making opportunities available to people with
disabilities. Open Circle Theatre, while a company which
produces theater for adult audiences, provides a lesson for us
all – that the considerable talents of artists with disabilities
should never be overlooked. By casting and staffing their
productions with people of all ability levels, Open Circle is
leading the way in this area for a community of inclusiveness
that we should all strive for.
Karen Currie
Co-founder/producer of The Myth Project
Stage Manager
Washington, DC
I guess
"on stage" wouldn't really be the correct way to describe it...
but a few years ago I saw a production of De La Guarda at a
theatre in Union Square. The audience moved around in a large
dark auditorium as performers swung through the air and danced
wildly to heavy rhythmic drumbeats. The elaborate lighting and
spectacle they created was overwhelming. This was certainly not
a traditional piece of theatre, but it was so completely new and
exciting that I will never forget the experience.
Jennifer
DeBruin
Education Coordinator
Roundabout Theatre Company
New York, NY
What I've
seen recently is at the forefront of my mind, and Mary
Zimmerman's Secret in the Wings made a great impression on me.
In the play, obscure fairy tales were brought to life with
imaginative staging. The actors used everything on stage-props,
sets, etc. in creative and surprising ways -- it truly was
ingenious! Secret in the Wings is touching, inventive and
really struck a chord with me as I sat riveted in the
audience.
Taryn Essinger
Public Relations Manager
Seattle Children's Theatre
Seattle, WA
I saw Pina
Bausch once and even though it was dance there were people who
were moving about the stage in non-dancer ways that I have never
seen before. There were people jumping down from this huge
platform and one woman walking around with this accordion on her
back. It was so cool, and the story was very clear.
Also,
[Metro Theater Company’s] Earth Songs [by Jose Cruz Gonzalez]
was up there, because of the movement and lack of words and all
the cool visuals.
Anna Deavere Smith’s one woman show about the LA riots
[Twighlight: Los Angeles, 1992] was
innovative to me because of her ability to take me far into the
characters’ world without huge spectacle.
There was a play I saw in the early 90s in Phoenix with [Childsplay
Artistic Associate] Jon Gentry at Playwright’s Workshop Theater
written by Jere Luisi and I swear it was unbelievable. I have
never seen theater like that. The story was so unpredictable. I
remember I had chills and my mouth was open in awe because it
was magic.
Jacqueline Masei
Artistic Director
Playback Workshop Theater
St. Louis, MO
The
following experiences seemed innovative to me at the specific
period in time in my life:
Stage
Craft: The vertical split-set in Broadway’s Sunset Boulevard.
When that set flew up and there were two scenes going on
simultaneously, one on top of the other, I just thought that was
so cool.
Script:
The first time I read and then saw an August Wilson play I was
struck by his “innovative” use of music and poetic, yet not
heightened, language to express time, place, character, mood,
and social context so subtly yet poignantly and unmistakably.
This was something that few, if any, before or since have
captured, including Mr. Wilson himself.
Overall
experience: Seattle Children’s Theatre’s Go, Dog. Go!
To be able
to take a book with less than 50 different words, and not add
any to the script; to take a beloved children’s picture book and
make it come alive in a way that the kids embraced and
celebrated was truly remarkable. The marriage of script, music,
performance, and place created something unique and special in
theatre. It was something I had never experienced before—it is
one of my favorite theatre experiences, from any size or caliber
of theatre, ever.
Torrie McDonald
Literary & Publications Manager
Seattle Children's Theatre
To me, the
word innovative, when applied to art, denotes something new,
creative and different, but more importantly, something that is
effective enough to cause a progressive change in the way art is
presented and experienced. Given this definition, the most
innovative piece of theater I have seen is Underneath the
Lintel, by Glen Berger. Not only was it the most affecting play
I’ve seen, but it also employs an unconventional method of
engaging an audience by physically transforming the theater into
somewhat of a classroom. Presented with a single actor playing a
librarian whose method of storytelling most closely resembled a
college lecture, I was instantly transformed into an attentive
student, afraid of being called upon in front of the whole
class. Amidst a clutter of exhibits, a chalkboard and tape
recorder, I was pulled, almost unknowingly, into this amazing
story so completely that it left me breathless.
Hilary
Trudell
Playwright and Director
Washington, DC
