The war in Iraq and the upcoming presidential elections are
inspiring theater artists to get political.
The White Horse Theater
Company has revived the little-known Sam Shepard play "States of Shock" at the
Abingdon Theatre Arts Complex in midtown. Meanwhile, at the Connelly Theater
downtown, Synapse Productions presents "The Orwell Project," a repertory program
of adaptations of George Orwell's best-known novels, "1984" and "Animal
Farm."
Director Cyndy Marion sees "States of Shock," written in 1991 in
response to the Gulf War, as an eerily prescient portrait of the United States
in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. Describing its surreal story of a
restaurant under siege, she said, "It's about how we're all dealing with this
time of fear, this time of uncertainty and loss."
According to Ginevra
Bull, artistic director of Synapse and director of "1984," the work of Orwell
resonates with contemporary questions of security versus civil liberties. "In
talking about the abuse of power, and the abuse of language to distort meaning,
he speaks about a lot of questions that people are asking now," she
said.
Both Marion and Bull insist their productions have no specific
political agenda. "I'm just trying to raise questions," Marion said. To
facilitate debate, Synapse has initiated an outreach program that includes a
symposium with local policy-makers and a mock election for students. "What we
want to do is inspire people, especially young people, to talk and to think and
to believe their voices count," Bull said.
After "The Orwell Project"
finishes its run on March 8, Bull hopes to create a piece of street theater and
a documentary about the Patriot Act.
Openly political theater is making
its way to larger venues as well. The play "16 Wounded," opening April 15 on
Broadway, addresses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with the story of a Jewish
baker and his Palestinian apprentice. "Embedded," a satire of wartime
journalists, will come to New York after a successful run in Los Angeles.
Written and directed by Academy Award nominee Tim Robbins, the show begins
performances Feb. 24 at the Public Theater.
Young Playwrights
Some
winners of the annual Young Playwrights Festival come to the form by accident.
Caitlin Montanye Parrish, the 18-year-old who penned one of this year's three
winning plays, says in her bio that she wrote her script, "The View From Tall,"
on a dare.
Others may have playwriting in their genes. Halley Feiffer is
the daughter of the writer and cartoonist Jules Feiffer, whose most recent play,
"A Bad Friend," had a run at Lincoln Center last year.
The brainchild of
Stephen Sondheim, the festival accepts submissions from new American playwrights
younger than 19. For its 22nd season, the festival selected three short plays
from more than a thousand candidates. The work of Parrish, Feiffer and Travis
Baker, presented as a single evening, will play at the Cherry Lane Studio
Theatre through Feb. 21.
Halley Feiffer, 19, a professional actress whose
credits include TV's "Law & Order" and the film "You Can Count on Me," had
not considered following in her father's footsteps before she won. Now, the
Wesleyan University freshman has another career path to explore.
"The
people who run the festival said to us," You guys may not have known this when
you were writing your plays, but you're all writers,' " Feiffer said. "It was
like an identity boost. They said, 'Yes, you can call yourself a playwright.'
"
Tidbits and Updates
High-profile producer and songwriter Marius
de Vries will produce a new recording of "Jerry Springer: The Opera," and a West
End show is aiming for Broadway in spring 2005. The CD will feature an array of
celebrity musicians performing songs from the show. No talent is yet attached,
but de Vries' impressive list of previous collaborators includes Madonna, U2,
Bj"rk and P.J. Harvey.
Isabel Keating, who plays Judy Garland in "The Boy
From Oz," will be the voice of Garland reading material for her autobiography in
a new documentary called "Judy Garland: By Myself" for PBS' "American Masters"
series. The film, which will air Feb. 25 on Ch. 13 at 9 p.m., is based on
recordings Garland made in preparation for an autobiography she never
wrote.
Raśl Esparza, Gavin Creel, Max von Essen and Laura Benanti are
among the Broadway stars who will appear next Thursday in a concert to benefit
the Matthew Shepard Foundation. Hosted by Charles Busch, "Embrace!" also will
feature the premiere of a song from the new musical "bare," set to open in
April. For more information, visit www.matthewshepard.org.
Hot
Ticket
One sure way to receive regular offers on discounted theater
tickets is to join the Theatre Development Fund Mailing List. Members of TDF
(which also runs the two TKTS booths) pay less than $30 a ticket for a variety
of Broadway, Off-Broadway and off Off-Broadway shows. The only catch: You must
be a student, teacher, retiree, civil-service worker, union member, clergy
member, performing-arts professional, member of the armed forces, or staffer at
a nonprofit organization to qualify. Apply at www.tdf. org/application, or send
a self-addressed, stamped envelope to TDF Application, 1501 Broadway, New York,
NY 10036.
