Festival Foundations

This is the first of three posts about The Cohen New Works Festival, the largest collegiate festival of new work in the nation, hosted by The University of Texas at Austin. Two students will outline the development and foundation of the festival, capture happenings during the week, and discuss what the American theatre can expect as a result.

When I am asked what I love most about being a student in the Department of Theatre and Dance, my resounding answer is The Cohen New Works Festival. The 2013 festival stands as the most significant process in my artistic life; it taught me what kind of collaborator, artist, and scholar I want to be. In the time since, I have learned, created, and worked in order to move towards that future version of myself. I wasn’t the only one to experience the festival in this tremendous way: 2013 brought us many extraordinary shows, including Colossal, by Andrew Hinderaker and directed by Will Davis. It has since gone on to The Olney, Mixed Blood, and soon will be at Dallas Theatre Center. A single week managed to have a substantial impact on individuals and the American theatre alike. And that week is about to happen again. 2015 marks the eighth biannual Cohen New Works Festival at The University of Texas at Austin. This year, an estimated 8,000 attendees will see thirty-seven projects created by graduate and undergraduate students in five whirlwind days. The festival was created and named in honor of David Mark Cohen, a distinguished playwriting professor at UT. It is not just an event—it is a celebration of new work and of the next generation of leaders in the field.

This year, an estimated 8,000 attendees will see thirty-seven projects created by graduate and undergraduate students in five whirlwind days. It is not just an event—it is a celebration of new work and of the next generation of leaders in the field.

The Cohen New Works Festival responds to an active need in local and national communities by fostering the creation of interdisciplinary work and embracing practice as research in the arts. Leading up to it, projects are selected by a student committee and those involved—even those not in the department—can register for course credit. By factoring in credit hours for the festival, students who otherwise may not have time to dedicate themselves to large artistic projects can use those hours towards minimum enrollment standards, thus contributing to their grade point average and university funding. “Festival credit” used to be an independent study credit—this new development creates an opportunity for future new works festivals to gain larger recognition from administration at The University of Texas, one of the largest research institutions in the nation. Leading the national trend of production as pedagogy in performer training, the faculty at UT has carefully woven the festival into the fabric of the department since its inception in 2001. Classes the week of the festival are cancelled and repurposed for students to use their knowledge to demonstrate understanding and push their skills in areas they’ve already studied; this shows mentors what future classes should include. Critical inquiry begins with the application and is continuously applied through auditions, workshops, rehearsals, and interdisciplinary collaborations, all of which culminates in the work of the festival. Students holding each other accountable and pushing their artistic limits establishes the foundation of the festival—all are eager to celebrate one another’s passions in hopes of taking their ideas to the next level.

Every festival is unique, which is part of the excitement. Students apply with projects at various stages of development, hoping to make a piece of theatre, dance, or installation that speaks to them as members of the community. Many of these works relate to relevant social issues and involve in-depth research as a part of the development process. During the 2015 Festival, some of the topics discussed through performance or installation will be: physical and mental ability (Eye See…Eye Forget), domestic and sexual violence (No More and Tell___.), the sustainability of activism (Emma When You Need Her), institutionalized violence against people of color (TwentyEight), access to women’s healthcare in the state of Texas (Road Trip), and the role of student debt in the lives of our nation’s young people (Mad and a Goat). The variety and depth of these projects reflects the avidity of the student body to present work that is meaningful and relevant to the present. Many of the thirty-seven projects in this year’s festival will have a significant life outside of it, impacting the department, communities, and landscape of American performance.

The comprehensive and robust dedication to the festival is the direct result of faculty members in the Department of Theatre and Dance. David Mark Cohen championed new work and died young, and so Suzan Zeder, another distinguished theatremaker and professor created the festival in his name. The legacy of these leaders is so great that every two years, the largest theatre and dance department in the nation replaces a show in its season with this—absolutely free—festival. As students, we take on the most challenging work of our artistic lives thus far: we apply with passion projects, we audition, we ask our peers to work with us, and all along the way, we experience joy, disappointments, disagreements, and celebrations. The artists and the art that come out of this program demonstrate the groundbreaking nature of The Cohen New Works Festival.

***

Photos by Lawrence Peart, courtesy of The University of Texas at Austin.