Recent Essays

Ann Liv Young’s Marie Antoinette at Under the Radar sparked a lot of controversy, namely for its treatment of the performers. Carmi recounts the theatrical experience that was unlike any they’ve had before—which was also true for the performers.

In leadership transition, structure follows values. Consultant and artistic leader Alex Meda makes the case for values-based cultural transformation as a crucial component of establishing shared leadership in theatre organizations.

Shared leadership is not revolutionary, and it is more than a trend. In this essay, Devon Berkshire and Miranda Gonzalez kick off their series The Evolution of Shared Leadership by exploring the generations of shared leadership practice—especially in theatres of color—and the contemporary push toward more collective leadership.

In 2014, Portland Experimental Theatre Ensemble embarked on a decade-long project translating and producing Anton Chekhov’s plays. Kate Purdum details how this project used fresh translations and imaginative theatrical landscapes to affirm the playwright’s relevance to contemporary audiences.

In September 2024, HowlRound and Company One convened leaders from the theatres in the Mellon Foundation’s Future of American Theatre Cohort. Dramaturg and Company One new work manager afrikah selah reflects on the experience and shares some of the group’s discoveries.

The Center for International Theatre Development’s LINKAGES programs foster long-term personal connections among artists. LINKAGES: Ukraine program director, John Freedman, details the program’s work connecting artists form different traditions, countries, and methodologies through conversations and theatrical exchange. 

The La MaMa Puppet Festival, which brought three weeks of puppet performances to New York City. The productions, writes Lucy Haskell, moved the material world to help us reconsider our own relationships to the worlds inside and around us.