Recent Essays

In this installation, David Winitsky offers a brief history of Jewish theatre and shares insight on its future.

I believe that the future of Jewish theater is in the hands of those who identify themselves as both practitioners and Jews, but independently of one another. It is not about the Jewish theater practitioners, but rather about the theater practitioners who are Jewish. Since being a Jew doesn’t mean it’ll change the type of theater you do or how you do it, we need to focus on the fact that being Jewish changes your approach to it. And much like alumni of a certain school of acting have a type of shorthand with one another, so do a group of Jews.

I have been making apple scones / For a friend who died / Doug, my neighbor, whose last name / I don’t know

People kept telling me, "There are no small parts, only small actors" and "small roles can steal the show." And the more I heard it the more I convinced myself I was doing something wrong.

Theater is always a place for community. Often, a festival can provide a rigorous forum to investigate issues surrounding community. What is the need for stories? What is collective storytelling? How do we appreciate the role that performance plays in our ever-changing, cultural landscape? How is the moment created and for whom? How do we define a cultural landscape that includes forms, images, and ideas? Do ideas and images succumb to the whims of the moment or do they persist over time?

Jonathan Mandell looks at New Brooklyn Theatre's production of The Death of Bessie Smith, and the ways theatre sparks political change.

This week's conversation topic is "How does your life in the arts impact your relationship(s)?" and will be moderated by Hilary Bettis @HilaryBettis—who like all of our moderators, authors, and content producers—self-selected to peer-produce on this commons-based platform! This hour-long Howl will take place on Thursday, March 6 on hashtag #newplay at 11am PST (Vancouver) / 1pm CST (Austin) / 2pm EST (New York) / 7:00pm GMT (London) / 8pm CET (Berlin). On Thursday, get heard in the conversation by searching for #newplay in Twitter (sort by “all”) and by putting “#newplay” somewhere in your messages. Spread the word!

Director Jess K. Smith investigates women directors' use of language in theatre and calls for a revolution of women's use of language that is not apologetic, dominating, or rooted in fear.

Jess K. Smith calls for a “revolution of language” and a revolution is necessary. However, the revolution is not about language, it’s about creating a world built on respect, understanding, and bringing to an end a system of domination and submission. What budding female directors are doing when their words betray their confidence is allowing themselves to be thought of as submissive.

Holly L. Derr writes about how various playwrights have gotten hired from non-TV writing, and the diversity initatives drawing in new talent.