Guests Jennifer Blackmer (Ball State University) and Marcus Lane (University of Montevallo) join host Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder for a deep dive into how theatre professors can help our students find a healthy, productive work-life balance.
For artists, getting a quality review of their show is often critical to continued success. It can make or break new plays and emerging artists. However, works by BIPOC artists have often been subjected to the white critical gaze in reviews, which has frequently not made any attempt to account for the complexity of culture outside of the reviewer’s own understanding. There has been a major push by BIPOC artists to counter the white supremacy of reviews, including who writes the critiques and what they write about. In this episode, Arti Ishak and Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel talk about their experiences as MENA artists and critics, how they negotiate the field of criticism, and what changes can and must be made to the landscape.
Playwriting professor Tom Horan talks about a recent dilemma he faced at his university: Should he add an official playwriting option for his students? Would that be ethical? In this piece, he presents his arguments for and against, and discloses his decision.
Jordan Schwartz discusses gentrification in developing neighborhoods, how artists moving in need to work with the existing communities, and what kind of change that can bring about.
Zach Donovan addresses the shortcomings of nonprofit theatre, the glut of self production, and considers Pop Theatre as an alternative theatrical vehicle.
Community and New Play Development in The Duchess of Stringtown
14 January 2018
Jordan Schwartz, director of literary programs and outreach at Phoenix Theatre in Indianapolis, discusses a project that originated at the Indiana Women’s Prison and culminated in a production in the neighborhood that was the setting of the story.
Noe Montez discusses Indiana University’s recent decision to discontinue the PhD in Theatre and Drama program, and discusses the need for public institutions to advocate for the futures of their doctoral students.
Disability On Stage and Off in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
22 November 2017
Talleri McRae interviews actors Mickey Rowe and Landon G. Woodson from The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time about casting actors with disabilities play disabled characters, and the power of inclusive casting.
Scriptwriter and dramaturg Maggie Sulc reports on her participation in two convergences or pop-up residencies with Indy Convergence in Toronto and Indianapolis.
Indiana Repertory Theatre and Childsplay presents three conversations from Write Now—a national effort to advocate for playwrights and to promote the development of new work for young audiences—livestreaming on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Monday 4 May and Tuesday 5 May. In Twitter, use #howlround & #tya. Follow @HowlRoundTV for updates.
The One-Minute Play Festival (#1MPF) and The Phoenix Theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana presented the 1st Indianapolis One-Minute Play Festival livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 24 March at 4 p.m. PDT (Vancouver)/ 5 p.m. MDT (Calgary) / 6 p.m. CDT (Winnipeg) / 7 p.m. EDT (Toronto) / 11 p.m. GMT (London).
When we do a talk back after our public performances of a Shakespearean play, there's a particular question that frequently comes up. This one question does a fair job of identifying the mission of EclecticPond Theatre Company (ETC). It's also the reason I signed on with the company shortly after it was formed in 2010. Invariably, this question comes from a well-meaning adult, and it always manages to surprise me that it has been asked again. “Do you really think that students can actually relate to anything in this play?”
We often discuss originality at Q Artistry, an Indianapolis based new works theater organization. We debate it and comb over it with dirty, bloody brushes or pluck at it with a solitary virgin pick. And we always come up with different answers. From talking bowling pins to singing bunnies, we've presented ideas in theater form that were brand new or re-imagined. We've set Edgar Allan Poe to theatrical music in "Cabaret Poe" and turned the villain from the oldest poem known to man into an experience for audiences in "Grendel".
In this installation, sound designer and playwright Tom Horan interviews Artistic Director Bryan Fonseca about the history and current status of the Phoenix Theatre.
Indy Actors’ Playground also gives working actors a chance to see their peers at work, a chance for theater professionals in the audience to see other sides of these actors, and a chance for students from local theater programs to be exposed to a wide range of plays. It gives our actors a chance to get past commercial considerations and ask themselves, “What do I really want to do?” In a largely dependent career, the chance to act on their answer can be exhilarating.
Our Shakespeare productions have become beloved Indianapolis events that draw over one thousand people per evening. We offer pre-show bands, food trucks, and beer and wine vendors. Audiences also bring their own picnic baskets: there are couples with tablecloths, candelabras, caviar and champagne, and families with buckets of chicken.
In this installation, Courtney Sale, the Associate Artistic Director for Indiana Repertory Theatre, gives an overview of the theatre scene in Indianapolis.
Janet Allen responds to our interview between Lynne Meadow and Gladys Chen, and reflects on the paths women have blazed for us... and how we can continue that tradition into future generations.
Riverrun Theatre Company presented Seeing Red by David J. Loehr, livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 9 March 2012 at 7:30 p.m. EST / 6:30 p.m. CST / 4:30 p.m. PST.
