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THE OFFICIAL NEWSMAGAZINE OF WRITERS THEATRE ISSUE FIFTY-FOUR DEATH OF A STREETCAR NAMED VIRGINIA WOOLF: A PARODY APRIL 2016 PICTURED: MICHAEL PEREZ, KAREN JANES WODITSCH, JENNIFER ENGSTROM, JENNIFER ENGSTROM, KAREN JANES WODITSCH, PICTURED: MICHAEL PEREZ, TRUGLIA. PHOTO BY SAVERIO JOHN HOOGENAKKER AND MARC GRAPEY. Michael Halberstam ISSUE FIFTY-FOUR: APRIL 2016 Artistic Director Michael Halberstam Kathryn M. Lipuma Artistic Director Executive Director Kathryn M. Lipuma EDITOR Executive Director Chad Peterson Director of Marketing & Communications LEAD WRITER Bobby Kennedy LUX. BRAVE PHOTO BY JOE MAZZA, Literary Manager Dear friends, CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Jaron Bernstein Debra Pucé We seem to have been saying “Welcome” a lot lately. “Welcome to the Inaugural Season in our Director of Institutional Giving Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving new building.” “Welcome to our new home.” Now it’s “Welcome to the first production in our Kayla Boye Daniel Reinglass intimate Gillian Theatre,” and soon it will be “Welcome to our 25th Anniversary Season!” It serves Marketing & Communications Assistant Advancement Manager as a constant reminder of the immense step that we’ve just taken, and how thrilling the journey Kelsey Chigas Collin Quinn Rice has been and continues to be. We’re delighted to have you with us throughout this experience, and Education Outreach Coordinator Design & Content Coordinator hope that you’re enjoying our new home as much as we are! Krista Damico Nicole Ripley Marketing Manager Director of Education In this edition of The Brief Chronicle, you’ll hear from the author of Death of a Streetcar Named Michael Halberstam Ryan Stanfield Virginia Woolf: A Parody and learn about his inspiration in creating this delicious piece of satire. Artistic Director Special Events Assistant You’ll learn how the fully staged version of the piece came to fruition, and we’ll fill in a bit of Carly Magill Kim Swinton history about each of the four masterworks of American drama that lent characters and ideas to Associate Director of Institutional Director of Institutional Advancement the parody. Advancement You’ll meet the cast of Death of a Streetcar… and hear about their first experiences with their DESIGN characters and with the original plays that introduced them. They’ll also reveal what they find most LOWERCASE, INC. enjoyable about bringing those characters to life in this new iteration. THE WRITERS THEATRE BOARD OF TRUSTEES Finally, we’ll fill you in on the latest goings-on in our Education Department, and provide information about exciting engagement events—including this season’s edition of From Page to Stage, our OFFICERS partnership with North Shore libraries that offers a series of exciting events connected to Death President Christopher S. Pfaff of a Streetcar Named Virginia Woolf: A Parody. We hope that many of you will be able to take Vice Presidents Gillian Goodman, Beth L. Kronfeld, Michael Petersen, Mary Pat Studdert Treasurer Thomas Hodges advantage of these opportunities to go deeper into the world of the play. Secretary Richard M. Lipton Immediate Past President Elaine Tinberg Above all, as we prepare for our 25th Anniversary Season, we want to recognize the importance of Penultimate Past President Christopher N. Knight you—our supporters and audience—who both make the work possible and make it rewarding. It Member at Large David N. Knapp has truly been a joy to share this new building with you and to watch you discover its features and facilities as you help us bring it to life. It makes it clear that while this journey has been 25 years in TRUSTEES the making, it has only just begun. Arthur Anderson, Jr. Kathryn M. Lipuma Janice Beck Jennifer Litowitz Susan Belgrad William F. Mahoney So truly, from the bottom of our hearts: you are most welcome here! Julie Bernstein Thomas Mann Sara Cohan David McGranahan Yours Sincerely, Howard Conant, Jr. Lorel McMillan Joseph G. Dillon Roberta Olshansky Jeremy Farmer Christine Pompizzi Terry Franke Lizzy Scheinfeld Christopher D. Gould Stephanie Sick Michael Halberstam Seth Traxler Avril Klaff Linda Umans Michael Kate Nelson L. Levy, Ph.D., M.D. Pam Phillips Weston ABOUT THE DEATH OF A STREETCAR NAMED VIRGINIA WOOLF: DEATH OF A STREETCAR NAMED VIRGINIA WOOLF: ABOUT THE THEATRE A PARODY A PARODY THEATRE most significant literary icons. I was As the leading voice in the creative team immediately interested in taking the which put this delicious parody together, STATE OF THE ART piece to production but the big question Tim Sniffen has focused on our iconic was: could The Second City wait until memories of the plays he satirizes. He By Michael Halberstam, Artistic Director we were in our new building for us to has most directly borrowed from the proceed? Fortunately the answer was movie versions, as they are almost ‘yes’ and we decided that it would certainly the most firmly burned into the In the immortal words had the highest regard for The Second be the perfect confection with which collective consciousness of the average of Monty Python, “... City and had been particularly impressed to inaugurate the smaller of our two American theatre-going audience. What with their recent forays into opera and venues. is perhaps most remarkable about his and now for something dance in collaboration with Lyric Opera work is that although his evocations are completely different!” and Hubbard Street Dance, and so we both Stuart and I were both attracted to the clearly and obviously parodies, they are After the wonderfully gut-wrenching decided it was well worth the engagement. idea of co-directing. We felt as though lovingly crafted and created with nothing experience of Jordan Harrison’s intelligent there were strengths that we each could but respect for the original source and stirring Marjorie Prime and the Stuart and I collaborated on casting a bring to the table and that together we material. So whereas this entertainment brilliant and intellectually challenging reading, which we put together down at would create a really dynamic staging. is unquestionably parody, it will hopefully Arcadia by Tom Stoppard, we thought you The Second City to see how the piece Our collaboration for the design process send you out to look at the originals might enjoy some lighter fare to carry you might work in the hands of first-rate has been a testament to the regard again and perhaps spend an evening into the summer. artists. To our delight it held together and respect we have for each other. lovingly revisiting them either through the remarkably well. We met with The Second Furthermore, as we both had our hands films or by looking for theatrical revivals When Stuart Carden was the Associate City creatives afterword and offered a full with other productions (Stuart has of the same. Artistic Director for Writers Theatre, he few thoughts, and Stuart met with lead just directed Butler at Northlight Theatre came to discuss a new script with me. He writer Tim Sniffen, offering some very and I have been working on Arcadia I am usually asked at some point what I had been contacted by The Second City specific structural thoughts to create a here at Writers), we were able to tag want the audience’s take away to be from with regard to participating in a reading of more cohesive throughline. Within a few team appropriately and make sure that the productions we stage. In this case, a piece called Death of a Streetcar Named months Tim had a new draft for us, so we questions were being answered in a it is both the laughter and joy that good Virginia Woolf. I laughed out loud at the scheduled a second reading and invited timely fashion. Most importantly, I think parody can inspire but also a desire to title and asked him about it. He had looked a few friends. For the next hour and ten we’ve been learning from each other as reacquaint yourself with these marvelous at the script and thought it amusing but minutes we were treated to a delightful we each observe the other’s directing classics whenever and wherever in need of development. I have always laughter-filled engagement sending process. This continues to be a most possible. ■ up some of the American Theatre’s gratifying collaboration. PHOTO BY SAVERIO TRUGLIA. MEET THE DEATH OF A STREETCAR NAMED VIRGINIA WOOLF: DEATH OF A STREETCAR NAMED VIRGINIA WOOLF: MEET THE ARTISTS A PARODY A PARODY ARTISTS “Hey, you might not DEATH OF A want to leave that candle so close to the edge of your desk… STREETCAR NAMED you never know.” VIRGINIA WOOLF: He ignored me. What amazes me is how these shows A PARODY have insinuated themselves into our lives. Someone might not remember when they last saw A Streetcar Named Desire, if ever, but they can tell you all about Blanche A NOTE FROM DuBois. They’re a part of us now, a part of our common history and nostalgia, and that’s where this show dwells: with these Pictured: Tim Sniffen TIM SNIFFEN lovely, complicated, timeless characters Hearing the show But to have Writers Theatre take an American theater… met?” performed by the It was the end of interest brought to the project a new There is a meticulous, time honored Writers’ cast at our first level of excitement and authenticity. It another long day at process by which projects are assigned to table read, I made two also forced me to write a better ending writers at The Second City. If we can ever The Second City and important realizations: than “…and eagles swooped down and track it down, I’ll be fascinated to see what we had just finished carried them back to their homes or it says.
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