OCTOBER 2018 Oct 12–Nov 11 by J.T. Rogers directed by John Langs October 2018 Volume 15, No. 2 FALL 2018 Paul Heppner President Mike Hathaway Contents Vice President Feature Kajsa Puckett 3 The Future is Female Vice President, Marketing & Business Development Dialogue Genay Genereux 9 Courtney Sale on Accounting & Office Manager The Velveteen Rabbit Production at Seattle Children's Susan Peterson Theatre Design & Production Director 13 Geoff Larson on Jennifer Sugden Assistant Production Manager illuminating literature with music Ana Alvira, Stevie VanBronkhorst Production Artists and Graphic Designers Intermission Brain Transmission Sales 15 Test yourself with our Amelia Heppner, Marilyn Kallins, Terri Reed trivia quiz! San Francisco/Bay Area Account Executives Encore Stages is an Encore Arts Joey Chapman, Brieanna Hansen, Program that features stories about Ann Manning, Wendy Pedersen Seattle Area Account Executives our local arts community alongside information about performances. Carol Yip Encore Arts Programs are publications Sales Coordinator of Encore Media Group. We also publish Marketing City Arts, a monthly arts & culture Shaun Swick magazine, and specialty publications, Senior Designer & Digital Lead including the Offical Seattle Pride Guide and the SIFF Guide and Catalog. Learn Ciara Caya Marketing Coordinator more at encoremediagroup.com Encore Media Group Encore Stages features the Corporate Office following organizations: 425 North 85th Street Seattle, WA 98103 p 800.308.2898 | 206.443.0445 f 206.443.1246 [email protected] www.encoremediagroup.com Encore Arts Programs and Encore Stages are published monthly by Encore Media Group to serve musical and theatrical events in the Puget Sound and San Francisco Bay Areas. All rights reserved. ©2018 Encore Media Group. Reproduction without written permission is prohibited. 2 ENCORE STAGES The Future (of Seattle Theatre) is Female (from left) Haysam Kadri as Rasheed, Arden Pala as Zalmai, Nadine Malouf as Laila, Nikita Tewani as Aziza and Denmo Ibrahim as Mariam in A Thousand Splendid Suns, A.C.T. San Francisco. Photo by Jim Cox. Female playwright- According to a nationwide study by genderqueer and non-binary conducted by Theatre Communications folks, which only make up 0.004% director teams are still Group, during the 2016–17 theatre of produced plays nationwide. a rarity nationwide, season, only 26% of produced plays were written by female playwrights. This But theatre companies across Seattle but this fall is full of statistic is personal to me. I’m a female- are doing their part to balance the women-led projects. identifying playwright working nation- scales and bring gender parity to ally. I’m a speck on that scale, but I do their stages. I had the opportunity to Danielle Mohlman count. Which is why I’m a little ashamed speak with women championing other explores four plays to say I was actually excited to see this women—artists from Seattle Repertory number. For several years, I’d been Theatre, ArtsWest, Washington coming to Seattle telling folks that female playwrights Ensemble Theatre and Seattle Public that showcase the make up only 20% of produced plays. Theatre. These theatres are not only That six percent jump—that’s huge! producing plays by female playwrights, talent, wit and power they’re also enlisting female directors of women. I don’t have to tell you that 26% to take the reins. Females are strong as is an abysmal statistic. And this hell, y’all. number doesn’t even include plays encoremediagroup.com/programs 3 Nadine Malouf as Laila and Antoine Yared as Tariq in A Thousand Splendid Suns, The cast, musician and composer, David Coulter, in A Thousand Splendid Suns, A.C.T. A.C.T. San Francisco. Photo by Jim Cox. San Francisco. Photo by Jim Cox. Carey Perloff, director of A Thousand playwright for the job. She was familiar The play just finished a run at A.C.T. Splendid Suns at Seattle Repertory with Ursula Rani Sarma’s writing in San Francisco, part of a planned Theatre, fell in love with Khaled through a play produced at A.C.T.’s collaboration between A.C.T. and Hosseini’s novel—of the same name— Young Conservatory. Perloff was drawn Seattle Repertory Theatre. as soon as she read it. She was directing to the poetry of Sarma’s playwriting. Scorched by Wajdi Mouawad, a play “I have always found Seattle audi- set in the Middle East, at the time and ences to be adventurous, engaged turned to Hosseini’s novel as a piece of and generous,” Perloff said. “I also research and inspiration. She found the “The fact that I, a know that Seattle audiences are novel so richly drawn, so captivating, young woman of excited about work from diverse that she wanted to see the story on cultures and multiple points of stage—as soon as possible. Perloff, then color, get to direct view. This is such an unusual piece the artistic director of A.C.T. in San in every way, both in terms of form Francisco, met with Hosseini, who lives this piece . means and content, so it’s exciting to think in the Bay Area, and asked if he would that the seats at the of it playing in a city with such a consider allowing A.C.T. to adapt his strong theatre tradition and a really novel for the stage. table are shifting . .” committed public.” “For the most part, when we read news Perloff was quick to add that this isn’t a about Afghanistan it focuses on war “She has a stunning visual sense and literal adaptation of Khaled Hosseini’s and destruction,” Perloff said. “But A an ability to convey extreme emotion novel. Rather, it’s a reimagining— Thousand Splendid Sunsis a gorgeous without excess,” Perloff said. Sarma had utilizing all the tools of theatre at its story of three generations of women experience writing adaptations, which disposal, including live scoring using over a twenty-five-year period, forging was important to Perloff. But more found instruments like saws and bed a very unlikely friendship and finding importantly, she had a connection springs to create the music of this love—and even joy—in a whole new to Afghanistan and the characters world. future, amidst political chaos.” Hosseini had created. “She knew the part of the world that Khaled was “Seattle is in for a treat!” Perloff said. Once Hosseini agreed to the adapta- writing about, so her lens was personal, tion, Perloff set out to find the perfect intimate and true.” 4 ENCORE STAGES A Thousand Splendid Sunsruns October 5 to November 10 at Seattle Repertory Theatre. Dominique Morisseau’s Skeleton Crew, the final play in her three-play cycle “The Detroit Projects,” was the third most produced play in the United States last season. It’s also the play that ArtsWest has chosen to open their 2018–19 season—an ensemble drama about one of the last auto stamping plants in Detroit and the people who work there. Jay O’Leary, the play’s director, describes Skeleton Crew as a play about survival Jason Bowen, Caroline Stefanie Clay and Shannon Dorsey in Skeleton Crew, Studio and having power over your own soul. Theatre. Photo by Teresa Wood. “Skeleton Crew explores how we persevere,” O’Leary said. “The humans within this play are very good at what they do. They are funny. They are smart. They are passionate. The key to surviving and thriving in life in general is how we fight. Do we fight with the soul in mind or do we fight with bitterness and ugliness within our hearts? These questions directly apply to our socio-political climate right now. The more ugliness we give, the more ugliness we receive.” O’Leary added that not only are these characters dealing with how to survive a potential job loss, they’re also navigating morality and whether their definition of right and wrong can change when their hopes, dreams, even their next meal, are all in jeopardy. Caroline Stefanie Clay and Tyee Tilghman in Skeleton Crew, Studio Theatre. Photo by Teresa Wood. O’Leary discovered Morisseau’s plays at a point of frustration. their rhythms into the marrow of your stage and screen as fully fleshed out “I was screaming about how desper- bones. That’s how she builds up the human beings, rather than grotesque ately we need playwrights who are humans of her scripted worlds—from stereotypes. female-identifying artists of color,” the universal dust that creates the sack O’Leary said. “My friend tossed over of blood and water which cradle our “The fact that I, a young woman of “The Detroit Projects” and I was imme- souls.” color, get to direct this piece out here in diately in awe of this woman’s power very white Seattle means that the seats and poetry. Dominique Morisseau’s She added that the people in Morisseau’s at the table are shifting,” O’Leary said. words sing and pulsate and thump plays are so rarely seen depicted on And she’s determined not only to take encoremediagroup.com/programs 5 that seat, but to make the table bigger and producers dedicated to achieving than it’s ever been. “Because who the gender parity on stage. hell wants to eat the same bland meal with the same exact people over and “The Kilroys have exposed a messed-up over again? I don’t, and neither do you.” system that was essentially created to keep marginalized voices and identities Skeleton Crew runs September 20 to out of the conversation,” Detzer said. October 14 at ArtsWest Playhouse and “They took the idea that there are no Gallery. great women or trans playwrights and completely struck it down.