www.kcstage.com APRIL 2008 1 Showbiz Inspiration Grants Available More information about applying The Arts Council of Metropolitan for an Inspiration Grant, including Kansas City has released guidelines guidelines, can be found in the Arts for the Inspiration category of the News section of www.artskc.org. ArtsKC Fund. Grants in the Inspi- ration category will be awarded to KS Artist Fellowships Recipients artists and arts professionals for arts The Kansas Arts Commission projects and career development, in announced the recipients of the Top Billing recognition of the valuable contri- 2008 Kansas Artist Fellowships and Mid-America Theatre Conference .............2 butions that these individuals make Awards. Fellowship winners are Spotlight to our local community. Inspiration divided into three categories and Paul Mesner............................................3 Grants from the ArtsKC Fund are an receive a monetary award: Kan- Starring investment in human capital, pro- sas Master Fellowships ($5,000), Arts Orgs Support AIDS Walk ...................3 viding direct support to individual Kansas Mid-Career Fellowships 2008 Tax Update ....................................4 Barn Players Make Home Permanent.........5 artists and arts professionals for ($750), and Kansas Emerging John Brown Sings at the Lyric....................6 Jazz Appreciation Month ..........................7 projects and activities that have the Artists Awards ($250), a category Poetry Readings.......................................8 potential to advance their careers added this year to recognize prom- Notes and build their capacity for future ising young artists. Awardees Durang at Inge Festival ............................5 work. Applications for Inspiration were honored by their legislators Shooting Stars.........................................6 Grants will be accepted starting at a reception held in Topeka the ZimNotes Sept. 1, 2007 for projects and activi- evening of Mar. 10, at the office of Strategic Planning for Nonprofits...............9 ties occurring at any time prior to John C. Peterson. Performing arts Stand-Ins Jun. 30, 2008. Applications for Inspi- recipients include Priscilla Howe Auditions ..............................................25 ration Grants for the period from from Lawrence and Ann Birney Calendar ..............................................12 Events.....................................................8 Jul. 1, 2008 through Jun. 30, 2009 from Admire for storytelling, and Film Clips .............................................22 will be accepted throughout the John Wickerman of Lawrence for Performances ........................................10 Showbiz..................................................1 year on a continuous basis as long music composition. Stage Left................................................1 as grant funds remain available. Continued on page 24 Cast of Characters Scott Bowling ............................Webmaster Richard Buswell .................Managing Editor Stage Left DAMIAN BLAKE Bryan Colley ................... Graphic Designer Angie Fiedler Sutton............ Associate Editor Tricia Kyler Bowling...............Subscriber Rep Damian Blake ..............................Illustrator Kiernan Markey.................................Intern Letters to the Editor ...... [email protected] KCVol. 10 • No.STAGE 6 • Issue 104 • April 2008 [email protected] • 816-361-2325 PO Box 410492 • Kansas City, MO 64141-0492 May Submission Deadline: April 10 www.kcstage.com © Copyright 2008 by KC Stage. All material contained in this pub- lication is the property of or licensed for use by KC Stage. Any use, duplication, or reproduction of any or all content of this publication is prohibited except with the express written permission of KC Stage or the original copyright holders. Printing by First Choice. R www.kcstage.com APRIL 2008 1 Mid-America Theatre Conference by Boone Hopkins Theatre scholars and historians from around the mid- west region converged on Kansas City for the 29th Weight-Blind Casting annual Mid-America Theatre Conference. This year, The recent shattering of Hollywood’s standards of beauty through the success of such television shows as Ugly Betty MATC took place Feb. 28 through Mar. 2 at the Hyatt and movies like Hairspray and Dreamgirls have left a Regency Crown Center with a record 211 participants scorching mark on how the entertainment industry, includ- in attendance for the four day conference. The theme of ing theatre, views body image. More and more people have begun questioning instead of accepting what and why the conference was “Xtreme Theatre: Boundary Busting, society puts value on certain body images but not others. Border Crossing, Envelope Pushing and other reflec- This issue was the focus of discussion at one workshop in tions on taking THTR 2 DA MAX”. the Mid-America Theatre Conference entitled “Extreme Dialogue: Weight-Blind Casting: Is it Possible? Is it Neces- This in-your-face attitude resonated throughout the sary? What Would it Take? What Would it Yield?” Lead by various conference presentations, but was perhaps most Connie de Veer of Texas Christian University and featur- ing Jennifer Ross Nostrala of Simpson College and John evocative in the MATC History Symposium. Organizers Soliday of the University of Miami Florida, the directing Henry Bial of the University of Kansas and John Fletcher symposium addressed the challenges faced by directors of Louisiana State University challenged historians to when dealing with body image in theatre. consider the ethics of “going too far” in performance “It’s easier to be color-blind than weight-blind,” Soliday and also raised concerns about the future of live theatre, said. theatre history, and theatre studies. In response to these The panel discussion, which held in attendance a handful of female directors, illuminated how society reacts to actors topics, sixty-three papers were presented that explored and actresses who do not represent society’s standard of issues such as violence, sexuality, and censorship. beauty (i.e. thinness) and how directors challenge that. Presentations of note included “Burlesquing Broad- It was agreed upon that cultural standards of beauty are nothing new. The Greeks and Romans both emphasized way: The Paradonic Tone of Postmodern, Off Broadway a certain type of beauty in the arts and this influences our Musical Theatre” by Andy Pierce from the University of culture as well. In theatre, there’s the stereotype for every Missouri, exploring the fascination with the Forbidden sort of character—the leading lady who is blonde, thin, and virginal; the leading man who is dark-headed and Broadway musicals. Alicia Kae Koger of the University adventurous. Meanwhile, the overweight actors are con- of Oklahoma explored the extremes of violence in the fined to limited roles of the mother, fat friar, or the singer. de Veer expounded upon how body image is purely based works of a popular contemporary playwright in her on consumerism—the “ideal body” is further perpetuated paper “As Fer as He Can Go: Tracy Letts’ Violence and through stereotypes in the media and commercials by the the American Heartland”. Joshua Polster from Emerson need to sell something. The panel thought that it’s difficult for directors to go against the grain of common thought College followed with an evocative look at the many for fear of audience retribution. historical representations of the character of Shylock in As the audience was asking questions and putting more his analysis of The Merchant of Venice titled: “Performing ideas forward, someone brought up an excellent point: Difference: The Representations of the Jew as Seen in body image is not so much an issue of society’s standards, but how the character is required to be in the context of the Character of Shylock”. the play. It was also mentioned that though there is an A highlight of this year’s conference was the keynote inherent fear of audience retribution, generally, audiences address on Saturday from theatre critic Alisa Solomon. are willing to adapt to the characters before them. Solomon was on staff at The Village Voice for over 21 “We love when we see ourselves,” de Veer opined. years and also contributes to The Nation, The Forward, Furthermore, a good story is all about the conflict within the and The New York Times. Solomon challenged the audi- play. When the actor is imperfect, it makes the character flawed but still approachable; hence the success of Julia ence to consider theatre to be the best equipped art form Roberts despite her über-grin or Tom Cruise’s atypical to spark social and political change. Solomon’s address handsomeness. was timely as she touched on issues ranging from the A conclusive resolution was reached when everyone in current presidential race to the war in Iraq, offering the attendance acknowledged that, as directors, they should not tell their actors to lose or gain weight, but rather to audience a message promoting theatre as a major tool encourage a healthy lifestyle. ~ Kiernan Markey for social change. Continued on page 23 2 KCSTAGE “Living is an art, it’s not bookkeeping. It takes an awful lot of rehearsal for a man to get to be himself.” ~ William Saroyan www.kcstage.com APRIL 2008 3 Spotlight on Paul Mesner Arts Orgs Support AIDS Walk by Kiernan Markey by Angie Fiedler Paul Mesner’s love affair with puppetry is almost as old In Kansas City, more than 5,500 people live with as the puppet master himself. HIV/AIDS, 700 of those being between the