American Repertory Theater

American Repertory Theater
Loeb Drama Center
Map
AddressLoeb Drama Center
64 Brattle Street

OBERON
2 Arrow Street
Cambridge, Massachusetts
United States
Coordinates42°22′29.84″N 71°7′21.54″W / 42.3749556°N 71.1226500°W / 42.3749556; -71.1226500
TypeRegional theater
CapacityLoeb Drama Center: 556
Years active1980 to present
Website
americanrepertorytheater.org

The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) is a professional not-for-profit theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1979 by Robert Brustein, the A.R.T. is known for its commitment to new American plays and music–theater explorations; to neglected works of the past; and to established classical texts reinterpreted in refreshing new ways.[1] Over the past forty years it has garnered many of the nation's most distinguished awards, including a Pulitzer Prize (1982), a Tony Award (1986), and a Jujamcyn Award (1985).[2] In 2002, the A.R.T. was the recipient of the National Theatre Conference's Outstanding Achievement Award, and it was named one of the top three theaters in the country by Time magazine in 2003.[3] The A.R.T. is housed in the Loeb Drama Center at Harvard University, a building it shares with the Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club. The A.R.T. operates the Institute for Advanced Theater Training.

In 2002 Robert Woodruff replaced founder Robert Brustein as the A.R.T.'s artistic director.[4] After Woodruff's departure in 2007, Associate Artistic Director Gideon Lester filled the position for the 2008/2009 season, and, in May 2008, Diane Paulus was named the new artistic director.[4] Paulus, a Harvard alum, is widely known as a director of theater and opera. Her work includes The Donkey Show, which ran off-Broadway for six years; productions at the Chicago Opera Theatre; and the Public Theater's 2008 production of Hair, which won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical.[5][6][7]

History

American Repertory Theater was established at Harvard in 1979 as a permanent professional arts organization on campus that offered undergraduate courses in acting, directing, and dramaturgy, taught by professional members of the company with teaching experience.[1] Robert Brustein served as artistic director of the theater until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff, founder of the Bay Area Playwrights Festival.[4] In 2008, Diane Paulus became the artistic director.[4]

During its 44-year history, it has welcomed many major American and international theater artists, presenting a diverse repertoire that includes premieres of American plays and musical productions. In the over 250 productions American Repertory Theater has staged, over half were premieres of new plays, translations, and adaptations.[8] The A.R.T. has performed throughout the U.S. and worldwide in 21 cities in 16 countries on four continents.[8] It continues to be a training ground for young artists, with the artistic staff teaching undergraduate classes in acting, directing, dramatic literature, dramaturgy, voice, and design. In 1987, the A.R.T. founded the Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard, which offers a five-semester M.F.A. graduate program that operates in conjunction with the Moscow Art Theatre School.[9]

The current artistic director, Diane Paulus, has focused on expanding the boundaries of traditional theater by transforming the ways in which work is developed, programmed, produced, and contextualized in order to allow the audience to participate, thereby making the experience more interactive. Productions such as Sleep No More, The Donkey Show, Gatz, The Blue Flower, Prometheus Bound, Gershwin's Porgy and Bess, Wild Swans, and Pippin have engaged audiences in unique theatrical experiences through physical interaction and unconventional staging.[10][11] The theater's productions have garnered eighteen Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical for its productions of Pippin (2013) and Gershwins' Porgy and Bess (2012), Best Musical for Once (2012), and Best Play All The Way (2014).[12] The A.R.T. also received the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theater, the Pulitzer Prize, and multiple Elliot Norton and IRNE awards.[8] Its premiere production of Death and the Powers: The Robots' Opera was a 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist.[13]

Productions

2023–2024 season

  • Gatsby. Based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, music by Florence Welch and Thomas Bartlett, lyrics by Florence Welch, book by Martyna Majok, choreography by Sonya Tayeh, directed by Rachel Chavkin.
  • Becoming a Man. Created by P. Carl, directed by Diane Paulus and P. Carl.
  • Real Women Have Curves. Music and lyrics by Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez, book by Lisa Boomer, choreography and direction by Sergio Trujillo. Based on the play by Josefina López and HBO's Real Women Have Curves.
  • The Half-God of Rainfall. Created by Inua Ellams, directed by Taibi Magar.
Life of Pi at A.R.T. in January 2023

2022–2023 season

  • Evita. Lyrics by Tim Rice, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, directed by Sammi Cannold, choreographed by Emily Maltby and Valeria Solomonoff.
  • The Wife of Willesden. Adapted by Zadie Smith from Chaucer's The Wife of Bath, directed by Indhu Rubasingham.
  • Life of Pi. Based on the novel by Yann Martel, adapted by Lolita Chakrabarti, directed by Max Webster. (Pre-Broadway production)
  • Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992. Conceived, written, and revised by Anna Deavere Smith, directed by Taibi Magar.

2021–2022 season

  • 1776. Music & lyrics by Sherman Edwards, book by Peter Stone, directed by Diane Paulus & Jeffrey L. Page, choreography by Jeffrey L. Page. (Pre-Broadway production)
  • Ocean Filibuster. Created by PearlDamour, text by Lisa D'Amour, music by Sxip Shirey, directed by Katie Pearl.
  • WILD: A Musical Becoming. Book by V, music by Justin Tranter & Caroline Pennell with contributions by Erin Cannata, lyrics by Justin Tranter, Caroline Pennell, & V with contributions by Idina Menzel, choreography by Chanel DaSilva, directed by Diane Paulus.
  • Macbeth In Stride. Created & performed by Whitney White, orchestrations by Steven Cuevas and Whitney White, musically directed by Steven Cuevas, choreography by Raja Feather Kelly, directed by Tyler Dobrowsky & Taibi Magar.
  • Chasing Magic. Created by Ayodele Casel, directed by Torya Beard.

2020–2021 season

2019–2020 season

  • Six. Written by Toby Marlow & Lucy Moss, choreography by Carrie-Anne Ingrouille, musically supervised by Joe Beighton, musically directed by Roberta Duchak, orchestrations by Tim Curran, directed by Lucy Moss & Jamie Armitage. (Pre-Broadway production)
  • Black Light. Created by Daniel Alexander Jones, original songs by Jomama Jones. Featuring Bobby Halvorson, Laura Jean Anderson, Dylan Meek, and Josh Quat
  • Moby-Dick. Music, lyrics, book, and orchestrations by Dave Malloy, musically directed by Or Matias, choreography by Chanel DaSilva, directed by Rachel Chavkin
  • Thumbelina: A Little Musical. Book, music, and lyrics by Julia Riew, musically directed by Julia Riew & Ian Chan, choreography by Ryan Kapur, directed by Emma Watt
  • Gloria: A Life. Written by Emily Mann, directed by Diane Paulus

2018–2019 season

Source:[14]

2017–2018 season

2016–2017 season

Source:[15]

2015–2016 season

Source:[16]

2014–2015 season

Source:[17]

2013–2014 season

Source:[18]

2012–2013 season

Source:[19]

2011–2012 season

Source:[21]

2010–2011 season

Source:[23]

2009–2010 season

Source:[24]

The A.R.T.'s 30th season, its first under Artistic Director Diane Paulus, eschewed the traditional model and instead offered a series of "festivals" which encouraged audiences to experience productions as parts of larger cultural events.

Festival No. 01: Shakespeare Exploded

Festival No. 02: America: Boom, Bust, and Baseball

2008–2009 season

2007–2008 season

  • Don Juan Giovanni and Figaro directed by Dominique Serrand in association with Theatre de la Jeune Lune. In repertory August 31 – October 6, 2007 at the Loeb Drama Center.
  • Donnie Darko adapted and directed by Marcus Stern, based on the film by Richard Kelly. October 27 – November 18 at the Zero Arrow Theater.
  • No Child... written and performed by Nilaja Sun. November 23 – December 23 at the Loeb Drama Center.
  • Copenhagen written by Michael Frayn and directed by Scott Zigler. January 5 – February 3 at the Loeb Drama Center.
  • Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. Directed by Arthur Nauzyciel. February 9 – March 22 at the Loeb Drama Center.
  • Elections & Erections: A Chronicle of Fear & Fun by Pieter-Dirk Uys. April 2 – May 4 at the Zero Arrow Theater.
  • Cardenio by Charles Mee and Stephen Greenblatt. Directed by Les Waters. May 10 – June 1 at the Loeb Drama Center.

Notable collaborators

The American Repertory Theater has presented both American and World premiere productions. Over the years, these have included works by Robert Auletta, Robert Brustein, Anton Chekhov, Don DeLillo, Keith Dewhurst, Christopher Durang, Elizabeth Egloff, Peter Feibleman, Jules Feiffer, Dario Fo, Carlos Fuentes, Larry Gelbart, Leslie Glass, Philip Glass, Stuart Greenman, William Hauptman, Allan Havis, Milan Kundera, Mark Leib, Gideon Lester, David Lodge, Carol K. Mack, David Mamet, Charles L. Mee, Roger Miller, Dave Malloy, John Moran, Robert Moran, Heiner Müller, Marsha Norman, Han Ong, Amanda Palmer, David Rabe, Franca Rame, Adam Rapp, Keith Reddin, Ronald Ribman, Paula Vogel, Derek Walcott, Naomi Wallace, and Robert Wilson.

Reputable stage directors who have collaborated with A.R.T. include: JoAnne Akalaitis, Andrei Belgrader, Anne Bogart, Steven Bogart, Lee Breuer, Robert Brustein, Liviu Ciulei, Ron Daniels, Liz Diamond, Joe Dowling, Michael Engler, Alvin Epstein, Dario Fo, Richard Foreman, David Gordon, Adrian Hall, Richard Jones, Michael Kahn, Jerome Kilty, Krystian Lupa, John Madden, David Mamet, Des McAnuff, Jonathan Miller, Tom Moore, David Rabe, François Rochaix, Robert Scanlan, János Szász, Peter Sellars, Andrei Şerban, Sxip Shirey, Susan Sontag, Marcus Stern, Slobodan Unkovski, Les Waters, David Wheeler, Frederick Wiseman, Robert Wilson, Robert Woodruff, Steven Mitchell Wright, Yuri Yeremin, Francesca Zambello, and Scott Zigler.

Notable producers include: Henry Louis Gates Jr., Tom McGrath, Lawrence E. Golub, David Goel, Gerald Jordan, Andrew Ory, Bethany M. Allen, and Sharlyn Heslam.

Educational institution

In 1987, the A.R.T. founded the Institute for Advanced Theater Training, a five-semester professional training program which includes a three-month period working and training at the Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia.[9] The program provides training for graduate-level actors, dramaturgs, and voice students. From 1999 until 2016, this joint program conferred an M.F.A. from the Moscow Art Theatre School,[25] along with a certificate of completion from Harvard. Beginning with the graduating class of 2017, students have been granted a master of liberal arts degree through the Harvard Extension School.[25]

In July 2017, the U.S. Department of Education voiced concern over the worrisomely high debt-load of students completing the program. In response, the A.R.T. Institute announced a three-year pause in admissions, while it sought to improve student financial aid. It continues to negotiate with Harvard University about establishing an M.F.A. degree.[25]

Performance venues

The Loeb Center lobby

OBERON

OBERON, sometimes referred to as Club Oberon, was a club theater venue that was built by the Carr Foundation in 2004 and opened in August 2009 as A.R.T.'s second venue.[26] The A.R.T. opened the space in 2006 as the Zero Arrow Street Theater. The Onion Cellar was staged there Dec 2006-Jan 2007. A.R.T. originally used OBERON for the open ended residency of their production of The Donkey Show; however, American Repertory soon decided to convert the theater into a fully functioning club theater venue, fitting the philosophy developed by The Donkey Show's creator Randy Weiner.

In 2021, The A.R.T. decided not to renew its lease and Oberon was closed. [27]

Other venues

Before OBERON, A.R.T. used the old Hasty Pudding theater as a second space in addition to the Loeb Mainstage. A.R.T.'s Institute for Advanced Theater Training formerly used the sub-basement of the First Parish in Cambridge at Zero Church Street, as a flexible venue. In May, 2015 the A.R.T. staged an opera premiere at the Schubert Theater in Boston, their first use of that venue.[28]

References

  1. ^ a b Brustein, Robert Sanford (2001). "The Arts at Harvard", in: The Siege of the Arts: Collected Writings 1994-2001 (snippet preview only). Chicago : Ivan R. Dee. ISBN 9781566633802. p. 21-30; here: p. 27.
  2. ^ Mitgang, Herbert."Jujamcyn Award To American Repertory Theater" Archived 2017-09-20 at the Wayback Machine New York Times (abstract), November 26, 1985. p. C19
  3. ^ Gans, Andrew (27 May 2003). "Time Magazine Picks Top Regional Theatres". Playbill. Archived from the original on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d Harvard, University (22 May 2008). "Diane Paulus appointed artistic director of the American Repertory Theatre". Harvard Gazette. Archived from the original on 4 August 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  5. ^ Rizzo, Frank (17 September 2009). "The Donkey Show". Variety. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  6. ^ Franklin, Marc (31 March 2019). "Look Back at Diane Paulus' Revival of Hair on Broadway". Playbill. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  7. ^ Children's, Theatre Company (2020). "Diane Paulus". Children's Theatre Company. Archived from the original on 2020-12-01. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
  8. ^ a b c BBW, News Desk (8 January 2011). "American Repertory Theatre Closes The Blue Flower 1/8". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on 29 January 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  9. ^ a b Bennetts, Leslie (9 September 1986). "Theater Training Institute is Established at Harvard". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 24 May 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  10. ^ Aucoin, Don (16 October 2009). "Make your own 'Macbeth'". Boston.com. Archived from the original on 18 August 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  11. ^ Fanger, Iris (29 November 2012). "Cambridge's A.R.T.'s got 'Magic To Do' with high-flying 'Pippin'". MetroWestDailyNews.
  12. ^ American, Repertory (2020). "Awards at A.R.T." American Repertory Archives. Archived from the original on 2020-12-03. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
  13. ^ The Pulitzer, Prizes (2020). "Finalist: Death and the Powers, by Tod Machover". Pulitzer. Archived from the original on 2022-01-29. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
  14. ^ Cristi, A. A. "American Repertory Theater Announces 2018/19 Season". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  15. ^ "American Repertory Theater Announces 2016–17 Season". American Theatre. 2016-04-20. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  16. ^ "American Repertory Theater Announces 2015–16 Season | TheaterMania". www.theatermania.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  17. ^ Kuehler, Stephen (2015). "American Repertory Theatre Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2014–2015". New England Theatre Journal. 26: 167–170. ProQuest 1773250581.
  18. ^ Diamond, Robert. "American Repertory Theater Announces Full 2013/14 Season". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  19. ^ Giuliano, Charles. "American Repertory Theatre 2012–2013 Season – Charles Giuliano – Berkshire Fine Arts". www.berkshirefinearts.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  20. ^ Porgy and Bess "Listing, 'Porgy and Bess', 2011" Archived 2011-05-23 at the Wayback Machine americanrepertorytheater.org, accessed June 30, 2011
  21. ^ Sierra, Gabrielle. "American Repertory Theater Announces the 2011/12 Season". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  22. ^ "About the Prometheus Project". American Repertory Theater. 15 February 2011. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011. Retrieved 16 May 2011.
  23. ^ Sierra, Gabrielle. "American Repertory Theater Announces its 2010/11 Season". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  24. ^ Loki, Reynard. "Photos: American Repertory Theatre's END GAME". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  25. ^ a b c Haigney, Sophie (August 7, 2017). "$78,000 of Debt for a Harvard Theater Degree Archived 2022-01-29 at the Wayback Machine. New York Times. nytimes.com. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  26. ^ Performance Spaces: Oberon" Archived 2017-08-17 at the Wayback Machine Cambridge History website
  27. ^ Mason, Amelia (September 9, 2021). "Oberon, Harvard Square's Beloved Fringe Theater Stage, To Close Its Doors". www.wbur.org. Archived from the original on September 9, 2021. Retrieved September 9, 2021.
  28. ^ American, Repertory (29 May 2015). "Crossing". American Rep. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
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