by Antonio Miniño on February 1, 2011
Tessa LaNeve
Tessa LaNeve is the Literary Manager and Director of The Primary Stages and Anne Einhorn School of Performing Arts. She was kind enough to answer some questions in the middle of auditions for their next semester and planning DETENTION, a new performance series she will speak more of.
What is ESPA? When was it formed and with what goal?
The Primary Stages Marvin and Anne Einhorn School of Performing Arts (ESPA) developed organically from a collection of in-house playwriting classes at Primary Stages to a formalized multidisciplinary institution with fully formed departments in acting, writing, and directing. Since its 2007 inception, the school has housed over 1100 students and boasted a faculty of award-winning professional artists. The school has refined actors who have been seen on and off-Broadway, developed writers whose work has won awards and received workshops and productions, and ultimately crafted emerging artists on their road to professional success. With the naming of the school in 2010, ESPA emerged as a leading educational institution, offering an extensive array of opportunities for students to collaborate and showcase themselves on the New York stage.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on December 9, 2010
Aaron Wigdor Levy is the writer of Monroe, Illinois: Over Here/Townie premiering this week at the Flea Theater, produced by On The Square Productions.
Aaron Wigdor Levy
Tell us a bit about your body of work?
My work usually is pretty naturalistic. Some people have said my plays are political, but I don’t think they’re overtly political. I think most of my plays simply deal with people trying to figure out their place in the world. I know that kind of sounds general, but that’s what I’m trying to do so I don’t see why my characters should be any different.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on November 19, 2010
Peter Zinn
Peter Zinn is no stranger to Retro Productions, having helmed their incarnation of Holy Days and Women and War. He was kind enough to answer a couple of questions regarding his past, his upcoming plans and what it’s been like to be directing Michael Frayn’s Benefactors, which you can still catch tonight at the Spoon Theatre.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on August 22, 2010
One of the best things about the Fringe Festival is how it embraces diversity – it becomes one of the best summer reminders as to how culturally rich and fascinating this city can be. In Swaha: Rituals of Union Trinayan Dance Theater mixes tradition, with dance, storytelling and ritualistic precise movements that will evoke your senses and successfully accomplish the elephantine task of getting you out of your head, no verbal dialogue required.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on August 16, 2010
This one woman show at the New York International Fringe Festival is the stuff we live for here at The Happiest Medium; as managing director Karen Tortora-Lee will tell you, our mission is to highlight, showcase and celebrate our favorite medium, and that is exactly what writer/performer Leila Arias does in Omarys Concepcion Lopez Perez Goes To Israel (to Speak to God at the Wailing Wall). It takes a certain kind of performer to pull off a solo-show, and Ms. Arias has the spunk, chops and enthusiasm to transport us to Jerusalem, the Bronx and Puerto Rico in a 40 minute journey.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on July 18, 2010
Never Norman Rockwell
We’ve reached our final installment of our Midtown International Theatre Festival‘s Q&A. Today we chat with Kyle Baxter, writer of Never Norman Rockwell, and co-artistic director of The Collective Objective.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on July 16, 2010
Until We Find Each Other
We continue our Midtown International Theatre Festival Q&A and speak with not only the playwright of Until We Find Each Other (Brooke Berman), but we also asked the show’s director, David Winitsky some questions.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on July 10, 2010
The Starship Astrov
We continue our Midtown International Theatre Festival Q&A with writers Duncan Pflaster of The Starship Astrov, and Michelle Glick, writer and performer of the solo show Asian Belle.
Let us start with Duncan.
When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
Not until about 15 years ago- I thought for a long time I was going to be an actor. There’s something really wonderful about making an audience laugh and react, which I loved as a performer… But as a writer, you get to play all the parts! Now I only act if people specifically ask me, or if there’s an emergency casting. Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on July 9, 2010
The Gospel According To Josh
In case you haven’t noticed, it’s pretty hot outside… summer, yeah… summertime! What that also means is it’s theatre festival season. If you live on the motto that “life is like a box of chocolates,” you can easily apply the same to the festival circuit. Festivals hold lovely truffles covered with exquisite themes, filled with yummy character developments that leave you with a thought provoking aftertaste. They also have strange, oversweetened eerie stuff.
Out of the Midtown International Theatre Festival box –a festival running from July 12th through August 1st in the Big Apple– I’ve chosen a couple of possibly lovely truffles. We start our first Q&A with Joshua Rivedal, writer/performer for The Gospel According To Josh.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
by Antonio Miniño on July 6, 2010
When Shea Elmore talks about his upcoming project, This Is Storybox, his face lights up and you can’t help but listen and be intoxicated with his excitement and sincerity. What he brings us is an interactive approach to performance, where audience members choose to be part of the action or plainly be a viewer.
The project is reminiscent of the 60s movement of the Theatre of the Opressed and Brazilian Augusto Boal, yet Elmore’s contemporary take was inspired and emerged from his collaboration with a professor from the University of Central Florida.
In our Q&A you will find out what makes Storybox different and why you should step in.
Continue Reading…
Related Posts:
