I find myself marooned in the mid-West; the large cloud of volcanic ash hovering over the UK preventing my return for the opening of Little Gem tomorrow. Britain is shut, at least to me and my parents, who had come out for the opening of Shrew, which I've directed out here. This is also true for our Bush Associate Designer Lucy Osborne, who had parents and in-laws visiting her in Chicago. We're going to have to make the most of it. At least Lucy and I will have a long time to design Like a Fishbone.
I wanted to blog on my return about some of the work happening here in Chicago. I've lined up some really interesting people to write editorials for bushgreen, which will be hitting in the next couple of months. Before moving into tech and previews, Lucy and I managed to carve out a few free evenings to see some of the work going on around Chicago. There's an incredible energy to the theatre produced by young companies in this town. A lot of it goes on in what are called 'store front theatres' (I'm going to ask Lucy to write a blog about this tradition), which is in aesthetic probably the closest to the feel and history of the Bush. Many of the technicians and artisans employed backstage at Chicago Shakespeare (the large company Lucy and I have been working with) are also members of smaller ensembles, with distinctive missions and voices. There is a great formal, and informal, support network between the larger theatres and the smaller ensembles. One part of this is Steppenwolf Garage which at the moment is turned over to three of the most exciting companies in the city to present their work.
Lucy and I went to see THE TWINS WOULD LIKE TO SAY presented by Dog and Pony. Have a look at their website as their design is so lovely. It was a beautifully conceived piece of promenade and their aesthetic is one of the most original and tangible I've come across in the city. There's a bit more info about them below:
Dog & Pony Theatre Company is finishing its sixth season producing World, Midwest and Chicago premieres of works by new and emerging playwrights. Dog & Pony wants to leave audiences talking, leave them chewing on ideas. We?re not afraid to tackle the big topics ? creationism v. Darwinism, ethnic stereotyping, sexual and racial prejudice, violence in schools, political torpor, societal alienation. Time Out Chicago calls Dog & Pony ? ?Chicago's premier storefront producer of contemporary American theater.?
Perhaps because Dog & Pony is an eclectic collective of artists with backgrounds in theatre, political activism and religious studies, our company is particularly drawn to scripts with social and cultural relevance.
Our mission captures our vision: Dog & Pony Theatre Company is committed to producing vital works by new and emerging playwrights whose use of language and convention are daring and highly imaginative. As an eclectic collective of artists with backgrounds in theatre, public broadcasting, political activism and religious studies, Dog & Pony is particularly drawn to work with social and cultural relevance.
Krissy Vanderwarker and Devon de Mayo co-founded Dog & Pony in 2002. They met as interns at Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 2001. Today, Dog & Pony produces two full productions each season, offers a free reading series every other month as an incubator for new works. Dog & Pony currently has 17 Artistic Associates in the company.
