American Repertory Theatre 2012-2013 Season
World Premiere of Marie Antoinette
By: Charles Giuliano - Apr 27, 2012
The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.), under the Artistic Direction of Diane Paulus, announces the 2012/13 subscription season, which includes the previously announced world premiere of Marie Antoinette and a bold new staging of Pippin.
The season lineup is as follows:
• Marie Antoinette – a world premiere by David Adjmi, (author of Elective Affinities and The Evildoers), directed by Rebecca Taichman (Helen Hayes Award for The Clean House, Elliot Norton Award for Mauritius); begins performances September 1 at the Loeb Drama Center
• The Lily’s Revenge – an Obie Award-winning five-part theatrical event created and performed by Taylor Mac with a community of local artists; begins performances October 12 at OBERON
• Pippin – a new staging of the Tony Award-winning musical by Stephen Schwartz, directed by A.R.T. Artistic Director Diane Paulus with choreography by Gypsy Snider of Les 7 doigts de la main; begins performances on December 5 at the Loeb Drama Center
• The Glass Menagerie – Tennessee Williams’ poetic masterpiece directed by John Tiffany (director of Once on Broadway and Black Watch); begins performances on February 2 at the Loeb Drama Center
• Beowulf — A Thousand Years of Baggage – the Edinburgh Fringe Award-winning “song-play” by Jason Craig, with music by Three Pianos co-creator/performer David Malloy, directed by Mallory Catlett; begins performances on April 16 at OBERON
A.R.T. Artistic Director Diane Paulus commented, “I am excited to announce the 2012/13 Season that will bring world premieres and American classics, plays and theatrical events to both the Loeb Drama Center and our second stage, OBERON. Next season we take on the question of destiny and how the choices we make as individuals affect those around us, from our families to society at large.”
Details about the coming season productions are as follows:
MARIE ANTOINETTE
by David Adjmi, directed by Rebecca Taichman
co-produced with Yale Repertory Theater
A biting satire on the life of history’s most famous member of the 1%, this sharply witty new play traces Marie Antoinette’s fall from her glamorous days at Versailles to her degrading imprisonment in Paris. With her three-foot tall wigs and extravagant haute couture, Marie Antoinette once set the trends in France. But times change and even the most fashionable queens go out of style. As idle gossip turns more insidious, the country around her revolts, demanding liberté, égalité, fraternité. Written by David Adjmi, a recipient of the 2011 Guggenheim Fellowship and the inaugural Steinberg Playwriting Award, and directed by Helen Hayes and Elliot Norton Award-winning director Rebecca Taichman.
Loeb Drama Center • begins performances September 1
THE LILY’S REVENGE
by Taylor Mac
Cited among the “best theatre of 2009” by The New Yorker, Time Out New York, and The New York Post, the Obie Award-winning The Lily’s Revenge fuses music, vaudeville, poetry, dance, and film in a dynamic, five-part, 30-character “Flowergory.” Provoked by anti-gay agendas that use tradition and nostalgia as an argument for discrimination, this epic tale about a flower who goes on a quest to become human celebrates the dismantling of established social norms and rules. Theater artist Taylor Mac brings together a diverse community of local artists to create this multidisciplinary pastiche.
OBERON • begins performances October 12
PIPPIN
music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, book by Roger O.Hirson, directed by Diane Paulus
choreographed by Gypsy Snider of Les 7 doigts de la main, original Bob Fosse choreography recreated by Chet Walker
Stephen Schwartz’s beloved coming-of-age musical features bold new staging by A.R.T. Artistic Director Diane Paulus (The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, The Donkey Show, Prometheus Bound) and choreography by Gypsy Snider of Montreal’s ultra-hip circus troupe Les 7 doigts de la main. Spurred on by a mysterious group of performers, royal heir Pippin embarks on a death-defying journey to find his “corner of the sky.”
Loeb Drama Center • begins performances December 5
THE GLASS MENAGERIE
by Tennessee Williams, directed by John Tiffany
While Amanda Wingfield desperately attempts to introduce her fragile daughter to at least one “gentleman caller,” her son, Tom, dreams of escaping from his job at a warehouse and his oppressive life at home. An exquisite family drama filtered through Tom’s memory, The Glass Menagerie is staged by John Tiffany, the acclaimed director of the international sensation, Black Watch and the Broadway musical Once. The staging of this poetic masterpiece marks the first A.R.T. production of a play by Tennessee Williams.
Loeb Drama Center • begins performances February 2
BEOWULF — A THOUSAND YEARS OF BAGGAGE
by Jason Craig, music by David Malloy, directed by Mallory Catlett
First seen at OBERON in 2010, Beowulf went on to win the Edinburg Festival Fringe Herald Angel Award. Digging into the roots of the original epic poem, this club-style “SongPlay” harkens back to the raw and rowdy style of storytelling in the old Scandinavian mead halls – with a passion for fierce poetry and a pint of thick beer. Monsters and professors collide in a blood-soaked land as the epic poem is transformed into a defiantly raucous dissertation on art and violence. Featuring a 7-piece band, including dueling trombones, bass clarinet, accordion and saw, with music composed by Dave Malloy, from last season’s sold-out Three Pianos.
OBERON • begins performances April 16
The A.R.T.’s popular The Donkey Show continues at OBERON every Saturday at 7:30pm and 10:30pm. For more information about this and other OBERON events visit http://www.cluboberon.com
The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) at Harvard University is one of the country’s most celebrated theaters and the winner of numerous awards, including the Tony Award, the Pulitzer Prize and Elliot Norton and I.R.N.E. Awards. In May of 2003 it was named one of the top three regional theaters in the country by Time magazine. The A.R.T. was founded by Robert Brustein in 1980, who served as Artistic Director until 2002, when he was succeeded by Robert Woodruff. In 2008, Diane Paulus became the A.R.T.’s Artistic Director. During its thirty-two year history, the A.R.T. has welcomed many major American and international theater artists, presenting a diverse repertoire that includes premieres of American plays, bold reinterpretations of classical texts and provocative new music theater productions. The A.R.T. has performed throughout the U.S. and worldwide in 21 cities in 16 countries on four continents. Since becoming Artistic Director, Diane Paulus has programmed innovative work that has enhanced the A.R.T.’s core mission to expand the boundaries of theater. Productions such as Sleep No More, The Donkey Show, Gatz, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, Prometheus Bound, and Death and the Powers: The Robots’ Opera have immersed audiences in original theatrical experiences. The A.R.T.’s club theater, OBERON, which Paulus calls a "second stage for the 21st century," has become an incubator for local artists and has also attracted national attention for its groundbreaking model for programming. Through all of its work, the A.R.T. is committed to building a community of artists, technicians, educators, staff and audience, all of who are integral to the A.R.T.’s mission.
Subscriptions for the 2012/13 Season will be on sale May 1. Subscribers get the best seats at the best prices, with packages starting as low as $99.
Select single tickets for Pippin will be available May 1.
For groups of 10 or more call 617-496-2000 x8887.
For further information call 617-547-8300 or visit americanrepertorytheater.org