A few words from Director Mark Charney
 |
|
|
Dr. Mark Charney, Director
|
There's a great irony lurking in the humanities; we often don't celebrate the "humane" in humanities, especially when it comes to retirement.
When I was just beginning in academe, I remember attending retirement events for professors who had devoted their lives to an institution. Some were roasts, some were cocktail parties, some were cookie and cake gatherings, but none seemed worthy of those who had given their lives to the students or the school where they worked for over 30 years. More often than not, they were tepid affairs, and while the testimonies were often emotional and affecting, the event itself was not at all reflective of the professor.
In 2012, when I arrived at TTU, I met with many alums who felt we weren't keeping up well enough with our past graduates, and I agreed. Too often, because of the business of running a program, we forget that the best advice often comes from the "pioneers" who built the degree. Graduates who are transformed by a program understandably have a permanent stake in its success and progress. Having been at Clemson for 27 years, I found comprehending and embracing a new environment daunting, but It was my good fortune to have one extraordinary alumnus working for me as our Audience Relation Specialist: Richard Privitt. Not only is he much beloved by the faculty, staff and students, but he was my conduit to the history of our Theatre and Dance program, and, in all honesty, much of the reason we are thriving today.
While Richard started as a student at Tech the summer of 1970, right out of high school, and was cast in
A Man for All Seasons with G. W. Bailey, Jaston Williams, and Herb Armstrong, he didn't complete his BA until 1982, twelve years later. (Richard took a detour to work with Larry Randolph and others on the dinner theatre circuit. Man, I'd like to hear those stories.) After finishing his BA, he jumped directly into the MFA program, under the guidance of TTU legend George Sorensen, and his peers remember him as one of the best actors with whom they had the pleasure to work. Not only was he an exemplary student, but his talent was only eclipsed by a wicked sense of humor and a strong understanding of what it meant to build community.
As a new Chair, I was the fortunate beneficiary of Richard's web of contacts, from those in the community to those around the country. In fact, during my first weeks here, Richard arranged my television and radio spots, drove me around the city to meet folks, and introduced me to past TTU professors and students such as Clifton Ashby and Jaston Williams. But most of all, he did the indescribable--he helped me find the soul of Texas Tech's School of Theatre and Dance by opening his heart to me.
"Ok," you're thinking. "That sounds corny." And indeed it does. But if you know Richard, you understand that I'm not exaggerating. Richard is one of the most generous colleagues with whom I've had the pleasure to work. This very column was his idea, and he helped to champion our Theatre and Dance in the Community class through all of the connections he made all over town. Although he lived much of the history of theatre and dance, it wasn't just his experience that guided me; instead, it was his strong affection for the transformative power of art. Richard spent years training students in the box office, coordinating promotions, front of the house, and audience involvement. He may not have taught students in the classroom, but man, he introduced them to the reality every day. How do you attract an audience? How do you treat them with respect? How do you boil down the essence of a show in a press release? And how do you stay in touch with the alumni who built the program? Richard answered all of these questions by his very actions, students were grateful.
Richard coordinated events with a style and grace that can only be described as irreverently genteel. He was always polite and respectful, but he knew when to push the boundaries. When we hosted a three-day alumni event, he brought together the best folks to plan the perfect number of social events and he was present at all of them. His voice may be soft-spoken, but Richard is anything but. He cares deeply about the future of our School, understanding that the past always informs the present, and his sense of humor pervades every move he makes. He cares about others--my success as Chair, our success in the community, and his students' success in the work force.
Students loved working with Richard.
If you ever dropped by his office, you'd hear laughter emanating from his office, and even during tense times, he remained optimistic, upbeat, and calm. I loved looking up from my office to find him outside the door, smiling, politely seeing if I was free enough to chat. Richard is the sort of employee who proactively found solutions before there was even a problem. Loving, strong, and student-centric, Richard was committed in his years here to education and absolutely open to the belief that art can truly better humanity.
So this newsletter is dedicated to Richard Privitt, someone we all know, love and appreciate, someone who's life MAKES A DIFFERENCE, and always will. While we miss his physical presence in the building, he is not, nor will he be forgotten. And as we move into our new space in Jan of 2019, I'm sure I will still hear his laughter as I walk by the new box office. (Since he's still in town, I'm hoping that his laughter will mean that he, indeed, is visiting.)
And yes, we will throw a shindig in his honor, and we'll do our best to make it as fun and raucous as the man himself. It won't be enough, of course, but how do you celebrate a colleague in some evening event and do him justice? The same way we still celebrate the giants who built this program--by never letting new generations of students and professors forget their generous and massive contributions. As theatre and dance practitioners, we know the value of a good story, and Richard, rest assured, we'll be sharing your exploits and adventures as long as TTU's School of Theatre and Dance exists.
|
|
|
| Richard Privitt during WildWind 2017 |
|
|
|
|
Alec Gallardo and Richard Privitt during WildWind 2017 Play Reading of Do You Feel Anger by Mara Nelson-Greenberg |
|
Words for Richard
Whether a professor or student, actor or designer, Richard Privitt was a friend to all who walked through the doors of the Maedgen Theatre. Students both former and current, and professors have messages of kindness about Richard.
"Always one to give a warm reception, Richard Privitt was one of the first people I met when joining the faculty here in 2002. I'm excited for his new adventure, it will not be the same without him."
- Andrea Bilkey, Head of Design and Associate Professor
"I only got to work with him for a week, and I'm jealous of those who got to work with him longer."
- Shane Strawbridge, PhD First Year Acting/Directing and History/Theory/Criticism
"Richard is such a helpful, kind force who I continuously appreciated throughout my first year here in graduate school. His expertise always helped me through road-bumps I encountered throughout my work with House Management and Promotions and he continues to guide me even now with my archival work. Richard is my #1 go to when it comes to recollecting memories and facts on the J.T. and Margaret Talkington School of Theatre and Dance and I always appreciate his time and knowledge he was always willing to share."
- Dóri Bosnyák, MFA Second Year Arts Administration
"I have known Richard Privitt now for at least 18 years. Before joining the faculty here, I would come down from Amarillo to see him in shows at Tech: his Artie in Linda Donahue's production of House of Blue Leaves was one of the highlights. My first summer I had the great good fortune to act with Richard in a community production of Preston Jones's The Last Meeting of the Knights of the White Magnolia. It was such a pleasure to watch the master at work from a front row seat. When the alumni came from all over the country for the reunion in 2015, all of them talked about their favorite actor. "I was good," said one of them, "but Richard Privitt was the star!" It has been a great honor to call Richard my friend and colleague. He is one of those rare people who can make me laugh until I cry. He is truly one of a kind."
- Bill Gelber, Associate Professor of Theatre
"He listened at a time when I just wanted to be heard."
- Michelle Benson, MFA Second Year Playwriting
"Richard was more than a supervisor: he is a mentor and friend; everyone should have the opportunity to have someone so caring, friendly, and kind. Richard was always there to lend an ear, give a tissue, have a laugh with, and provide a warm hug. I'm grateful to have gotten to know Richard."
- Alicia M. Goodman PhD Fourth YearArts Administration and History/Theory/Criticism
"For years now our little community has known Richard as a dedicated, affable functionary, doggedly publicizing our work. I had the great good fortune to know him before he returned to the department, so I knew him as a wonderfully talented actor and director; and how lucky I was a couple of years ago to be able to exploit his stage skills and experience in You Can't Take It With You. He was fabulous!"
- Jonathan Marks, Professor of Acting
"Richard always asks me how I'm doing when I see him and "fine" is never a good enough answer because he genuinely cares deeply for everyone."
- Jamie Henninger
"Richard was an integral part of my MFA thesis project. I adapted a short story by Tennessee Williams, Mother Yaws, into a devised theatre piece which was presented at The Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theatre Festival. I was so lucky to have Richard in my company. He was a complete professional and such a game participant in my exploration of working with a company of actors to devise fantastical moments in the staging: dragons, whispering trees and a human-enveloping forest glen. He was also my roommate during the week of the Festival, and we had great times exploring Ptown. Richard's versatility as both the villain of the piece and the comic Dr. Yaws added greatly to the success of the production.
I also was in the cast of Dr. Jonathan Mark's production of You Can't Take It With You, which included alumni and community members in addition to students. Richard's portrayal of Mr. Kirby added class and humor, and he gave himself fully to being wrestled to the ground amidst the silliness of the confrontation between his character and my portrayal of Kholenkov, the mad ballet instructor. You will be missed, Richard!"
- Randall Rapstine, Phd Thrid Year Playwriting and History/Theory/Criticism
"One of the things I'll miss most with Richard's departure is hearing that wonderful, engulfing, full-body laugh echoing through the building. Richard's humor and generosity have been a staple of our T&D community for so many years and will be sorely missed."
- Genevieve Durham, Associate Professor of Dance
|
|
| Richard Privitt, second from the left in The Grapes of Wrath, 2002 |
|
Richard Privitt
by Jaston Williams
|
|
|
Jaston Williams |
I am so honored to have been asked to write in praise of my friend and colleague
Richard Privitt, but I understandably suffer a tinge of nerves, when I think about penning this, because I so want to get it right and to have my words be in any way worthy of this man.
I first met Richard when we were still teenagers and theatre students at Texas Tech. I was plagued with many of the same demons that any theatre student may find him or herself confronting. While I was small and frail, and scared as hell of just about everything the world had yet revealed, Richard was solid and blond and fearless and just perfect for at least one role in any play. It usually fell to me to portray old men and crazies, sometimes one and the same. I spent a lot of time on the stairs looking down at Richard wearing crowns and silks and playing everything from Creon in the worst production of
Media ever staged, none of which was his fault, to the
Marquis De Sade, or Satine in
The Lower Depths or the title role in
Doctor Faustus. I was really jealous of Richard, and now, when I look back on that time, I feel nothing but shame, because my insecure jealousy prevented me from allowing the closeness, we would someday relish.
|
|
|
| Jaston Williams and Richard Privitt |
|
Richard and I were to re-connect a few years later as part of one of those hard to explain confluences of art and happenstance. We were performing a melodrama with a passel of other young people in the counterculture haven of Taos, New Mexico. As the years passed, individual members of this troupe went on to perform on Broadway and Off, became major film actors in Academy Award-nominated features, scholars, close friends of the Dalai Lama and recipients of Presidential pardons, following over zealous political activities, but none of them were more memorable, then or now, than Richard. One night when the woman playing Maid Marian suffered a self-induced medication problem which rendered her basically mute (it was the 1970s and this kind of stuff happened back then), Richard performed her lines as well as his own. He was stellar, a trouper and had that quality so necessary in both the worlds of show business and educational theatre, because, to rework a quote from Lily Tomlin, Richard was equally comfortable in the company of kings and queens or the scum of the earth.
In some ways, my more recent connection with him seems to be a closing of the circle that began to form back during those early days, when we were students in Lubbock. Richard possessed the true talent and the intellectual drive to have worked pretty much anywhere he wished, and, luckily for so many, he chose to return to Tech. Part of this was because Richard had a genuine and pure loyalty to his mother Gigi during her final years. She was as theatrical and entertaining as anything that got costumed and lit and paraded across the stage at Texas Tech, I can assure you. He chose to stay and care for her, a sacrifice he never questioned or complained about. His loyalty to the University Theatre was just as noble. Though getting older and facing health issues he gave everything he could to his school and its students. Even on the toughest days, he was never any great distance from a smile. His loyalty to his work and the department will be missed, but I think Richard has his best still ahead of him. I know of few people in the world of theatre that I prefer as an artist, collaborator and friend, and although Tech will lose him, there is a gain to be had for those of us who want more time with him onstage and off.
If he left any lasting lesson to our students and faculty, it would be that kindness trumps cruelty, that jealousy isn't worth the time required for its indulgence, and that dignity is in the marrow and can't be taught. I can't wait for his next chapter.
|
|
|
Josylynn Reid, Richard Privitt, Reese Thompson, Jaston Williams and Hannah Johnson: You Can't Take it With You |
|
|
| Reese Thompson, Richard Privitt, Jaston Williams and Hannah Johnson: You Can't Take it With You |
|
An interview with the new Head of Dance
|
|
|
Charlotte Boye-C
hristensen
|
Tell me about life before coming to Texas Tech University. Where has your professional life taken you?
I am originally from Copenhagen and my background includes a combination of contemporary dance and ballet. I trained as a dancer and choreographer in Copenhagen, London and New York City. Professionally, I have both taught at and choreographed with an extensive number of companies and institutions worldwide such as: Singapore Dance Theatre, Danish Dance Theatre, Ballet West, Milwaukee Ballet, The Bauhaus Institute in Germany, European Dance Development Center in the Netherlands, Bellas Artes in Mexico City, The National School for Contemporary Dance in Denmark, and London Contemporary Dance School, to name a few. It has always been important to me to work broadly and pursue diverse connections in my career. While I have been based in the Western United States for the last 15 years, I have continued to work and build personal connections around the world that have led to collaborations in my own work, as well as the ability to commission and share the work of other relevant, contemporary artists. During my 11 year tenure as Artistic Director of Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company in Salt Lake City, Utah, I created 26 pieces with the company and shaped a repertoire of current and relevant voices thru the commissioning of works by such artists as Wayne McGregor, John Jasperse, Alicia Sanchez, Johannes Wieland, Susan Marshall, John Utans, and Bill T. Jones. In 2013, I formed the performance/production company NOW-ID to develop work with a focus on creating immersive interdisciplinary experiences for artists and audience. NOW-ID's work is concerned with on-stage collaborations among composers, musicians, visual artists, theater directors, opera singers and more. It also focuses on extending the experience by playing with site-specific architecture and themes, as well as the establishment of pre- and post-events and dining experiences for the audience. I am really excited about combining the professional work of NOW-ID with the vision and ambition that I am experiencing at Texas Tech.
What age were you when you first fell in love with dance? And who inspired you?
I fell in love very early with movement. I loved to be in constant motion as a child, and started in gymnastics before I transitioned to ballet and then contemporary dance. When I was 16, I saw an amazing production at the "Circus Building" in Copenhagen (the site itself ignited my interest in exploring non-traditional performance spaces). It featured the male dancers from the English National Ballet, and one of the pieces was by British choreographer Christopher Bruce. The piece was contemporary at its core--primal, physical and poetic in all of its vulnerability. It completely blew me away! I decided at that point that I was moving forward as a contemporary dancer, and shortly thereafter, I auditioned for the London Contemporary Dance School and was accepted.
Prior to Texas Tech, what would you say was your favorite professional accomplishment? Why?
Probably founding NOW-ID because the company is created on ideas and methods that I have been cultivating throughout my entire career--ideas and methods that explore interdisciplinary and site-specific work, and international creative exchange. As a company, we believe in fearless and artistic rigor, creative integrity, the power of collaboration, and in never saying no until we have tested an idea to the fullest.
What directed your eye to the dance program here?
I initially came to Texas Tech back in 2014 to be a resource artist in the School of Theater and Dance's WildWind Performance Lab. I was really inspired by the vision and ambition that I saw in Mark Charney and the rest of the faculty who were involved. The students were supported and significantly challenged. I saw in Mark a willingness to try new things and take risks. That focus on dynamic and fearless investigation is quite important, I believe, in the shaping of new creative minds. I am excited about working alongside amazing faculty to shape the dance program into one of the best in the country. My objectives with Texas Tech University include increasing the program's national and international visibility, and its capacity to draw students and faculty to our campus. I also want to shape and encourage a dynamic, disciplined, and entrepreneurial strength in graduates to not only move themselves into the profession, but to move the profession forward.
Have you had a chance to explore Lubbock or the South Plains area yet? If so, what's your favorite place so far? And if not, what are you looking forward to seeing/experiencing?
I think downtown Lubbock has some beautiful buildings and some great restaurants. I love LHUCA as well as the endless vistas and big open skies. And even though it isn't Lubbock, I am also quite taken with Marfa as well! I have met some amazing people here--some incredible artists, architects, and entrepreneurs--and both my husband and I are excited to explore further.
What excites you most about the students in this program?
What energizes me about the students here, is that they are open to new ideas and that their commitment and fearlessness is wonderful to work with!
And lastly, what do you think is the main tool or wisdom you have that you can share with your students that will better prepare them for life in the professional world of dance?
I do not want them to limit themselves. I want them to think outside of the box when it comes to shaping their careers. I can help them understand that there is no right or wrong way to forge ahead. I endeavor to help them hone in on where their interests lie, and what they are amazing at; and to see how they can shape a career accordingly.
|
Honoring Officer East
After our campus lost the life of Tech police officer Floyd East Jr. on Monday October 9th due to an active shooter, students of dance switched their focus away from the upcoming Fall Dance Festival and instead to honoring officer East's life, his family, and the Texas Tech Police Department. Together the University Dance Company created choreography to the Bill Withers' song "Lean on Me" sung acapella by a quintet of BFA Musical Theatre Students. The piece was performed twice on October 16th, a week after the events of the shooting at Memorial Circle in the center of campus.
Dancers:
Juliet Wallace, Amelia Famularo, Gabby Jordan, Colleen Hunt, Nathalie van Glider,
Rachel Greim, Emily Lowke, Kamrye Collins, Paige Barger, Kathryn McKnight, Julia Rhea,
Josseline Vasquez,
Isaiah Hernandez, Bella Gonzales, and Lauren Johnson
Singers:
Kietraille Sutton, Nate Hall, Baylee Hale, Katrina Wilson and Charlotte Harris
|
|
Up Next in the Creative Movement Studio: Fall Dance Fest
Fall Dance Fest opens November 8th and runs through the 11th in the Creative Movement Studio. Check out what a few of our Senior Choreographers have to say about creating their original works!
For tickets to Fall Dance Festival call our box office: (806) 742-3603
|
Up Next in the Laboratory Theatre:
Next To Normal
|
|
|
Katie Hahn
|
Third year MFA Performance and Pedagogy student Katie Hahn from Abilene, TX has taken over the lab as director of the second Lab Theatre show of the season,
Next to Normal,
by Brian Yorkey and composer Tom Kitt. Hahn sat down with us to talk about directing this challenging and rewarding production.
Why did you choose to direct Next to Normal?
Hahn:
I saw the original production in 2009 and I was fascinated by the idea of a musical dealing with mental illness and what that meant for the wider theatre community. In other productions, it might be hinted at that a character is mentally ill but for it to be central to the show is really fascinating to me.
I also wanted to direct Next to Normal because of what this show says about how mental illness doesn't only affect the person who suffers but family as well.
What
has been your favorite part about directing Next to Normal?
Hahn:
I love working with this cast of people. Everybody is so game and willing to try new things and I appreciate the w
ork that they have put in and the depth at which they are exploring their characters.
I also have enjoyed the challenge of directing a show in the lab space. The Lab Theatre is such an unusual space and I've wanted to direct in this space since I got to Tech. I'm really excited to have this spatial challenge as a director because it is new and very different from the stage types I've directed on before.
Why should people come and see this show?
Hahn: Regardless of whether or not you yourself are struggling with mental illness there are themes in this show that I think are universal and that resonate outside of that particular community. Next to Normal is a strong, honest depiction of what it looks like to deal with mental illness and the treatment. It doesn't shy away from the intricacies of treatment, and treatments that don't always work.
At its heart, this musical is about a family and it's about a family wading through this really, really, deep water of illness, of loss, and what it means to be a family under those circumstances.
Yes, the subject matter of Next to Normal is serious but this play is funny, it's beautiful, and it's real.
|
|
|
Musical Director Adam Howard and Lauren Carlton
Photos by Hannah Jo Anderson
|
|
|
|
| Austin Harleson, Lauren Carlton, and Luke Weber |
|
|
|
|
Shane Strawbridge and Austin Harleson
|
|
For
Next to Normal tickets call our box office: (806) 742-3603
|
TTU Theatre and Dance Travels to Hong Kong
By Cory Norman
|
|
|
Cory Norman |
Last week, we traveled into the future and it was vibrant in color, sound, food, smell, architecture, people, and art.
I accompanied Dr. Mark Charney, Prof. Jeffrey Lastrapes, and Dean Noel Zahler to Hong Kong where we met with representatives from the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre and faculty from the School of Drama at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts to build bridges between our College and these two dynamic and thriving institutions. Following the Dean's lead, we began a cultural exchange that will significantly impact and benefit our students and our university.
Our tour of the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre (HKRep) included a peak into the rehearsal of Beyond the Corner, part of a new play development series aimed at nurturing new theatre practitioners collaborating with the HKRep's company. It's one of three new play development initiatives at HKRep with a mission to feature Cantonese-language plays in the local repertory. Who knows, perhaps an English translation of one of these plays will make its way to Lubbock? We are exploring such exchanges.
At the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, we watched Jeffrey Lastrapes engage undergraduate music students in a challenging masterclass on the cello before meeting with Dean Poon Wai-Sum of the School of Drama and several members of his faculty. Our conversation centered on collaboration (naturally, we're theatre people!), and, specifically, how WildWind Performance Lab could be an avenue for cultural exchange for students and faculty.
Halfway around the world and in a region of towering structures, bustling life, and furious energy, we spent eight days talking to playwrights, directors, actors, and designers, hoping to build meaningful and lasting partnerships that will serve our students, our college, and our university.
Eight days in the future working towards the future.
I love my job.
|
|
Janice Poon, Roy Szeto, Dr. Mark Charney, Dean Noel Zahler, Estella Wong, and Cory Norman
|
|
|
|
Cory Norman, "Bobo" Fung Wai-hang, Dr. Mark Charney, Dean Noel Zahler, Dakota Duclo, and Marble Leung
|
|
|
|
|
Rehearsal at The Hong Kong Repertory Theatre |
|
Much Ado About Costumes: Renderings to Reality
Cassandra Trautman, third year MFA Costume Design student, designed the costumes for our mainstage opener
Much Ado About Nothing.
Check out these renderings from Trautman and her finished designs!
|
|
|
| Costume Rendering by Cassandra Trautman |
|
|
|
|
Alec Gallardo and Melissa Miller
|
|
|
|
| Malana Wilson and Mackenzie Duke |
|
|
|
|
Costume Rendering by Cassandra Trautman
|
|
|
| Costume Rendering by Cassandra Trautman |
|
|
|
Michael D. Johnston, Melissa Miller, Justin McKean, and Malana Wilson
Photos by Andrea Bilkey
|
|
The Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theatre Festival
|
Students at the Tennessee Williams Institute
PhD Acting/Directing and Arts Administration student Eric Eidson and MFA Performance and Pedagogy student DayDay Robinson were two of the participants of the Tennessee Williams Institute at this year's Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theatre Festival. We thank Herb Armstrong and Noel Zahler for continuing to support this program. Eric and DayDay provided us a few words about their experience
Eric Eidson: As a first-year graduate student, I was eager and nervous to reestablish myself as an artist and scholar at Texas Tech. Thankfully, I was encouraged to enroll in the Tennessee Williams Institute. This class was, and continues to be, a blessing as scholarship and artistry are beautifully interwoven. I can't think of a better introduction to the theatre department at Texas Tech. My experience is strengthened even further with the lasting relationships made with my mentors and peers. I cannot emphasize enough the importance and personal relevance this course offers new graduate students.
DayDay Robinson:
The TWI in Provincetown was wonderful experience. It was a
fantastic way to observe theatre, an excellent way to meet future colleagues, and positive environment for scholarly discussion. I walked away craving more of Tennessee Williams' later works. Best of all, during this trip, I also found a renewed appreciation for William Shakespeare.
|
|
|
| Eric Eidson |
|
|
|
|
| DayDay Robinson |
|
|
|
|
| Standing: Hannah Jo Anderson, Eric Eidson, Lauren Carlton, Jesse Jou, Justin McKean, Mark Charney, Shane Strawbridge, Alex Webster Sitting: Jennifer Matthews Ezell, Dillon Rouse, DayDay Robinson |
|
|
|
November 30-December 3, 2017
We Are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as South West Africa, From the German Sudwestafrika, Between the Years 1884-1915
By Jackie Sibblies Drury
Directed by Jesse Jou
In the present day, an acting troupe comes together to create a performance about the little-known decimation of the Herero people in turn-of-the-century colonial Africa. As they stumble through their increasingly charged rehearsals, the performers begin to unravel the thorny knot of race and power that reaches from Sudwestafrika to modern America. At turns darkly comedic, wildly theatrical, and deeply moving, We Are Proud to Present... explores how the echoes of a forgotten history reverberate with us today.
Adult content, including racialized language and violent situations
March 1-4, 2018
The Nether
By Jennifer Haley
Directed by Patrick Midgley
In the near future, the internet becomes The Nether: a realm of complete sensory immersion, indiscernible from reality. Just log in, select your identity, and indulge your every desire.
But when a young detective uncovers a disturbing new brand of entertainment within The Nether, she begins an interrogation as vast and as disturbing as the human imagination.
Half hard-boiled crime drama, half sci-fi thriller, this winner of the 2012 Susan Smith Blackkburn Prize explores the darkest intersections of technology and human desire.
Adult content including themes of pornography, child pornography, and child violence
April 12-15 & April 19-22, 2018
Little Women
Music by Jason Howland, lyrics by Mindi Dickstein, and book by Allen Knee
Directed by Ronald Dean Nolen; Musical direction by Adam Day Howard
Great American novelist Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic Little Women takes the form of the Great American Musical in this heartwarming adaptation. Originally produced on Broadway in 2005, you can experience the March Sisters' journey from childhood to young adulthood, discovering along the way the values of life, love, and family. Impeccably composed music and a beautifully crafted story make this a must-see for every family and every theatre-goer!
May 3-5, 2018
DanceTech: ChoreoRealities
Choreography by TTU Dance Faculty
In DanceTech: ChoreoRealities, the TTU Dance faculty invite viewers to experience differing choreographic explorations inspired by current issues in Western cultures and American politics. The University Dance company, performing choreography by award-winning TTU faculty and guest artists, will explore the intersections between truth, hope, peace, fear, and aggression.
LAB THEATRE
November 13-19, 2017
Next to Normal
Book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey; music by Tom Kitt
Directed by Katie Hahn
The Goodmans are the perfect family...or so it appears. The winner of the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Next to Normal by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey is a powerhouse rock musical that takes an unflinching look at a suburban family struggling with the effects of mental illness. Matriarch Diana has battled manic depression for sixteen years, all while trying to hold her family of four together with the help of her husband Dan. When a new psychiatrist enters her life, Diana is forced to confront the break deep within her being and distinguish what separates disease from reality. As Diana descends farther into despair, her family must grapple with the fallout in such a way that demands the question: "Who's crazy-the one who's uncured? Or maybe the one who's endured?"
February 5-11, 2018
Passion Play
By Sarah Ruhl
Directed by Lauren Miller
Hailed by the New Yorker's John Lahr as "extraordinary", "bold", and "inventive", Sarah Ruhl's Passion Play takes us behind the scenes of three communities attempting to stage the death and resurrection of Christ. From Queen Elizabeth's England to Hitler's Germany to Reagan's America, Ruhl's exploration of devotion takes us on a humorous yet unsettling journey filled with lust, whimsy, and a lot of fish.
STUDIO PRODUCTIONS (Creative Movement Studio)
Fall Dance Festival is an evening of original dance pieces by Texas Tech University student choreographers.
An evening of short, original one-act plays is the subject of Raider Red's One-Act play Spectacular by Texas Tech University student playwrights.
|
|
|
|
|
