Video Preview: What Tammy Needs to Know...

Lois Weaver is Tammy WhyNot in What Tammy Needs to Know about Getting Old and Having Sex: The Concert Tour.

Tammy is former famous country and western singer turned performance artist and will be giving a special performance to launch her musical exploration into aging, desire, pleasure and intimacy. In preparation for the tour, Tammy investigates her subject using a series of workshops and public interventions with LGBT elders in NYC in order to generate local stories and recruit participants for the show. The show will also feature special guest appearances by established artists such as Peggy Shaw, Bette Bourne, Precious Pearl and many more…plus music videos created in the workshops in London Zagreb and New York! The concert will feature tracks from Tammy’s debut album.

La MaMa presents
What Tammy Needs 
to Know about 
Getting Old and 
Having Sex: 
The Concert Tour
Conceived and Directed by Lois Weaver

November 6, 2014 - November 23, 2014

La MaMa First Floor Theatre
74A East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults/$13 Students/Seniors.  There are ten tickets priced at $10 available for every performance as part of La MaMa's 10@$10 ticket program.  10@$10 Tickets are available in advance only via web, phone or box office - not available day of show.

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

The Villager covers TEMPEST 3 + WHAT TAMMY NEEDS TO KNOW... teaser

Trav S.D. recently covered TEMPEST 3 in an article for The Villager titled: 

"A Tempest Trilogy Galvanized by Sandy's Tide."

Here are some of our favorite quotes:

 "In these times of multiple daily apocalypses (environmental, biological, socio-political), there are an infinite number of possible human responses... But there is an older, more calming reaction we can have in the face of crisis: we can exorcise the bad demons through art. That would appear to be the tack La MaMa is taking this season with its trilogy of shows collectively branded “Tempest 3: The Tide is Rising.”

"The current version is a faithful interpretation of the play, with Swados’ eclectic score ranging from the avant-garde to the blues, and Koonrod making full use of the height, depth and breadth of the cavernous Ellen Stewart Theatre... Cathey’s Prospero was one of the most moving Shakespeare performances this writer has seen, and Coonrod’s two-hour production moved at such a clip, with such constant invention and such clarity of storytelling, I never regretted a minute of it. (How often can you say that?)"

READ MORE HERE

TEMPEST - Story of a Production

We used Storify to collect all the pictures, posts, tweets and videos to capture the story of our first Tempest of the season (if you don't know, we've got two more coming, thus we call the project TEMPEST 3.

Enter the post to check it out!

Interview with Director Tae-Suk Oh

Meet director Tae-Suk Oh, founder of the Korea's Mokwha Repertory Company and adaptor and director of THE TEMPEST, coming to The Ellen Stewart Theatre in November - the second in La MaMa's TEMPEST 3 Series.

La MaMa presents
Mokwha Repertory Company's
THE TEMPEST
part of TEMPEST 3: The Tide is Rising
Adapted and directed by Tae-Suk Oh

November 20th - 23rd, 2014
FOUR PERFORMANCES ONLY!

Running Time: 90 minutes

The Ellen Stewart Theater
66 East 4th Street
(Between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $30 Adults; $25 Students/Seniors; All 10@$10 Tickets are sold out!

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

6 QUESTIONS: Dick Zigun

Photo by Steve Solomonson

Dick Zigun is a man who wears many literal and figurative hats: Un-official mayor of Coney Island and Founder of Coney Island USA, Playwright (MFA, Yale School of Drama & New Dramatists Alumni) and founder of Fun House Philosophers - Coney Island's resident theatre company. His new play, Dead End, Dummy, is playing now at Coney Island and comes to La Mama on November 7th.

1. What was the initial inspiration for writing DEAD END, DUMMY?

The challenge was to use the techniques of vaudeville to tell the story of the death of vaudeville.

2. What should audiences expect from the show?

Ventriloquism & a fanatic ventriloquist's descent into madness & vaudeville hell.

3. Who or what inspires you?

Coney Island Freaks, Charlie McCarthy, Jerry Mahoney.

4. Do you think of your work as political?

Not political as in 'who to vote for,' but theatrically political. I'm defending vaudeville & sideshow dramaturgy as equal to Stanislavsky or Elizabethan dramaturgy.

5. How would you describe your aesthetic?

I'm a Fun House Philosopher and the permanently unelected Mayor of Coney Island.

6. What does working at La MaMa mean to you?

Manhattan respectability at last in my old age - bet you didn't know I was a serious experimental playwright.


_____________

La MaMa presents:

Dead End, Dummy

written by Dick Zigun
directed by Trav S.D.

November 7 - November 14, 2014 

Friday & Saturday @ 10pm / Sunday @ 6pm

The Club
74A East 4th Street 
(Between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults; $13 Students/Seniors. Ten tickets priced at $10 each are available for every performance, in advance only via web, phone or at the box office. Not available day of show. 

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Special Event: Sunday Brunch @ Contrada with “Tempest” director Karin Coonrod

Join Karin Coonrod, director of “The Tempest” at La MaMa, for a pre-performance brunch to discuss the production at our neighbor, Contrada! Discussion will be led by Lizzie Simon (Wall Street Journal) and will include other members of the TEMPEST team TBD.

Admission includes a cocktail, an entree, coffee or tea, tax and tip. Purchase HERE

Theater tickets for the 4pm showing must be purchased separately HERE

ABOUT KARIN COONROD

Karin Coonrod is a theater maker whose work has been seen and heard across the country and around the world. She founded two theater companies: Arden Party (NYC, 1987-1997) and Compagnia de’ Colombari (2004 - present) an international company (based in New York). 

Coonrod is known for her Shakespeare productions including her epic Henry VI (1996) and surprising Love’s Labor’s Lost (2011) both at the Public Theater (where she was Artist-in-Residence from 1995-96); King John (2000), Julius Caesar (2003) and Coriolanus (2005) all with Theatre for a New Audience; Othello at Hartford Stage (2005) and many others. Other seminal productions include her own creation for the stage of non-dramatic material: Flannery O’Connor’s Everything That Rises Must Converge developed at the University of Iowa, Sundance Theatre Lab and premiered at New York Theatre Workshop (2001), Anne Sexton’s Transformations with Arden Party (1991-5) and a cabaret adaptation of Lorca’s Poeta en Nueva York with flamenco dancer La Conja at New York University (2002). She prepared new translations: Vvedensky’s Christmas at the Ivanovs’ with Julia Listengarten (1996); Lorca’s The House of Bernarda Alba with Nilo Cruz (1997); and Victor or Children Take Over with Frederic Maurin (1994), all of which she directed in acclaimed productions. Coonrod’s work is featured in American Theatre Magazine, Shakespeare Bulletin, Sipario nel Mondo (Italian theater journal), Scena.Ro (Romanian theater magazine). As a guest artist/teacher Coonrod has developed work at NYU, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Cal Institute of the Arts, Fordham, Colgate, Gordon College and Univ of Iowa. She is on the faculty at Yale School of Drama (since 2002).

Brunch @ Contrada with Karin Coonrod

Sunday, October 26th @ 2:30pm


Contrada Restaurant
84 E 4th St
New York, NY 10003

Make a reservation: HERE

6 Questions: Christian De Gré & R. Patrick Alberty

Mind the Art Entertainment returns to La MaMa with of THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE, a theatrical exploration of the thread of artistic inspiration as source material is re-interpreted by over 50 multi-disciplinary artists. Directors/Conceptualizers Christian De Gré & R. Patrick Alberty took a break from rehearsals to answer our 6 Questions:

1. Are you for real when you say the show "brings together over 50 multi-disciplinary artists?"

Christian: We sure are! We started this project back in 2009 as a partnership with FreeWriteNYC. At the time this was just an exercise to get 18 writers out of their heads and have them write short-stories based on a randomly selected photograph. As the project evolved, we realized that what was truly interesting was how different source materials could be interpreted. We began working on developing a festival that would go from art-form to art-form, re-interpreting the work. When visual artists came on board as the final interpretive stage, we realized we had visual bookends, allowing us to easily chart the movement of the piece in respect to its source. 

For this production at La MaMa we have pulled from a mix of new indie artists and some of our past Resident Artists at MTAE. We are excited to have a wide range, including: international filmmakers, poets, playwrights, painters, animators, designers, composers, cellists, actors, dancers, accordion players, hip-hop artists, aerialists, etc, etc, etc working on this project. 

Around 25 people will physically perform on the night but their work has been inspired by, and developed from, work done by close to 70 people over the last 5 years. 

2. What have you learned from creating THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE?

Patrick: Just how easy it is to become stuck in one way of thinking when there is so much variety out there. Normally, when faced with trying to create, most people tend to latch on to a certain thing - a phrase, a sound, an image - and work from there. Then, when you’re finished, you think to yourself, “This is how my creation is supposed to be - it could never be seen any other way." But when you give your creation to someone else to work off of, 90% of the time they will take a hard left and come up with something completely unexpected, usually based off of some throw-away detail that meant nothing to you but struck them in just the right way. And for me, that is the essence of this project - getting a chance to see something through the eyes of another person; to understand what it is they experience that you do not.

3. How does THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE carry out your mission to create work that is "idyllic, aesthetic, and above all accessible." 

Christian: For us it's all about creating new work that has a purpose, is enjoyable, has a high level of artistry, but above all doesn't an audience. Too often we see work that falls on one side of the 'art'-vs-'entertainment' line, and by taking that path, loses part of its audience. Whether it's an action film based on a toy franchise (thou shall not be named) that makes people have a swell time but it has no meaning or creative message, or a piece of fine art at a museum that makes regular audience goers stand there going "what the hell is this?" we feel that the best and most evocative work bridges the gap between art and entertainment. The best example of this I have seen in recent years is the Italian Film "The Great Beauty." There you have a piece with a strong message (raising questions about decadence in society), a high aesthetic (beautiful stylized imagery and design) that is accessible (a great story with a simple arc that is relatable).

In THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE we strive to do just that: The premise is relatable; "what does an artistic idea retain as it is adapted by different artists?" Living in an an era of adaptations; from Shakespeare re-imaginings (La MaMa's very own Tempest series) to film versions of books (Gone Girl) and musicals (Into The Woods), we, as artists, consistently find people bickering about what is retained and what is discarded and what different artists do (or don't do) with another artist's work. We think that this is something worth exploring and talking about.

Our aesthetic premise is simple; the work has to look good, sound good and be worth leaving your Netflix marathon at home to come see. To this end, we gathered some of the most innovative independent artists we know and threw them together with young artists who are full of original views and ideas. With a strong design team behind them ,and working with visually stunning artists such as The Hybrid Movement Company (aerialists) and illustrators like Mexican Artist Elias "Uva" Diaz, we feel confident this show will have plenty of stimulating spectacle.

Finally, we feel it is accessible because the show has a wide range of exploration. Traditionally photography and written stories are more easily grasped in concept by a normal audience, while dance and abstract art tend to appeal to the 'high art' crowd. We have a series here that erases that divide and as we quickly transition from one camp to the other you get to see these two worlds collide, merge and separate in waves, leaving behind an artistic smorgasbord for all to pick their favorites from.


4. What was the initial inspiration for the show?

Patrick: It was really a number of things... From a chronological stance, as Christian said, it initially went back to our 2009 project, A THOUSAND WORDS. With that as the base, we developed the idea further, including different types of artists and enhancing the 'thread' aspect of the project (a creation based on a creation based on a creation, etc.) The other part of this is that, at Mind The Art, there has always been a drive to do something different - not for the sake of being different, but rather because that is what has always held our interest. THE DREAM VAULT PROJECT is, essentially, a melding of everything we love - a multitude of arts and a variety of pieces all in one convenient place!


5. What recent productions/performances have inspired you?

Patrick: For me, SLEEP NO MORE has had a huge impact on how I view this project, as well as others in the future. While our two shows are completely different, there are aspects that we share: multiple narrative threads, non-linear story telling, an inclusion of several different art forms to make one coherent production. Oh yes, and a large cast…can’t forget that! From the producer/director side of things, I look at the time it took for them to fully realize their show - a massive undertaking that, understandably, took a very long time. But all of those years that were poured into making it a reality certainly paid off and what they have now is one of the most interesting and immersive theatre experiences anywhere. THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE took us 5 years to get to this point, a stretch of time where there were stops and starts, doubts and reaffirmations...now, here we are. In theatre and film, there is always a need to hurry to make the next big thing, but sometimes the best things are those that take time and really get it right.


6. What does working at La MaMa mean to you?

Christian: La MaMa was, for all of us at Mind The Art, our first artistic home. We have had the pleasure and honor of creating 56 productions in New York City over the last 7 years with over 600 artists, but La MaMa was the first place that opened its doors to us and said "come play." I have always said that La MaMa is a place where an artist can go and truly explore the little ideas buried in the back of their head. Apart from giving you that freedom and inspiration, La MaMa teaches you courage and integrity as an artist. 

Above all once you have stepped on the La MaMa stage you truly are family. I only had the pleasure of meeting (founder) Ellen Stewart a handful of times, but the one thing she taught me is to be unafraid while being human. Be assertive, maybe even aggressive with your art, but with humility and kindness to those around you. 

La MaMa has, for us, built three of our most valued principles: 

1) Art is a collaborative and ever evolving medium.

2) There is great pride in risking all to entertain the few.

3) Have a strict no assholes allowed policy. For these values we are eternally grateful.

---

Mind The Art premiere's its newest work, THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE on October 24th at The Club @ La MaMa. It looks like a true Gesamtkunstwerk to us! 

La MaMa presents
THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE
by Mind The Art Entertainment
Conceived & Directed by Christian De Gré & R. Patrick Alberty

October 24, 2014 - November 2, 2014
Friday and Saturday @ 10pm; Sunday @ 6pm

The Club @ La MaMa
74A East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults; $13 Students/Seniors; 10@$10 tickets available for all performances, in advance only (Ten tickets priced at $10 each - first come first served.)

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Video Preview: Neil LaBute & Marco Calvani on AdA

Neil LaBute & Marco Calvani introduce AdA (Author directing Author) from La MaMa on Vimeo

Playwright/Directors Neil LaBute & Marco Calvani discuss the second edition of AdA: Author directing Author which begins performances tonight at The First Floor Theatre @ La MaMa.

HAPPY HOUR

by Neil LaBute

directed by Marco Calvani

with Chris Henry Coffey and Jennifer Mudge

THE SECOND TIME

by Marco Calvani

directed by Neil LaBute

with Phil Burke and Meredith Forlenza.

translated by Bing Taylor

-----

La MaMa presents

AdA:

Author directing Author 

Second Edition

written and directed 
by Neil LaBute and Marco Calvani
and Marco Calvani and Neil LaBute

October 16 - November 2, 2014 

The First Floor Theater
74A East 4th Street 
(Between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults; $13 Students/Seniors. Ten tickets priced at $10 each are available for every performance, in advance only via web, phone or at the box office. Not available day of show. 

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Video Preview: The Dream Vault Cycle

Mind The Art premiere's its newest work, THE DREAM VAULT CYCLE on October 24th at The Club @ La MaMa. It looks like a true Gesamtkunstwerk to us!

La MaMa presents
THE 
DREAM 
VAULT 
CYCLE
by Mind The Art Entertainment
Conceived & Directed by Christian De Gré & R. Patrick Alberty

October 24, 2014 - November 2, 2014
Friday and Saturday @ 10pm; Sunday @ 6pm

The Club @ La MaMa
74A East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults; $13 Students/Seniors; 10@$10 tickets available for all performances, in advance only (Ten tickets priced at $10 each - first come first served.)

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Look what the critics are saying about TEMPEST!

"The enchantment begins immediately, with a storm-tossed 

shipwreck made of shouted voices, a haze of fog and a speckled, 

celestial light cast by a giant metal orb. Pocked with holes, 

it’s lit from within, swaying like the wild sea...a beautiful production."

- Laura Collins-Hughes, The New York Times

"Coonrod and Swados have a talent for aural storytelling that 

must be experienced firsthand to be believed." 

- Zachary Stewart, TheaterMania

" ...a visual and aural feast, blending bold symbolism, stylized movements, 

athletic dancing, and ethereal-sounding music... 

it will speak cogently to New Yorkers who all too well 
remember the real-life devastations of Hurricane Sandy" 

- Deirdre Donovan, Curtain Up

"Rough magic? Reg E. Cathey has it. 

His long, lined face and gravelly voice suggest effortless 

power and allure. It’s both brilliant and obvious that he 

should play the sorcerer Prospero in Karin Coonrod's 'Tempest'."  

- The New Yorker

-----

La MaMa presents

TEMPEST

directed by Karin Coonrod
music composed by Elizabeth Swados 

October 2nd - November 2nd, 2014

The Ellen Stewart Theater
66 East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $40 Adults; $30 Students/Seniors

See all three Tempest productions this fall for only $75  

Click Here for TEMPEST 3 Packages.

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Premiering This Week: AdA: Author Directing Author

The premiere of two new plays by Neil LaBute and Marco Calvani happens at The First Floor Theater @ La MaMa this week - AdA: Author directing author - Second Edition.  Neil LaBute will direct Marco Calvani's play - and vice versa!

HAPPY HOUR

by Neil LaBute

directed by Marco Calvani

with Chris Henry Coffey and Jennifer Mudge

THE SECOND TIME

by Marco Calvani

directed by Neil LaBute

with Phil Burke and Meredith Forlenza.

translated by Bing Taylor

-----

La MaMa presents

AdA:

Author directing Author 

Second Edition

written and directed 
by Neil LaBute and Marco Calvani
and Marco Calvani and Neil LaBute

October 16 - November 2, 2014 

The First Floor Theater
74A East 4th Street 
(Between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults; $13 Students/Seniors. Ten tickets priced at $10 each are available for every performance, in advance only via web, phone or at the box office. Not available day of show. 

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Special Event: From Revenge to Reconciliation: Lessons from Shakespeare’s Tempest

In conjunction with The American Bar Association's Mediation Week, La MaMa is hosting a post show discussion entitled: From Revenge to Reconciliation: Lessons from Shakespeare’s Tempest.

Immediately following the October 19th, 4pm performance, there will be a post-performance reception with panel commentary and Q&A with attorney/mediators Peter V. Arcese (of PVA Counsel) and Thom K. Chu, director Karin Coonrod, and featured cast members. 

The panel will discuss how both mediation and theatre skillfully manage the dynamics of power and conflict to create the conditions for resolution and transformation. Themes will include the voluntary nature of mediation and freedom from reactive behaviors, the safety of a collaborative environment in experiencing conflict, the links between empathy, imagination, recognition, and empowerment.

This diverse panel of seasoned collaborative professionals (female, male, younger, older, Asian-American, and African-American) will share stories and experiences gained through dealing with conflict in the arts, in families, and in commerce. The panel presentation will link how the onstage representation of conflict can create an awareness of alternative dispute resolution processes. The panel will show how the collaboration between audience and actor, just as between parties and mediator, can create outcomes that reflect our deep human values.

From Revenge to Reconciliation: 

Lessons from Shakespeare’s Tempest

with attorney/mediators Peter V. Arcese (of PVA Counsel) and Thom K. Chu, director Karin Coonrod, and featured cast members

October 19th, immediately following 

the 4pm performance of

TEMPEST

directed by Karin Coonrod

original music by Elizabeth Swados

starring Reg E. Cathey

For tickets: CLICK HERE

TEMPEST Post-Performance Discussion

Yale University professor and author David Kastan joins TEMPEST director Karin Coonrod for a post performance discussion following the Friday, October 10th performance.

Read an interview with David: HERE and join us for a lively discussion about Shakespeare's TEMPEST on Friday, October 10th!

La MaMa presents

TEMPEST

directed by Karin Coonrod
music composed by Elizabeth Swados 

October 2nd - November 2nd, 2014

The Ellen Stewart Theater
66 East 4th Street
(between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $40 Adults; $30 Students/Seniors; 10@$10 Tickets are sold out!

See all three Tempest productions this fall for only $75  

Click Here for TEMPEST 3 Packages.

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE

Free Event: I AM HERE

Our partner CultureHub, is hosting a free event, I AM HERE, on Saturday, October 11th at 5:30pm in conjunction with La MaMa's production of Selma '65.

Eight performers from the University of South Carolina at Lancaster share their personal stories surrounding racism, violence, and loss, as they wait for their passports to be cleared at the Rome airport. In this devised piece, these remarkable students assert their identities through theater, movement, song, and text. 

Directed by Marybeth Holloway and Andrea Paciotto, with dramaturgy by Catherine Filloux, I AM HERE grew out of a year long process that linked Filloux’s play SELMA ‘65 with students from USC Lancaster. SELMA ‘65 premieres at La MaMa September 26 and runs until October 12. 

TIP: You can attend this event either immediately before the 7:30pm performance or immediately following the 2pm performance of Selma '65 this Saturday!


CultureHub/SeoulArts/La MaMa
presents

I AM HERE

Saturday, October 11th @ 5:30pm

CultureHub
47 Great Jones Street
(Between Bowery and Lafayette Street)
New York, NY 10003

Make a free reservation: HERE

6 Questions: Marco Calvani

Photo by Roberto Patella

Marco Calvani returns to La MaMa with the second edition of AdA: Author directing author. Marco has written The Second Time (which Neil La Bute will direct) and Marco will direct Neil's play, Happy Hour.  Marco took a break from rehearsals to answer our 6 Questions:


1. This is the second time you have been involved with AdA at La MaMa. What did you learn from the first AdA? 

AdA is a unique and inspiring project. At one shot it brings together two different worlds, two different approaches to writing, two different ways of seeing and creating theater, interpreting life and its infinite nuances. Being involved with the first AdA at La MaMa not only helped me to widen my intellectual perspectives but also to enhance my faith and belief in this job. In fact with AdA I’ve learned once again that nothing is impossible in theater. Not even the language is a limit. If you want to achieve something you can succeed but only if you are able to connect and communicate with people in the right way. Working with Neil is more than simply establishing a collaboration. Today, working with him for the second time, makes me feel secure but at the same time in perpetual motion toward places I don’t yet know. I trust him and trust is a vital ingredient for people who create. We invented this project two years ago just for the pleasure of being together and working on the same show, on the same stage. And I think we have progressed a long way from there… For sure I’ve learnt a lot from his work, from his capacity to paint his characters, from his sharp humor, from his discipline. I think it’s extraordinary that we ‘found’ each other and that we created one crazy, fun and absolutely inspiring way of working together, the one supporting the other… I’m afraid that AdA has become an addiction!

2. This year’s AdA revolves around the theme of desire. What do you desire?

I desire to go on doing this job for the rest of my life. I want to be able to push the boundaries of my theatrical language, trying to explore every possible way to communicate better with people, to bring them closer to theater and to my stories. For me writing and directing is more than just a job. It’s a personal necessity that grows along with the urgencies of the world I live in. Every day I am more aware that everything around me seems to be moving so fast. Sometimes I have the impression I can’t catch the reality, that it’s already too late to interpret it, to represent it.  So, what I probably desire the most is to not lose myself in this ‘madness’ but to be able every now and then to attain the right distance in order to watch it and to describe it through my own words, with no judgments. Here it is, words. I desire to be responsible in my own little universe to keep the words alive in this super technological world… Practically speaking, I’m going to stay in NYC for a while after AdA. So one of my desires is to direct one of my plays here in the U.S!

3. Are audiences different in the U.S. than in Italy? 

The language. Other than that it’s very similar. The sense of humour may be slightly different but irony is  universal when it is well constructed, so... And the references definitely - Italians would have studied Dante in depth as well as Shakespeare whereas Americans are likely to be much less familiar with Dante. But, who knows really...

4. Who or what inspires you?

I’m continually inspired, by everything, by everyone. Also by the bad stuff as that shows me where we could all go wrong.  People inspire me every time, all kinds of people. Beauty inspires me, but also Ugliness.  Harold Pinter is my ‘ghost mentor’ and he is the writer I have admired the most of all. I’m also attracted very much to the cinema. A good movie can be of great help to my imagination and provide so much satisfaction.  Working with Neil  [La Bute] inspires me a lot.  Everything wild and provocative or out of the ordinary is a great inspiration. It reminds me how much further I can push my creativity. But most of all I’m inspired by Silence and by Loneliness. Especially if I’m in front of the sea.

5. If stranded on a desert island, what three cd’s would you want to have with you?
Just three... Oh God... Ok: Michael Nyman, The Piano; Mozart, Don Giovanni and... yes, anything by Tiziano Ferro! So I can sing freely and with no shame as I am all alone on the Island...

6. What does working at La MaMa mean to you?

Working at La MaMa means a lot to me. I was introduced to this amazing institution for the first time in 2008, in Italy, at their splendid villa in Umbria, when I took part in their playwrights’ retreat. It was for me the first time in such an artistic ‘island’ in the company of writers and artists from all over the world. I think I learned more about collaboration and inspiration in those ten days than in the whole rest of my life. After that, the amazing Mia [Yoo]  and all her people have trusted me enough to give me the chance to come to their New York theatre another three times, so far! They opened the door to American theater for me. I can never be grateful enough for that. In these years, I’ve had the impression that we have not only established an artistic dialogue but more than that to have created with Mia, Mary, Beverly, Denise and all the other ‘members’ a sort of artistic family. Have you seen many other theaters in the world with so many women on the board? I simply adore that.  We are related now and I feel so welcome here. I feel so lucky to have found these people on my path. 

---

La MaMa presents

AdA:

Author directing Author

written and directed 
by Neil LaBute and Marco Calvani
and Marco Calvani and Neil LaBute

October 16 - November 2, 2014 

The First Floor Theater
74A East 4th Street 
(Between Bowery and Second Avenue)
New York, NY 10003

Tickets: $18 Adults; $13 Students/Seniors. Ten tickets priced at $10 each are available for every performance, in advance only via web, phone or at the box office. Not available day of show. 

For Tickets and Info: CLICK HERE