How do individual theater makers, without the aid of an institution’s marketing department, build interest in their artistic voice? Can new technology like cameras, audio equipment, and websites be used to improve the play submission process and help build a playwright’s audience base?
Seating is limited. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/1PkG7Lt
For the past year and a half, thanks to a State Arts Board Artist Initiative grant, I've been experimenting with new ways of presenting and submitting his...
How do individual theater makers, without the aid of an institution’s marketing department, build interest in their artistic voice? Can new technology like cameras, audio equipment, and websites be used to improve the play submission process and help build a playwright’s audience base?
Seating is limited. RSVP here. http://bit.ly/1PkG7Lt
For the past year and a half, thanks to a State Arts Board Artist Initiative grant, I've been experimenting with new ways of presenting and submitting his work to the public and to Artistic Directors. In this public presentation, I’ll share the lessons learned. How expensive is it to videotape your work? How complex are the actor contracts? How hard is it to learn to edit? How do you submit unconventional samples?
This will be an informal gathering of playwrights and others interested in discussing the play submission process and new approaches.
MORE DETAILS: I’ve been experimenting with audio and video recording of excerpts of my plays because I have always felt that the typical play submission process—where a writer hands, mails, or emails a typed bunch of text to someone to read—is a woefully misguided way to judge whether a piece of theater is worth developing.
Because theater is nothing if not the most three-dimensional of art forms.
It’s like judging music based on the score rather than a demo recording. Very few music people would accept that. In fact, for many many years, musicians have been using technology to create demos of their work. With improvements in the cost and ease of use of technology, I began to wonder whether this model could be applied to playwrights—post some of one’s work online, attract attention, maybe even get a small following, then hopefully interest a larger theater who could invest in higher production values.
Let's talk about it.
Alan Berks is a fiscal year 2015 recipient of an Artist Initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota Start Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature; and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Also, special thanks to the Playwrights Center for providing the venue for this informal presentation and discussion.
ANSWER: "I'm not changing anything!"
