Show Me the Money!

Today, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced that it will distribute just under $27 million in grants to 1,207 projects. Included in those numbers are 994 projects ($23,828,500) in the “Access to Artistic Excellence” category. According to the NEA press release, 1,697 eligible applications were submitted seeking funds for the creation and presentation of work in a variety of disciplines--a 22 percent increase over the prior year. For those keeping track, that means that just under 59% of the requests were funded (though many may have received a smaller grant than requested).

NEA Chair, Rocco Landesman stated that these grants will support “projects that have great works of art at the heart of them; that work to inspire and transport audiences and visitors; and that create and retain opportunities for artists and arts workers to be a part of this country's real economy."

With ten Oregon arts organizations receiving grants totaling $232,500, that works out to be just about 1 percent of the total. According to population estimates from the U.S. Census (2008), Oregon has 1.2 percent of the nation’s population. Seems to me, we got screwed out of .2 percent of what's due. But let's not quibble over rounding errors. You might note that six of the ten Oregon projects are to theater companies.

Here’s the list of Oregon's awardess, with project descriptions from the NEA. On behalf of Culture Shock, I extend a hearty congratulations to all of them:

Miracle Theatre Company
Category: Theater
$15,000
To support the West Coast premiere of El Quijote by Santiago García, based on the early 17th-century novel Don Quixote by Cervantes. Artistic Director Olga Sanchez will direct the piece.

Oregon Children's Theatre Company
Category: Theater
$20,000
To support the adaptation and premiere of Small Steps by Louis Sachar. The play will be a sequel to Sachar's novel Holes, which also was successfully adapted for the stage.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival Association
Category: Theater
$50,000
To support the development and world premiere production of American Night, a new piece by the theater ensemble Culture Clash to be directed by Jo Bonney. The project will be the first production in the company's American Revolutions: the United States History Cycle, a decade-long public dialogue, commissioning, and production initiative.

Portland Center Stage
Category: Theater
$15,000
To support the 12th annual JAW (Just Add Water): Playwrights Festival. The festival supports playwrights in the development of new works to enhance the repertoire of the American theater.

Third Rail Repertory Theatre
Category: Theater
$10,000
To support a final workshop and world premiere production of The Gray Sisters by Craig Wright. The production will be directed by Producing Artistic Director Slayden Scott Yarbrough and performed by company members.

White Bird
Category: Dance
$25,000
To support the presentation of dance companies in the White Bird Uncaged series. The project will include master classes and lecture-demonstrations.

Portland Art Museum (on behalf of Northwest Film Center)
Category: Media Arts
$35,000
To support the Northwest Film and Video Festival and its tour throughout the Northwest. The festival showcases new work by media artists living in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.

Eugene Symphony Association, Inc.
Category: Music
$12,500
To support American Encounters: Steven Stucky. The series will include performances of Stucky's recent compositions, a radio broadcast, and educational activities by the composer.

Artists Repertory Theatre (aka Artists Rep)
Category: Musical Theatre
$20,000
To support the development and production of Gracie and the Atom by Portland playwright and composer Christine McKinley. The production will be promoted through the theater's education and outreach program Actors to Go, which features student matinees, artists in classrooms, and post-show discussions.

Portland Opera Association Inc.
Category: Opera
$20,000
To support new productions of a chamber opera triple-bill comprising Leonard Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti and Monteverdi's one-act operas Il Ballo Delle Ingrate and Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda. The artists will include the Portland Opera Studio Artists (POSA) and the POSA Chamber Opera.

Portland Taiko
Category: Presenting
$10,000
To support the development and presentation of Ten Tiny Taiko Dances. The series of new works will be created in collaboration with invited choreographers, musicians, and performance artists.

Although the organization is based in Vancouver, there’s one more project that touches Oregon:

Confluences (aka The Confluence Project)
Category: Design
$32,000
To support a landscape art installation by artist/architect Maya Lin at Celilo State Park. The installation will be located near The Dalles, Oregon, where one of North America's largest waterfalls was once located.

One final note: This post is an example of the new citizen's journalism that will soon be crushing "legacy media," which is what we're supposed to be calling that old fashioned stuff like newspapers. Frankly, I don't see why we need real reporters anyway. All I had to do was extract text from a press release, pull a list from a website, and do a quick Google search for census data. Any idiot could do it.

FABULOSO!

Out of a slew of theater openings Friday night, we chose “Fabuloso!” by Third Rail Repertory Theatre. Directed by Third Rail's artistic director, Slayden Scott Yarbrough, “Fabuloso” is exactly what the title promises: A fabulous fabulist fable! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist).

With the first few opening scenes, I thought we were going to get a kitchen-sink comedy reprising some of the themes from “Dead Funny,” the company's fall production. You know: A middle-aged married couple whose tastefully decorated apartment masks lives of quiet desperation, boredom and bickering. But then all hell breaks loose.

Husband Teddy (Philip Cuomo) coaches girl’s soccer, meekly enduring the ire of disgruntled parents and looking ready to jump out of his own skin. At first, I couldn't tell whether Teddy is a man-child, a dimwit or just an empty husk. In one scene, he describes himself (through a bizarre bit of sing-song verse) as a half-filled glass of water who would rather be a piece of raw, rotting meat--at least the neighbors would notice his existence. Cuomo’s clown training and background is evident in his hang-dog demeanor and rubber face. He's a sad sack and a failure whose greatest flaw is his decency.

Teddy’s wife, Kate (Stephanie Gaslin) is clearly the more competent one of the pair. She’s the family member who holds down a real job at a bank, and the one whose infinite patience may be about to reach its limits. Gaslin succeeds in keeping the role appropriately reined in and even-keel--at least compared to her outsized companions.

The first few scenes with just Teddy and Kate are a slow simmer, interspersed by occasional chuckles. But then Teddy’s childhood friend, Arthur (Tim True), bursts onto the scene in a frenzy and a white dinner jacket. Arthur is a bon vivant and a gadfly, a man full of bluster, charm and manic energy. He spews the play’s choicest lines as he quickly destabilizes whatever sense of “normal” Teddy and Kate have settled for. True's portrayal of Arthur reminded me of his Mr. Marmalade at ART a few years ago, though without the menace and threat. I can understand why you would want to have him around, but also why you might pray that he just go away, please!

Arthur's warm reunion with Teddy (after a twenty year gap) is cut short when his fiancée, Samantha (Val Stevens) arrives, a bipolar express with murder on her mind. She’s even more unhinged than her par amour, if such a thing is possible. Stevens's overwrought portrayal of the maniacally-depressed drama queen is perfectly pitched; there's no call for subtlety in this role.

After Arthur and Samantha arrive, the play’s delicious absurdities zoom, and playwright John Kolvenbach’s script really begins to shine. (This is one of those rare plays that make me want to read the script afterwards). The visitors quickly turn an overnight slumber party in a long-term encampment in Teddy and Kate’s cozy one bedroom apartment. Life becomes one long party, full of mirth, martinis and merriment … at least when it isn’t shadowed by the threat of stabbings and occasional gunfire. It’s a wild, boozy ride--a ride that Kate endures gamely, despite her dire need for sleep. (After all, she’s the one that has to get up for work in the morning). Don't worry about this turning into "Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf?"--no Hump the Hostess happens here.

You just know the foursome’s party can’t go on forever--or can it? Somebody is going to have to grow up and make some adult decisions, or somebody is going to get hurt. Until then, it’s great fun to watch this odd little family having fun together. The highlight of that fun is a lengthy dance number that closes the first act; it's a wild, sweaty production number that they’ve rehearsed to the point of exhaustion, and easily the top bit of stage choreography this season.

In the end, Teddy and Kate do grow up … at least a little. Arthur and Samantha aren’t transformed a bit; however, I suspect they may be nothing more than ghosts--the embodiment of that inner child that just needs to play, to be loved and to throw a temper tantrum every now and again. Once Teddy and Kate learn to accept that part of themselves and each other, they’re going to feel a whole lot better about how their lives are working out.

Final note: For a relatively young and smallish theater company, Third Rail stands out with its top grade production values. It works with some of this town’s best designers and doesn’t skimp on sets and costumes. Curt Enderle's realistic apartment set is both detailed and sturdy (there is a lot of movement in this play), and Don Crossley's lighting is just right. The entire Third Rail team is clearly a well-coordinated team, albeit one that mistreats its stagehands and wardrobe folks something fierce. I don't want to give away any surprises, but the backstage crew of “Fabuloso” ends up with a lot of cleaning up to do each night, just as it did after "Dead Funny" with its pie fight, and "Skull of Connemara" with its smashed skulls and piles of dirt.

"Fabuloso!" runs through May 31, 2009 at the World Trade Center Theater. Call the box office 503-235-1101 before this one is gone.

First Call

Thanks to Culture Jock’s heavy involvement with the annual Red Dress Party on Saturday (which we hear was a sold-out success), we missed his weekly “Last Call” post highlighting events on the verge of closing. To compensate, this is a “First Call” post promoting a show that shouldn’t be missed: Miracle Theatre opens “The Shrunken Head of Pancho Villa” on Friday (it runs May 8-30).

The comedy by Luis Valdez is directed by Olga Sanchez and – here’s the best part – will put Miracle’s founder and Executive Director José E. González on stage for what he reports will be the first time in a dozen or so years.

Miracle’s promo says this about the play:

From the earliest days of Chicano theatre comes this raucous and unpredictable satire in which a sellout son returns home with a grand scheme to move his family out of the barrio and into the American dream. But will a seductive nostalgia for Mexico's revolutionary past overwhelm his efforts? That's when the head begins to talk …”

The “head” is the family’s oldest son, Belarmino (Belo), who suffers from an extreme physical handicap: He has no body. Both José and Olga have assured me that although the play is packed with politically incorrect stereotypes, it’s all a big absurdist send-up, and the pale-skinned among us have permission to laugh like crazy.

Miracle has also arranged for an interesting series of post-show talks sponsored by the Oregon Council for the Humanities and titled, "Seeds of Chicano Identity." The talks, scheduled after each Sunday matinee, will host visiting scholars Jorge Huerta, Ph.D., Phil Esparza and Diane Rodriguez in panel discussions based on their personal experiences working with Luis Valdez and El Teatro Campesino, and their subsequent work in Latino-identified theatre.

If you speak Spanish, here’s a link to a KBOO interview with Olga Sanchez. I lack all facility in the language, but that did not prevent me from being mesmerized listening to the interview.

Also coming up: Third Rail opens "Fabuloso" on Friday. We'll be there (and I'll write more later this week).

"Dead Funny" with Visual Aids

Watch as I make a connection from Third Rail Repertory Company to Maryhill Museum of Art in no more than three steps, while using 100-year-old film clips to illustrate. Here goes:

The Toy Cannon and consort were fortunate to secure tickets to Third Rail’s “Dead Funny” on Thursday night. Given the pretense I make of palling around with theater people, I'm chagrined to admit that this was my first time seeing the company. As we rode the elevator to the World Trade Center theater, I felt a twinge of nostalgia for Portland Repertory Theatre, which performed there until the company’s demise a decade ago. Seeing Third Rail member, Gretchen Corbett selling cookies in the lobby reminded me of her performance in the Rep’s production of “Molly Sweeney.” Standing not too far from her was the talented set designer Curt Enderle. Our living room sports a few leftover pieces from Curt’s set for “All in the Timing,” purchased for a song at Portland Rep’s warehouse sale in the Pearl, before it was the Pearl.

But enough trodding down memory lane, and let's quickly get my review out of the way: The performances were uniformly excellent, the production values were top notch, and the script was smashing (though 15-30 minutes too long). I won’t single out any one performance, but the Drammy Committee should create a special category for “Best Display of Courage in Full Frontal Nudity” for Tim True. Bravo! The company deserves all the attention and accolades flowing its way.

What I really want to do is use “Dead Funny” as an excuse to post a few videos I discovered while lazily wandering the web today. If you saw the play, you know that it involves a group of friends as they celebrate and mourn legendary but deceased British comedians. Since many of the references and reenacted routines were unfamiliar to me, I took advantage of the interwebs to search out video clips of Frankie Howerd, Max Miller (The Cheeky Chappy), Benny Hill and others mentioned in the play. It's a good way to kill an hour or two. I discovered an amusing clip of “Little Tich,” who was an English Music Hall superstar at the start of the last century. This clip shows Little Tich performing his famous “Big Boot” routine, which the French film director Jacques Tati is reputed to have described as the "foundation for everything that has been realized in comedy on the screen."



I also found a film of Little Tich performing a parody of choreographer Loie Fuller’s famous “Danse Serpentine.” First, here’s an 1896 Lumiere film of Fuller performing that work (the film was hand-tinted):



The following segment is from a French documentary about Music Hall. Near the end (at about 5:50, right after the minstrels) it has another clip of Loie Fuller's dance, followed by Little Tich’s parody of the same (ca. 6:30).



So ... Third Rail is connected to Little Tich through "Dead Funny." Little Tich is connected to Loie Fuller by having performed a parody of her work. Loie Fuller was friends with Sam Hill, who built his mansion (and a replica of Stonehenge) overlooking the Columbia. Fuller and the Queen of Romania convinced Hill to turn the mansion into what has become Maryhill Museum of Art. It's a small world after all.

I don't have any excuse for posting this last bit of film. Wilson and Keppel were a popular music hall act whose "Sand Dance" capitalized on the popularity of Egyptian imagery that ensued after the discovery of King Tut's tomb. What can I say? I was amused.

A New Critique of Thee-ater

Last week, Seattle’s alternative weekly, The Stranger, ran a piece by arts writer Brendan Kiley entitled, “Ten Things Theaters Need to Do Right Now to Save Themselves.” Here’s a recap of his list:

1) Enough with the goddamned Shakespeare already.
2) Tell us something we don’t know.
3) Produce dirty, fast, and often.
4) Get them young.
5) Offer child care.
6) Fight for real estate.
7) Build bars.
8) Boor’s night out.
9) Expect poverty.
10) Drop out of graduate school.

Like Mike Daisey’s piece, “Empty Spaces or How Theatre Failed America” (also published in The Stranger, and later developed into a monologue performance), this one will certainly be a stick stirring up the mud at the bottom of the pond. The Stranger has already logged 103 comments—many of them lengthy, passionate and obviously written by theater makers.

Read it (it's short), think about it and come back to discuss. But don’t get all wigged out. Nine out of ten items on the list may be ridiculous, but which ideas have merit or are worth talking about? I'll weigh in with more opinion once I have the time to think about it some more.
While you’re catching up on theater news, be sure to read Marty Hughley’s story on Third Rail Rep from today’s Oregonian:

With a cohesive, collaborative spirit, a sharply honed aesthetic and lots of hard work, Third Rail Rep has quickly become one of Portland's most critically acclaimed theater companies. Yet another hit is the darkly hilarious "Dead Funny," and a move to a nicer, larger downtown digs, solidifies the case for its elite ranking.

Kudos (and good luck) to the fine folks at Third Rail. It’s nice to see a model that is working well. I'm looking forward to seeing "Dead Funny" next week.