Flux Theatre Ensemble

We're off to Flux's 4th Annual Retreat at beautiful Little Pond Arts Retreat - we'll have lots to report upon our return! Read the full story

“The awful, terrible act of his dying was, he could see, reduced by those around him to the level of a casual, unpleasant, almost indecorous incident…and this was done by that very decorum which he had served his whole life long.”

–from The Death of Ivan Ilyich, by Leo Tolostoy

"Since you're already planning to take your own life, there's something you can do that will make a lot of lonely people very happy."
-From Viral, by Mac Rogers

"I built up this little fantasy for myself. That she suffered. You know? That she knew she was going to die and she couldn’t stop knowing it. And she tried to find peace in the lord, but she was too scared. I saw her laying on the asphalt in a pool of her own blood there knowing she was going to die, like a train was headed for her and she couldn’t get out of the path. And I almost couldn’t live thinking she suffered like that."
-From Rattlers, by Johnna Adams

“How can they still have war?”
It took me a few seconds to leap across the conceptual gap between the highly personal and particular conversation we’d been having and this eternal conundrum.
“They couldn’t,” I told her, “if they felt the loss of each life the way you are feeling this one."
How could that happen? How could those who make and profit from war be given the opportunity to experience the fullness of loss created by their enterprise?
-From Arlene Goldbard's talk at the NET Summit

(Cheery start to a post, no?)

First, go see Gideon's production of Mac Roger's Viral. There are liable to be some spoilers in what follows, but it's a play worth much discussion. Here I want to talk about how it mirrors The Death Of Ivan Illyitch, and how these works, and Johnna Adams Rattlers, serve as one possible answer to Arlene's question.

For more on The Death Of Ivan Illyitch, go here. Done? Then let me add that reading this novella my Freshman year of college was a shattering experience. The terror Ivan feels at the certainty of his death and the waste of his life haunted me for weeks. The uneasy truce I'd made with my own mortality years back was broken, and I felt again, keenly, the size of loss in a single death.

Viral is a mirror of Ivan Illyitch: where Tolstoy gives Ivan a Christian rapture, Mac gives Meredith a secular redemption; where Ivan runs from death, Meredith runs towards it; where Ivan's death causes his estrangement from his community, Meredith's draws her into one; where Ivan's dying is linked to spiritual awakening, Meredith's is linked to sexual awakening.

Both stories, however, do not sugar coat the terror of death, sought or not; and both make the audience feel the full and final loss of a single life. It is their unyieldling focus, and there is no refuge of sentimentality to soften the blow.

Why? Why shatter that truce with mortality and open our mind to that terror and pity? Because these plays stand in direct opposition to the way death is portrayed in our mainstream culture. Heroes stride through fields bloodied with faceless villains; detectives stoically unravel violent crimes with those who bear the loss treated as scondary characters; grandparents are carried off by flights of angels all singing "it was their time". Death and murder are portrayed as necessary, even heroic, parts of life; and little time is spent with the nameless, faceless dying; unless of course, they die with violins and a twinkle of wisdom in their eye.

It's no wonder - it feels better to think of death and murder as necessary - but only one of them is inevitable. In our urge to take the sting out of death, our stories have taken the sting out of murder, and war persists as an inevitable and heroic thing:

"War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner."
-Cormac McCarthy, Blood Meridian

History bears out the Judge's claim. But maybe the imaginative empathy I experienced through Viral and The Death Of Ivan Illyitch, those experiences that make me seemingly incapable of watching action movies without uneasiness and pain, maybe they can (as Arlene believes) actually save us.

Which brings us to Rattlers, Johnna's play that feature two men dealing with the death of the woman both loved more than the world itself. The quote above comes too late, of course - the murderer finds the remorse of empathy only after the fact - only when he is alone with her dead body. And maybe that's what we need more of in the theatre, painful as it is - plays that take all the wounded and dead together and put them in the room with us; so that we cannot escape witnessing their question.

This is not a license for bleakness - far from it. Rattlers and Viral only work because they are filled with humor, light and hope. Nor am I calling for an end to action movies. But we cannot deny the extraordinary power the stories we tell each other have over our actions. And right now, I think we need more stories like Rattlers, Viral, and The Death of Ivan Illyitch.

So go see it! Read the full story

One of the Core Values being discussed at our 4th Annual Retreat at Little Pond is Ensemble Structure. This value is currently given this rough phrasing:

"Flux values a collaborative decision making process that respects the voices of all Ensemble members involved."

In practice, Flux votes on the plays and directors of the season. Occasionally we open up other decisions to the Ensemble as a whole, and try to solicit Ensemble feedback during the process (I have many pages of notes from our last Lesser Seductions workshop to work through).

But collaborative decision-making can quickly become cumbersome, and it's impossible to keep all Members equally informed on the factors involved in a particular decision.

Additionally, in a culture that values the efficiency of the corporation, models and best practices of non-hierarchical structures are hard to find. It was partly to address this need that the Network of Ensemble Theaters was formed.

However, reading through John Laurence's excellent The Cat From Hue (researching the Vietnam War for Lesser Seductions), I was struck by this quote:

"In the bubble of unreality that surrounded the daily war news, the farther away you were from the front lines, the less you knew what was actually going on. Men like Lyndon Johnson and Robert McNamara and William Westmoreland, who were the farthest from the front and consequently knew least about the reality of the war, were the very ones who were planning the strategy to fight it."

It's dangerous to extrapolate from the tragedy of war, but taking into account the difference in the scale of loss, the warning is the same. Truth is diluted with each turn it takes in a bureaucracy, and struggles most swimming upstream. In a hierarchical organizational structure, those with the first hand experience of a crisis are often the furthest from those finding a solution.

The box office staff hears all the angry complaints over a choice senior management made; but by the time the complaints reach senior management, they've been diluted by the desire to sugar over the bad news. Each rung on the ladder adds a little more sugar, so that like a game of telephone, the original message bears little resemblance to its final incarnation.

The tech crew knows what is possible in the changeover, but their feedback doesn't reach the designer; the actor knows the moment isn't working, but isn't given access to the playwright; the volunteer knows the audience leaves grumbling, but the Artistic Director only reads the big review.

Whatever the flaws of artist-produced theatre and ensemble structure, the front line truth is much less diluted. The artist-producer feels the consequences of their choices first-hand. It may be that the value of that front-line experience is worth the cost of consensus-building, multi-tasking and knowledge-sharing. Either way, articulating that balance is a big part of our conversation at this upcoming retreat.

What is your experience of this tension between the differing strengths and challenges of hierarchical versus collaborative structures? Is it possible to find the best of both worlds? Any thoughts you can post will be greatly appreciated. Read the full story

A huge thank you to everyone who came out to support us at our Food:Soul Benefit Party on August 9th; everyone who purchased raffle tickets and donated items to the raffle; and those who couldn't attend but made a tax-deductible contribution toward our 10 lives, 10 years, $10,000 campaign! We are 36% toward our achieving our goal!

Flux is delighted to announce the winners of our Food:Soul RAFFLE prizes:

1) Star for a Day! - Stephen Lee

2) Daily Show Tickets - Johnna Adams

3) Jimmy Fallon Tickets - Amy Carickhoff

4) Mystery Box - Luis Cobo (and in case you were wondering what was in the box...the 1960s-themed goodies included: two tickets to The Lesser Seductions of History, a hardcover edition of Life: The Classic Collection, a lava lamp, a free facial at Aveda spa and pack of Starburst)

5) Shakespeare in the Park (The Bacchae) - Luis Cobo! Yes, he won twice, but well-deserved as Luis bought 100 tickets

6) Dinner for 2 with a Flux member - Marnie Schulenburg (and who's she going to dinner with? Her own brother and Artistic Director of Flux, Gus Schulenburg)

7) A tour of Google's NYC offices - Lesley Magaril De Lia

8) Handmade purse by Jason Tseng - Marnie Schulenburg (again!)

9) Foot Massager - Deb Clementi

10) BlueTooth headset - Greg Tagaris

11) Gift certificate to SoHo Santuary - Michael Rubenstein

12) Area Yoga gift certificate - Mandy Chan

13) Handmade 60s necklace by Ashley Faison - Liz Crommett

14) Two seasons with NYC Social Sports - Amanda Crommett

15) NYC Theatre Package (ArsNova, Epic Theatre Ensemble, New Perspectives) - Carissa Cordes

****

We want to thank everyone who attended the event--those who bought tickets in advance and those who paid at the door (apologies to the few of who whose names we don't have, but a particular shoutout to Rob & Carol Ackerman's friends who came to support):

Rob & Carol Ackerman, Johnna Adams, Thed Allyn, Karin Anderson, Ryan Andes, Camille Averso, Mariette Booth, Erin Browne, Amy Carickhoff, Eleanor Casey, Carissa Cordes, Liz Crommett, Jennifer Conley Darling, Jessa DeLia, Joan & Dick Firestone, Matt Freedman, Ken Glickfeld, Mark Gordon, Jason Gullo, Sean Harvey, Jessi Hill, Kara Knapp, Alano Miller, Paul Mischeshin, Matthew Murumba, Chance Parker, Nicole Potter, Brian Pracht, Zack Robidas, Michael Roderick, Marnie Schulenburg, Barry Shapiro, Ken Shieh, Doug Strassler, Michael Swartz, Daren Taylor, Jason Tseng, Mark Weston, Jodi Witherell

*****

We also want to give a shout out to everyone who bought raffle tickets in advance and the day of the event (please forgive us for not having all the names of those who purchased tickets the day of):

Luis Cobo, Matthew Archambault, Michael Rubenstein, Mike Tsouris, Johnna Adams, Betty Astle, David Astle, John Cassidy, Deb Clementi, Carissa Cordes, Billy Ehrlacher, Ken Glickfeld, Leah Grip, Sean Harvey, Lesley Magaril De Lia, Faith Rosen, Greg Tagaris, Jane Taylor, Karen Tortora-Lee, Brad Bender, Jackie Berg, Marilou Cassidy, Mandy Chan, Cathy Cohn, Garrett Cronin, Dylon Curatolo, Amy Dechowitz, Kurt Ebrahim, Brian Griffin, Kate Marks, Paul McEnerney, Rachel Meyers, Sandra Morgan, Rany Ng, Warren Nichols, Frederick Olmstead, Catherine Porter, Patrick Schoonveld, Adam Smoler, Mark Valdez, Claire Mazur, Mariette Booth, Becca Firth, Meghan Formwalt, Andrew Glenn, Justin Hoch, Becky Kelly, Alison Klurfield, Kelsey Lebeau, Molly Metzler, Alissa Moore, Renee Nilson, Heather O'Brien, Eliza Bent, Linda Fung, Lindsay Hockaday, Colleen Jasinsky, Toni Quan, Heather Shock, Jen Thatcher, Camille Averso, Megan Dieterle, Nicole Estvanik Taylor, Crystal Skillman, Doug Strassler.

Hope to see you all at The Lesser Seductions of History in November!

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Here they are! When Isaiah Tanenbaum wasn't busy heroically playing Xavier, the hard-nosed journalist and announcer of the Ladyhawks, he was taking these pictures - most are from our rehearsal that day, but a few are from the party itself. For more info on the event, go here; and to read artist/audience thoughts about the event, go here.

Read the full story

Just when I'm ready to post about the Fringe it feels like it's halfway finished! BUT my tardy post is no excuse for missing the following Flux-infused Fringe offerings:

Member Cotton Wright (Pretty Theft, Angel Eaters, Rue) is appearing in a musical called Gutter Star, The Paperback Musical. If you've never heard Cotton sing, remedy that now.

Member Isaiah Tanenbaum (Angel Eaters, Midsummer, Life Is A Dream) is appearing in The Secret Of Our Souls - A Kabalistic Love Story. It features some beautiful voices and a bear mauling two Cossacks. What more do you need?

Flux friend Amy Lynn Stewart (Rattlers) is teaming up with Exploding Moments (Infectious Opportunity) vet Rebecca Comtois in Mac Rogers' (Imagination Compact, Poetic Larceny) Viral, a play that I am SO EXCITED to see that I must egregiously use CAPS to describe my excitement. Trusted reviewer Patrick Lee has already given it a rave here, so this one feels like a must see.

Flux bud Todd d'Amour (Pretty Theft) is in the intriguing sounding Ether Steeds, which has already scored a sweet review from likewise trusted reviewer Aaron Riccio, so add this one to the list.

Flux vet Zack Robidas (8 Little Antichrists, Pretty Theft) is a producer for At Play's Al's Business Cards, running through August 22nd and recipient of a great review from the Times.

The playwright master of Flux ForePlays Jeff Lewonczyk (Imagination Compact, Poetic Larceny) turns director for Trav S.D.'s Willy Nilly, a musical exploitation of the cult murders of the psychedelic era. Yes, please.

Carissa "non-stop play machine" Cordes is in an all-female production of Jen Genet's Deathwatch in a translation by Obie Winner David Rudkin. It's killing me that my schedule is making me miss this one (sorry).

Did we mention that time is running out to see Lynn Kenny (Pretty Theft) play freakin' Medea in a modern adaptation called Maddy? I'll be seeing this Friday night - hope to see you there!

THE MAJORLEANS are playing: this Thursday at 9PM at the Sidewalk Cafe on 6th Street and Avenue A. Select Majorleaners rocked out our ITBA acceptance video and our last Food:Soul party, so show some reciprocal love to this great band.

Michael Swartz (Midsummer) is showing off more of his classical chops in the ATA's Iphigenia In Tauris at the end of August, if you're hungry for more Flux friends post-Fringe.

Speaking of, fellow NET company Hand2Mouth is traveling from Portland, OR to play at The Ontological-Hysteric Incubator from8/27 to 9/5. We met the creator of Undine Faith Helma at the NET Summit and she is awesome, so be sure to check it out.

Damn, I'm just tired writing all that. Imagine how exhausted and satisfied you'll be after you see all of it.

Anything I missed? Anything you'd recommend? Mauled by any bears? Read the full story

Flux is heading next week on our annual retreat at Little Pond, and we have an ambitious schedule for a week of relaxation, balancing internal questioning with play development.

One of the major goals is to begin articulating our Core Values into clear, evocative, actionable items. To do so, we're not only looking inward and sharing our own personal values, but also identifying successful models in the field.

Here are three ways you can help:
1. Do you know of any theatre companies with clear and evocative values that are truly reflected in their actions? If so, please post links to their values web page in the comments.

2. Have you gone through the process of articulating core values for your company? If so, do you have any advice on useful tactics or pitfalls to avoid?

3. Do you feel strongly that Flux should list a certain value among our Core Values? This may be a quality you already see present in how we work, or may be a goal you feel we need to work towards.

Though all Fluxers are currently preparing for this session of the retreat by answering more detailed versions of these questions, sometimes an outside eye can see things we miss, so please post your thoughts in the comments below.

For further detail, here is our working definition of Core Values:
VALUE: Something (as a principle or quality) intrinsically valuable or desirable
CORE: a basic, essential, or enduring part; the essential meaning; the inmost or most intimate part
A Core Value are those values that Flux holds as basic, essential and enduring. Our decisions and actions emanate from and are measured by these values.

Two examples of strong Core Values statements:
Cornerstone Theater Company
Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Please comment away! If you're feeling especially inspired, why not check out our earlier post regarding our evolving aesthetic and comment on that? This will be another big session for us, and any feedback or thoughts you have going in will be very helpful. Hopefully, you'll be seeing the fruits of these sessions in September. Read the full story