Contents include: A Note from the President; Dramaturgy/Publication Melissa Hillman, Part 1 of 2; Bridging TV + Theater Kelly Miller; LMDA Happenings; Odds & Ends.https://soundideas.pugetsound.edu/lmdanewsletter/1004/thumbnail.jp

Cerniglia, Ken

Haugland, Charles

Hillman, Melissa

Miller, Kelly

English

Sound Ideas

University of Puget SoundSound IdeasLMDA Newsletter LMDA Archive12-2016LMDA New & Noteworthy, volume 2, no. 3Ken CernigliaMelissa HillmanKelly MillerCharles HauglandFollow this and additional works at: https://soundideas.pugetsound.edu/lmdanewsletterThis Book is brought to you for free and open access by the LMDA Archive at Sound Ideas. It has been accepted for inclusion in LMDA Newsletter byan authorized administrator of Sound Ideas. For more information, please contact soundideas@pugetsound.edu.Recommended CitationCerniglia, Ken; Hillman, Melissa; Miller, Kelly; and Haugland, Charles, "LMDA New & Noteworthy, volume 2, no. 3" (2016). LMDANewsletter. 5.https://soundideas.pugetsound.edu/lmdanewsletter/5December 2016Issue 2.3A Note from the PresidentThis week I witnessed Notes from the Field, Anna DeavereSmith’s newest work that depicts the impact of America’sschool-to-prison pipeline. I cried, several times, as did manyothers around me. I was moved not only by these true stories,but also by the simple, theatrical way Smith embodies specificcharacters of diverse backgrounds and perspectives to saysomething universal about human existence. I thought about the “required reading” I had todo in school and wished theatre like this could be “required experiencing” as part of oureducation in empathy. Wishing you a joyful and restful holiday season. We have work to do in 2017.  Ken Cernigliadramaturgy/publication | MELISSA HILLMAN(PART 1 OF 2) Melissa Hillman, creator of the blog Bitter Gertrude, talks about how her experiences asthe Artistic Director for Impact Theatre in Berkeley fueled her to create an online platformto address issues of theatre and culture. Subscribe Past Issues TranslateWhy did you start the Bitter Gertrude blog?I’ve always been a writer. I’d published a few articlesbefore the blog. I’d long considered a blog, but Iwasn’t sure what direction I’d take. After running mytheatre company, Impact Theatre, for so many years,it had become clear to me that the lines ofcommunication between theatre admin andplaywrights, actors, techs, and audience werestartlingly opaque. I’d written a piece about auditionadvice for Theatre Bay Area Magazine that wassurprisingly popular. I received a pile of thank younotes for its blunt honesty. And I knew that there wasa gap there I could fill.How did the blog grow to address issues of socialjustice in the theatre industry?It took a very short time for me to tie the blog to my commitment to social justice. Diversityand equity are issues of huge importance to me. I was already writing about social justiceconcerns in our industry elsewhere, so it was a natural fit. From there, I expanded tocultural criticism and political topics outside theatre as well. Two of the most widely readpieces I’ve ever written in my career were Bitter Gertrude posts about topics outside oftheatre—one was about Beyoncé and one was about sexism in the primaries. The hatemail was pretty astonishing for both. Harassment and abuse are depressingly common forwomen writers on the internet. The very best advice I got early on was to change mysettings so I would have to manually approve—or not—each comment. I haven’t writtenabout harassment. It’s been widely covered by other writers, most notably by Lindy West.How do your skills as a dramaturg serve your blog writing?My dramaturgical skills compel me to source deeply. Most of my articles are littered withlinks to back up what I’m saying. Sometimes the academic writer pushes herself too farforward, and the dramaturg has to step in and say, “OK, this is boring,” or “This isparenthetical.” Academic writing is a different animal. Cutting to the narrative has been astruggle. I’m not entirely successful. But the dramaturg in me is working hard to keep myposts from becoming lengthy academic screeds.(continued in our January 2017 issue)Interview by Megan McClainbridging tv + theater | KELLY MILLERKelly discusses her work in television andtheater, and her thoughts on how TV’sembrace of playwrights is impacting ourindustry and culture.What Kelly is working on:I am six months into a new job as amanager at The Shuman Companyin Culver City, where I’mrepresenting writers and helpingplaywrights cross over into TV andfilm. I’m also a co-founder of The Kilroys;in my free time, I work as an activistand an advocate for gender parity in the theater. I’m on the board of the WP Theater inNew York and I recently commissioned and produced an evening of short plays in LA,called Hillanthropy--a one-night benefit for Hillary Clinton’s campaign, inspired by writerMatt Schatz.I’m also a developmental producer and a freelance dramaturg; I have a small companycalled Creative Destruction, and I occasionally produce workshops and readings. I spentsome time in residency this past year at Merrimack Rep and at Liz Engelman’s Tofte LakeCenter in Minnesota, as well as SPACE on Ryder Farm with Mona Mansour. I also workedwith Jean Bruce Scott and Mary Kathryn Nagle at Native Voices at the Autry. On the dramaturgical work involved in being a manager:The writer-manager relationship is a very intimate and developmental one, and it’s oftensimilar to the new play dramaturgy process. Every manager’s individual process andrelationship with a writer is different, but I often read multiple drafts of a treatment or script,then give notes and help a writer polish it prior to submission.There are a lot of similarities between the work I’m doing now and the work I did as aliterary director/dramaturg. I’m constantly reading scripts and talking to writers and agentsabout new plays and the future arc of a writer’s career. My advocacy for writers continues,as a big part of this job is continually meeting TV and film executives to build relationships,then connecting them with writers to yield future work. I’m working to create space inTV/film for playwrights to crossover, building on years of their cumulative dramatic craft. It’san exciting new challenge for me to think of a writer’s work in terms of “fit.” Where are theymeant to work in the TV ecology and with whom? How her experience in non-profit theater informs/inspires her work in TVmanagement:South Coast Repertory [where I previously worked as Literary Director] operates from amodel of financial abundance, committed historically to commissioning more writers thanthey could produce for the betterment of the field. But as I continued to work in non-profittheater, I noticed a pervasive “scarcity mentality” in most of the industry, that resources forartists were scarce -- development, workshop and production opportunities. Inspired bySCR’s longtime commitment to supporting the next generation of playwrights, I’minterested in the idea of abundance and what I can do to create opportunities forplaywrights to get paid for their craft and their time in TV and theater. On the cultural impact of playwrights moving to film and television:There is a slightly outmoded fear, that people are going to “lose” playwrights to television. Idon’t believe it’s an either/or proposition. I believe it’s a “yes, and” proposition. My friendAdam Rapp was once asked how he’s so prolific, how he manages to write concurrently fortheater, TV and film. He said “I’m a playwright; I write plays because I’m compelled to,because that’s who I am. I’ll always write plays.” The writers I know who are engaging onboth sides -- Sheila Callaghan, Bekah Brunstetter, Aurin Squire, Olivia Dufault (and manyothers) -- people for whom playwriting is a priority, they carve out time to do that work.As far as how TV structure may be affecting playwriting, I believe that it’s an olderquestion. The advent of MTV back in the early ‘80s, the advent of cable, and also video-game narrative and multi-protagonist narrative, are all affecting dramatic storytelling. Theyare complicating the traditional protagonist/antagonist model. We consume and createcomplicated, fast narratives because we’ve been doing it for decades. On finding the right balance of projects:The best work I do, whether it’s with new plays or with new TV material, is borne ofnecessity. It’s a story that needs to be told, or I have a relationship with a writer who feels adire need to get a story across. The mix of projects I’m working on is ever-changing, but it’salways driven by writers whose work and experience captures my imagination. I’m drawnto epic worldviews and writers unafraid of revolution--and I tend to respond to things as I’mcalled. I try to stay present with artists and speak to what drives them the most, becauseit’s my job to reflect and support. ***A note from Kelly on generosity: In addition to fostering an atmosphere of abundance, Ibelieve it’s important as dramaturgs/producers/thought provocateurs to remain open andgenerous -- to pay forward the wisdom and mentorship we’ve received from the myriadwriters, artists, and dramaturgs who’ve come before us. To that end, if you’re a dramaturginterested in TV and you’d like to talk more about it, I’d love to connect. Interview by Jeremy Stollerlmda happenings | CHARLES HAUGLANDI WAS AN LMDA BAKE SALE BABY; Or, reasons to love Lessing WeekMy first Lessing Week bake sale was while I was anintern at Actors Theatre of Louisville. I can’tremember what I made, and all I remember eatingwas Julie Dubiner’s rugelach. They are prettyphenomenal, like you-remember-eating-it-eight-years-later phenomenal. The pastry was flaky, the jam onthe sides had caramelized and crackled, and – okay,I’ll stop talking about them. Staff members from allover the organization came out, and bought things, oreven just gave money. We raised over $100 that daythat we sent off to LMDA. Every year, dramaturgs across the Americas host informal fundraisers for the organization,right around January 22nd (the birthday of the world’s first dramaturg, Gotthold EphraimLessing). The proceeds from those bake sales go to fund early-career dramaturgs toattend the national conference, and here’s where these silly bake sales really changed thecourse of my life and career. Because the year following my internship – before anybodyever paid me to do dramaturgy – the organization underwrote my travel through one ofthose grants, and I attended the 2008 conference in San Diego. That conference solidifieddramaturgy for me as a profession; I created professional relationships and friendshipswith colleagues in the field who I still call for advice; I became a lifelong believer in thepower of LMDA to gather the field and create meaningful conversation.So when I started working at the Huntington later that summer, I knew I’d be baking thatwinter to help bring more dramaturgs to the conference that year. These fundraisers are bydesign small, humble, and don’t require a lot of start-up capital. Every year I’ve held one atthe Huntington, I have been able to raise at least $70, and now colleagues from thedevelopment, education, and production departments bake with me.What I want to emphasize though is how important and transformative for our field bringingearly-career dramaturgs to the conference is. For dramaturgs who don’t have anorganization that can offset any of their costs, attending the conference is a really high bar,and a program like this makes at least a tiny crack in the economic barriers that hold backthe diversity of our field. Each year, participants’ perspectives enliven discussions andbroaden our view of what the next generation of dramaturgs is thinking about. I can’timagine last year’s conference in Portland without the 2015 Travel Grant recipients: JoleneNoelle, Fly Steffens, and Gabriella Steinberg. So please join us for LMDA’s 2017 Lessing Week events, including the bake sale – sendme an email and I’ll send you all the details! Bake a plate of cookies and sell them at yourdesk – or rally your organization and make a big old spectacle of it. For those who don’twant to bake, you can crochet little figures or write poems for a dollar or do anything elsewhere you can get people to give you money based on some skill you have. As one of themany dramaturgs who have been welcomed into LMDA through this program, I can tell youfrom experience how much this support can transform a young dramaturg’s career path. I’llbe thinking about my first conference when I’m icing cupcakes. Charles Hauglandodds & ends To file under miscellaneous + belated: LMDA member MeghanWinch was a contestant on the October 28 episode of Jeopardy! -- see photo of her at right with some great buzzer technique.Congrats, Meghan!Have you renewed your membership for 2017? You have untilJanuary 22!Check out our updated roster of regional reps here -- reach out to yours, say hello,and let them know what sorts of activities you're interested in attending. Looking for a job? Don't forget to check the listings at lmda.org/jobs.This email was sent to <<Email Address>> why did I get this?    unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences LMDA · PO Box 604074 · Bayside, NY 11360 · USA 

LMDA New & Noteworthy, December 2016

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LMDA New & Noteworthy, December 2016

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