Someday, I may go back and see how many of these letters I have written while flying across the country. I am always inspired following an intensive visit with Members and, once in flight, I start to process all that has just transpired—the energy and enthusiasm, the questions raised, the new insights provided—all while considering next steps. During this latest trip to Seattle, 60 directors and choreographers gathered for a day of discussions followed by a public dialogue with Tony Taccone (who is retiring after three-plus decades as Artistic Director at Berkeley Rep). The day involved two in-depth conversations, one sharing first rehearsal practices and the other exploring staging intimacy. Both were dynamic and complicated, with agreement and disagreement in equal measures, once again illuminating the changing and growing needs of our Members (and the world), all of which is what makes our work at SDC such a joy and a challenge.
The Board and staff at SDC are becoming increasingly conscious of the need for the Union to find the intersection between how you practice your crafts and how that practice may or may not be changing in this recalibration of our cultural norms. When I think about associate/resident directors and choreographers on Broadway, or fight choreographers, or development work, I am very aware that while our efforts today are successful, we have in fact had to play some catch-up. There was a time when, while we were focused on a series of priorities, other forces were reshaping the industry. Today, as we experience such a rapid rate of change, we are committed to not only being a part of but also leading the establishment of best practices within the changing field, whether it be the role of our Members in the electronic capture of live theatre or educating collaborators about the unique and essential role of directors and choreographers in the development of new work. One of the most acute industry shifts right now is in the discourse around staging intimacy. This issue of the Journal provides a glimpse into some of the wide-ranging approaches and responses to this rapidly evolving movement.
Executive Board Members have been educating themselves to better understand new approaches to staging intimacy and are committed to being a central voice in the development of best practices. We have broadly summarized the areas of exploration into three areas that include: recognizing directors and choreographers who have long been successfully staging intimacy and finding opportunities for other Members to learn from their experiences; serving as a resource for Members interested in receiving training and developing tools and vocabulary with one of the established intimacy choreography collectives today; and opening networks and making introductions for Members who want to partner with an intimacy choreographer to realize the requirements of a play. In this issue, we share perspectives from all those vantage points and more. You’ll hear from Robert O’Hara on his experience with Slave Play. Writer Stephanie Coen spoke with Members as well as leaders in the intimacy staging community who are developing techniques and approaches. And we have voices from academia—a collection of Members, women, who find themselves in leadership positions at academic institutions wrestling with this work and other challenges in the academy. This discussion, while not brand new, is now in play with a heightened sense of urgency, and we are pleased SDC Journal is able to serve as a catalyst and a convener.
We take great pride in knowing that our relationship with higher education is anchored with our Peer-Reviewed Section (PRS), and we celebrate PRS Co-Editor Ann Shanahan’s recent appointment as the Chair of the Department of Theatre at Purdue University. As much of this summer Journal focuses on academia, we delve into the cross-disciplinary approach to theatrical training for acting and directing offered by Curt Columbus and Patricia Ybarra in the Brown/Trinity MFA programs. And it is rewarding to see the PRS continue with an insightful article from University of Miami’s Julio Agustin, who shares in detail his approach to reimagining Guys and Dolls through a Latinx lens at Theatre Under the Stars in collaboration with Dan Knechtges. It is fascinating to flip between this piece and Molly Smith’s reflections on bringing Anything Goes to Arena Stage’s audiences of the 21st century.
No less timely is the story at the center of this issue—Liesl Tommy, a Member on the forefront of expanding what it means to be a director, a director of color, a woman director, a woman of color. She is breaking through boundaries while forging a sustainable life for herself. In this interview, Oz Scott takes us through a thoughtful, funny, insightful, important conversation.
I would be remiss if I didn’t call out our expanded Foundation report on this year’s “Mr. Abbott” Award. Honoring Victoria Traube and celebrating founder Agnes de Mille, it was a night to remember. Vicky, an unsung hero in the theatrical community, was long overdue for recognition and it felt just right that SDCF would honor her with the first special “Mr. Abbott” Award for dedication to and advocacy of directors and choreographers, as Vicky is also the daughter of founders Shepard and Mildred Traube. And Agnes. While we could never do enough to honor Agnes, we came close. Five choreographers—Al Blackstone, Raja Feather Kelly, Kitty McNamee, Jenn Rose, and Katie Spelman—went all-out. I expect Agnes would have approved! We hope you enjoy this issue. Happy summer.
In Solidarity,
Laura Penn
Executive Director