The Story of the Caffé Cino

Magie Dominic recently gave a presentation at the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation about the origins of Off-Off-Broadway and the Caffé Cino. She says that she covers Lanford Wilson to Bette Midler and everyone in between.




You can read also her 2paragraphs post about the presentation.

Cast of Tom Eyen's “Why Hannah’s Skirt Won’t Stay Down” at the Caffe Cino, 1965. Featured: Magie Dominic, Joe Cino, Helen Hanft, Tom Eyen, Steven Davis, Jack Quinn. (Photo: Jim Gossage)

Creative ReUse

Check out this great Tedx talk by Materials for the Arts Executive Director, Harriet Taub.

Inspiration and Mentor: Marian Seldes

"Theatre is where I am confident and happy."

"I have had a career in which, almost without exception, every single person I've worked with has helped me."

"All I've done is live my life in the theater and loved it."

"If I had a religious belief, I would want it to be as strong as my belief in the theater."
                                        ~ Marian Seldes

Growing Up Musical; How [title of show] Continues to Inspire 8 Years Later

 
Contributed by Gabby Weinstein
 
Today started out as a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. And then, by some twist of fate I was introduced to one of my original theatre idols Hunter Bell and was reminded of my love for musicals and for Indie Theatre.

To give you some context here: yes, I was born in 1994, but I promise you that in no way hinders my ability to love and appreciate theatre. And was raised in NYC by two moms who taught me to love theatre without censorship. They took me to many a show where I was the youngest in the audience.

My history with [title of show] starts when I was 12. My mom had sent me a letter at camp with the New York Times article enclosed and a letter which said something like,

“A musical about two guys writing a musical, about two guys writing a musical! - I’m going to take you kids to this when you get home”

When the time came, my brother and I, being couch potatoes at heart, both were grumpy to be pulled from our regularly scheduled Nickelodeon programing to walk the 5 avenues to The Vineyard Theatre.

When we got there my mom pointed to a poster for Avenue Q - I had been listening to that soundtrack for around two years at that point (my moms wouldn’t take me to see it, but gave me an iTunes-burned soundtrack, save for one or two choice songs)- and told me that it had premiered here, and was in the same festival that [title of show] came from. (Note: I think that this, in fact, is wrong, but it was nonetheless important as a memory) I remember thinking how crazy it was that there were musicals in places other than Broadway stages. A whole festival for shows that didn’t take place in Times Square? My mind was blown.

I can still remember exactly where we sat in that theatre and the strange looks we got when we toted a booster seat for my eight year old brother through a row of mostly middle aged men and women. Seeing that show was an experience like no other. I hadn’t exactly grown up on Oklahoma or Fiddler on the Roof (in fact I had to go seek those out myself), but [title of show] taught me that there is beauty in quirky musicals and that you can make a business out of loving theatre. My whole family listened to that soundtrack for years. My mom even took me to see it on Broadway in 2008.

In a class of mine recently I was asked to write down a list of pieces of theatre that had most made an impact on me. I read my list to the class.

“All musicals?” my teacher asked.

I realized that nobody else had a list even close to mine; which was filled with shows like [title of show], Avenue Q, and Bat Boy. This is not to say that I don’t love plays, I do, but musicals are my fuel and my fire.

I could feel all the eyes in the class on me and I realized that all of my classmates thought that plays or experimental theatre were somehow greater than musical theatre and not equal to. It was like I was someone who binged on The Real Housewives in a room of Mad Men diehards.

After I met Hunter today, and listened to [title of show] for the upteenth time on the subway ride home, I realized something. My love for musicals is something to be celebrated. Hunter and the rest of the team created a show that encapsulates a love for musicals that can’t be put into words. After listening to it again I started to understand jokes that I hadn’t even known were jokes when I first saw it.

I love Indie Theatre because it celebrates artists and their love for what they do. Indie Theatre is the theatre that matters because it supports theatre that matters to real people. [title of show] is a show that reminds me what it means to be a theatre artist and to love my craft.

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Gabby Weinstein: 2014 Innovative Theater Awards Intern. New York CIty based Theatre Artist and Stage Manager. She is currently the Social Media Intern at the New York Innovative Theatre Foundation. She has recently worked with the Keen Company on their eighth season of Keen Teens and as the Production Stage Manager of Lysistrata Jones at the New Studio on Broadway. Other recent Stage Management credits include: Execution of Justice (SM), Spring Awakening (ASM), and The Who's Tommy (PSM). She is currently pursuing a BFA in Theatre with a focus in Stage Management and Lighting Design from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

Technological Terror

Contributed by Brian Petty

Technology is a readily present aspect of the theatrical industry today. From lighting and sound to projections and special effects, the theater has been all but consumed by the technological advancements of the present and future alike. But is this myriad of tech a help or a hindrance to the overall purpose of theater?

To even think about answering this question, we must first define what exactly the purpose of theater is. In the grand scheme of things, theater is an art form. While theater itself may be hard to define it would seem fitting to claim that the purpose of art overall is to “make us think, to make us react, to make us more than what we were before we read/saw/heard it.” Or, at least, this is the claim that the Shakespeare Ensemble makes in the newspaper at MIT.

So if we use this notion to define any piece of artistry, then we could make inferences to better define theater as an art form. Eliciting a visceral response or cathartic reaction from an audience member has become a socially accepted way to describe the experience theater is trying to achieve. These are the words that the theatrical community has acknowledged as ways to describe the purpose of theater.

So, now that we have a somewhat solidified definition, let’s refer back to this concept of technology and the analysis of its effect on this purpose we are trying to achieve. Currently, most would argue that technology greatly aids in the creation of catharsis by adding spectacle and realism in order to aid the actors. But at what point does this technological realism and spectacle stop aiding in the overall purpose and start hindering it?

One clear cut example is the new technology called Hologram Theater. Hologram Theater or Holographic Projections are starting to be experimented with in certain theatrical spaces. Studio 44 mounted a production in 2009 called St. Joe that utilized this concept of Holographic Projection in a very new and innovative way. Essentially, St. Joe can be described as a literal “show in a box” that only requires one crew member to set up and press play. While this would seem convenient to many, for the actors and artists within the industry, it likely comes across as threatening.

Similar to the struggle of factory workers during the industrial revolution, this new hologram theater is threatening to the jobs of the actors, designers, technicians and even managers in the theatrical world. “Live” performance is beginning to look less and less live each day and with the addition of your neighborhood friendly robot, people are starting to be replaced by machines. Our lighting spot ops have been replaced by computerized follow spots, our box office attendees have been replaced by automated ticketing programs and our designers and technicians have all but yielded their real duties to software and computer programs that do the work for them. With all of these positions falling by the wayside, it only seems like a matter of time before all shows turn into these ominous “shows in a box.” So, at this point, I know what you are probably thinking. Man can never be truly replaced by machine when it comes to actors. Acting requires a sense of human emotion and presence that a machine could never replicate, right?

Well, with the recent success of the Turing Test, I don’t know that we can be so sure.  Machine has officially fooled man. Robots have developed an interface that can replicate a human consciousness so closely that they appear human. With every passing day, the threat of technology creeps ever closer to the death of this industry. So, I ask you. Do we simply sit back and wait for human beings to be void of the theater scene because android model 9XZ762 was the best fit for the part? Or do we make a stance against the onslaught of this technological mayhem and take our raw natural art form back into what it was originally intended to be?

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Brian Petty: 2014 Innovative Theater Awards Intern. Senior at Ramapo College of New Jersey with Double Major in Theater Design/Technology and Business Administration: Management.
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The Beauty of Off-Off-Broadway

Contributed by Sally Burgos

When watching commercial theater, like shows on Broadway or even Off Broadway, I found most to be clean cut, predictable, but yet still had the magical charm I look for when watching theater. The shows are like clean cut stories with music and spectacle. What attracted me to theater, as a young girl entering High School, was the thrill that anything could happen when you are on stage or watching as an audience member. It was exciting to be immersed and get lost in a story with a whole room on the same journey. I feel such good energy when watching a show on Broadway but at the same time, as a young lady entering her senior year of college, I cannot connect with the show the same way I can to a show Off-Off-Broadway.

When I watch a show Off-Off-Broadway, I feel this raw, electric, artistic energy in the room. This extra energy comes from the companies and all of the people who worked on the production. When you watch their shows, you can see their strong efforts even if they lack a huge budget. When it comes to shows that are non-for-profit, they tend to have an open and close date verses the commercial theater that tends to have an open run, especially if they win a Tony. Since they are aware of their end date, they put their all into it for little to no pay. It is beautiful.

The audience also makes an effect because this is Indie Theater, theater that is, in my opinion, so rebellious and is not afraid to try something bold and new. It speaks to my young rebellious artistic heart. The audience ranges in age but I find myself being able to speak to another fellow audience member. It is welcoming and passionate and bold.

Long live Off-Off-Broadway and artists that are not afraid to try something new. 

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Sally Burgos: 2014 Innovative Theater Awards Intern. A senior at Marymount Manhattan College, she studies Theater Arts with a concentration Producing and Management. She is currently interning for the New York Innovative Theatre Foundation under Production and Stage Management. She hopes to see the world and work for theaters around the world as a manager