UP NEXT: Dionysus in 69
In a first-of-its-kind remounting of the legendary Performance Group adaptation of The Bacchae, the Rudes
re-create this environmental theatre masterpiece to kick off their Contemporary Classics Series
December 3 - 20 at The Off Center | Thursday - Sunday at 8 PM
TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
$12 - $25 Sliding Scale | Pay-What-You-Wish on Thursdays
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Co-directed by Madge Darlington and Shawn Sides
Featuring:
Heather Barfield, Elizabeth Doss, Thomas Graves, Jude Hickey, Matt Hislope, Jodi Jinks,
Hannah Kenah, Josh Meyer, Aron Taylor, Katie Van Winkle
Rude Mechanicals (a.k.a. Rude Mechs) is proud to rebirth The Performance Group's groundbreaking interpretation of Euripides's The Bacchae, Dionysus in 69.
Directed by Richard Schechner and created collectively by The Performance Group (TPG), Dionysus in 69 is widely regarded as one of the germinal works of American experimental performance. Influenced by the work of Jerzy Grotowski, Happenings, the Freedom Movement, and a "birth ritual" from West Irian (part of the island of New Guinea), Schechner and TPG radically interpreted The Bacchae as both a celebration of ecstasy and a critique of false prophets.
With Dionysus in 69, TPG developed "environmental theatre," a term Schechner coined to describe a method of staging where the entire space is used by both performers and spectators, focus is flexible and variable, and the literary text is not the primary element driving the production. In Dionysyus in 69, Schechner explored audience participation with such innovations as moving the performance from the theatre to the street, and constructing a space with no fixed seating. Over the course of the original production's fourteen month run, actors switched roles, the text morphed, clothes were shed, and many spectators joined the dance or intervened, in some cases, changing the outcome of the production. During one performance, a group of students got the idea to "liberate" Pentheus by bodily carrying him from the theatre. In order to complete the night's performance, Schechner managed to coax a spectator to play the role during the final scenes (Schechner stood behind the young man, coaching him). On many occasions, audiences responded to the outrageous adaptation with riots, sit-ins, and group actions.
Rude Mechs are proud to produce the first-ever rebirthing of this legendary work, offering Austin theatre-goers an extraordinary opportunity to relive history. Rude Mechs will faithfully recreate the original production, using Brian de Palma's filmed version of the play as well as the 1970 book, Dionysus in 69, as source materials. Rude Mechs celebrates 40 years of experimental (and "environmental") theatre by experiencing and learning about Dionysus in 69 in the deepest way - through its performance.
Coinciding with this production, The Humanities Institute will be hosting Schechner s this year's Cline Visiting Professor. He will offer public lectures about Dionysus in 69 and other ground-breaking works he's directed, meet UT theatre classes, and lead Rude Mechs in several workshops and rehearsals in preparation for their run of the play.
Dionysus in 69 is the first in a series of Rude Mechs re-enactments of significant, experimental performances from the 60's, 70's, and 80's that radically influenced the work of contemporary performance artists, dancers, and theatre makers. Because all performances are ephemeral, and avant-garde performances even more so, most people never experience these germinal works. Through the Contemporary Classics Series, Rude Mechs will be remounting these productions as closely as possible to the originals.
"Dionysus in 69 is strong stuff, but anyone who wants to know where the modern theatre is going will have to see it."
---The New York Times, June 7, 1968
Richard Schechner Events - Free and Open to the Public
November 17, 12:30 PM - Public Colloquim, Americo Paredes for Cultural Studies "9/11 as Avant-garde Art?" (The University of Texas, EPS 1.128)
November 17, 4:45 PM - Public Conversation, UT Department of Theatre and Dance "Children of Dionysus: New Collaborative Performance" (B. Iden Payne Lobby, Winship Drama Building)
December 4, 7:00 PM - Opening Night/Pre-show talk with Schechner (requires ticket to the 8 PM show)
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Updated 11/15/2007
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