the week of october 18 - 22, 2021
do i take a sick day to watch cush jumbo as hamlet
You’re reading Nothing for the Group, a newsletter where one dramaturg rounds up one week in theatre news, reviews, and takes. If you like this sort of thing:
The Friday weekly round-up is always free — no gods, no masters, no paywalls — but if you’d like to sustain this project (and get access to occasional bonus content), you can upgrade to a paid tier.
If you want to say hi (or send me a press release), you can email me, tweet @halvorsen, or just reply to this email.
Identity Design: Elizabeth Haley Morton || Editorial Support: Rebecca Adelsheim
what paid subscribers got this week
I took advantage of AU’s fall break and wrote a subscriber-only post about my favorite fake theatrical genres: bong hit musicals, dramas of retail drudgery, teens & blood rituals, queer gothic literary adaptations, etc. Here’s a taste:
The defining characteristic of a bong hit musical is a premise so bonkers that it only could've been conceived while stoned. It's important to distinguish these projects from their sister genre, "Musicals Best Experienced on Edibles," which includes Spongebob Squarepants, Mamma Mia!, and any high school production of Grease.
best of DC!
Nothing for the Group was an editor’s pick in Washington City Paper’s annual Best of DC 2021! Thanks to Caroline Jones for the very kind write-up on why this newsletter is the “Best Way to Learn About the American Theatre Industry.”
This is your regular reminder to support local journalism, a field that is just as bleak and underpaid as theatre. City Paper’s 2020 feature on the sexual harassment revelations at Flying V was vital, as they were the only news outlet to give the story, and the survivors, the space and in-depth coverage they deserved. In DC, the only worthwhile reporting on how the pandemic devastated the local theatre industry came from City Paper and DCist. Local journalism is critical for the safety, security and knowledge of our communities — and for the future of our field.
digital theatre
Hamlet, starring Cush Jumbo, will stream October 28-30 from the Young Vic. The live, immersive, multi-camera broadcast is directed by Greg Hersov. (I am still kind of burnt out by the idea of consuming any kind of theatre, in-person or digital, but I may make an exception for Cush Jumbo.)
Timberlake Wertenbaker’s audio play Who Are You? streams October 29-31. The project is part of the Sound Stage series by Pitlochry Festival Theatre and the Royal Lyceum. Directed by Amy Liptrott, Who Are You? explores “the state of the world and our relationship to nature and environment.”
Ron Domingo’s Clifford Odets in Staten Island is now streaming from Ma-Yi until March 2022. Written by Michi Barall & Sung Rno and directed by Jack Tamburri, the piece is a follow-up to Sophocles in Staten Island, which followed Domingo and his real-life family staging Greek tragedies in lockdown.
New Saloon’s Minor Character is streaming at the Wilma through November 7th. Directed by Yury Urnov, this is a filmed, multi-camera version of the “zany Uncle Vanya remix” that’s currently playing in-person at the Philadelphia theatre through this Sunday.
Martyna Majok’s Sanctuary City is streaming through November 21st at New York Theatre Workshop. The 2018 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about two teenage children of undocumented immigrants is directed by Rebecca Frecknall.
Culture Clash’s Chavez Ravine In 9 Innings is now streaming from Center Theatre Group. The cinematic reimagination of their 2003 project Chavez Ravine, which explored the transformation of a growing city and a tightly knit neighborhood and cherished barrio, now curates “selected scenes and allegories of an L.A. ghost story into nine episodes…incorporating music and featuring archival films, period photos, interviews, and new performances.”
in-person theatre
Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord starts performances October 25th at NYTW. Directed by Chay Yew, the work details how Wong went from an out-of-work performance artist to overlord of a homemade face mask empire during the early days of the pandemic.
The world premiere of Whitney White’s Macbeth in Stride opens at A.R.T. on October 28th. Performed by White and an ensemble with a live band, the theatrical event “examines what it means to be an ambitious Black woman through the lens of one of Shakespeare’s most iconic characters.” Co-directed by Tyler Dobrowsky and Taibi Magar, the piece is the first in a commissioned five-part series of concert plays exploring Shakespeare’s women, set to rock and roll.
Alice Childress’ 1955 drama Trouble in Mind makes it long-overdue Broadway premiere on October 29th. The “wry and moving look at racism, identity, and ego in the world of New York theatre” is directed by Charles Randolph Wright.
Lucy Kirkwood’s Maryland is now playing as a script-in-hand reading at the Royal Court Upstairs. The half-hour play (or, as Kirkwood calls it, “a howl”) is a response to the murders of Sabina Nessa and Sarah Everard. It’s jointly directed by Vicky Featherstone, Lucy Morrison and Milli Bhatia with a cast that changes every two days. The script is available online for free.
that’s not a living wage
Here are this week’s featured underpaid job listings, paired with the living wage for a 40-hour work week for one adult with no children in that area. (You can read more about the methodology here.)
Development Assistant, Signature Theatre (non-exempt): $45,000
Living Wage for NYC: $51,323Management Assistant, Walnut Street Theatre: $35,000
Living Wage for Philadelphia: $38,291Patron Experience & Rentals Manager, Round House Theatre: $35,000 - $40,000
Living Wage for Montgomery County, MD: $53,385