>>PREVIEW
FUSE ’06
Theatre Calgary
Runs until May 19
(Theatre Calgary)
Fuse ’06, presented by Theatre Calgary, continues the play development initiative that offers audiences a behind the scenes view into the evolution of new works. The series, consisting of readings and some staged scenes is broken into four distinct categories – New Canadian Plays on National Themes; International Reading Series; Classical Commissioning Project; and Alberta Focus.
"The whole series is very new for us in the way which we are now looking at developing new work, commissioning and adapting classics," says Fuse ’06 curator Eric Rose.
"It’s a way of researching and developing what our future work could potentially be."
"It’s terribly exciting for us to be sinking money, time and energy into looking at these incredible plays that are speaking to a western understanding of the world. Both Dennis (artistic director Dennis Garnhum) and I feel very strongly that we want to tell our stories. This is part of what Fuse is going to do. We now have the ability to develop and tell stories that are going to have a real resonance with an Alberta audience, and especially a Calgary one."
The workshops kick off with a new stage version of Timothy Findley’s Canadian novel The Wars, adapted by Garnhum, which will feature some staged work and reading of the text. Audiences will be asked to complete a small survey after the reading.
Fuse ’06 ends with a full reading of Ken Brown’s new play, Cowboy Poetry, about a rodeo circuit love triangle, featuring the country music of Tim Williams.
"We get to investigate and research these plays that have potential, that we want to understand to a fuller degree. We have actors read them in front of an audience and see what that response is to help us better judge whether it’s something that will resonate with a Calgary audience," says Rose.
"I think that what’s also significant about this series is that an audience can play an incredible role in helping us make decisions about what will be on our stage in the future."
A mixture of both new and classic works, Fuse ’06 also hopes to introduce an international element to their lineup. To help with this process, Theatre Calgary has brought in Beatrice Basso, an Italian dramaturge who helped choose three Italian plays of significance to read during their workshops – Naked by Luigi Pirandello; We Won’t Pay! We Won’t Pay! by Dario Fo, translated by Ron Jenkins; and Saturday, Sunday, Monday by Eduardo De Filippo, translated by Beatrice Basso.
"What’s great is that we get to explore these three incredible Italian plays with actors reading them aloud to make an informed choice of what’s going to work on our stage. And that’s where that kind of research development idea comes in as well," says Rose.
Basso isn’t the only person Theatre Calgary has brought in to help make Fuse ’06 a success. Director and designer Vickie Anderson has been invited to hold a discussion about Henrik Ibsen. Featuring three of Ibsen’s plays, Enemy of the People, Hedda Gabler and The Master Builder, the Ibsen Project will mainly be a discussion, with a reading of some selected scenes.
"We are interested in seeing if Ibsen has any resonance in Calgary. If it’s something we’re fascinated by, we’ll take the project further," says Rose. |
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