Bazaar Productions at Mass MoCA
Waypoint Feb. 6 in Alt Cabaret Series
By: Bob Fowler - Dec 12, 2009
"We are delighted to have the opportunity to further develop this extraordinary piece of theater in partnership with MASS MoCA" commented director Sara Katzoff. "The residency provides our ensemble with a rare opportunity to fully immerse ourselves in the work. There is a focus and a depth to that process that would not be possible in any other environment. We are delighted to be doing so in collaboration with an organization we so deeply admire."
"We are thrilled to host The Berkshire Fringe artistic directors and the Bazaar Productions ensemble" said Sue Killam, MASS MoCA's managing director. "They are wonderful contemporary art colleagues in the Berkshires. We're proud that MASS MoCA has become the back lot for creative production, a place that artists come to experiment or to put the finishing touches on exciting new work. Our audience gets a first look at these new pieces. It's really quite remarkable to be able to experience such cutting-edge work in a small city in the Berkshires."
Developed by playwright Iris Dauterman while she was in residence at EarlyStages, The Waypoint features Shelby, a pregnant woman who is optimistic but concerned that her broken past makes her unfit to bring another life into this world, and Tristan, a child on the verge of being born who, after watching and learning about the struggles of the world, is not sure he is ready to 'get down there and live.' Under the guidance of the Waypoint's gatekeeper and a mysterious tattooed woman who weaves magical stories of life on earth, Tristan begins to see his life's potential in a new light. Shelby is heartened when her one-night stand proves to be more promising than expected and her brother's attempts to protect her confirm she has not only family but a foundation. The Waypoint weaves rich narrative and magical realism with an original sound-score to reveal the epic and often unexpected journey into life.
Directed by Sara Katzoff and scored by Peter Wise (who MASS MoCA patrons will recognize from his work in the past with Bang on a Can at their Summer Festival of Contemporary Music at MASS MoCA), The Waypoint features an outstanding ensemble including local actors: Emma Dweck of Great Barrington, Hilary Somers and Karen Beaumont of Stockbridge, and Adam Sugarman of Pittsfield, plus Timothy Ryan Olson and Josh Ramos of New York City. The Waypoint is the first full-length play produced by Bazaar Productions, presenters of The Berkshire Fringe.
Sara Katzoff, Co-producing Artistic Director/Ensemble Director, is a native of Berkshire County. She graduated cum laude from Bard College at Simon's Rock and spent a year training at the Dell'Arte International School of Physical Theater in California. In 2003, Katzoff and her creative partners co-founded Bazaar Productions and The Berkshire Fringe with the mission to establish a home for the creation and presentation of dynamic original works for the stage in the Berkshires. Most recently, she co-wrote and performed in Scored! and directed excerpts from Suzan Lori-Parks' 365 Days/365 Plays. Katzoff currently works as a performer, theater director, teaching artist and nonprofit consultant, dividing her time between Housatonic, Mass. and Brooklyn, N.Y.
Timothy Ryan Olson, Co-producing-Artistic Director/Assistant Director and playing the role of Simon, graduated summa cum laude from Bard College at Simon's Rock where he majored in theater and dance and spent a year in Amsterdam studying the Dutch language and researching the Holocaust. In 2002 he received his MFA in playwrighting from the Actor's Studio Drama School, where he was granted a Jacob K. Javits Fellowship in the Arts by the U.S. Board of Higher Education. Olson has taught method acting and scene study to advanced theater students at Simon's Rock, has worked as a first- and second-grade drama teacher through New York University's Metro Center, and has been a frequent participant in The Brooklyn Clown Lab. He is a co-founder of The Berkshire Fringe.
Peter Wise, Co-producing-Artistic Director/Composer, is a graduate of Stony Brook University's masters program in music performance. He grew up playing music in Stockbridge, Mass., and attended the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y. The first student to complete Eastman's World Music Certificate Program, he has particular interest in the music of the Balinese Gamelan and the Mbira tradition of Zimbabwe. Wise frequently performs and tours with groups such as Mohair Time Warp, Passenger Fish, JG Thirlwell's Manorexia, Alarm Will Sound, Oliphant and Doggo and Sons. He has performed at Lincoln Center Jazz, Carnegie Hall, Joe's Pub, The Stone, The Tank and numerous other venues throughout the New York metropolitan area. In the Berkshires Wise has been seen playing with the Berkshire Symphony, Berkshire Bach Society, and at Tanglewood on initial work for Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Project. He has participated in the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA with guest composers Steve Reich and Louis Andriessen. Wise is a co-founding artistic director of Bazaar Productions and The Berkshire Fringe where he curates the :30 Live music series.
Emma Dweck, who plays Shelby,is a performer, director and creator. She received a Bachelor's degree in theater from Skidmore College where she studied a range of methodologies including viewpoints and Suzuki. In 2002, she founded the Art & Soul Theater Project in an effort to bring new styles of performance to northwest Connecticut. In 2003, she trained at the National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Center and at the Theater Arts Academie in St. Petersburg, Russia. Dweck has toured and performed as a member of Triple Shadow, an experimental company influenced by Balinese mask, clown, movement and dance, and recently appeared in Alice: End of Days at La Mama in New York City where the piece was hailed as "theater handcrafted from pure timeless raw material...." by the Village Voice. She appeared in 365 days/365 plays and staged readings of The Waypoint and Dangerous Curves as part of EarlyStages at the Berkshire Fringe.
Playwright Iris Dauterman is a recent graduate of Bennington College in Vermont. While in school, she majored in acting, appearing in productions of Measure for Measure and Gum. She studied playwrighting with Caridad Svitch and Sherry Kramer. The Waypoint is her first full-length play. Written in 2008, the piece was accepted into the EarlyStages program at the Berkshire Fringe, and under the mentorship of Laura Maria Censabella and Bazaar Productions, received its first staged reading in July 2008.
Bazaar Productions is a nonprofit performing arts organization dedicated to the exploration, creation and presentation of affordable, cross-disciplinary and dynamic new works of contemporary theater. Solely committed to original material, Bazaar Productions aims to expand awareness, increase support, and provide recognition and resources to emerging artists from across the United States - as well as those living in the Berkshires. Through adventurous and diverse cultural collaboration, Bazaar Productions aims to engage new audiences, foster artistic dialog and delve into traditions underrepresented in the mainstream.
Tickets for the work-in-progress showing of The Waypoint are $10. MASS MoCA members receive a 10% discount. The galleries will stay open until 7:30 PM before the show. Full bar and dinner and snacks from Lickety Split are available before and during the show. Tickets are available through the MASS MoCA Box Office located off Marshall Street in North Adams, open from 11 A.M. until 5 P.M., closed Tuesdays. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during Box Office hours or purchased on line at www.massmoca.org.
The work-in-progress showing of The Waypoint is part of MASS MoCA's vaunted Alt Cabaret series which features new and emerging performers in music, theater and dance in MASS MoCA's intimate Club B-10. Other performances in the series include the band Jones Street Station performing on March 27 and a showing of work by Sundance Institute Theater Lab on April 3.