Things are heating up in the world of all things Buckminster Fuller-- what we're calling around here the DC Bucky Convergence of Spring 2010.
There are events all over the region, beginning March 22nd with a screening as part of the DC Environmental Film Festival at the National Building Museum, and rolling right into summer. There will be public art displays in Crystal City, conferences on a bunch of different aspects of Fuller's work, and events leading up to the opening of the play: R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE.
Like this one:
On March 29th Arena will hold a special event in our Crystal City theater with members of the Buckminster Fuller team. Join Bucky's daughter, Allegra Fuller Snyder and his grandson, Jaime Snyder as they discuss the legacy of R. Buckminster Fuller and his work in the world today. D. W. Jacobs will discuss the work of the play. Both Allegra and Jaime are powerful presenters and you leave a discussion with them charged with the essential message of Fuller's work:
“If success or failure of the planet and of human beings depended on how I am and what I do… How would I be? What would I do?”
It's a big month around Arena Stage. Again. Throughout this whole period of diaspora, where we've been spread over five different locations while our new home gets built, we've been hard at work to "restage" the whole organization as a "center for American Theater dedicated to the production, presentation, development, and study of American work."
It's so close now we can see, feel, and taste it. We're less than six months away from moving back in!
And, like a horse charging to the barn, we're gathering speed on all aspects of our strategy. Just take a look at the things that are happening in March that you could plug in to:
Light in the Piazza begins performances. I heard the sitzprobe the other night. What a beautiful orchestration, and handled with such grace and precision by our musical director, Paul Sportelli, his players and singers. If you are following the "open dress rehearsals", this one will take place on Thursday, March 4th at 8pm. I expect the word of mouth on this to be explosive. It's one of the most romantic musicals ever written. Seeing it in such an intimate production and venue, sung and played at this level, the show is a completely different experience than what it's been in its earlier incarnations.
Sophisticated Ladiesbegins rehearsals. I was in the room last week for the final round of casting and I couldn't believe the energy in this show! It's an old marketing saw to say "don't wait-- get your tickets now", but truly: don't wait. This show has a heavy advance sale already and you ain't seen nothin' yet. If you snooze on this one, or wait for someone else to see it first, you're running the risk of not seeing it at all.
Our Student Playwrights Project will stage its winning plays. Come see what these high school students have written. Let's just say that reports of the demise of American theater are greatly exaggerated if this generation is already working at this level.
The Voices of Now Mentor Ensemble has a public performance of their original one-act play Encounter at the Intersections festival at the Atlas on Sunday March 7th at 2:30pm. A product of five months of workshops, dialogue, inquiry and rehearsal, the students were asked to write, move and build this performance in reaction to their daily encounters. This Intersections performance is part of the developmental process that will result in the final presentation this May.
The Bucky Convergence gets going in earnest. We'll start to see events like the screening/discussion at the National Building Museum on March 22nd, the event at the Crystal City theater on Monday night the 29th, and the Bucky Art show popping up all over Crystal City this month. In case you missed it, the show has become a centerpiece of a region-wide convergence of events and programs dedicated to the work of R. Buckminster Fuller. People will be gathering in DC beginning in early June-- coming from all over the world to be part of it. This month you can get sneak peeks at the show, the ideas, and the related events.
The New Play Institutehas an ambitious agenda for the month as well. We are already at full throttle on this program. If you haven't yet caught up to it, take a scroll through the New Play Blog to catch up.
There will be months and months and months like this. I hope we'll see you around for as much of it as captures your imagination!
By Jamie Gahlon, American Voices New Play Institute Coordinator
This Fall the Crystal City BID issued a call for artists to create Buckminster Fuller inspired art to be displayed throughout Crystal City this Spring, converging with our run of R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE. Submissions were due in mid-January, and we were blown away by the creativity, ingenuity, and diversity presented within the designs! Many of the submissions draw inspiration from Bucky's design science principles, but as you will see from the snapshots of the winners below, there really isn't one way to classify these pieces. I can't help but think that Bucky would be proud!
The exhibition will open on April 1st. For more information on the artists and winning sculptures, go here. If you are interested in learning about other upcoming events surrounding the Bucky show, email bucky@arenastage.org.
By Jamie Gahlon, American Voices New Play Institute Coordinator
"A designer is an emerging synthesis of artist, inventor, mechanic, objective economist and evolutionary strategist."
- R. Buckminster Fuller
Recently, I had the pleasure of attending a Design Science Conference hosted by the Synergetics Collaborative at the Rhode Island School of Art & Design in Providence, RI with Doug Jacobs and my colleague, Travis Ballenger (to read from the beginning of the journey, go here). We went to spread the word about the show, and to support Doug in his lecture on the "Design Science of Playmaking," and how he used Bucky's design science principles in crafting the play which we'll all get to see this spring!
In his lifetime, it seems, people respected Bucky's ideas but no group wanted to claim him- he was too far outside their realm of classification. The architects would say, "no, he's not an architect, he's an engineer." The engineers would say, "No, he's not an engineer, he's a philosopher." The philosophers would say, "No, he's not a philosopher, he's a scientist," and so on and so forth. However, the one group who it seems always embraced Bucky were the artists. Thus, it was strikingly appropriate that Synergetics presented a "design science" art show to kick off the conference. Here are some photos of the art on display:
By Jamie Gahlon, American Voices New Play Institute Coordinator
I am picking up where Travis left off in his blog a few days back- so the journey continues. Once settled in Providence, D.W. Jacobs (writer/director of R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE), Travis & I set off for Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, MA to visit Bucky's final resting place. Even Doug, in all of his research and writing, had never had the opportunity to visit Bucky's grave, so I felt honored to be along for the ride. When I was getting the directions together before our trip, I looked at Bucky's profile on the Mount Auburn Cemetery website and was surprised to see dozens of comments and virtual "in memoriam"s complete with flower icons for the man who inspired so many. Some people posted on his day of passing, others on his birthday, but all gave their thanks. Now I was going to get to do the same, in person.
by Travis LeMont Ballenger, New Play Institute Senior Producing Fellow
I couldn't sleep this morning. At all. Too excited about yesterday and the next couple of days. So, I'm using this time to tell you about our journey. Jamie and I are at the Design Science Symposium at Rhode Island School of Design. We're here with D.W. Jacobs, playwright/director of R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE. Doug is going to be speaking on play-making and synergy. Jamie and I, his backup singers, are going to read excerpts from the play.
Yesterday, we stopped in to speak with actor Rick Foucheux, the man playing Bucky. We had lunch at a nice little French restaurant in Manhattan, and discussed the difference between acting in NY and in DC. Rick is a very well known actor. He has had numerous roles at major regional theaters, New York, film, and television. We shouldn't forget his critical acclaim in Emperor Jones playing at the Irish Rep. But even with all that, its still not as easy as you would think. It's not a simple life being an actor, but, you can see, especially with someone like Rick, that his passion leads him. You can see it in his eyes: the hunger for the art. So, even in those moments when it's not easy and he's tired, he continues forward, not giving up. I'm a big fan.
In the journey up we discussed everything from insurance policies of the early 18th Century to theater subsidy law. I'm learning so much. Doug and Jamie are great traveling companions.
CrystalCity (Arlington, VA)- The Crystal City Business Improvement District (BID) in partnership with Arena Stage is introducing a temporary, outdoor art exhibit that pays homage to the great scientific mind of R. Buckminster Fuller and his creation of the geodesic dome. “Bucky-Art” celebrates Arena Stage’s spring production of R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE which runs May 28 – July 4, 2010. The exhibition will open April 1, 2010, and will last throughout the summer.
“We foresee ’Bucky-Art’ generating a buzz, not only about Arena’s show, but also about the environmental aspects associated with Bucky’s Design Science Principles, especially since Crystal City has such a strong connection to sustainability and green efforts,” said Angela Fox, President/CEO of the Crystal City BID. “This exhibition is a bold example of arts and culture in CrystalCity that visitors, workers and residents of the area have come to expect and love.”
By Travis LeMont Ballenger, American Voices New Play Institute, Senior New Play Producer and Jamie Gahlon, American Voices New Play Institute Coordinator
Go Green! The other weekend (we know, this post is a bit late) Arena went to the Green Festival. We were there to promote the show R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE. Bucky called for people to do more with less, and talked about how there were the resources world-wide to take care of all of humanity in a way that eliminated hunger and poverty and that it was just a matter of inequitable distribution that needed to be solved. In the show, he argues that we are heading on a path to either oblivion and utopia and it's up to the individual person to decide where we go. How's that for a challenge?!
Arena's Vijay Mathew, Travis Ballenger and Jamil Jude talk to interested patrons
It was incredible to be around people who are actively trying to meet this challenge. There were a remarkable number of Green-Festers truly dedicated to the saving the planet. Many of whom wondered why Arena was there. What does a theater have to do what the Sustainability Movement?
We like to think of art as an empathy machine. We create a window into a world that people may not see. Perhaps, by looking at a painting of a young girl in a war stricken village, people will be inspired to do something about it. Perhaps, by seeing R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE people will care a bit more about the world and each other. That's why we were there- because we as a theater and an artistic community have an obligation and a citizenship role in doing what we can to make Spaceship Earth a better place.
Throughout the weekend, we asked people to share with us their Bucky stories, and to respond to the question What can the little man do to save the world? What can you do? Hear their answers here and respond with yours!
This weekend might go down as one of the craziest busy times in Arena's Artistic Development Team's history. Redhand Guitar at Georgetown, Green Fest (for the Buckminster Fuller show) at the Convention Center, and The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later at the Lincoln Theatre.
You'll be hearing from some of the other Art Dev members as to what they were doing, but as our avid blog readers will know, most of my attention was focused on Redhand. Last week was highlighted by the fact that each day a new element was added. Tuesday costumes started appearing. Wednesday was projections. Thursday the band joined the actors. And Friday we put it all together for the very first time. By the time Sunday rolled around and the presentations started I could barely contain my excitement and my amazement over what had been accomplished in such a short amount of time. You see, this type of developmental step, especially bringing the full creative team together this early in order to really test out the ideas, is not typical in new musical development. We were really pushing the limits on what was possible in the effort to give Evan and Mike everything they needed in order to bring this project to the next level. And by Sunday it was pretty clear as to what was working and what needs additional attention - while giving everyone a great sense of the potential of this project.
Since everyone left I've been going through a bit of withdrawal, and it depends on the hour of the day what song is stuck in my head. For the moment, I'll leave you with the crowd favorite...Help Me to Forget. Though I must say...there is nothing about these two weeks that we would actually want to forget.
By Travis LeMont Ballenger, American Voices New Play Institute Senior Producing Fellow
When Jamie Gahlon and I went to Chicago, our minds were stretched beyond belief. We went to learn more about Bucky, better prepare ourselves for the production, meet Bucky's friends and family, and get ideas for audience events surrounding the show. What we discovered was a world so complex and profound that it took me a couple of weeks to decompress - in fact I still ask myself daily "what am I doing with my life?"
We tried to explain to the rest of our team. I just don't think they understood. Well, they get it now.
In the past couple of days we've had two Bucky visitors. Last Friday, we had Thomas Zung stop in on his way home. Thomas is a major player in the architecture field and worked with Bucky on many projects, including the famous Fly's Eye Dome. This week, Jaime Snyder, Bucky's grandson, took time out of his New York family trip to join us.
I'm always fascinated by the way these two men think. They see synergy, the collection of forces towards a common goal. They are, at one time, able to hold on to the daily tasks and the mission, something pretty difficult to do.
Thomas spoke to us about bubbles of opportunity. There are many different groups and people for us to team up with who have a vested interested in the show and in Bucky's message.
Jaime spoke about everything from Sustainable Communities and Comprehensive Anticipatory Design to everything being connected.
I'm really excited that Arena is doing the Bucky show. I read the paper everyday and I become more and more afraid. Sometimes, it seems that the world is falling apart. As an artist and a young arts administrator, I wonder how my work is relevant. I'm not a person who believes that art is automatically relevant and necessary because it's art. We artists have work for the community too. It's too easy for us to forget that.
With the Bucky show, Arena strengthens its voice in this national conversation. We dare to ask the question, "What can the individual person do to change the world?" This is our answer. We can produce shows like R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE, The Quality of Life, and Stick Fly. We can converse with our audience and grow stronger, wiser, and more courageous together.
There are going to be a ton of events for Bucky. Stay tuned. If you want to help out in anyway, synergize with us, let me know.
"If humanity does not opt for integrity we are through completely. It is absolutely touch and go. Each one of us could make the difference"- Buckminster Fuller
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