The Fountain Theatre, an Artistic Home to many for twenty-two years. by Curt Columbus What makes an artistic home? An artistic home is a place where an artist can find nurture and take risk. It is a place where one can receive blunt, intense, but constructive critique, as well as new and generative ideas, generously […]
Neuroscientists have now proven what theatre folk have felt for years. The heart beats of audience members actually synchronize and beat together in unison when watching a live performance of a play or musical. The research was conducted by the University College London Division of Psychological and Language Sciences. The team studied the heart rates and […]
by Todd London I take my title from that great triumvirate of American philosophers: Moe, Larry, and Curly, known in poststructuralist circles as Les Trois Stooges. With unerring precision they captured the complicated essence of American life—and by extension American theatrical life—in their expert revision of the motto of Alexandre Dumas’ three Musketeers: “One for […]
Troy Kotsur A remarkable thing — perhaps even historic — happened in a Hollywood casting office last week. The team for the TV show “Criminal Minds” took the extraordinary step of rewriting a character in an episode from a hearing role into a deaf role solely so they could hire a deaf actor. The “Criminal […]
Randy Cohen Almost one year ago, I posted The Top Ten Reasons to Support the Arts in response to a business leader who wanted to make a compelling case for government and corporate contributions to the arts. Being a busy guy, he didn’t want a lot to read: “Keep it to one page, please.” With […]
France-Luce Benson by France-Luce Benson On March 12, 2020, I flew from Los Angeles to Ft. Lauderdale to watch my 14-year-old niece, Shelby, act in her first play. The year prior we’d spent months, at her request, preparing for her audition for Dillard Performance Arts High School. Days before her audition, she desperately asked, “Auntie, […]
Troy Kotsur, as Cyrano, takes center stage. IPek Mehlum, Maleni Chaitoo and Eddie Buck. The “Cyrano” Ensemble go Hollywood!
Howard Shalwitz by Howard Shalwitz As someone who came from a family of doctors, started out pre-med in college, detoured to philosophy, then teaching, and finally to theatre — not only did my career choices slide steadily downhill from my mother’s perspective, but I was left with a moral conundrum: does my chosen profession, theatre, […]
An unforgettable love story inspired by one of the most romantic movies of all time. Stephen Sachs directs Deaf actors Deanne Bray (Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye, Heroes) and Troy Kotsur (title role in Cyrano at the Fountain, Big River on Broadway) in Sachs’ newest play, inspired by the screenplay for Noël Coward’s Brief Encounter. The world […]
On March 12, 2020, we were forced to shut down our hit production of the world premiere of HUMAN INTEREST STORY due to the COVID pandemic. One year later, after an unimaginable period of closing our doors, we are poised to launch our game-changing Outdoor Stage this summer. This entry was posted in Fountain Theatre, […]
by France-Luce Benson One of the many things I’ve desperately missed in this time of isolated lockdown is the beautiful ritual of sharing space with fellow writers to do what we love most – write. Some of my favorite spots were the Writer’s Guild Association Library, Café Intelligentsia, and the warm homes of my lovely […]
Zelda Fichandler (1924-2016) by Howard Shalwitz The loss of my friend and colleague Zelda Fichandler, the legendary founder of Arena Stage, has got me thinking about the role of theatre in our society. Over the past decade, I had a few cherished opportunities to compare notes with Zelda about the founding of our respective theatres. […]
Alfred Molina in “Red” What will be the most-produced plays in regional theatres across the United States in the coming season? Topping the list is John Logan’s “Red“, a play about abstract expressionist painter Mark Rothko and his urgent, fevered relationship with his art and canvas. Hmmmm … sound familiar? Maybe next season, we hope […]
by Terri Roberts It’s Thanksgiving week, a time to reflect on that for which we are grateful. And even within the insanity of a year that brought us a global pandemic, extreme racial unrest, and a surreal presidential election, there were still rays of light. Here at the Fountain Theatre, one of our great joys […]