TRU to Present Hybrid And Beyond: Maximizing The Theater Experience For Those Who Cannot Attend Live Theater

Theater Resources Unlimited is now in its fourth year of non-stop weekly Community Gatherings this Friday, having offered to date over 200 conversations and unlimited camaraderie since April 17, 2020. TRU hosts their Community Gatherings every Friday at 5pm ET via Zoom, originally presented to explore the creation of art and theater in the time of COVID-19, and now to ensure that these crucial conversations continue going forward as theater reopens.

8/16 - Hybrid and Beyond: Maximizing the Theater Experience for Those Who Cannot Attend Live Theater

In the room: Suzanne Richard, theater director, co-founder and artistic director of Open Circle Theatre, Washington, D.C.'s first professional theater promoting careers in the arts for people with disabilities; Lisa Sniderman, multi-award-winning artist, playwright, producer, disabled artist and advocate; and Jessica Skintges Wallach, disabled artist, DC-based accessibility consultant and photographer. We have finally added "accessibility" to our current D.E.I.-awareness, but we have only begun the journey of creating accessible theater. Our perspective and conversation are now focusing on the need to rethink what access means. We will look at going beyond traditional forms of access and consider utilizing telepresence robots, creating comparable live/virtual "hybrid" experiences and generally extending theater into virtual spaces in ways that give our stay-at-home audiences a genuine sense of the live theater experience. Click here to register and receive the zoom link: https://truonline.org/events/hybrid-and-beyond/.

UPCOMING:

8/23 - A Life of Service in the Arts: Tom Viola's Remarkable Journey

In the room: Tom Viola, executive director of BroadwayCares/Equity Fights AIDS since 1996, and part of the organization since its inception in 1988. And now planning a well-earned retirement after 36 years of service to the community. He moved to New York from Pittsburgh to be an actor. How did his life take such a ... well ... dramatic turn? Click here to register and receive the zoom link: https://truonline.org/events/a-life-of-service/.

8/30 - After Grotowski: The Polish (and Trans-European) Theater Scene and Today's Varied Cultural Esthetics

In the room: Norbert Rakowski, writer and director, CEO and artistic director of the JK Opole Theatre, and vice-president of the European Theater Convention, which brings together artists from all over Europe. We will focus on the theater scene in Poland and how opportunities compare to what we have in NY and other US communities, as well as Rakowski's current term in Opole, once the home of legendary Jerzy Grotowski. Click here to register and receive the zoom link: https://truonline.org/events/the-thriving-philly-scene/.

9/6 - Way Way Off-Broadway: The Thriving Philadelphia Theater Scene

 In the room: Charles Gilbert, composer, writer, educator and executive director of MusiCoLab; and Barbara Bellman, playright-librettist and the president and co-founder of MusiCoLab, which has been supporting the development of musicals in Philadelphia since 2018. We'll focus on the work and programs of MusiCoLab as well as a broader view of the surprising number of professional theaters and opportunities for theater artists and indigenous homegrown works, plus LORT theater and national tours, university programs and the formidable Philly Fringe, founded in 1997, and now featuring more than 1,000 performances by national, international and Philadelphia-based artists of all disciplines. Click here to register and receive the zoom link: https://truonline.org/events/after-grotowski/.

9/13 - Surprise! How Theater Can Pop Up Anywhere in the World and Make an Impact

In the room: Leese Walker, producing artistic director of the Strike Anywhere Performance Ensemble, a permanent collective of jazz musicians, modern dancers, and actors formed in 1997. Elements of their art include improvisational, site specific and immersive theater experiences with consciously political intent, always featuring live music, physical theater and modern dance. They are also the pre-eminent company in the US that uses Soundpainting, a universal sign-language developed for live composition with improvisers. Click here to register and receive the zoom link: https://truonline.org/events/how-theater-can-pop-up-anywhere/.

Check back at TRU's web page for future 2024 gatherings: truonline.org/tru-community-gathering. To receive the Zoom invitation for weekly meetings, email TRUnltd@aol.com with "Zoom Me" in the subject header. These gatherings are free for TRU members, non-members are asked to make an optional tax-deductible donation or consider joining TRU at truonline.org/membership to support the organization during these challenging times.

Videos of past Community Gatherings may be viewed on TRU's YouTube channel at youtube.com/channel/UC43rsChi4fA23dNLeloaF_A/. And a podcast series, TRU Talks About Theater featuring 2023 Community Gathering conversations is now available wherever you get your podcasts; or tune in at ElectraCast: https://electracast.com/?s=Theater+Resources