BAM's high-profile fest plays Sept. 30-Dec. 13 run. The theatrical works featured in the festival will include a Richard Maxwell-directed staging of Henry IV, Part One; an Anne Bogart-directed SITI Company production of Charles L. Mee's bobrauschenbergamerica; an Improbable Theatre presentation of The Hanging Man; a collaboration between The Builder Association and motiroti [sic] called Alladeen; and a Barry Edelstein-directed musical offering, The New Yorkers by the co-artistic directors and composers of Bang on a Can.
Author-director Richard Maxwell (Boxing 2000, Caveman) helms his company — the New York City Players — in his own take on the William Shakespeare history Henry IV, Part One. The production, which runs Sept. 30-Oct. 4, will feature a design team including Stephanie Nelson (set), Jane Cox (lighting) and Kaye Voyce (costume).
The SITI Company and their co-founder director Anne Bogart present their creation bobrauschenbergamerica, with playwright Charles L. Mee (Big Love, True Love). The work, which delves into the world of the artist Robert Rauschenberg, premiered at the Actors Theatre of Louisville Humana Festival. It will play at BAM — featuring design by James Schuette (set and costumes), Brian H. Scott (lighting) and Darron L. West (sound) — for an Oct. 14-18 run.
Classic Stage Company artistic director Barry Edelstein (who exits the Off-Broadway company this summer) stages a multimedia work by Bang on a Can creators Michael Gordon, David Lang and Julia Wolfe, Oct. 22-25. The New Yorkers incorporates the music of string quartet Ethel, the Michael Gordon Band, cabaret performer Theo Bleckmann and the Bang on a Can All-Stars with the text of Lou Reed, cartoons of Ben Katchor, film footage of Bill Morrison, videos by William Wegman and Doug Aitken, visual art by Laurie Olinder to portray the urban landscape of New York City.
London's Improbable Theatre, who created Shockheaded Peter, present the New York premiere of their latest work The Hanging Man, Nov. 4-8. Phelim McDermott, Lee Simpson and Julian Crouch direct, design and script the work which tells the story of an architect who while attempting to build a great cathedral gets caught between heaven and hell. The creative team also includes co-designer Phil Eddolls, Colin Grenfell (lighting), Darron L. West (sound) and Stephen Snell (costume). New York-based The Builders Association and London-based motiroti join forces to present Alladeen — an Aladdin-inspired multimedia work meshing Bollywood, Hollywood, video, 3-D animation, trip-hop, and drum-and-bass rhythm — running Dec. 2-6. Conceived by TBA's Marianne Weems — who also directs — and motiroti's Keith Khan and Ali Zaidi, the work features video design by Christopher Kondek, sound composition and design by Dan Dobson, original music samples by Shrikanth Sriram (Shri), lighting by Jennifer Tipton and text by Martha Baer.
All of the above works will play at BAM's Harvey Theatre located at 651 Fulton Street — with the exception of The New Yorkers which will be staged at the Howard Gilman Opera House at 30 Lafayette Ave.
The 2003 Next Wave Festival will also feature a number of discussions, panels, film programs, live music, visual art. For further information, visit www.bam.org.
Subscription tickets will be available June 25. For single ticket information — on sale Sept. 2 — call (718) 636-4100.
