@dramatistsguild

@GwydionS

I’ve been wondering about something lately. How often do you think a theater actually manages to “flip” its programming? I’m not even thinking about a radical shift: from Grand Guignol to theatre for young audiences, for example, or from Shakespeare to solo performances. I’m thinking about moving from fairly un-ambitious programming full of time-tested, broadly-accessible musicals and comedies, imported hits, chestnuts, and money-makers to a renewed focus on engaging, sharp, smart, new work. How often do you think that actually happens? Seems like it might be a difficult trick to pull off, doesn’t it?

To be honest, I think many of us carry around the assumption (which may or may not be a good one) that programming typically flips the other way—from innovative to conservative—as a theater matures and develops a more stable, reliable audience. Or not flips, rather, but slowly migrates. The question is: can change actually happen in the other direction?

We may be about to find out in D.C. Not immediately, mind you, but over the next couple of years. Why? Because the artistic director vacancy at Olney Theatre Center has just been filled by Jason Loewith, who left his position as the Executive Director of the National New Play Network to take on the challenge. The appointment of Jason, a noted national champion for the development of new work, has raised expectations significantly, among the city’s theater practitioners, about some sort of transformation in programming.

“Olney Theatre Center is known for its traditional fare,” said DC-area playwright Allyson Currin. “But Jason’s track record and premiere-oriented aesthetic are undeniable. Olney is clearly expressing its desire to innovate and expand its programming into new play premieres and development by naming him as Artistic Director.” Fellow playwright Bob Bartlett – whose new play Whales had a reading at NNPN’s inaugural DC-Area Writers Showcase in 2011 – shared a similar sentiment: “Jason’s appointment at Olney should mean great things for living playwrights.”

Jason shares the community’s sense of optimism… as well as its understanding of the task at hand. “I’m excited and terrified by the challenge,” he said. Luckily, he’s not really starting from square zero: “Olney’s assets include a passionate team of theater makers, multiple facilities, and a diverse and dynamic audience,” Jason said. “And I’m not talking about one ‘monolithic’ audience, either. I’m talking about a lot of folks who adore family-friendly musicals, a lot of folks who adore form-breaking new plays, and a lot of folks who adore mid-century classics. So the trick for me is to program to each of those audiences rigorously and separately while maintaining a coherent overall artistic vision.”

On a modestly-related note, I wanted to share a statistic that’s emerged from this year’s slate of nominees for the Helen Hayes Awards. In an appearance on a local radio program hosted by DC’s NPR affiliate, Linda Levy-Grossman – president and CEO of theatreWashington, the body that administers the awards – noted that 49 of the 200 plays nominated for the 2013 awards were world premieres. For the mathematically disinclined, that’s a robust 25%.

In a city noted largely for its impressive achievements in classical theater, musical theater, and theater for young audiences, to have such a large quantity of new work receive recognition of that nature is a sure sign, it seems, of the health of the city’s new play infrastructure. These are definitely boom times in DC for playwrights… even without the appointment of a national leader in new play development to the artistic directorship of one of our more prominent theaters!

gsuilebhan@dramatistsguild.com