Project #3: Production History

Jujamcyn Theaters
Walter Kerr Theatre
219 W. 48th St., New York, NY
May 4, 1993-Dec 4, 1994
Director: George C. Wolfe
Scenic Design by Robin Wagner
Costume Design by Toni-Leslie James

But even as Mr. Kushner portrays an America of lies and cowardice to match Cohn's cynical view, he envisions another America of truth and beauty, the paradise imagined by both his Jewish and Mormon characters' ancestors as they made their crossing to the new land.
-Frank Rich, New York Times
May 5, 1993
http://theater.nytimes.com/mem/theater/treview.html?html_title=&tols_title=ANGELS%20IN%20AMERICA:%20MILLENIUM%20APPROACHES%20(PLAY)&pdate=19930505&byline=By%20FRANK%20RICH&id=1077011429136

Kushner is clearly political in the large sense of the word-- concerned with society and its endemic chaos--but he is also a fantasist (the subtitle of Angels is A Gay Fantasia on National Themes), a believer in theater as magic (he adapted Corneille's The Illusion).
-Gerald Weals, Commonweal
July 16, 1993
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1252/is_n13_v120/ai_14059934/?tag=mantle_skin;content

Signature Theatre Company
Peter Norton Space
555 W 42nd Street New York, NY
October 28, 2010- April 24, 2011
Director: Michael Greif
Set Design by Mark Wendland
Costume Design by Clint Ramos

One of the most anticipated New York theater events of the season isn't happening on Broadway, but at a small theater off the beaten tourist track.
-David Ng, LA Times
October 29, 2010
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2010/10/angels-in-america-at-signature-theatre-company-what-did-the-critics-think.html

The truth is we’ve gotten used to “Angels in America” in the intervening years; we’ve grown accustomed to the theatrical audacity and intellectual reach of this study in the intersection of personal, political and cosmic crises in the early days of the AIDS epidemic.
-Ben Brantley, NY Times
October 28, 2010
http://theater.nytimes.com/2010/10/29/theater/reviews/29angels.html

Headlong Theatre, Citizens Theatre Company

Lyric Hammersmith

Lyric Square, King St London W6 0QL, United Kingdom
26 June 2007 - 22 July 2007

Director: Daniel Kramer

Set design by Soutra Gilmour

Costume Design by Mark Bouman

If the occasional longueurs and patches of prolixity are more noticeable now than they were when Declan Donnellan unveiled the piece at the National Theatre, this fresh account demonstrates that the passage of time has not clipped Angels' wings.
-Paul Taylor, The Independent
June 29, 2007
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/reviews/angels-in-america-lyric-hammersmith-london-img-srchttpwwwindependentcouktemplatevergfxfourstargif-altfourstar-455223.html

Daniel Kramer has been building up to this for some time, directing Hair and then Bent and establishing himself as one of the best directors of Gay Plays today.
-Phillip Fisher, The British Theatre Guide
2007
http://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/angelsamericaPF1-rev.htm

Dallas Theater Center

Kalita Humphreys Theater
3939 Turtle Creek Blvd Dallas, TX
February 26,1996- March 10,1996

Director: Richard Hamburger

Costumes by Katherine Beatrice Roth
Set Design by Jurt Sharp

It added to the sense of occasion that the production was the strongest Richard Hamburger has directed in his four years at the Theater Center - maybe the strongest anybody has directed there ever.
-Lawson Taitte, Dallas Morning News
March 28, 1996
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic/

Millennium Approaches was greeted with consistently full houses, despite the fact that it tied Ronald Reagan's two-year term to the first flowering of the AIDS epidemic--not an appetizing prospect for the seniors and boomer professionals who make up the bulk of Dallas Theater Center's season subscribers

Jimmy Fowler- The Dallas Observer
http://www.dallasobserver.com/1996-11-07/culture/blood-and-thunder/

Playmakers Repertoty Company

Paul Green Theatre

Gimghoul & Country Club Rd Chapel Hill, NC 27514-4107

January 29, 2011- March 3, 2011

Director: Brendon Fox

Set Design by Narelle Sissons
Costume Design by Jan Chambers

Director Brendon Fox has the vision for the work's sprawling scale, knitting together gritty, everyday scenes with vivid, imaginary realms through tight pacing and fluid transitions.
-Roy Dicks, News Observer

February 8, 2011
http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/02/08/974691/playmakers-does-right-by-angels.html#ixzz1Q7IxvRQ1

These eyebrow-raising plays are truly magnificent pieces of contemporary theater; and a luminous PRC cast and brilliant PlayMakers’ guest director Brendon Fox and his unusually imaginative and resourceful creative team have nailed it (pun intended) on scenic designer Narelle Sissons’ splendid wood-paneled set, which is chock-full of secret compartments, surprises, and delights. Moreover, the production gets extra points for degree of difficulty.

Robert McDowell, Triangle Arts & Entertainment

February 11, 2011 

Statement: Producing the Play

Production problems posed by the text:

The major problem encountered by companies choosing to perform this text is the abundance of settings. The show alternates between reality and fantasy and also spans the country. The various settings in New York alone should be identifiable but mobile in order to be quickly struck from the stage to prepare for the next scene. The subject matter must also be dealt with appropriately and with finesse in order to not burn out the audience by sounding morbid and preachy. The overt sexual nature of the show must be addressed, especially the sex scene between Louis and The Man in the park. The scene should be uncomfortable to watch but must also share the stage with the conversation between Harper and Joe.  Another difficult aspect of the show is the appearance of the Angel and Ethel Rosenberg. Kushner has stated the wires can show but the magic must remain. Essentially, the producing company has to find the balance in creating a world for the play but allowing the audience enough distance to not be enveloped by it and be able to come to their own conclusions.

Production Problems Posed by Our Content:

I was not a member of this department when this show was produced. I know that they chose to perform this show in the Erica Starr Theatre and chose to have a larger cast for some of the doubled roles specified by Tony Kushner. Again, an open set would be mandatory with the use of the fly rail acting as an integral role for the manipulation of scenery.  The staging of harsher actions such as the sex scene could be handled by dim lighting and the use of shadows . Because of the depth of the stage, the audience would feel better able to witness the events then “participate” in them.  The challenge of the subject matter has not changed but the audience would need to be prepared for it.  The program notes, article in the school newspaper and the local paper would need to address that this is an adult show with themes that are not suitable for younger  or easily offended audiences. This town is not a liberal environment but ultimately the chance has to be taken: the message has to be stronger then the offense.