#240926 ~ In Brief, On Presence & Absence
Brian Eugenio Herrera's #TheatreClique Newsletter for September 26, 2024.
WELCOME to #TheatreClique — my (aspirationally) weekly newsletter dedicated to encouraging you to click out to some of the most interesting, intriguing & noteworthy writing about drama, theatre & performance (at least, so says me)…
This Week's #TheatreCliquery:
Dearest reader… It’s been three months since my last newsletter. I could offer an explanation that invoked things like a serious case of the seasonal doldrums, or the bustle of returning to the classroom, or the fact of an unexpected major medical event in my immediate family, or all of the above. (And all of that above would paint an accurate portrait of my last few months.) Yet the simplest and most boring explanation is probably the truest: after the firehose of the spring 2024 theatre season, I kinda just totally needed a break from all the theaterclickery. But — this week — even as all of the things listed above continue their reverberations, there are some timely theatreclicks I definitely want to share with all y’all…
So to begin… For this week’s opener, I’ve been itching to share the following video, which both sings straight into my GenX heart but also brilliantly and aptly distills the vivid vision of the future offered by Project 2025 (which — no lie — I’ve acually read about 90% of). The next month or so promises to be as wildly discombobulating a political ride as we’ve ever experienced which is precisely why smart, incisive, and informative cultural criticism like this video — written, animated and performed by veteran actor Jason Kravits — is so worth engaging and lifting…
EDITOR’S NOTE: whenever possible, whenever linking to paywalled pieces, I “gift” the article to #TheatreClique readers. In other words, clicking out to articles in the New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Atlantic, and Wall Street Journal should neither present hassle nor burn through your monthly allotment of free views. Here’s hoping more outlets — hello LATimes! hi Philadelphia Inquirer! yo NewYorker! how’bout it Vulture!— adopt similar technologies for subscribers soon...
#NowClickThis…
Wherein I highlight some of the most click-worthy links I’ve encountered in the last few weeks/months…
at Howlround, writer/advocate Todd London’s offers the latest installment in his Lover’s Guide to American Playwrights by spotlighting “The Haunting of Migdalia Cruz”;
at The New Republic, writer/editor John Devore reflects on his real world encounters with “The Sad Theatre Kids of Right-Wing Media.” See also American Theatre’s excerpt from Devore’s recent memoir Theatre Kids: A True Tale of Off-Off Broadway, as well as my own mini-review of the book which (spoiler alert) I kinda totally loved;
at Caftan Chronicles, writer/journalist Tim Murphy engages legendary arts journalist/editor/author Don Shewey in a frankly explicit and far-reaching conversation about sex, sexuality, and aging. See also Shewey’s ongoing (unparalleled) work as an observer of the contemporary arts at Another Eye Opens;
writer/scholars Henry Bial and Scott Magelssen announce the impending decommissioning of the Theatre Historiography website, a pathbreaking online “gathering space for theater scholars and students to share resources and tools”;
at Broad Street Review, poet/writer/jeweler (and former UArts student) Jay Clark reflects on the abrupt closure of Philadelphia’s University of the Arts, observing that “The future doesn’t collapse. It just evaporates.”;
at Forbes, freelance arts/culture journalist Tiffany Leigh talks to makeup/effects artist Jennifer “JQ” Quinteros (who happens to be a former student of mine) about how their “favorite thing about my job is visual storytelling by tracking the body”;
The Denver Gazette’s John Moore offers a remarkable “ghostly graveyard tour” of the dozens of live theater venues in Denver that have ceased operation this century;
veteran arts journalist Jim McDermott captures this breathtaking interview with singer/actor Heather Headley at his substack, TheaterWow;
filmmakers Claire Nolan and Matt Delbridge — who’ve been working on the first feature length documentary on the lives and works of Peggy Shaw and Lois Weaver — launch a fundraising campaign to offset final editing and post-production costs. To donate, click HERE; to get a taste of the doc, click below.
On This TheatreCliquer's Dance Card:
Wherein I shamelessly promote my own upcoming public events.
On Wednesday (10/2), I’ll be speaking at the Museum of Broadway about “Latiné Presence (and Absence) on Broadway” as part of the Museum’s ¡Viva! Broadway exhibit celebrating Hispanic History Month. My talk is a FREE ticketed event, though entrance to the Museum itself might oblige additional purchase. (For a glimpse into the ¡Viva! Broadway exhibit itself, click through to these brief video features from Broadway.com and Good Morning America.)
And Lest I Forget — This Week in Fornésiana…
Wherein I highlight noteworthy recent or upcoming engagements with the life, work and legacy of legendary playwright, director and teacher María Irene Fornés...
September 21 was World Alzheimer's Day. This global initiative from the Alzheimer’s Association that aims to “raise awareness and challenge the stigma around Alzheimer's disease and other dementia.” As part of this effort, filmmaker Michelle Memran enabled free streaming access to The Rest I Make Up—A film about Maria Irene Fornes through Sunday, September 30, 2024. Stream the full film for FREE at this link.
Until next time, dear #TheatreClique, please share this newsletter with those friends, colleagues and students who might appreciate the opportunity to encounter the many voices gathered in each week’s edition. Errors and oversights published in the newsletter will be corrected in the archival versions. And, in the meantime, keep clicking those links — good writing needs good readers and our theatre clicks count!