CUTTING BALL THEATER NEWSLETTER
January 17, 2012 Volume 8, Issue 8
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In this issue:

Cutting Ball Kicks Off Our Strindberg Centennial Celebration

The Cutting Ball Theater will dedicate much of the year of 2012 to the plays of August Strindberg in celebration of the 100th Anniversary of his passing. A true theatrical innovator, Strindberg spent his life dedicated to fervent experimentation - pioneering work in naturalism, proto-expressionism, and his own dream-like dramaturgy. Cutting Ball will introduce you, our audiences, to the breadth of Strindberg's work through the Hidden Classics Series, and will present five new translations of Strindberg's Chamber Plays in RISK IS THIS... The Cutting Ball New Experimental Plays Festival. Full productions will be produced in the fall of 2012 in Strindberg Cycle: The Chamber Plays in Rep.

Join us on Sunday, January 29 to kick off our year long celebration with two readings of Strindberg's most famous works, Miss Julie and A Dream Play. We'll celebrate together over a Swedish dinner in honor of the playwright. $75 tickets (free to Premium Members) include reserved seating for both readings and the dinner. Purchase now at http://cuttingball.com/strindberg-centennial/. Seating is limited to 50 patrons.

Learn more about August Strindberg and find Cutting Ball's full calendar of events by clicking here.

Tontlawald is Coming Soon - New Rehearsal Video

World Premiere, Cutting Ball Commission
Text by Eugenie Chan
Directed by Paige Rogers and Annie Paladino
Choreography by Laura Arrington

February 17 - March 11, 2012
$10 Ticket Night: February 17
Gala Opening Night: February 24

Performances: Thursdays 7:30PM, Friday-Saturday 8PM, Saturday matinees at 2PM {NEW!}, Sundays 5PM

This original ensemble-based piece weaves evocative a capella harmonies and visceral movement into a multidisciplinary retelling of an ancient Estonian tale. Lona endures her cruel stepmother until she unexpectedly discovers a new friend in the mysterious, forbidden Tontlawald - the ghost forest. Associate Artistic Director Paige Rogers was inspired by the work of Poland's famed Teatr ZAR to create a performance in which the body and song tell Lona's story. Rogers has teamed up with co-director Annie Paladino, choreographer Laura Arrington and Cutting Ball's resident playwright Eugenie Chan to create a world premiere performance that stretches our definitions of theater, dance, and choral music.

Click here for Tickets and more information.


Enjoy a sneak peak into the Tontlawald rehearsal process with this insider video

We have a great lineup of Tontalwald Events:

$10 Ticket Night: Friday, February 17, all tickets $10

Gala Opening Night: February 24, 8PM $50 Tickets

Fridays at 6:30PM: pre-show "Deliciously Brainy" Happy Hour at 50 Mason Social House

Pre-Matinee Lecture and Discussion Series, Saturdays at 1PM

February 25 - "Dance in Theater: Movement Beyond Realism" led by Jessica Robinson Love, Executive and Artistic Director at CounterPULSE and choreographer Laura Arrington

March 3 - "Creating Ensemble Theater" led by Rob Avila, theater critic at San Francisco Bay Guardian and co-Director Annie Paladino

March 10 - "The Influence of Teatr ZAR: Song in Tontlawald" led by Associate Artistic Director and co-Director Paige Rogers

Artistic Director Rob Melrose On the Road

While we are all enjoying a mild San Francisco winter, Artistic Director Rob Melrose is on the road at The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis directing The Acting Company's production of Julius Caesar. Associate Artistic Director Paige Rogers and Managing Director Suzanne Appel will be braving the Minnesota weather to see opening night this week, but you don't have to fly north to see more of Rob's work with Shakespeare. This production will soon be touring to the Napa Valley Opera House April 28-29. Mark your calendars and stay tuned for a special Cutting Ball event.

Around Town

While Cutting Ball is "dark" between full productions we encourage you to check out other great local offerings.

Kitka Presents: To The Singers of Tales (with Svetlana Spajic) @ CounterPULSE, San Francisco, 1/27-29

Presented as part of CounterPULSE's Winter Special
counterpulse.org/calendar/winter-special-2012/

In her Bay Area debut, Serbian singer and performance artist Svetlana Spajic, featured earlier this year in Robert Wilson's "The Life and Death of Marina Abramovic", joins vocal ensemble Kitka in a new vocal-theater work exploring the power and sophistication of ancient oral traditions.

For over two decades Spajic has traveled the Balkans, carefully researching and recording the songs and stories of the villagers she meets. Her work there has been mutually beneficial. Following the end of the Balkan wars in the 1990s, Spajic found many of the elder men and women had stopped singing, and her time with them has been credited with breaking their period of mournful silence.

Friends of Cutting Ball Discount - Enter discount code "cuttingball_kitka" to get $2 off general admission.

For more information call 510-444-0323 or write info@kitka.org