The show has yet to premiere and already the fun has begun. A contest broke out on Facebook to determine just how Attack Theatre came up with the name of their latest show - “Show #58.”
A few guesses: “58 moves put together in different ways?” What about, “Heinz 57 plus Attack equals 58?” Or, “The combined waistlines of Peter and Michele, 34” plus 24”?” Flattered, but no.
The real answer is much more simple. 58 Attack Theatre shows have been performed at the New Hazlett Theater. They think. The number may be approximate but the title sounded good anyway.
Co-Artistic Directors Peter Kope and Michele de la Reza are thrilled to be back on the North Side at the theater they consider home. In their 15th anniversary season, they knew they wanted to include a show at the New Hazlett. de la Reza fondly recalls a time when the Public Theater had moved out of the space. One Christmas Eve, the company spent the night eating Chinese food and rebuilding the entire floor. Thankfully, things have changed since then.
After a facelift in 2006, the theater began to thrive once again. With a stunning, contemporary lobby and a proscenium space perfect for small arts organizations in Pittsburgh, Attack is enthusiastic about their homecoming.
“Show #58” features four works that Kope describes as “the beginning – starting in the middle, with no end.” A typical obscure yet perfectly sensible answer.
“R.A.M.,” co-commissioned by the Three Rivers Arts Festival and Gateway to the Arts, premiered just last year. While the piece was originally intended for an audience of kids, the company received the most feedback from adults who could relate to the story. Created as a nod to our societal obsession with technology and our need to document every aspect of our lives, the company has since updated this hilarious work with new theatrical elements.
As a juxtaposition to “R.A.M.,” the company chose “Typeset” for the program. Premiered in 1996, the piece examines similar themes but from a different decade. Inspired by the film noir genre, the subject matter also deals with documenting. As opposed to the smart phones of our generation, the piece uses a 1940s typewriter. Without any of their signature partnering skills, the duet for Kope and de la Reza is a “highly theatrical” work that follows a frustrated writer and his muse.
“Trapped” has quite a different aesthetic, a departure from the humor and theatrics we are accustomed to with Attack. The music was written by acclaimed Japanese composer, Somei Satoh, and matches the haunting and emotional journey of the dancers. “The characters are trapped in their own psychoses...there is a constant feeling of not being able to break away from the patterns and issues the individuals have,” says de la Reza.
As a indication of what’s to come for Pittsburgh’s “best dance company” (winners of the City Paper contest), the company will present the world premiere of “Beginnings.” The dancers began the choreographic process by writing the beginnings to stories, asking themselves the question, “What would the first line of a novel be?” Then they made lists of first lines and created movement phrases to go along. The piece is an array of thoughts, a “big splash,” to represent the beginning of a new era for the company.
And the show wouldn’t be complete, of course, without a few surprises. You’ll just have to be there to enjoy it.
Show details:
Attack Theatre Presents Show #58
January 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29, 2011
New Hazlett Theater
Allegheny Square East, Northside
All shows at 8:00 p.m.
**Opening night reception (1/21) begins at 6:30pm featuring libations and an acoustic performance with Deoro
Tickets: Click HERE or call 412-394-3353
$20/advance, $15/students, seniors, teachers, $25/door, $40/opening night reception
Information: Click HERE or call 412-281-3305
Comments