Articulations
Austin playwright John Walch goes to Louisville for its festival of new plays; Vincent Kitch goes to Washington for Americans for the Arts; and Everett Quinton goes to Seattle for a new production of Twisted Olivia.
By Robert Faires, Fri., Dec. 26, 2003
Mr. Walch Goes to Louisville
The playwriting star of Austin expatriate John Walch continues to rise in the theatrical firmament. The latest accomplishment for the author of The Dinosaur Within and Circumference of a Squirrel? Being one of four playwrights collaborating on a new dramatic anthology for the 28th Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville. Titled Fast and Loose, an ethical collaboration, the piece will feature the writers working separately and "in conversation to attack classic dilemmas of right and wrong." The festival runs Feb. 29-April 10, and Walch may not be the only representative of Austin's playwriting scene then: Nine past and present local playwrights are still contenders to have their 10-minute plays chosen for production in the 2004 Humana Festival. For information or reservations call 502/584-1205 or visit www.actorstheatre.org.
Mr. Kitch Goes to Washington
Congratulations to new Cultural Arts Program manager Vincent Kitch on being elected to the Emerging Leadership Council for the national nonprofit Americans for the Arts, which seeks to represent and serve local communities in increasing appreciation of and participation in all forms of art. For three years, Kitch will join other council members in offering advice to the organization's board specifically regarding programs that will assist emerging arts leaders. For information, visit www.americansforthearts.org.
Ms. Olivia Goes to Seattle
Something in Seattle loves a drag queen doing Dickens. So it seems given the enthusiastic reviews pouring in for Twisted Olivia, the Everett Quinton solo show that premiered at the Zachary Scott Theatre Center last January and is now playing at the Empty Space Theatre. Seattle Weekly's Steve Wiecking calls it: "The best show you can see right now in the city," adding that Quinton's "one-man rendition of Oliver Twist should pull you away from whatever else you're doing." Seattle Post-Intelligencer critic Joe Adcock considers the show's "two hours of frenzied theatrics" exhausting, but he also calls Quinton "exhilarating" and "extraordinary." The Seattle Times' Misha Berson finds Quinton's "brand of agile literary vaudeville nearly as delicious" in this show as in the gender-bending romps he appeared in with Charles Ludlam.
