Monday, February 18, 2013

Presidents Day Pop Theatre Quiz



GUERRILLA GIRLS ON TOUR’S PRESIDENT’S DAY
POP THEATRE QUIZ!

Q: What happens when you recognize a theatre company for producing at least 50% plays by women in 2012?

A: They produce a majority of plays by men in 2013.

The International Centre for Women Playwrights recently announced its inaugural 50/50 Applause Awards presented to five US theatre companies for seasons of plays with half or more written by women.

The winners were: Cleveland Public Theatre, Cleveland, OH; Little Colonel Theatre, Pee Wee Vally, KY; Nora Theater, Cambridge, M A; Playwrights Horizons, New York, NY; and, Symmetry Theatre, Berkeley, CA.

When I read this I was overjoyed.  Then I felt a knot in my stomach.  Was that brown banana that I had for breakfast over ripe?  Or did my gorilla intuition tell me to do the 5-minute research technique.  Here’s what I found out about these theatre companies in a 5-minute search of the internet about their current seasons.

[Trigger Alert: Sexism in theatre]

Cleveland Public Theatre
10 men 7 women

NOTE: CPT’s web site lists productions that have not been yet been chosen.  Also, several of CPT productions seem to be produced by other companies.  These productions were not counted.

Little Colonel Theatre
5 men 1 woman

Nora Theater
4 men 3 women

Playwrights Horizons
4 men 4 women

Symmetry Theatre
1 man 2 women

Three of the five recipients of the 50/50 Applause Awards are producing more plays by men than women this year.

I guess giving awards doesn’t help.

Stay tuned for the second annual speak out - “WE ARE THEATRE” – an evening of kick ass plays that stand up for gender parity September 2013.

Until then, buy tickets to shows at Playwrights Horizons and Symmetry Theatre.

In sisterhood,
Guerrilla Girls On Tour