Tuesday, January 10, 2012

THE 2011/2012 GIRLCOTT LIST and bonus - ethnic casting stats NYC!

GUERRILLA GIRLS ON TOUR! PRESENT

THE 2011/2012 GIRLCOTT LIST

These theatres will not be producing a single play by a woman

on their main stages for the 2011/12 season.

American Folklore Theatre - Fish Creek, WI**

Park Players - Birmingham, AL* **

Theatre Works - Hartford, CT **

New Stage Theatre - Jackson, MS**

A Noise Within Glendale - CA**

Seattle Shakespeare Company - Seattle, WA**

Theater for a New Audience - New York, NY**

Florida Studio Theatre - Sarasota, FL**

Ford’s Theatre - Washington, DC**

(female director added since last year)

Ivoryton Playhouse - Ivoryton, CT**

Connecticut Repertory Theater - Storrs, CT**

Book-It Repertory Theater - Seattle, WA**

Sierra Repertory Theater - Sonora, CA* **

Texas Repertory Theater - Houston, TX**

Stepphenwolf Theatre - Chicago, IL

SecondStory Repertory - Redmond, WA**

Repertory Theater of Iowa - Des Moines, IA**

California Repertory Company - Long Beach, CA**

McKinney Repertory Theater - McKinney, TX**

Rosedale Community Players - Southfield, MI* **

Lofte Community Theater - Manley, NE**

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theater - South Orange, NJ**

Adobe Theater - Albuquerque, NM**

Centre Stage - Greenville, SC**

Mariemont Players - Cincinnati, OH**

Artist’s Cooperative Theater - Nashville, TN**

Community Playhouse - Tullahoma, TN**

American Heartland Theater - Kansas City, MO**

Hangar Theater - Ithaca, NY**

Lucille Ball Theatre - Jamestown, NY**

San Angelo Civic Theatre - San Angelo, TX**

Beaumont Community Players - Beaumont, TX**

Unity Theatre - Brenham, TX**

Theatre Three - Dallas, TX**

Ennis Public Theatre - Ennis, TX**

Kaufman Civic County Theatre - Terrell, TX**

Essex Community Players - Essex, VT**

Northern Stage Company - White River Junction**

Gala Hispanic Theater - Washington, DC^*

Jackson County Community Theatre - Brownstown, IN**

Raven Theater - Chicago, IL **

Remy Bumppo - Chicago, IL **

Strawdog Theater - Chicago, IL**

The House Theatre - Chicago, IL**

Hypocrites - Chicago, IL **

Writers Theater - Chicago, IL**

Clinton County Civic Theatre - Frankfort, IN**

Fort Wayne Civic Theatre - Ft. Wayne, IN**

Colonial Playhouse - Aldan, PA**

Act II Playhouse - Ambler, PA**

Hedgerow Theatre - Media, PA**

The Acting Company - New York, NY*

Lord Leebrick Theatre Company - Eugene, OR

Marin Shakespeare Company - San Rafael, CA

New Jersey Repertory Company - Long Branch, NJ

Olney Theatre Center - Olney, MD *

Pearl Theatre Company - New York, NY *

Classic Stage Company - New York, NY *

The Colony - Burbank, CA

Commonwealth Theatre Comapny - Lanesboro, MN

Writer’s Theatre - Glencoe, IL *

Peninsula Players - Fish Creek, WI

Harrisburg Shakespeare Company - Harrisburg, PA

George Street Playhouse - New Brunswick, NJ *

(1/3 of one musical is written by a woman)

Public Theater - New York, NY *

St. Michael’s Playhouse - Colchester, VT

Shakespeare Theatre Company - Washington, DC

Amphibean Stage Productions - Fort Worth, TX

The Antaeus Company - North Hollywood, CA

Crede Repertory Theatre - Crede, CO

New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane - New Orleans, LA

Harlequin Productions - Olympia, WA

L.A. Theatre Works - Los Angeles, CA

Arden Theatre Company - Philadelphia, PA

BookIt Repertory Theatre - Seattle, WA

Bristol Riverside Theatre - Bristol, PA

Guthrie Theatre - Minneapolis, MN

Aurora Theatre - Lawrenceville, GA

Barrington Stage Co - Pittsfield, MA

Center Rep - Walnut Creek, CA

Bickford Theatre - Morristown, NJ

Actor’s Express - Atlanta, GA^

Actor’s Shakespeare Project - Somerville, MA

Lantern Theatre Company - Philadelphia, PA

Long Wharf Theatre - New Haven, CT

Cara Mia Theater Company - Dallas, TX^

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey - Madison, NJ

Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre - Mars Hill, NC

Centre Stage - Greenville, SC

Cider Mill Playhouse - Endicott, NY

Syracuse Stage - Syracuse, NY

Triad Stage - Greensboro, NC

The Western Stage - Salinas, CA

Williamstown Theatre Festival - Williamstown, MA *

American Blues Theatre - Chicago, IL

Ensemble Theatre - Santa Barbara, CA

First Folio Theatre - Oak Brook, IL

California Repertory Company - Long Beach, CA

Arts Center of Coastal Carolina - Hilton Head Island, SC

Fusion Theatre Company - Albuquerque, NM

* indicates no women directors have been hired either

** indicates multiple years on the Girlcott List

^indicates at least one playwright is a man of color, but no female playwrights

Complied by Liz Walsh

AND IF THIS ISN'T ENOUGHT TO MAKE YOU CREATE SOME ACTIVIST STREET THEATRE RIGHT NOW, READ ON....

Asians Americans comprise 12.6% of New York City and is the city’s fastest growing minority group, yet they were seen in only 2.3% of all roles on New York City stages in the last five years:

Ethnic breakdown of casting in New York City Theatre*

(2006-07 to 2010-11 Seasons)

Caucasian: 80%

African American: 13%

Hispanic American: 3.6%

Asian American: 2.3%

Middle Eastern/ Arab American: 0.7%

Native American: 0.1%

Non-Traditional Casting by Ethnicity

46% of the roles played by actors of color were roles that did not specify race (non-traditionally cast). This number, however, was still only 9% of total roles available. African Americans were far more likely than any other minority group to be cast in a role which did not specify race. Breakdown by ethnicity as a proportion of all roles which were non-traditionally cast:

African American: 62.8%

Hispanic American: 20.7%

Asian American: 15%

Middle Eastern/ Arab American: 0.6%

Native American: 0.07%

Broadway

When looking at Broadway as a separate industry, the representation of Asian Americans dropped significantly to 1.5 %:

Caucasian: 82%

African American: 12%

Hispanic American: 4 %

Asian American: 1.5%

Middle Eastern/Arab American: 0.25%

Native American: 0.17%

Ethnic breakdown of Casting at the Largest Non-Profit New York Theatre Companies

2006-07 to 2010-11 seasons:

ATLANTIC THEATRE CO

Caucasian: 95%

African American: 3.5%

Hispanic American: 1%

Asian American: 0.5%

ROUNDABOUT THEATER COMPANY:

Caucasian: 90%

African American: 8%

Hispanic American: 1 %

Asian American: 1 %

PLAYWRIGHTS HORIZONS:

Caucasian: 86%

African American: 12.4%

Hispanic American: 1.1%

Asian American: 0.6%

THEATRE FOR A NEW AUDIENCE:

Caucasian: 83%

African American: 14%

Hispanic American: 2 %

Asian American : 1 %

VINEYARD THEATRE COMPANY:

Caucasian: 74%

African American: 21%

Hispanic American: 2.5%

Asian American: 2.5%

LINCOLN CENTER THEATRE:

Caucasian: 76%

African American: 17.5%

Hispanic American: 4 %

Asian American: 2.5%

MCC THEATER:

Caucasian: 84.5%

African American: 5.8%

Hispanic American: 3.8%

Asian American: 3.8%

Arab American: 1.9 %

NEW YORK THEATRE WORKSHOP:

Caucasian: 73%

African American 12 %

Hispanic: 3%

Asian American: 4%

Arab American: 8%

CLASSIC STAGE COMPANY

Caucasian: 85.5 %

African American: 6.5%

Hispanic American: 3%

Asian American: 4%

Arab American: 1.0%

PUBLIC THEATRE:

Caucasian: 64%

African American: 21%

Hispanic American: 5.6%

Asian American: 6.5%

Arab American: 3 %

SECOND STAGE THEATER:

Caucasian: 80%

African American: 8.7%

Hispanic American: 4 %

Asian American: 6.4%

Arab American: 1 %

SIGNATURE THEATRE:

Caucasian: 47.5%

African American: 44.9%

Hispanic American: 2.4%

Asian American: 5.5%

THE NEW GROUP

Caucasian: 88%

African American: 2%

Hispanic American: 2%

Asian American: 7%

Arab American: 1%

MANHATTAN THEATRE CLUB

Caucasian: 86.5%

African American: 11 %

Hispanic American: 1.0 %

Asian American: 1.0%

Arab American: 0.5%

*includes new shows that opened on Broadway during this period (with the exception of “Soul of Shaolin”, a special event imported directly from China), subsequent replacement casts, and the seasons of the fourteen largest non-profit theatre companies. Does not include shows which opened on Broadway prior to this period but may still be running or Commercial Off Broadway shows. Special Note: Ethnic classification was not self-identified though significant effort was made to research interviews and bios which might indicate ethnic self-identification. Asian American actors include those of East Asian, South Asian (India and Pakistan) and South East Asian origin.

These stats were culled by a group of Asian American actors in NYC who recently formed an ad hoc committee to raise awareness about the systemic biases (both conscious and unconscious) within the casting process.

Here is their FB Page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Aapac-Asian-American-Performers-Action-Committee/274685732556028


Tuesday, January 3, 2012

COLLEGE OF STATEN ISLAND DIARY #2

Eva and Edith outside our dressing room

November 11, 2011

Hey Diary,

I went to Staten Island and all I brought you back was this diary entry! Ha Ha!

The bomb sniffing dog who checked our bag takes a break at the SI Ferry terminal
If you're free this week I suggest you take a ride on the SI Ferry...it's lovely!

What do they say? Hindsight is 20/20. If I had hindsight my day planner last November would have looked like this:

Wednesday the 9th:

1:30 (ish) - Debark ferry. Meet up with Ellen from College of Staten Island after slight confusion. Basically very few people are picked up from the ferry by car so there was not a clear place to do this. Breaking rules already.

1:30 - 2:00- Take a beautiful ride through Staten Island to the College. Enjoy the harbor and the fall foliage.

2:00 - 4:00 - Meet incredible crew and do wicked fast and professional tech.

4:00 - 5:00 - Play in hallways. Record videos.

5:00 - 6:00 - Finish tech with incredible student volunteer who took the name Frida Kahlo.

6:00 - 7:00 - Eat. More play in hallways. Warm-ups.

7:00 - 9:00 Perform "Feminists Are Funny" and end with Q and A to warm and attentive audience who after slight hesitation about hugging a feminist will jump in and participate. Hear from audience member women do not just need to vote women also need to run for political office on all levels. Receive news during show after an incredible version of 'Lesbian, Vagina, Feminist' that the song moves up on the Netherlands pop charts to #11. Raise your voices and you can affect change.

Thursday the 10th:

1:30 - 3:30 - Do a theatre workshop. Come to conclusions. In many workshops you see people who are eager to jump in and you also see people who begin with their arms crossed, or their eyes down. They are nervous and uncertain. Then you start working and they hopefully open up to the experience. In this particular workshop everyone opened up. It was a big beautiful class full of expression. I could only come to the conclusion that in their lives these students know trust, stability, guidance, support, generosity. They know it in at least one area of their lives - home, school, friends, relationships - and probably more. I think that's why this workshop opened up so much and everyone glowed. Those who had that trust from the beginning kept it, those who didn't found it, and they all offered it to each other. If I could, I would send this workshop out as my holiday card for all to be inspired by in the New Year. Check out the video of one of the devised theatre pieces created by the awesome CSI students below.

Monkey Love,

Edith Evans

Friday, December 30, 2011

COLLEGE OF STATEN ISLAND DIARY #1

Audrey Hepburn leading workshop in street theatre in Staten Island

Dearest Diary,

What a great workshop at the College of Staten Island! I was so excited to dust off my mask, get back on the road and teach some theatre.

The ride on the SI ferry was beautiful and as my first time on Staten Island I was amazed at how big it was!

The students were a mix of performers and "non performers," but by the end of the workshop you couldn't tell which was which. You could tell there were students more hesitant about learning improv from Gorillas, but we showed them how to get nice and loose.


We started with some warm ups to get them out of their self consciousness, playing my favorite game, "YES!" In this game, one person does a big physical movement with a sound and then everyone shouts "YES!" and repeats it. The students had great fun pushing their own boundaries. And “YES” is such a great word.

We moved on to creating their own devised pieces made up of a few elements: a choreographed dance, a strong entrance and exit, and a short scene with defined characters. It was incredible to see the once hesitant students suddenly leading their group when it came time to use their creativity.

The pieces were all excellent, bursting with life. Everyone had an amazing time performing and working as a team to create something original. Some pieces had themes of strength (even letting out their own "GRR!" which I can't help but think was inspired by the Guerrilla Girls On Tour) and playfulness. Some even used Michael Jackson for inspiration. But the one thing that defined all of the performances was that you could see the growth and confidence in each of the performers and how well they had used their creativity to have fun as an artist.

Until we meet again on the Staten Island Ferry or elsewhere,

Yours,

Audrey Hepburn

Aphra Behn and the "YES!" exercise

Dear Book,

Just back from The College of Staten Island - the college with the best theater stats we have ever seen in a college! This year the students are putting on two plays, both written by women. They also have a course that focuses on women in theater and an awesome women’s center. Located in the former Willowbrook State School, (a state-supported mental hospital), the College of Staten Island, has a beautiful and expansive campus. The stairway that led from the theater to our dressing room though was outfitted with a hefty barred door - that reminded us of the building’s history.

Our tech crew was stellar - we totally wanted to guerrilla-nap our baboon boy and all-around-tech-rock-star, Dan. And the student volunteer actor, Amy, was quick, witty, and nailed every line. I wish we could have stayed longer and gotten to know more people. Personally I think Staten Island could be a perfect ‘natural habitat’ for a band of Guerrilla Girls [when we’re not] on Tour.

Hope to see you on the road!

Xxxx,

Eva La Gallienne



Thursday, December 8, 2011

FEMINIST FRIDAY PORTFOLIO SALE

It’s not Santa Con, it’s not Buy Nothing Day it’s….
FEMINIST FRIDAY and Guerrilla Girls On Tour’s
ONE DAY ONLY PORTFOLIO SALE!

Friday, December 9, 2011 Guerrilla Girls On Tour’s portfolio “MONKEY BUSINESS: The First Ten Years” will be available for $500 plus shipping (reduced from $2000).

Our new limited edition portfolio contains 16 high-quality prints (all 8.5"x17" or 11"x17" depending on the original design). Posters in this collection have been included in exhibits at SOMArts, Rutgers, Exit Art, Museo Castagnino, Palais De Tokyo, and the Busan Biennale.

Please visit the link below to view all of the posters in MONKEY BUSINESS.


If you are interested in purchasing please send an email to posters@ggontour.com

Feel free to share this email with curators, museum directors and other feminists who might be interested in GGOT's Feminist Friday portfolio sale.
Thank you for your support. See you on the road!

Go bananas,
Guerrilla Girls On Tour!
www.guerrillagirlsontour.com


www.twitter.com/GuerrillaGsOT
www.facebook.com/GuerrillaGirlsOT
www.guerrillagirlsontour.blogspot.com
www.guerrillagirlsontour.tumblr.com
www.youtube.com/guerrillagirlsontour

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Guerrilla Girls On Tour! 2012 Spring Internships

Guerrilla Girls On Tour! is the only touring theatre company in the United States that creates performances that take a hilarious look at the current state of women in the arts and beyond. Using skits, sketch and improvisation, Guerrilla Girls On Tour! turns sexism, pay equity, body image, the beauty industry and even the dreaded “F” word (feminism) into theatre that both men and women find fearless and funny. Guerrilla Girls On Tour! advocates on behalf of women and artists of color in the performing arts. We create posters, street theatre actions, speak outs and networking events to create gender parity in the performing art world. Guerrilla Girls On Tour! maintains an annual GirlCott and Good News lists highlighting the current state of women in theatre and beyond. www.ggontour.com

Guerrilla Girls On Tour! is seeking interns for 8 to 12 weeks in the following two areas:

1) General assistance with our rally and speak out tentatively called “Occupy Broadway” scheduled for June of 2012. Duties will include attending all planning meetings and keeping notes, contacting theatre companies for sponsorships, assistance organizing schedule, general correspondence, contacting press and help writing press releases. DATES: March 15 to June 15

2) General office assistance specifically with our mailing list, press kit materials and book proposals. DATES: Feb 15 to April 15

As an anonymous group of activists, Guerrilla Girls On Tour! are all self-starters and volunteers and Internships with GGOT are not paid. However, interns will have access to GGOT and can expect to attend GGOT meetings, actions and participate in our how our organization functions, addresses sexism and creates art. We will work with interns to help them specifically achieve their goals within the scope of their GGOT work.

Interns should be willing to work a flexible schedule of 10 to 15 hours per week. Internship #1 must reside in the New York City area for the duration of the internship and must have access to a computer and Internet. Internship #2 can reside anywhere but must have access to a computer and Internet.

NOTE: Guerrilla Girls On Tour! does not maintain a NYC office. Interns will meet with members of Guerrilla Girls On Tour! on a weekly or bi-weekly basis at various locations in Manhattan. We are looking for candidates who are self-starters and are comfortable working on their own for part of the internship.

College level students who have completed their freshman year who have an interest in activism, art, theatre, marketing, public relations or social media should send a resume and cover letter of interest to

Aphra Behn at interns@guerrillagirlsontour.com

www.facebook.com/GuerrillaGirlsOT

www.twitter.com/GuerrillaGsOT



Sunday, November 27, 2011

More Rollins College Diaries





It’s been nearly 2 weeks since I returned to the Guerrilla Girls on Tour headquarters from Rollins College… and I have finally recovered from the high of feminism-gone-wild, otherwise known as the Veteran Feminists of America celebration. I’ll spoil the ending by saying that our last night there, the night of our performance, we opened our dressing room door and there stood Gloria Steinem – larger than life and by that time a familiar presence to us, Ms. Steinem floated into the room and apologized for interrupting our warm-up – she needed as place to wait for her ride to the airport. At every meeting Gloria – as she insisted everyone call her - was incredibly gracious, engaged, and well, down right awesome. We all flew high during the show - truly a performance of a life-time, blessed by the goddess herself.

Now back to the beginning. We left New York on a warm late-October morning and landed in Orlando FL amongst a sea of families headed to Disney World. After a short drive to Winter Park, we met up with Gail, of the Winter Park Institute, and settled into our home-away-from-home, a condo tucked away on a ‘quiet’ street, right next to the train tracks - more on that in a bit.


It had been a while since I was in the south and the Spanish moss and technicolor palms calmed my senses immediately. We had a fun and energetic theater workshop with the students our third day there. They were open and ready to try anything - movement, vocalizing, games, and tons of improvisation followed. Then, on to a poster-making workshop the following day - talk about a group that needed nearly no guidance. They gathered, shared ideas, broke into groups, and collaborated through 3, sometimes 4, drafts of their ideas, refining their message into ready-to-go campaigns.


We participated in a panel discussion on sexual violence and gender equality the next evening of our residency. This was interesting and highlighted several things. First, the need to have a more clearly defined topic - sexual violence and equity were perhaps too broad. Second, know your audience. I have seen this a lot - a women’s center brings in speakers who are prepared to talk to students but the audience is full of advocates looking for more information. And so the group feels talked down to but people don’t really know how to say ‘OK - let’s get to the level 2 or 3 version of this talk.’ Third, a major sticking point in ‘rape education’ still seemed to be the presumed ‘yes’ and so girls need (apparently) to learn to use the ‘hard no’. Which, while frustrating is also a policy issue, as some campuses have rules that promote consensual - must hear a ‘yes’ - sex and this campus has no such policy.


Finally we are back to the show - and what a show it was! Nearly 30 minutes longer than usual because so many people were happily sharing, participating, chanting with us, hugging us, and willing to share their own stories, up-coming events, experiences, hot flashes :), and voices. Whew! Thanks Rollins for a memorable trip...I'm signing off for now...

xxx,

Eva Le Gallienne

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Aphra's Rollins College Diary Part I


The past week we have been in residence at Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida as part of their fabulous Winter Park Institute which brings together “leading scholars and artists not simply to give a lecture or performance, but to engage and share time and ideas with our students…” http://www.rollins.edu/wpi/


Gloria Steinem asks the Veteran Feminists of America in the audience to stand up and take a bow!

During the week we led workshops in combining activism and art and ended it all with a performance of “Feminists Are Funny” in Tiedtke Hall on October 29th. All of our activities coincide with the celebration of the 45th anniversary of the modern feminist movement and there are many important feminists here including Gloria Steinem, NOW President Terry O’Neill, Eleanor Pam and congresswoman Patricia Schroeder.

It was wonderful to feel like you were in the thick of feminism, going from feminist workshop to feminist group dinners to speeches, panels and informal chats. There are old and young feminists here, new and seasoned feminists; angry and happy feminists all sharing, questioning and hugging each other.

Poster Workshop

Some of my memories of the week include a young theatre student asking us: “You are an activist theatre company? Isn’t that, like, old?”

Poster workshop themes

During the panel discussion we found that some professors do not want to identify as feminists. That some students fit into clear gender stereotypes while most do not. That the mandatory freshman orientation play that trains students on how to address date rape and sexual violence on campus was not booked this year. That the hot line number for anyone who has been sexually assaulted on campus is incorrect on the flyers. That those flyers can’t be put up because there are no flyers allowed on campus. That a film crew wanted to shoot here but said it didn’t look like a college campus because there were no flyers anywhere. That some students put up flyers anyway. That some feminists are comfortable jumping down anyone’s throat who attempts to disempower them. That this readiness to stand up for the feminist cause is a good thing but can also be a bad thing because it can keep us from engaging in productive dialogue. That this lack of dialogue makes feminism feel stagnant. That wearing our gorilla masks around Halloween makes people think we are just adult trick or treaters. More about our performance of “Feminists Are Funny” in part 2.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

PODCAST INTERVIEW - Guerrilla Girls On Tour!

Poster Workshop at Rollins College

Check out Madama Ambi's PODCAST interview with Aphra Behn, Edith Evans and Eva Le Gallienne at Rollins College this past week!