2010-2011 Season
Theater for the Heart and Mind
STUART PIMSLER DANCE & THEATER
- September 11 @ 8:00 p.m.
- September 12 @ 2:00 p.m.
Anderson Theatre
Founded in 1978, Stuart Pimsler Dance & Theater’s work stands apart in the field of contemporary performance for its vast emotional range, intellectual provocations and stunning visual environment. Dramatically powerful and insightfully witty, this company’s unique vision has been hailed as theatre for the heart and mind. These performances launch a year-long collaboration with Gustavus Theatre and Dance. The troupe will also teach an intensive workshop in performance for social justice for January-term 2011, and will choreograph an original work for Gustavus dancers to be featured in the department’s Spring Dance Concert.
Stuart Pimsler Dance & Theater's 2010/11 activities are also supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, Target, The McKnight Foundation, the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the Friends of SPDT.
Shakespeare’s R&J
Adapted by Joe Calarco
Directed by Henry MacCarthy
- October 28-30 @ 8:00 p.m.
- October 31 @ 2:00 p.m.
Anderson Theatre
In this electrifying adaptation, four men embody the characters of Shakespeare’s timeless love story. “A stunning, pulse-raising exorcism of almost primal intensity…comes close to setting the house on fire” Chicago Sun Times. “A beautiful, sexy, wildly inventive adaptation. Overpoweringly moving” The London Telegraph
Theatre Gallery - a celebration of student creativity
The annually alternating Theatre Gallery and Choreographers’ Gallery present works directed, choreographed, performed, and designed by advanced theatre and dance students mentored by Theatre/Dance faculty. This year’s Gallery includes:
The Stronger by August Strindberg
Directed by Ethan Bjelland ‘12
- November 18 @ 7:00 p.m.
- November 20 @ 5:00 p.m.
- November 21 @ 1:00 p.m.
Black Box Theatre
A powerful one-act play by the celebrated Swedish playwright, whose pioneering work with realism and surrealism influenced the development of modern drama.
Pains of Youth by Ferdinand Bruckner
A collaborative Senior Honors Projected produced, designed, directed, and acted by Caitlin McCarthy, Kimberly Braun, Robert Croghan, Michael Davidson, Christian DeMarais, Lydia Francis, Kristin Mead, Peter Nygren and Bern Egger
- November 19 @ 8:00 p.m.
- November 20 @ 8:00 p.m.
- November 21 @ 3:00 p.m.
Anderson Theatre
Sex. Pain. Vice. Deception. Medicine. Ferdinand Bruckner's Pains of Youth, adapted by Martin Crimp, explores the relationships and emotional inter-weavings of six medical students and their maid in a war-torn 1920’s Vienna. “Bourgeois existence or suicide. There are no other choices. It’s not remotely a joke.”
Shakespeare Performance Showcase
Directed by Amy Seham
- December 9-11 @ 8:00 p.m.
- December 12 @ 2:00 p.m.
Anderson Theatre
Building on last year’s acclaimed Physical Theatre Project, the Department again presents the results of a semester-long study of a specialized genre or focused performance technique. This year, students’ intensive work on methods for analyzing and interpreting the Shakespeare’s text, approaches to creating colorful characters, and skills for harnessing the power of the Bard’s poetic language brings a collection of monologues, scenes and sonnets to vibrant life.
Balance Off Center: Gustavus Dance Concert
Directed by Melissa Rolnick
- March 4-5 @ 8:00 p.m.
- March 6 @ 2:00 p.m.
Anderson Theatre
The award winning Gustavus Dance Company presents its annual spring dance concert with featured work by selected student choreographers, faculty members Jeffrey Peterson, Melissa C. Rolnick, Ashleigh Penrod, and special guest artist Stuart Pimsler. Stuart Pimsler is the artistic director of Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theatre, a nationally acclaimed performance company located in Minneapolis. Pimsler will premier a newly commissioned work tailor made for Gustavus students in the Department of Theatre and Dance.
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Directed by Amy Seham
- May 5-7, 12-13 @ 8:00 p.m.
- May 8 & 14 @ 2:00 p.m.
Anderson Theatre
Hamlet’s intense struggle to understand the meaning in human life has made Shakespeare’s play a timeless classic. Yet, each new generation discovers a fresh connection with the play on its own terms. This production embraces the poetry and passion of Hamlet, and brings Shakespeare’s discussion of “reality” into our own time and space. How has contemporary technology affected our understanding of perception, performance, and truth? How can we, as theatre artists, hold the mirror up to nature? Those are the questions, This lively, dynamic rendition of Hamlet will take a stab at some of the answers.
Ticket Information
All tickets will be available through the Gustavus Ticket Center at (507) 933-7590, and all performances will be at Anderson Theatre unless otherwise noted.
| Adults | $9 |
| Non GA Students/Senior Citizens | $6 |
| Gustavus Students & Staff | no charge |