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The workshops are performed at the Manhattan Arts Center in Manhattan, Kansas.
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A very brief history of the Manhattan Experimental Theater Workshop (MXTW)
Founded in 1989, the Manhattan Experimental Theater Workshop is a five week program of the Manhattan Arts Center that takes place every May to June in Manhattan, Kansas. MXTW is part classroom and part production-company. In addition to studying examples of various styles of avant-garde theater, participants write and perform original pieces under the influence of the styles they have studied.
Each season, these original theater pieces are grouped thematically around some piece of "high culture" or "popular culture." Themes in the past have come from the likes of Shakespeare, Sophocles, the Bible, and from such popular stories as Bambi, The Little Mermaid, and Peter Pan. The target story for 2006 was The Book of Exodus.
Dissecting our popular mythologies through the techniques of avant-garde theater, MXTW tells you stories you only thought you knew. The results are performances that are definitely not for children, nor for the faint of heart. Explosively physical, deeply analytical, highly amusing, and not a little disturbing, MXTW's performances will engage your mind, grip your soul, and astound your senses.
In most years, MXTW is a program only for high school students. In 1992 and 2007 there was a workshop program for adults. There may be others.
For more on the MXTW process, visit the process page or read Jim Hamilton's article on experimental theater.
Please browse our archives to view target stories, reader bibliographies, and scripts from years past.
