Manhattan Experimental Theater Workshop

overview

Imagine the story of Pinocchio in the hands of Jean Cocteau, Adrienne Kennedy, Heiner Müller, Susan-Lori Parks, ntozake shange, and Gertrude Stein. Can't do it? We did.

The 2004 MXTW company put their heads together and crafted 6 original pieces for the theater under the influence of some of the 20th and 21st Century's most interesting avant garde playwrights. (And then we created another piece under our own influence.)

A synopsis of Pinocchio and links to the new scripts written in the 2004 workshop here.

A brief description of the MXTW process is available here.

target story

What you need to know about The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi:

When a carpenter is confronted by a talking log, he gladly gives it up to Gepetto the woodcarver to carve into a puppet. From the very beginning the puppet is mischievous with a nose that refuses to stop growing as Gepetto tries to carve it. As soon as Gepetto has carved the legs, the puppet runs away, and when Gepetto finally catches up to him, he is arrested for appearing to abuse the puppet. At home alone Pinocchio throws a hammer at a talking cricket who tries to tell him he is on the path to destruction, killing the helpful cricket instantly. Gepetto sells his coat to buy Pinocchio an ABC book. On the way to school Pinocchio is persuaded to sell his book for money to go to a puppet show. When the puppeteer tries to burn Pinocchio to cook his lamb, Pinocchio begs him not to. The puppeteer takes pity on Pinocchio and lets him go with five gold coins. On the way home Pinocchio is confronted by a blind cat and a fox. They convince him they are his friends, but then try to steal his money by disguising themselves in black sacks and ambushing him in the night. Pinocchio runs to a cottage in a nearby field, but the only occupant, a fairy with azure hair, claims she cannot help him because she is dead. The murderers catch Pinocchio and hang him from a tree, hoping that when he is dead he will open his mouth and release the coins he has hidden under his tongue. When Pinocchio is about to die, the blue fairy sends her animal friends to cut him down. She threatens him with four black rabbits carrying a coffin when he tries to refuse the medicine she gives him. Pinocchio, now loyal to the fairy, tries again to go to school, but is persuaded by one of his school friends to go to the Land of Toys instead. After months of being lazy, the boys turn into donkeys and Pinocchio is sold to a circus where he is forced to perform tricks until he breaks his legs and is sold to a musician. The musician tries to drown Pinocchio, but the Blue Fairy sends a pack of fish that eat away his donkey body. Pinocchio goes looking for his father and finds him in the belly of an asthmatic shark, living off a shipwreck. After escaping the shark, Pinocchio attempts to nurse his father back to health and eventually begins to work in return for milk to revive his father. When the Blue Fairy learns of this, she turns Pinocchio into a real boy, and his puppet self is left to gather dust in the corner.

reader

MXTW 2004 Reader Contents

Bibliography

Oskar Kokoschka, “Murderer The Women’s Hope,” in Anthology of German Expressionist Drama, W. H. Sokel, ed. (Cornell Paperbacks, 1984) 17-21.

Walter Hasenclever, “Humanity,” in Anthology of German Expressionist Drama, W. H. Sokel, ed. (Cornell Paperbacks, 1984) 172-201.

Gertrude Stein, “Not Slightly” and “Do Let Us Go Away,” in Gertrude Stein, Geography and Plays, C. N. Pondrom, intr. (The University of Wisconsin Press, 1993) 290-301, 215-226.

Jean Cocteau, “Wedding on the Eiffel Tower,” in Modern French Theatre: The Avant Garde, Dada, and Surrealism, M. Benedikt and G. E. Wellworth, ed. and tr. (E. P. Dutton, 1964) 101-115.

Bertolt Brecht: “He Who says Yes” and “He Who Says No” The Measures
Taken, and other Lehrstuke, (Eyre Methuen, 1977 or Arcade Publishing 2001) 61-69.

Adrienne Kennedy, “A Rat’s Mass” and “Lesson in a Dead Language,” in Adrienne Kennedy, In One Act, (University of Minnesota Press, 1988) 55-66, 47-54.

Jean-Claude van Itallie, The Serpent, (Dramatists Play Service Inc., 1969) 57 pp.

Samuel Beckett, “Footfalls,” “Rockabye,” and “Not I,” in Collected Shorter Plays, (Grove Press, 1984) 237-244, 271-282, 213-224.

ntozake shange, “Boogie Woogie Landscapes” in three pieces, (St, Martin’s Press, 1981) 109-142.

JoAnne Akalaitis, “Dressed Like an Egg,” in WordPlays 4, (Performing Arts Journal Publications, 1979) 191-220.

Richard Foreman, “PAIN(T),” in Plays and Manifestos, K. Davy, ed. (New York University Press, 1976) 195-206.

Heiner Muller, “Despoiled Shore – Medeamaterial – Landscape with Argonauts,” in Hamletmachine and Other Texts for the Stage, C. Weber, trans. and ed., (Performing Arts Journal Publications, 1984) 123-136.

Suzan Lori Parks, “The America Play,” in The America Play and Other Works, (Theatre Communications Group, 1995) 157-199.

scripts

Copyright and Permission to Reproduce

A Blinking Marrowsong
Written & performed by the Company
Under the influence of Gertrude Stein

Tongue Over Teeth
Written & performed by Chloë Beeman, Whitney Flinn, Misty Hinrichs & Libby Uthoff
Directed by Blake E. Bolan
Under the influence of ntozake shange

Lady. Slipped. Rope.
Written & performed by Emily Atchison, Ashley Flinn , Cherry Sharpe & Peter Oviatt
Directed by Stephine Bowman
Under the influence of Adrienne Kennedy

Here Lies the Fairy
or
Dance Little Wooden Man
Written & performed by
Jennifer Camfield, Megh Chakrabarti, Kate Nave, Camille Sultana & Kevin Terry
Directed by Chris Gregory
Under the influence of Jean Cocteau

broken driftwood/her dress pink/war torn dumpster
Written & performed by Brett Baugh, Jeremy Gibson, Brad Hodge & Rachel Waterhouse
Directed by Blake E. Bolan & Chris Gregory
under the influence of Heiner Müller

Woodcarving and the Art of Tap Dancing
Written by Raynal Cherenfant, Megan Clark, Amanda Paez & Ian Shea
Performed by Megan, Amanda & Ian
Directed by Gwethalyn Williams
Under the influence of Susan-Lori Parks

Bam! Revolution!
Written & performed by the company
Under our own influence

company

Emily Atchison
Brett Baugh
Chloë Beeman
Jennifer Camfield
Megh Chakrabarti
Ray Cherenfant
Megan Clark
Ashley Flinn
Whitney Flinn
Jeremy Gibson
Misty Hinrichs
Brad Hodge
Kate Nave
Peter Oviatt
Amanda Paez
Cherry Sharp
Ian Shea
Camille Sultana
Kevin Terry
Elizabeth Uthoff
Rachel Waterhouse

staff

Director: Gwethalyn Williams

Assistant Directors: Blake Bolan, Stephine Bowman, Chris Gregory

Producer: Jim Hamilton

Lighting Design: Kearsten Cross

Technical Staff: Kearsten Cross, Sean Goin

Public Relations: Jim Hamilton, Brady Miller

Graphics: Travis Hopkins