We're Back!

After a summer of preparations, at last we're doing plays again. Hurray! 

Tuesday August 30th, 2011.

ATP assembles for the first reading of True Love Lies by Brad Fraser.

Meanwhile, down in the office, it's Monster Clean. 

Once a year, we pull all our stuff out of the drawers. We look at it, and either toss it, or wipe it down with some non-toxic cleaner and put it back more neatly. For two days, shouts of "Does anyone still use this old coil-binding machine?" echo through the office. 

This cupboard could use an edit.

That's more like it.

I love how indignant we all get at the pointless junk that's accumulated. "Who was the crazy person who decided to keep all this?!" we say. But the thing is, we do Monster Clean every year. So those mad hoarders who couldn't throw out even the meanest styrofoam cup? They're us.

LEGACY coordinator Katt Boulet, headed down to the green room with her supplies.

Some things uncovered so far:

- A shelf-ful of unopened computer supplies. "Bet we can use those," says canny Managing Director David Shefsiek, who's always thinking about how to make things better around here, while 'Finding capacity within our fiscal and human resources' (ie, not wasting a thing.)

- An old copy of Windows 95. "I think that's what I've got on my computer," says one office smart aleck. It's true, our software could really use an upgrade.

- A nest of over 30 sets of tongs. Administrator Angela Hendry says, "The caterers keep bringing them, even when I tell them not to." BAM! Into the junk pile! GONZO!!

- And one real treasure: a speech by Executive Director Emeritus Michael Dobbin, delivered in 1986, at the end of ATP's first season in the Martha Cohen Theatre. This one goes into our file of 'ATP History - Important Documents.'

Before archiving it, I read through Michael's remarks on that long ago day. There are many reverberations. John Murrell's work was in that season. We're premiering his translation of Carole Frechette's Thinking of Yu in this one. Michael mentions an upcoming summer production, Fool's Edge by Ronnie Burkett.This year, Penny Plain marks The Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionnettes' 25th season. Michael explains that "We will continue to program in a diverse fashion so as to satisfy the needs and desires of our audience, while at the same time leading, coaxing "new ways of seeing", and introducing art of different strokes which keep a balance." This is still a good description of what we do at ATP.

And then, near the end of the document, he starts dropping hints about a 'major new initiative...' You turn the yellowing page, and there it is, expressed in classic Michael style, using all capital letters and double-underlining: A pilot project, "an ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF NEW PLAYS." It's the moment our Festival was born, right here in my dust-covered hands.

"There are those in the field," he declares, "who feel that we are going about this whole thing backwards... However, we think we know what we are doing!"

Oh Michael. I bet you knew both more and less than you thought you knew. Like all of us, at any moment. Regardless, your Festival goes into its 26th edition this year, and your vision for ATP lives on. Be proud. We are.

Now, back to dusting. See you at the theatre!