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A Noise Within
Open House 2016 Highlights
A huge thanks to everyone who showed up at our Open House event last Saturday, September 17! Though the doors-wide-open, behind-the-scenes-peek was envisioned to be a special treat just for our our 25th Anniversary Celebratory season, its success is inspiring us to make it an annual event. For those of you who may have missed it,…
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A Noise Within
The 1947 “Failure” of Jean Genet’s The Maids
Genet is on record describing The Maids as a “failure.” Why? Christopher Lane, in his article “The Voided Role: On Genet”, supposes that the “failure” of the play is encoded in its message, or we might say, in its poetics…. Lane writes that “Genet’s interest in his characters’ fantasies and identifications interrupts what might seem an obvious oscillation between master and…
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A Noise Within
Jean Genet based The Maids on a real murder case from 1933
Christine and Léa Papin were real-life sisters who came from an abusive, dysfunctional, poor family. As adults, the two were extremely close and may have had an incestuous relationship. They worked as maids for the Lancelin family for many years, but one night in February 1933, they brutally murdered their employer, Madame Lancelin, and her daughter, Genvieve, in their home….
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A Noise Within
Arcadia: Meet the Characters
Meet the incredible cast of Arcadia in the video below and read on to find out what our actors love about the characters they play. Ezra Chater played by Jeremy Rabb What I find endearing about Chater is his ability to overlook the relentless assaults on his dignity for a taste of genuine affirmation and fame….
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A Noise Within
Behind closed doors with The Maids
SNEAK PEEK: Last week, actresses Jaimi Paige and Donnla Hughes (who play the titular maids, Claire and Solange, respectively) and director Stephanie Shroyer gathered in a downtown L.A. loft for a sizzling promotional photo shoot. ANW Artistic Director Geoff Elliott and Shroyer talk us through their favorite photos, and share a few tidbits about what…
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A Noise Within
You Never Can Tell: Four Costume Secrets
This spring, audiences have been transported into the turn-of-the-century British seaside resort, the Marine Hotel—thanks in large part to the sets of Don Llewellyn and the costume design of Angela Balogh Calin. We took a few moments to chat up costume coordinator Maria Uribe to get some behind-the-scenes scoop on those stunning period costumes. All…
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A Noise Within
Our Favorite Moments
As our 15-16 repertory season winds down (ending on May 15th!), we’ve asked our cast, crew, and staff to share some of their favorite moments from the season. “Rafael [Goldstein], who really does not like heights at all, being willing to be up on the catwalk as Six Characters opens. The look on his face…
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A Noise Within
Romeo and Juliet Scenic Design: Why the dolls?
In post-show conversations and survey responses, we’ve received a few inquiries about the dolls used on our production of Romeo and Juliet. Now, scenic and costume designer, Angela Balogh Calin shares her thought process. In Romeo and Juliet, we use the dolls to visually underscore Juliet’s lost innocence. We constantly forget how young Juliet is…
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A Noise Within
“Embrace the wackiness!” of Shaw’s You Never Can Tell
Director Stephanie Shroyer discusses the warmth and wisdom of Shaw’s sunniest, funniest play. “What family is not peculiar?” asks Stephanie Shroyer, guest director of George Bernard Shaw’s You Never Can Tell. “Embrace the wackiness!” extols Stephanie, who is an associate professor at USC’s School of Dramatic Arts (where she is also Associate Artistic Director). She’s…
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A Noise Within
Six Characters in Search of an Author: Meet the Stepdaughter
She wants revenge. She wants to get to the truth: her truth and nothing but her truth. These six characters live in a fixed reality more painfully human than one could imagine. They are wandering spirits looking for an end—and to be set free as they plead their cases to a jury of actors. On…