"In the four beginning scenes almost
everything is played exaggeratedly, although there are speeches
where the tone should be more natural, to permit the exaggeration
to seem even more blown up. So no compromises, but two opposing
tones of voice.
The turntable – in Paris – was nonsense. I want
the tableaus to follow one another, the settings to move
from left to right, as if they fit one inside the other,
and the audience to see this. My intention seems clear.
It is my idea that the three primary dignitaries be up on
stilts. How will the actors be able to walk without falling
on their faces, without tripping over their laces and their
skirts? They had better learn.
One more thing: not to perform this play as if it were a
satire of this or that. It is – and must be played
as – the glorification of image and reflection. Its
significance – satirical or not – will only then
emerge.
Some of our poets give themselves over to a very curious
operation: they sing the praises of ‘the people’ of ‘freedom’ and
of ‘rebellion,’ etc., which, by being celebrated,
become then as if hurled and nailed into an abstract sky – hanging
in distorted constellations, discomfited and deflated – dehumanized,
and they become untouchable. Poetry being nostalgia, its
voice destroys what it wants to glorify, and so our poets
kill what they intend to make live.
Do I make myself understood?"
About
the Production:
Joanna Settle traveled to Chicago to direct Genet's modern
classic in between her two years of study at The Juilliard
School. The overwhelming success of this collaboration
ultimately led to Settle joining the company as artistic
director in 1997.
The Balcony was
the company’s first large-scale work — 25 actors
rehearsed for 10 weeks on site at the Chopin Theatre. (It
was this sort of extended rehearsal opportunity, offered
by Chicago’s low cost of living and lower real estate
prices, that had first attracted the founding members to
Chicago.)
Guest artists
on this production included set designer Michael Downs (New
York), lighting designer and production manager David Maheu
(Concord, New Hampshire) and Juilliard actor Taylor Price
(Toronto, Canada) in the role of -The Envoy-.
Downs exposed
every inch of the Chopin Theatre's lower level (including
its lobby, saircases, and utility rooms), creating a constantly
shifting landscape of mirrored panels and hidden performance
areas. Founding resident composer, Jake Perrine, provided
a lush and expansive original score, including live vocals.
The Balcony was
performed during the 1996 Democratic National Convention
in Chicago. It also marked the company's first participation
in the annual Around-the-Coyote Arts Festival. Two
midnight performances of this three-hour epic were performed,
with audience members receiving caffeine pills with their
tickets.
This project contrasted
sharply with the company’s intimate founding work,
The Precipice.
Production Staff:
Company Manager: Greg Berlowitz
Production Manager: David Maheu
Master Electrician: Daniel Cruz
Assistant Set Design: Taylor Price
Assistant Costume Design: Cally Rieman
Costume Assistant: Kevin Grubb
Props Assistants: Shayne Kubby and Julie Cohen
Assistant Production Manager: Larra Call
Vocal Coach: Taylor Price
Publicity and Program: Greg Berlowitz
Publicity Consultant and Photography: Stephanie Howard
Sound Operator: Jake Perrine and Larra Call
Light Board Operator: Veloz Gomez and Daniel Cruz
Advertising: Megan Rodgers
