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Press Release
Thursday, May 28
Tennessee Repertory Theatre Presents Staged Reading of New Work: Artist-in-Residence Victoria Stewart Pens Drama about Men, Mothers, and Money
Nashville, TN— Tennessee Repertory Theatre will present a reading of a new play, A Smart Girl’s Guide to Risk and Returns, by the 2008–2009 Martha R. Ingram Artist-in-Residence Victoria Stewart. The staged readings are scheduled from June 11–13 at Vanderbilt University’s Neely Auditorium.
“Tory Stewart is one of the up-and-coming stars on the horizon of the American theatre, following in the footsteps of such playwrights as Lynn Nottage who won the Primus Prize just a couple of years before Tory did in 2007,” says Tennessee Rep producing Artistic Director René D. Copeland. “Her play Hardball is a smart, funny, wonderfully biting contemporary story with terrific characters and dialogue. After I read it, I just knew that I wanted Tennessee Rep to be a part of bringing her next play into the world.”
After graduating cum laude from Barnard College in 1992, Stewart went on to work as a professional stage manager for seven years at Harvard’s American Repertory Theater, where she worked with David Rabe, Anne Bogart, and Peter Sellars, among others.
After making a “sudden decision” to become a playwright, Stewart got a MFA at the Iowa Playwrights Workshop in 2002, followed by a Jerome Fellowship at the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis in 2003. Other accomplishments include receiving the Helen Merrill Award for Emerging Playwrights and the Norman Felton Fellowship. She has also had residencies at Ucross/Sundance, Hedgebrook, and the Donmar Warehouse. She was awarded the 2007 Francesca Primus Prize, an award for emerging women in theatre, for Hardball. The piece also earned her a spot as a finalist of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Most recently, Stewart became the recipient for the 2008–09 McKnight Advancement Grant at the Playwrights’ Center.
When asked what appealed to her about Nashville and its theatre community, Stewart responded, “It’s great to have the opportunity to get to know another theatre community. It’s easy to get stuck in your own small world, and it’s exciting to experience a completely different part of the country.”
Interested in directing early on in her career, Stewart made the transition to become a writer, initially working primarily on short fiction. Eventually, she found her way back to the theatre when she entered the MFA Program at the Iowa Playwrights’ Workshop.
“This was a tremendous opportunity for me as a playwright,” explains Stewart. “I was actually able to stage my work in different levels. This allowed me to listen to my work, to hear the words I had written coming from the mouths of actors, to see how the choices actors make affect the text. That’s not something I could do on my own.
“At the Iowa Playwrights’ Workshop, I learned how to express myself as a playwright by learning the priorities actors have. Lines may have been clear in my head, but weren’t clear on the page. I try to write good plays for actors, which is something that is really important to me. And this experience allowed me to work on that.”
A Smart Girl’s Guide to Risk and Returns is a modern-day adaptation of Washington Square by Henry James. When Claudine meets Henry, a starving artist, she falls head over heels. Her mother, a financial guru, has her doubts. Is Henry everything her daughter has been looking for? Or is he after only one thing? A Smart Girl’s Guide to Risk and Returns is about women and their relationship to men, mothers, and money…in that order.
The staged reading will be directed by Tennessee Rep Producing Artistic Director René D. Copeland and features Jamie Farmer, Wesley Paine, Patrick Waller, and Martha Wilkinson. The reading is presented in partnership with Vanderbilt University’s Theatre Department.
The Martha R. Ingram Artist-in-Residence: New Work for the Theatre Fellowship was created during the 2007–2008 season by company co-founder Martha R. Ingram to provide an opportunity for theatre artists to develop new theatre works while in residency at Tennessee Repertory Theatre. The program was funded for three years by a $150,000 grant from the Ingram Charitable Fund, which includes a stipend for the playwright and expenses incurred by Tennessee Rep for developmental activities in Nashville and at other regional theatres during the residency period.
Stewart follows in the footsteps of David Alford, Tennessee Rep’s first Artist-in-Residence. During the 2007–2008 season, Tennessee Rep presented a dramatic reading of Alford’s new play Clara’s Hands.
Since 1985, Tennessee Repertory Theatre has been a critically acclaimed regional theatre, creating the highest quality professional productions and by serving as a prime cultural, educational, and economic resource within the Nashville and Middle Tennessee communities. Tennessee Rep produces work that is designed, built, and rehearsed in Nashville by highly skilled actors, designers, directors, and technicians. A non-profit organization, Tennessee Rep is committed to consistently delivering thought-provoking theatre each year.
Producing Artistic Director Rene Copeland and Artist-in-Residence Victoria Stewart are available for interviews beginning June 1 (earlier by special arrangement).
Performance Schedule:
A Smart Girl’s Guide to Risk and Returns
June 11–June 13 at Vanderbilt’s Neely Auditorium
Thursday, June 11, 7:30 PM
Friday, June 12, 8:00 PM
Saturday, June 13, 7:30 PM
Tickets: Free for 2008–2009 Season Subscribers, minimum $5 donation for all others. Reservations are available by calling 244-4878. Seating is general admission.
Press Release
Tuesday, May 26
Tennessee Rep Celebrates 25th Anniversary:
2009–2010 Season Announced
Nashville, TN— One Tony Award-winning musical. One Pulitzer Prize-winning drama. One hilarious, quintessentially Southern comedy featuring two generations of Tennessee Rep actresses. And a holiday cult classic.
These plays comprise Tennessee Repertory Theatre’s 2009–2010 season of live, professional, critically-acclaimed theatre. The season, which kicks off in October, marks the 25th anniversary for Tennessee Rep.
“The 25th season of Tennessee Rep says so much about two things: the quality and diligence of Nashville theatre artists and the value that Nashville puts on live professional theatre,” says Tennessee Rep Producing Artistic Director René D. Copeland. “It is remarkable on both counts, and it makes all of us proud to live in the community we serve. I and my team here at Tennessee Rep are looking forward to working on each of the shows this season, because they celebrate our rich history plus they each present artistic challenges and opportunities we relish.”
Tennessee Rep’s 25th Anniversary season features the following:
(Click here for full descriptions, dates, and show commentary from Copeland.)
Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling
A Christmas Story by Phillip Grecian based on the motion picture by Jean Shepherd, Leigh Brown, and Bob Clark
Proof by David Auburn
Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, book by William Hauptman, Music and Lyrics by Roger Miller, based on the classic novel by Mark Twain
Since 1985, Tennessee Repertory Theatre has been a critically acclaimed regional theatre, creating the highest quality professional productions and by serving as a prime cultural, educational, and economic resource within the Nashville and Middle Tennessee communities. Tennessee Rep produces work that is designed, built, and rehearsed in Nashville by highly skilled actors, designers, directors, and technicians. A non-profit organization, Tennessee Rep is committed to consistently delivering thought-provoking theatre each year.
Tax deductible donations to Tennessee Rep can still be made securely and directly by clicking the donate button above or by mailing a check to Tennessee Repertory Theatre, 161 Rains Avenue, Nashville, TN 37203.