Ain Gordon

Last updated

Ain Gordon is an American playwright, theatrical director and actor based in New York City. [1] [2] His work frequently deals with the interstices of history, focusing on people and events which are often overlooked or marginalized in official history. His style combines elements of traditional playwrighting with aspects of performance art.

Contents

Early life and education

Gordon was born in New York City, the son of British-American dancer Valda Setterfield and postmodern dancer-choreographer and theatrical director David Gordon. He attended attended New York City Public Schools and then New York University, during which he worked as a stage electrician at Dance Theater Workshop (DTW), began writing and directing for the stage in 1985, and participating in dance and performance scenes for four consecutive seasons at DTW and performances at Movement Research, The Poetry Project, and Performance Space 122.

Career

In 1990, Gordon was recognized in the inaugural round of the National Endowment for the Arts "New Forms" initiative, which funded artists whose work defied clear classification. He then began touring, appearing at various venues, including the Baltimore Museum of Art in Baltimore and Dance Place in Washington, D.C..

In 1991, Gordon began a multi-project relationship with Soho Repertory Theatre in New York City that included five productions and workshops. In 1992, he began collaborating with his father, choreographer and director David Gordon, on The Family Business, which was presented at Lincoln Center's Serious Fun! Festival in New York City, Dance Theater Workshop, New York Theatre Workshop, and the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles. [3] In 1994, the production – the cast of which was both Gordons and their wife and mother, Valda Setterfield – won him his first Obie Award.

In 1992, Gordon became co-director of the Pick Up Performance Company, which was founded by his father in 1971 and incorporated in 1978. With the death of his father in 2022, Gordon became director of the company, and Alyce Dissette continued her role as the company's producing director.

Gordon won his second Obie Award in 1996 for his play Wally's Ghost, which was presented at Soho Repertory Theatre. In 1998, he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in playwriting, which awarded him recognition for his role in calling attention to marginalized and forgotten history and the largely invisible people who were part of it. His work in this realm included a blend of historical fact, imagined truth, and complete fiction.

Over the next few years, Gordon collaborated with David Gordon again on two projects, Punch and Judy Get Divorced for the American Music Theater Festival at the Plays and Players Theatre in Philadelphia and the American Repertory Theater at the C. Walsh Theatre of Suffolk University in Boston, [4] [5] [6] and The First Picture Show for the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco and the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.

In 2001, Gordon led productions at HERE Arts Center, DTW, and P.S. 122, including his Art Life & Show-Biz, a non-fiction play based on the lives and careers of avant-garde actress Lola Pashalinski (Charles Ludlam's Ridiculous Theatrical Company), and Broadway actress Helen Gallagher. They also included Gordon's mother, the dancer Valda Setterfield, Merce Cunningham, David Gordon, each of whom appeared as themselves. The play was published in 2010 in the anthology Dramaturgy of the Real. In reviews, Robert Vorlicky referred to it as "an act of remembrance and memorialization, fashioned through memories...a scrapbook filled with snapshots from the lives of three inspirational artists." [7]

Gordon continued to write theater that straddled the traditions of playwrighting and performance art, blending fact, and fiction. Since 2005, his work has been awarded both the Multi-Arts Production Fund (MAP) Grant and the Arts Presenters Ensemble Theatre Collaborations Program grant funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Trust, and has included productions at the Krannert Center in Urbana, Illinois, the VSA North Fourth Arts Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, 651 ARTS in Brooklyn, LexArts in Lexington, Kentucky, and DiverseWorks in Houston.

In 2007, Gordon won his third Obie Award for his performance as Spalding Grey in the Off-Broadway production of Spalding Gray: Stories Left To Tell, which also toured to venues including UCLA Live at the UCLA, the TBA Festival at the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art in Portland, Oregon, and the ICA Boston in Boston, for which he received an Elliot Norton Award nomination, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, and Painted Bride Art Center in Philadelphia, and others.

In 2008 and 2009, Gordon collaborated with choreographer Bebe Miller on Necessary Beauty, a multi-disciplinary evening-length work co-commissioned by the Wexner Center of Ohio State University, DTW, and the Myrna Loy Center and Helena Presents in Helena, Montana. He was commissioned by the VSA North Fourth Arts Center to write The History of Asking the Wrong Question, rooted in Native American history, and developed a new two-person play and a one-woman play, as a core writer at the Playwrights' Center in Minneapolis. [8] [9] The one-woman play, A Disaster Begins, is based on the 1900 Galveston Hurricane.

The Painted Bride Art Center in Philadelphia commissioned Gordon to write If She Stood, about the women of the early abolitionist movement in that city, including Sarah Grimké and Sarah Mapps Douglass. The play premiered on April 26, 2013.

Later in 2013, his new play, Not What Happened, about historical reenactment and its relation to actual events, was presented at a number of theatres, including the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts in Burlington, Vermont, the Krannert Center, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

In 2016, Gordon's play, 217 Boxes of Dr. Henry Anonymous, premiered at the Painted Bride Art Center. The play exploref the life of Dr. John E. Fryer, a gay psychiatrist who appeared in disguise at the 1972 annual convention of the American Psychiatric Association as part of a campaign to remove homosexuality from the APA's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders . The play was the result of Gordon's research as an embedded artist in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. [10] [11] [12] [13] The play was remounted in May 2018 at the Baryshnikov Arts Center by the Equality Forum to coincide with the APA's annual meeting, [14] and again at Fryer's alma mater, Transylvania University, in Lexington, Kentucky in May 2019. [15]

In May 2017, the Baryshnikov Arts Center premiered Gordon's Radicals in Miniature, which was made and performed in collaboration with Josh Quillen of So Percussion and focused on people Gordon knew in his youth who are now dead. The New York Times review of it reported that, "The people Mr. Gordon portrays weren't successful or all that skilled, but they were around while he was learning what an artist is and does, and how a gay man lives and dies. By telling their stories — in alliterative, associative prose that can sound a lot like poetry — Mr. Gordon is, of course, telling his own. This is autobiography disguised as séance, masquerading as eulogy, camouflaged as performance." [16] A year later, the piece was presented as part of the International Festival of Arts & Ideas in New Haven, Connecticut, and has since been performed in a number of other venues.

In 2020 Gordon and Quillen's began work on their second collaboration –Relics and Their Humans, about the death of Quillen's father from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) – during the Covid pandemic. It was performed in 2023 at the Krannert Center, and in 2024 at the Wexner Center, the La Mama Experimental Theatre Club in New York City, and at Arizona Live Arts at the University of Arizona. [17] [18] [19] [20] [21]

In May 2022, Gordon's play These Don't Easily Scatter was presented in Philadelphia at the William Way LGBT Community Center as past of Remembrance, an alternative memorial to the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1970s in that city. [22] [23] The play subsequently had a showing at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in New York City.

Aside from directing most of his plays, Gordon has directed the work of So Percussion, including Where (we) Live in 2013 and A Gun Show, which was performed at the Harvey Theater of the Brooklyn Academy of Music in late 2016, [24] and works by choreographer Emily Johnson.

Works

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts</span> Cultural center in Washington, D.C.

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. It was named in 1964 as a memorial to assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Opened on September 8, 1971, the center hosts many different genres of performance art, such as theater, dance, orchestras, jazz, pop, psychedelic, and folk music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mikhail Baryshnikov</span> Latvian and American dancer (born 1948)

Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov is a Latvian-American dancer, choreographer, and actor. He was the preeminent male classical ballet dancer of the 1970s and 1980s. He subsequently became a noted dance director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wexner Center for the Arts</span> Contemporary art, Ohio State University

The Wexner Center for the Arts is the Ohio State University's "multidisciplinary, international laboratory for the exploration and advancement of contemporary art."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Sex</span> American cabaret singer, performance artist

John McLoughlin, better known by the stage name John Sex, was an American cabaret singer and performance artist in New York City from the late 1970s until his death in late 1990.

Big Art Group is a New York City-based experimental performance ensemble that uses language and media to push formal boundaries of theatre, film and visual arts to create culturally transgressive works. It has publicly declared its goal as the desire to develop innovative performances using original text, technology, and experimental methods of communication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dance Theater Workshop</span>

Dance Theater Workshop, colloquially known as DTW, was a New York City performance space and service organization for dance companies that operated from 1965 to 2011. DTW merged with the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company to form New York Live Arts, which continues in operation as of 2023.

Susan Marshall is an American choreographer and the Artistic Director of Susan Marshall & Company. She has held the position of Director of the Program in Dance at Princeton University since 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Gordon (choreographer)</span> American postmodern choreographer and theatrical director (1936–2022)

David Gordon was an American dancer, choreographer, writer, and theatrical director prominent in the world of postmodern dance and performance. Based in New York City, Gordon's work has been seen in major performance venues across the United States, Europe, South America and Japan, and has appeared on television on PBS's Great Performances and Alive TV, and the BBC and Channel 4 in Great Britain.

The Pick Up Performance Company, also styled as Pick Up Performance Co(s), is a not-for-profit theatrical producing organization founded in 1971 and incorporated in 1978. Its mission is to support the artistic work of choreographer-director-writer David Gordon and playwright-director Ain Gordon. Its producer is Alyce Dissette.

Deborah Hay is an American choreographer, dancer, dance theorist, and author working in the field of experimental postmodern dance. She is one of the original founders of the Judson Dance Theater. Hay's signature slow and minimal dance style was informed by a trip to Japan while touring with Merce Cunningham's company in 1964. In Japan she encountered Noh theatre and soon incorporated nô's extreme slowness, minimalism and suspension into her post-Cunningham choreography. Sometimes she also imposed stressful conditions on the dancers, as with her "Solo" group dance that was presentation at 9 Evenings: Theatre and Engineering.

<i>Who Cares?</i> (ballet) Ballet by George Balanchine

Who Cares? is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to songs by George Gershwin that were orchestrated by Hershy Kay. The ballet is split in two parts, the first danced by an ensemble, and the second focuses on four principal dancers. Who Cares? premiered on February 5, 1970, at the New York State Theater, danced by the New York City Ballet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valda Setterfield</span> British-American dancer and actress (1934–2023)

Valda Setterfield was a British-born American postmodern dancer and actress. She was noted for her work as a soloist with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company and for her performances in works by her husband, postmodern choreographer and director David Gordon. She was described as his muse, and together they were called "The Barrymores of post-modern dance." Their son, playwright, theatrical director and actor Ain Gordon, has worked with Setterfield on a number of projects as well.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Painted Bride Art Center</span> Arts center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

The Painted Bride Art Center, sometimes referred to informally as The Bride, is a non-profit artist-centered performance space and gallery particularly oriented to presenting the work of local Philadelphia artists, which presents dance, jazz, world, folk and electronic music, visual arts, theatre and performance art, poetry and spoken word performances.

Big Dance Theater is a New York City-based dance theater company. It is led by Artistic Director Annie-B Parson, who founded Big Dance Theater in 1991 with Molly Hickok and Paul Lazar. Big Dance Theater has created over 20 dance/theater works and won 18 awards over the years. They have been commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music, The National Theater of Paris, The Japan Society, and The Walker Art Center, and have performed in venues such as the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Dance Theater Workshop, The Kitchen, Classic Stage Company, Japan Society, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, the Chocolate Factory, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, Walker Art Center, Yerba Buena, On the Boards, New York Live Arts, UCLA Live, The Spoleto Festival USA, and at festivals in Europe and Brazil.

Annie-B Parson is an American choreographer, dancer, and director based in Brooklyn, New York. Parson is notable for her work in dance/theater, post-modern dance, and art pop music. Parson is the artistic director of Brooklyn's Big Dance Theater, which she founded with Molly Hickok and her husband, Paul Lazar. She is also well known for her collaborations with Mikhail Baryshnikov, David Byrne, David Bowie, St. Vincent, Laurie Anderson, Jonathan Demme, Ivo van Hove, Sarah Ruhl, Lucas Hnath, Wendy Whelan, David Lang, Esperanza Spalding, Mark Dion, Salt ‘n Pepa, Nico Muhly, and the Martha Graham Dance Co.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marty Pottenger</span> Performance artist

Marty Pottenger is an American playwright, performance artist and theatre director. Pottenger is a pioneer in the community arts and arts-based civic dialogue movement. Joan Shigekawa, former Acting Chairman for the National Endowment for the Arts, named Pottenger as one of her favorite artists "...for her deep engagement with the lives of working people."

Biello & Martin are a songwriting duo working in dance, theatre, and film. Independently, Michael Biello is a lyricist, performance artist, and ceramic sculptor. Dan Martin is a composer and music producer. They are best known for creating performance works which promote love, spirituality, and self-expression through a Queer lens. As LGBTQ+ cultural activists, they also founded Outmusic, an LGBTQ+ music organization, and have been romantic life-partners for over 40 years.

Alyce Dissette is a producer/manager/facilitator for performing, visual, film, and digital works.

References

  1. ↑ "Ain Gordon Theatre Credits" on BroadwayWorld.com
  2. ↑ "Ain Gordon: Biography" on the Playwrights' Center (Minneapolis) website
  3. ↑ Stuart, Jan (April 4, 1995) "A Memorable Portrayal Of a Family in Turmoil" Newsday
  4. ↑ "Punch and Judy Get Divorced" on the American Repertory Theater website
  5. ↑ Muchmore, Mary-Beth A. (October 31, 1996) "A Very Odd 'Punch and Judy'" Harvard Crimson
  6. ↑ "Punch and Judy Get Divorced" About the Artists"
  7. ↑ Vorlicky, Robert ""An Intimate Love Letter: Ain Gordon's 'Art, Life & Show-Biz'" in Martin, Carol (ed.) (2010) Dramaturgy of the Real on the World State New York: Palgrave-Macmillan. pp.259-64. ISBN   978-0-230-22054-6
  8. ↑ Dancehunter. "Ain Gordon tells a forgotten story" Archived 2011-07-07 at the Wayback Machine on 29-95.com
  9. ↑ "Ain Gordon: A Disaster Begins" Archived 2011-07-26 at the Wayback Machine on the DiverseWorks website
  10. ↑ "An Artist Embedded" Historical Society of Pennsylvania website
  11. ↑ Staff (April 25, 2016) "Ain Gordon World Premiere Set for Painted Bride Arts Center" Broadway World Philadelphia
  12. ↑ Derakhshani, Tirdad (May 5, 2016) "'217 Boxes' at the Painted Bride: A courageous mystery man who changed history" The Philadelphia Inquirer
  13. ↑ Crimmins, Peter (May 4, 2016) "Raising the curtain on life of Dr. Anonymous, Philly gay rights pioneer" Archived 2016-05-11 at the Wayback Machine Newsworks
  14. ↑ Green, Jesse (May 6, 2018) "Review: A Secret History of Gay Life Uncovered in '217 Boxes'" The New York Times
  15. ↑ Staff (April 26, 2019) "Obie Award winner Ain Gordon's '217 Boxes of Dr. Henry Anonymous' makes Kentucky debut at Transylvania University" 1780 - Transylvania University
  16. ↑ Soloski, Alexis (May 17, 2017) "Review: Recalling an Electric New York in ‘Radicals in Miniature’" The New York Times
  17. ↑ "Ain Gordon and Josh Quillen" Wexner Center
  18. ↑ "Relics and Their Humans, by Ain Gordon and Josh Quillen" Krannert Center]
  19. ↑ "Relics and Their Humans" La MaMa]
  20. ↑ Mandell, Jonathan (June 25, 2024) {https://newyorktheater.me/2024/06/25/relics-and-their-humans-review/ "Relics and Their Humans Review] New York Theater]
  21. ↑ Burch, Cathalena E. (September 20, 2024) "Impactful play about family's ALS journey comes to Tucson" Arizona Daily Star
  22. ↑ "Remembrance" William Way LGBT Community Center
  23. ↑ Wild, Stephi (May 10, 2022) "World Theatre Premiere Of Ain Gordon's THESE DON'T EASILY SCATTER Comes to Philadelphia" Broadway World
  24. ↑ da Fonseca-Wollheim, Corinna (December 1, 2016) "‘A Gun Show’ Raises Questions Beyond the Music" The New York Times
  25. ↑ Tobias, Tobi (March 3, 1986) "On Her Own" New York
  26. ↑ "Ain Gordon" on Doolee: The Playwrights Database
  27. ↑ Lefkowitz, David (June 17, 1997) "NY's Soho Rep To Nibble At Ain Gordon's BirdseFpaed Bundles" Playbill
  28. ↑ Lefkowitz, Davis (April 2, 2000) "OOB's DTW Runs Out of Birdseed, April 2" Playbill
  29. ↑ ""93 Acres of Barley"". Archived from the original on February 10, 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  30. ↑ Klein, Alvin (May 5, 2002) "Tangled Strands In Story Of a City" The New York Times
  31. ↑ Finkle, David. "Art, Life & Show Biz" TheatreMania (January 10, 2003)
  32. ↑ Haarstad, Ross (April 26-May 2, 2010) "A Remarkable History Brought to Life" TompkinsWeekly [ permanent dead link ]
  33. ↑ Staff (May 23, 2008) "Flyover: Arts in the American Outback" Arts Journal
  34. ↑ Copley, Rich (May 2004) "Play tells story from Lexington's history" Lexington Herald-Leader
  35. ↑ Zinman, Toby (March 9, 2012) "Review: In This Place..." The Philadelphia Inquirer
  36. ↑ Saltz, Rachel (October 15, 2009) "Seeking Order in a Life, a War and a Deluge" The New York Times
  37. ↑ Kamerick, Megan (November 27, 2012) "Play Questions Idea of Trying to Find “the Truth” of History" on A2.com
  38. ↑ Burns-Fusaro, Nancy (February 14, 2019) "Pickup Performance Co(s) at Connecticut College" The Westerly Sun
  39. ↑ Lamendola, Molly (February 28, 2019) "Radicals in Miniature is a Moving Performance" The Fairfield Mirror
  40. ↑ Pretsky, Holly (June 26, 2019) "Go Big, Go Bold, Go With Pride, Not Prejudice" Vineyard Gazette
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.