Lisa Portes

Last updated
Lisa Portes
Lisa Portes, June 2019.jpg
Born{1967}
Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Education Oberlin College (BA)
University of California, San Diego (MFA)
Occupation
  • Director
Years active1992–present
Spouse Carlos Murillo
Children2
Relatives Alejandro Portes (Father)

Lisa Portes (born 1966/1967) [1] is a director, educator, and advocate. [2] She heads of the MFA Directing program at The Theatre School at DePaul University. [3] She serves on the board of the Theatre Communications Group, the Executive Board of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, and is a founding member of the Latinx Theater Commons. [4]

Contents

Education

Portes attended Oberlin College where she graduated with honors with a degree of Bachelor of Arts in Theater in 1988. [5] She received a Master of Fine Arts in Directing from the University of California - San Diego in 1992. [6]

Career

After graduating from the University of California, San Diego, Portes worked as a freelance director. She took up the position of associate artistic director of Soho Rep from 1996-1998. From 1992-1995, she was the artistic director of the former Theater E in San Diego. [7] Portes began working at DePaul University in 2000 and is currently leading the three year MFA Program while teaching classes. [5] [8]

Primarily a director of new American plays and musicals, Portes' work has been seen regionally at California Shakespeare Theater, Guthrie Theater, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Cincinnati Playhouse, South Coast Repertory, McCarter Theatre, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. In Chicago she has directed for Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Victory Gardens Theater, TimeLine Theatre Company, American Blues Theater, Silk Road Rising, Next Theatre, and Teatro Vista. New York credits include work at Playwrights Horizons, Soho Repertory Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, The Flea Theater, and The Public Theater. Portes served as the Associate Director of the Tony Award-winning musical The Who's Tommy, and staged its international productions in Canada, Germany, and the U.K, as well as its 20th anniversary remount at the Stratford Theatre Festival in 2013. [9] In 2016, Portes was awarded the SDC Zelda Fichandler Award. [10]

Portes has directed plays around the United States ranging from the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, Steppenwolf theater, and the Guthrie Theatre located in Minneapolis. [11] She has also participated in the Latino Theater Festival at Goodman Theatre, as well as the Ignition Festival at the Victory Gardens Theater. [5]

Works

Some of Portes's productions include This is Modern Art a play written by Idris Goodwin and Kevin Coval. Other plays directed by Portes include Ghostwritten, After a Hundred Years, Concerning Strange Device from the Distant West, all written by Naomi Iizuka. [12] Portes has also directed plays by Julia Cho such as The Piano Teacher. Some more of her recent works include Offspring of the Cold War written by Carlos Murillo and Wilder: An Erotic Chamber Musical written by Erin Cressida Wilson, Jack Herrick and Mike Craver. [5] Notably, Portes served as the Associate Director of the Tony Award-winning musical The Who's Tommy, and staged its international productions in Canada, Germany and the U.K., as well as its 20th anniversary remount at the Stratford Festival in 2013. [5] [13]

This is Modern Art

The play This is Modern Art was staged at Steppenwolf Theatre. The premise of the play deals with the struggle of graffiti crews, who view their work as art while others see it as vandalism. One night, one crew completes a huge piece which incite backlash from the community as opinions on the validity of graffiti as art are polarized. This play ran from February 25 to March 14, 2015. [14] It sparked controversy in the Chicago area as it presented the graffiti crews in a positive light. [15] One critic at the Chicago Tribune mentioned how the play "is a romantic ode to the art of graffiti and the act of tagging, a piece that demystifies authorial signatures and charts the storied history of graffiti art in Chicago, shouting out its great artists and their canvases, from Kennedy underpasses to CTA train yards... [but] Graffiti comes at a price. It can be invasive, self-important and disrespectful of the property of others — and plenty of struggling folks have had to clean graffiti off something they own or love". [16] Kevin Coval spoke out against the play's criticism stating that "Graffiti operates at the level of metaphor for voices that exist at the margins of culture who have been deliberately excluded or erased from dominate discourse". [15]

Ghostwritten

Portes directed Naomi Iizuka's Ghostwritten at the Goodman Theatre in April 2009. [17] The play references the war in Vietnam, creating a complex narrative on complicated dual identities of Vietnamese children, the imperialistic nature of the United States and the effects of the war, and invisible yet real geopolitical boundaries between countries and their impacts. [18] The author adds a twist by including themes from the tale Rumpelstiltskin. [19] The play is part of a project that ran at the Goodman Theatre called "Strong Women, Strong Voices" which focused on presenting and supporting work created by women. [20] It had mixed reviews. One critic at the Chicago Maroon thought the play's premise was "so ridiculous that it would border on the comical even if the rest of the play were well-executed". [21]

The Who's Tommy

The Who's Tommy is based on The Who's 1969 rock album Tommy. [22] The story follows the life of a young boy named Tommy who is not only blind, but deaf as well. He has a very hard childhood, and constantly suffers abuse from his relatives and neighbors. His one salvation is pinball, and it is ultimately his escape when he becomes an international pinball superstar. It has been described as an "exhilarating story of hope, healing and the human spirit". [23] In 2013, the play was remounted at the Stratford Theatre Festival where this "rock opera", one critic mentions, "cranked up the volume for vocal excitement and general rocking-out purposes". [24] Another critic mentions how the musical is also an interesting commentary on "the advances – or not – in disability rights in the post[World War II] era". [25]

Wilder: An Erotic Chamber Musical

Wilder: An Erotic Chamber Musical ran in the Peter Jay Sharp Theater in New York City from October 14, 2003 to November 14, 2003. [26] The plot follows a growing boy who goes through puberty in a "depression-era bordello". [27] The plot plays with Oedipal themes while the main character reminiscences on his past. [28] The role of the older Wilder Jessup is played by John Cullum. One critic mentioned that having such a popular and skilled lead took away from the other two members of the cast, who were "a little too earnest in their diction and gestures". [29] Another critic mentioned that the play was seemingly an interesting premise but ultimately a "lost cause" with "disappointing music". [30]

Personal life

Portes was born in Madison, Wisconsin. She is the daughter of Cuban-American sociologist Alejandro Portes and her mother is from Nebraska. [6] When her parents divorced, she moved between U.S. college towns and Latin American cities. [31] She is the oldest of three children. She has one younger brother and one younger sister. [5] Portes is married to playwright Carlos Murillo. [32] They live in Chicago with their two children. [32]

Community involvement

Portes is one of the founding members of the Latinx Theatre Commons, which was founded in order to encourage the creation and performance of Latinx theater. [33] The group was formed by eight Latina/o theatremakers in May 2012 and was led by Karen Zacarias. The first ever LTC National Convening was held in 2013 at Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. [34] The Latina/o Theatre Commons has also created the 2015 carnaval of New Latina/o Works. [35] Portes was in charge of facilitating Latin@'s in Theatre: Building a Movement- Forwarding the Work by Creating Strong Relationships and Allyships at the 2015 Theatre Communications Group National Conference. [36]

Awards

Portes has won Drama League and NEA/TCG Director's Fellowships, Fulbright/Hays Fellowship, and Illinois Theatre Association Outstanding Contribution Award. [37] She has been awarded grants from DePaul University including the University Researcher Grant; the DePaul University Public Service Council Grant, and three DePaul University Quality of Instruction Grants. [5]

Portes received the 2016 Zelda Fichandler Award, which is dedicated to "an outstanding director or choreographer who has transformed the regional arts landscape". [38] Portes is the first freelance director to receive this award. [10]

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References

  1. ↑ Ruby, Jeff (July 8, 2010). "Whole Foods versus Shoplifters: The Conundrum". Chicago . Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  2. ↑ NiNunzio, Miriam (12 October 2016). "Chicago director/Educator Lisa Portes to receive Fichandler Award".
  3. ↑ "My Art: Lisa Portes". DePaul: Distinctions. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  4. ↑ "Latina/o Theatre Commons". HowlRound. Archived from the original on 31 March 2017. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "In the Spotlight: Chicago Playworks | Current Season | On Stage | DePaul University Theatre School". theatre.depaul.edu. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  6. 1 2 Ford, Anne (22 July 2015). "Chicago theater director Lisa Portes on dealing with actor freak-outs". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  7. ↑ "John Cullum Comes of Age in Wilder, the Erotic Chamber Musical, Opening Oct. 26 | Playbill". Playbill. Retrieved 2017-05-01.
  8. ↑ Williams, Jim (16 February 2016). "How David Bowie Transfixed Drama Audiences In Chicago". CBS Chicago. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  9. ↑ "Lisa Portes | Performance | Faculty & Staff | About | the Theatre School | DePaul University, Chicago".
  10. 1 2 Di Nunzio, Miriam (12 October 2016). "Chicago director/educator Lisa Portes to receive Fichandler Award". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
  11. ↑ "Lisa Portes". The Theatre School at DePaul University. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  12. ↑ "Artists Bios: Lisa Portes". Goodman Theatre. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  13. ↑ Hetrick, Adam; Jones, Kenneth. "Des McAnuff's New Tommy, Starring Jeremy Kushnier and Paul Nolan, Opens May 30 at Stratford Fest | Playbill". Playbill. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  14. ↑ Coval, Kevin; Goodwin, Idris. "This Is Modern Art (based on true events) | Steppenwolf Theatre". www.steppenwolf.org. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  15. 1 2 Riley, Chloe (12 March 2015). "Steppenwolf's 'This Is Modern Art' Tagged With Controversy". AMERICAN THEATRE. Theatre Communications Group. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
  16. ↑ Jones, Chris (1 March 2015). "REVIEW: 'This Is Modern Art' at Steppenwolf Theatre". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  17. ↑ Bacalzo, Dan (20 March 2009). "Arthur Acuna, Kim Martin-Cotton, Lisa Tejero, and More Set for Goodman's Ghostwritten". TheaterMania.com. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  18. ↑ Park, Samuel (October 2009). "Performance Review: "Ghostwritten"". Theatre Journal. 61 (3): 469–472 – via ProQuest.
  19. ↑ BWW News Desk. "Iizuka's GHOSTWRITTEN Comes To Goodman Stage 4/4-5/3". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  20. ↑ Bacalzo, Dan (6 February 2009). "Goodman to Premiere Naomi Iizuka's Ghostwritten". TheaterMania.com. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  21. ↑ Kowarski, Ilana (21 April 2009). "Goodman's ghastly Ghostwritten mars Iizuka's magic". www.chicagomaroon.com. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  22. ↑ Rigsbee, Valerie. "Broadway Musical Home - Tommy". broadwaymusicalhome.com. Retrieved 2017-05-01.
  23. ↑ "The Who's Tommy". Music Theatre International. 16 September 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  24. ↑ Jones, Chris. "Review: 'The Who's Tommy' at Paramount Theatre". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2017-05-01.
  25. ↑ Gardner, Lyn (2017-04-06). "The Who's Tommy review – bold retake on rock opera tackles disability rights". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2017-05-01.
  26. ↑ "Wilder : Playwrights Horizons". Playwrights Horizons. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  27. ↑ "John Cullum Comes of Age in Wilder, the Erotic Chamber Musical, Opening Oct. 26 | Playbill". Playbill. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  28. ↑ "Cullum Joins Wilder, Playwrights Horizons' 'Erotic Chamber Musical,' Starting Oct. 16 | Playbill". Playbill. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  29. ↑ Betancourt, Monica (27 March 2013). "In Hard Times, the Wilder Side". Columbia Daily Spectator. Columbia Spectator. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  30. ↑ Weber, Bruce (31 October 2003). "THEATER REVIEW; A Prostitute Downstairs, A Rich Fantasy Life Upstairs". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  31. ↑ "Role Call: People to Watch" (Document). New York, NY: American Theatre. October 2015. ProQuest   1736686697.
  32. 1 2 "Carlos Murillo". New Dramatists. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  33. ↑ Lawton, Jacqueline. "2015 TCG National Conference Day One". TCG Circle.
  34. ↑ "Latina/o Theatre Commons". HowlRound. Archived from the original on 2015-12-10. Retrieved 2015-12-07.
  35. ↑ BWW News Desk. "LTC Presents 2015 Carnaval of New Latina/o Work This Weekend (press release)". BroadwayWorld.com.
  36. ↑ Lawton, Jacqueline. "2015 TCG National Conference Day One — TCG Circle". www.tcgcircle.org.
  37. ↑ "Lisa Portes : Playwrights Horizons". Playwrights Horizons. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  38. ↑ Editors, American Theatre (12 October 2016). "Lisa Portes Receives 2016 Zelda Fichandler Award". AMERICAN THEATRE. Retrieved 6 April 2017.{{cite web}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
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