United Solo Theatre Festival

Last updated
United Solo Theatre Festival
FrequencyAnnual
Location(s) Theatre Row
New York City
Inaugurated2010 (2010)
Website unitedsolo.org

United Solo Theatre Festival is the world's largest solo theatre festival. [1] It takes place at Theatre Row on 42nd Street in New York City. Its founder and artistic director is Omar Sangare. The festival presents many categories of solo shows, including storytelling, puppetry, dance, multimedia, improvisations, stand-up, magic, drama, and comedy. Since its inaugural edition, the Festival raises money for The Actors Fund. [2]

Theatre Row (New York City) human settlement in Manhattan, New York, United States of America

Theatre Row is an entertainment district of Off Broadway theatres on 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan west of Ninth Avenue. The space originally referred to a 1977 redevelopment project to convert adult entertainment venues into theatres between 9th and Tenth Avenues on the south side of 42nd Street. However with the success of the district the name is often used to describe any theatre on either side of the street from Ninth Avenue to the Hudson River as more theatres have been built along the street.

New York City Largest city in the United States

The City of New York, usually called either New York City (NYC) or simply New York (NY), is the most populous city in the United States. With an estimated 2018 population of 8,398,748 distributed over a land area of about 302.6 square miles (784 km2), New York is also the most densely populated major city in the United States. Located at the southern tip of the state of New York, the city is the center of the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban landmass and one of the world's most populous megacities, with an estimated 19,979,477 people in its 2018 Metropolitan Statistical Area and 22,679,948 residents in its Combined Statistical Area. A global power city, New York City has been described as the cultural, financial, and media capital of the world, and exerts a significant impact upon commerce, entertainment, research, technology, education, politics, tourism, art, fashion, and sports. The city's fast pace has inspired the term New York minute. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy.

Omar Sangare Polish actor

Omar Sangare is a Polish actor and director, who graduated from The Aleksander Zelwerowicz National Academy of Dramatic Art in Warsaw, where he studied with the Oscar-winning director Andrzej Wajda. In 1994 he was awarded a scholarship to The British American Drama Academy in Oxford, England. While there he worked with Derek Jacobi, Alan Rickman, Michael Kahn, and Jeremy Irons. In 2006, Sangare received his Ph.D. from the Theater Academy in Warsaw. Sangare taught at UCLA, UCSB, UCSD, Wesleyan University, and Westmont College. Currently, he teaches in the Department of Theatre at Williams College. In 2007, he became founder and artistic director of the Dialogue ONE, International Festival for solo performances at WilliamsTheatre. He is also a leader of the United Solo theatre project in New York City which began in 2010. (website).

Contents

2010 Season

The line-up of 47 solo shows was presented between November 8 and 21. The solo artists from three continents took part in the two-week festival. Four-time Academy Award nominee Marsha Mason presented awards at the closing ceremony, including the special uAward for Anna Deavere Smith.

Marsha Mason American actress

Marsha Mason is an American actress and director. She was nominated four times for the Academy Award for Best Actress; for her performances in Cinderella Liberty (1973), The Goodbye Girl (1977), Chapter Two (1979), and Only When I Laugh (1981). The first two films also won her Golden Globe Awards. She was married for ten years (1973–83) to the playwright and screenwriter Neil Simon, who was the writer of three of her four Oscar-nominated roles.

Anna Deavere Smith American actress, playwright and professor

Anna Deavere Smith is an American actress, playwright, and professor. She is known for her roles as National Security Advisor Dr. Nancy McNally in The West Wing (2000–06), hospital administrator Gloria Akalitus in the Showtime series Nurse Jackie (2009–15), and as Tina Krissman on the ABC show For the People (2018–19).

2011 Season

Submissions for the second edition opened on March 1 and on closed May 16, 2011. [3] The festival began on October 20 and it was concluded with a Closing Ceremony on November 20. [4] It took place in Theatre Row in New York City. The New York Times chose United Solo for its The New Season Fall Preview, [5] and the Time Out New York gave the Festival a wild card.

<i>The New York Times</i> Daily broadsheet newspaper based in New York City

The New York Times is an American newspaper based in New York City with worldwide influence and readership. Founded in 1851, the paper has won 127 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other newspaper. The Times is ranked 18th in the world by circulation and 3rd in the U.S.

In 2011, the United Solo board has nominated four performers for the uAward: Daniel Beaty in Through the Night, John Lithgow in Stories by Heart, Patti LuPone in The Gypsy in My Soul, and Robin Williams in Weapons of Self-Destruction. [6] The 2011 uAward went to Patti LuPone. [7] [8] [9]

John Lithgow American character actor, musician, and author

John Arthur Lithgow is an American actor, musician, poet, author, and singer. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including six Primetime Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, four Drama Desk Awards, and has been nominated for two Academy Awards and four Grammy Awards. Lithgow has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and has been inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.

Patti LuPone American actress

Patti Ann LuPone is an American actress and singer, best known for her work in stage musicals. She has won two Grammy Awards, two Tony Awards, and two Olivier Awards. She is also a 2006 American Theater Hall of Fame inductee.

Robin Williams American actor and comedian

Robin McLaurin Williams was an American actor and comedian. Born in Chicago, Williams began performing stand-up comedy in San Francisco and Los Angeles during the mid-1970s, After rising to fame playing the alien Mork in the sitcom Mork & Mindy, Williams established a career in both stand-up comedy and feature film acting. He was known for his improvisation skills and the wide variety of memorable character voices he created. Many critics have lauded Williams as one of the funniest comedians of all time.

2012 Season

The third United Solo Festival presented 100 shows between October 11 - November 18, 2012. Nominees for the special uAward were Kathy Griffin, John Hurt, Hugh Jackman and John Leguizamo. [10] The award went to John Leguizamo. Among other award winners were Lynn Marie Rink, Ann Morrison, Austin Pendleton and Bill Bowers. [11]

Kathy Griffin American actress and comedian

Kathleen Mary Griffin is an American comedian and actress. She has starred in several comedy specials for cable TV and has released several comedy albums. In 2007 and 2008, Griffin won Primetime Emmy Awards for her reality show Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List. She has also appeared on TV and on film numerous times, mainly in supporting roles.

John Hurt English actor

Sir John Vincent Hurt was an English actor whose career spanned more than 50 years.

Hugh Jackman Australian actor and producer

Hugh Michael Jackman is an Australian actor, singer, and producer. He is best known for playing Wolverine in the X-Men film series from 2000 to 2018, a role for which he holds the Guinness World Record for "longest career as a live-action Marvel superhero". Jackman is also recognised for his lead roles in films such as the romantic comedy Kate & Leopold (2001), the action film Van Helsing (2004), the drama The Prestige (2006), the fantasy drama The Fountain (2006), the period romance Australia (2008), the film version of Les Misérables (2012), the thriller Prisoners (2013), and the musical The Greatest Showman (2017), for which he received a Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack Album. For playing Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.

United Solo received the title of the "Person of the Year 2012" from nytheatre.com. [12]

2013 Season

The 4th festival was held at Theatre Row in New York City between October 3 – November 24, 2013 and featured 120 productions from 23 countries and 6 continents, among them Gordon Clapp, Eric Roberts, Ann Morrison, and Alison Wearing. [13] The special award went to Fiona Shaw, who accepted it during festival's closing ceremony on November 24. [14]

2014 Season

Over 130 participants will perform in the 5th anniversary season between September 18 – November 23, 2014. Artists will represent six continents. The festival will span over 10 weeks, which is five times longer than in the inaugural year. [15]

United Solo Europe

Since 2013, United Solo invites selected performers to present their works at the festival's European showcase, among them Regina Advento of Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch and Fiona Shaw.

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References

  1. ↑ The New York Times website
  2. ↑ Broadway World, December 10, 2011
  3. ↑ Stage Directions, March 1, 2011
  4. ↑ Broadway World, January 18, 2011
  5. ↑ Outlaws, Kings and Comedy, www.nytimes.com, September 14, 2011
  6. ↑ PlayBill, April 12, 2011
  7. ↑ Broadway World, November 21, 2011
  8. ↑ "PlayBill, November 21, 2011". Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved December 28, 2011.
  9. ↑ Theatermania, November 21, 2011
  10. ↑ Theatermania, April 25, 2012
  11. ↑ Playbill.com, November 19, 2012
  12. ↑ The Villager, December 6, 2012
  13. ↑ Playbill, October 3, 2013
  14. ↑ "Playbill, November 26, 2013". Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2013.
  15. ↑ Broadway World, May 20, 2014
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