“Elephant Theatre Company”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

The Elephant Theatre Company was a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Theatre company in Los Angeles. It has around 50 current members including actors, designers, directors, and stage managers.

History

In 1995, The Elephant Theatre Company was created in downtown Los Angeles. Artistic Directors, David Fofi and Lindsay Allbaugh, along with other graduates from the California State University, Long Beach Theatre Arts program moved into a space at the Angel City Brewery artist complex. The space doubled as a Studio Theater and the loft apartment for the original founders. Focused on their desire to continue their craft after graduation they renovated the space creating a small theatre and living quarters and gave it the name of "Elephant Off Main". The loft was 110 degrees, the tech booth was in a bedroom and audiences sat on couches and beanbags. The mission of the company and its founders was to produce a new brand of quality original theatre in Los Angeles.

In the summer of 1997, the small 45-seat theater could no longer accommodate the advancing production needs or the increasing audience attendance. The Company then moved to Hollywood (and dropped the “Off Main”). David Fofi along with founding member Don Cesario continued to produce Elephant productions in various Hollywood venues.

During their 1998/1999 season, the company moved into its long-term home, located at 6322 Santa Monica Boulevard, in Los Angeles' Theatre Row District. This created five performance spaces (the Lillian Theatre, the Elephant Space, the Elephant Studio, the Elephant ASYLUM, and the ASYLUM Lab), known as The Elephant Stages. With these additions came the necessity to form the business/producing entity called Elephant Stageworks, overseeing both venue operations and Theatre Company endeavors.

In 2015, the theatre building was sold by its landlord to a neighboring school. The last produced show in the Lillian ("The Great Divide" by Lyle Kessler) closed on August 23, 2015. The Elephant Theatre was left without a permanent space, and as of September 2015 was determining whether to continue on as a company.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]

Name

As the founders geared up for the first production, an evening of early Sam Shepard shorts, the question arose: “What should we call this thing we have created, this group, this space?” Over a few beers and many terrible suggestions, one of the directors came across this quote:

“When Sam (Shepard) was first starting to write plays, he was writing little, almost chamber plays. Sam was working on something and we were sitting and talking about some scene he wanted to do, and he said, ‘I don’t think that could be done anyway on the stage. There’s no point to doing it.’ And I said, ‘Look, Sam if you want an Elephant to appear on the stage without walking on from the wings, you should just write it and see what happens from it, and then see if there’s a way to do it, or a way to make it.’” -Jacques Levy{{citation needed|date=June 2012}}

This idea spoke to the founding members. The challenge of “The Elephant.” Hence the name, one that conjures theatrical daring, invention and imagination. In that loft the company's seed was planted.

Staff

Elephant Cabinet Members: Brendan Farrell, Tara Norris, Laura Harman, Tom Stanczyk, & Ben Belack

Awards and honors

Best Male Comedy Performance, Jeremy Glazer "Block Nine": LA Weekly Awards, 2010

Best Actor Louis Douglas Jacobs "Anything" Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards, 2008/2009.

Best Production "In Arabia We'd All Be Kings" by Stephen Adly Guirgis LA Drama Critics Circle Awards 2007/2008.

Best Set and Lighting Design, Joel Daavid, "In Arabia We'd All Be Kings" LA Drama Critics Circle Awards 2007/2008.

Voted Favorite Theatre Company to Work With: Backstage West, 2008{{citation needed|date=June 2012}}

Notable Productions

The Elephant Theatre Company presented many world premieres and LA premieres including, Block Nine, The Idea Man, Asleep on a Bicycle, Tooth and Nail, In Arabia We’d All Be Kings, Los Muertos, 7 Redneck Cheerleaders, One Fell Swoop, Never Tell, The Sandstorm (with Operation Truth and Mark Seabrooks), Dearboys War, King of Clubs, The Puppet & Muppet Maiden, Love Bites, Holding Cell and Princess and the Peon in addition to published works and restagings that include, Search and Destroy, Serenading Louie and Sam Shepard's 4-H Club & Red Cross.

Chronology of Plays

ft. Elizabeth Rodriguez (Motherf**cker with a Hat, Orange is the New Black) and Chazz Palminteri (Bronx Tale)

Twilight of Schlomo (LA Premiere, LA Times Critic Pick, With Camisade Theater Company NYC)

The North Plan (West Coast Premiere, Huffington Post's Top 10 LA Productions of the year. )

The 10th Anniversary of Love Bites: 10 Years Together & Still No Ring (world premiere)

Desire, Desire, Desire, ‘Dentiy Crisis and 1-900-Desperate by Christopher Durang

References

1. ^{{cite web |last1=Ng |first1=David |title=Elephant Theatre Co. in Hollywood bids farewell, for now at least |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-elephant-theatre-hollywood-20150907-story.html |website=Los Angeles Times |accessdate=14 December 2018 |date=September 8, 2015}}
2. ^{{cite web |last1=Mitchell |first1=Colin |title=Bitter Lemons - asylum, lillian and elephant stages go dark forever |url=http://socal.bitter-lemons.com/learn/article/2539 |website=socal.bitter-lemons.com |accessdate=14 December 2018}}
3. ^http://losangeles.bitter-lemons.com/2015/03/16/long-standing-multi-award-winning-los-angeles-theater-company-elephant-stages-to-close-up-shop-in-september/#sthash.CFiEkRkB.dpbs|http://losangeles.bitter-lemons.com/2015/03/16/|long-standing-multi-award-winning-los-angeles-theater-company-elephant-stages-to-close-up-shop-in-september/#sthash.CFiEkRkB.dpbs
4. ^{{cite web |title=Elephant On The Move - Departing The Lillian |url=http://www.lasplash.com/publish/Los_Angeles_Entertainment_109/elephant-on-the-move.php |website=Splash Magazines |accessdate=14 December 2018 |location=Los Angeles |language=en}}
5. ^Los Angeles Times , LA Stage Alliance, Backstage west
6. ^https://www.plays411.net/newsite/show/play_info.asp?show_id=4324
7. ^http://www.unorganizedcrimetheplay.com/index.html
8. ^http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-scarborough/100-saints-you-should-kno_b_871601.html
9. ^https://variety.com/2007/legit/reviews/in-arabia-we-d-all-be-kings-1200509580/