A play is a text but also a performance. Dance is a discipline but also a communication. To be truly understood, both must be experienced live.
For its 2015-16 season, the Performing Arts Department (PAD) in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis will present classic comedy and a beloved musical as well as contemporary drama and original works by Washington University faculty and students.
“This year’s season is marked by its diversity,” said Mark Rollins, chair of the PAD. “No show is like the next, giving us the opportunity to showcase the artistic and intellectual diversity of our students and faculty. In the end, what really unites these eight productions is the talent and professionalism of our passionate and dedicated student artists.”
The season will begin Friday and Saturday, Sept. 25 and 26, with the A.E. Hotchner Playwriting Festival. The annual event, named in honor of alumnus A.E. Hotchner (AB, JD), will feature world premier staged readings of three new plays by Washington University students: “We the Congressman” by recent graduate Katie Goldston; “Library Love Story” by sophomore Rachel Wilson; and “The Divine Buoyancy of Being” by Cary J. Simowitz, a 2013 alumnus now enrolled in the School of Law.
The season will continue Oct. 9-18 with “Company,” Stephen Sondheim’s groundbreaking examination of contemporary marriage and adult relationships, followed Nov. 13-22 by “The Misanthrope,” Moliere’s immortal comedy-of-manners. “Shadows & Light,” the 2015 Washington University Dance Theatre concert, will run Dec. 4-6.
The 2016 spring semester will begin Feb. 26-March 6 with George Brant’s “Elephant’s Graveyard,” which recounts the tragic true story of a traveling circus in the American South. The Slaughter Project — the PAD’s resident dance company, led by Cecil Slaughter, professor of practice in dance — will present “Caravan,” its 2016 concert, March 25 and 26. Next up will be “Love and Information” by Caryl Churchill, one of Britain’s most esteemed contemporary playwrights, which runs April 1-10.
Concluding the season, April 15-17, will be “Young Choreographers Showcase.” The biennial concert features original works created and performed by Washington University students.
The A.E. Hotchner Playwriting Festival is free and open to the public. Tickets to The Slaughter Project are $20, or $15 for children, seniors, faculty and staff; and $10 for Washington University students.
All other events are $15, or $10 for students, seniors, faculty and staff. Subscriptions to three or more events are available for $12 per show. All events take place in Mallinckrodt Center, 6445 Forsyth Ave.
For more information, call the Edison Theatre Box Office at 314-935-6543 or visit https://pad.artsci.wustl.edu/events.
Performing Arts Department 2015-16 schedule
Sept. 25-26
A.E. Hotchner Playwriting Festival
“We the Congressman” by Katie Goldston (Sept. 25)
“Library Love Story” by Rachel Wilson (Sept. 26)
“The Divine Buoyancy of Being” by Cary J. Simowitz (Sept. 26)
A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre
Oct. 9-18
“Company”
Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by George Furth
Directed by Annamaria Pileggi
Edison Theatre
Nov. 13-22
“The Misanthrope”
By Molière. Translated into English verse by Richard Wilbur
Directed by Pannill Camp
A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre
Dec. 4-6
Washington University Dance Theatre: Shadows & Light
Artistic direction by David Marchant
Edison Theatre
Feb. 26-March 6, 2016
“Elephant’s Graveyard”
Directed by Jeffrey Matthews
Edison Theatre
March 25-26
The Slaughter Project: Caravan
Artistic direction by Cecil Slaughter
Edison Theatre
April 1-10
“Love and Information”
By Caryl Churchill
A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre
April 15-17
Young Choreographer’s Showcase
Artistic Direction by Christine Knoblauch-O’Neal
Annelise Mertz Dance Studio