Austin Critics Table nominates “The Merchant of Venice” for Best Production and Best Director
The Austin Critics Table released its nominations for 2018-2019, including nominations for The Merchant of Venice in the categories of Best Production and Best Direction. You can read the full list of nominees here. Winners will be announced on June 3rd.
FEB 29 2019
Annie Baker and BrandEn Jacob-Jenkins joining UT Austin faculty.
The work being done at UT is diverse, audacious, and rigorous. I’m honored to be part of an MFA program that continues to attract this caliber of faculty.
“ The University of Texas at Austin has announced Annie Baker and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins as incoming faculty of their College of Fine Arts. The two will join UT’s MFA playwriting program, which aims to teach craft and skill with a focus on experimentation.
“Annie and Branden are reinventing what theatre can be and say,” KJ Sanchez, head of the school’s playwriting and directing program, said in a statement. “Their work brings a younger audience to the theatre, and they’re exactly the right artists for talking about our current culture, race relations, generational questions, and what it means to be human today.”
Nov 16 2018
The Austin-American Statesman raves about “The Merchant of Venice”
“May be the best Shakespeare production I have ever seen and certainly the most contemporary.” The Austin-American Statesman raves about The Merchant of Venice. The review notes the production transforms Shakespeare’s text from, “a painful reminder of historical stereotypes into an even more painful, desperately urgent exposé of our contemporary prejudices.”
Dec 26 2018
The Austin-American Statesman names “The Merchant of Venice” one of the top 10 productions of 2018
“Director Adam L. Sussman’s decision to recast the romantic narratives of the play as a satire of reality television further contrasted the vapidity of these stories with the agony of Shylock’s experience. This was the best production of a Shakespeare play that I have ever seen.
Feb 27, 2018
Broadway World chronicles our first rehearsal for “Milton, MI”
“The voice belongs to Adam Sussman, a charming mix of zeal and intuition …As the director of the company assembled around him, Adam guides the room in a serene, revitalizing warmup. "Shake off the whole day you just had." One could only imagine the variety of "days" being referred to, as each student seems liable to have just accomplished a day packed with infinite classes and internships and study groups and lunches and jobs. The vibrancy of the group is amusingly evident as they now are encouraged to "let out an obnoxious burbling noise" and shake their limbs to their hearts content. Laughing, Adam admits, "I know that we're loosening up so we can sit at tables, but..." Everyone laughs. It's true…”