| . | 11/17/2004
THE PUBLIC THEATER NAMES OSKAR EUSTIS AS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
By: Staff Writer
As the Public Theater Celebrates 50th Anniversary Year, Eustis Will Carry On Traditions of New Work, Classics and Shakespeare
THE PUBLIC THEATER ANNOUNCES OPERATING PARTNERSHIP WITH NEW YORK UNIVERSITY
Eustis Will Join Tisch School of the Arts Faculty as Arts Professor, Teaching At Both NYU and Public Theater; Public Theater
Will Advise, Mentor, and Present Emerging NYU Playwrights.
November 17, 2004 – New York, NY – Gail Merrifield Papp and Kenneth B. Lerer, Co-Chairs of The Public Theater’s search committee, today announced on behalf of the Board of Directors of the Public Theater that Oskar Eustis has been named The Public’s new Artistic Director. Eustis, who for the past ten years has been the Artistic Director of the Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, RI, and is Chair of the Brown University/Trinity Consortium will take on the responsibilities of Producer George C. Wolfe, who this year announced his intention to step down after eleven years at The Public. Mr. Eustis will begin the transition to his new post at The Public effective January 2005, consistent with his fulfillment of responsibilities to the Trinity Repertory Company, and become full-time at The Public beginning spring 2005.
The announcement of Mr. Eustis’ appointment comes as The Public Theater is about to embark on a year-long celebration of its 50th Anniversary. Established by Joseph Papp, The Public Theater in the last half century has become the nation’s premier non-profit theatrical institution through its work developing new plays, promoting talented new artists, developing varied audiences for both new work and classics, and for its annual summer presentations of Free Shakespeare in Central Park.
“We are delighted that Oskar Eustis will be joining The Public Theater,” said Kenneth Lerer, Chairman of the Board of The Public Theater. “His passion for the theater is profound and his commitment to new voices and the classics unmatched. He brings to The Public an outstanding track record of achievement, both artistically and financially, and will be a perfect partner with Mara Manus, the theater’s executive director. Oskar is fully committed to Joseph Papp’s mission to bring theater to all New York audiences and our New York University partnership will help advance that cause. Lastly, the Public Theater owes George C. Wolfe an enormous thank you for his decade of work carrying on Joseph Papp's legacy with great and lasting success. Though George will be moving on to new endeavors, we could not be more pleased that he will continue to direct at The Public and remain a member of the Board.”
Gail Merrifield Papp stated, "Oskar Eustis is absolutely the ideal person to lead The Public Theater as it begins its 50th anniversary. He's a brilliant champion of theater artists and diversity, and a populist dedicated to high artistic standards. He's going to be an exciting torchbearer for The Public Theater."
The Public Theater also announced today a major new operating partnership with New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts that will include unprecedented cooperation between the two New York institutions. Mr. Eustis will become a full-time Arts Professor on the faculty at the Tisch School, jointly with the Rita and Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing and the Department of Art and Public Policy, effective fall 2005. In this role, Mr. Eustis will work with the Tisch School to advise, mentor and present emerging playwrights as well as teach collaborative courses for advanced theater artists, including a theatrical performance class for NYU students at The Public Theater. The collaboration between The Public and NYU will serve as a training model and source of continual renewal for both the professional theater world and the university.
In accepting the position of Artistic Director, Mr. Eustis said, “The Public Theater is the most important theater in America, and has been for fifty years. I first encountered The Public in 1975 when I was 17 years old, after having moved to New York to study at NYU. I lived around the corner on Great Jones, and the work I saw at The Public changed my life.
Eustis continued, “I am honored and humbled to follow Joseph Papp, JoAnne Akalaitis and George C. Wolfe in leading this extraordinary institution, and I am looking forward to working with Mara Manus to continue the core values that Joe and George laid down. The Public is essential because it embodies the best in the American democratic cultural tradition. It’s commitment to placing boundary-breaking new work next to the work of Shakespeare and letting them talk to each other is tremendously important. The Public's determination to create a radically inclusive theaterical center, for both artists and audiences, has changed the face of the American theater. I want to thank the Board for asking me to take on this task; it's the greatest challenge and opportunity of my life.”
“It’s never an easy decision to leave a place you love as much as I love The Public Theater, but I am confident that Oskar will carry on The Public’s great traditions and shape exciting new directions for artists, audiences and the rest of The Public’s community,” said George C. Wolfe. “I know that in addition to bringing his tremendous talent and expertise to his role as Artistic Director, Oskar is also dedicated to bringing new insights to The Public’s efforts to reach out to audiences across New York -- uptown, downtown, and across every borough.”
“We are thrilled with the addition of Oskar Eustis to our faculty not only because he is an outstanding director, dramaturg and artistic director, but also because the opportunities for our two institutions to benefit one another are limitless,” said Mary Schmidt Campbell, Dean of the Tisch School of the Arts and a member of the Board of Trustees of The Public Theater. “When you combine an important theater talent like Mr. Eustis with the Tisch School’s gifted writers and actors, the curricular and extra-curricular opportunities to incubate new creative talent are enormous.”
Mr. Eustis has worked as a director, dramaturg, and artistic director for theaters around the world, including the Eureka Theatre Company in San Francisco, where he was resident director and dramaturg from 1981 through 1986 and Artistic Director until 1989, when he moved to the Mark Taper Forum as Associate Artistic Director. He was also an Associate Professor of Theater at UCLA's School of Film, Television and Theatre.
As a director and producer, Eustis has been dedicated to developing new plays and working with a rich variety of artists, many of whom are affiliated with The Public Theater. He commissioned Tony Kushner's ANGELS IN AMERICA at the Eureka Theatre Company in San Francisco and directed its world premiere at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, and also commissioned Emily Mann's EXECUTION OF JUSTICE and went on to direct its world premiere at the Actors Theatre of Louisville. He also directed the world premieres of THE LONG CHRISTMAS RIDE HOME (Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Production) and RUBY SUNRISE. Eustis has also worked with a wide range of artists, including Suzan-Lori Parks, David Henry Hwang, Craig Lucas, Eduard Machado, Paula Vogel, Brian Kulick, Anna Deavere Smith, and Joe Mantello.
The extensive search process was led by a committee of Public Theater board members, including Gail Merrifield Papp, Secretary of The Public Theater, Kenneth Lerer, Chairman of the Board of The Public Theater, Ken Auletta, Mary Schmidt Campbell, Gordon Davis, Laura Pels, Liev Schreiber, and Warren Spector. They were assisted by Stephen Albert and Thomas Hall, partners in AlbertHall &Associates, the premier executive search firm in the theater field.
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The Public Theater: A Snapshot
ARTISTIC STRENGTH
• Each year, over 250,000 people attend Public Theater-related productions and events at six downtown stages, including Joe’s Pub, and Shakespeare in Central Park and Joe’s Pub in the Park.
• Public Theater productions have collectively won:
¬ 38 Tony Awards,
¬ 135 Obies,
¬ 37 Drama Desk Awards,
¬ 18 Lucille Lortel Awards, and
¬ 4 Pulitzer Prizes.
• The Public has brought 49 shows to Broadway: STICKS AND BONES; THAT CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON; A CHORUS LINE; THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE; THE TEMPEST; BRING IN ’DA NOISE, BRING IN ’DA FUNK; ON THE TOWN; THE RIDE DOWN MT. MORGAN; ELAINE STRITCH AT LIBERTY, TOPDOG/UNDERDOG; TAKE ME OUT; and CAROLINE, OR CHANGE, to name a few.
• In summer 2005, Shakespeare in Central Park will return to two productions per season.
• The current season at The Public includes:
¬ A sold-out run of RICHARD III, directed by Peter DuBois, which featured Peter Dinklage.
¬ The world premiere of DIRTY TRICKS, directed by Margaret Whitton, written by John Jeter, which featured two-time Tony award-winner Judith Ivey.
¬ THE LAST DAYS OF JUDAS ISCARIOT, a new play by Stephen Adly Guirgis, directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman and starring Sam Rockwell and Eric Bogosian. A co-production of LAByrinth Theater Company and The Public Theater.
¬ The American premiere of Jean-Claude Carrière’s THE CONTROVERSY OF VALLADOLID, directed by David Jones, with the English translation by Richard Nelson.
¬ The world premiere of Neil LaBute’s THIS IS HOW IT GOES, directed by George C. Wolfe.
FINANCIAL STRENGTH
• Balanced budget for fiscal 2004
• The Public Theater’s endowment is currently $17.4 million, including a $1 million reinvestment in fiscal 2004.
• Annual attendance at Public Theater productions rose to 260,000 in fiscal 2004, 35% over the previous year
• The Public Theater’s membership renewal rate in FY 2004 was 59%, up 7% from the previous season. So far in FY 2005, the renewal rate is 65%, the highest renewal rate on record for The Public Theater. We expect this number to increase as the season progresses.
• For fiscal 2004, individual giving increased 103% over the previous year.
• Summer 2004 featured the inaugural season of Joe’s Pub in the Park, a critical and financial success, with attendance of 12,000 people.
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