Workshop and Ars Nova Reading

How do we to survive family trauma? This documentary verbatim theatre piece explores one family that has had more than its fair share: addiction, rape, neglect, and 12 year old boys getting shot in the head.

Through a very collaborative process creator/director Aubrey Snowden worked with Leah Anderson, Amanda Dolan, Megan Gaffney, Brough Hanson, Judy Molnar, Annie Worden, and Jens Rasmussen to disassemble and reassemble the piece and explore the narrative structure.

The result of those 4 days of work was then presented in public reading at Ars Nova.

VISIBLE FROM FOUR STATES

Jens appears in the first public reading of a powerful new play, written by Barbara Hammond at New Dramatists PlayTime Developmental Lab this past December. 
They don't get much fresher than this!

Visible from Four States by Barbara Hammond

Tuesday, March 4th at 6pm

New Dramatists 424 West 44th Street

A new American play by Barbara Hammond

Directed by Téa Alagic

Featuring: JAY O. SANDERS, CYNTHIA MACE, CHRISTIANNA NELSON, LOU LIBERATORE
 & JENS RASMUSSEN

A small American town wrestles with whether to put a cross or a cellphone tower on its only hilltop --  as the local prison warden's friendship deepens with a young man on death row.  

Visible from Four States sits at the modern crossroads of belief and communication, and asks if an individual can carry the moral burden of a nation.  

Running time: 70 minutes

RSVP required! (212)757-6960 or  newintern@newdramatists.org

This play was written during PlayTime at New Dramatists in December 2013.   PlayTime  is made possible by major project funding from THE TED SNOWDON FOUNDATION, ISOBEL ROBINS KONECKY, THE DJ MCMANUS FOUNDATION, and THE ROBERT E. AND JUDITH O. RUBIN FOUNDATION.

PlayTime Developmental Studio

Clockwise from top left: Barbara Hammond, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Susan Mosakowski, John Walch and Jenny Schwartz

It's been an honor to spend the last two weeks at New Dramatists, an artistic home and creative laboratory for talented, professional playwrights, for the twelfth annual PlayTime Developmental Studio. 

This was my second invitation to participate. The PlayTime Developmental Studio is an in-house retreat for five New Dramatists resident playwrights. Designed to give them the time and space they need to explore, workshop, rethink, and revise in the company of fellow playwrights, artistic collaborators including directors, designers, and actors and New Dramatists staff. Set within the context of their seven-year residencies with New Dramatists, PlayTime offers these writers one of the most extended, intensive developmental processes possible within our year-round artistic program. PlayTime is part of New Dramatists’ commitment to giving its writers more workshop time to experiment and refine without the pressures of production. This year’s playwrights are Barbara Hammond, Tarell Alvin McCraney, Susan Mosakowski, Jenny Schwartz and John Walch.

Time and space to explore, workshop, rethink, revise

Additionally New Dramatists residents Carlos Murillo and Julie Marie Myatt participated as resource playwrights, supporting the developmental process for the five PlayTime playwrights.

The five projects rehearsed on a rotating schedule, with time off for rewrites. Surrounding the rehearsals were group events – meals, yoga classes, collaboration meetings, and daily artistic cross-pollinating tea-times – to foster community and exchange.

It has been absolutely invigorating to watch these plays spring forth! And every artist present; from those who are brand new in town to folks who've been treading the boards for decades was brilliant, warm, and generous. I felt especially lucky to get to work with Barbara Hammond, whose play Norman & Beatrice captivated me years ago, and director Tea Alagic whose work I first encountered at what I consider one of NYC's most important companies - The Women's Project. 

Thank you New Dramatists, one and all! Till next time!

Page 73 Yale Summer Residency

Jens will soon be at Yale with one of his favorite long-time collaborators, director Daniella Topol.

In addition to attending the famous residency dinners, pizza parties, and late-night ice cream treks, he will be part of a company of New York actors and Yale School of Drama students, workshopping Meghan Kennedy’s new play, The Wholehearted.

Meghan is the winner of the 2012 David Calicchio Emerging American Playwright Prize for her play Light, and her play Too Much, Too Much, Too Many will be produced by the Roundabout this Fall.

The Page 73 summer residency will also support the work by Nick Gandiello, Caroline V. McGraw, and Mfoniso Udofia and is sure to be an exciting time of intense work and creative cross-pollination.

The week culminates on Saturday August 18th with readings.

Two Intensive New Play Development Programs

New plays are the lifeblood of American theatre, and Jens is thrilled to be participating in programs at both New Dramatists and terraNOVA.

Read on to learn more about these fabulous companies and their programs.

PLAYTIME DEVELOPMENTAL STUDIO
New Dramatists presents the 10th annual PlayTime, a 2-week developmental lab for five plays-in-progress designed to give playwrights the time and space needed to explore, workshop, rethink, and revise ambitious new work in a collaborative company of directors, actors, other writers and New Dramatists staff. PlayTime offers our writers one of the most extended, intensive developmental processes available within our year-round artistic programming. This year’s writers are Tanya Barfield, Marcus Gardley, Rob Handel, Dan LeFranc, and Chiori Miyagawa.

PlayTime will begin with two days of play readings and preparatory discussion between the five playwrights, their collaborators, and ND’s artistic staff, including resource playwright Sharon Bridgforth. A company of actors will join the lab, and the five projects will rehearse on a rotating schedule, with time off for rewrites. Surrounding the rehearsals, there will be group events – meals, yoga classes, collaboration meetings, and tea-time – to foster collaboration and exchange.

The Projects:

Untitled New Play by Tanya Barfield
directed by GT Upchurch

The House that will not Stand by Marcus Gardley
directed by Patricia Mcgregor

Untitled New Play by Rob Handel
directed by May Adrales

Untitled New Play by Dan LeFranc
Directed by Kip Fagan

I came to look for you on Tuesday; I'll come back again in two days(working title)
by Chiori Miyagawa
directed by Alice Reagan

Final presentations will be held December 15 through December 17. Some readings may be open to the public. Please call for the schedule of readings, as reservations will be required.


terraNOVA Collective's GROUNDBREAKERS is an annual developmental playwrighting lab, in which 6 playwrights receive the unique opportunity to work on a specific project with the goal of creating a completed draft. Each playwright brings in their play 3 times over 18 weeks for a round-table reading with professional actors, receiving feedback from the Groundbreakers playwrights group and special guests, along with the artistic staff of terraNOVA Collective. terraNOVA assembles a diverse group devoted to creating theatrical, original, innovative, socially relevant new work for the stage and welcomes submissions of new plays and solo shows in various stages of development that will benefit from collective feedback and further terraNOVA Collective's artistic mission. They are especially interested in playwrights who, in addition to working on their own play, have an interest in attending weekly workshops to give other playwrights in the group feedback.

You can meet the 2012 Groundbreaker playwrights here: http://www.terranovacollective.org/2012-season.html

Nightlands Workshop at New Georges

Jens was delighted to join fellow Acclaim Award winner Kelly Hutchinson, Karen Kandel, Hubert Pont du-Jour, along with the rest of the company and Director Tamilla Woodard to work on Sylvan Oswald’s latest play.

The play has interesting challenges for actors and audience, including men in the company playing both male and female roles without camp, juxtaposed with intensely real relationships, set against the starkly abstracted world of Philadelphia in the race charged 60’s.

I’ll be in Cincinnati doing Rajiv Joseph’s Gruesome Playground Injuries during the Off-Broadway Premiere, so I’ll have to miss it, but I wish everyone well!