LENOX, MA (June 25, 2024)— WAM Theatre is proud to announce an incredible ensemble of performers and designers who are collaborating to create the site-specific performance fragments of Outside. This special, one-time-only performance, conceived and directed by new Artistic Director Genée Coreno, is a celebration of WAM’s 15th Anniversary. It will be performed at The Mount (Edith Wharton’s Home) in Lenox on August 18, 2024. Tickets are on sale now.
An international cohort of multi-disciplinary, creative artists is coalescing around Genée Coreno’s narrative depicting a family fractured by climate catastrophe. Together, the ensemble is charting a course to salvage the essential hope required as we navigate our transformed future. The creative team behind the latest iteration of fragments of Outside merges New York City-based artists from the original production with Berkshires-based artists, infusing this site-specific rendition with a fresh perspective.
“The creative team of fragments of Outside, from the performers to designers, are dynamic, insightful, and collaborative artists who are working across-disciplines to maximize the transformative power of theatre,” says Coreno. “Their gentle and sophisticated approach to space, lighting, sound, choreography, puppetry, space and material will enchant and transport, highlighting the performer in space and time as we follow them on their journey to Paradise.”
The Creative Team includes: Malaysian musician Masatora Goya (2022 American Prize in Instrumental Chamber Music) who is providing original compositions; award-winning North Adams-based puppeteer David Lane (founder of the annual Berkshire Lantern Walk whose work was recently seen at Mass MoCA); Architectural Designer Emily Greco (who collaborated with Coreno on the previous iteration of Outside, as well as Coreno’s film Madge Love); Costarican scenic artist and costume designer Malory R. Grillo (recently graduated with an MFA in Costume Design from UMass Amherst) and Lighting Designer and Technician Jemma Kepner (returning to The Mount after working on Nightwood: A Fantastical Journey Through Sound & Light earlier in this year).
“I’m honored to share in this experience with so many wonderful artists,” said Scenic Designer Emily Greco, who is particularly interested in creating pieces inspired by the physical landscape of The Mount. “It’s not everyday one has the opportunity to co-create with such a sublime landscape.”
The performing ensemble bring together diverse backgrounds of physical theater training and practices with a shared love for collaborative creation: Hussein Smko (a Kurdish dancer/choreographer based in New York City, Artistic Director of Project Tag who recently debuted at The Joyce Theatre) will be continuing the development of Ashbury/Salvor the Wolf, a dual role he originated in the first iteration of Outside. He is joined by actor, deviser, and movement artist Lia Bonfilio, (company member of Third Rail Project), and actor and immersive performance aficionado Nicole Orabona, (last seen on WAM stages in the Fresh Takes Reading of The New Galileos).
“As a deviser I love when the environment is rich enough to be another character in the play,” explains Bonfilio while recently walking around The Mount. “I’m so excited to have the opportunity to animate this magical place. It lends itself very well to the kind of dream-like physical storytelling that Genée creates.”
Two accomplished devised/physical theater performers round out the performing ensemble in the roles of Soothsayers. Originally from Germany, Louise Heller is a classically trained actor and writer (Gertrude in Hamlet at Hudson Theatre Works) now based in the Berkshires. TAMIR is an actor and dancer. Last seen on WAM stages in the Fresh Takes Reading of Escaped Alone, she is perhaps best known in New England for her solo performances including: In the Land of Israel, I Belong Elsewhere and Now.
“I have long loved devised theater for its uniquely communal spirit, the way in which creative artists say yes to each other in their minds, bodies, and souls to create something new,” said Heller. “When I first auditioned for Genée, I immediately felt that those yeses would be easy, delightful, heartfelt, and productive under her direction.”
For more information about the 2024 Season and WAM Theatre’s programs, events, and artists, please visit wamtheatre.com
AT A GLANCE:
Fragments of Outside
A special one-night-only 15th Anniversary benefit performance
Written & directed by Genée Coreno
Sunday, August 18th, 2024
at The Mount, Edith Wharton’s Home
2 Plunkett St, Lenox, MA
Performance: 4:00 PM-5:00 PM
Terrace Cocktail Party: 5:00 PM-7:00 PM
Tickets:
Gold ($500): Terrace Cocktail Party, Performance, Event Gift Bag, and Special Invitation to an Open Rehearsal
Silver ($250): Terrace Cocktail Party, Performance, and Special Invitation to an Open Rehearsal
Bronze ($100): Performance Only Ticket
*All ticket levels include specialty drinks from Higher Bar
Tickets are on sale at: www.wamtheatre.com/outside/
Limited availability to this one-time only event. Ape Truck
More about the Creative Team →
WAM SUPPORT
WAM Theatre’s 15th Anniversary Benefit Performance of Fragments of Outside is supported by many individuals and foundations including: Baystate Financial, Berkshire Bank, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Brabson Family Foundation, Brava/Ombra, Doctor Sax House, The Feigenbaum Foundation, GKV Foundation, Lee Bank Foundation, the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC), Scarlet Sock Foundation, and WomenArts. WAM’s season sponsors include Adams Community Bank, Blue Q., Berkshire Roots, Black Writers Read, Blue Spark Financial, Carolyn Butler, Greylock Federal Credit Union, Garden Gables Inn, Guidos Fresh Marketplace, Handful Photography, Mill Town Foundation, Inc., Higher Bar, Health Professional Coaching, Heller & Robbins Attorneys at Law, Interprint, Onyx Specialty Papers, Outpost Productions, RB Design Co., T Square Design Studio, a. von schlegell & co, and the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts. With additional support from Local Cultural Council Grants from the Dalton Cultural Council, Lee Cultural Council, Lenox Cultural Council, Pittsfield Cultural Council, Northern Berkshire Cultural Council, Otis Cultural Council, Sandisfield Cultural Council, and Washington Cultural Council. WAM was also the recipient of recent support from the New England Foundation for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts, and U.S. Small Business Administration’s Shuttered Venue Operators Grant.
ABOUT THE MOUNT
The Mount is a National Historic Landmark and cultural center that interprets the intellectual, artistic, and humanitarian legacy of Edith Wharton (1862-1937). Wharton wrote over 40 books in 40 years, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Age of Innocence.
The Mount is the literary hub of the Berkshires and hosts lectures and panels by national authors and scholars both on-site and online. Seasonal cultural offerings on property include an annual outdoor sculpture show, music, and children’s programming. The gardens and grounds are open free to the public daily May 11 through Dec 31. For more information, visit: EdithWharton.org.
ABOUT WAM THEATRE
WAM Theatre is a professional theatre company based in Berkshire County, MA, that operates at the intersection of arts and activism. Now celebrating its 15th Anniversary Season, WAM creates theatre for gender equity and has a vision of theatre as philanthropy. In fulfillment of its philanthropic mission, WAM donates a portion of the proceeds from their Mainstage productions to carefully selected recipients. Since WAM’s founding in 2010, they have donated more than $100,000 to 26 local and global organizations taking action for gender equity in areas such as girls education, reproductive justice, sexual trafficking awareness, midwife training, and more. WAM Theatre has been widely recognized for having a positive impact on cultural and community development in the region. WAM is the recipient of the Creative Economy Standout Berkshire Trendsetter Award and previously, was named Outstanding Philanthropy Corporation of the Year by the Western MA Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. For more information, visit www.wamtheatre.com