Directorial Projects Filter by Title filter by CATEGORY Filter by PLAYWRIGHT INDEPENDENT THEATRE Some of my favorite projects in New York's indie theatre spaces THE TEMPEST Wm. Shakespeare MORE AFTER THE CHAIRS David Koteles MORE MY FIRST LADY David Koteles MORE THE BOYCOTT Kathryn Blume MORE POST-MOD ERN LIVING Richard Sheinmel MORE LAVENDER SONGS Jeremy Lawrence MORE OTHER VENUES POST-LIU VERMONT THEATRE CO THEATRE ASKEW ORIGINAL WORK

GALLERY LAVENDER SONGS Video Images Watch LAVENDER SONGS Add a Title Jeremy Lawrence a beautifully realized evocation of a club in Germany in the ‘30s ... a thrilling reminder of the power and strength of cabaret at its best.” Out of this minimal landscape, director Jason Jacobs creates a vibrant, small-scale panorama with his precise staging. Lawrence glides around, often stands still totally, but remains mesmerizing due to Jacobs’ command of visual technique." 2008 Bistro Award Winner! Originally produced in 2008 and revised in 2016 in response to the Trump ascendency, this cabaret theatre piece had an extended run at Pangea. Featuring songs originally written and performed by queer aertists in Weimar-era Berlin (with new English lyrics by Jeremy), the piece was based on an evening created by Alan Lareau for the U.S. Holocaust Museum om Washington DC. An evening of Jewishly inflected, queer songs brings Weimar Germany back to life with humor and music." Jeremy Lawrence PANGEA LAVENDER SONGS LAVENDER SONGS 2008 Bistro Award Winner! Originally produced in 2008 and revised in 2016 in response to the Trump ascendency, this cabaret theatre piece had an extended run at Pangea. Featuring songs originally written and performed by queer aertists in Weimar-era Berlin (with new English lyrics by Jeremy), the piece was based on an evening created by Alan Lareau for the U.S. Holocaust Museum om Washington DC. Out of this minimal landscape, director Jason Jacobs creates a vibrant, small-scale panorama with his precise staging. Lawrence glides around, often stands still totally, but remains mesmerizing due to Jacobs’ command of visual technique." a beautifully realized evocation of a club in Germany in the ‘30s ... a thrilling reminder of the power and strength of cabaret at its best.” NitelifeExchange.com An evening of Jewishly inflected, queer songs brings Weimar Germany back to life with humor and music." Tablet a beautifully realized evocation of a club in Germany in the ‘30s ... a thrilling reminder of the power and strength of cabaret at its best.” NitelifeExchange.com Jeremy Lawrence PANGEA LAVENDER SONGS LAVENDER SONGS 2008 Bistro Award Winner! Originally produced in 2008 and revised in 2016 in response to the Trump ascendency, this cabaret theatre piece had an extended run at Pangea. Featuring songs originally written and performed by queer aertists in Weimar-era Berlin (with new English lyrics by Jeremy), the piece was based on an evening created by Alan Lareau for the U.S. Holocaust Museum om Washington DC. Out of this minimal landscape, director Jason Jacobs creates a vibrant, small-scale panorama with his precise staging. Lawrence glides around, often stands still totally, but remains mesmerizing due to Jacobs’ command of visual technique." An evening of Jewishly inflected, queer songs brings Weimar Germany back to life with humor and music." Tablet

MY MISSION in teaching is to stimulate, challenge, and support students to realize their potential as artists, citizens, and humans. Their minds and hearts are the most critical resources we have, and I pursue the following approaches to foster their growth: TO EMPOWER students to recognize their potency as artists and citizens, I ask questions about leadership, citizenship, and the impact of their work. Whether in public high schools or private universities, I encourage young people to engage with the wider world and recognize the importance of cultivating their voices. I promote critical thinking, facilitate brave conversations about equality and diversity, and spotlight the many ways theatre can promote social justice. My experience of coming out before LGBT people had mainstream acceptance forged my connection to anyone facing oppression and my commitment to oppose racism, I bring these values to everything I do as an educator and an artist. TO FOSTER students’ ownership of their artistic process and responsibility to their collaborators and audience, I approach teaching as an exchange between creative artists. I believe we all bring unique ideas and experience into the room, and I value the growth that emerges from respectful exchanges. I create a safe working space where each student’s creative ideas are valued and welcomed. My approach to collaboration comes from training with Anne Bogart and Tina Landau; I use the Viewpoints work to build ensemble, heighten awareness to the present moment, and establish a working vocabulary for any project. I lead students through composition processes that challenge them to create the theatrical worlds for each project. TO NURTURE artistry and foster discipline and skills, I engage students in challenging projects which also stimulate my own growth as an artist. Whether through full productions or classroom activities/project-based learning, I create experiences for active learning. I ask a lot of questions, build trust, and encourage risk-taking. I strive to attend to each student's personal objectives: whether honing in on specific skills, habits, or approaches to the process. I hold students to high standards in their written work and research, and maintain accountability for deadlines and responsibilities to partners, groups, and themselves. TO BUILD analytical skills and historical knowledge, I ask students to conduct research and explore the background of plays, playwrights, and theatrical movements. I create assignments to activate academic research and apply it in real-world contexts. I love the classics and approach them as living texts that invite interpretation and adaptation. I believe that students will be empowered by a solid grasp of dramatic literature, and an understanding of how social, economic, and political forces influence theatre and theatre-makers. TO ENCOURAGE students’ introspection about themselves and their work, I ask students the same questions I ask myself and my collaborators when approaching a project: Why have I chosen this project? Why do I need to work on this play? What is my point of view? What do I want to say? Who is my audience and how do I want to impact them? By guiding students to connect to their own purpose and explore the essence of their creativity, I urge them to make choices that align with their own values and beliefs. DIRECTING PHILOSOPHY ROUNDABOUT THEATRE COMPANY MORNINGSIDE JKO COMMENCEMENT SPEECH

6ac27a2e-d806-4fdd-a054-d104fb346cdc BALD DIVA! THEATRE ASKEW GALLERY

fc5a951b-14ba-42b8-a2de-20b2751b17d3 VERMONT STAGE COMPANY Previous Item Next Item AS YOU LIKE IT

AFTER THE CHAIRS GALLERY AFTER THE CHAIRS Video Images Fresh Fruit Awards Jason accepts the Fresh Fruit Award for Best Director, AFTER THE CHAIRS

MACHINAL

Directorial Projects Filter by Title filter by CATEGORY Filter by PLAYWRIGHT ORIGINAL WORK AFTER THE CHAIRS David Koteles MORE UNCLE TOM'S CABIN Jason Jacobs, Tome' Cousin, and Douglas Levine. MORE ANOTHER HORATIO ALGER STORY Jason Jacobs MORE VANYA VERMONT Chekhov, Kathryn Blume MORE BALD DIVA! David Koteles and Jason Jacobs MORE LAVENDER SONGS Jeremy Lawrence MORE MISS BLANCHE TELLS IT ALL Jason Jacobs: and Matthew C Pritchard MORE OTHER VENUES POST-LIU VERMONT THEATRE CO THEATRE ASKEW INDEPENDENT THEATRE

THEATRE ASKEW In 2004, I co-founded Theatre Askew to explore how to create "queer theatre" in New York in the 21st century. The company called for a radical new approach to the representation of "queerness" defining queerness as a metaphor for ALL those who stand outside of mainstream, consumerist models. Theatre Askew would make ever-evolving programming choices and create a diverse body of work of social impact and spiritual consequence that reflects the complexity of our experience. Askew's early productions emphasized adaptation and the ways in which a queer perspective can illuminate classic texts. I co-created Bald Diva! an original absurdist farce inspired by Ionesco's The Bald Soprano. Directing The Tempest, I explored the Radical Faerie movement and interpreted Shakespeare's play as an expression of the healing capacity of the "gay spirit." Our episodic satire I, Claudius Live was a parody of the BBC series, irreverently adapted to address politics of the Bush II presidency, and told from the point of view of a disabled heterosexual character who could never be a "real" man by the standards of Roman culture. Our 2007 production of i google myself explored the social and emotional impact of the internet, and our first fully original play. Fundamental to Askew's mission is the inclusion of LGBTQA youth as significant members and the future leaders of the community. In 2005, I co-founded the Theatre Askew Youth Performance Experience (TAYPE) to provide a creative forum to develop and empower the voices of this population. TAYPE is an arts skills program that encourages youth to build community, acquire responsibility, and experience leadership, teamwork, and the personal rewards of achievement – within the process of creating, producing, and performing theatre. In addition to theatrical skills, the program introduces youth to the New York theatre world, including working theatre artists who can inspire, guide, and serve as role models, and point them towards internships and opportunities beyond our projects. Theatre Askew has garnered positive notices from The New York Times, The Village Voice, Time Out New York as well as other media outlets; we have been nominated twice for the GLAAD media award, listed on Theatermania's best-of-the year lists, and in 2007 was named on NYTheatre.com's People of the Year list. In 2011, I left Theatre Askew in order to concentrate on my freelance work as a director, writer, and teaching artist. THEATRE ASKEW i google myself is queer in the best sense of the word: self-consciously outside of the mainstream, looking in with intelligence and wit." Village Voice an insightful and entertaining window into our society's preoccupation with fame and recognition, and how Internet innovations like blogs and online chats promote one's quest to be known, even as the same technology can lead to a debilitating isolation that increases the need for connection." OffOff Online I GOOGLE MYSELF Three men. Same name. Who will be the first hit? GALLERY by Jason Schafer Stylishly directed by Jason Jacobs, who co-conceived the project with dramaturg Jamee Freedus, the show is flawlessly paced and brought to vivid life by the talented ensemble cast." TheaterMania Director Jason Jacobs... keeps the evening bouncing along and guides the performers well through the play's final, ironic moments." Backstage BALD DIVA! Queer-Eyed boys get an absurdist makeover a la Eugene Ionesco in this tragic spectacle of la vie Chelsea, featuring sizzling firemen, probing detectives, saucy maids, steamroom escapades, provocative party games, low-rent musical numbers on fabulous cardboard sets, piping-hot celebrity dish, the latest fashion trends and beauty secrets, narrow escapes of reality, death-defying mental acrobatics and more Divas than you can shake your stick at! GALLERY By David Koteles THEATRE ASKEW YOUTH EXPERIENCE (TAYPE) GALLERY THE TEMPEST GALLERY by Shakespeare Theatre Askew's politicized deconstruction of everyone's favorite BBC neoclassic is clearly destined for some legendary status of its own." Village Voice It is delicious fun watching evil people do awful things to one another. But I, Claudius Live is funner than fun...It is staged broadly and briskly like a farce, yet has been laced with thought-provoking political parallels to give us food for thought when we aren't laughing our heads off." Time Out New York When in Rome, do as the Romans do. When in the East Village in a play about Rome, do it with gays, trannies and as little clothing as possible - especially when it’s I, Claudius Live!, a six-part parody of the epic 1976 BBC miniseries from Theatre Askew" HX Magazine I, CLAUDIUS LIVE GALLERY an insightful and entertaining window into our society's preoccupation with fame and recognition, and how Internet innovations like blogs and online chats promote one's quest to be known, even as the same technology can lead to a debilitating isolation that increases the need for connection." OffOff Online i google myself is queer in the best sense of the word: self-consciously outside of the mainstream, looking in with intelligence and wit." Village Voice I GOOGLE MYSELF Three men. Same name. Who will be the first hit? GALLERY by Jason Schafer Stylishly directed by Jason Jacobs, who co-conceived the project with dramaturg Jamee Freedus, the show is flawlessly paced and brought to vivid life by the talented ensemble cast." TheaterMania Director Jason Jacobs... keeps the evening bouncing along and guides the performers well through the play's final, ironic moments." Backstage BALD DIVA! Queer-Eyed boys get an absurdist makeover a la Eugene Ionesco in this tragic spectacle of la vie Chelsea, featuring sizzling firemen, probing detectives, saucy maids, steamroom escapades, provocative party games, low-rent musical numbers on fabulous cardboard sets, piping-hot celebrity dish, the latest fashion trends and beauty secrets, narrow escapes of reality, death-defying mental acrobatics and more Divas than you can shake your stick at! GALLERY By David Koteles THEATRE ASKEW YOUTH EXPERIENCE (TAYPE) GALLERY: Watch a story-telling exercise by the kids of TAYPE. THE TEMPEST GALLERY by Shakespeare Theatre Askew's politicized deconstruction of everyone's favorite BBC neoclassic is clearly destined for some legendary status of its own." Village Voice When in Rome, do as the Romans do. When in the East Village in a play about Rome, do it with gays, trannies and as little clothing as possible - especially when it’s I, Claudius Live!, a six-part parody of the epic 1976 BBC miniseries from Theatre Askew" HX Magazine It is delicious fun watching evil people do awful things to one another. But I, Claudius Live is funner than fun...It is staged broadly and briskly like a farce, yet has been laced with thought-provoking political parallels to give us food for thought when we aren't laughing our heads off." Time Out New York I, CLAUDIUS LIVE GALLERY xxxORIGINAL WORK xxxINDIE THEATRE xxxPOST THEATRE CO xxxVERMONT STAGE CO xxxTHEATRE ASKEW More

Directorial Projects Filter by Title filter by CATEGORY Filter by PLAYWRIGHT POST THEATRE COMPANY: LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY CABA RET Kander / Ebb / Masteroff MORE AS YOU LIKE IT Wm. Shakespeare MORE MARAT / SADE Peter Weiss MORE BIG LOVE Charles L. Mee MORE MACHINAL Sophie Treadwell MORE BAT BOY: THE MUSICAL Keythe Farley, Brian Flemming, and Laurence O'Keefe MORE HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask MORE OTHER VENUES VERMONT THEATRE CO THEATRE ASKEW ORIGINAL WORK INDEPENDENT THEATRE

OPUS Promo for Vermonst Stage Company

OPUS Video Images Jason discusses OPUS with the Vermont Stage Company's Artistic Director, Mark Nash. Smart, sophisticated and elegant, Opus explores the personal and artistic dynamics of a world-renowned string quartet struggling to prepare for their highest-profile performance. When the violinist, and founder of the quartet, mysteriously disappears, the rehearsal room becomes a pressure cooker as passions rise, personalities clash, and the musicians are forced to tackle the ephemeral nature of their life's work.