GALLERY HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH Video Images Watch HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH Add a Title John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask Classics invite interpretation, and this Hedwig is shaped by a new generation of young artists tearing down the walls of traditional gender strictures. Our rehearsals have been an inquiry into how this multifaceted role can be embodied by a diverse ensemble and how this story continues to resonate more than twenty years after its inception. Whatever your journey, I thank you for being here tonight and wish you an exciting theatrical ride! - Jason Jacob, November 2021 Program Note John Cameron Mitchell Stephen Trask HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH Classics invite interpretation, and this Hedwig is shaped by a new generation of young artists tearing down the walls of traditional gender strictures. Our rehearsals have been an inquiry into how this multifaceted role can be embodied by a diverse ensemble and how this story continues to resonate more than twenty years after its inception. Whatever your journey, I thank you for being here tonight and wish you an exciting theatrical ride! - Jason Jacob, November 2021 Program Note John Cameron Mitchell Stephen Trask HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH Classics invite interpretation, and this Hedwig is shaped by a new generation of young artists tearing down the walls of traditional gender strictures. Our rehearsals have been an inquiry into how this multifaceted role can be embodied by a diverse ensemble and how this story continues to resonate more than twenty years after its inception. Whatever your journey, I thank you for being here tonight and wish you an exciting theatrical ride! - Jason Jacob, November 2021 Program Note

GALLERY CABA RET Video Images Watch the entire show. Cabaret at LIU CW Post Director Jason Jacobs, Music Direction James Crichton, Choreography Rakeem Lawrence. Lighting Design: Leslie Lura-Smith Costume Design: Meghan O’Beirne. Sound Design: Chad Raines. Video by Catalin Stelian. CABA RET Add a Title Kander / Ebb / Masteroff Joni Mitchell sang, “You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.” In Cabaret, freedom teeters on the edge of extinction—and no one seems able to stop it. Or stop history from repeating itself. Fred Ebb John Kander Joel Masteroff CABA RET CABA RET Joni Mitchell sang, “You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.” In Cabaret, freedom teeters on the edge of extinction—and no one seems able to stop it. Or stop history from repeating itself. Fred Ebb John Kander Joel Masteroff CABA RET CABA RET Joni Mitchell sang, “You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.” In Cabaret, freedom teeters on the edge of extinction—and no one seems able to stop it. Or stop history from repeating itself.

GALLERY UNCLE TOM'S CABIN Video Images NO VIDEO AVAILABLE UNCLE TOM'S CABIN Add a Title Jason Jacobs, Tome' Cousin, and Douglas Levine. Cousin and Jacobs’s aim is to rescue the work from all its accumulated baggage ...and to present Stowe’s — and Aiken’s — story center-stage. This they do, thanks to a knock-out student cast, without the slightest hint of irony or contemporary shading" Tome and I began working on our adaptation of George Aiken's play -- itself adapted from Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel -- as part of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab. We felt the play's history had become misunderstood, and the term "Uncle Tom" had become an epithet that reduced the original character to a stereotype of acquiescence and a betrayer of his people. Our adaptation aims to restore Uncle Tom's name and to re-envsion his story as one of self-assertion, faith, and human dignity. Tomé Cousin Jason Jacobs Douglas Levine UNCLE TOM'S CABIN UNCLE TOM'S CABIN Tome and I began working on our adaptation of George Aiken's play -- itself adapted from Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel -- as part of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab. We felt the play's history had become misunderstood, and the term "Uncle Tom" had become an epithet that reduced the original character to a stereotype of acquiescence and a betrayer of his people. Our adaptation aims to restore Uncle Tom's name and to re-envsion his story as one of self-assertion, faith, and human dignity. Cousin and Jacobs’s aim is to rescue the work from all its accumulated baggage ...and to present Stowe’s — and Aiken’s — story center-stage. This they do, thanks to a knock-out student cast, without the slightest hint of irony or contemporary shading" Pittsburgh City Paper Tomé Cousin Jason Jacobs Douglas Levine UNCLE TOM'S CABIN UNCLE TOM'S CABIN Tome and I began working on our adaptation of George Aiken's play -- itself adapted from Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel -- as part of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab. We felt the play's history had become misunderstood, and the term "Uncle Tom" had become an epithet that reduced the original character to a stereotype of acquiescence and a betrayer of his people. Our adaptation aims to restore Uncle Tom's name and to re-envsion his story as one of self-assertion, faith, and human dignity. Cousin and Jacobs’s aim is to rescue the work from all its accumulated baggage ...and to present Stowe’s — and Aiken’s — story center-stage. This they do, thanks to a knock-out student cast, without the slightest hint of irony or contemporary shading" Pittsburgh City Paper

GALLERY T A Y P E Video Images HOME: a story-telling exercize In this video, the kids are improvising a story, each picking up the details from the previous person. It was shot and edited by Rob Tate. T A Y P E Add a Title Jason Jacobs Jason is co-founder of The Theatre Askew Youth Performance Experience (TAYPE), which empowers lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth and their allies to develop their unique theatrical voices. He's worked with the youth community at the Hetrick-Martin Institute and the Ali Forney Center, and directed two original productions for TAYPE: Home/Away and The F On My Chest. Jason Jacobs THEATRE ASKEW YOUTH PERFORMANCE EXPERIENCE TAYPE T A Y P E Jason is co-founder of The Theatre Askew Youth Performance Experience (TAYPE), which empowers lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth and their allies to develop their unique theatrical voices. He's worked with the youth community at the Hetrick-Martin Institute and the Ali Forney Center, and directed two original productions for TAYPE: Home/Away and The F On My Chest. LGBTQ youngsters who participated in this year's Theatre Askew Youth Performance Experience (TAYPE) created this play out of a series of workshops, writing assignments, visual art and more. The work explores gender identity, stereotypes and, of course, love." —TIME OUT Jason Jacobs THEATRE ASKEW YOUTH PERFORMANCE EXPERIENCE TAYPE T A Y P E Jason is co-founder of The Theatre Askew Youth Performance Experience (TAYPE), which empowers lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth and their allies to develop their unique theatrical voices. He's worked with the youth community at the Hetrick-Martin Institute and the Ali Forney Center, and directed two original productions for TAYPE: Home/Away and The F On My Chest. LGBTQ youngsters who participated in this year's Theatre Askew Youth Performance Experience (TAYPE) created this play out of a series of workshops, writing assignments, visual art and more. The work explores gender identity, stereotypes and, of course, love." —TIME OUT

GALLERY 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. OPUS Add a Title Michael Hollinger A behind-the-scenes look at a string quartet: every scene, the stakes get higher." ...feels amazingly authentic and is one of Vermont Stage's most even and consistent productions in recent memory." As a world-renowned string quartet prepares for their highest-profile performance, passions rise, personalities clash, and the artists confront the ephemeral nature of their life's work. Jacobs conducts the talented ensemble cast with taut precision, which makes Hollinger’s smart script sing.” Michael Hollinger OPUS OPUS As a world-renowned string quartet prepares for their highest-profile performance, passions rise, personalities clash, and the artists confront the ephemeral nature of their life's work. ...feels amazingly authentic and is one of Vermont Stage's most even and consistent productions in recent memory." A behind-the-scenes look at a string quartet: every scene, the stakes get higher." Jacobs conducts the talented ensemble cast with taut precision, which makes Hollinger’s smart script sing.” Seven Days A behind-the-scenes look at a string quartet: every scene, the stakes get higher." Michael Hollinger OPUS OPUS As a world-renowned string quartet prepares for their highest-profile performance, passions rise, personalities clash, and the artists confront the ephemeral nature of their life's work. ...feels amazingly authentic and is one of Vermont Stage's most even and consistent productions in recent memory." Jacobs conducts the talented ensemble cast with taut precision, which makes Hollinger’s smart script sing.” Seven Days

Venue / category Original work All projects Vermont Stage Company Independent theatre Theatre Askew Post Theatre Company AFTER THE CHAIRS David Koteles View More ANOTHER HORATIO ALGER STORY Jason Jacobs View More AS YOU LIKE IT Wm. Shakespeare View More BALD DIVA! David Koteles and Jason Jacobs View More BAT BOY: THE MUSICAL Keythe Farley, Brian Flemming, and Laurence O'Keefe View More BIG LOVE Charles L. Mee View More CABA RET Kander / Ebb / Masteroff View More HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask View More I GOOGLE MYSELF Jason Schaffer View More I, CLAUDIUS LIVE View More LAVENDER SONGS Jeremy Lawrence View More MACHINAL Sophie Treadwell View More MARAT / SADE Peter Weiss View More MISS BLANCHE TELLS IT ALL Jason Jacobs: and Matthew C Pritchard View More MY FIRST LADY David Koteles View More OLIVER TWIST Neil Bartlett View More OPUS Michael Hollinger View More POST-MOD ERN LIVING Richard Sheinmel View More T A Y P E Jason Jacobs View More THE TEMPEST Wm. Shakespeare View More

Heading 4 VERMONT THEATRE CO Previous Item Next Item

VERMONT STAGE COMPANY VERMONT STAGE COMPANY ..one of the Burlington professional company's most compelling and entertaining productions to date” Times Argus The parallels between the Victorians and how we're treating immigration today, as if it's somehow these people fault..." Promotional Video Dickens — and Bartlett in this adaptation — focused on the brutality toward the poor by 19th C society." Times Argus OLIVER TWIST An adaptation that really embraces 19th-century theatrical storytelling: theater as spectacle, theater as melodrama. GALLERY Adaptation by Neil Bartlett Jacobs conducts the talented ensemble cast with taut precision, which makes Hollinger’s smart script sing.” Seven Days ...feels amazingly authentic and is one of Vermont Stage's most even and consistent productions in recent memory. Times Argus A behind-the-scenes look at a string quartet: every scene, the stakes get higher. " OPUS As a world-renowned string quartet prepares for their highest-profile performance, passions rise, personalities clash, and the artists confront the ephemeral nature of their life's work. GALLERY by Michael Hollinger A smart, funny, respectful treatment of Uncle Vanya...An impressive achievement." Burlington Free Press Jacobs has staged the piece to take full advantage of the intimate playing space. We are caught up in the intensity of communication between the characters." North Country Public Radio ...a delightful piece of theater - witty, touching, fun and sad, in that order." Rutland Herald VANYA VERMONT I got a perspective on how Vermont is so different from anywhere else in America. I wanted to work on something that would speak specifically to this community in a really visceral, valid way. GALLERY adapted from Chekhov by Kathryn Blume Personal transformation is a focus of director Jason Jacobs’ interpretation of Shakespeare’s comedy…The 16-character cast is played in this production by just seven actors, some of whom play cross-gender roles.” Seven Days It's a journey into the forest. It's a forest of discovery, a forest of liberation." AS YOU LIKE IT From the opening invocation of “all the world is a stage” to the final prologue, which seals the compact of cast and audience, the production illuminates the reality of theatrical space, the transformative power of the actor, and role of the viewer’s imagination to create the theatrical event. Starting as the victim of oppression, Shakespeare's Rosalind embraces theatrical strategies to face her challenges: through improvisation and performance, she discovers her strength and power. Leaving a troubled everyday world to venture into the unknown, Rosalind becomes actor, director, stage manager, and spectator. The production celebrates the power of the actor at her/his most joyous best, and suggests that real liberation is not about disguise, but how we bring ourselves – body, hear, and soul, to play our part in the world. GALLERY Wm. Shakespeare ..one of the Burlington professional company's most compelling and entertaining productions to date” Times Argus The parallels between the Victorians and how we're treating immigration today, as if it's somehow these people fault..." Promotional Video Dickens — and Bartlett in this adaptation — focused on the brutality toward the poor by 19th C society." Times Argus OLIVER TWIST An adaptation that really embraces 19th-century theatrical storytelling: theater as spectacle, theater as melodrama. GALLERY: Watch Jason Talk about this adaptation Adaptation by Neil Bartlett Jacobs conducts the talented ensemble cast with taut precision, which makes Hollinger’s smart script sing.” Seven Days ...feels amazingly authentic and is one of Vermont Stage's most even and consistent productions in recent memory. Times Argus A behind-the-scenes look at a string quartet: every scene, the stakes get higher. " OPUS As a world-renowned string quartet prepares for their highest-profile performance, passions rise, personalities clash, and the artists confront the ephemeral nature of their life's work. GALLERY: Promotional Video by Michael Hollinger A smart, funny, respectful treatment of Uncle Vanya...An impressive achievement." Burlington Free Press Jacobs has staged the piece to take full advantage of the intimate playing space. We are caught up in the intensity of communication between the characters." North Country Public Radio ...a delightful piece of theater - witty, touching, fun and sad, in that order." Rutland Herald VANYA VERMONT I got a perspective on how Vermont is so different from anywhere else in America. I wanted to work on something that would speak specifically to this community in a really visceral, valid way. GALLERY adapted from Chekhov by Kathryn Blume Personal transformation is a focus of director Jason Jacobs’ interpretation of Shakespeare’s comedy…The 16-character cast is played in this production by just seven actors, some of whom play cross-gender roles.” Seven Days It's a journey into the forest. It's a forest of discovery, a forest of liberation." AS YOU LIKE IT From the opening invocation of “all the world is a stage” to the final prologue, which seals the compact of cast and audience, the production illuminates the reality of theatrical space, the transformative power of the actor, and role of the viewer’s imagination to create the theatrical event. Starting as the victim of oppression, Shakespeare's Rosalind embraces theatrical strategies to face her challenges: through improvisation and performance, she discovers her strength and power. Leaving a troubled everyday world to venture into the unknown, Rosalind becomes actor, director, stage manager, and spectator. The production celebrates the power of the actor at her/his most joyous best, and suggests that real liberation is not about disguise, but how we bring ourselves – body, hear, and soul, to play our part in the world. GALLERY: Promotional Video Wm. Shakespeare xxxORIGINAL WORK xxxINDIE THEATRE xxxPOST THEATRE CO xxxVERMONT STAGE CO xxxTHEATRE ASKEW More

A cumulative story-telling exercise performed by the kids of Theatre Askew Young Person Program, edited by Rob Tate. JACQUELINE KENNEDY-ONASSIS 2020 HIGH SCHOOL COMMENCEMENT SPEECH

OPUS Promo for Vermonst Stage Company

My First Lady Promo

POST THEATRE COMPANY: LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY POST THEATRE COMPANY: LONG ISLAND UNIVERSITY MARAT / SADE The year is 1808: France is a powerful empire ruled by Napoleon. Outside of Paris, in the mental asylum of Charenton, the Marquis de Sade has been inprisoned for seven years because of his outrageous writings ... Tonight, Sade presents a play, performed by the institution's patients, dramatyixing the assassination revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat during the French Revolution. He is glad to have you with us. GALLERY BIG LOVE GALLERY BAT BOY: GALLERY THE MUSICAL CABARET GALLERY Kander / Ebb / Masteroff HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH As a director who thrives on the energetic exchange of live performance, it’s been too long; I’m thrilled to return to live theatre-making with this ensemble on this show and to welcome you into the world we’ve created. I came of age during another plague, the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and ‘90s, which shaped my identify as a queer artst. I got to see Hedwig transform from an edgy, immersive downtown show in the late ‘90s, then to an art house film, and more recently to a polished Broadway entertainment. The ingenious creation of author John Cameron Mitchell and composer Stephen Trask, Hedwig transcends geography and time, earning her place as an iconic character in the queer theater canon. We meet her within the space of a bitter/sweet rock-show, and her powerful songs give voice to the experiences of so many LGBTQ folx: struggling with our own wicked little towns and striving all our lives to know that we’re whole. Classic plays (and musicals) invite interpretation, and this production is shaped by a new generation of young artists who are tearing down the walls of traditional gender strictures. Our rehearsals have been an inquiry into how this multifaceted role can be embodied by a diverse ensemble--and how this story continues to resonate, more than 20 years since its inception. I hope our Hedwig celebrates the diversity of gender expression in this community. Whatever your own personal journey, I thank you for being here tonight and wish you an exciting theatrical ride! (Program Note -- November 2021) GALLERY MACHINAL The theme of this season at Post Theatre Company is “Once Upon a Time Travel”, and Sophie Treadwell’s Machinal (Mah-SHEE-nal) takes us a back to the thrilling and turbulent decade known as the “Roaring ‘20s.” In the winter of 2017, I feel like our American time machine has just been hijacked by a gang of rogue men, determined to hurl us all backwards at least 50 years. Now more than ever, it seems crucial to look at our history, in order to understand where we’ve been and how we arrived at this moment. In 1928, Treadwell confronted Broadway audiences with her indictment of a society that perpetuates machine-like oppression against its female population. The play follows a kind of Everywoman through a life journey that is anything but free. Using theatrical expressionism, Treadwell pointed at abuses of power in the workplace, home, and the law. She exposed sexual harassment, earning inequality, and women’s lack of choice to control their bodies and the direction of their lives 90 years later, I’m saddened to hear these students say they feel nothing has changed. Indeed, while we rehearsed this revival, we’ve been fighting to save Planned Parenthood, an organization founded 100 years ago on the belief that women should have the information and care they need to live strong, healthy lives and fulfill their dreams.* The man driving our political machine snarls epithets like “nasty woman” and brags about behavior widely considered to be sexual assault. It’s easy to overlook the progress that has been made when, everyday, we feel renewed forces of misogyny, racism, and homophobia pushing upon us. What gives me hope in collaborating with these young actors is the bravery and generosity each of them brought to work on Treadwell’s play. In order to build their connection to the past, the cast looked at their own family histories, in addition to researching the 1920s. This exploration helped us process what Machinal might say to you, our audience, tonight. The young actors on this stage are using their bodies and imaginations to enact our collective past, but they also represent our future. I hope their generation will have the courage and commitment to take back control of the machine and help steer us on a more progressive course. GALLERY xxxORIGINAL WORK xxxINDIE THEATRE xxxPOST THEATRE CO xxxVERMONT STAGE CO xxxTHEATRE ASKEW More MARAT / SADE The year is 1808: France is a powerful empire ruled by Napoleon. Outside of Paris, in the mental asylum of Charenton, the Marquis de Sade has been inprisoned for seven years because of his outrageous writings ... Tonight, Sade presents a play, performed by the institution's patients, dramatyixing the assassination revolutionary leader Jean-Paul Marat during the French Revolution. He is glad to have you with us. GALLERY BIG LOVE GALLERY BAT BOY: GALLERY THE MUSICAL CABARET GALLERY Kander / Ebb / Masteroff HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH As a director who thrives on the energetic exchange of live performance, it’s been too long; I’m thrilled to return to live theatre-making with this ensemble on this show and to welcome you into the world we’ve created. I came of age during another plague, the AIDS crisis of the 1980s and ‘90s, which shaped my identify as a queer artst. I got to see Hedwig transform from an edgy, immersive downtown show in the late ‘90s, then to an art house film, and more recently to a polished Broadway entertainment. The ingenious creation of author John Cameron Mitchell and composer Stephen Trask, Hedwig transcends geography and time, earning her place as an iconic character in the queer theater canon. We meet her within the space of a bitter/sweet rock-show, and her powerful songs give voice to the experiences of so many LGBTQ folx: struggling with our own wicked little towns and striving all our lives to know that we’re whole. Classic plays (and musicals) invite interpretation, and this production is shaped by a new generation of young artists who are tearing down the walls of traditional gender strictures. Our rehearsals have been an inquiry into how this multifaceted role can be embodied by a diverse ensemble--and how this story continues to resonate, more than 20 years since its inception. I hope our Hedwig celebrates the diversity of gender expression in this community. Whatever your own personal journey, I thank you for being here tonight and wish you an exciting theatrical ride! (Program Note -- November 2021) GALLERY MACHINAL The theme of this season at Post Theatre Company is “Once Upon a Time Travel”, and Sophie Treadwell’s Machinal (Mah-SHEE-nal) takes us a back to the thrilling and turbulent decade known as the “Roaring ‘20s.” In the winter of 2017, I feel like our American time machine has just been hijacked by a gang of rogue men, determined to hurl us all backwards at least 50 years. Now more than ever, it seems crucial to look at our history, in order to understand where we’ve been and how we arrived at this moment. In 1928, Treadwell confronted Broadway audiences with her indictment of a society that perpetuates machine-like oppression against its female population. The play follows a kind of Everywoman through a life journey that is anything but free. Using theatrical expressionism, Treadwell pointed at abuses of power in the workplace, home, and the law. She exposed sexual harassment, earning inequality, and women’s lack of choice to control their bodies and the direction of their lives 90 years later, I’m saddened to hear these students say they feel nothing has changed. Indeed, while we rehearsed this revival, we’ve been fighting to save Planned Parenthood, an organization founded 100 years ago on the belief that women should have the information and care they need to live strong, healthy lives and fulfill their dreams.* The man driving our political machine snarls epithets like “nasty woman” and brags about behavior widely considered to be sexual assault. It’s easy to overlook the progress that has been made when, everyday, we feel renewed forces of misogyny, racism, and homophobia pushing upon us. What gives me hope in collaborating with these young actors is the bravery and generosity each of them brought to work on Treadwell’s play. In order to build their connection to the past, the cast looked at their own family histories, in addition to researching the 1920s. This exploration helped us process what Machinal might say to you, our audience, tonight. The young actors on this stage are using their bodies and imaginations to enact our collective past, but they also represent our future. I hope their generation will have the courage and commitment to take back control of the machine and help steer us on a more progressive course. GALLERY xxxORIGINAL WORK xxxINDIE THEATRE xxxPOST THEATRE CO xxxVERMONT STAGE CO xxxTHEATRE ASKEW More