Know Theatre is pleased to announce our 15th season producing contemporary theatre in Over-the-Rhine. The 15th anniversary marks some changes to Know Theatre including the creation of a new five year strategic plan, new season schedule, and stated artistic goals.
The upcoming eight months of programming will consist of two mainstage productions, The 10th Annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival, Fringe Festival encore performances, The Know Theatre CityBeat NYE Speakeasy Party, continuing programming from members of the Jackson Street Market, several special events and projects, and a national tour of Calculus: The Musical!
New Strategic Plan, Season Structure & Artistic Goals
Know Theatre of Cincinnati has spent the last three months working on a new strategic plan for the organization. This plan, while still in progress, exists because of the work of the staff and board of Know Theatre over the last 18 months. This process began when the staff of Know Theatre sat down and created a list of values for the organization. The staff and board approved three primary values for Know Theatre of Cincinnati: Community, Collaboration, and Play. These three have been woven into Know Theatre’s values statement: We value a playful community where artists can collaborate and grow.
As a key part of the strategic plan, Know Theatre of Cincinnati will no longer be a season-based theatre company, but will announce and create programming on a rolling basis. This new structure will provide many benefits to the organization including more flexibility in scheduling, the ability to quickly premiere contemporary works as rights become available, and the ability add extension weeks, complimentary collaborative events, and educational opportunities surrounding productions.
In addition, other artistic goals are:
- Know Theatre will continue to seek diversity of casting, show selection, and of voices that are under-represented.
- Know Theatre will produce one non-American work every 12-18 months in an effort to bring more international contemporary theatre to the Cincinnati area.
- We will focus on producing more works by female playwrights in an effort to combat the lack of produced works by women nationally.
- Every 18-24 months Know Theatre will produce a show off-campus. We would like to reach out to our larger regional community to create a more regional footprint, expand our audience and regional impact, and create new community collaborators.
- Know Theatre also plans to continue our existing efforts to produce shows in collaboration with other companies (local or national).
Strategic plan operational goals include:
- Increase staff salaries to competitive levels and provide health care benefits to the staff (recently implemented).
- Increase and improve external communications and awareness of the theatre and programming.
- Create a holistic employee growth program that encourages continued education.
- Create a long-term development plan to accompany the strategic plan and increase capacity for the organization.
- Put in place maintenance contracts and a maintenance fund for essential building and facilities systems.
- Renovate the Underground space (in a partnership with Socstock.com.)
- Proactively seeking out products and partnerships that will ensure Know Theatre continues to reduce waste and reuse more materials.
Upcoming Productions & Special Events
The Naughty List at Arnold’s Bar & Grill
This holiday season, Know Theatre takes a show off-campus to Arnold’s Bar & Grill featuring Jackson Street Market member OTRimprov. The show will be directed by Producing Artistic Director Eric Vosmeier and features OTRimprov members Sean Mette, Dave Powell, Alison Rampa, Kat Smith, and Chris Wesselman. Performances will take place in the courtyard at Arnold’s Bar & Grill Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings at 8pm from December 2 – 30, 2012.
Join OTRimprov for a holiday improv show that is a little naughty, and a little nice. Using suggestions from the audience and a mix of long and short form improv, OTRimprov will create some holiday cheer whether you are ready for it or not. Your favorite holiday memories will become their subject matter as they recreate holiday movies and tell you how your life may have been different if you had received that gift. Bring your holiday cheer or your inner Grinch. You decide.
“I’m excited to have been asked to create a holiday show for Arnold’s. I’m equally excited to be able to work with the Jackson Street Market’s OTRimprov. This has been a great collaborative process with Kat and Dave so far, and I’m looking forward to working on a fun holiday show,” says Producing Artistic Director, Eric Vosmeier.
OTRimprov is an improvisational comedy troupe that’s made its home at Know Theatre of Cincinnati as part of the Jackson Street Market. Recognizing the distinct lack of regularly scheduled improv performances in Cincinnati, especially Downtown and in Over-the-Rhine, OTRi looks to provide this particular brand of entertainment in order to further strengthen Cincinnati’s established arts community.
Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 at the door. Performances will occur on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings at 8pm. Tickets can be purchased by visiting knowtheatre.com or calling 513.300.5669. Flex-passes are valid for this event.
The Apocalypse Show!
The world is scheduled to come to an end on December 21, 2012, since your money is no good after that, spend it all at Know Theatre’s two nights only fundraiser, The Apocalypse Show! On December 20 and 21, 2012 at 8pm, join Know Theatre for a variety show to end all variety shows! Cast members thus far are Know Theatre stage favorites Annie Kalahurka, Kelsey Crismon, Matt Hill, and Chris Wesselman. The performance will be directed by Eric Vosmeier, and created by Steve Schofield, Eric Vosmeier, Chris Wesselman, and Annie Kalahurka.
A variety show to end the world. Join us at Know Theatre of Cincinnati to celebrate the fabled 2012 Apocalypse. The Apocalypse Show! incorporates sketch comedy, predictions, guest appearances, gratuitous drinking and answers to all of your apocalypse FAQ’s. And it’s all created by local writers, performers, and musicians. Join us for the end of the world and laugh your way into the apocalypse!
Tickets for this fundraiser* performance are $50 each for the performance on December 20. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 on the week of the show for the performance on December 21. Tickets can be purchased by visiting knowtheatre.com or calling 513.300.5669. Flex-passes are valid only for the December 21st performance.
*Remember your money will be worth nothing the next day, so bring it all with you.
Know Theatre CityBeat NYE Speakeasy Party
On New Year’s Eve, Know Theatre will present the 7th Annual Know Theatre CityBeat NYE Speakeasy Party from 8pm – 1am. Over 300 people dressed to the nines and attended last year’s swingin’ toast to the New Year. Get dolled up and ready to celebrate and enjoy casino games, delicious fare, DJ, dancing, a live band, martinis, and a champagne toast at midnight.
Tickets are available for $15 in advance and $25 after December 24 at noon. Tickets and more info can be found at knowtheatre.com or by calling 513.300.5669(KNOW). Flex-passes are valid for this event.
When The Rain Stops Falling by Andrew Bovell
Time Out Magazine’s Best New Play of 2010, When the Rain Stops Falling by Australian playwright Andrew Bovell, opens on February 8, 2013 and runs through March 16, 2013.
An intricate fabric of overlapping connections, When the Rain Stops Falling takes us back and forth in time from one generation to another, from 1959 to 2039, and from London to Australia, where the acts and sins of the past reveal mysteries and connections to the three generations that follow. An excursion into a world where the rain rarely stops, four generations discover the impossibility of escaping the past. We are all shaped by what came before, and are living in the shadow of what comes next.
Vosmeier says, “It’s an intricate story told through the lens of multiple generations of one family. I love the script and I’m thrilled to have Brian on the project. We’ve got the show partially cast and we’re finalizing designs. I’ve been hoping to get this show on our stage for a couple of years and I can’t wait to see it”.
Rain is being directed by Brian Isaac Phillips with Scenic & Lighting Design by Andrew Hungerford, Sound Design by Doug Borntrager, and Costume Design by Noelle Wedig.
When the Rain Starts Falling was commissioned and first produced by Brink Productions in Australia. It premiered at the Scott Theatre, University of Adelaide, in February of 2008. The play’s European premiere was at Almeida Theatre in London in May of 2009.
All tickets are $15 in advance and $18 on the week of the show, beginning Monday at noon. Tickets can be purchased by visiting knowtheatre.com or calling 513.300.5669. Flex-passes are valid for this event.
2013 United States Association of Fringe Festivals Conference
Know Theatre will be the host organization for the 2013 United States Association of Fringe Festivals National Conference. This association is comprised of representatives of Fringe Festivals from across the United States. Delegates gather each year to share best practices, hear about the wonderful and unique things happening at other festivals, create new initiatives and germinate new ideas.
The 2013 Festival promises to be the best attended to date with confirmed participants from New York, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., and Santa Cruz. The conference will occur in late-April 2013 in Cincinnati (exact date TBD soon).
“We’re honored to have been selected to host this year’s conference. It’s an amazing opportunity to work on ideas and issues at the core of all Fringe Festivals. Every time I have been to a conference, the Cincinnati Fringe Festival is better for it. We can’t wait to show off our city to festival producers from all over the United States”, adds Vosmeier.
2013 10th Anniversary Cincinnati Fringe Festival
Know Theatre’s season would not be complete without the 10th Annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival, which will be May 28 through June 8, 2013. As always, Ohio’s largest performing arts festival will take over Downtown/Over-the-Rhine with 12 days of theatre, music, dance, film, art and everything in between.
The 10th Anniversary Festival will begin on May 29th, 2013 with the CityBeat Fringe Kick-Off BIRTHDAY Party and a celebration of both Know Theatre of Cincinnati 15th Anniversary and the Cincinnati Fringe Festival’s 10th Anniversary.
The 2012 festival saw the second year of new programming FringeNext, performances produced by high school students, and FringeDevelopment, workshops and events focused on giving the greater Fringe community events and workshops to collaborate and create.
Applications are currently being accepted for the 2013 Cincinnati Fringe Festival through December 7, 2012. Applications for FringeNext are also live and being accepted through January 18, 2013. For more information and to apply please visit cincyfringe.com.
Flex Passes
As part of changes to the season structure, Know Theatre will offer six show flex-passes for $90 that do not expire. Additionally, flex-passes will now be valid for most events at Know Theatre*. If we’re producing it, or presenting it, you can use the pass toward the value of a ticket**. When you run out of tickets, you’ll simply get another pass!
Tickets and flex-passes can be purchased by visiting knowtheatre.com or calling 513.300.5669(KNOW).
*Look for the note on our website, press releases, postcards, et al: “Flex Passes are valid for this event”
**If tickets have a higher value, the actual value of the pass will be applied toward the ticket.
Upcoming Performance & Event Dates
Dates are subject to change
- The Naughty List at Arnold’s Bar & Grill – December 2-30, 2012
- The Apocalypse Show! – December 20 & 21, 2012
- Know Theatre CityBeat NYE Speakeasy Party – December 31, 2012
- When the Rain Stops Falling – Feb 9 – March 16
- Production TBA – April 5 – May 12
- 2013 10th Anniversary Cincinnati Fringe Festival – May 28 – June 8, 2013
Please visit knowtheatre.com/calendar.html for full performance schedules.
Staffing Updates
Know Theatre is announces the addition of our newest staff member, Tom McLaughlin, who has joined the company as Development & Marketing Manager. Tom has previously volunteered for Know Theatre for hundreds of hours as a house manager, box office manager, and Cincinnati Fringe Festival team member. Tom’s position will have him assisting with fundraising, grants research, grant writing, general management, and marketing.
“I am thrilled to join the staff of a place I call home,” says Tom McLaughlin. “I have been involved with the organization over the past few years as a volunteer and look forward to helping to shape the future of the organization.”
“We are in a position of needing to add capacity to our organization in order to keep doing what we’ve focused down on. I’ve been talking to Tom about the possibility of this position for months and I probably squealed a little when I was finally able to offer it and he accepted. He’ll be a great addition to Know Theatre and will be invaluable as we pursue our new artistic goals and implement the new strategic plan”, adds Vosmeier.
Thomas McLaughlin is a graduate of Thomas More College in Crestview Hills, Kentucky where he earned his degrees in Drama and Mathematics. He also holds his MBA and is a candidate for his MA in Arts Administration from University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music. While pursuing his degrees, he had the privilege of working with Alan Patrick Kenney at the former New Stage Collective. He started out as a stage manager for NSC’s last summer season and expanded his role to Technical Director/Operations Director. Currently, he is a volunteer with the pedestrian-style movement company, Pones Inc. In this capacity he maintains the content of their website and e-blasts as well as various tasks as needed.
Jackson Street Market
In 2010 Know Theatre launched a series of programs geared toward building and retaining our local artist community. Know Theatre will continue existing Market programs and expand not only its reach to the local artistic community, but increase public engagement.
The goals of the Jackson Street Market are to provide opportunity to local artistic entrepreneurs, to leverage Know Theatre’s resources on their behalf, and to build upon the strengths of our artistic community by creating a space where they can experiment and play with new ideas. In the coming year Know Theatre also will create a new logo for the program and launch a resource sharing website, with the generous support from the The Procter & Gamble Foundation and Executive Service Corps of Cincinnati. The website will offer Know Theatre’s inventory of physical assets (set pieces, costumes, props, space, etc) to individual artists and start-up arts organizations.
Vosmeier says, “I look forward to getting the resource website up and running. This has been a huge undertaking to first move, then organize and catalogue our physical assets. The P&G Fund and the ESCC have been instrumental in moving this forward. The next step is to photograph, describe, and upload our inventory to the website. We hope to have this up and running before the end of the year”.
Existing Jackson Street Market Programming Includes:
True Theatre
True Theatre’s mission is to bring together a wide variety of people to share stories in an effort to create community, encourage discussion, and remind everyone that all of us have stories to tell with unique insights and broad appeal. True Theatre’s first season in 2010-2011 was a wild success with packed houses for every performance. Upcoming True Theatre performances: trueCINCINNATI (January 7, 2013), trueMISCHIEF (April 8, 2013), and trueCRIME (July 29, 2013). Tickets for True Theatre performances are $15 and are available at knowtheatre.com.
OTRimprov
OTRimprov is an improvisational comedy troupe that’s made its home at Know Theatre of Cincinnati as part of the Jackson Street Market. Recognizing the distinct lack of regularly scheduled improv performances in Cincinnati, especially Downtown and in Over-the-Rhine, OTRi looks to provide this particular brand of entertainment in order to further strengthen Cincinnati’s established arts community. OTRimprov has regular performances and workshops scheduled through December. Tickets and more info is available at knowtheatre.com.
Know Theatre’s Playwrights Group
Formed in 2006 this group of local playwrights and writers who gather monthly to read and critique each other’s work. The group includes playwrights produced frequently in Cincinnati, including Joe McDonough, Alison Vodnoy, Y York, Dale Doermin, Kevin Crowley, and Paul Shortt and more.
Higher Level Art
A creative collective of visual artists who have become known locally for their innovative mural and street art work, as well as all of the murals on Know Theatre’s building. The company is currently sharing office space with Know Theatre as part of the Jackson Street Market at low cost.
The Requiem Project
An organization created to renovate and create programming for the Emery Theater in Over-the-Rhine. The team is also renting office space from Know Theatre as well as utilizing ticketing services and other resources for their upcoming events.
Education
Know Theatre’s national tour of Calculus: The Musical! has now performed in 30 different states for over 50,000 students after four years of touring. This season we welcome our returning cast members from last year’s tour. Breona Conrad, who toured with Calculus: The Musical! in 2009 and recently performed as Ms. Valoosh in Sideways Stories from Wayside School returns this year along her husband Joshua Murphy, a member of Know Theatre’s company in 2009-2010 and was seen in boom, Sideways Stories from Wayside School, Adding Machine: A Musical, and Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes. The tour continues to expand each year as many schools continue to book year after year and teachers incorporate the soundtrack into their yearly curriculum.
Underground Renovation & Socstock.com
Know Theatre is excited to have an offering on the website of a new start-up based in Cincinnati, , Socstock.com. Socstock.com (Socstock is short for ‘social stock’) offers investors non-monetary dividends in exchange for capital investment in local companies. Know Theatre is proud to be the only non-profit company to be a member of this inaugural class of offerings. The investments in Know Theatre will be used to enhance audience experiences by making significant repairs and renovations to the Know Theatre’s Undergound lobby and bar. SocStock.com, a recent graduate of The Brandery’s Accelerator Class, is a web-based company that lets people fund small business capital projects in exchange for at least double the amount back in products, services, or experiences.
Between now and November 25, 2012, Know Theatre is seeking investment of $5,000 to renovate our space and dramatically improve our look, feel and comfort to the public. Matching investments are being made by Know Theatre’s building owner David C. Herriman. Investments will be used for design consulting, new carpeting, new tables and chairs, new couches, larger beer cooler, repairs to walls and exterior, and possibly resurfacing/reconfiguring the bar. We want to continue sharing this space with our neighbors, and want to make a more dynamic space with improved amenities for everyone.
“We consider our building and use our building as a community center. We want to make it more flexible, and more appropriate for the variety of events that we host and create. We believe we provide a space that our community values and we hope that our community will invest in improving it for continued use”, says Vosmeier.
Investment levels are $50, $75, and $500 and investors will receive 64% – 104% returns in tickets, passes, acting classes, space use as a return on their support. More information can be found at http://www.socstock.com.
Additional Information
When the Rain Stops Falling
Andrew Bovell (Playwright) – Andrew Bovell’s stage plays include Speaking in Tongues, An Ocean Out of My Window, Ship of Fools, After Dinner, The Ballad of Lois Ryan, and Holy Day. He has collaborated on several projects including Scenes from a Separation (with Hannie Rayson), Who’s Afraid of the Working Class? (with Christos Tsiolkas, Melissa Reeves, Patricia Cornelius and Irene Vela), and the feature films Strictly Ballroom (with Baz Luhrmann and Craig Pearce) and Head On (with Ana Kokkinos and Mira Robertson). His screenplay Lantana was based on his play Speaking in Tongues. The film was directed by Ray Lawrence and opened to critical acclaim in 2001, winning seven AFI awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay. He was named Screenwriter of the Year in 2002 by the London Film Critics’ Circle.
Brian Isaac Phillips (Director) – Brian Isaac Phillips is delighted to return to Know Theatre of Cincinnati after appearing in Collapse in 2012 and directing Angels in America: Millennium Approaches in 2010. He has been appearing on area stages since 1998 working with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati, New Stage Collective, The Children’s Theatre, Cincinnati Opera and most frequently with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, where he proudly serves as Producing Artistic Director. Recent credits include Dead Man’s Cell Phone and The Seafarer at Ensemble, The Goat or Who is Sylvia? with New Stage and Carmen with Cincinnati Opera. Favorite roles with CSC include A Streetcar Named Desire, Henry IV, Arcadia, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Fuddy Meers, Nocturne and the title characters in Macbeth (2006), Henry V (2005) and Hamlet (2004). Brian is the lucky husband of the most beautiful actress in town and the proud father of Holden Willis Phillips. He is a proud member of SDC and AEA.
Know Theatre of Cincinnati is supported, in part, by the generosity of community contributions to the ArtsWave Campaign. The Ohio Arts Council helps fund Know Theatre with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Know Theatre is supported by the National Theatre Company Grant from The American Theatre Wing, dedicated to supporting the most promising emerging theatre companies from around the country. Know Theatre of Cincinnati also receives support from The Carol Ann & Ralph V. Haile, Jr./U.S. Bank Foundation, helping to change our communities for the better through collaboration and innovation.
Our mission is to create evocative and explosive live entertainment.
Our vision is a world awakened to its collective possibility.
We value a playful artistic community where artists can collaborate and grow.
Behind the Curtain Cincinnati 