Guthrie Theater

The Guthrie Theater is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the result of the desire of Sir Tyrone Guthrie, Oliver Rea, and Peter Zeisler to create a resident acting company that would produce and perform the classics in an atmosphere removed from the commercial pressures of Broadway.

The Guthrie Theater company has performed in two main facilities. The first building was designed by architect Ralph Rapson and included a 1,441-seat thrust stage designed by Tanya Moiseiwitsch, which was active from 1963-2006. After closing its 2005-2006 season, the company moved to its current facility designed by French architect Jean Nouvel.

History

In 1959 Guthrie published a small invitation in the drama page of the New York Times soliciting communities' interest and involvement in a resident theater. Out of the seven cities that responded, the Twin Cities showed not only interest but also eagerness for the project.

Frank Whiting, the director of the University of Minnesota Theater introduced Guthrie to the arts community in the Twin Cities and helped gather support that persuaded Guthrie to locate his theater in Minneapolis. With the help of the newly founded Tyrone Guthrie Theater Foundation a fundraising effort raised over US$2 million. The new theater was completed in 1963 in time for the May 7 opening of Hamlet. During its first season the Guthrie theater featured well known stage actors Jessica Tandy and Zoe Caldwell and featured a group of younger actors including Joan van Ark. Tyrone Guthrie served as Artistic Director until 1966 and continued to direct at the theater he founded until 1969, two years before his death. In 1966 Douglas Campbell was named Artistic Director.

Throughout the 1960s the Guthrie found critical acclaim in its productions of Henry V, St. Joan, Caucasian Chalk Circle, Three Sisters and especially The House of Atreus. In 1968 the production of The House of Atreus was taken on the road in a national tour that was a first for a resident theater. Also starting in 1968 the Guthrie started producing a series of plays done on smaller stages in the Twin Cities area, Crawford-Livingston Theater and The Other Place.

In 1971, Michael Langham became Artistic Director and produced highly successful classics including Oedipus the King, Love's Labour's Lost, She Stoops to Conquer, and A Streetcar Named Desire. After Langham left in 1977, the Guthrie crossed a milestone of sorts when for the first time it selected an artistic director that was not a respected collaborator or friend of Tyrone Guthrie. That year Alvin Epstein was selected as Artistic Director and was the first American to fill that role.

In 1980 Liviu Ciulei replaced Epstein. Ciulei was the former Artistic Director of Teatrul Bulandra in Romania and had a profound influence on the Guthrie theater. He challenged audiences with his bold theatrical interpretations and his highly contemporary and international style. Ciulei's intense interest in theater didn't stop at the productions themselves, he was a world-class designer and architect and one of the first things he did was to redesign the theater itself. His changes allowed more structural flexibility in the stage to allow each production a unique physical presentation. While Ciulei was not able to attain all the goals he had envisioned, he was able to maintain and advance the Guthrie's national and international reputation as a first-rate example of American Theater and drew critical success with productions of classics such as Peer Gynt, The Marriage of Figaro, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Seagull, and Tartuffe. He also was able to reestablish the Guthrie’s commitment to acting ensembles by gathering together a rotating repertory in his last season as Artistic Director in 1985.

That year the Guthrie turned to Garland Wright who had spent some time as Liviu Ciulei’s Associate Artistic Director in the early 1980s as Ciulei's replacement. Wright had shared a vision with Ciulei that included the desire to have a second, smaller stage that could act as a lab to enable the exploration of new work and performance techniques. Born out of this vision was the Guthrie Laboratory (also known as the Guthrie Lab) located in the Minneapolis Warehouse District. Wright also shared a desire to keep the concept of a resident acting company alive and used his ensembles to great effect. He was able to combine critical and popular success with a series of productions that helped reestablish a large, enthusiastic and loyal audience base. Productions from this period include The Misanthrope, Richard III, The Screens, and a trilogy of Richard II, Henry IV (Parts I and II) and Henry V, Medea and As You Like It. Wright also created a series of outreach programs designed to garner interest in theater among young people and involving high school and colleague instructors.

Garland Wright announced his resignation in 1994 and after an international search for his successor, Irish director Joe Dowling was chosen as the Guthrie's seventh Artistic Director. Dowling had gained an international reputation with his work at Ireland's national theater, The Abbey Theater, including becoming the Abbey's youngest Artistic Director in its long history.

Under Dowling's artistic leadership, the Guthrie Theater has enjoyed unprecedented growth. Subscriptions are at an all-time high of more than 32,000, up more than 50% from the beginning of Dowling's tenure. Dowling's time at the Guthrie Theater has been marked by a return to regional touring, co-productions by visiting international theater companies (WorldStage Series), collaborations with local theater companies, and his own dynamic productions of the classics.

1963 theater building

in 2006]] Paired with an innovative philosophy that included a resident acting company with high professional standards was a unique design concept in the stage itself.

Architect Ralph Rapson was selected to design the 1963 theater building. Rapson was a leading contributor to architecture's modern movement on the East Coast from the late 1940s through the 1950s, and served as head of the University of Minnesota School of Architecture in the late 1950s. Rapson had also worked on some preliminary sketches of the Walker Art Center, who donated land for the Guthrie's construction. Guthrie and Rapson selected a modified theater in the round design that featured a thrust stage projecting from a back wall with seating surrounding nearly two thirds of it.

site of the first Guthrie (green lawn at right in 2008)]] The Guthrie's design arose out of architect Ralph Rapson's work with the Walker Art Center who had asked him to work on some ideas for a small auditorium the Walker had in mind near their museum. The result was a theater with a thrust stage that put more demands upon performers on the stage, and for technical staff. The theater, designed by English born theater designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch, seated 1,441 people when it first opened its doors in 1963 and featured an irregularly-shaped stage that had 7 sides and took up 1120 square feet (104 m²). From the angles, seating radiates outward and upward, balconies hung over the space just under ceiling-hung acoustical panels that carried the asymmetrical theme all the way to the top of the theater. The uniqueness of the concept was carried right though to the use of a minimum of scenic props intended for suggestion rather than literal presentation of the physical production. In 1980 Artistic Director Liviu Ciulei redesigned the stage. The stage itself was modified so that its size, shape and height was adjustable, and he opened up the back wall to create more depth.

In 2002 the National Trust for Historic Preservation put the old Guthrie building on its list of the most endangered historic properties in the United States in response to plans announced by the Walker Art Center to expand on the land occupied by the theater. However, demolition started in late 2006 beginning with the common area between the old Guthrie building and the Walker. The site has been turned into green space and an extension of the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden.

2006 theater building

In 2006, the Guthrie finished construction of a new $125 million theater building along the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis. The design is the work of architect Jean Nouvel, along with the Minneapolis architectural firm Architectural Alliance and is a 285,000 square foot (26,500 m²) facility that houses three theaters: (1) the theater's signature thrust stage, seating 1,100, (2) a 700-seat proscenium stage, and (3) a black-box studio with flexible seating. It also has a 178-foot cantilevered bridge (called the "Endless Bridge") to the Mississippi which is open to visitors during normal building hours. The outside of the building's walls are covered in large panels which display a large mural of photographs from past plays visible clearly at night. The acoustics of the three theaters were designed by TALASKE of Oak Park, Illinois in collaboration with Kahle Acoustics of Brussels, Belgium.

The first Guthrie production at the new location,The Great Gatsby (adapted for the stage by Simon Levy and directed by David Esbjornson), opened on July 15, 2006.

Awards / Recognition

2006

  • One of GQ Magazine's 10 Most Important Buildings of the 21st Century
  • Architecture Magazine's best of 2006

2007

  • Travel + Leisure Design Award 2007 - Best Cultural Space

2008

  • Jean Nouvel named Pritzker Architecture Prize laureate
  • Guthrie Theater presented with an Award of Excellence for Project of the Year from Post-Tensioning Institute with Amsysco Inc. as the unbonded post tensioning supplier

2009

  • The Endless Bridge named "Best View" by City Pages (Minneapolis) newspaper

Facilities

  • 1,100-seat Wurtele Thrust Stage
  • 700-seat McGuire Proscenium Stage
  • 199-seat Dowling Studio
  • a 178-foot cantilevered endless bridge, extending the equivalent of 12 stories towards the Mississippi River
  • The Guthrie Learning Center - education classrooms
  • Guthrie Store
  • Sea Change, a sustainable seafood restaurant from The James Beard Foundation Awards's 2009 Midwest Chef award winner Tim McKee
  • Level Five Cafe, casual pre-show dining
  • Level Five Express, coffee bar
  • Target Lounge

Artistic Directors

  • Tyrone Guthrie (1963-1966)
  • Douglas Campbell (1966-1967)
  • position not filled (1968-1970)
  • Michael Langham (1971-1977)
  • Alvin Epstein (1978-1980)
  • Liviu Ciulei (1980-1985)
  • Garland Wright (1986-1995)
  • Joe Dowling (1995-present)

2009-2010 season

under construction in the scene shop at the Guthrie]]

Main article: Guthrie Theater production history
  • Ella - book by Jeffrey Hatcher, conceived by Rob Ruggiero and Dyke Garrison
  • The Importance of Being Earnest - by Oscar Wilde
  • Faith Healer - by Brian Friel
  • A Christmas Carol - by Charles Dickens, adapted by Barbara Field
  • Romeo and Juliet - by William Shakespeare, co-production with The Acting Company
  • Macbeth - by William Shakespeare
  • M. Butterfly - by David Henry Hwang
  • Dollhouse - by Rebecca Gilman, based on A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen
  • A Streetcar Named Desire - by Tennessee Williams
  • The Scottsboro Boys - music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, book by David Thompson

2010-2011 season

  • The Master Butchers Singing Club - by Marsha Norman, adapted from the novel by Minnesota author Louise Erdrich

The complete season will be announced May 18, 2010

References

Further reading

External links

See also

  • Gold Medal Park
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Florence Wong
15 July 2016
Beautiful architecture with spectacular shows, talented dedicated performers, and spine-chilling music. Love their inclusiveness and efforts to increase diversity in gender, nationality, ability, etc.
Nicky Y.
1 August 2016
Go there in the evening and don't miss the scenic view of Mississippi River and Arch Stone Bridge. Must visit.
Lynne Sturtevant
16 May 2014
Fantastic theater complex. Make sure to go to the observation area for the views of the Mississippi River and the falls.
July Vang
29 July 2013
Strong characters, thought-provoking issues on racism, some comedy, language, and directions. Great ensemble, wonderful staff, cafe a bit higher on the price. Stop by their gift shop.
IrmaZandl ZandlSlant
21 July 2019
Saw Guys and Dolls and it was amazingly fun!!! If you go make sure you head up to 9th floor and check out the views from there.
Tiffany Rupp
19 August 2016
Two theatres. We've seen multiple plays at both but the Wurtle-thrust stage is the best. Every seat is great. Great views. Nice staff.
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820 South 2nd Street, Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, Minneapolis, MN 55415, USA Get directions
Thu 9:00 AM–10:00 AM
Fri 2:00 PM–3:00 PM
Sat 11:00 AM–9:00 PM
Sun 11:00 AM–3:00 PM
Mon 6:00 PM–8:00 PM
Tue 8:00 AM–10:00 AM

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