New Plays at Barnard aims to connect Barnard and Columbia students to the exciting work going up on New York City’s stages by building a bridge from the downtown experimental theatre scene to Barnard’s season of theatrical performances.
This new initiative pairs Barnard College with a downtown theatre company to develop and produce a new play by an emerging female playwright.
The playwright benefits from having her work developed with a high profile downtown company; most importantly, the play will receive a fully-produced, professionally directed and designed production at one of Barnard’s two spaces, the Minor Latham Playhouse or the Glicker-Milstein Black Box Theatre located in the recently opened Diana Center.
Student actors, designers, and technicians will work closely on the development and production of a new play—many for the first time. Students will also have the opportunity to intern at the collaborating theatre company and participate in panel discussions, lectures, and workshops that involve professionals from both Barnard and downtown.
In the 2011-2012 season, Barnard has joined forces with the downtown company New Georges to bring Lauren Feldman’s The Egg-Layers to the stage. The Egg-Layers riffs on the Greek myth of Leda and the swan, bringing it racing into our present moment with a story of healing, revenge, and a search for the divine.