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    Theater Review

    Dallas Theater Center puts Greek tragedy — and its audience — on the move

    Lindsey Wilson
    Apr 19, 2017 | 3:29 pm

    With each Greek tragedy he produces, Dallas Theater Center artistic director Kevin Moriarty has crept further and further away from what audiences might think of as "traditional" theater.

    First it was Luis Alfaro's contemporary, tatted-up, prison-set Oedipus El Rey in the Wyly Theatre's sixth-floor studio (the first mainstage production to use that space). Then came a gritty Medea staged underneath the Kalita Humphreys Theater in its scene shop (audiences had to pick their way down a narrow stairway to reach their seats). Now it's his own adaptation of Sophocles' Electra, spread out over Annette Strauss Square in the AT&T Performing Arts Center.

    Is it a cool concept, to shuttle the audience to four open-air locations, using headphones and fast-moving ushers to keep both the narrative thread and stray patrons together? Yes. Is this neat staging more interesting than Moriarty's choppy, murkily modernized script? Yes, a hundred times over.

    The frisson of excitement begins when you check in and receive a headset and battery pouch, then are herded efficiently onto the Annette Strauss Square stage. Diggle's first set is the tomb of Agamemnon, shrouded in ghostly fabric that flutters in the night breeze (all evening shows begin at 8:30 pm to allow Aaron Johansen's lighting design to be seen). Audience members are advised to wear comfortable clothing and good walking shoes, for in addition to traipsing around the AT&T Performing Arts Center you might spend the show's 90 minutes standing, sitting, or even crouching around the action.

    Those headsets allow us to hear the slain king (mellifluously voiced by Alex Organ) issuing orders of revenge to his only son, Orestes (SMU student Yusef D. Seevers, giving a stoic performance). They also pipe in eerie, atmospheric music designed by Broken Chord, and put each word, cry, grunt, and wail into sharp aural focus. This comes in handy as we move down onto the square's grassy lawn, which challenges the actors to sprint across its expanse if they want to emote even remotely close to each other.

    The physicality of Moriarty's production is fascinating. Though the actors might be tiny figures spread out under the shimmering lights of downtown Dallas, there's a startling intimacy to their interactions. The small cast, headed with passion by former DTC company member Abbey Siegworth as the avenging Electra, seems remarkably at ease with their unusual environment, which in turn provides an exciting sense of false comfort to the audience.

    False, because Moriarty doesn't want you to get comfortable. This is a Greek tragedy, after all, studded with sordid sexual misdeeds, murderous rage, and a tinge of madness.

    Siegworth's Electra, dressed in shredded rags and shiny with sweat, twigs poking out of her matted hair (kudos to costumer Claudia Stephens and wig designer David Bova for their equally maniacal and elegant looks), is plotting to take down her mother and new stepfather for killing her dad, Agamemnon. Keep in mind that the late king had previously sacrificed Electra's older sister to help start the Trojan War and bring back his sister-in-law, Helen of Troy (it's a whole ancient Greek family thing).

    Queen Clytemnestra (Sally Nystuen Vahle, Medea in Moriarty's famous production) rejoices when she receives word that her son, Orestes, is dead, for he can no longer challenge her for putting her lover, Aegisthus (Tyrees Allen), on the throne. Her daughters, Electra and Chrysothemis (Tiana Kaye Johnson), grieve the loss of their brother, though — surprise! — he and his guardian Paedagogus (David Coffee) are actually the messengers. That does not, as you can imagine, bode well for the king and queen.

    All of this moves as quickly as the ushers hope the audience will, flying through Sophocles' story in CliffsNotes fashion and with an ungainly mix of classic speech and modern phrasing. Moriarty's script moves in odd spurts, dwelling overlong on Electra's grief and resentment but building almost no tension before Clytemnestra and Aegisthus' ultimate demise. The third setting where those deeds are done is also the weakest, letting us get up close with the actors yet providing awful sight lines for the climax.

    An ethereal use of the reflecting pool in front of the Winspear Opera House closes the play on a serene note. It's at odds with all we have just witnessed, but it does make an awesome background for post-show selfies. And perhaps this time it's the experience, not the play, that's the thing.

    ---

    Dallas Theater Center's production of Electra runs through May 21.

    Yusef D. Seevers (Orestes) with Siegworth.

    Yusef D. Seevers and Abbey Siegworth in Electra
      
    Photo by Karen Almond
    Yusef D. Seevers (Orestes) with Siegworth.
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    Theater news

    Dallas' Theatre Three asks public for urgent help to keep lights on

    Stephanie Allmon Merry
    May 13, 2025 | 5:13 pm
    Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 Off Broadway.
    Photo by Chad Batka
    "Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812" ran Off Broadway.

    A longtime Dallas theater company is asking for urgent help. Theatre Three (T3) has made a plea to the community for $200,000 in donations to stay in business.

    In a Facebook post on May 13, they say, "Without immediate and substantial help from our community, we will be forced to close our doors."

    They say they've suffered several years' worth of financial hardships, including effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and more recently, cuts in arts funding.

    The post says, in part:

    "For 64 years, Theatre Three has been a cornerstone of Dallas’ creative spirit — bringing bold, innovative productions to life and showcasing the extraordinary talent of our local artists, designers, and creatives. We have been an intimate stage for everyone. But now, we face the greatest challenge in our history.

    "After mourning the loss of our beloved Jac Alder, and then, under the leadership of the incredible Jeffrey Schmidt, surviving the immense toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, we find ourselves once again at a significant crossroads. The ongoing erosion of support for the arts has dealt a devastating blow to our funding ...

    Our goal is $200,000. This is not the news we want to share, but it is news that we believe you all would want to know."

    The post is signed by board members Jessica Turner Waugh, Suzanne Burkhead, Rosa Medina-Cristobal, Scott T. Williams, Robert McCollum, Harrison Herndon, David G. Luther, Mia Glogau, and Jon Collins.

    Donations, they say, will help support local artists, staff and creatives to produce their next show, Xanadu; counter the rising costs of rent, insurance, and production; and allow them to retain staff.

    "We know times are tough. But we also know what this theater and its people mean to our city and to the generations who have found meaning, joy, and belonging within its walls," they say. "And that is why we are making this urgent plea. Help us preserve this Dallas institution."

    They end the post with a link to their donation page: https://www.theatre3dallas.com/support/.

    T3's black-box theater Theatre Too's final show of the season is The Mystery of Irma Vep, a fast-paced and campy parody that is on stage now through May 18.

    Theatre Three will close out its current season with Xanadu, a high-energy, roller-skating extravaganza that brings the 1980 cult film to life. Douglas Carter Beane is behind the hilarious book, and music and lyrics are by John Farrar and Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) founding member Jeff Lynne. It is set to run June 5-July 6, 2025.

    In addition to a full season of mainstage productions, Theatre Three offers additional programs for the community throughout the year.

    Monday Night Playwright features unique and affordable opportunities for local writers to showcase their works. Fight Night provides the community and artists alike with movement and other physical skills through monthly stage combat classes.

    The Norma Young Advanced Acting Lab, a collaboration with Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, is in its fifth year. Students have access to masterclasses hosted by industry professionals and exclusive insight on the professional production process at Theatre Three, then the course concludes with a professionally produced showcase.

    Theatre Three is located at 2688 Laclede St. in the Quadrangle in Uptown Dallas. For more information in productions and programs, visit their website.

    ---

    Lindsey Wilson contributed to this story.

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