Our Point of View
The ancient Greeks created theatre to honor Dionysos, the god of inspiration, wine and fertility, as well as of madness and destruction. At Polarity, we take theatre back to its source. Our work reflects both polarities of life: the fertile and inspiring as well as the destructive and maddening. We join the ancient Greeks in hailing the yin/yang spirit that was personified in Dionysos. We aspire to an epic theatre that brings stories to life through the passion of actors possessed by their roles. We use music, dance and ritual when appropriate, to connect with human struggles and desires. We create theatre to tease the intellect and stir the soul.
We produce both the classical and the brand new—focusing our selection of new work from local playwrights and our own ensemble members. We also publish new works in book form. With a little luck and some hard work, we will foster new voices while providing a rich experience for the theatre-going public.
A Little History
Founded in 2004 by Richard Engling, Ann Keen, and Irv Gorman, Polarity Ensemble Theatre is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
In 2004 we co-produced a staged reading of Richard Engling's adaptation of Antigone with ShakespeareInc Theatre Company. Polarity continued the development process for that script until its 2006 production and publication.
Polarity's inaugural show, Absolute Macbeth, experienced a successful and critically-acclaimed run in 2005. The Chicago Tribune said: "Perhaps the moniker 'Extreme Macbeth' was already used, but the Polarity Ensemble's millennial version of this Shakespearean tragedy is just that--featuring martial arts, percussionists and ritual magic." The Chicago Reader said: "The show's hippie-agitprop-shaman elements--interpretive dance, ritual song, bloody sacrifice--are its tightest, cleanest, and most effective. A promising first effort from director and company head Richard Engling." And Time Out Chicago said: "Ann Keen as Lady Mac ... manages to make all of those famous speeches about damned spots and screwing your courage to the sticking place sound fresh and natural, which is no small task." Audience members sent us such comments as: “I'd never understood Macbeth before. These actors made it easy to understand what they were saying and what it meant.” “This was brilliant. Every aspect of the show worked.” “The best production of Macbeth I've ever seen.”
This production helped Polarity grow in many respects, establishing a protocol for respecting (and thus paying) collaborating artists, as well as adding a number of new members to the ensemble.
In February 2006, Polarity produced its new adaptation of Antigone and published its first book: Antigone and Macbeth: Adaptations for a War-Torn Time by Richard Engling. The book is a handsome trade paperback edition available at major online bookstores and at Polarity's own web site.
About the production New City said: “Polarity Ensemble Theatre's highly ambitious Antigone has been staged as if it were playing in a 30,000-seat auditorium, its striking physical production incorporating grand gesticulation, a painstakingly choreographed chorus and arresting stage pictures worthy of movie cinematography...a virtuoso display of theatrical technique... Its text, courtesy of playwright and PET artistic director Richard Engling, admirably folds pockets of poetic cadences within a contemporary formality of speech that will be accessible to all." The Chicago Reader called it: "...a nice balance between accessibility and heightened poetic language." The script has already been downloaded from our web site over 1,000 times and has been produced by high schools in Indiana, Michigan and Mississippi.
In July of 2006 we co-produced a benefit night with Breadline Theatre Group that included a musical cabaret arranged and directed by Polarity ensemble members Abigail Trabue and Ann Keen.
Dedication to New Work
In May/June 2006 Polarity staged its Dionysos Cup: A Festival of New Plays. We selected two plays from ensemble members and three plays from open submissions from Chicago area playwrights. The playwrights were given multiple critiques, time to revise their scripts, and then the revised scripts were given two staged readings each over two weekends, culminating with critiques from the audience, actors and director, giving the playwrights feedback for further rewrites. Two of the plays, one from an ensemble member and one from a local playwright, are in a continuing development process for possible future productions.
Up Next
On October 11, Polarity will produce a staged reading of Richard Engling's Ghost Watch, which is in development for a 2007 production. The staged reading will be presented as part of Evanston Arts Week.
Opening November 10, 2006 for a five week run, Polarity will present Shakespeare's OTHELLO in mask. Director Zack Brenner and Producer Abigail Trabue traveled to Japan this August to research theatrical techniques for the show. The production will put the conflict in Othello's mind in a physical form. The actors will use masks and will match the style of mask and acting technique to the individual character, incorporating elements of Commedia Dell'arte, Classic Greek, and European Masquerade. Adding Japanese stoicism and focus will create a poignant contrast to the European side of the production.
Polarity has also applied to take part in playwright Suzan-Lori Parks' world premiere 365 Days/365 Plays, which will be performed as a yearlong national festival simultaneously in major cities and communities around the country in 2007. If selected we would produce the seven plays for one of the weeks.
Beyond that, we are currently seeking a venue in which to produce Ghost Watch in the first half of 2007. We are working our way through the development process toward the production of a new musical in the second half of 2007—a major undertaking for a theatre of our size. We have three other projects in development (though we are not yet ready to announce them), as well as a number of projects in the proposal stage.
How We Reach Our Audience
We have various email lists with a total of over 2,500 addresses. Our lists grow as we collect addresses at productions and as people register at our web site for information or to download one of our scripts or ebooks. We have one of the most extensive and attractive web sites of any theatre of our size, which includes online ticket sales for our productions. We also have a direct mail list of 500+ to which we mail fundraising requests and postcard show announcements. We also write multiple press releases per event to attempt to win space in the media. And we belong to the League of Chicago Theatres, which offers us marketing and other assistance.
By participating in events with larger organizations, we benefit from their more extensive PR and advertising reach. This includes presenting the upcoming staged reading of Ghost Watch as part of Evanston Arts Week (and benefiting from the extensive Evanston Arts Council PR) and our potential participation in the 365 Days/365 Plays Project. In addition to the publicity from the 365 organization, we are pleased to be partnering with the Evanston Public Library, which will host us in their performance space. The library does a significant amount of PR for its events, including to the large Northwestern University population. This includes sending press releases to the media, mailing out flyers to all city departments and other addresses, having announcements in the City newsletter that goes to all Evanston households, placement on the City's web site of events and on the Library's own web site.
Challenges and Opportunities
Polarity has been very busy since its inception, especially considering that every project has required extensive preproduction development work, script-writing and/or research. Unlike many new companies, we have taken on the task of paying our artists and performers for their work in our major productions (even if the stipends are modest).
Except for hiring an accountant on one occasion, all our administrative and fundraising work has been performed by volunteers. Our three founding Board members have donated all their administrative and artistic work, not taking the stipends offered to our other performers, directors and designers.
How We Would Spend Our Grant
To help the company grow, we now must take on additional tasks beyond fund-raising, producing and publishing. Without the assistance of a supportive Board of Directors, the company cannot sustain itself. We need to recruit new Board members who are willing to share their skills and volunteer time. We need to reach a larger audience and sell more tickets. We also need to develop a program to better serve and retain our current patrons.
These tasks will take funds to execute, and they will require compensation. A great deal of the administrative work now falls to our Artistic Director. For example, he spent 82 volunteer hours in the month of August 2006 on tasks pertaining to marketing, administration and web design and maintenance, and an additional 13 hours on creative tasks pertaining to upcoming shows. We would like to create a position of Executive Director with a stipend of $5,000.00 per year to recompense Mr. Engling as we ask him to take on these additional tasks. We would like an additional $5,000.00 to help cover our current operating expenses, including liability insurance, production expenses and funds for expanded marketing. For those purposes, we are requesting a grant of $10,000.00.
Who We Are--Board/Ensemble Members
Artistic Director Richard Engling is an actor, director, playwright, novelist and musician. He has taught theatre, English and technical theatre at the high school level and has run his own business as a freelance marketing copywriter for twenty years. His books have been published by Penguin/Putnam and Polarity Ensemble Theatre Press. He played drums with a jazz quartet for ten years. He has a degree in theatre from Northern Illinois University and a Masters in Creative Writing from Indiana University. In addition to Artistic Director, Richard is the company's marketing director and web designer.
Managing Director Ann Keen received her B.A. from Saint Mary's University and her M.F.A. in acting from Arizona State University. Her favorite roles include Clytemnestra in The Oresteia, Emilia in Othello, Lucetta in Two Gentleman of Verona and, most recently, Lady Macbeth. She has also directed and acted in short films. She is especially brilliant at working with playwrights on developing new scripts. She assists Polarity in administration and fundraising. She makes her living in the banking industry.
Publisher Irv Gorman brought Polarity's first book into print. Irv is a published author and holds degrees in American Literature and Film from the University of Texas. He has acted on stage and in television and film and is a former artistic director of the inner city Los Angeles H.O.L.A. Youth Theatre Company. He was awarded a Mayor's Certificate of Commendation for his work with H.O.L.A.
Who We Are--Ensemble Members
Zack Brenner has worked with such Chicago area theatre companies as Bailiwick, Sansculottes, Keyhole and Bruised Orange as an actor, playwright and director. He directs Polarity's upcoming Othello in Mask. Zack assists Polarity in grant development.
Robert Ertel holds a B.A. in Theater/Performance from the University of Illinois at Chicago. His credits include Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Heidi, Nite Caps: Original Short Works, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The Taming of the Shrew, Awake and Sing!, Pippin, and Godspell. Robert assists Polarity in production, graphic layout and design.
Travis Gauchay holds a BA in Theater Arts from Weber State University. Some of his favorite performances include God's Country, The Birthday Party and The Serpent, which was performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Travis assists the company in researching venues and rehearsal spaces.
Mason Hill received his degree in acting from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He has performed in theaters in New York, Chicago and elsewhere. He is a skilled stage combatant versed in many weapons and styles of stage violence as well as stilt-walking, high-falls, juggling, body-burns, archery, and other perilous feats of the stage. Mason assists Polarity with stage movement and violence choreography.
Charley Jordan graduated with his B.A. in Theatre from St. Mary's University. He has played Brick in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Mark Antony in Julius Ceaser, Oliver in As You Like It and Ross in Absolute Macbeth and others. He does voice-over work for clients such as Auctions.com, Comcast Cable and Horseshoe Casino's. He assists Polarity with audience development and fundraising.
Abigail Trabue holds a B.A. in musical theatre from Columbia College Chicago. She has worked with Emerald City Theatre Company, Provisions Theatre Company, Bruised Orange Theater Company, and Porchlight Music Theatre, where she was the cast of The Secret Garden, which won a “Best Production” After Dark Award. She is Producer of the upcoming Othello in Mask. She assists Polarity with marketing, donor management and fundraising.