A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black box is a relatively recent innovation in theatre.
28-662: (Redirected from Studio Theatre ) A studio theatre is a 20th-century term for a small theatre space. It may also refer to: Billings Studio Theater , a space and company in Billings, Montana, USA Florida Studio Theatre, also known as the Sarasota Woman's Club , in Florida, USA Gate Theatre Studio , a 20th-century studio theatre in London, UK National Theatre Studio ,
56-642: A black box theater can be adapted from other spaces, such as hotel conference rooms. This is common at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe where the larger venues will hire entire buildings and divide each room to be rented out to several theater companies . "The Black Box Theatre" in Oslo, Norway , and the Alvina Krause Studio at Northwestern University are theaters of this type. Black box theaters have also been known to come with
84-588: A handful of disadvantages. The open space may leave "too many" options that can leave many at a loss for direction or inspiration. Lighting issues arise as the primary lighting is typically above the performance area. During blackout scenes, the close proximity of the audience allows them to still see the transitions happening on stage. Black box spaces also see success within the music industry. These spaces are known to be used to host vocal and instrumental performances, rehearsals, shows, and competitions. Most older black boxes were built like television studios , with
112-452: A large proscenium theater, as well as a black box theater. Not only does this allow two productions to be mounted simultaneously, but they can also have a large extravagant production in the main stage while having a small experimental show in the black box. Black box spaces are also popular at fringe theater festivals; due to their simple design and equipment they can be used for many performances each day. This simplicity also means that
140-480: A low pipe grid overhead. Newer black boxes typically feature catwalks or tension grids , the latter combining the flexibility of the pipe grid with the accessibility of a catwalk. They were designed to be able to be spaces that can be molded into different settings easily for multiple performances. Black box theaters accommodate smaller audiences with the goal of having more intimate experiences. The interiors of most black box theatres are painted black, although that
168-460: A major operation of over eight million dollars a year by 2008. Regardless of continued recent critical acclaim of the Playhouse, and despite its steadily popular and ambitious season schedules, the theatre had a history of financial difficulties since its reopening in the 1980s. Saddled with millions of dollars' worth of debt from earlier unforeseen expenditures during the theatre's restoration,
196-541: A multimillion-dollar anonymous matching fund contribution toward operating costs and judicially approved debt cancellation . The Pasadena Playhouse also reduced paid staff to essential upper level administration, keeping the Artistic Director Sheldon Epps as coordinator for the rest of the planned consolidation. Director Epps announced through an interview with the LA Times that the shake-up
224-500: A new venue for productions. The community theatre organization quickly grew and in May 1924, the citizens of Pasadena raised funds to build a new theatre in the city center at 39 South El Molino Avenue. Completed in 1925, the theatre was designed in a Spanish Colonial Revival style by Pasadena artist and architect Elmer Grey , with a fire curtain painted by Pasadena artist Alson S. Clark . Its non-professional, community beginnings and
252-510: A stage instigated a half-century of innovations in the relationship between audience and performers. This idea would again be re-visited by Harley Granville Barker , using Appia's design as his basis. Barker would have ideas of directing productions in “a great white box,” which would see success in 1970. As time went on, black boxes were decided on instead as black provided the most neutral setting for productions. Antonin Artaud also had ideas of
280-592: A stage of this kind. The first flexible stage in America was located in the home living room of actor and manager Gilmor Brown in Pasadena, California. While the domestic decor meant that Brown's stage was not a proper black box, the idea was still a revolutionary one. This venue, and two subsequent permutations, are known as the Playbox Theatre, and functioned as an experimental space for Brown's larger venue,
308-985: A studio theatre attached to the Royal National Theatre, UK Studio Theatre (Sheffield) , a performance space in Sheffield, UK Studio Theatre, theatre at the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney, Australia Studio Theatre (Washington, D.C.) , a theatre and company in Washington D.C. USA Studio Theatre at the Maxwell C. King Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne, Florida, USA See also [ edit ] The Studio (disambiguation) Topics referred to by
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#1732775518650336-621: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Studio theatre Black box theaters have their roots in the American avant-garde of the early 20th century. The black box theaters became popular and increasingly widespread in the 1960s as rehearsal spaces. Almost any large room can be transformed into a "black box" with the aid of paint or curtains, making black box theaters an easily accessible option for theater artists. Storefronts, church basements, and old trolley barns were some examples of
364-429: Is not exclusive (a black box doesn't have to be black to be considered a black box, though black is most common). The absence of colour not only gives the audience a sense of "anyplace" (and thus allows flexibility from play to play or from scene to scene), it also allows for an innovative lighting design to shine through. The architecture of black box theaters typically allow for easy modifications and decorations, but at
392-477: The Pasadena Playhouse . Such spaces are easily built and maintained. Black box theaters are usually home to plays or other performances requiring very basic technical arrangements, such as limited set construction . Common floor plans include thrust stage , modified thrust stage, and theater in the round . Universities and other theater training programs employ the black box theater because
420-709: The Playhouse's operators struggled with balancing interest and loan repayments with increasing running costs. On January 29, 2010, the Los Angeles Times announced that, due to financial difficulties, the theatre would close on February 7 after its run of the musical Camelot and cancel the remaining 2010 season. On May 11, 2010, the Pasadena Playhouse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and announced an intention to restructure its operations to reduce its debt burden. After less than four months, on July 7, 2010, it emerged from bankruptcy after
448-634: The United States. The artistic community that founded the Pasadena Playhouse was started in 1916 when actor-director Gilmor Brown began producing a series of plays at a renovated burlesque theatre with his troupe "The Gilmor Brown Players". Brown established the Community Playhouse Association of Pasadena in 1917 that would later become the Pasadena Playhouse Association, which necessitated
476-581: The business. Due to changes in Actors' Equity Association laws, and the opening of drama departments in many schools and universities across the country, the College of Theatre Arts shut down in 1969. Later that year, after the death of founding director Gilmor Brown, the theatre itself went bankrupt. After six years, the city bought the building in 1975 and later transferred it to real estate developer David Houk. After it lay dormant for 17 years, he relaunched
504-492: The earliest versions of spaces transformed into black box theaters. Sets are simple and small and costs are lower, appealing to nonprofit and low-income artists or companies. The black box is also considered by many to be a place where more "pure" theatre can be explored, with the most human and least technical elements in focus. The concept of a building designed for flexible staging techniques can be attributed to Swiss designer Adolphe Appia , circa 1921. The invention of such
532-579: The expense of time and monetary cost. Pasadena Playhouse Pasadena Playhouse is a Tony Award-winning historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California . The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engagements each year. Beginning around 1912, the period known as the Little Theatre Movement developed in cities and towns across
560-595: The first companies in California to experiment with new theatrical forms such as theatre-in-the-round . The Playhouse also built and operated one of the first television stations in Southern California. In addition to training the Air Force to use television and radio equipment, the Pasadena Playhouse supplied the majority of Southern California's early TV stations with the first trained technicians in
588-442: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Studio theatre . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Studio_theatre_(disambiguation)&oldid=1143492827 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
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#1732775518650616-405: The school years, the Playhouse was very active, having as many as five independent stages in operation at any given time, giving 306–322 performances annually on the main stage alone. In order to provide housing for the many students, older homes along El Molino Avenue were modified to become dormitories. The varied staging capabilities offered by its five venues led the Playhouse to become one of
644-481: The space is versatile and easy to change. The black backdrop can encourage the audience to focus on the actors, furthering the benefits. Additionally, as the audience is now closer to the stage due to the lack of a proscenium , a more intimate atmosphere is able to be created. This intimate space may also serve to try and eliminate the implied mental distance between the audience and actors, while it still physically remains. Many theater training programs will have both
672-561: The subscribers donated the rest of their season back to the theatre rather than requesting refunds, recusing the theatre of over a million dollars in possible financial liability. Epps has said that as the debt burden is lifted these steps will allow the theatre to carefully and responsibly rebuild the company. On April 1, 2011, the Playhouse held a "Premiere Gala: Opening Night" to celebrate its newfound financial solvency and announce next year's productions. In 2017, after 20 years as artistic director, Sheldon Epps announced his departure from
700-410: The theatre in 1986 as a place to develop shows that would tour other California venues. While the Pasadena Playhouse reopened for use as a community theatre, the acting school remained closed. Over the next twenty years, the theatre staged classic drama, new musicals and plays, and integrated itself as an educational facility, slowly regaining a prominent place in the national theatre scene to become
728-735: The tremendous amount of local support for the project led George Bernard Shaw to dub Pasadena "the Athens of the West", likening the enterprise to the ancient Festival Dionysia . The building that was designed by Grey and built by the Winter Construction Co. drew the attention of the nation, bringing Southern California world premieres by authors such as Eugene O'Neill , William Saroyan , Noël Coward , F. Scott Fitzgerald and Tennessee Williams , as well as many English language premieres of significant Continental dramas. The Playhouse
756-416: Was intended to put the theatre back on solid financial footing and ensure the Playhouse's survival into the future. The Playhouse released a tentative Fall/Winter season schedule including one new production of Dangerous Beauty slated for January 2011. Plans for a new extension and 400 seat venue designed pro bono by Frank Gehry were announced in 2007, but the extension was never built. A majority of
784-951: Was recognized by the Legislature as the State Theatre of California in 1937. The Pasadena Playhouse School of Theatre Arts was established in 1927 initially offering course credit via the University of California . Later known as the Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts , it eventually became an accredited college in 1936, offering BFA and MFA degrees. The college trained notable talents such as Raymond Burr , Victor Mature , Ernest Borgnine , Eleanor Parker , Charles Bronson , Ray Vasquez , Gene Hackman , Dustin Hoffman , Sally Struthers , Jamie Farr , Mako , Robert Rockwell , and others. During
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