“One of the most innovative and essential artists to emerge from American experimental theater in the past decade.” – Ben Brantley, The New York Times
“Richard Maxwell is a master of surprise.” – Jason Zinoman Time Out New York
“What is novel — and perhaps provocative — is the notion that theater can take place without the direct participation of live people. Artists have been incorporating video and taped performance into theatrical works for many years, in many different ways, but there is usually some live component. Here the only one is the audience. “Ads” resembles a video installation in a modern-art museum more than a traditional stage piece, but it suggests in its quiet way that you can create humane, affecting works of theater without the literal presence of human beings.”
– Charles Isherwood, The New York Times
Ads marks a new departure in the work of celebrated downtown auteur Richard Maxwell. In collaboration with photographer/cinematographer Michael Schmelling and Bozkurt Karasu (The Wooster Group), Maxwell asks whether theatre is possible without a human presence. Can verisimilitude be enhanced by technology? How can we address these questions in a live performance?
Whether in the realm of theater, music, or video, New York City Players (founded 1999) rigorously strip away the habitual identities that may encumber a work, thereby allowing pursuit of the power of language, of story, of image, and of what happens when people gather in a room. Individualism is celebrated by collaborating with performers and designers from all backgrounds and levels of experience.
The Cast of ADS includes:
Ramin Bahrani, Lakpa Bhutia, Jerimee Bloemeke, Sophia Chai, Janet Coleman, Keith Connolly, Ginger Corker, Richard Dundy, Bob Feldman, Rosie Goldensohn, Anita Hollander, Rosalie Ann Kaplan, Lou Kuhlmann, Michelle A. Lee, Walid Mohanna, Philip Moore, Farooq Muhammad, Christian Nunez*, Nicole, Louis Puopolo, Mark Russell, Katherine Ryan, Rafael Sanchez, Monica de la Torre, Ariana Smart Truman, Kate Valk
Check out NYC Players’s video: Ads Explained
Under The Radar Festival 2010 is a program of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, and is held in conjunction with APAP Conference NYC 2010. Major funding is provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Ford Foundation. The Festival is produced by Mark Russell and The Public Theater. www.undertheradarfestival.com
World Premiere
Jan 20 – Feb 16
60 Minutes
Presented by Performance Space 122 as part of COIL 2010
In association with Under the Radar
Help PS122 Go Green by viewing your ADS Program online!
