"It's All for the Kids, Baby"
PRODUCTIONS
Salvage Vanguard produced eight shows in 1998, becoming one of Austin's most prolific and visible companies. Each show was produced in a different venue, making Salvage Vanguard Theater a physical presence throughout the city. As a result, there was a tremendous amount of community support for the company. By the end of the year, Salvage Vanguard was producing the biggest-scale, most sophisticated productions it had ever produced.
When You Know What It Is You're Doing by Adam Sobsey (March 25 - April 16, 1998, Synergy Studio)
This show was the first to go through Salvage Vanguard's script development process. It received a week-long workshop in January to allow for rewrites before rehearsals for the full productions started in February. Critical response to the premiere was strong ("When You Know... is another joyous jaunt into [Salvage Vanguard's] creepy, alternate universe." – The Austin Chronicle). While the script came a long way in development, the final production was fraught with difficulties, ranging from poor production management to personality problems in the cast to a difficult performance environment to poor audience attendance. The biggest lesson learned from the production was that Salvage Vanguard's professional expectations had superceded the experience of student volunteers. As a result of the show, hiring talent became a top priority and eventually led to extremely strong productions of the other two mainstage shows.
Hey Stop That by Thalia Field (June 5 - 26, 1998, The Public Domain)
<>Directed by Katie Pearl, this show was one of the highlights of the year. Thalia's play combined dialogue with improvisation to explore the nature of hatred in our society. The production sold out seven of the twelve performances and received critical acclaim from the local press. Said the Austin Chronicle: "It is hard to look at. It is well nigh impossible to forget." Aimee McCormick, one of the actors in the show, was nominated for a local theater award for her performance.
Altamont Now by David Bucci (September 5 - 26, 1998, The Warehouse)
Salvage Vanguard Theater pulled out all the stops for this production, which was performed in a warehouse space on the east side of Austin. The show combined live music, theater, and video for an hour-and-a-half of non-stop thought-provoking entertainment. Altamont Now told the story of a rock star who starts a youth revolution against everything old. 130 people came to opening night alone, more than for any mainstage show to date. Critical response was positive - glowing reviews in The Daily Texan ("the ultimate example of [rock 'n roll's] youth culture and lifestyle") and the Austin-American Statesman ("ingenious") - and director Jason Neulander considers it to be Salvage Vanguard's strongest overall production in five years. More than 600 people saw the show (Salvage Vanguard's second-strongest turnout) and future productions of the play are in the works.
The Second-Stage Season
Thanks to financial support from The Meadows Foundation, Salvage Vanguard Theater produced five productions comprising its second-stage season. The second-stage season was designed to introduce the work of the company to new audiences and each show was performed in an alternative venue, including Little City Coffeehouse and a site-specific performance on the Drag. Each show was presented for one or two performances only, but was seen by more than 200 people. The second stage shows were: "The Best Salvage Vanguard Holiday Ever" (December 11 and 12, 1997); "Iconosploitation" (February 14, 1998); "Manifesto Destiny" (April 18, 1998); "Advent" (May 5 & 6); and "The 2nd Best Salvage Vanguard Holiday Ever" (December 12 and 13, 1998).
AWARDS AND HONORS
The Rockefeller Foundation
In October 1998, Salvage Vanguard Theater received the prestigious Multi-Arts Production (MAP) Fund from the Rockefeller Foundation in New York. The MAP Fund is dedicated to the development of interdisciplinary works through the collaboration of artists from different cultures and backgrounds. This year, The Rockefeller Foundation granted Salvage Vanguard $25,000 for the commissioning and recording of a new opera entitled Night Vision by Ruth E. Margraff and Fred Ho. Salvage Vanguard was one of only six theater organizations to receive this national award. The recording of Night Vision will be completed by September 30, 1999. Salvage Vanguard will be recognized as having commissioned the project in all future productions worldwide.
The Meadows Foundation
In December of 1997, The Meadows Foundation, Texas' largest private foundation, awarded Salvage Vanguard Theater a $25,000 grant to be paid out over a two year period dedicated to audience development. With the financial support of the Meadows Foundation, Salvage Vanguard was able to hire a Marketing and Communications Director in 1998 as well as produce five shows as part of a "second stage" season.
10 to Watch in 1998 ...
Each year the Austin-American Statesman recognizes ten outstanding up-and-comers in the arts and entertainment industry in Austin through its "10 to Watch" profile. In 1998, Jason Neulander, Salvage Vanguard's artistic director, received this noteworthy award. Said the Statesman: "Neulander aims to change the world ... Unlike most of his artistic compatriots, he is winning."
… and "Top Ten"
The Austin Chronicle runs its own annual "Top Ten" list. In 1998, Salvage Vanguard's production of Ruth E. Margraff's The Battle of San Jacinto proved to be a Chronicle favorite. Thanks to the critical and popular success of the production, a Houston-based group is planning their own production of the play in 2000, to be directed by Jason Neulander.
Cover Story on the Austin Chronicle ... Twice!
In 1998, Salvage Vanguard Theater was featured on the cover on the Austin Chronicle, which runs only one cover story per week, not once, but twice. The first story, entitled "Rebel Theatre", featured an image of Jason Neulander, clad in a leather jacket riding his motorcycle. The second story, tied to the opening of his play Altamont Now, featured David Bucci as one of two hot nationally recognized playwrights living in Austin. These stories by the Chronicle, Austin's biggest weekly paper, are proof that in only four years, Salvage Vanguard Theater has become one of Austin's leading theater companies.