This year we put together a little bit of something for everyone and then gave ourselves the challenge of a lifetime: produce a brand new opera! Were we insane? Hell, yes! But it paid off. Record attendance, record-breaking revenues, unprecedented critical acclaim, national recognition, and a series of new programs based on the slogan: no starving artists!
Download the SVT 2002 Annual Report (PDF)
Fugitive Pieces by Caridad Svich
WINNER! Austin Critics Table Awards for Best Director (Jason Neulander), Best Actor (Jud Jones) and Best Sound Design (Jeremy Lee)
The first show of the year took the audience on a dark road trip, examining the seedy underbelly of America through the travels of Downcast Mary (Lee Eddy) and Troubled John (Judson L. Jones). Fugitive Pieces was produced at Hyde Park Theatre. Stephen Pruitt's set design replaced all the existing seats, turned the theater into a thrust stage, and covered the playing area with 13 tons of gravel. The live music was played on a homemade instrument made of glass and metal built by Jeremy Lee and Chris Black. The result was a visceral sensory experience that left the critics impressed: "Director Jason Neulander wrings performances from his actors that are likely to land them in the spotlight come awards time. ... The long moments between dialogue ... impart a sense of desolation that hits my aesthetic sense just right." --Wayne Allen Brenner, The Austin Chronicle.
FEBRUARY 22 - MARCH 16
HYDE PARK THEATRE
Click HERE to learn more about the show!
Intergalactic Nemesis Redux, two episodic radio serials performed in rep
WINNER! 2002 B. Iden Payne Award--Best Sound Design
This year, Salvage Vanguard Theater brought back The Intergalactic Nemesis and its sequel, Return of the Intergalactic Nemesis, in rep for the month of June. The company transformed a local art gallery into a theater for the production. Featuring a slightly updated script, the show had more than 1,000 sound effects, all performed live. For the first time ever, Salvage Vanguard Theater extended the run of a show with Nemesis, adding one weekend to the production. The Austin Chronicle said: "Foley artists Etta Sander and Hilary Thomas bang, scratch, slam, switch, scrunch, and plunge their way through the retro-futuristic world of ace reporter Molly Sloan, sidekick Timmy Mendez, and lots of weird humans and weirder outer-space creatures. ... [Intergalactic Nemesis Redux! is] as authentic as it is humorous." The Austin American-Statesman put it this way: "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, earthlings and aliens, witness an amazing event as Salvage Vanguard Theater brings a blast from the past with Intergalactic Nemesis Redux. ... Perfect summertime entertainment!".
JUNE 7 - 29 (extended through July 5)
GALLERY LOMBARDI
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Artists and Patrons of the world ... UNITE! Join the Salvage Vanguard Labor Party, benefitting the artists creating the new opera MotherBone! With previews of upcoming shows, an unbelievable silent auction, and a full cash bar, this is one rally you don't want to miss. Become a card-carrying member of the Salvage Vanguard Labor Party! Solidarity. Strength. SVT.
SEPTEMBER 1, 2002
ALLGOClick HERE to read the Party line!
MotherBone, a world premiere opera by Graham Reynolds and Karen Hartman
Composer Graham Reynolds and producer/director Jason Neulander first worked together on the chamber opera The Cry Pitch Carrolls by Ruth Margraff, a resounding critical success ("Nothing less than a small miracle." -- The Austin Chronicle). Shortly thereafter, Reynolds wrote and presented his first symphony. Immediately after the performance, Neulander asked Reynolds if he wanted to compose a full-scale opera. Two-and-a-half years later, MotherBone received its world premiere.
When Reynolds and Neulander agreed to the project they didn't really know what they were getting into. Nearly every aspect of the development and production of the show was more challenging than they anticipated. From finding a librettist (Karen Hartman) to developing the libretto, to casting the roles, to finding talented teenagers to be in the chorus, to rehearsing the show, to scoring the orchestra's parts, to building the set, every element of the show was more work than either had tackled before. But the results paid off in spades.
"Graham Reynolds' score keeps you on the edge of your seat. ... The 14 actors [fill the stage] with superb song and fantastic emotion. ... It's an amazing show," said the Austin Chronicle after the premiere. And no wonder. MotherBone had already received the prestigious Frederick Loewe Music Theatre Award from New Dramatists in New York. MotherBone had garnered national attention in American Theatre magazine. And audiences came in droves. In fact, the show set a record for most performances and highest attendance for the company.
This herculean effort would not have been possible without the extraordinary financial support of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Houston Endowment, the City of Austin, the Austin Community Foundation, the Tobin Foundation and dozens of individual contributors. And, of course, nothing would have come of the project had it not been for the hours and hours of time put in by the cast, production staff and volunteers (more than 50 people) who devoted a portion of their lives to bring the project to fruition.
Perhaps the biggest success of MotherBone is that Neulander and Reynolds are already in discussions about the next opera, projected to be premiered in Fall 2004!
OCTOBER 31 - NOVEMBER 23, 2002
THE OFF CENTER
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The Next Best Salvage Vanguard Holiday Ever
For the sixth year running, Salvage Vanguard Theater presented its annual five minute new play festival with eleven new plays by some of Austin's and the nation's most exciting young writers. Written by Ron Berry, Carlos Murillo, Chad Nichols, Karen Hartman, Travis York, Michael Kranes, Molly Beth Brenner, Daniel Alexander Jones, Monika Bustamante, Lisa D'Amour, and Kirk Lynn • Directed and acted by Ryan Gray, Derek Mudd, Harvey Guion Carie Esquenazi, Ken Webster, Shannon McCormick, Ben Willcott, Wayne Allen Brenner, Hank Schwimmer, Katey Gilligan, Jud Jones, Parker Williams, Catherine Berry, Jennifer Haley, Maisha Akbar, Amy Hopper, Jessica Hedrick, Jason Phelps, Margery Segal, Sharon Sparlin, Lowell Bartholomee, Buzz Moran and more!
DECEMBER 13 AND 14
LITTLE CITY ESPRESSO BAR AND CAFE
[ AWARDS AND HONORS ]
17 Critics table nominations, and awards
This year, Salvage Vanguard Theater was nominated for a record number of Austin Critics Table Awards. Two nominations for Best Drama, Best New Script, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, two for Best Support Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Sound Design, two for Best Musical Directon, and two for Best Set Design. The company was honored with 5 wins, including Best Director (for Tilt Angel and Fugitive Pieces).
SVT hosts B. Iden Paynes
Jason Neulander was invited to host the B. Iden Payne Awards this year, a peer-generated theater awards ceremony. The company was nominated for six BIP Awards this year, and walked away with Best Sound Design for Intergalactic Nemesis Redux!
Dan at Humana
Resident Company Member Dan Dietz' play Trash Anthem will be featured in the 2003 Humana Fest at the Actors' Theater of Louisville, America's most prestigious new play festival. This is the latest in a series of recognitions that are launching Dan onto the national scene. Congratulations, Dan!
MotherBone recognized locally...
Perhaps for the first time ever, a cast album of an opera was in the top ten on a college radio station. That's right, MotherBone opened at number nine on KVRX (91.7), UT's student radio station. The show was also featured as the cover story in the October 24 XL Ent from the Austin American-Statesman.
... and nationally!
October's issue of American Theatre magazine was dominated by MotherBone, which was not only mentioned in three articles, but whose librettist (Karen Hartman) was featured on the cover. The show will receive a workshop presentation in New York as the 2002 winner of the Frederick Loewe Music Theatre Award for excellence in American music theater.
SVT recognized for its unique audience
Salvage Vanguard received the 2002-2003 New Generations Program grant from Theatre Communications Group, funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Trust and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The $25,000 grant, given to groups who show a track record of developing young audiences, is funding Salvage Vanguard's CD publication program as well as portions of the company's web site.
Best of Public Radio
The Intergalactic Nemesis and Return of the Intergalactic Nemesis were selected by KUT (90.5 FM) as part of its Best of Public Radio series. The shows were aired on three consecutive Sundays in July for an audience of more than 12,000 people.