The Official Salvage Vanguard Theater Blog

As everyone reading this probably knows, I helped found Salvage Vanguard Theater thirteen years ago. And in that time almost everything we’ve created has been right here in Austin. Over the years we’ve received a little bit of national attention for our work, but sometimes it feels that on a national level we’re creating work in a vacuum. Which is to say it’s very hard to tell what the rest of the world thinks of what we do here in town.

Two things have happened in the past couple of weeks that make me think that maybe, in fact, we are playing on a national stage. First, the Intergalactic Nemesis tour, which played across the country this past year, and already has nine engagements for the 2007-8 season (including the Paramount here in Austin) has just been booked into the Wortham Center in Houston. For those of you who don’t know, the Wortham Center is one of the premiere presenters in the nation. We’re in their New Now series along with Ira Glass. The Nemesis show there is November 16. We are through the roof about this. Please let your friends and family in Houston know about the show.

Second, our man Dan Dietz, who began working with SVT in 1997 as an actor, but is probably better known as the incredible playwright of Dirigible, Tilt Angel, tempOdyssey, and Americamisfit, all of which received their first productions through SVT, has been getting productions around the country with his play tempOdyssey. The show just got reviewed in the New York Times, running at New Jersey Rep. It’s very rare for the Times to print a review that’s unequivocally positive, but this was one of them. In fact (and I’m not kidding), they call the show “a brilliant tour de force.”

I couldn’t be prouder of Dan and happier for SVT. This is a major breakthrough for a guy who we’ve known for years is one of America’s most brilliant up-and-comers.

Anyway, we’re not living in a vacuum here in Austin. In fact, the nation is watching!