Open Circle Theater was a multi-disciplinary performance company in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

. It was committed to the development of new works and adaptations that spoke to the human condition through fantasy and mythic storytelling. Founded in the early 1990s, the theater established its reputation for unique theater at a small black-box space in a warehouse in the Lake Union/Cascade neighborhood of

. Throughout their seasons, Open Circle's resident company united with local directors, musicians, visual artists and performers, to bring fresh insight and invention to their creations of highly physical, ensemble-style theater. One of their popular events was the annual adaptation and production of the works of

H. P. Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of Weird fiction, weird, Science fiction, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Provi ...

for the stage, which reflected their experiments with new and adapted work. In 2008, due to development in the

South Lake Union South Lake Union (sometimes SLU) is a neighborhood in central Seattle, Washington, so named because it is at the southern tip of Lake Union. The official boundaries of the City of Seattle Urban Center are Denny Way on the south, beyond which ...

area where the new campus of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center was set be constructed, the building Open Circle Theater had called home for ten years was torn down. After a year being itinerant, the company relocated to a space on the second floor of a building in the thriving neighborhood of

Belltown, Seattle Belltown is the most densely populated neighborhood in Seattle, Washington, United States, located on the city's downtown waterfront on land that was artificially flattened as part of a regrading project. Formerly a low-rent, semi-industrial ...

very close to downtown. The space opened in October, 2008 with their all new adaptation based on H.P. Lovecraft's works called ''The

Necronomicon The ''Necronomicon'', also referred to as the ''Book of the Dead'', or under a purported original Arabic title of ', is a fictional grimoire (textbook of magic) appearing in stories by the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft and his followers. ...

.'' The company shared the floor with the theater school Freehold. Despite recent artistic and business management changes and a string of successful shows, the company was unable to maintain financial viability and officially closed in October 2011.

References

In the Kafka Colony Treats All Things Kafkaesque With a Light Touch
Review of ''In the Kafka Colony'' at Open Circle Theater
All Predictable, Some Fun H. P. Lovecraft, Crushed-Velvet Corniness, and "Naughty" Improv
Review of ''H. P. Lovecraft The Colour Out of Space'' at Open Circle Theater
Annual Lovecraft tradition continues at The Open Circle TheaterSeattle Weekly, January 25, 2006 "Happy 100th, Open Circle. A fringe theater celebrates a milestone."
* Review of ''Poona the Fuckdog and Other Plays for Children'' at Open Circle Theater
Seattle Weekly, December 2, 1998 "The ruling crass" By John Longenbaugh
Review of ''The Naked King'' at Open Circle Theater Seattle Weekly, June 9, 2004 "Opening Nights" by Richard Morin Review of "Are We Scared? An Experiment in Child's Play" * http://www.seattleweekly.com/2004-06-09/arts/opening-nights/

External links

Open Circle Theater
Official site. {{Authority control 2011 disestablishments in Washington (state) Theatre companies in Washington (state) Culture of Seattle