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Production Workshop (PW) is a student-run theater at
Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...
. Founded in 1960, it is the only entirely student-run theater on campus. PW stages 7 full-scale productions each year in its main black box theatre.


History

In 1958, student and future avant-garde playwright Richard Foreman sought to organize a production of Brecht's ''
The Caucasian Chalk Circle ''The Caucasian Chalk Circle'' () is a play by the German modernist playwright Bertolt Brecht. An example of Brecht's epic theatre, the play is a parable about a peasant girl who rescues a baby and becomes a better mother than the baby's wealthy b ...
'' through the university's existing theatre organization, Sock and Buskin. Citing the play's ostensible association with communism, the dean of the college refused to approve the production. In response, Foreman resigned from Sock and Buskin and organized his own series of experimental "art events" in Faunce House. Production Workshop emerged from these events and was officially established as a theater group in 1959 and 1960. The group staged its first play,
Jean Giraudoux Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux (; ; 29 October 1882 – 31 January 1944) was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II. His wo ...
's '' L'Apollon de Marsac'' in January of 1960. A review of the play in '' The Pembroke Record'' described the production as an "experiment in low budget theatre." The 1966 yearbook described the organization as the campus's experimental theatre company, writing that it "presents the more progressive and avant-garde side of drama." In winter 2006, the theater's production of Sartre's '' The Flies'' garnered media attention for its use of 40,000 live ''
drosophila melanogaster ''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (an insect of the Order (biology), order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly", "pomace fly" ...
''. In 2013, the group again attracted national attention for "Nudity in the Upspace," a series of events which sought to "discuss and explore nudity in all forms." Production Workshop controls two small
black box theater A black box theater is a performance space, typically a square or rectangular room, with black walls and a black, flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interact ...
s in T. F. Green Hall: the Upstairs Space and the Downstairs Space. The Upstairs Space serves as a venue for full-length plays, musicals, staged readings, performance art, art installations, poetry readings, workshops, and dance concerts, among other projects. In the Downstairs Space, PW's main theater, the group produces 3 plays in the fall semester and 4 plays in the spring semester. Downstairs Space shows usually have seating for 80-120 audience members.


Productions

Each production in the Downstairs Space is given access to the space for four weeks, including a week of tech rehearsals and performances. The Downstairs Space is also used by Musical Forum in the third month of each semester for their musical. Recent productions include ''Five Lesbians Eating a Quiche'' (2017), ''House of Virgina'' (2017), ''Melancholy Play: A Contemporary Farce'' (2017), ''Firefly in the Light'' (2019) ''In the Pink'' (2019), ''In the Next Room (2024).''


Notable PW Alumni

Notable alumni of Production Workshop include many of Brown's prominent graduates in film and theatre, including
John Krasinski John Burke Krasinski (; born October 20, 1979) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his role as Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom ''The Office'' (2005–2013), where he was also a producer and occasional director. He directed, co-w ...
,
Emma Watson Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson (born 15 April 1990) is an English actress. Known for her roles in both Blockbuster (entertainment), blockbusters and independent films, she has received List of awards and nominations received by Emma Watson, ...
,
Laura Linney Laura Leggett Linney (born February 5, 1964) is an American actress. She is the recipient of several awards, including two Golden Globe Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards, and has been nominated for three Academy Awards and five Tony Awards. ...
, Masi Oka, Marin Hinkle, Peter Jacobson, Kate Burton, and
Tim Blake Nelson Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor, writer, and director. Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in ''Minority Report (film), Minori ...
. Other alumni include novelist
Donald Antrim Donald Antrim (born 1958) is an American novelist. His first novel, ''Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World'', was published in 1993. In 1999, ''The New Yorker'' named him as among the 20 best writers under the age of 40. In 2013, he was named a ...
, illustrator Brian Selznick, and poet Sarah Kay. In a 2018 interview, political commentator and news anchor Chris Hayes described Production Workshop as "genuinely one of the most formative and important experiences in my life." Hayes stated, "It was probably the most important education I got in college, in terms of a practical sense for adult life. A huge amount of it was getting together with other people in a room to have a meeting to make a decision -- which basically is what all adult life ends up being."


References

{{authority control Brown University organizations Student theatre Theatre companies in Rhode Island Performing groups established in 1960 University performing groups