Arena Stage

History

Founding, location, and theaters

The company was founded in Washington, D.C., in 1950 by Zelda and Thomas Fichandler and Edward Mangum. Its first home was the Hippodrome Theatre, a former movie house. In 1956, the company moved into the gymnasium of the old Heurich Brewery in Foggy Bottom; the theater was nicknamed "The Old Vat."

In 1960, the company moved into its current complex on Sixth Street, which was designed for them by Chicago architect Harry Weese. He also designed the Arena's Kreeger Theater, which opened in 1970. In 1966, Robert Alexander joined the company and created the Living Stage as a social outreach improvisational theater. From 2008 to 2010, the complex was renovated and a third theatre was added, together with a variety of support spaces. The new complex, with the theatres under a glass skin, was named as the Mead Center for American Theater. Its outdoor terrace overlooks the Southwest Waterfront.

Inclusion and diversity focus

Arena was the first theatre in D.C. to be racially integrated. Its production The Great White Hope, which opened at Arena Stage in 1967, was transferred to Broadway with its original cast, including James Earl Jones and Jane Alexander in the lead roles. Arena was the first regional theater to transfer a production to Broadway. When Arena Stage reprised the play in 2000 as part of its 50th-anniversary celebration, Mahershala Ali was cast as the male lead. It was his first professional role.

In 1968, the company received a $250,000 grant from the Ford Foundation. Part of it was to be used for the training of black actors. In 1987, Arena hosted a symposium on nontraditional casting. In 1989, the company received a $1 million grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to train minority actors, directors, designers and administrators, and to produce plays from non-white cultures.

In the latter half of the 20th century, the company traveled abroad. In 1973, they performed Thornton Wilder's Our Town and Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee's Inherit the Wind in the Soviet Union after being encouraged by the U.S. State Department to do so. This made them the first regional theater to present U.S. plays in the USSR.

In 1980 Arena Stage was the first American theater company to be invited to the Hong Kong Arts Festival. It attended the Israel Festival in Jerusalem in 1987. In the U.S., to promote cultural diversity, Zelda Fichandler included plays from the Soviet Union, Romania, Poland, Hungary, Austria, East and West Germany, France, Switzerland, England, Canada, and Australia in the theater's repertoire. In 1991, Arena raised $4 million for a cultural diversity grant. This became the Allen Lee Hughes Fellowship Program.

In 1981, Arena developed Audio Description for visually impaired audience members. This made the company the first theater to create audio-described performances.

In 1976, Arena Stage became the first theater outside New York to receive a special Tony Award for theatrical excellence.

Original plays and films

In 2016, artistic director Molly Smith announced the Power Plays initiative to commission 25 original plays and musicals over the next 10 years to showcase American history from 1776 to modern day. These have included works by Jacqueline Lawton, Eve Ensler, Rajiv Joseph, Mary Kathryn Nagle, Sarah Ruhl, Lawrence Wright, Eduardo Machado, Aaron Posner, John Strand, Craig Lucas, Kenneth Lin, and Nathan Alan Davis.

During the coronavirus pandemic, Arena Stage launched the Artists Marketplace as a way for people to commission or purchase work from the artists who have worked with the company.

The company also produced three films: May 22, 2020, a docudrama that follows D.C.-Maryland-Virginia residents and captures a day in their lives during the pandemic; Inside Voices, which features the stories of kids during the pandemic; and The 51st State, about the D.C. statehood movement.

In 2021, the company released a three-part commissioned music series called Arena Riffs as part of its reopening.

Timeline

Renovation and new construction, 2008–2010

The Arena's existing theaters, the Fichandler Stage and the Kreeger Theater, were enclosed under a glass "skin" together with a new theater, the Arlene and Robert Kogod Cradle. The entire $135 million complex was renamed "Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater" in honor of supporters Gilbert and Jaylee Mead. The new building also includes a central lobby, restaurant, and the Catwalk Cafe, and such support spaces as rehearsal rooms, classrooms, production shops, and offices. The restaurant, Richard's Place, is closed for the 2021–2022 season.

For the first time in the company's history, all staff and operations were joined under one unifying roof. The three-stage theater complex is now the second-largest performing arts center in Washington, DC, after the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. It is the largest regional theater in D.C. Arena Stage re-opened in October 2010 with Oklahoma!.

The capacity of its three theaters follows:

• The Fichandler Stage, a theater in the round, seating 680.
• The Kreeger Theater, a modified thrust stage theater, seating 510.
• The Kogod Cradle, a 202-seat space dedicated to new American productions.

Artistic Directors

One of the founders, Zelda Fichandler, was the company's artistic director from its founding through the 1990/91 season. Douglas C. Wager succeeded her for the 1991/92 through 1997/98 seasons. Molly Smith, assumed those duties beginning with the 1998/99 season. In June 2022, she announced she would retire and leave Arena Stage in July 2023. The current Artistic Director is Hana S. Sharif.https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater/2023/11/17/arena-stage-director-hana-sharif/

Original works

• Camp David by Lawence Wright
• Celia and Fidel by Eduardo Machado
• Change Agent by Craig Lucas
• Dear Evan Hansen
• Exclusion by Kenneth Lin
• The High Ground by Nathan Alan Davis
• JQA by Aaron Posner
• Loose Ends by Michael Weller
• The Originalist by John Strand
• Tintypes, conceived by Mary Kyte with Mel Marvin and Gary Pearle

Notable events

The Washingtonian magazine, as part of its 50th anniversary commemoration, identified the Arena Stage's 1967 production of The Great White Hope as one of "50 Moments That Shaped Washington, DC". The play received a lot of attention, some of it negative, because it featured an interracial relationship between James Earl Jones, then a new actor, and Jane Alexander. It was one of the first regional-theater productions to move to Broadway. There the production won several Tony Awards, and a Pulitzer Prize. It was also adapted as a film. Zelda Fichandler worked with the writer of the play for a year to make it production-ready. The Arena did not earn a share of the play's Broadway and film profits.

Archival material

A collection of the Arena Stage Records and materials is housed at the George Mason University Special Collections Research Center. The Research Center also houses materials related to individuals involved with the theater, including personal records of Zelda Fichandler's, Thomas Fichandler's papers, the Ken Kitch papers, and materials relating to the Living Stage.

References

References

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3. (2020-08-04). "This Month in Theatre History".
4. "Arena Stage Director Hana Sharif (Paywall)". Washington Post.
5. Goodman, Mike. (31 July 2019). "Fiercely Imaginative: Arena Stage at Seventy".
6. Jones, Kenneth. (December 28, 2011). "Part of American Voices New Play Institute Will Exit DC's Arena and Enter Boston's Emerson College".
7. News Desk. (2022-06-11). "Molly Smith to retire from Arena Stage in 2023".
8. Fierberg, Ruthie. (August 22, 2019). "What Makes Washington, D.C.'s Arena Stage One of the Most Impressive Historic Theatres in the Country".
9. "Regional Theatre Tony".
10. (2019-05-15). "Arena Stage Tops the Helen Hayes Awards".
11. (1991-05-08). "Arena Stage Receives 9 Helen Hayes Awards". The New York Times.
12. (2022-06-11). "Molly Smith to Retire from Arena Stage".
13. Marks, Peter. (June 10, 2022). "Molly Smith announces an exit after 25 years leading Arena Stage". The Washington Post.
14. Brall, Susan. (2020-05-04). "Theatre News: 'Arena Stage Turns 70' Part I: Arena Stage in the 20th Century-The First 50 Years".
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19. (2017-02-28). "Mahershala Ali's Professional Acting Debut Was at Arena Stage - Washingtonian".
20. (August 1968). "Black World/Negro Digest". Johnson Publishing Company.
21. Rosenfeld, Megan. (December 30, 1990). "THEATER 1990". The Washington Post.
22. (2016-11-30). "Getting Political: Arena Stage Launches Power Plays Initiative".
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24. Rabinowitz, Chloe. "Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith to Retire in 2023".
25. (2020-06-24). "Arena Stage Launches Artists Marketplace".
26. Siegel, David. (2020-06-15). "In 'May 22, 2020' from Arena Stage, a day in the life of the COVID DMV".
27. (2020-06-08). "Arena Stage presents virtual summer state 'Looking Forward'".
28. Fraley, Jason. (September 16, 2020). "Arena Stage tackles DC statehood, racism in streaming film '51st State'".
29. (2021-05-21). "DC Theater Reopenings: What We Know So Far - Washingtonian".
30. Cristi, A. A.. "Arena's Commissioned Music Series, Arena Riffs, Begins Next Week".
31. (2021-05-19). "This Is Your Reminder That "Dear Evan Hansen" Got Its Start in DC - Washingtonian".
32. Staff, LA Times. (2017-06-12). "2017 Tony Awards: The complete list of winners and nominees".
33. "Arena Stage Renovation and Expansion, Washington, D.C. {{!}} 2010-12-01 {{!}} ENR {{!}} Engineering News-Record".
34. Epp, Gerald. (February 2012). "Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater: Excellence, Creativity and Innovation".
35. Marks, Peters. (10 April 2008). "Arena Stage to Expand Its Season From Eight to 10 Plays This Fall". [[The Washington Post]].
36. Marks, Peter. (February 17, 2010). "A new First Act". Washington Post.
37. Zongker, Brett ([[Associated Press]]). (October 28, 2010). "DC's Arena Stage opens $135M home with big plans". [[Boston.com]].
38. Russell, James. (27 October 2010). "Arena Stage 135 Million DC Revamp Makes Concrete Sexy". [[Bloomberg L.P]].
39. BWW News Desk. [http://dc.broadwayworld.com/article/Arena-Stage-Updates-Concessions-and-Dining-Options-with-Catwalk-Cafe-20110810# "Arena Stage Updates Concessions and Dining Options with Catwalk Cafe"], broadwayworld.com, 10 August 2011
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41. "Cafe-Parking - Complete Your Experience".
42. BWW News Desk. "Arena Stage to Start Construction on $125-Million Renovation".
43. Paller, Rebecca.[http://www.playbill.com/features/article/64670-From-Alaska-to-DC-With-Arena-Stages-New-Director-Molly-D-Smith "From Alaska to DC With Arena Stage's New Director, Molly D. Smith"], ''Playbill: Arena Stage'', February 5, 1998
44. https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/loose-ends-3796
45. (30 September 2015). "50 Moments That Shaped Washington, DC". Washingtonian.
46. Libraries, George Mason. (August 18, 2022). "Guide to the Arena Stage records, 1949-2010".