AMERICAN THEATRE: In a recent weeknight in downtown Columbus, Ga., I was up late laughing with friends over pints of craft beer. This was a unique situation for me, as a mom with two young kids and a full-time-plus job. I was attending a one-off improv class hosted by Muddy Water Theatre Project, a brand-new pop-up theatre company founded by local artists Austin Sargent and Ben Redding. Truth be told, I needed more than one pint to get through some of the games; my heart pounded like it did during the improv classes I took at the local Springer Theatre Academy as a kid. But as I looked around at the 15 or so other adults—men and women ranging in age from 20s to early 50s—I was thrilled by what I saw.
2 comments:
I find this entire article really inspiring as a person from a small town with a struggling underground theater community. I relate to the frustration of having the majority of artistic energy channeled through a few larger theatrical organizations that focus on large scale, flashy, and well known productions because money is often the primary motivation for larger production companies, especially if they are the main supplier of theater in their community. The ability of theater to serve a community and inspire young artists with a creative outlet is spectacular, and I believe it has even more strength when channeled through theater projects based outside of the big theater companies. Someday I would like to go back to my small town in New Hampshire and be part of a revolution of "indie" theater projects, and I think that almost any theatrical community could be transformed by following the steps of the community/communities discussed in this article.
I really enjoyed reading about the growing theatre scene in a town just a couple hours south of where I grew up. In high school, I had a fair share of friends go on to study at Columbus State University, as it’s one of the few schools in Georgia with a BFA theatre program in a place that has a semi-active theatre scene. As I am reading this article, it is clear that the growing population of young artistic people have helped take root in Columbus and provide a new safe space for art to grow and flourish. I think it is incredible that theatre is able to unite a small community and bring people together, especially in a place that would not be stereotypically associated with a strong and diverse artistic background. In rural Georgia, a lot of powerful indie theatre companies have popped up, whether it be Muddy Water Theatre Project in Columbus or Serenbe Playhouse in Serenbe, and it has been incredible to see how these have united people in a way that couldn’t be done otherwise.
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