Since 1991, the Tectonic Theater Project has been known for its original works blending artistic innovation with socio-political themes onstage. Their “Laramie Project” has been performed worldwide and was made into an HBO movie. Another work, “I Am My Own Wife,” won the 2004 Tony Award for Best Play.
The collective prides itself on creating these works collaboratively, where director, actor, designers, and playwright get an equal say in how the work is made. How did they do it? Now readers can find out. Tectonic founder Moisés Kaufman and actor Barbara Pitts McAdams have co-written a book that’s currently on the shelves: “Moment Work: Tectonic Theatre Project’s Process of Devising Theater.”
Below, Kaufman and Pitts McAdams define for Backstage readers the company’s revolutionary, multidisciplinary technique.
How did the book come about?Moisés Kaufman: We’ve been teaching Moment Work as a process for the better part of 15 years. As we’ve been teaching it, devising is becoming a real movement now in the theater. Most universities now around the country has a devising arm or a devising class.
The traditional method of a playwright writing a play and
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