Atlantic Theater Company
Encyclopedia
Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway
non-profit
theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet
, William H. Macy
, and 30 of their acting students from New York University
, inspired by the historical examples of the Group Theatre and Stanislavsky. Atlantic believes that the story of a play and the intent of its playwright are at the core of the creative process.
The company operates two theaters in the Chelsea
neighborhood of Manhattan
in New York City
. First, the 165-seat mainstage Linda Gross Theater, which is located at 336 West 20th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues, in the parish hall of St. Peter's Episcopal Church
, built in 1854 and currently under renovation. And second, the 99-seat black-box theater
, Stage 2 at 330 West 16th Street, also between Eighth and Ninth Avenues, in the former Port Authority
building. Stage 2, which opened in June 2006, is the home of Atlantic’s new play development program which includes the commissioning of new works, readings, workshops, and fully staged productions.
winning productions of Spring Awakening
(which the company moved to Broadway in 2006) and The Beauty Queen of Leenane
, as well as The Lieutenant of Inishmore
by Martin McDonagh
, David Mamet’s adaptation of The Voysey Inheritance
by Harley Granville Barker, Mamet’s Romance, Joe Penhall
’s Blue/Orange
, Dublin Carol
by Conor McPherson
, Woody Allen
’s Writer’s Block, the revival of Hobson's Choice, the revivals of Mamet's American Buffalo
and Edmond, Dangerous Corner
by J. B. Priestley
, The Cider House Rules
, adapted by Peter Parnell
, Celebration, The Room and The Hothouse by Harold Pinter
, Mojo by Jez Butterworth
, the New York premieres of Howard Korder
’s Boys’ Life and The Lights at Lincoln Center Theater
, Kevin Heelan’s Distant Fires, Quincy Long’s The Joy of Going Somewhere Definite and Shaker Heights, Tom Donaghy
’s Minutes From The Blue Route, Edwin Sánchez’ Trafficking in Broken Hearts, and Missing Persons by Craig Lucas
.
Other Mamet productions by Atlantic include the plays The Blue Hour, Yes, But So What?, Revenge of the Space Pandas, The Poet and the Rent, Vermont Sketches, Reunion, Sexual Perversity in Chicago, The Duck Variations, The Woods, The Water Engine, his adaptation of Three Sisters, Home, School, and Keep Your Pantheon.
Recently, Atlantic has produced Farragut North by Beau Willimon
on its mainstage, and What's That Smell: The Music of Jacob Sterling by David Pittu
and Randy Redd on Stage 2. The Cripple of Inishmaan
by Martin McDonagh
will be presented in collaboration with the Druid Theatre Company
, and a co-produced revival of Mamet’s Speed-the-Plow
is currently playing on Broadway.
The company celebrated its 25th Anniversary season beginning in September 2010 with the world premiere of Bottom of the World by Lucy Thurber
and ending in June 2011 with the 10 X 25 One Act Festival, 25 newly commissioned ten-minute plays.
at New York University
. The school focuses on the Practical Aesthetics Acting Technique, growing out of a series of NYU summer workshops in Vermont in 1983 and 1984 with playwright David Mamet
and actor William H. Macy
.
The Atlantic Acting School fosters new generations of theater artists by creating a student ensemble that allows actors to hone their craft. Distinguished guest lecturers include Kate Winslet
, Alan Alda
, Chris Noth
, Richard Dreyfuss
, Sam Shepard
, Margo Jefferson
, Gore Vidal
, Charles Durning
, Gabriel Byrne
, Brian Dennehy
, Howard Korder
, Mary Steenburgen
, Nicky Silver
, and Ted Danson
as well as program graduates Kristen Johnston
, Felicity Huffman
, and Eddie Cahill
. Atlantic is committed to preparing its students for all aspects of a performing arts career.
A number of theater companies have been formed by former students of Atlantic Acting School, including Mobius Group Productions, Bar Hoppers, Thirsty Turtle Productions, Harvard Sailing Team
, The Common Tongue, The Group B Project, The Fifteenth Minute, The Ateh Theater Company, The Production Company, Hair of the Dog, EBE Ensemble, Riot, and The Management.
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
non-profit
Nonprofit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet
David Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
, William H. Macy
William H. Macy
William Hall Macy, Jr. is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though...
, and 30 of their acting students from New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, inspired by the historical examples of the Group Theatre and Stanislavsky. Atlantic believes that the story of a play and the intent of its playwright are at the core of the creative process.
The company operates two theaters in the Chelsea
Chelsea, Manhattan
Chelsea is a neighborhood on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The district's boundaries are roughly 14th Street to the south, 30th Street to the north, the western boundary of the Ladies' Mile Historic District – which lies between the Avenue of the Americas and...
neighborhood of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. First, the 165-seat mainstage Linda Gross Theater, which is located at 336 West 20th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues, in the parish hall of St. Peter's Episcopal Church
St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Manhattan)
St. Peter's Episcopal Church, an historic church at 346 West 20th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, began as an outgrowth from the nearby General Theological Seminary, which had been founded in 1827...
, built in 1854 and currently under renovation. And second, the 99-seat black-box theater
Black box theater
The black box theater is a relatively recent innovation, consisting of a simple, somewhat unadorned performance space, usually a large square room with black walls and a flat floor.-History:...
, Stage 2 at 330 West 16th Street, also between Eighth and Ninth Avenues, in the former Port Authority
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is a bi-state port district, established in 1921 through an interstate compact, that runs most of the regional transportation infrastructure, including the bridges, tunnels, airports, and seaports, within the Port of New York and New Jersey...
building. Stage 2, which opened in June 2006, is the home of Atlantic’s new play development program which includes the commissioning of new works, readings, workshops, and fully staged productions.
Productions
Since its inception, Atlantic has produced more than 120 plays, including the Tony AwardTony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
winning productions of Spring Awakening
Spring Awakening
Spring Awakening is a rock musical adaptation of the controversial 1892 German play of the same title by Frank Wedekind. It features music by Duncan Sheik and a book and lyrics by Steven Sater. Set in late-19th century Germany, it concerns teenagers who are discovering the inner and outer tumult of...
(which the company moved to Broadway in 2006) and The Beauty Queen of Leenane
The Beauty Queen of Leenane
The Beauty Queen of Leenane is a 1996 black comedy by Irish playwright Martin McDonagh which was premiered by the Druid Theatre Company in Galway, Ireland...
, as well as The Lieutenant of Inishmore
The Lieutenant of Inishmore
The Lieutenant of Inishmore is a black comedy by playwright Martin McDonagh, first produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in London in 2001.-Plot:...
by Martin McDonagh
Martin McDonagh
Martin McDonagh is an Irish-British playwright, filmmaker, and screenwriter. Although he has lived in London his entire life, he is considered one of the most important living Irish playwrights.-Life:...
, David Mamet’s adaptation of The Voysey Inheritance
The Voysey Inheritance
The Voysey Inheritance is a play written by the English dramatist Harley Granville-Barker. Originally written in 1905, it was revived at the National Theatre in 2006.It is currently in the public domain.- See also :*...
by Harley Granville Barker, Mamet’s Romance, Joe Penhall
Joe Penhall
Joe Penhall is a British playwright and screenwriter.Born in London, his first major play was Some Voices for the Royal Court Theatre, London, in 1994, which won the John Whiting Award. It has twice been revived off Broadway...
’s Blue/Orange
BLUE/ORANGE
Blue/Orange is a play by written by English dramatist, Joe Penhall. A sardonically comic piece which touches on race, mental illness, and 21st century British life, it premiered at the Cottesloe Theatre in April 2000, starring Bill Nighy, Andrew Lincoln and Chiwetel Ejiofor...
, Dublin Carol
Dublin Carol
Dublin Carol is a three-handed play by Conor McPherson-Story:John, a middle-aged employee of a funeral home in Dublin, returns from a funeral on Christmas Eve with Mark, a 20-year-old who has helped out that day and to whom John tells his sad history about how he has destroyed much of his life and...
by Conor McPherson
Conor McPherson
Conor McPherson is an Irish playwright and director.-Life and career:McPherson was born in Dublin, . He was educated at University College Dublin, McPherson began writing his first plays there as a member of UCD Dramsoc, the college's dramatic society, and went on to found Fly By Night Theatre...
, Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
’s Writer’s Block, the revival of Hobson's Choice, the revivals of Mamet's American Buffalo
American Buffalo (play)
American Buffalo is a 1975 play by American playwright David Mamet which had its premiere in a showcase production at the Goodman Theatre, Chicago. After two more showcase productions, it opened on Broadway on February 16, 1977...
and Edmond, Dangerous Corner
Dangerous Corner
Dangerous Corner was the first play by the English writer J. B. Priestley. It was premiered in May 1932 by Tyrone Guthrie at the Lyric Theatre, London, and filmed in 1934 by Phil Rosen....
by J. B. Priestley
J. B. Priestley
John Boynton Priestley, OM , known as J. B. Priestley, was an English novelist, playwright and broadcaster. He published 26 novels, notably The Good Companions , as well as numerous dramas such as An Inspector Calls...
, The Cider House Rules
The Cider House Rules
The Cider House Rules is a 1985 novel by John Irving. It is Irving's sixth published novel, and has been adapted into a film of the same name and a stage play by Peter Parnell.-Plot:...
, adapted by Peter Parnell
Peter Parnell
Peter Parnell is an American playwright. His plays include The Cider House Rules, Flaubert's Latest, Hyde in Hollywood, An Imaginary Life, QED, Rise and Rise of Daniel Rocket, Romance Language, Scooter Thomas Makes It to the Top of the World, and Sorrows of Stephen.Parnell is also noted for...
, Celebration, The Room and The Hothouse by Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter
Harold Pinter, CH, CBE was a Nobel Prize–winning English playwright and screenwriter. One of the most influential modern British dramatists, his writing career spanned more than 50 years. His best-known plays include The Birthday Party , The Homecoming , and Betrayal , each of which he adapted to...
, Mojo by Jez Butterworth
Jez Butterworth
Jeremy “Jez” Butterworth is an English dramatist and film director.-Life and career:Butterworth was born in London, England, and attended Verulam Comprehensive School, St Albans and St John's College, Cambridge...
, the New York premieres of Howard Korder
Howard Korder
Howard Korder is an American screenwriter and playwright. He is the author of the 1988 coming-of-age play Boy's Life, which earned him a Pulitzer Prize for Drama nomination. His play Search and Destroy was adapted into a film in 1995. Among the screenplays he has written are The Passion of Ayn...
’s Boys’ Life and The Lights at Lincoln Center Theater
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of New York City's Upper West Side. Reynold Levy has been its president since 2002.-History and facilities:...
, Kevin Heelan’s Distant Fires, Quincy Long’s The Joy of Going Somewhere Definite and Shaker Heights, Tom Donaghy
Tom Donaghy
Tom Donaghy is a playwright whose work has been produced by major theatre companiesacross the United States, including Atlantic Theater Company, Lincoln Center Theatre, and Playwrights Horizons in New York City, the Goodman Theater in Chicago, the La Jolla Playhouse and South Coast Repertory in...
’s Minutes From The Blue Route, Edwin Sánchez’ Trafficking in Broken Hearts, and Missing Persons by Craig Lucas
Craig Lucas
Craig Lucas is an American playwright, screenwriter, theatre director, musical actor, and film director.-Biography:...
.
Other Mamet productions by Atlantic include the plays The Blue Hour, Yes, But So What?, Revenge of the Space Pandas, The Poet and the Rent, Vermont Sketches, Reunion, Sexual Perversity in Chicago, The Duck Variations, The Woods, The Water Engine, his adaptation of Three Sisters, Home, School, and Keep Your Pantheon.
Recently, Atlantic has produced Farragut North by Beau Willimon
Beau Willimon
Beau Willimon is a playwright, whose works have been developed and performed at MCC Theater, Ars Nova, HERE Arts Center, the Phoenix Theatre in Arizona, and the Battersea Arts Centre in London....
on its mainstage, and What's That Smell: The Music of Jacob Sterling by David Pittu
David Pittu
David Pittu is a versatile American actor known primarily for his work in the theater.-Career:Pittu who is of Romanian descent grew up in Fairfield, Connecticut and graduated from New York University in 1989. He is also a writer and director, and member of the Atlantic Theater Company...
and Randy Redd on Stage 2. The Cripple of Inishmaan
The Cripple of Inishmaan
The Cripple of Inishmaan is a dark comedy by Martin McDonagh who links the story to the real life filming of the documentary Man of Aran....
by Martin McDonagh
Martin McDonagh
Martin McDonagh is an Irish-British playwright, filmmaker, and screenwriter. Although he has lived in London his entire life, he is considered one of the most important living Irish playwrights.-Life:...
will be presented in collaboration with the Druid Theatre Company
Druid Theatre Company
The Druid Theatre Company, founded in Galway in 1975, was the first Irish professional theatre company to be established outside Dublin. The theatre company was founded by Garry Hynes, Marie Mullen and Mick Lally after the three had met and put on productions together while members of the...
, and a co-produced revival of Mamet’s Speed-the-Plow
Speed-the-Plow
Speed-the-Plow is a play by David Mamet which is a satirical dissection of the American movie business, a theme Mamet would revisit in his later films Wag the Dog and State and Main ....
is currently playing on Broadway.
The company celebrated its 25th Anniversary season beginning in September 2010 with the world premiere of Bottom of the World by Lucy Thurber
Lucy Thurber
-Career:As of 2007, she is the author of eight plays: Where We’re Born, Ashville, Innocence is a Sin, Killers & Other Family, Stay, Bottom of the World, Monstrosity, and Scarcity. She was the recipient of the 2000/2001 Manhattan Theatre Club playwriting fellowship...
and ending in June 2011 with the 10 X 25 One Act Festival, 25 newly commissioned ten-minute plays.
Acting school
The Atlantic Acting School, founded in 1987, operates as both a private conservatory and an undergraduate program in conjunction with the Tisch School of the ArtsTisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
. The school focuses on the Practical Aesthetics Acting Technique, growing out of a series of NYU summer workshops in Vermont in 1983 and 1984 with playwright David Mamet
David Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
and actor William H. Macy
William H. Macy
William Hall Macy, Jr. is an American actor and writer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Jerry Lundegaard in Fargo. He is also a teacher and director in theater, film and television. His film career has been built mostly on his appearances in small, independent films, though...
.
The Atlantic Acting School fosters new generations of theater artists by creating a student ensemble that allows actors to hone their craft. Distinguished guest lecturers include Kate Winslet
Kate Winslet
Kate Elizabeth Winslet is an English actress and occasional singer. She has received multiple awards and nominations. She was the youngest person to accrue six Academy Award nominations, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Reader...
, Alan Alda
Alan Alda
Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo , better known as Alan Alda, is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and author. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for his role as Hawkeye Pierce in the TV series M*A*S*H...
, Chris Noth
Chris Noth
Christopher David "Chris" Noth is an American actor. He is known for long-running television roles as Det. Mike Logan on the police procedural and legal drama television series, Law & Order and Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and as Big on Sex and the City. For the latter role, he has been...
, Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Stephen Dreyfuss is an American actor best known for starring in a number of film, television, and theater roles since the late 1960s, including the films American Graffiti, Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Goodbye Girl, Whose Life Is It Anyway?, Stakeout, Always, What About...
, Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard
Sam Shepard is an American playwright, actor, and television and film director. He is the author of several books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play Buried Child...
, Margo Jefferson
Margo Jefferson
Margo Lillian Jefferson is a former theatre critic at The New York Times and a notable, full-time professor at Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts....
, Gore Vidal
Gore Vidal
Gore Vidal is an American author, playwright, essayist, screenwriter, and political activist. His third novel, The City and the Pillar , outraged mainstream critics as one of the first major American novels to feature unambiguous homosexuality...
, Charles Durning
Charles Durning
Charles Durning is an American actor. With appearances in over 100 films, Durning's memorable roles include police officers in the Oscar-winning The Sting and crime drama Dog Day Afternoon , along with the comedies Tootsie, To Be Or Not To Be and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, the last two...
, Gabriel Byrne
Gabriel Byrne
Gabriel James Byrne is an Irish actor, film director, film producer, writer, cultural ambassador and audiobook narrator. His acting career began in the Focus Theatre before he joined Londo's Royal Court Theatre in 1979. Byrne's screen debut came in the Irish soap opera The Riordans and the...
, Brian Dennehy
Brian Dennehy
Brian Mannion Dennehy is an American actor of film, stage and screen.-Early years:Dennehy was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, the son of Hannah and Edward Dennehy, who was a wire service editor for the Associated Press; he has two brothers, Michael and Edward. Dennehy is of Irish ancestry and was...
, Howard Korder
Howard Korder
Howard Korder is an American screenwriter and playwright. He is the author of the 1988 coming-of-age play Boy's Life, which earned him a Pulitzer Prize for Drama nomination. His play Search and Destroy was adapted into a film in 1995. Among the screenplays he has written are The Passion of Ayn...
, Mary Steenburgen
Mary Steenburgen
Mary Nell Steenburgen is an American actress. She is best known for playing the role of Lynda Dummar in Jonathan Demme's Melvin and Howard, which earned her an Academy Award and a Golden Globe.-Early life:...
, Nicky Silver
Nicky Silver
Nicky Silver is an American playwright. Formerly of Philadelphia, he resides in New York City.As a teen, Silver attended Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Training Center in upstate New York. He began writing after graduating from the New York University Theatre program. Many of his early plays...
, and Ted Danson
Ted Danson
Edward Bridge “Ted” Danson III is an American actor best known for his role as central character Sam Malone in the sitcom Cheers, and his role as Dr. John Becker on the series Becker. He also plays a recurring role on Larry David's HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm and starred alongside Glenn Close...
as well as program graduates Kristen Johnston
Kristen Johnston
Kristen Johnston is an American stage, film, and television actress. She may be most famous for her role as Sally Solomon in the television series 3rd Rock from the Sun...
, Felicity Huffman
Felicity Huffman
Felicity Kendall Huffman is an American film, stage, and television actress. She is known for her role as executive producer Dana Whitaker on the ABC television show Sports Night , which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination, and as hectic supermom Lynette Scavo on the ABC show Desperate...
, and Eddie Cahill
Eddie Cahill
Edmund Patrick "Eddie" Cahill is an American actor best known for portraying "Miracle on Ice" goalie Jim Craig in the movie Miracle, and for playing the fictional roles of Tag Jones on Friends and Detective Don Flack on CSI: NY.-Early life:Cahill was born in New York City, New York. He is the...
. Atlantic is committed to preparing its students for all aspects of a performing arts career.
A number of theater companies have been formed by former students of Atlantic Acting School, including Mobius Group Productions, Bar Hoppers, Thirsty Turtle Productions, Harvard Sailing Team
Harvard Sailing Team
Harvard Sailing Team is an award-winning New York City sketch comedy group featuring 5 women and 4 men. The team performs weekly in Manhattan and their popular YouTube videos have been viewed by over 5 million people...
, The Common Tongue, The Group B Project, The Fifteenth Minute, The Ateh Theater Company, The Production Company, Hair of the Dog, EBE Ensemble, Riot, and The Management.
See also
- Culture of New York CityCulture of New York CityThe culture of New York City is reflected by the city's size and variety. Many American cultural movements first emerged in the city. The Harlem Renaissance established the African-American renaissance in the United States, while American modern dance developed in New York in the early 20th century...
- List of Manhattan neighborhoods