San Francisco Theatre Scene (TM)

Advice to the Young Artist: Make the Most of Every Opportunity
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Learning Directing Techniques Teaching Children
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Central Works Theater Ensemble of Berkeley is referenced in this segment.

San FranciscoBay Area Theatre: A Portrait of Myopia and Its Consequences
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In this segment two performing arts companies are referenced; Word for Word and Thick Description, as is The Bay Area Playwrights' Festival. Also referenced is the children's book, The Wind in the Willows.

The Future: Hosting and Regionalism
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In this segment, Gee talks more about breaking out of stereotypes. He talks about producing Thorton Wilder's The Long Christmas Dinner. He also references August Strindberg, Henrik Ibsen, Noh Theatre and Suzan-Lori Parks 365 Days/365 Plays.

Breaking Out Of Stereotypes
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In part three, Gee starts by explaining the impetus for starting the Oakland Public Theatre. Next he tackles the thorny issue of ethnicity in theatre in the Bay Area. He mentions Shotgun Players, California Shakespeare Company and African American Shakespeare Company.

Part 3 Ethnicity and Theatre
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Introducing other authors whose works will be read during the performances, Gee explains their relationship to Wright. Gee references Richard Wright's, Black Boy and Native Son, James Baldwin's Notes of a Native Son, Chester Himes an author, Ollie Harrington, a cartoonist, and Harrington's book of essays titled Why I Left America.

Part 2--Richard Wright: Audience and Message
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Norman Gee, is the originator, artistic director and producer of Oakland Public Theatre in Oakland, California. As an Oakland actor and director he saw a need for a theatre whose mission was to serve the people of Oakland. Hence he created Oakland Public Theatre many of whose productions are performed in public spaces such as colleges and libraries. In honor of Richard Wright's hundredth birthday, he and Richard Talaveras, a local playwright, have initiated the Richard Wright Centennial Project, a series of ten readings that include Richard Wright's as well as other African American writers whose lives intersected Wright's life. The third reading of the series was performed at the San Francisco Public Library on Sunday, December 16, 2007. The series continues through the Spring and Summer 2008 at various locations.

In the first part of the interview, Gee discusses the project, providing background about its origins and it's parameters which includes a brief introduction to James Baldwin, author of Go Tell It on the Mountain.

The interview was conducted on October 7, 2007.

Part 1--The Richard Wright Centennial Project
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Part 8 - The Future (3:10)
In this segment, O'Keefe discusses The Marsh as a venue for reaching varied audiences.
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Part 7 - Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" as a Performance (11:33)
In this segment of the interview, O'Keefe explicates Whitman's famous poem as he discusses the process of bringing "Song of Myself" to the stage. O'Keefe, like one of his mentors, John Cage, has found inspiration from America's revolutionary poet, Walt Whitman.
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