“Jessica and Lorenzo are in love, but in order to be together they must plan an escape from her father’s house, the Venetian ghetto, and her entire culture. Taking place in the gaps between “The Merchant of Venice” and the realities of Jewish history, “Everything That Never Happened” is a play about a father, a daughter, disguise, assimilation, pomegranates, and everything Shakespeare left out….
Clothing can suggest 16th century Venice but it should be more improvised, more flexible, more like rehearsal room costuming….This world is created primarily through language…. The visual world of the play functions like memory—we only see the things we need, the things that we touch.” — Sarah Mantell
Guided improvisation and creative collaboration will be key in our rehearsal process. The words and movements of the actors, and perhaps musicians, in concert with light and space, conjure the maze that is Venice. This is a story of intrigue: what we conceal to survive, and what we must reveal to become fully human.
Sarah Mantell is the 2023 winner of the Susan Smith Blackburn Award for their play “In the Amazon Warehouse Parking Lot.”
Performances will be scheduled for April 2025.
Learning Outcomes:
Close analysis of two plays in dialogue with each other.
Deconstructing a stereotype and in its place creating a real person in full.
Collaborating not only to create a character, but also to score the dynamic and rhythmic physical flow of a play.
Researching and building the world of the play that is both 16th Century Venice and now.
Sharing the work with an audience.
Delivery Method: Fully in-person
Prerequisites:
Auditions will be held for "Everything That Never Happened" during the first week of the Spring 2025 term. Actors, musicians, dancers, dramaturgs, assistant directors, and designers who might be interested in this faculty performance production are encouraged to reach out to Jean Randich by email (jrandich@bennington.edu). For a smaller commitment, it may be possible to participate in this course for two credits.
Course Level: 4000-level
Credits: 4
Tu/W/Th/F 7:00PM - 10:00PM, SA 12:00PM - 4:00PM (Full-term)
Maximum Enrollment: 10
Course Frequency: One time only
Categories: 4000 , All courses , Dance , Drama , Four Credit , Fully In-Person , Music
Tags: acting , collaboration , drama , embodiment , gender studies , History , improvisation , movement practice , performance