The Ionesco Festival
A complete Festival of the work of Eugène Ionesco
New York City, September 6 - December 19 2001
An unprecedented festival for one of the greatest playwrights of the last century, an icon of the Theater of the Absurd. Not only did we have productions of every play he has written in our festival, we also had an accompanying film festival at Anthology Film Archives, seminars, readings, and our unique Shorts Program of rotating one-act curtain raisers. The Festival happened throughout New York City, with the participation of over thirty other theater companies and institutions, at a dozen different Venues.
Artistic Director and Curator: Edward Einhorn; Producing Director: David A. Einhorn; Film Curator: James Janowsky; Shorts Coordinator: Nicole Lerario; Dramaturg: Karen Ott; Assistant to the Artistic Director: Yanik Fernandez; Graphic Designer: Eric Cohen; Publicity: Spin Cycle PR (Ron Lasko)
The Full Length program
Untitled Theater Company No. 61
Rhinoceros
Ionesco’s famous comedy about conformity and pachyderms
Translated by Derek Prouse
Directed by Edward Einhorn
The Connelly Theater
Tales for Children Less Than Three Years Old
Abusurdity with puppets, from stories Ionesco told his daughter
Translated by Karen Ott, adapted by Edward Einhorn
Directed by Edward Einhorn
The Connelly Theater
Carolyn Jauch & Co
The Killing Game
Many scenes about a plague, at the end of which everyone dies
Translated by Helen Gary Bishop
Directed by Caroline Jauch
The Connelly Theater
Gemini CollisionWorks
The New Tenant
A man rents an empty apartment, but soon it explodes with furniture
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Ian W. Hill
The Connelly Theater
The Viscount
Ionesco’s unfinished play, finished by the Marx Brothers. Hellzapoppin’!
FIRST EVER ENGLISH TRANSLATION by Ian W. Hill and Berit Johnson
Directed by Ian W. Hill
The Connelly Theater
Hyun Jung Lee
Journeys Among the Dead
Ionesco’s autobiographical dream play
Translated by Barbara Wright
Directed by Hyun Jung Lee
Investigadores del Arte Escenico
Jack, or the Submission
Jack’s parents have found for him a beauty with three noses
Directed by Renato de la Riva
Translated by Luis Echávarri
Adapted by Concepción García Lomas
IN SPANISH, FROM MEXICO
Clemente Soto Velez, Milagro Theater
The Future is in Eggs
Jack and Roberta, doing their duty and breeding
Directed by Renato de la Riva
Translated by Luis Echávarri
Adapted by Concepción García Lomas
IN SPANISH, FROM MEXICO
Clemente Soto Velez
Looking Glass Theater
Man With Bags
An all female version of a surreal journey
Translated by Marie-France Ionesco
Adapted by Israel Horowitz
Directed by Julie Fei-Fan Balzer
Looking Glass Theater
Lost Tribe Theatre Company and The FHB Theater Company
Jack, or the Submission
Jack’s parents have found for him a beauty with three noses
Translated by Donald Allen
Bank St. Theater
Mouth to Mouth
The Chairs
An aged couple gathers together an invisible audience for an important announcement
Translated by Donald Allen
Directed by Tina Polzin
HERE
The Nighthouse Company
The Killer
A perfect, beautiful city, with only one flaw—a serial killer
Translated by Donald Watson
The Present Company Theatorium
The Pearl Theater Company
Exit the King
King Berenger dies. Watch the countdown
Translated by Edwin Honig
The Pearl Theater
Directed by Joseph Hardy
OFF-BROADWAY
Purple Man Theater
Hunger and Thirst
Jean's quest for fulfillment, in three acts
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Marc Weitz
Clemente Soto Velez, La Tea Theater
The Revolving Shakespeare Company
Macbett
The Scottish play, only more comic and less optimistic
Translated by Charles Marowitz
Directed by Kip Rosser
Greenwich St. Playhouse
Sanctuary Theater
The Picture(preceded byThe Oversight)
An artist sells his art to an increasingly demanding buyer
The Oversight translated by Donald Watson
The Picture translated by Abigail Saunders
Directed by Ian Belton
Spotlight On & 2B Theatre
A Hell of a Mess
A man sits in his apartment as the crazy world runs on
Translated by Helen Gary Bishop
Directed by Brenda D. Cook
Space 24
Spring Theatreworks
Frenzy for Two, or More
A small argument with large consequences
Translated by Donald Watson
The Present Company Theatorium
The Subjective Theatre Company
Victims of Duty
A detective story whose solution is at the bottom of a mind
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Zachary R. Mannheimer
The Present Company Theatorium
True Comedy Theatre Company
Improvisation(preceded byThe Leader)
Admirers excitedly await their leader's arrival, Ionesco visited by his critics, à la Moliere
The Leader translated by Derek Prouse and directed by John Hagan
Improvisation translated by Donald Watson and directed by Yolanda Hawkins
The Shorts program
Untitled Theater Company No. 61
The Motor Show
A radio play, set at a motor show/farmyard
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Edward Einhorn
To Prepare a Hard Boiled Egg
Cooking instructions by a poet and gastronome
FIRST EVER ENGLISH TRANSLATION by Edward Einhorn
Directed by Edward Einhorn
Amnesia Wars
The Duel
An argument, stripped to its essentials
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Rob Reese
The Foot of the Wall
A carnival of people gather
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Rob Reese
Conversation Exercises, Parts VI-VII, X-XI
Learn French through scenes in a hospital and classroom
NEW TRANSLATION by Andy Bragen
Directed by Rob Reese
The Evaporating Theater
Salutations
“And how are you today?”
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Russell Kaplan
The FHB Theater Company
Foursome
Three suitors and lots of flowers
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by Glory Sims Bowen
New York Artists Unlimited
Tales for Children Under Three Years Old (Part III-IV)
Selections from Ionesco’s children stories
Translated by Helen R. Lane
Directed by Melba LaRose
TOURING SCHOOLS
Random Arts
The Niece-Wife
A Viscount adopts his wife as his niece
Translated by Richard Coe
Directed by Nicole Lerario
Conversation Exercises Parts I-V (SHORT)
Learn French, the first lessons
NEW TRANSLATION by Andrew Bragen
Directed by Daniel Kleinfeld
The Turnip Theatre Company
Conversation Exercises Parts XIII-XVI
Learn French on vacation, at the theater and the travel agency
NEW TRANSLATION by Andrew Bragen
Directed by Christopher Healy
The Xoregos Performing Company
Maid to Marry
Rhapsodies over a maid, spoken and danced
Translated by Donald Watson
Directed by David Ostwald and Shela Xoregos
Young Laughing God Productions
Learning to Walk
When your imagination overcomes debilitating realities
Directed by Mary Kate Burke
The Films
Anthology Film Archives
The New Tenant(1974), directed by Larry Yust
From Ionesco's play by that title
Eugene Ionesco: Voices, Silences(1987), directed by Thierry Zéno
A documentary
A(1964), directed by Jan Lenica.
An animated short, based on Ionesco's work
Seven Deadly Sins(Les Sept Péchés Capitaux) (1961)
IN FRENCH WITH SUBTITLES
Seven short films, including Ionesco'sAnger(La Colère)
Co-directed by Eugene Ionesco and Sylvain Dhomme
Rhinoceros(1964), directed by Jan Lenica
An animated short based on Ionesco's play
Rhinoceros(1974), directed by Tom O'Horgan
From Ionesco's play
The Seminars
Maison Francaise (Columbia)
with Rosette Lamont, Edward Einhorn, Andy Bragen and John Hagan
Friday, September 14 at 7:00
Maison Francaise (NYU)
"Rediscovering Ionesco"
with Tina Howe, John Simon and Rosette Lamont
Moderated by Tom Bishop
Thursday, November 15 at 7:30pm
The Players Club
With Israel Horovitz, David Ives, Tina Howe and Richard Foreman
Moderated by Mel Gussow
Tuesday, October 9 at 8:00