Jan 9 - Jan 15: David G Schultz

Jan 9-Jan 15: David G Schultz 

Focus:  “Tweeting from Asia, the week will encompass when we go to production on the show we are writing with the kids, and our site visit to a village in West Bengal. You should be getting photos and insights from the field, and conversations about the work we are doing.”

Bio: David G. Schultz is a freelance dramaturg and producer in New York, as well as a teaching artist with International Theatre Literacy Project (ITLP).  He is currently conducting a theater education project with ITLP at NIRMAN, a school in Varanasi, India, through January 20.  Recent projects include his work as producer on Onur Karaoglu's The Art of Being Human and dramaturgy on Moises Kaufman's adaptation of Tennessee Williams' short story and screenplay One Arm.  He will be producing a staging of Bill Cain's Stand Up Tragedy in downtown New York in the coming year.

Questions from LMDA

What is your definition of dramaturgy?

“I define dramaturgy as a specialty in dramatic literature, performance studies, and performance arts.  Dramaturgs do such a broad range of things that I find it difficult to put into words something all-encompassing. As a dramaturg, I feel it is my role to be a strong voice for a sense of integrity and rigor in the work that I do, as well as to facilitate connections and insights among the various people working on a performance.  As a producer, I bring a strong dramaturgical sensibility to bear on projects that I feel are important and that move me personally.”

What is your favorite project?

“I spent over a year working with Moises Kaufman on his adaptation of Tennessee Williams' One Arm.  It was a huge undertaking, bringing together a huge amount of research, creative writing, ensemble composition work, and even some stage management (I was script supervisor for several workshops).  It was incredibly satisfying: I dug into the Williams archive, found a huge cache of material, indexed that research, and then worked with Moises and the ensemble to incorporate that research into a living work of theater (that premiered in a Tectonic/New Group Production at Theatre Row in June 2011).”

What is your dream project?

“My dream project is usually whatever project I'm working on now--teaching in India and producing Bill Cain definitely qualify!”