NOTCH
IN THE NEWS
Cafe utopia impresseses audiences and critics
WILD HOME FEATURED IN AMERICAN THEATERE MAGAZINE
“[…] Not only is Wild Home creating a scalable community of activists, it is also making activism more fun, and therefore more sustainable. […] The community-responsive model makes it possible to see and hear the people living on the front lines of the fight for a more just and sustainable future—and in that specificity, to see the steps we all can take to join the work.””
PRAISE FOR GERSTL TOOK THE EASY WAY OUT
We’re thrilled to share that Gerstl Took the Easy Way Out has been recognized as one of the "Top Five Performances to Stream" by TDF! And that’s not all—Front Row Theatre raved about it, calling it "underground theatre at its best" with a stellar 95 out of 100 rating.
Front Row Theatre’s review highlights the incredible talents behind this production, saying, "The performers are all wonderful, a brilliant blend of queer, non-binary, and trans communities, coming together to create a spectacular evening exploring art, sexual desires, and individual needs. Amy Staats shines as Mathilde, commanding the stage with her energy and knee-slapping comedic timing, all rooted in the raw truth of the character and women everywhere."
Curious to know more?
“not another memory play: remember2019” on HowlRound
“Our archives are a way of organizing and centering these stories, and
the ways we’ve gone about collecting them and performing them subvert
traditional notions of what makes for legitimate historic documentation.”
“Prototyping cultural democracy”
See Monument Lab's four part series on Remember2019 where the creators discuss vision and values, process, aesthetics, and impact.
“We believe that culture influences policy” ... “Therefore, it is our responsibility to reframe our cultural narrative so that it inspires just policies. This project begins by recognizing a history that was intentionally devalued and disposed of in order to entrench a normative white supremacist culture. In order to do that, this project will embody equity and participation by prioritizing the leadership, stories, and talents of community members that have been historically ignored. Our model is flexible, scaleable and nimble enough to adapt to the specific context and goals of the community, while still based in well-researched frameworks and proven methodologies.”
by Arlene Goldbard, Chief Policy Wonk at the U.S. Department for Arts and Culture.
Broadway World: "Ashley Teague and Susana Plotts-Pineda Join CoLAB Arts 2021 Cohort For New Brunswick Artist Residency."
by BWW News Desk on Dec. 2, 2020
"coLAB Arts has announced the 2021 cohort for its New Brunswick Artist Residency. These incredible social practice and socially-engaged artists will be working over the next year with and in service to local organizations and communities through oral history, workshop facilitation, studio practice, and socially engaged art making. Artist and organization pairings include: Daniela Ochoa-Bravo and Susana Plotts-Pineda in collaboration with Unity Square Neighborhood Revitalization Project and Rutgers University, Osimiri Sprowal in collaboration with SHELTER (shelternj.org) and Mercado Esperanza (mercadoesperanzanb.org), Ashley Teague and Notch Theatre Company in collaboration with Reformed Church of Highland Park - Affordable Housing Corporation (RCHP-AHC), and Jody Wood in collaboration with Elijah's Promise. These residencies are supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Henry Luce Foundation, the Kresge Foundation, and a Rutgers University Research Council grant."
"The project strives to create a national discourse as it takes an epic journey through fifteen rural communities across the United States and documents a pivotal moment in America—a moment we may look back on for generations to come as we evaluate the consequences of the current administration’s re-zoning a record number of public lands to the oil and gas industry."
"Rural communities have historically been a big part of social justice movements, recall those areas of Mississippi and Alabama that motivated the civil rights movement. [these communities] deserve our support, our championing, our partnership, and ultimately we are better for bearing witness and listening deeply to all they have to say and teach us."
Natalie Rine, Associate New York Critic, reviews
Anna Karenina: a riff
"Notch’s production electrifies as a rollicking, fresh investigation of Tolstoy’s classic novel, bursting with a folk-rock score that pokes and prods at the consequences of female rebellion, bringing bold new questions into an arresting, quasi-contemporary conversation on the role of women in families, communities, and countries. [...] Paired with Ashley Teague’s inventive direction, this small but strong production is a declaration of Notch Theatre Company’s visceral, scintillating point of view that is a force to be reckoned with as even the best of current day Broadway’s appeal to address modern themes pales in comparison"
"One of the best new musical scores I’ve heard all year"
"The subtly with which this beauty hits you between the waves of wit and hilarity cannot be praised enough."
"I would without doubt drudge through the snow
of Siberia to see this
musical again."
The Flea Theater awards Notch as one of their 2020 Anchor Partners.
"The Flea Theater announces its winter 2019-2020 Anchor Partners, an initiative designed to support small independent theater, music and dance companies. This season, The Flea welcomes companies Tiffany Mills Company, Elisa Monte Dance, Notch Theatre Company, Gabrielle Revlock, The Bang Group and TOSOS."
Read the full article on Broadway World.
N Magazine exposé on FIT:
"...that same eugenics language and thinking is present in our current national dialogue around immigration. [...] This storyline, in conversation with the life of Carrie Buck, asks audiences to think about their proximity to the Intellectual Disablity community and how that community contributes to the diversity of a nation. [...] How are we, as a society, supporting spaces
for inclusion?"
project chq
In the summer of 2016 and 2017 Notch developed the CHQ Engagement Project. Commissioned by Chautauqua Theater Company, the CHQ project puts local Chautauqua community stories
on stage.
The Chautauquan Daily
"I had the opportunity to experience the 'CTC After Dark' performance on July 26, dramatizing what Chautauqua is, was and will be, depending on one’s own personal experience, amidst the collective experience. Bravo! I had never been part of a 'Community Engagement Experience' before, and I most certainly hope it will not be my last! The stories told were rich and poignant, making clear that the Chautauqua experience is as unique as those who participate – those who have participated and those who have yet to make Chautauqua their own. The show was brilliantly conceived and incredibly acted. A special congratulations to Ashley Teague, who hit this one out of the park!"
Brown Daily Herald:
‘Invasion!’ challenges audiences, casts light on Muslim experiences
"The play is not easy to describe — nor should it be. At its most basic level, the show is a series of intersecting vignettes that trace the ethereal identity of a figure the characters hold to a near-mythological status. At its loftiest, it is a scathing critique of the way American society treats Muslims and other marginalized communities."
