Bauer – October 10, 11, 17, and 18

COVID-19 has changed how you view art. What if you were the artist and lost control not only of how your art was viewed but of the work itself. Would you still create art?

Bauer, by Lauren Gunderson, explores how the real-life Rudolf Bauer answered that question. This is an amazing tale of art and life. Bauer can be seen on October 10, 11, 17, and 18, 2020, Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm.

With his life’s work procured by the Guggenheim Foundation, Rudolf Bauer believed that the museum in New York was being built to house his creations. However, the Guggenheim opened without a single Bauer on display. What happened to his paintings? What caused him to set down his brushes and never paint again even before the Guggenheim opened?

Celebrated playwright Lauren Gunderson tackles the scandalous story of the controversial artist, whom the Nazis once jailed for “degenerate art,” and the two women who loved him.  GET YOUR TICKETS HERE.

The cast:

Rudolf Bauer – Phillip Keiman
Louise Bauer – Michelle Conklin
Hilla Rebay – Carrie Schnelker

Stage (Zoom) direction by Maggie Larrick and Rochelle Flynn.

Like all of BAT’s Shelter-in-place Season II, this is a pay-what-you-can fundraiser for BAT. Due to COVID-19, some of us are not making the money we used to, but that should not keep you from enjoying better live theater. Whether you give $1 or $10,000, BAT would love to see you at the show! Get your tickets (Zoom link) by donating HERE.

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Bold Grace – September 19, 20, 26, and 27

See a live online performance reading of Bold Grace on September 19, 20, 26, and 27.
BAT Theatre’s second Shelter-in-place Season is off to an amazing start with a live performance reading of Bold Grace by Ashley Schalow. Bold Grace will be performed on Zoom at 8 pm on September 19 and 26, and at 2 pm on September 20 and 27.

In this simply jaw-dropping one-woman performance, actor Anna Richardson brings16th-century Irish pirate Grace O’Malley to life. The real Grace lived a very full life, including pirating up and down the Irish coast, leading an army of 200 loyal fighting men and her own fleet of ships, two marriages, four children (one born while Grace was at sea), and even a documented face-to-face meeting with Queen Elizabeth I. Beginning with her first voyage with her father at the age of nine, Grace relives key points in her life until her death in 1603. Under the direction of Taylor Davis, Anna Richardson is so spellbinding as Grace you will swear you can feel the salt air on your face.

This show is suitable for ages 12-plus due to some adult language.

This is a pay-what-you-can fundraiser for BAT. Due to COVID-19 whether you give $1 or $10,000 BAT would love to see you at the show! Get your tickets (Zoom link) by making a donation HERE

Avast, me hearties! Pull up a barrel of rum, fire up Zoom and join BAT Theatre for an adventure.

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BAT’s script club is back!

BAT’s famous script club is back! In the before days, BAT’s script club met at Merrill Gardens. Since the onset of COVID-19 that has not been possible.

Join BAT on September 17, 2020, at 1:30 pm, when BAT’s script club goes online via Zoom.

BAT’s script club is much like a book club, but instead of reading books, you read scripts. You read the script in advance and discuss it during the meeting. Often the script will be for the play BAT will be performing (current online, typically via Zoom), but the club also reads other interesting plays.

This is a joyous way to become theatre literate, but more importantly, to have a good time and get to know your neighbors.

This is your chance to give BAT feedback on scripts BAT is looking at producing and to be entertained with new friends. On September 17 BAT will be discussing Educating Rita, by Willy Russell.

For questions or more information, please send an email to BAT at info@BATtheatre.org, or call (206) 242-5180.

Also, feel free to check out Burien Actors Lending Library (BALL) located at Phoenix Tea Shop at 447 SW 152nd St, Burien. BAT has placed over 1,500 books and scripts in BALL for you to check out for free!

See you at the script club and then at a show!

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Open letter from BAT

The following is an open letter from BAT’s Managing Director, Artistic Director, and Board of Trustees.

Dear members of theater and the greater community:

We are compelled by recent events to join other theater organizations around the nation in addressing what cannot be unseen.

The devaluation and degradation of black artists and lives is not a recent event. It is a persistent and systemic injustice. Recent events are an unambiguous reminder that black Americans and people of color have been marginalized by far too many of our institutions, in the past and the present.

The world of theater, and our greater society, remains affected by slavery and Jim Crow. These failures to treat all humans fairly must be recognized. We must take responsibility. We alone are capable of taking actions now and into the future to realize meaningful change. We must act as individuals and as a group. Theater can, and must, lead the way out of this darkness.

As an art form, the stories theaters tell have long focused overwhelmingly on the problems of white people. We must actively choose to expand those storylines. That includes developing an awareness of our own conscious and unconscious biases that limit our vision of the types of stories worth telling, the people who are on stage, and those who make up the creative teams behind them.

In theater, we are too often bound by tradition. These are the stories we have always told. These are the tales we believe our donors and ticket buyers will support. Yet, we must remember that the world is much bigger, and by not telling the stories of everyone, with everyone represented on and off stage, we are supporting the status quo that includes the systemic oppression of black Americans. As we have seen, that oppression is not merely exclusionary, it is deadly.

We must keep in mind that racial injustice is the collective product of all of us and our institutions. Only through self-reflection, mindfulness, and taking responsibility can we actively work together to eradicate racism in our industry and the larger society.

The theater has been a mirror and a guiding light for society for thousands of years. We must remember to support our black and other colleagues of color by lifting their voices. Listening to and acknowledging their experiences will enrich and inform the world of theater and beyond. It is our calling to actively participate in dismantling systemic racism both on our stages and in the bigger world.

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Ripcord, next at BAT’s Shelter-in-place Season

Next up as Burien Actors Theatre (BAT) continues its online 2020 Shelter-in-place Season is the comedy Ripcord, written by David Lindsay-Abaire. Performances are May 16 at 8 pm and May 17 at 2 pm.

So far, BAT’s 2020 Shelter-in-place Season has been a hit. Here is just one of many very positive comments after the last play, “That was f—-ing riveting!”

Since BAT can’t bring audiences into the theater right now, the company went online. Talented actors read the five plays in BAT’s Shelter-in-place Season under the guidance of equally talented directors.

These plays are the Artistic Director’s choice with little supervision. So they are different than offerings found anywhere else on social media or streaming.

While the Shelter-in-place Season is a fundraiser, BAT understands funds are tight for some. So make a donation of any amount, no matter how large or small, and get a link to see the Zoom reading. Plus, for Ripcord all donations up to $1,000 will be matched.

Donations help BAT and Click-4-Tix, BAT’s online ticket seller, as they both face hard times. They also pay for show costs.

For tickets to a unique experienced in these twisted times click HERE!!!.

Ripcord

Ripcord, a comedy by David Lindsey-Abaire, is the story of two crafty combatants: The widows Abby Binder and Marilyn Dunne have it out in an increasingly outrageous skirmish for the right to sleep in peace at the Bristol Place assisted living facility.

Marilyn insists nothing makes her angry, while Abby says she is never, ever scared. So the two make a bet. If Abby can make Marilyn lose her temper, Marilyn will move out. That is, unless Marilyn frightens Abby first. In that case, Marilyn gets to have Abby’s bed, which is right next to the window and has a lovely view of a park.

To get what they want, the pair resort to bizarre tactics and drag everyone around them into the fray.

Please note the script contains a little adult language, including the “f” word. Continue reading

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The 2020 Shelter-in-place Season press release

Burien Actors Theatre takes theater online for 2020 Shelter-in-place Season

Burien Actors Theatre (BAT) can’t bring audiences into the theater right now, so the  company has gone online.

BAT’s 2020 Shelter-in-place Season consists of five plays over nine weeks read live online by talented actors with guidance from equally talented directors. To get the Zoom link look HERE.

The plays are the Artistic Director’s choice with little supervision. So they will be different than offerings found anywhere else on social media or streaming.

Two of the plays have been on BAT’s stage, and three have not. According to BAT’s Artistic Director, Eric Dickman, “Even if you saw the play onstage, a reading is a very different experience.”

This is a chance to experience something unique in these twisted times. The readings can only be seen live in real-time, or not at all. They will not be recorded. And because they are presented through Zoom, sweatpants are optional.

Performance Schedule

Here is the schedule for BAT’s 2020 Shelter-in-place Season (all times are Pacific Daylight Time):

May 2 at 8 pm – The Letters by John W. Lowell

May 3 at 2 pm – The Letters by John W. Lowell

May 16 at 8 pm – waiting on rights from the author

May 17 at 2 pm – waiting on rights from the author

May 30 at 8 pm – Zombie by Bill Connington

May 31 at 2 pm – Zombie by Bill Connington

June 13 at 8 pm – Hindle Wakes by Stanley Houghton

June 14 at 2 pm – Hindle Wakes by Stanley Houghton

June 27 at 8 pm – waiting on rights from the author

June 28 at 2 pm – waiting on rights from the author Continue reading

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Peggy Hunt passes

PEGGY HUNT February 8, 1920 – April 1, 2020

This month, BAT is mourning the loss of longtime participant Peggy Hunt. A popular and talented local actress, Peggy and her family lived in Burien for more than 40 years and inspired BAT’s playwrights festival. She died (not of COVID-19) on April 1st at her daughter’s home in Bellingham, just a few weeks past her 100th birthday.

Peggy was born in Quebec on February 8, 1920, moving with her family to Vancouver, B.C. when she was 12. After completing nursing school as a young woman, she met and married a young Boeing engineer, Bill Hunt. He was transferred to the Seattle area. The couple settled in Burien, where they raised their four children.

In 1960, Peggy auditioned and got a leading role in the Burien Workshop Theatre production of the comedy “Harvey,” which was a huge success. Over the next few years, her acting skills, along with her wit and charm, won her many more roles. Peggy was especially adept at playing “dotty old ladies” while only in her 40s, and she thoroughly enjoyed those comedy roles. When not acting, she worked with costumes, props, and other theater-related activities. Continue reading

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Kind thank you

Following up on BAT Trustees helping some BAT partners: https://burienactorstheatre.org/blog/2020/04/bat-lends-a-hand/

BAT received a very kind thank you note.

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BAT lends a hand

This week some of Burien Actors Theatre (BAT) ‘s Trustees are visiting several of the merchants who take BATcoins to give them some recognition, encouragement, and support in these trying times. This was done in the form of a note telling them to “Hang in there,” which included a check from BAT for $500.00.

These BAT Trustees are in a financial position where, through BAT, they can give some monetary support to local small businesses that partner with BAT. Not everyone can do that. However, those of us who can afford to buy a take-out meal, order a book, chocolate, or other goods, should look first to see if we can support local businesses. Times are tough, and we need to stick together.

Actors from Native Gardens practice social distancing

At BAT, we understand not only theater’s entertainment value, but also how its patrons directly spend money in the local economy. We also understand it is part of a nonprofit’s mission to strengthen the community in which it resides. Even though BAT is dark with no ticket sales during the pandemic, we wanted to step up where BAT can to support the community when the times call for extraordinary action. This gesture was kindly made possible by restricted donations from some of BAT’s Trustees.

Be safe, wash your hands, and support the businesses of Burien if you can.

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Rocky ends early

On Sunday, March 15, 2020, the CDC and other health officials recommended that groups of 50 or more do not gather, and a government expert said a 14-day national shutdown might be needed to control the pandemic.

On Monday, March 16, Governor Inslee signed a statewide emergency proclamation temporarily shutting down entertainment and other facilities.

BAT, out of concern for the health of its patrons, cast and crew, and in compliance with these directives, BAT decided to cancel the last weekend of The Rocky Horror Show, March 20 through 22.

For a small theater like BAT, this is a very significant financial burden. Please consider donating to BAT by not requesting a refund for your tickets purchased for canceled performances from March 20 through 22.

To receive a refund for the March 20 through 22 performances please send the email you originally received confirming your purchase to info@burienactorstheatre.org and your credit card will be refunded the price of the tickets. If you cannot locate that email, please send to info@burienactorstheatre.org: the approximate date of your purchase, the name under which you purchased the tickets, and the performance date you would have attended.

We appreciate your support and understanding in these trying circumstances. If you ever thought about donating to better live theater, now is a perfect time to do so DONATE HERE – https://connect.clickandpledge.com/w/Form/f5bd597c-055d-4666-8ebd-1fa2d06c606e.

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