ARTicles vol. 2 i.2: From the Artistic Director

Welcome to Snow in June, the second production of the A.R.T.’s 2003/2004 season.

I first became aware of the work of Chen Shi-Zheng more than a decade ago. A long-time collaborator of mine, the composer Paul Dresher, told me that he’d worked with an extraordinary director from Beijing at a program at U.C.L.A. that brought Eastern and Western artists together to investigate possible collaborations. Then, in 1999, the playwright Charles Mee, who I had worked with several times over the last decade, described to me the experience of seeing Shi-Zheng’s thirteen-hour Peony Pavilion cycle at the Lincoln Center Festival. Chuck said it was one of the single most exhilarating events of his life in the theater. When I contacted Nigel Reddin who produces the Lincoln Center Festival and asked him for ideas about artists who might work on our stage, the first name off his lips was Chen Shi-Zheng. I knew we should get this gifted artist to Cambridge.

When Shi-Zheng and I discussed the text and music for Snow in June two years ago, I suggested that he should work with Paul Dresher and Chuck Mee. Completing the circle of contact between these three artists could yield something beautiful in the life of the A.R.T.

Snow in June is in many ways emblematic of the work we strive to produce at the A.R.T. A world premiere, the production unites the talents of three major artists who have been developing the text, music, and staging for the past fourteen months in a series of workshops with members of our acting company, students from the A.R.T. Institute, and the musicians of Andromeda, a Boston-based quartet. It combines elements from an ancient dramatic text with a contemporary sensibility, and was born of cultural traditions as diverse as classical Chinese theater and contemporary American folk music. We’re delighted that you’ve joined us, and hope the production gives you as much pleasure as its creation has given us.

With best wishes,

Robert Woodruff, Artistic Director