Aimee Todoroff & Guy Yedwab of The League of Independent Theater (LIT)

Listen in as League of Independent Theater Managing Director Aimee Todoroff, and President of their Board of Directors Guy Yedwab, discuss the recently passed Open Culture program, what can be done, what the process looks like to do it, how to get your work out on the streets (safely), and LIT’s further efforts to sustain and promote indie theatre in NYC.

“…we’re all dying to re-open, and first, to really, truly re-open, we have to beat this coronavirus thing…putting it into structures where there’s safety in these performances is going to not only allow us to perform now, but build that world where we can go back to more performance, more normally in the future…”

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Chris Harcum & Aimee Todoroff of “Martin Denton, Martin Denton”

Elephant Run District and FRIGID at Horse Trade present MARTIN DENTON, MARTIN DENTON, written by Chris Harcum, directed by Aimee TodoroffListen in as the Elephant Run District team of Chris Harcum, playwright & performer, and Aimee Todoroff, director, of the company’s new show Martin Denton, Martin Denton, discuss finding safety and meaning in a community, “love,” the validity of our work, the ways in which our productions can live forever, how and why we do this thing called “indie theatre,” and more about this love letter to the scene.

“…what we’re doing is creating life, and then giving life back. And for me, one of the people who was there, and kind of charted what I was doing—and for whom I felt this very deep connection, and this person who, if he didn’t see my show, it felt like it did not happen—needed his story told.”

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Aimee Todoroff, director of “Brecht in the Park”

Elephant Run District presents "Brecht in the Park"Birds chirping. Children playing. Sun. Grass. Epic theatre?

Yep.

In case you’ve never listened to the podcast (or met me), I love Brecht’s work. And I love performances that are out in the open, and free to the public.

In my humble opinion, today’s guest, director Aimee Todoroff, is right—Brecht is indeed perfect for being done outside. Free & open to the public.

…and no purchased seats posing as “subscriber tickets,” taking seats away from the actual “public” (yes, I’m looking at you, oh-other-producer-of-plays-in-Central-Park).

For their first ever Brecht in the Park performance, Elephant Run District presents three of the master’s short plays—The Elephant Calf, In Search of Justice, and The Exception and the Rule—all of which have very strong connections to our current state of affairs.

Listen in as Aimee talks about her inspiration—text-wise & space-wise—for bringing Brecht to Central Park, what’s next for Elephant Run District, and how these plays written in Weimar-era Germany are eerily resonant with New York, NY, USA in 2013.

“How can we put the audience’s experience first, and make them have an experience that they’re going to talk about for the rest of the day?”

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