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			{{Short description\|Experimental theater company, NY, NY, US (since 1975)}}
	__NOTOC__
			{{Infobox theatre group
	]
			\| name = The Wooster Group
			\| image = Performing Garage 33 Wooster Street.jpg
			\| imagesize =
			\| caption = The Performing Garage in 2014
			\| formed = 1975
			\| disbanded = <!-- {{End date\|YYYY\|MM\|DD}} -->
			\| genre =
			\| location = ], ], United States
			\| members =
		⚫	\| ArtisticDirector = ]
			\| notable =
			\| homepage = {{URL\|http://thewoostergroup.org}}
			}}
		⚫	'''The Wooster Group''' is an ] company based in ] known for creating numerous original dramatic works. It gradually emerged from ]'s ] (1967–1980) during the period from 1975 to 1980. The group took its name in 1980; the independent productions of 1975–1980 are retroactively attributed to the group.<ref name=WG-Chrono>Wooster Group, .</ref>

			The ensemble is directed by ] and it launched the careers of many actors including founding member ]. The group's home is the ] at 33 ] between ] and ] Streets in the ] neighborhood of ]. As of 2014, the company consists of 16 members. In addition, there are 29 "Associates".<ref name=about />
⚫	'''The Wooster Group''' is a ]-based ] ~~company~~ known for creating numerous original dramatic works. It gradually emerged from ]'s ] (~~1967-1980~~) during the period from 1975 to 1980, ~~and~~ took its name in 1980; the independent productions of ~~1975-1980~~ are retroactively attributed to the ~~Group~~.<ref name=WG-Chrono>Wooster Group, .</ref>

			The Wooster Group is a ] theater company that relies on grants and donations from supporters. It has received multiple grants from the ]. The group is characterized by its extremely experimental style, often incorporating aspects of ] such as interactive ], live stream, recorded sound, and pre-recorded video into their performance work. Their performances are often of classic texts like ], ], ], and ].<ref>{{Cite news\|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/29/theater/elizabeth-lecompte-of-the-wooster-group-wins-the-gish-prize.html\|title=Elizabeth LeCompte of the Wooster Group Wins the Gish Prize\|last=Schuessler\|first=Jennifer\|date=2016-09-28\|newspaper=The New York Times\|issn=0362-4331\|access-date=2017-01-14}}</ref>
	The Wooster Group is still one of the most important theater companies in America today. ] founded the group at the time of the dissolution of another group of players called the Performance Group. Richard Schechner, a theatrical director who studied the social aspect of performance, established the Performance Group. The group performed in a venue called the Performance Garage, which is a very well known performance space in present day. This space continues on as an outgrowth of the performance group’s identity.

			Past collaborators with the group include Ken Kobland, Jim Strahs, ], ], ], ], ], ], Hans Peter Kuhn, and ] among others.<ref name=history></ref>
	] is located at 33 ] between ] and ] Streets in the ] neighborhood of ]. At the postmodern time it was part of the downtown theater clusters operating in poor theater aesthetics. Poor theater meant that all that was needed for the performance to go on was the performers and the performance, not the fancy costumes, set, or lighting design. The original use of the space was a mechanic’s workshop, which was then appropriated as the performance space for the Performance Group, and then later the Wooster Group.

		⚫	== Founding members<small>'''<ref name=":0"> on the Wooster Group website</ref>'''</small> ==
	Schechner is looked to as the innovator of environmental staging. The Wooster players in the Performance Garage used the infrastructure of what was originally there, such as metal rods, metal catwalks, and ropes that they would zip line from in order to get from one side of the stage to another. These ropes could also be raised and lowered from one side to another. This environment became a playground for the Wooster players to tell their story, and although it was unconventional of how theaters ran in their time, it became a staple of the Wooster Players and the Performance Garage.
			{{div col\|colwidth=12em}}

			* ]
	LeCompte was the chief director and manager of the group that performed many adaptations and original works. When the Wooster Group operated in the postmodern time, the hallmarks of modernism, such as adaptations, were seen in several of their performances. While the Wooster Group performed many performances from its birth in 1980 to the present day, there are a few performances that are extremely noteworthy of this group of players.
			* ]

	In 2006, the Wooster players repurposed the 1964 Broadway production of ]’s ''Hamlet'' as their own original adaption. The production, which shows its post modernism in the fact that it is an adaptation, performed the piece through a present day lens. The play is performed scene by scene where the actors stand in front of a production screen that shows their character from the 1964 version as well as a screen with the live video of the performance occurring. This element was meant to be intentionally confusing in order for the audience to assess where they are with the narrative, while also thinking about all the past productions of Hamlet. Not only do we see characteristics of postmodern theater in the adaptations, use of technology, and as well with mediatization, we also see Brecht’s distancing effect in action. This intellectual exercise is meant for the audience to distance themselves from the preconceived notion of the original productions of Hamlet with the present day version.

	Another production of the Wooster Group that is of great importance, as well as controversy, of the Performance Garage is its adaptation of ]’s, '']''. The adaption took the name ''L.S.D.(…just the high points).'' The piece was framed around political issues, such as the political repression that America was dealing with at the time. The artistic variations and adaptations that occurred during this performance was that the actors read the dialogue at lighting speed, making it indistinguishable for the audience to truly understand what the actors were saying. Also, some of the players were in the original pilgrim garb, but others were in contemporary clothing.

	Miller believed that this adaptation went against his principals and was not happy with the theater company’s work. However, when Miller went to take legal action against the Wooster Group, the Wooster Group was able to escape a law suite by saying that they were just appropriating the play. The Wooster Group successfully took ''The Crucible'' and turned it into a new contemporary form by taking the text and turning it into something else. This can be linked to Dadaism in that the fact that it took the text and made it indesignishable, taking the meaning of words away from the audience.

	One of the most prominent and well-known players of the Wooster Group is ]. Valk is an extremely talented blackface actress whose work in the Wooster Group allowed blackface performance to be performed in a way that no other theater was able to do at the time. To this day, it is still difficult for an audience member to watch someone go on stage in blackface. However, the Wooster group espouse the point of view that they are not perpetuating the stereotype but are instead throwing history at the audience’s face. Thus, when Kate Valk of the Wooster Group performed ''],'' which highlights racial inequality, she did so in a way that caused people to think. Through the use of linguistics traits of the time and the ] paint, the audience is forced to feel uncomfortable. The audience is asked to think about the days where people used to laugh at this inequality and then reassess their own personal distance from the original play to the present day adaptation.

	The experience that the Wooster Group creates in order for the audience to form their own perspective (the experience is in the eye of the beholder) has created fame for the group, as well as their performance space. The Wooster Group still stands today as one of the most influential experimental theater companies in American history.

	As of 2014, the company consists of 16 members. In addition, there are 29 "Associates".<ref name="about" /> The Wooster Group is a ] theater company that relies on grants and donations from supporters. It has received multiple grants from the ]. The group has launched the careers of many actors, including founding member ].

	==Founding members==

	{{col-begin}}{{col-break}}
	* ]		* ]
	* ]		* ] (d. 2004)
	* ] (d.2004)
⚫	* ]
	{{col-break\|gap=4em}}
	* Peyton Smith		* Peyton Smith
	* ]		* ]
	* ] (d.1994)<ref name=about>{{cite web \|title=Ron Vawter Papers, 1963-1994 \|url=http://archives.nypl.org/the/21621 \|publisher=New York Public Library \|accessdate=11 June 2014}}</ref>		* ] (d. 1994)<ref name=about>{{cite web \|title=Ron Vawter Papers, 1963-1994 \|url=http://archives.nypl.org/the/21621 \|publisher=New York Public Library \|accessdate=11 June 2014}}</ref>
	{{col-end}}		{{div col end}}

			== Current company<small>'''<ref name=":0" />'''</small> ==
⚫	*<small>'''~~Source:~~<ref> on the Wooster Group website</ref></small>~~'''~~
			{{div col\|colwidth=12em}}
			* Alexandre Artaud
			* Mike Farry
			*Ari Fliakos
			* Clay Hapaz
			* Cynthia Hedstrom
			* Jonathan Hull
			* Yudam Hyung Seok Jeon
			* Elizabeth LeCompte
			* Cynthia Hedstrom
			* Bona Lee
			* Andrew Maillet
			* Tavish Miller
			*Michaela Murphy
			* ]
			* Eric Sluyter
			* Kate Valk
			* Monika Wunderer
			{{div col end}}

	==Awards and honors==		==Awards and honors==
	The Wooster Group has won ~~numerous awards, among which are~~ nine ]s, six ]s~~, the 1993 Edwin Booth Award for Significant Contributions to New York Theater~~, and the 1985 ] Ongoing Ensembles Grant.<ref name=history> on the Wooster Group website</ref>		The Wooster Group has won nine ]s, six ]s, and the 1985 ] Ongoing Ensembles Grant.<ref name=history> on the Wooster Group website</ref>

		⚫	== Further reading ==
			* {{cite magazine\|last1=Gordon \|first1=David \|author1-link=David Gordon (novelist) \|title= The Forty-Year Rehearsal – The Wooster Group's endless work in progress \|magazine=] \|date=January 2020 \|volume=340 \|issue=2036 \|pages=53–64 \|url=https://harpers.org/archive/2020/01/the-forty-year-rehearsal-wooster-group-elizabeth-lecompte/ \|access-date=21 August 2022 \|publisher=Harper's Magazine Foundation \|location=New York, NY, US \|issn=0017-789X}}
		⚫	* Quick, Andrew. ''The Wooster Group Workbook'', London: Routledge, 2007. {{ISBN\|978-0-415-35334-2}}
		⚫	* Savran, David. ''Breaking the Rules: The Wooster Group''. New York: Theatre Communications Group, 1990. {{ISBN\|0-930452-82-8}}

	==References==		==References==
			{{Portal\|Theatre\|New York City\|United States}}
	'''Notes'''
	{{Reflist}}		{{Reflist}}

⚫	~~'''~~Further reading~~'''~~
⚫	* Quick, Andrew. ''The Wooster Group Workbook'', London: Routledge, 2007. ISBN 978-0-415-35334-2
⚫	* Savran, David. ''Breaking the Rules: The Wooster Group''. New York: Theatre Communications Group, 1990. ISBN 0-930452-82-8.

	==External links==		==External links==
	{{wikiversity\|Performance art}}		{{wikiversity\|Performance art}}
	* {{Official website\|http://www.thewoostergroup.org/}}		* {{Official website\|http://www.thewoostergroup.org/}}

			{{Authority control}}

	{{DEFAULTSORT:Wooster Group, The}}		{{DEFAULTSORT:Wooster Group, The}}
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Latest revision as of 16:39, 15 August 2024

Experimental theater company, NY, NY, US (since 1975)

The Wooster Group
The Performing Garage in 2014
Formation	1975
Type	Theatre group
Location	New York City, New York, United States
Artistic director(s)	Elizabeth LeCompte
Website	thewoostergroup.org

The Wooster Group is an experimental theater company based in New York City known for creating numerous original dramatic works. It gradually emerged from Richard Schechner's The Performance Group (1967–1980) during the period from 1975 to 1980. The group took its name in 1980; the independent productions of 1975–1980 are retroactively attributed to the group.

The ensemble is directed by Elizabeth LeCompte and it launched the careers of many actors including founding member Willem Dafoe. The group's home is the Performing Garage at 33 Wooster Street between Grand and Broome Streets in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. As of 2014, the company consists of 16 members. In addition, there are 29 "Associates".

The Wooster Group is a not-for-profit theater company that relies on grants and donations from supporters. It has received multiple grants from the Carnegie Corporation. The group is characterized by its extremely experimental style, often incorporating aspects of audiovisual such as interactive video art, live stream, recorded sound, and pre-recorded video into their performance work. Their performances are often of classic texts like Brecht, Shakespeare, Chekhov, and Eugene O'Neill.

Past collaborators with the group include Ken Kobland, Jim Strahs, Richard Foreman, Trisha Brown, John Lurie, Bruce Odland, Jennifer Tipton, Frances McDormand, Hans Peter Kuhn, and Amir ElSaffar among others.