FoolsFURY Theater

FoolsFURY Theater is an ensemble theater company based in San Francisco.[1]

Founded in 1998 by Artistic Director Ben Yalom, the company presents reworked Shakespeare and classical texts as well as new works by experimental contemporary playwrights.[2] In 2020 Deborah Eliezer took over as artistic director. In 2021 FoolsFURY announced that it was closing down.

History

"Foolsfury Theater" specialized in physical theater techniques such as Viewpoints, Suzuki, and Grotowski-based methods.[3] They also were a training center for these theater techniques[3] and ran a youth program, Swivel Arts.

The ensemble hosted a biennial festival of experimental theater called the "Fury Factory."[1][4] The factory brought together ensemble companies from all around the country and different parts of the world. Past companies include Pig Iron,[5] Banana Bag & Bodice,[6] Witness Relocation, Under the Table and Hand2Mouth.

In 2015, associate artistic, Deborah Eliezer, became co-artistic director with Ben Yalom,[7] and in 2020 she took over as Artistic Director.[8]

In 2021 it was announced that Foolsfury was to be closed down and the work archived.[9][10]

Affiliations

The company worked on new shows with playwrights such as Sheila Callaghan,[11][12] Doug Dorst,[13] and Fabrice Melquiot[14] and collaborated with theatrical innovators such as SITI Company, Mary Overlie,[7] Stephen Wangh and Corey Fischer.[15]

References

  1. ^ a b "SF Bay Area FURY festival has more up its sleeve than wildly creative stage shows". The Mercury News. 2018-07-14. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  2. ^ San Francisco Weekly Best Theater Company Award. http://www.sfweekly.com/bestof/2008/award/best-theater-company-1032534/ Archived March 2, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ a b San Francisco Bay Guardian Goldie Winner - Theater: foolsFURY. http://www.sfbg.com/2007/11/07/goldie-winner-theater-foolsfury
  4. ^ Janiak, Lily (2018-07-19). "Form-defying output from foolsFury's Fury Factory in SF and Oakland". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  5. ^ Straus, Tamara (2011-06-01). "Nabila Mango builds bridges to Arabic culture". SFGATE. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  6. ^ Laemoa, Stephanie (2007-09-12). "Last Chance: 'The Turn of the Screw' and 'The Sewers'". SFGate. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  7. ^ a b Rabinowitz, Chloe. "FoolsFURY Names Deborah Eliezer New Artistic Director". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  8. ^ Janiak, Lily (September 19, 2020). "After LNU Lightning Complex Fire destroys their Sonoma retreat, foolsFury artists seek refuge". Datebook | San Francisco Arts & Entertainment Guide. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  9. ^ Janiak, Lily (December 21, 2021). "The church of theater gathers to say goodbye to one of its own". Datebook | San Francisco Arts & Entertainment Guide. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  10. ^ Rotimi, Agbabiaka (November 24, 2021). "After 23 Years, FoolsFURY Practices The Art of Letting Go". Theatre Bay Area.
  11. ^ Hart, Sarah. "Blow Me Up, Lay Me Down" American Theatre Magazine, Oct 08. http://www.montevallo.edu/thea/PDF/SheilaCallaghan.pdf Archived 2010-05-28 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ Zinoman, Jason (2012-11-18). "Aboard a Cruise Ship, Something Is Up". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  13. ^ Charney, Noah (2014-02-26). "How I Write: Doug Dorst". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  14. ^ Veltman, Chloe. "Bosnia, Through French Eyes" American Theatre Magazine, May/June 07.
  15. ^ Janiak, Lily (June 9, 2020). "Corey Fischer, actor and co-founder of A Traveling Jewish Theatre, dies at 75". Datebook | San Francisco Arts & Entertainment Guide. Retrieved 2022-01-24.