2/6/98
ATHENS, Ohio -- Director, producer and actress Judith Malina will present a lecture titled "Paris in 1968," based on her experiences in the Paris riots, at 8 p.m. Feb. 12 in Ohio University's Scripps Auditorium as part of the Elizabeth Evans Baker Lecture Series.
Malina, co-founder and artistic director of The Living Theatre, has had a profound effect on acting, writing and production. The Living Theatre, with its daring and controversial repertory, has toured the world since the 1960s and is one of the longest lasting avant-garde companies in history. Malina's anarchist/pacifist philosophies have been a central part of her theater. Her productions have featured scripts with strong poetic language, experimental and/or abstract structure, anti-establishment concepts and improvisatory possibilities.
Malina's awards include eight OBIEs for her work off-Broadway, one in 1969 for best actress in Bertolt Brecht's "Antigone" and one in 1975 for lifetime achievement in theater. Malina was named a Guggenheim Fellow in 1985 in recognition of her contributions to the arts. She holds an honorary doctorate in humane letters from Whittier College in California.
"My work as a writer, like the work of The Living Theatre, is committed to making art useful to the alleviation of suffering and to putting an end to the social acceptance of killing," she said.
For more than 50 years, Malina has been one of the most influential figures in world theater. She is on the Ohio University campus this winter to play the title role in Brecht's "Mother Courage & Her Children," to be presented by the School of Theater in March. Her residency is made possible by the 1804 Fund.
"Judith Malina is a great artist, a great teacher, a great soul. To have her playing Brecht's Mother Courage with us this winter is an honor and a delight," said Toni Dorfman, director of the School of Theater.
"Mother Courage & Her Children" previews March 4 and 5 and opens March 6. Additional performances are planned March 7, 11, 12, 13 and 14. All of these shows are at 8 p.m. Matinee performances are at 10 a.m. March 12 and 2 p.m. March 14. All performances are in the Forum Theater in the Radio-Television Building. Tickets are available through the School of Theater ticket office in Kantner Hall or by calling the ticket office at 593-4800. Ticket office hours are noon to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Admission is $8 for adults and $6 for students and senior citizens.
Malina also will be the guest speaker at the School of Theater lunchbag seminar at noon March 6 in Baker Theater in Kantner Hall. Admission is free.
The Feb. 12 Baker lecture is sponsored by the Baker Peace Studies Program, the 1804 Fund, the Contemporary History Institute, the School of Theater, the College of Communication and the College of Fine Arts.