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Special Section: Renovations & InstallationsThe newly redesigned Mark Taper ForumDuring original construction inthe ‘60s, Jo Mielziner, whose nameis synonymous with American theatredesign (A Streetcar Named Desire,Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, Death of aSalesman), was brought in to transformBeckett’s building into a theatre.He had just finished Lincoln Center’sSpace was found for a lobby to the theatre. Read more about the challenges and reception of the lobbyonline at www.stage-directions.com/mtf.Vivian Beaumont Theatre and hebrought those same then-innovativeideas on theatre space to the Taper.Besides the thrust stage, “the overalluse of space is remarkably similar,”says Morgan. In addition to being anaccomplished theatre designer himself,Morgan served as an assistantto Mielziner in his youth, importantlyduring the Beaumont construction. So,it’s rather poetic that Morgan shouldbe selected to update the Taper. Hemaintained the integrity of the roomcreated by Mielziner while making ita much more practical performancespace for modern productions.“Thrust stages have always presentedproblems,” explains Morgan, “butLORT theatres have always loved thembecause they aren’t like Broadwaystages.” So, a succession of thrust stageswere built in the ‘60s before thekinks could be discovered and workedout. “You go into an older theatre andwonder how on earth did they standit all these years?”, reports Morgan.“And you find more often than notthey don’t realize there are obstaclesbecause they’ve simply learned to dealwith them.”At the Taper, however, Lee andArtistic Director Michael Ritchie hadthe drive to eliminate those obstacles.Everyone felt it was important to keepthe elements that worked so well atthe Taper, so every effort was made toimprove it without changing it. Morganclarifies, “It’s the same space, but a differentexperience of that space.”[A lot happened in this project, andspace prevented us from talking aboutthe acoustical treatment to the theatre,its new rigging and the flashy newlobby. To get all that info, head online towww.stage-directions.com/mtf — ed.]David Koteles is a Los Angeles-basedplaywright.34 December 2008 • www.stage-directions.com