Have a Happy & Healthy New Year! - the Parklander

ARTS& ENTERTAINMENT
Greetings, readers of the Parklander.
This is, hopefully, the first in a series of
many articles that I will be writing for
this magazine. I have been given the
opportunity to regale you with news,
information, background and opinions
about what is going on in South Florida
Theatre (Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm
Beach and maybe even Monroe counties).
The alliterative title is a salute to
the late, great Fred Diekmann. A lover
of alliteration, Fred was a fixture in
South Florida Theatre. He was a producer,
wrote for Hot Spots and the
Parklander, co-founded, with Dave
Knight (publisher of Buzz Magazine), The Curtain Up Awards. Fred was
much loved and will be sorely missed (as I do), by many in the South Florida
Theatre community.
I am always taken aback when I see a new byline. Almost inevitably, the
first column makes no mention of the writer’s qualifications to pontificate
from a podium in a periodical (That’s for you, Fred). I am reminded of the
time, 28 years ago, when I offered my services as theater critic, to the daily
newspaper at The University of Pennsylvania. “What is your major?” asked
the young man behind the desk. “I’m a theater major,” I replied, knowing
that no one on the staff of the paper currently had that credential (In fact, I
was a member of, what would be, the first graduating class of Theatre
Majors in Penn’s 200+ year history). “Oh,” he said with a yawn, “then we
wouldn’t be interested in you.” My jaw dropped. “There are many people
waiting to review, and besides, we don’t want anyone who knows anything
about theater. We want the opinion of the man on the street.” I wandered
out of the office, into the gray Philadelphia afternoon, wondering why, if it
was the opinion of those who know nothing that mattered, I was bothering
to get an education. Ever since, I have always appreciated knowing the
background of those audacious enough to place their punditry in print.
72
BACKSTAGE BROWARD
with Bernstein
By David Bernstein
So, allow me to introduce myself. My name is David Jay Bernstein. I hold
a BA in Theatre from U of P; a JD (yes, I’m a lawyer) and MS in Mass
Communication from Boston University and an MFA in Directing from
FAU. As a playwright, I’ve had a number of my plays produced and won
several awards and contests. I’ve taught acting on the university level and,
since 2000, been Executive Artistic Director of The Public Theatre of
South Florida. I have directed better than twenty shows and produced
twenty-eight (I tell you this simply to let you know that I have some familiarity
with the world about which I will be writing).
And why, you may ask, have you not heard of The Public Theatre (currently
in its 18th season)? Part of our mission has always been to maintain
prices that everyone can afford. Thus, we don’t have much money for
advertising. However, New Times (the local arts magazine owned by The
Village Voice), recently dubbed The Public Theatre “the best theater for
drama in Broward and The Palm Beaches for 2006.” They wrote as follows:
“The Public Theatre sometimes seems more like a concept than a theater.
Give it a room with rows of collapsible chairs and the Public Theatre will
provide an evening of searching the darkest corners of American society
that always keeps its audience on the edge of its seat. In the past year, Public
Theatre’s artistic director and father confessor, David Jay Bernstein, focused
on the politics of disease and sexual identity (The Normal Heart), ethnic
conflict and urban youth disenfranchisement (Barefoot Boy With Shoes
On), and domestic abuse and the insanity of war (And Then She Moved the
Furniture). Public Theatre does more with less than any company around,
fully knowing that elaborate sets and fancy playbills have less to do with the
theater of social conflict than do sharp plays with superior casts that include
some of the most talented actors in South Florida, both well-known and
up-and-coming.”
When you read this, as 2007 begins, we will be just about to open Manuel
Puig’s KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN, starring Michael McKeever and
David Perez-Ribada. And then. THE FANTASTICKS. Learn more about
The Public Theater at www.PublicTheatre.com. And all of the South
Florida Theatre scene at www.SouthFloridaTheatre.com. See you next
month…AND GO SEE SOME LIVE THEATER!!
JANUARY 2007
Photos of Public
Theatre performances
from 2005 and 2006.