LARRY KORNFELD INTERVIEW with Steve Bottoms, 9.95 - Judson ...

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LK: The theatre was originally formed by me, Theo Barnes, Crystal and George. [heasks for the tape to be turned off: explains story of falling out with Crystal Field "offthe record"]LK: But also in the early '70s I felt very much also that the church was changing, andneeded those oratorios that Al was doing. The things that Al was doing, startingaround 69/70, used soloists, actors, and huge choruses, the whole church was in thechorus. It became a new thing at the Judson, very exciting. And I directed one ofthem, but not at Judson. A Look at the Fifties was brought to Washington, to ArenaStage, and Al asked me to direct it there, wanted me to shape it a different way. Aftera while I think the real problem was - and this goes back to the earlier question youwere asking about the writers too - Al did not want me to have the strong control, hewanted ultimate control, and I think that was natural for a lot of the playwrights too ...And I think I'm surprising myself now, thinking about this .... because I think that thestronger I got as a director, the more necessary it was for me to work with anonymousactors in the company, and newer playwrights, because those playwrights helped meget born, I helped them get born, we helped each other. And I think all of us wantedto be independent of the movement. It happens ... people want to be together, and thenas they get more sophisticated, pieces break off... And the world was changing, theaudience was changing, and we were heading into the seventies ...[ye gods?] I workedall those places, the regional theatres, and by 1980 I started teaching - and directingtoo - and finding a whole new way of working with younger actors. Now the actors Iwork with in the Conservatory are in fact better trained people, for the most part, thanat Judson. But very few of them are the quite high[ something?]ly wonderfulcharacters that we had at the Judson. But after a while I got tired of depending a lotupon the charisma of a performer, and I wanted to see them doing more acting. Andthey did -- at the Judson -- we would force them into doing things a new waysometimes. But as I taught more, I got more used to actors per se, I used to not beinterested in acting, I used to want to own the audience [??], but as I got more used toactors, I learned how to handle actors better,and now I do truly enjoy working withclassical plays as well as Gertrude Stein. I want very much next year to do Danton 'sDeath.LK: When I'm being an auteur-director. Depending on the production. If I'm doingStein, of course I'm an auteur-director. If I'm doing Eugene Q'Neill, no! I've done oneArthur Miller play, I said oh God I'm doing Arthur Miller, he's awful! And Ithoroughly enjoyed it. The Price. I enjoyed doing it -- to discover how exciting ... howwell he writes from the inside. The inside of Arthur Miller is so... so true, although onthe surface it seems like gunk.
LK: No that's not true, I don't think so. I think that's not quite accurate. When you say'the church' there was never - there was Al Carmines, there was Howard Moody, therewas the board ... What happened was that they were getting involved in other things,and that the artists, who were supported so wonderfully by the church for a decade,were finally getting out and doing things. Yvonne Rainer was out making a career,Lucinda Childs was making a career, I mean all those people were making careers inthe arts. Meredith Monk was out doing her own thing. I remember a Harry Koutoukasplay with Meredith Monk playing a flower, with a score by AI, it was so funny ...SJB: Can you say more about the Judson shows that moved "uptown", off-Broadway?Did that happen with a lot of the shows?LK: Not a lot. When you think of all the stuff we did, it was amazing how manymoved. But it was even more amazing how many didn't. Some of which should. Butenough did to make it significant. The same thing happened with Theatre Genesis.LK: Well when you say Off-Off I mean who's that? When you look back on it now itseems to have been an entity, sure ...LK: I think you have to ask why did Joe Cino kill himself? It's a crucial time. Whathappened, not just to Joe ...? Drugs OK, but why did Joe die? What was happening,what was falling apart in that world? I think that's part of it. I don't know the answer, Ijust think that there's some truth there ... [...] I mean the night I met my wife the firstthing we did was we went out to Caffe Cino. Joe was a marvellous character, and hegave absolute freedom to be ... but I think something happened when he died. Whenwas it?LK: Well we were still going strong in '68, '69, but something happened there thatstarted ... Things were still going on, Cino lasted at least another 7 or 8 years [actuallyonly one more year], La Mama is still going on ... I think we all of us still go onbecause a certain kind of flashy status was not our main goal, somehow the work wasthe important thing... We're talking about endings here. I don't think there areendings. I think there are transformations.
Page 6 and 7: -- from song to song in one play: w
Page 8 and 9: The church's mission was very spiri
Page 10 and 11: LK: Yeah. I was always very fond of
Page 12 and 13: of the truck driver, who's the chor
Page 14 and 15: young playwrights, poets, who had a
Page 18 and 19: SJB: Michael Smith said somewhere t
Page 20 and 21: LK: Remy Charlip's work. Almost any
Page 22 and 23: SJB: Yes. But was there a tension,
Page 24 and 25: happened with the best of Off-Off-B
Page 26 and 27: So they really retained the quality
Page 28 and 29: SJB: Irene was saying how you shoul

LARRY KORNFELD INTERVIEW with Steve Bottoms, 9.95 - Judson ...

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