Past Work
Commissioned collaborations with other arts institutions allow Cornerstone to reach larger audiences, to share the company’s mission and methods with often larger institutions, to invite community-based artists and audiences to feel ownership of their local flagship cultural institutions, and for Cornerstone to return to its own touring roots.
A COMMUNITY CAROL, 1993
Anacostia, Washington, D.C.
Presented in collaboration with Arena Stage
Written by Alison Carey, Edward P. Jones, Laurence Maslon and Bill Rauch
Directed by Bill Rauch
Created with residents of the communities east of the Anacostia River, the play’s cast included members of Arena and Cornerstone’s resident acting companies and an equal number of community-based actors, including two children who were the first deaf performers in Arena’s history.
TOO NOBLE BROTHERS, 1997
Lower East Side, New York
Produced in Collaboration with The Public Theater/New York Shakespeare Festival
Written by Alison Carey
Directed by Bill Rauch
As hosted by the Public and in collaboration with over 200 students at Seward Park High School on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, Cornerstone created an hour-long version Shakespeare and Fletcher’s The Two Noble Kinsmen with dialogue and song lyrics in Bengali, English, Mandarin, and Spanish.
ARTocracy, 1997
Commissioned by The Getty Museum, Los Angeles
Written by Armando Molina
Directed by Diane Rodriguez
Part of a series, this multi-media, performance art, tongue-in-cheek piece was performed at the Catholic Charities building.
STEELBOUND, 1999
Bethlehem, PA
Produced in collaboration with Touchstone Theater
Adapted by Alison Carey from Aeschylus
Music by Ysaye M. Barnwell
Directed by Bill Rauch
Presented at the Bethlehem Steel Plant
Touchstone Theatre invited Cornerstone to write, direct, and set design an adaptation of Aeschylus’ Greek tragedy Prometheus Bound. Produced in the empty iron foundry of the closed Bethlehem Steel home plant, Steelbound included a cast of 56, more than half of whom were former steelworkers or relatives of former steelworkers.
PUBLIC GHOSTS-PRIVATE STORIES,1999
New Brunswick, NJ
Written by Ain Gordon (Obie Award Winner)
Directed by Michael Rohd and Eric Ruffin
Produced in collaboration with George Street Playhouse and Crossroads Theatre
In conjunction with the performance, over 155 workshops were led by Bill Rauch and Armando Molina in community centers, places of worship and public schools.
A CITY-WIDE BRIDGE: FOR HERE OR TO GO?, 2000
Presented at the Mark Taper Forum, Los Angeles
By Allison Carey
Directed by Bill Rauch
In celebration of Cornerstone’s 15th Anniversary, representatives from every L.A. community with which Cornerstone had collaborated with (15 communities) were brought together in a City-Wide, Jumbo-Sized, Extra-Value Holiday Show inspired by Francis Beaumont’s The Knight of the Burning Pestle.
THE GOOD PERSON OF NEW HAVEN, 2000
New Haven, CT
Produced in collaboration with Long Wharf Theatre
Adapted By Alison Carey from Bertolt Brecht
Directed by Bill Rauch
Choreographed by Sabrina Peck
This adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s modern fable was created over three years in workshops involving hundreds of local residents, and set new standards for Cornerstone’s depth of community engagement. The production had a 48-performance run on Long Wharf’s main-stage.
PETER PAN, 2001
Cleveland, OH
Produced in collaboration with Great Lakes Theater Festival
Presented at the Ohio Theater
Adapted by Alison Carey from J.M. Barrie
Music by Paul James
Directed by Bill Rauch
Choreographed by Ken Roht
A contemporary adaptation involving over 350 men, women, and children from northeast Ohio.
GROWING HOME, 2001
Produced in collaboration with the Cal State University Summer Arts program
Fresno, CA
Written by Bernardo Solano
Directed by Mark Valdez
As part of a four-week residency, students from throughout California and residents of this historic farming community collaborated with Cornerstone artists to explore the complex negotiations between development and agriculture.
DEMETER AND THE CITY, 2006
Written by Sarah Ruhl
Directed by Shishir Kurup
Performed at REDCAT
In celebration of Cornerstone’s 20th Anniversary – a play created with Angelenos born in 1986.
THE FALLS, 2006
Minneapolis, MN
Written by Jefffrey Hatcher
Co-directed by Michael John Garcés and Bill Rauch
Produced as part of the inaugural season of the new Guthrie Theatre.
Inspired by Thorton Wilder’s The Long Christmas Dinner, The Falls was created over three years in workshops involving many local residents.
THE MALL PLAYS FESTIVAL, 1999
Presented in association with Montclair Plaza, One Colorado (Old Pasadena) and Santa Monica Place
Montclair Plaza, Montclair CA:
Model Behavior by Rebecca Clark
L.A. HairStory by Hallie Hobson
NoThing by Megan Young
One Colorado, Old Town Pasadena CA:
Gods and Shoppers by Gail Lerner and Colin Campbell
Family Values by Paula Weston Solano
Girl Dig by Molly Cleator and Diane Robinson
Santa Monica Place, Santa Monica CA:
The Market Tale by Tamadhur Al-Aqeel
In Passing by Juliette Carillo and Jessica Wallenfels
Three Tales by Hans Christian Anderson adapted by Karen Hardcastle and Elizabeth Tobias
The culmination of our five-year theatrical experiment in shopping malls, Mall Plays was a festival of short plays critiquing materialism while exploring the new town green. Spanning three weekends and three malls, theatergoers saw nine site-specific, original plays, produced during shopping hours plus the Cornerstone ensemble show Foot/Mouth.
