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The name Jason Grote is on the mind of every current theater student at Montclair State University. Not only is his play, 1001, being mounted by the graduating class of theater studies students, but Grote is also bringing a new musical adaptation of the same play to campus as well as teaching a class about theater for social change. Grote is no stranger to the Montclair campus, as he graduated in 1993 with a BFA in Acting and Directing. Over the last month I kept an online dialogue with Grote to ask him questions about theater for social change. Read more »

When I was first hired to direct The Laramie Project I admittedly knew very little about the piece. Apart from a brief historical description, the one thing I did know was that this was more than just a play. It was a potential catalyst for a discussion on hate. The play was created from interviews with people from a Wyoming town where a young man, Matthew Shepard, was brutally murdered for being gay. Anyone I knew that had seen it recounted an incredible emotional response from being witness to the play. I wanted to achieve more than an emotional response; I wanted to incite discussion. Read more »

One of the most remarkable things about theatre is that it affords you the opportunity to escape reality while simultaneously forcing you to recognize the reality from which you are escaping. This is not always the case, and in a modern theatrical climate that is more focused on ticket sales than cultural relevance, most audiences walk away without recognizing much of anything. I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t at times captivated by the glorious world of theatrical entertainment for the sake of entertainment, in fact that’s what got me into theatre in the first place. I was that theatre geek that walked around brandishing Little Shop of Horror t-shirts, while belting out show tunes in my room, much to the joy (or annoyance) of my parents. 

But midway through my training at Montclair, I became more in tune to the world around me. Perhaps it was that brief moment in time where it was considered cool to be politically and culturally aware that began the reshaping of my thoughts on life and theatre. Barack Obama was in the running for President, and suddenly everyone, including myself decided maybe they should put down People Magazine and pick up The New York Times. Suddenly I realized how much was going on in the world that I had allowed myself to ignore. 

With this realization came a self analysis of my life’s future direction. Was theatre really something that was worthwhile? Why am I trying to spend my life entertaining when I could be using my energy and skills to help others? In the midst of this examination of my career goals, I was asked to direct Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues. The producers of the show initially booked a female director, but at the last minute she backed out, and I was the only one they knew available to take on the production. When I first agreed to take on the role of director, I merely viewed it as an opportunity to advance my skills as a director; however, as I plunged myself into the production I began to realize that this was a piece of art that could really help other people. Suddenly it clicked. This is what I can do with theatre, with art, to make a difference in the world.

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