Center for Curatorial Studies Presents
United States of America vs. The Living Theatre, a staged reading featuring Mike Iveson and Kaneza Schaal
Sunday, April 23, 2017
CCS Bard Hessel Museum of Art; Classroom 102
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT/GMT-4
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT/GMT-4
A staged reading of the court transcripts from the Living Theatre's famous criminal trial in 1964.
United States vs. The Living Theatre is a staged reading of a script comprised of original documents related to the Living Theatre's famous federal criminal trial in the Spring of 1964. The script will be read by Mike Iveson and Kaneza Schaal.In 1963 the Living Theatre, led by Judith Malina and Julian Beck, staged the controversial play The Brig, which depicted a brutal day in the life of prisoners in a US Marine Corps brig. Midway through the run of The Brig, the Internal Revenue Agency, citing tax evasion, seized and shut down the theatre, endingthe production. The event sparked a series of protests and illicit performances by the Living Theatre that ended in arrest and a grand jury indictment. Malina and Beck were the primary defendants in the trial and insisted on conducting their own defense. This decision enabled them to transform the courtroom into a theatre in which they defended their innocence and poked fun at the legal process. Their performance before the law raised fundamental questions about activism, art, and censorship that continue to resonate today.
Admission is free but space is limited. First come, first served.
These events are part of the exhibition Whispers in the Grass: The Living Theatre and The Brig, curated by Anna Gallagher-Ross, M.A. Candidate CCS Bard, 2017. Whispers in the Grass is on view at the Hessel Museum of Art, April 9-May 28, 2017.
For more information, call 845-372-4503, e-mail [email protected],
or visit https://www.bard.edu/ccs/whispers-in-the-grass-the-living-theatre-and-the-brig/.
Time: 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT/GMT-4
Location: CCS Bard Hessel Museum of Art; Classroom 102