In Regina Hackett’s article Seattle Art Museum’s search for youth she mentions Blog the Boards – OtB’s very own blog – and its origins as a suggestion for something SAM can do to engage the elusive 18 – 35 crowd in this city.

Roughly 5 years ago we created this blog with this statement:

We hope to spark discussions between our bloggers and members of our audience – the people who most care about the work you see here at OtB.

But what if our bloggers write negative things about our work? Actually, we expect there will be criticism; we’re very critical ourselves. But part of being an organization dedicated to contemporary performance is experimenting. And sometimes experiments don’t work out. It’s only by trying new things and seeing what works and what doesn’t that better art gets made. If we don’t make mistakes and miscalculations, then we’re not taking enough chances.

Art should move you. Good art should make your blood boil. Great art should grab ahold of your soul and compel you to respond. No reaction is the worst kind of failure for an artist. Unfortunately, for most of us, there are too few opportunities to get embroiled in passionate discussion about art.

So with that in mind, we hope that Blog the Boards will be the kind of place where our artists and audience can express their passion about the work. Only one request: Let’s not make this personal, okay? Express an opinion, but we won’t publish personal attacks.

Welcome to our great experiment.

There have been changes over the years (we began hosting the blog on our own, began posting media and other insights into OtB, etc), but we’re still excited to continue the experiment.

In January we’re presenting Linas Phillips, an artist who has become well known in recent years for his filmmaking. We’re happy to welcome him back to the stage and wanted to offer a glimpse into what he’s been up to since he was last seen at OtB with 33 Fainting Spells in 2004. Check out these trailers:

Walking to Werner | Inspired by legendary filmmaker Werner Herzog’s many adventures on foot, Linas walks 1,200 miles from Seattle to Los Angeles in the hopes of meeting Werner and experiencing the world on foot.

Great Speeches from a Dying World | Linas Phillips’ unique and compassionate exploration of the hard luck, wrong turns, and broken dreams that reside on our city’s streets. Great Speeches uncovers the stories and struggles of 10 Seattle homeless people, each of whom recite famous speeches from history that relate to their lives: from Shakespeare to JFK to Chief Sealth.

The drop dates for both these DVDs are still TBD, but keep an eye out for these titles to land soon.

Gisele Vienne and Dennis Cooper, last heard from at OtB back in November with JERK, just made an appearance on KCRW’s program Bookworm. They’re quite a charming pair and have interesting things to say about their work- I’d recommend giving it a listen.

For the occassion of our 30th anniversay, we called astrologer Gail Fairfield to give us an updated reading on the next few years at OtB. Gail has been the OtB astrologer since the early days, providing insight into the planetary influences at work over the years. Last month, we Skyped with her to find out what’s in store for us.

Listen to Gail talk about the future of OtB [mp3]

Theatre Replacement just forwarded us some great comments they received about a sneak preview of That Night Follows Day that recently took place in Vancouver BC. We’re excited to hear about this – partially because this performance represents a new venture for us as co-producers. And also because of the reaction it provoked. From Plank Magazine:

Each line opened into the theatre like a revelatory bloom of unexpected meaning. I felt like I’d never heard the words before. I felt like a prophet receiving the truth from a winged agent of God. Ecstatic and giddy, I fastened my attention to every syllable. I was on fire again — for the art of theatre and how it can re-invent the word and the world.

Read more about the reviewer’s thoughts on That Night Follows Day and Vancouver BC’s PuSH Festival here. More info on the show happening in Seattle here.

Check out these local reviews for the Lost Action performance here at OtB:

Seattle Times – Dance review: “Lost Action” weaves a sobering tale

Seattle PI – Kidd Pivot’s ‘Lost Action’ is amazing

Seattle Magazine (blog) – A Must-See Ballet of Poppin’ and Lockin’

Stranger (blog) – Dear Peter Boal

Seattlest – Get Out Tonight: Kidd Pivot @ OtB