12 MINUTES MAX | 09/10 Season

OtB’s oldest program is a showcase for new experimental work. Each evening 5-7 artists have 12 minutes or less to try out new material and works-in-progress in OtB’s studio theater. Performances are curated by different members of the arts community 7 times a year.

Tickets for 12MM are $8 and are only available one hour before show time in the Studio lobby (No advance sales)

The performance begins at 7pm

Upcoming 12MM

Feb 21 – 22, 2010
Curated by Jeppa Hall (Queen Shmooquan & Goatgirl) & Keri Healey (playwright & director)

 Two 16MM projectors run direct-animation of stars producing both a visual and aural landscape for Eric Ostrowski’s megaphone-amplified violin. (Media | Music)
 Growing up in Hollywood has its advantages. Listen and watch as Erin Shafkind explains the wonders, the trials and tribulations of almost being a child star. (Theater)
 Victoria Jacobs bridges modern dance and flamenco by using a quizzical eye on rhythm, meaning, character and gesture. (Dance)
 The A-hole Barishnikovs return to 12MM! Richard Lefebvre, Otis P. Otis & Erin Jorgensen bring us 2 new works of amplified words and music entitled Why I Like Drugs. (Music)
 AFMB (Honk West Division) perform a street-style musical blowout of well-known tunes delivered by the 6 wildly uniformed band members. (Music)
 VAM | Veronica Mendonca use water as inspiration in this excerpt of A Parenthesis in Time, a new evening length dance work that is all at once athletic, calm and reckless. (Dance)
 Making his 12MM debut, Nathaniel Boggess (Portland,OR) tells the hilarious and tragic experience that is his life, with particular attention to a series of ill-fated dates and the comedy of errors that ensued. (Theater)



Download the 09/10 Season application [Word doc]

Mar 21 - 22, 2010
Audition: Feb 28
Curated by Amy-Ellen Flachestedmama Trefsger (visual artist & OntheDouble) & Darian Lindle (playwright & director)

Apr 11 – 12, 2010
Audition: Mar 28
Curated by Byron Au Yong (Composer & drummer) & $12 for 12 Minutes Max guest curator*

Past Shows from the 09/10 Season

Sep 20 – 21, 2009
Curated by Catherine Cabeen & Kumani Gantt
Featuring The Cherdonna & Lou Show,Erin Mitchell and Doug Nufer, Wes Andrews, Pam Kuntz, Monica Mota, and Bret Fetzer.

Oct 25 – 26, 2009
Curated by Olivier Wevers and Chris & Michael Sannella
Featuring Linden Ontjes and Keely Isaak Meehan, Geoffrey Johnson, Nicole Sasala (The Asterisk Project), 024dance | Rosa Vissers, Bridget Young, Kate Wallich & Markeith Wiley, and Louis Gervais.

Nov 22 – 23, 2009
Curated by K. Brian Neel and Danny Herter*
Featuring Gabriel Bruya and NW Dance Syndrome, José Amador, Tamer Abdo, Mike Pham, Heidi Pendergast and Twig Theater, Karin Stevens Dance, and Charles Smith.

Jan 24 – 25, 2010
Curated by Diana Cardiff & Glenn Kawasaki
Featuring Rosen | Khambatta + Davis, Oleaje Flamenco, Seattle Dance Project, Caleb Penn, Darliene Lynn, Louis Gervais, Selfick Ng-Simancas and Maika Misumi, Rebecca M. Davis & Lisa Sanphillipo, Randi Courtmanch.

Questions? Leave a message for Sean Ryan at 206.217.9886, ext.1021 or email sean@ontheboards.org

*$12 for 12 Minutes Max | Win the chance to be Co-Curator and help select the artists for the 12 Minutes Max showcases in November or April! Every 12 bucks you donate at 12 Minutes Max gives you 1 more entry in the drawing.

12 Minutes Max History

12 Minutes Max has been a part of On the Boards programming since its inception in 1978, showcasing as many as 100 performing artists each year. Designed as a laboratory for emerging and established artists to experiment with new material, its original format was a workshop/"jam session" for dancers called Choreography Etc. The program grew incorporating a greater number of artists from all performance disciplines. The presentations began to vary greatly in length, so in 1986 a new rule was created: Two curators would cull through possible acts with this mantra, "7 slots, 12 minutes max. Period!"

12 Minutes Max has now become known as one of the country´s best experimental performance labs, instrumental in launching new works by Pat Graney, 33 Fainting Spells, Lauren Weedman, Holy Body Tattoo, and inspiring similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Houston,  and Chicago. Audiences at 12 Minutes Max are often the first to hear from our region's most innovative voices. Join us for a dynamic, provocative evening and see for yourself what makes contemporary performance so exciting!