A Wonderfully Flat Thing

A Wonderfully Flat Thing is a one-act play based on the short story, A FABLE, by Mark twain. In synopsis the play is about a group of animals who look into a mirror for the first time and are each surprised that they see something different than the one who went before them. It will be performed by actor/dancer/puppeteers and musicians in a play suited to all ages. Produced by the 14^th St Y, a branch of the Educational Alliance, it will be one of the first productions mounted in their newly renovated theatre.

Using Mark Twain’s short story, A FABLE, as our starting point we aim to make A Wonderfully Flat Thing into a play can be read on many levels – for children it is an entertaining riddle, a romp on stage with surprising puppets. For adults it is a piece about self-reflection and how we interpret technology. The question of the play is encompassed by the Mark Twain’s moral “You can find in a text whatever you bring, if you stand between it and the mirror of your imagination.” We see this is as an important perspective in viewing art.

For the older members of our audience A Wonderfully Flat Thing’s outrageous puppet characters highlight certain political and social undercurrents in this play. Adults will recognize the analytical realist in the cool demeanor of the Donkey and the child dictator in the Elephant. Children will laugh at the gluttony of the snake and the vanity of the ostrich while identifying with our hero, The Cat’s, plight.

Mark Twain’s connection to the Educational Alliance’s Children’s Theatre has 100 year old roots. Created in 1903, it became a widely imitated model, thought to be civilizing instrument that could help build moral character by harnessing innate dramatic instincts in children of the day. At the Children’s theatre’s adaptation of THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER Twain became it’s Honorary Board President.

Today the work of the Educational Alliance is more prevalent throughout lower Manhattan than ever. Servicing over 30,000 people a year with programs that include preschool and after-school programs for children from low-income families to senior centers for isolated older adults, counseling and addiction recovery programs, and ambitious arts wellness programs. We look forward to adding A Wonderfully Flat Thing to the services and history of this organization.

Basmat Hazan Arnoff - Director

Basmat is a writer, theater director and a teacher of Jewish texts, and facilitates the text study of artists at the 14^th St Y. She is a Skirball Faculty Fellow and has taught in institutions including the Brandeis Collegiate Institute, Emuna College, Sihara, Kolot, and Elul, the last four based in Israel. She is the author of Mayyim Hafoochim, a novel published by HaKibbutz HaMeuchad. Her play LeShem Yichud won the award for best ensemble at the Akko Theater Festival. She adapted David Grossman's SEE: UNDER LOVE for the stage in Tel Aviv and New York, and her most recent work - a dance theater production in collaboration with Jesse Zaritt entitled MORIAH was performed as part the LABA festival in New York. She is currently working on her second novel, adapting Michal Govrin’s book THE NAME to stage, and collaborating with Manju Shandler on A WONDERFULLY FLAT THING, puppet show for all ages.

Manju Shandler- Puppet Designer

Manju Shandler is a visual storyteller who has been working in puppetry for the last 18 years. The narrative nature of her stage work is always the starting point, with design of characters and action flowing from the script. Manju Shandler has often collaborated with directors and choreographers, helping to create a finished production where the images and the action are mutually supportive.

Her production design for Cinderella and the Pince Who Slays the Magic Dragon, a puppet/ballet/orchestra performance for children set to the music by Prokofiev with choreography by Lisa Rinehart was performed at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall in 2008 and 2009. As a member of LABA, she collaborated with Jesse Zarrit and Basmat Hazan Arnoff to create MORIAH a dance performance with masks and puppets that debuted at the 14^th St Y’s LABA Festival in May ’09.

Manju Shandler directed and co wrote: Stories for the Sultan, a Grant Recipient The Jim Henson Foundation and an Emerging Artist Project at the Eugene O’Neill Puppetry Conference, The Game Show, Huge Hotel, and Jam Don’t Shake. Past puppetry design projects include An Emmy Nomination in Costume Design Styling for The Book of Pooh, Associate Design of Radio City Music Hall’s Carnivale Spectacular, and a sculptor of the masks and puppetry for The Lion King on Broadway.

Manju Shandler received a Bachelor of Arts from Bennington College in 1995.

Jesse Zaritt- Choreographer

Jesse Zaritt is currently an artist in residence at the 14th Street Y in Manhattan, and was commissioned to create an evening length solo for the LABA Festival of the 14th Street Y in May 2009. He has presented his own solo work in Israel, Mexico, Vienna, and New York City. Jesse received an MFA in Dance from the Hollins University/ American Dance Festival in August 2008. Jesse has recently taught at the University of the Americas Puebla (Mexico, Fall 2009), the American Dance Festival (NC, Summer 2008, 2009), Hollins University (VA, Spring 2009), and choreographed for the Seminar HaKibbutzim College Theater Department and the Acco Theater Festival (Israel, 2006-2007). Jesse was the recipient of a 2006-2007 Dorot Fellowship in Israel, which enabled him to conduct research on the relationship between political conflict and choreography. He spent 2000-2001 as a member of the Hollins Dance Project (Roanoke, VA) followed by five years as a dancer with the Shen Wei Dance Arts Company (NYC 2001-2006), and a season dancing with the Inbal Pinto Dance Company (Tel Aviv 2008). Jesse graduated Cum Laude in 2000 from Pomona College (CA).

Tamar Muskal - Composer

Tamar Muskal was born in 1965 in Jerusalem, Israel. She studied viola, music theory and composition at the Rubin Academy for Music and Dance in Jerusalem and earned her BA in 1991 where she studied with Mark Kopytman. Ms. Muskal came to the United States in 1994 and subsequently earned her Master's degree from Yale University, where she studied with Jacob Druckman, Martin Bresnick and Ezra Laderman. She continued her studies at the City University of New York, where she studied with David Del Tredici and Tania Leon.

Recent and future commissions and collaborations include a piece for the Eighth Blackbird ensemble along with three interactive videos by Daniel Rozin, a commission from the New York Whetney Museum to write music for two silence films by Alice Guy Blanche, a song cycle for soprano and string quartet for the 2009 Grammy winner Hila Plitmann and the Lark quartet on poems by David Grossman, an arrangement for the Grossman’s song cycle for the Salt Bay Chamberfest Festival for the Variation Trio and pianist Benjamin Hochman, a piece for cello (Maya Beiser), oud (Bassam Saba) and percussion (Jamey Haddad and Shane Shanahan) a Carnegie Hall commission, a song cycle for Lucy Shelton and the Colorado string quartet and a solo piano piece for Lisa Moore.

Ms. Muskal has also served as the Westchester Philharmonic's education composer-in-residence in the years 2001-2004, and in that capacity has written three orchestral pieces based on students' artwork and poetry.

Ms. Muskal has been the recipient of many awards and fellowships, from institutions such as ASCAP, Meet-the-Composer, the Jerome Foundation, American Music Center and the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. She received an award from the Academy of Arts and Letters (2004), a grant from Meet The Composer (2006), the Theodore Front Prize from IAWM for The Yellow Wind (2007), a grant from the American Composers Forum / Jerome Foundation (2007), a grant from the Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University (2007) a grant from the American Music Center (2008), an additional grant from the American Music Center (2009) and most recently is a fellowship from the Guggenheim Foundation (2009). While at Yale, she received four awards for her compositions and achievements.

DAVID TIROSH – Lighting and Technology Designer

David is a multi-media artist, performer and artistic coordinator. David is the Co-Founder of WAX, a supportive environment that inspires discourse among artists in all media and encourages the creation of new work through presentation, networking, audience building, artist's assistance and public dialogue. After the highly publicized closing of the WAX facility in November 2004, David continued working as Company Manager of 3-Legged Dog and freelance designer, performer, artistic advisor and media support in renowned venues such as Galapagos, Joyce Theater, the Kitchen, Norwood and others. He is currently the Technical Director of Galapagos Art Space in Dumbo. David's work unfolds in various layers of the production process, from concept, to technological implications, to performance and full coordination and realizations of art projects in private and public venues.