BIG NEWS from BALAGAN

February 27, 2013

This week, our fantastic colleague Shawn Belyea will step away from the role of Balagan’s Artistic Director. Shawn has received an exciting opportunity to increase work with his award-winning artistic program, 14/48: The World’s Quickest Theater Festival. We’re thrilled for Shawn, and we will continue to partner with 14/48 in the future.

But Shawn is not gone from Balagan! He is hard at work right now, directing the final show in our mainstage season, the darkly comedic August: Osage County (April 5-27, get your tickets here). We have also asked Shawn to direct one of our 2013-14 mainstage shows, and he is helping us explore future education program opportunities.

Announcing Louis Hobson

We are excited to announce that Louis Hobson will succeed Shawn as Balagan’s Artistic Director. Louis is perhaps best known for creating the role of Doctors in the original Broadway production of Next to Normal; he also appeared in Broadway’s 
Bonnie & Clyde and Leap of Faith. Prior to moving to New York, Louis was seen on many a Seattle stage, including the 5th Avenue Theatre and Village Theatre.

Now that he has returned home to the Northwest, Louis brings a depth and breadth of acting and producing experience that will help us continue our mission to produce smart, fearless theatre that raises up the next generation of theatre-goers and
theatre-makers. We are very excited for Louis to join Team Balagan! And he's already jumped right in, putting together some exciting new play readings and workshops for
the summer.

Our 1st 2013-14 Show: Les Misérables

We have also asked Louis to perform in the first show of our 2013-14 season, Les Misérables, which our Founder and Executive Director, Jake Groshong, has wanted to direct for a long time.

But this won’t be the large, complex production you’re used to. We’re going to look at Les Mis through a completely new artistic lens, performing a stripped-down, intensely intimate production in the 160-seat Erickson Theatre. Mark your calendars: Les Mis opens September 6, 2013!

Our Future at the Erickson Theatre

Speaking of the Erickson Theatre: Our lease at the Erickson expires September 30. Seattle Central Community College recently informed us that they intend to resume property management for the space, with the desire to make it primarily instructional. Because we’ve had a strong relationship with the college, they have offered Balagan priority booking of the Erickson. So don’t worry, we won’t be leaving entirely!

We have some incredible opportunities we’ll announce shortly regarding our performance locations for next year. While the Erickson is a perfect fit for our vision of Les Mis, we’ve got other shows that will benefit from other locations. Please stay tuned – we’re planning to announce the remainder of our 2013-14 season at the end of March.

As you can see, there are a lot of changes afoot for Balagan. We care very deeply about your part in our community, and we hope that you’ll share your thoughts and ideas with us about the future of Balagan. Please contact us anytime at (206) 329-1050 or info@balagantheatre.org.

With gratitude ~ the fine folks of Balagan

ABOUT BALAGAN THEATRE

Balagan Theatre strives to create smart and fearless theatre of the highest artistic quality to cultivate the next generation of theatre-goers and theatre-makers. From Footlight-award winning shows like Avenue Q and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog to “Best of the Year” productions like Spring Awakening, Balagan is known for consistent artistic success no matter what genre or period of theatre is being tackled.

With a mission to develop new audiences for theatre, the entire community finds something for them at Balagan.