Theatre Profile -The Guthrie Theater

The Guthrie Theater opened May 7 of 1963. Its first production was Hamlet, directed by Sir Tyrone Guthrie, featuring George Grizzard as the title role. The first season included: Hamlet by William Shakespeare (directed by Tyrone Guthrie); The Miser by Molière (directed by Douglas Campbell); The Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov (directed by Tyrone Guthrie); and Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller (directed by Douglas Campbell). The theater is a result of Sir Tyrone Guthrie, Oliver Rea, and Peter Zeisler. They wanted to create a resident acting company that would produce and perform the classics in an atmosphere removed from the commercial pressures of Broadway. The Guthrie Theatre became a sort of prototype for a new kind of theater that contrasts with the commercial environment of Broadway. There, the high costs associated with mounting a production increasingly mandated that shows must be immediately successful at high ticket prices. The Guthrie Theatre’s mission is: “The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is an American center for theater performance, production, education and professional training. By presenting both classical literature and new work from diverse cultures, the Guthrie illuminates the common humanity connecting Minnesota to the peoples of the world.” The Guthrie Theatre has three main stages: The Wurtele Thrust Stage, The McGuire Proscenium Stage, and The Dowling Studio. On these theatres, www.guthrietheatre.org states: “As the Guthrie entered the millennium, plans began to build a new multistage theater center on the banks of the Mississippi River. It opened June 25, 2006, and the complex includes three stages: a classic thrust stage for the grand-scale classics of the centuries, a proscenium stage for the more intimate classics of this century, and a studio theater for developing the classics of tomorrow. The new theater allows the Guthrie to retain its pre-eminence among theaters nationally and internationally.”

The 2009-2010 season includes: Ella, book by Jeffrey Hatcher, conceived by Rob Ruggiero and Dyke Garrison (directed by Rob Ruggiero); The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde (directed by Joe Dowling); Faith Healer by Brian Friel (directed by Joe Dowling, associate director Benjamin McGovern); A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, adapted by Barbara Field (directed by Gary Gisselman); Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (directed by Penny Metropulos,co-produced with The Acting Company); Macbeth by William Shakespeare (directed by Joe Dowling); Guthrie’s WorldStage Program presents Kneehigh Theatre’s production of Noël Coward’s Brief Encounter (adapted and directed by Emma Rice); M. Butterfly by David Henry Hwang (directed by Peter Rothstein); Dollhouse by Rebecca Gilman, based on A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen (directed by Wendy C. Goldberg); She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith (directed by Joe Dowling); A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams (directed by John Miller) The Guthrie Theater also holds preview performances. During “preview week” the company rehearses during the day and makes changes based on how their performances go in front of an audience. Previews have a lower ticket price due to the fact that the show is still in process and is still changing. Based on the size of this season, compared to their first season in 1963, the Guthrie Theater has come a long way.