The Performance Network Theatre is a hub of artistic activity. A full season of professional productions is supplemented by children’s theater, classes in theater arts for adults and kids, and free play readings. The Network develops playwrights, too, through the Northern Writers Project, an intensive week of workshops culminating in public readings. The theater was flooded with over 300 submissions this year, with scripts coming from Michigan and beyond.
“We’re looking at things that move us, plays that are smart, and funny, and have a big heart,” says artistic director Suzi Regan of plays they select both for the project and production. “Everyone here is politically minded, but we’re not using this as a podium to preach what we think.” The works are sometimes edgy and adventurous—next season, for instance, includes Edward Albee’s dark comedy, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, a reimagining of Othello, a quirky comedy by Annie Martin, and a comic mystery by Joseph Zettelmaier.
On evenings when there are no play performances, this thriving network offers a host of other events—musical acts, comedy, film, and poetry. These are free, luring potential audiences to the theater. They often occur in the revitalized lobby, which doubles as an art gallery. “It’s like a great restaurant,” says executive director John Manfredi. “You’ll find something on the menu that you like, and no matter what you order, it will be good stuff.” From August 14, 2014, when Regan, Manfredi, and company manager Sara Dean arrived on the scene, through August 2015, the Network hosted or produced more than 225 performances of plays.
The Network wasn’t always a destination for top-notch entertainment. In 1981, it opened in a makeshift space on W. Washington. A structural pole interfered with sightlines; the productions were decidedly amateurish, with a strong political focus. Eventually, the Network achieved professional status and moved to a fully functioning theater on the corner of Huron and Fourth Ave.
Billed as a “space of possibility,” today’s Network is open to new people and new ideas. The directors often wear jeans when greeting spectators, and they’re sometimes accompanied by Manfredi’s dog, recalling the laid back feel of the Network in the 1980s. But don’t be fooled: this Network is driven by an authentic artistic vision and an absolutely professional approach to productions of plays worth seeing.
