Petition letter for Teatr.doc

[Yana Meerzon]

Dear colleagues and friends,

I append below an open letter from John Freedman, a prominent theatre critic and public figure, working in Rusisa, regarding the possible eviction and closure of the famous independent theatre Teatr.doc - the cradle of new Russian dramaturgy.



If you wish to sign, please reply directly to John: jfreed16 at gmail.com



Yana Meerzon, Ph.D.
Associate Professor,
Department of Theatre, University of Ottawa
135 Séraphin-Marion, Room 304B
Ottawa ON Canada, K1N 6N5
Telephone: 613 562-5800, ext. 2243
E-mail: ymeerzon at uOttawa.ca<mailto:ymeerzon at uOttawa.ca>
Webpage: www.theatre.uottawa.ca/eng/faculty/meerzon.htmlwww.theatre.uottawa.ca/eng/faculty/meerzon.html<http://www.theatre.uottawa.ca/eng/faculty/meerzon.html>


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FROM JOHN FREEDMAN:


Below is a letter defending Teatr.doc against recent attacks that may close it.


Look at "Teatr.doc Threatened" on my site if you don't know about the situation yet - http://johnfreedman.webs.com/apps/blog/http://johnfreedman.webs.com/apps/blog/



Anyone who wishes to add a signature can reply to me: jfreed16 at gmail.com,


or go to my FB page and sign the letter there. I need: Name, Profession, City.


Many of you have signed already,


I'm sending the letter, with signatures as of 2:15 p.m. Moscow time Oct. 16.

Best, JOHN FREEDMAN


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An Open Letter in Defense of Teatr.doc:


We, the undersigned, are deeply concerned about the situation that has arisen around Teatr.doc. We fear what we and Moscow theater both stand to lose if Teatr.doc is forced to leave its famous basement space on Tryokhprudny Pereulok. Teatr.doc is a bellwether of contemporary Russian drama and theater. Don't be fooled by Teatr.doc's small size. It does great things that affect the entire world. Anyone traveling to Moscow in the last decade in search of new ideas, new forms, new writers, new directors, new acting styles, new spectators, and even new marketing approaches or ways of working with the public, has invariably ended up in the tiny, but mighty black basement room where theatrical magic is done on a routine basis. Russian artists emerging from Teatr.doc have spread their own personal fame, as well as that of the theater, all over the world, be it with highly successful tours of Teatr.doc's productions in Europe, be it in plays developed at Teatr.doc but staged in world premieres in Europe, England or the United States, or be it in projects that have been conceived and developed jointly in Moscow and abroad.

We know Teatr.doc not only as the home of the famous "new drama," which has deeply influenced theaters and writers all over the world, but as the warm and loving home where "new drama" was born and bred. Teatr.doc is a tiny space, just a few rooms in a Moscow apartment building. But its influence on, and importance for, world theater is already the stuff of legend. We urge all parties concerned to do whatever possible and whatever necessary to preserve this important cultural institution. Teatr.doc is one of the great riches of Russian culture today. It must be preserved.



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