Summer Theatre Lab
The WILLIAMS COLLEGE SUMMER THEATRE LAB is an eight-week program that brings
current Williams students together with professional artists from the worlds of
theatre, film, and television to collaborate on innovative projects and original
work. Many visiting artists are alumni of the Williams theatre department who
have gone on to successful careers in the performing arts, and who return to the
'62 Center to experiment with new dramatic material, and with new ways of
working. Projects include master classes, one and two week workshops of new and
established theatrical projects, and both alumni and student initiated work. The
Lab makes its home in the CenterStage theatre and utilizes the adaptability and
creative potential of that space to enhance the experimental nature of the
workshop projects. In the summer of 2007 the Lab and the Williamstown Theatre
Festival established a collaborative association to enhance both organizations.
Members of the Lab worked with actors, designers and other company members of
the WTF in a production of Friedrich Durrenmatt’s THE PHYSICISTS, starring Roger
Rees and directed by Lab Artistic Director Kevin O’Rourke (Williams class of
1978). This collaboration was a great opportunity for the undergraduate students
and gave them first hand experience within a professional production. The
critical as well as pedagogical success of the Lab/WTF production of The
Physicists has opened up new possibilities and opportunities for Williams
undergraduates and the Williams Theatre Department.
