Behind the Scenes

Theatre + Dance

In this section we feature members of the Bennington community whose work in theatre and dance has been highlighted by national publications. For other accolades, see the Performance Notes section.

An actor in a white tuxedo struts down center stage surrounded by other dancers in formal attire on stage of broadway musical The Prom
A greyscale closeup of a woman's face for the poster for Nylon Actors Tim Daly and Tyne Daly posing for the camera in black and white Black and white portrait of Aileen Passloff

Brooks Ashmanskas ’91

Leading Actor, The Prom

The Prom, a new musical comedy starring Brooks Ashmanskas ’91, opened on Broadway at Longacre Theatre. Ashmanskas was nominated for a Tony in the lead actor category for his performance. This New York Times Critic’s Pick follows Broadway stars on a mission to change the world, a girl who wants to change her small town, and a love that brings them together.

“... it makes you believe in musical comedy again.”
—The New York Times

Sofia Alvarez ’07

Playwright/director Nylon

Nylon, a new play by To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before screenwriter Sofia Alvarez ’07, had its world premiere in March. The play was supported by Blockchain Theater Project (BTP)—an artist-driven theatre company co-founded by Alvarez and Nicola Korzenko. BTP is funded, in part, by cryptocurrency donations and operates on a peer-to-peer production model whereby participating playwrights whose work is currently in production nominate the next play/playwright to be produced.

“Sofia Alvarez’s Nylon ... is so simmeringly alive in its opening scene that we invest in these characters immediately.”
—The New York Times

Tim Daly '79

Co-Star Downstairs

Downstairs begins as a family drama and becomes a sleeper thriller starring brother and sister actors themselves, Tim Daly ’79 and Tyne Daly. The well-reviewed drama was onstage at Cherry Lane Theater this winter.

"Downstairs’ is a well-constructed play of whipsaw moods..."
—The New York Times

Aileen Passloff '53

Noted choreographer, dancer, director, actor, and teacher, Aileen Passloff '53, spoke about her time
at Bennington in The New York Times. In January, Passloff presented the dance series, Stepping Forward: One Foot (in front of the other).

 

 

Three dancers crawl on all fours on three black lines on the ground

Dana Reitz, Bennington Faculty
Yanan Yu, MFA '18

Latitude, by Dana Reitz, was performed with Elena Demyanenko and Yanan Yu MFA ’18 in February 2018 at New York Live Arts. The New York Times included the performance as a critic's pick, lauding the choreography, performance, lighting (also designed by Reitz), and costumes (developed by Charles Schoonmaker). The Times’ glowing review concluded, “The sustained peacefulness is remarkable: Latitude is as satisfying as listening to wind chimes or watching birds on a lawn.”