César Alvarez Explained

César Alvarez (born 1980) is an American composer, lyricist and playwright.[1] [2] César is best known for the musical FUTURITY which they wrote with their band The Lisps. FUTURITY won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical in 2016.[3]

Alvarez is an assistant professor of music at Dartmouth College.[4]

Early life

Alvarez was born to a Cuban father and a Euro-American mother[5] in Greensboro, NC.[6] They were named for César Cauce and James Waller, who were both victims of the Greensboro Massacre.[7]

Alvarez attended Interlochen Arts Academy[8] and Oberlin Conservatory.[9] They received an MFA from Bard College.

Alvarez uses they/them pronouns [10]

Career

Alvarez spent the early years of their career performing with The Lisps. The Lisps released 4 albums between 2006 and 2012."[11] [12] [13]

In 2008, Alvarez conceived of the Civil War-era science fictional musical FUTURITY as their master's thesis at Bard.[14] In 2009, The Lisps first performed FUTURITY at the now defunct New York City venue, The Zipper Factory.[15] [16] [17] FUTURITY world premiered as part of the American Repertory Theater's 2011/12 season under the direction of Sarah Benson[18] co-commissioned by Walker Art Center.[19] FUTURITY went on to an Off-Broadway premiere co-produced by Soho Rep and Ars Nova in 2015.[20] That production won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical and received 4 other Lortel nominations.

In 2013 Alvarez composed original music with The Lisps for The Foundry Theater's production of Bertolt Brecht's The Good Person of Szechwan starring Taylor Mac.[21] Alvarez and The Lisps received a Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Music in a Play.[22]

In 2014 Alvarez composed original music for the World Premiere production of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins's play An Octoroon. They received another Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Music in a Play.[23]

Alvarez also composed music for Soho Rep's site specific work Washeteria,[24] Theatre for a New Audience's production of Thornton Wilder's The Skin of Our Teeth,[25] and the documentary A Woman Like Me.[26]

Alvarez's other musicals include The Universe is a Small Hat,[27] The Elementary Spacetime Show[28] [29] and NOISE.[30]

Alvarez was an Artist-in-Residence at The University of the Arts where they served as Founding Artistic Director of Polyphone, a festival of new musicals for five years.[31] [32] [33]

Awards

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: César Alvarez Is Changing the American Musical Form, and the World. 2015-10-13. AMERICAN THEATRE. 2017-10-23. en-US.
  2. News: A musical for people who don't like musicals. The Economist. 2017-10-23. en.
  3. News: Lucille Lortel Awards: 'Guards at the Taj,' 'The Robber Bridegroom' Score Big. Cox. Gordon. 2016-05-02. Variety. 2017-10-23. en-US.
  4. Web site: César Alvarez and Allie Martin join Music Department. 2 July 2020 .
  5. News: César Alvarez's "Elementary Spacetime Show" Debuts. 2016-09-12. AL DÍA News. 2017-10-24. en.
  6. News: César Alvarez - Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  7. News: César Alvarez Is Changing the American Musical Form, and the World. 2015-10-13. AMERICAN THEATRE. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  8. Web site: 1990s Motifs Interlochen Summer Arts Camp. camp.interlochen.org. en. 2017-10-24.
  9. Web site: Alumni Composers Composition Conservatory Oberlin College. new.oberlin.edu. 24 October 2016 . 2017-10-24.
  10. Web site: Dartmouth College Faculty Bio. 16 July 2020 .
  11. News: The Lisps. D'Andrea. Niki. 2008-03-13. Phoenix New Times. 2017-10-24. 2012-10-20. https://web.archive.org/web/20121020113505/http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2008-03-13/music/the-lisps/. dead.
  12. News: The Lisps: Sing Along with Heartache. NPR.org. 2017-10-24. en.
  13. Web site: Listen And Watch: The Lisps On TAS In Session On WNYE 91.5 WFUV. www.wfuv.org. en. 2017-10-24.
  14. News: Futurity Is A Folk-Rock-Math-Science… Musical?. Bedford + Bowery. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  15. Web site: At Length » Futurity. atlengthmag.com. en-US. 2017-10-24.
  16. News: An Indie Rock Musical Grows in Brooklyn. 2009-01-09. PAPERMAG. 2017-10-24. en.
  17. News: Interview: The Lisps - Lightspeed Magazine. 2010-07-27. Lightspeed Magazine. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  18. News: ART's new season: 'Porgy' and The Lisps. Boston.com. 2017-10-24. en.
  19. News: Walker celebrates Cunningham in new performing arts season. Kerr. Euan. State of the Arts. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  20. News: Review: 'Futurity,' in a Civil War Setting, Wishes for Today's Technology. Isherwood. Charles. 2015-10-20. The New York Times. 2017-10-24. en-US. 0362-4331.
  21. News: 'Good Person of Szechwan,' With Taylor Mac, at La MaMa. Isherwood. Charles. 2013-02-08. The New York Times. 2017-10-24. en-US. 0362-4331.
  22. Web site: Nominations Announced for 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards; Giant and Hands on a Hardbody Lead the Pack Playbill. Playbill. en. 2017-10-24.
  23. News: Drama Desk Nominations: 'Hamilton' Leads the Polls (FULL LIST). Cox. Gordon. 2015-04-23. Variety. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  24. News: Review: Soho Rep's 'Washeteria,' Staged in a Brooklyn Storefront. Soloski. Alexis. 2015-03-30. The New York Times. 2017-10-24. en-US. 0362-4331.
  25. News: Review: In 'The Skin of Our Teeth,' the End of the World as We Know It. Brantley. Ben. 2017-02-28. The New York Times. 2017-10-24. en-US. 0362-4331.
  26. News: 'A Woman Like Me': Film Review. The Hollywood Reporter. 2017-10-24. en.
  27. News: Building the Future with Gaming and Participatory Theater - Extended Play. 2015-01-28. Extended Play. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  28. News: Philly Fringe: 'Spacetime Show' probes teen suicide with humor, music, physics. Philly.com. 2017-10-24.
  29. News: Fringe reviews: 'The Elementary Spacetime Show,' 'Switched!' and 'The Chairs' : Shapiro on Theater : Arts & Entertainment : WHYY. WHYY. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  30. News: Making some 'Noise'. Herald Community Newspapers. 2017-10-24. en.
  31. Web site: Polyphone. The American Theatre Wing. en-US. 2017-10-24.
  32. News: Polyphone Is Bigger and Better the Second Time Around. 2016-04-07. AMERICAN THEATRE. 2017-10-24. en-US.
  33. News: UArts Appoints Director of Polyphone Festival . 2019-10-10.
  34. Web site: America Theatre Wing. The American Theatre Wing. en-US. 2017-09-27.
  35. News: Off Broadway Alliance Announces 2016 Award Winners. TheaterMania.com. 2017-10-24.
  36. News: César Alvarez and Isabella Dawis Awarded Kleban Prize for Musical Theatre.
  37. Web site: Editors . American Theatre . 2022-04-08 . Among the 2022 Guggenheim Fellows, 4 Theatremakers . 2022-04-09 . AMERICAN THEATRE . en-US.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "César Alvarez".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.