On Friday I had a reunion with my friend Mark Hall Amitin. We'd not seen each other in far too many years. It truly felt like a homecoming. Mark had been at the center of my life in the theater for over a decade, and has influenced my thinking about the role of theater in society more than perhaps anybody else. He is the very embodiment of the artist/activist, and has spent a lifetime working to advance the evolution of humankind away from cynicism and violence and toward equality, peace and freedom of expression. This he has done both from outside "the system" (such as his work with the Living Theatre) and from within (bringing non-mainstream artists to prominence in Hollywood). His is a lifetime of achievement. I couldn't even begin to recount his accomplishments in this one blog entry. But let me just say this: if you look at every major theatrical movement of the past forty years - every significant experimental theater, many of our most honored writers, actors, and directors - somewhere you will find a link back to Mark. He operated as the hub for the convergence of politics and art at a time when America was most desperately in need of the voice of opposition.
In 1968 Mark began a company called Universal Movement Theatre, sharing an office space with Abbey Hoffman. He has known, worked with, represented, taught, produced and/or influenced artists such as Julian Beck and Judith
Malina, Joseph Chaikin, Jean-Claude vanItallie, Lee Breuer, Ruth Maleczek, JoAnne Akalitis, Edward Albee, Sam Shepard, Spalding Gray, Ellen Stewart, Shami Chaikin, Joan MacIntosh, Karen Ludwig, Shirley Stoller, Bread & Puppet Theatre, Squat Theatre....the list goes on and on. He also discovered and nurtured many new talents, most notably Steve Buscemi (see photo on left), but also David Cale, Paul Zaloom, Mark Boone Jr., The Kipper Kids, and Peter Facinelli. Mark also earned his PhD. in Theatre from the Sorbonne in Paris, and has been active as a teacher, lecturer, and director for more than twenty years. Quite simply, he is "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma".For several years I worked alongside Mark as he ran his theatrical management company World of Culture, Inc. It was here that I first learned the nuts and bolts of show business. I also got my feet wet as an actor. Mark helped me land me first roles in the theater, and also coached me for a recurring role on As The World Turns. It was through Mark that I met playwright Jean-Claude vanItallie, which ultimately led me to Joseph Chaikin. I will be forever grateful to Mark for giving me the opportunity to move among the most revered figures of the American theater.
Mark has overcome much adversity in his life. He came from very humble roots - a small town in
New Jersey - where he grew up gay in pre-sexual-revolution America. He has always proudly maintained his identity as a Jew, even has he has questioned the deeper meaning of God and religion in his life. His passion for the plight of the Palestinians brought him to Gaza during the second Intifada, where he worked with a group of Palestinian actors to tell the story of their life and struggles. In more recent years he has traveled to Egypt to adjudicate a festival of international theater, and to China where he directed his own adaptation of Peer Gynt.In the few short hours I spent with Mark on Friday, our conversation wandered from topic to topic - politics, relationships, eBay, death - but always we came back the theater. This is the common ground that we share, a project begun twenty years ago, whose next chapter is yet to be written.
Good to see you, Mark.
Wayne
