Echo Theatre Brings Us an Epic Mini-Festival of Lauren Gunderson's Works

A Featured Article by Natalie Shaw

Just how many plays can you do with women, by women and for women before you finally run out? Twenty-five years in, Echo Theatre has yet to run into that problem. What's the secret? Keep writing, finding writers and performing.  One question that occasionally comes up in conversation, with others who might not be so much in-the-know on such an issue, is "Why do we need plays about women, when there are plenty of roles for women onstage?" That's actually not a bad question. 

Questions like this help prompt us to take a closer look, and ask more questions. We ask questions like, "What kind of roles are women playing?" and "What does this play say about women? When we take a close look, it becomes obvious that women really aren't getting the recognition that best describes who we are. As a matter of fact, let's look at two example productions that took place this last season that really don't focus on women in a way that truly benefits them or how they're viewed in society. Without naming names, I do think it's worth considering:

1. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum: I can appreciate a production for what it is, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that productions like this irk me, when we consider how women are portrayed and what roles are being played by the women in the cast. First, there's the "dumb love-struck teenage girl," who just wants to get married. Next, there's the "dumb wife," who's being cheated on.  And, let's not forget the brothel with the "scantily clad women" in costume, whose sole objective exists for the pleasure of men. This one doesn't exactly paint women in a brilliant light.  

2. Gypsy: "Helicopter mother/Romantic swindler" forces both daughters into performing in order to live out her own dreams through their success, all while using the resources and good graces of the man she's supposed to love and marry. She pushes one daughter too far, who then runs away and gets married to someone in order to escape.  Then, she pushes the other daughter into becoming a stripper, who we know as Gypsy Rose Lee. The best part (I say with sarcasm) is when Gypsy performs "Let me entertain you," and the audience in the current theater is inclined to hoot and holler, encouraging the naughty, burlesque behavior, all in the name of Nostalgia. There is one bright side to this show, though: It's what NOT to do with your life as a woman.  

You may say, "Oh come on, Natalie! Forum is a farce, after all!" or "There's much more to Gypsy than what's on the surface!" But, that's just the problem, you see? We excuse it for humor. And, what's on the surface leaves a lasting impression with most audience members. So, I think we have to consider what it is we're actually trying to say with productions like this.  Listen, I'm not looking to be insulted by women's roles in Theatre. But, you see it too, right?  I'm obliged to shine a light on these issues. We're allowing women to play one-note, lack depth and spur on the notions that women are either, ignorant and naïve, or manipulative and saucy.  Let's move forward, and celebrate the women of today and the trailblazers who have gone before us! 

There are so many interesting stories that we aren't telling, because we're still clinging to the ones from the past-- the ones that are over-produced, the ones that say little-to-nothing about who we really are as people and what we mean to society. 

Echo Theatre does better. They focus not only on women, but on all gender minorities who have been overlooked or even shunned for simply being who they are. So, let's take a look at what they're doing, when it comes to women+ on the scene, courtesy of the Echo Creative Team, including Lauren Floyd (Marketing and Social Media Manager) and Kateri Cale (Managing Artistic Director.)

1. Who is Echo Theatre and how do they contribute to our community? 

Echo Theatre is the Southwest's premier theatrical organization dedicated to producing works created by women+. Founded in Dallas in 1998, we have built a national reputation for enthusiastic collaboration with playwrights identifying as cis-women, trans-women, gender expansive and non-conforming folks, and other gender minorities that have systemically oppressed. Almost half of our annual budgeting goes directly to paying local theater artists, and we've been honored to spotlight countless women+ voices through our mainstage seasons, playwriting contests, free reading series, and our Echo Offstage podcast. This year, we're celebrating 25 years of amplifying voices who continue to struggle for a place on American stages, and as the political climate in Texas grows increasingly dangerous for women+ communities, our work feels more important than ever.

2. Echo Theatre is celebrating the work of Lauren Gunderson this month in production. Can you tell us a little bit about Lauren Gunderson and why she is important to Echo Theatre? 

Lauren has been one of the most produced playwrights in America since 2015, topping the list three times including 2022. She is a two-time winner of the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award, the winner of the Lanford Wilson Award, and a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Lauren is quickly becoming one of the most influential voices in America's current contemporary theatrical cannon. There's a story from when Echo Theatre started that when the theater was first being pitched, one of the responses the creative team got was, "Well, how long can a theater featuring women+ playwrights last until you run out of plays?" The fact that we are still here 25 years later and the most produced playwright in America is a woman is a testament to both the endurance of women+ creatives and our immense depth of skill. We have always been here creating incredible stories that deserve to be on stage, and this season is a chance to celebrate that on a national scale. 

3. It's so exciting that Echo Theatre encourages our community to be forward-thinking. What other Echo productions come to mind when you think about which productions might have had the most impact? 

The play that started it all was Dream of a Common Language by Heather McDonald, which told the story of the Impressionist Movement, and yearned for a way that women and men could present their paintings on a level playing field, and that production really set the tone for the theater for the first 15 years of our existence.

Following that, we presented more social and political voices in our productions. Ruined by Lynn Nottage was a very powerful show based on women’s experiences in a war zone from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And our America Series, which were devised commentaries on current events with historical impact. After one of the productions in that series, American Burka, a man told us through tears that he had suffered with doubt since uprooting his family and moving to America, but he now knew he had made the right decision.

And in response to the centennial of the 19th amendment, we produced It’s My Party! by Ann Timmons, which told the story of the fight for women’s suffrage. We also developed a free traveling reading series called Echo Reads to help create equitable access to theater in DFW. Last year, Echo Reads featured plays such as Frozen Fluid: A Gender Non-Conforming Creation Myth by Fly Jamerson, which explores the complexities of gender identity through magical, absurdist lenses, and We the People by Carol Mullen, which highlighted the social and political impact of hate crimes against LGBTQIA+ communities.

Now through Lauren’s works this spring, we hope to further explore the vastness of the women+ experience through topics like domestic violence, gun control, first love, chronic illness, youth, death, organ donorship, and the ways we build relationships with the people around us.

4. Is there anyone you'd like to recognize or thank for assisting in Echo Theatre's success?

We definitely want to thank the community first, because their continuing support is the whole reason we're still here after a quarter-century. We'd also love to thank our incredible staff and board, our friends at TACA and the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, and the theaters across DFW who have supported us on our journey, including Soul Rep Theatre Company, Theatre Three, Shakespeare Dallas, Kitchen Dog Theater, Undermain Theatre, and countless others. And be sure to join us this fall for our co-production of Cadillac Crew with Soul Rep! They've been with us since the beginning, and we're thrilled to be making magic on stage with them again.