UA Theatre Professor Continues Research in Cuba

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Seth Panitch, University of Alabama associate professor of theatre, will lead a group of UA graduate students to Havana, Cuba, later this month to stage a production of American playwright Christopher Durang’s “Beyond Therapy.”

This trip will be the seventh Panitch has taken to Cuba as part of his continuing research regarding the differing acting methods of American and Cuban actors.

Nine graduate students will accompany Panitch to participate in the production of the play to meet part of their degree requirements in the University’s Master of Fine Arts program. The performance component of the project begins Dec. 6 at the Teatro Adolfo Llaurado in Havana.

“As a professor of theatre, my research primarily concerns the study of a performance in live production, and so this project aims to do just that,” Panitch said. “I shall direct a Spanish language production of ‘Beyond Therapy’ using Cuban actors, which presents the only means for me to pursue that professional research goal. My acting students will arrive after me, and they will be able to participate in the production as well, making this a singular academic experience for them in their study of world theatrical styles.”

Panitch notes that performing the play by Durang, a noted satirist, will provide an excellent opportunity to observe audiences from another culture.

“Christopher Durang is such a uniquely skewed American writer,” Panitch says. “I have no idea how the humor will be received by the Havana audience. I think, either way, the results will be greatly instructive to me. If they laugh along with us, we are closer together in spirit than I might have imagined.”

He and his accompaniers will be engaged in research with the Cuban Ministry of Culture (El Consejo Nacional de Artes Escenicas).

The Alabama-Cuba Initiative at UA was established in 2002 to develop significant academic exchanges between the University and its counterparts in Cuba. The Cuba Initiative serves as the latest illustration of the long-standing interest in Latin America studies at the University, where it has been a program of study for more than 45 years.

At UA, the Cuba Initiative has continued to grow since its inception.To date, approximately 85 faculty members and nearly 40 students at both the undergraduate and graduate level have traveled to Cuba.

The department of theatre and dance is part of UA’s College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest liberal arts college in the state. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships and memberships on the USA Today Academic All American Team.