While millions come to New York City each year to see a hot musical or star vehicle on Broadway, those who want to see the latest work by a promising talent or a master artisan head for the hills of Kentucky in the spring. The ATL was founded in 1964, with the first Humana Festival in 1976, and has become one of the most influential theatres in the country.
The Kentucky Derby is perhaps Louisville's best-known national institution, and the Louisville Slugger another famous native; the Humana Festival has its own hardcore following: a knowledgeable subscriber base of Kentuckiana theatre-lovers; and fly-ins of producers, artistic directors, directors, playwrights, agents, and theatre junkies from across the country.
In a corner of the South that can be a daytrip or weekend getaway from Chicago, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and other much-larger metro areas, the medium-sized town of Louisville and its Actors Theatre have launched hundreds of new plays, some of which are have become part of the modern canon.Three Pulitzer Prize winners (The Gin Game, Crimes of the Heart and Dinner With Friends) have premiered at the Festival, and many others have gone on to New York, regional and international productions.
We missed two of these potential gems on Friday night, retreating to our hotel, The Camberley Brown, until the horizon stopped moving. Most festival attendees from out of town stayed at the Brown, The Seelbach Hilton, both a short walk, taxi or van ride from the theatre, and the Galt House, literally around the corner from the ATL.
Feeling much better Saturday morning, we caught the city's free Toonerville Trolley to Main Street, where the performance spaces and galleries of the ATL are housed in several connected buildings, both modern and historic. A breakfast was laid on at the theatre's Encore Restaurant, following which we wandered the complex to catch the repeated cycles of The Technology Project, three short plays asking the question "What is live performance?" Like all other live performances, if you miss the start, they won't let you in, so I can only report on F.E.T.C.H, an interactive piece by Alice Tuan in which three actors hung on a vertical scaffold, and acted short pieces of text based on letters chosen by audience members. Inline skates, jumpsuits, headlamps, and large magnets were all important prop and costume pieces.
The first sitdown play we saw was Jerome Hairston's a.m. Sunday, in the Bingham Theatre, a 318-seat in-the-round space; Theatre at 11:30am Saturday drew a full house, which was riveted to the acting and story about relationships, racial identity and betrayal.
The matinee in the 159-seat Victor Jory Theatre was Tina Howe's Rembrandt's Gift. The heartbreaking comedy by the modern American surrealist (Painting Churches, Coastal Disturbances, Pride's Crossing) was set in a modern day SoHo loft and featured the artist Rembrandt as a major character.
That evening, we headed into the 637-seat mainstage Pamela Brown Auditorium for Charles L. Mee's Limonade Tous Les Jours, a dazzlingly visual three-character piece about a love affair in Paris.
Then most of the actors, techies and staff and a fair portion of the audience went downstairs to Encore, where there was much play analysis, critique, and the sort of rowdiness that occurs when you got a lot of theatre types around cheap drinks; in other words, a grand party.
Most of the same people gathered in the lobby of the Pamela Brown Auditorium for brunch the next morning; cards were exchanged, requests made for scripts, and handshake deals that will determine the upcoming theatre season in towns all over the country were concluded.
The most controversial piece in the festival, Adam Rapp's Finer Noble Gases was the Sunday matinee. Set in a trashed East Village (NY) apartment, it details the inertia of several 20-something musicians and the people on the periphery of their lives. The sign in front of the auditorium warned of frontal nudity, and we'd been told there'd be a character urinating onstage, and another vomiting. Since we see that sort of thing on the street every day, it didn't really bother us.
The ATL had several vans to get people around town, and we grabbed one as soon as the lights came up at the end of the play and headed back to the airport to be battered around the sky once more, with many of the same folks we'd seen all weekend.
We saw enough of Louisville to think highly of it, and consider making an annual pilgrimage. After all, we've yet to see the Louisville Slugger Factory, the Jim Beam Distillery, or Thomas Merton's Gethsemani Abbey. Not to mention all that theatre!
Where to Stay Downtown Louisville empties out on the weekend, and bargains and packages are available at many hotels. Friends reported bagging a room at the Seelbach Hilton for $50 a night on Priceline.com, and the weekend rates at the Camberley Brown can be half the regular rack rates. Here's information on three hotels near the ATL:
The Camberley Brown (335 West Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202, tel. 502/583-1234, www.thebrownhotel.com) This 1923 property owned by the same chain that operates New York's Algonquin is a member of Historic Hotels of America, and a delightful throwback to a more genteel era. The welcoming staff keeps the aura friendly rather than haughty. The public areas are beautiful, spotless and furnished with antiques. The rooms are decorated on a hunting theme, with framed prints, four-poster beds and large bathrooms well supplied with amenities. On the concierge floor, there's a complimentary continental breakfast; coffee, tea, soda fruit and cookies all day; and hors d'oeuvres at cocktail hour, along with wine and beer. A van provides free transportation to and from the airport. Rack rates are $202-$262 per night, with corporate discounts, "Supersavers" and weekend packages from $99 a night.
The Seelbach Hilton (500 Fourth Avenue, Louisville, KY 40202, tel. 502/585-3200, www.hilton.com/en/hi/hotels/index.jhtml?ctyhocn=SDFSHHF) Another historic hotel in Downtown Louisville, one of whose claims to fame is a mention in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, is an old-fashioned grand hotel with palm trees in the lobby, arches and armchairs. The Hilton offers many and varied packages (from as low as $89 a night), and even turned up as a Priceline.com offer for less than that. They also offer free shuttle service to and from the airport.
The Galt House Hotel (140 North Fourth Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky 40202, tel. 800/626-1814 or 502/589-5200, www.galthouse.com) The huge (700 rooms, 600 suites) hotel is right on the banks of the Ohio River, and people who stay there rave about the views. It's also less than a block from the Actors Theatre of Louisville. You'll recognize it by its name in HUGE letters on the side of the building and the two red-and-white lighthouses on its roof. Rates vary widely, from $95-$475 a night, with packages called "Great Deals!"
Where to Dine All the hotels mentioned above have several dining options, some of which are local favorites on the Louisville scene.
The Camberley Brown has the English Grill, whose kitchen is run by chef Joe Castro, for fine dining; The Thoroughbred Lounge for more casual meals; and J. Brown's for breakfast and lunch. There's also a lobby bar featuring piano music in the evenings. The hotel has a signature dish, "The Hot Brown," which consists of smoked turkey on toast points, smothered in a Mornay sauce, with grated parmesan cheese and grilled tomatoes. One portion split between two of us sent us to a dreamless sleep.
The Seelbach Hilton offers The Oakroom as its fine dining room; Otto's Cafe for breakfast and lunch/comfort food; and The Old Seelbach Bar, which also offers live jazz.
The Galt House has six restaurants, from The Flagship, a revolving restaurant on the 25th floor to a lobby bar.
At the ATL, The Encore is all things to all people; providing drinks, bar food, and more substantial fare before and after the shows in a brick-walled basement room whose d?r includes posters and props from past shows.
Around the corner from the ATL, the Louisville branch of Old Spaghetti Factory chain at 235 W. Market St., (tel. 502/581-1070) drew praise for its large, and moderately priced pasta dishes.
What to See The Humana Festival of New American Plays (located at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, 316 West Main Street, Louisville, KY 40202, tel. 502/584-1265, www.actorstheatre.org) Individual ticket prices for performances ranges from free to $45. Ticket packages are available for the Humana Festival Group discounts available; Quick-Tix (1/2 price tickets the day of performance); Student/Senior/Disability tickets available 15 minutes prior to performance for $12.
For additional information on Lousiville, contact:
Greater Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau
401 West Main Street, Suite 2300
Louisville, KY 40202
888-LOUISVILLE (568-4784)
www.gotolouisville.com.