Thomas Richards Information

The Workcenter Studio in Residence, consisting of seven actors under the direction of Thomas Richards, was created in 2016 after an initial 3 month residency in Italy. The creative process during this first period served as the terrain for an initial stage of development for the Studio members in relation to Workcenter praxis. The high quality of the performative material created during this first phase, and the desire to deepen the potentialities existing within this new team, led to the creation of a second residency in Italy in 2017. In this stage, a collective piece was created entitled Sin Fronteras, as well as a solo piece entitled Gravedad. The creative process leading to Sin Fronteras is unique, being the first time that Mr. Richards directs a performance based on a modern dramatic text. The Workcenter Studio in Residence also provides a place in which an extended investigation can be conducted on the potential that specific songs from Latin America can have as tools aimed towards what Grotowski called «Objectivity of Ritual. Currently, the Workcenter Studio in Residence constitutes a permanent work team inside the Workcenter. Thomas Richards (B.A. Yale University, M.A. the University of Bologna, Ph.D. University of Paris VIII) is Artistic Director of the research of Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards. He began his apprenticeship with Grotowski in 1985, and their work together developed until Grotowskis passing away in 1999. Thomas Richards arrived in Italy in 1986 with Jerzy Grotowski from the University of California, Irvine, where he had participated in Grotowskis Focused Research Program in Objective Drama. In Italy, at first Mr. Richards worked as Grotowskis assistant, but soon he became the leader of one of the work teams, and then Grotowskis essential collaborator. Eventually, Mr. Richards became Director of the Research Program on Performing Arts at the Workcenter. Richards was a fundamental driving force in the research developed at the Workcenter that has come to be known as ...