greene grants

2007 Greene Grant awarded to:

The Wild Hair Living Room Tour

An Imaginative Theatre Piece, Celebrating Questioning Souls...

In June 2007, The Maxine Greene Foundation, Inc. awarded a Greene Grant to The Field for THE WILD HAIR LIVING ROOM TOUR conceived by Jean Taylor and Robin Fawcett.

Imagine Ophelia—yes, that Ophelia—living the quiet life of a museum docent years after her daring escape from the darkness of Elsinore. For all this time, she has allowed the world to tell and retell the false story of her demise. Now, sensing the rise of dark castles, Ophelia can no longer keep her silence. Using research material and fragments of her own story—she presents her case—might more wild hairs equal fewer dark castles? Clowning techniques, object animation and roughhewn props help the museum docent pay tribute to questioning souls. The Wild Hair Living Room Tour plans to:

  • Perform WILD HAIR in a variety of living rooms, lofts, and libraries in the New York metropolitan area. High school age through adult audiences will engage in post-performance discussions emphasizing community dialogue.
  • Create THE WILD HAIR LIVING ROOM TOUR Documentary—recording the audience conversations that unfold at each site.
  • Host an event at the conclusion of the tour for all LIVING ROOM audiences to view the documentary and share personal wild hair stories.
  • Build a web site for accessing and sharing information about THE WILD HAIR LIVING ROOM TOUR (see images, choose to host, become an audience member, share a wild hair story).

WÌLD HÂIR (wild hair) n. 1. A tuft of hair that grows in a different direction from the rest of the hair and will not lie flat; a cowlick. 2. People who wonder, ask a lot of questions, and always seek to find things out for themselves.

"Exploring how a sense of possibility may emerge from a gloomy sense of nothing, we discovered scrap cardboard and string to be handy tools for constructing the world of our piece. As we visit the living rooms of our expanding community, we have the opportunity to wonder together...Might more wild hairs equal fewer dark castles?"
-Jean Taylor & Robin Fawcett