LATEST NEWS
We are thrilled to bring AMERYKA to the Kirk Douglas Theatre as part of Center Theatre Group's Block Party!
April 27, 2018
Running through Sunday 4/29!
12 shows only!
For $25 discount tickets: CTGLA.ORG/PROMO
Use code: CRITICALMASS
AMERYKA named PRODUCTION OF THE YEAR!
May 16, 2017
AMERYKA was honored with Stage Raw Awards for PRODUCTION OF THE YEAR & BEST ENSEMBLE! We are so grateful for the recognition! And what a fun and lively night of celebration with the Los Angeles theatre community! Thank you to every person, over the 6 years of development, who helped bring this creation to fruition!
AMERYKA is nominated!
February 24, 2017
Thank you to the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle for recognizing the cast of AMERYKA with a nomination for Best Ensemble!
Announcing CMPG's Ovation Award Nominations!
It is our extreme pleasure to announce that Ameryka has been nominated for 7 Ovation Awards!
Best Production of a Play,
Intimate Theatre
Acting Ensemble of a Play
Playwriting for an Original Play,
Nancy Keystone
Featured Actor in a Play,
Ray Ford as Gene Jefferson
Lighting Design,
Intimate Theatre, Elizabeth Harper
Sound Design,
Intimate Theatre, Randy Tico
Costume Design,
Intimate Theatre, Lena Sands
It took many years and countless hands to move the mountain that was Ameryka. Thank you, Ovation voters, for showing your appreciation for our work. We look forward to celebrating with all our fellow nominees on January 17, 2017 at the Ahmanson Theatre!
AMERYKA is Ovation Recommended!
March 6th, 2016
Thank you to all Ovation voters and the LA Stage Alliance.
Political Dissidents! Art! Popcorn! Free Events!
February 5th - March 6th
During our run at The Shakespeare Center, we've planned some special, pre and post-show ancillary events, each with a topic fundamental to the making of AMERYKA. The events are free with your ticket so come learn what inspires, motivates and drives our work!
Throughout the run:
In partnership with the Center for the Study of Political Graphics are honored to host an exhibition of important political posters from the Polish Solidarity and American civil rights movements.
Friday, Feb. 12 post-show
A vital conversation about the current state of Polish civil rights, democracy and the LGBT community, with Polish scholars, authors and activists Pawel Leszkowicz, Tomasz Kitilinski, and Sophie Lesinska, and author, performer and curator of LA Public Library's ALOUD series, Louise Steinman, This conversation will begin immediately following the performance.
Saturday, Feb. 13 – pre-show
Enjoy live jazz with Richard Velzen Trio, before the performance, starting at 7pm.
Saturday, Feb. 13 post-show
You’re Producing What? A discussion between artists and producers dedicated to producing bold theatre in Los Angeles. Guests include Mark Seldis and Katharine Noon of Ghost Road Company, Guy Zimmerman of Padua Playwrights, and Nancy Keystone of Critical Mass Performance Group. This conversation will begin immediately following the performance.
Friday, Feb. 19 – pre-show
Political Poster Making led by artist Dewey Tafoya. Join us before the show, at 7pm, to make your own political statement.
Friday, Feb. 19 – post-show
Free, late-night screening of "High Noon!" We won’t give it away, but the 1952 Western, starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly, is intimately entwined with AMERYKA! Join us after the performance with a bag of popcorn, a drink and a comfy chair and let’s watch a movie!
Saturday, Feb. 20 –pre-show
Enjoy live jazz with Richard Velzen Trio, before the performance, starting at 7pm.
Sunday, Feb. 21 – post-show (matinee)
Madeleine Brand in Conversation with Professor Jody David Armour. The KCRW host sits down with author and USC Roy P. Crocker Professor of Law, for a vital conversation about justice, Black Lives Matter, and the impact of American civil rights on the international community. Not to be missed! Join us at 4:30pm, following the 2pm matinee.
Monday, Feb. 22 – pre-show
Los Angeles Artist Mixer! Hard-working theatre artists, join us at 7pm for free snacks and good company before the performance.
Monday, Feb. 22 post-show
You Call That Theatre? A discussion between independent artists and leaders of companies dedicated to devised work, ensemble and cool theatre. Join us following the evening’s show to learn more about their “theatre.” Guests include, Sean Cawelti, Estela Garcia, Traci Kato-Kiriyama, Kennedy Kabasares, and Nancy Keystone.
Friday, Feb. 26 pre-show
Political Poster Making led by artist Dewey Tafoya. Join us before the show, at 7pm, to make your own political statement.
Friday, Feb. 26 – post-show
Free, late-night screening of "High Noon!" We won’t give it away, but the 1952 Western, starring Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly, is intimately entwined with AMERYKA! Join us after the performance with a bag of popcorn, a drink and a comfy chair and let’s watch a movie!
Saturday, Feb. 27 – pre-show
A Conversation with Adam Michnik. The courageous Polish historian, essayist and former dissident will share his experiences as a contemporary revolutionary who speaks truth to power. Do not miss his rare visit from Poland. Join us before the show, at 7pm.
Monday, Feb. 29 pre-show
Los Angeles Artist Mixer! Hard-working theatre artists, join us at 7pm for free snacks and good company before the performance.
Saturday, March 5 pre-show
Enjoy live jazz with Richard Velzen Trio, before the performance, starting at 7pm.
February 5 - March 6, 2016
After five years of development, we are thrilled to announce the world premiere of our latest piece, AMERYKA.
February 5 - March 6, 2016
at The Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles
Charting a course through 250 years of astonishing connections between the United States and Poland, Ameryka is an epic exploration of the universal human longing for freedom and justice.
From the American Revolution to the global war on terror, from the struggle for civil rights to the fight against communism, Ameryka turns history inside out in an unforgettable examination of the promises and betrayals of democracy. The story is told through Critical Mass Performance Group's signature, kaleidoscopic style of found texts, heightened physicality, music and spectacle.
For performance info & tickets:
http://critical-mass-performance-group.ticketleap.com/ameryka/
Take a peek at what we've been up to:
LA Drama Critics Award Winner: Nancy Keystone
March 18, 2014
Thank you to the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle for recognizing our ALCESTIS with the Best Writing (Adaptation) Award!
We are so grateful for the support of the critics and everyone who came out to see our co-production with The Theatre @ Boston Court last summer, and to the Getty Villa, Boston Court and United States Artists for the opportunity to make it happen!
Congratulations to all the nominees and winners of the LADCC Awards-it was a splendid celebration of Los Angeles theatre last night!
Diving In at Diavolo
March 3, 2014
Sold out performance at Diavolo's incredible Dance Theater at the Brewery Arts Complex!
THANK YOU to everyone who came out to see our AMERYKA showing! We had a blast, and were so grateful for the opportunity to show the work-in-progress to such a supportive, thoughtful group of people. We learned a lot! Thank you, also, to Diavolo Dance Theater for hosting us--we loved working in that fabulous space! Looking forward to the next steps...
Our very own Nancy Keystone nominated by the LA Drama Critics Circle!
March 1, 2014
Congratulations to Critical Mass Performance Group's founder Nancy Keystone for her nominations in Direction and Adaptation of 'Alcestis'!
Who's the Best Theater Company of 2013?
October 2, 2013
According to the LA Weekly, Steven Leigh Morris, and our audiences, it's US! Yes, Critical Mass Performance Group was named Best Theater Company of 2013. Thank you, LA Weekly! Click here for more information!
LA Stage Times Review
July 15, 2013
“Much of this story is told without words — or, in the case of a brilliant depiction of the fates hard at work, with only one word. Some of the action is danced more than acted. Randall Tico’s music and sound design is haunting. Adam Flemming’s projections add visual texture.”
Hollywood Reporter Review
July 8, 2013
“Indeed, the opening half of the show often manages to capture in fresh cadences and accessible references essences suggested by the original in concrete and relatable terms, perhaps best conveyed when the troupe intones a pair of verbal fugues on the quotidian significances of life and on the contemplation of possible demises, litanies of mortality that forthrightly chill the spine with their accretion of recognizable detail.”
Stage Struck Review
July 7, 2013
“‘Alcestis’ is funny, wrenching, inventive and deeply felt. It runs for about an hour and a half without an intermission, but leaves you startled at the end by the passage of time. In its juxtaposition of the extraordinary with the mundane, it offers more then just a comment on the struggle between fate and the powerful, but rather a chance to reexamine the intimate relationships of one’s own life. Food for thought, indeed. But then, much fodder for discussion is the natural outcome of a sojourn at Boston Court.
Arts In LA Review
July 6, 2013
“Heady stuff? Not to fear, it plays with whipsaw glee on this Pasadena stage. There are dances—both fancy production numbers and bone-cracking Martha Graham–esque contortions—as well as wacky choral interludes and absurdist pantomimes right out of Ionesco. Characters even periodically step out of character to comment on the Euripidean original. For all that, there’s not a whiff of camp to be found. The performances are emotionally pointed and rich, as legendary figures’ old sorrows and new resentments make themselves felt across the centuries and across these footlights.”
LA Times Review
July 5, 2013
“The austere — almost too austere — staging benefits from designer Adam Frank’s lighting, Sarah Brown’s costumes and Randall Tico’s compositions and sound. Standout sequences include Alcestis’ yielding to Death (Russell Edge), Admetus’ clash with his mother (Valerie Spencer) and the heavy-metal outburst by Herakles (Nick Santoro), with the round-robin funeral segment and climactic coup involving the Fates easily worth admission.”
LA Weekly Review
July 3, 2013
“At its center is Keystone’s modern-dress riff on the myth of Queen Alcestis (Kalean Ung), whose uxorial virtues extend to substituting her own life for that of her husband, Admetus (Jeremy Shranko), in a deal brokered by Apollo (Lorne Green) to circumvent the king’s untimely demise. Like Euripides, Keystone’s version examines the manifold repercussions of Admetus’ self-centeredness (hint: not good), albeit with side trips into metaphysical philosophy, scathing satire and allegorical vaudeville. Throughout it all, a precision ensemble expertly navigates the drama — Ung and Shranko’s breakfast-nook coda is a tour de force of nonverbal eloquence — along with Keystone’s dance movements, which include cool quotations of Lucinda Childs and Pina Bausch.”
Life In LA Review
July 2, 2013
“And dance they do. Critical Mass Performance Group uses many physical theatre techniques, including dance, in their performance pieces, resulting in a highly-stylized collage that explores the Euripides text and the source myth from all angles. This is ensemble theatre at its most glorious, visceral and immediate, exploding the text on to the stage.Alcestis is blessed with a talented, emotionally-available company who is able to navigate seamlessly through play. Speaking of dance, there is a waltz in the Underworld that is particularly eerie to watch.”
Getting to Know Critical Mass
July 2, 2013
Boston Court's Emily Abbott discovers what Critical Mass Performance Group is all about! Read more here.
ALCESTIS Opens at Boston Court
June 29, 2013
Critical Mass Performance Group was thrilled to finally open Alcestis at Boston Court tonight! What a wonderful, giving audience and a beautiful, welcoming theater! Joined by Artistic Directors, Jessica Kubzansky and Michael Michetti, we joyfully shared the myth of Alcestis with a whole new audience. We are so grateful for the generous preview audiences who helped us to hone this show to what it has become!
ALCESTIS Rehearsals Begin at Boston Court
May 14, 2013
We are so thrilled and excited to be beginning the rehearsal process at the Theater @ Boston Court tonight. After a warm welcome from the locals, we dove into work with new scenes, new ideas, a new set, and three new understudies. You will not want to miss the result of our newest explorations.
Book your tickets soon; dates are selling out. We look forward to seeing you there!
Nancy Keystone Talks About AMERYKA CMPG at the Studio SCR Series
November 5, 2012
CMPG's ALCESTIS at The Theater @ Boston Court
October 8, 2012
We are thrilled to announce that our new play - ALCESTIS, which we workshopped at the beautiful grounds of the Getty Villa earlier this year - has been selected as part of Boston Court's 2013 season. ALCESTIS is a project very near and dear to all of our hearts and we're very excited that we'll get to showcase it at Boston Court's gorgeous theater in Pasadena. Opening night will June 29th, 2013. We look forward to seeing you there. Read the article here.
CMPG at the Studio SCR Series
September 8, 2012
We have been invited to present AMERYKA work-in-progress at South Coast Rep as part of their Studio SCR series! The dates are DECEMBER 3-9 of this year. We are so excited to be a part of this work collection and can't wait to have you join us at SCR. Click here for more information!
Our Very Own Ray Ford Shines His Light
August 8, 2012
One of our long-time company members, Ray Ford, recently became a co-star of the hit show 'Don't Trust the B-- in Apartment 23'. We are thrilled to see others finally recognizing his astonishing talent!
