About Us

Empty Chair was created to give students of all ages, from the Washington, DC metropolitan area, the opportunity to study and perform Shakespeare outside of the classroom. Due to its highly collaborative design, Empty Chair incorporates students interested in a wide range of theatrical practices. These actors, directors and designers come from a wide range of public and private high schools and colleges from all over the east coast. They range in age from 14-23. Empty Chair's performance goals are to create classic works that encompass the basic principles of early modern theatre, known as Original Practices, combined with innovative modern techniques. The founders were inspired by the practices and techniques of the American Shakespeare Center and The Folger Shakespeare Library as well as many other local and international theatres. 

Mission Statement

By combining movement, music, technology and a fresh new look at classical theatre, Empty Chair wishes to bring to its generation a Shakespeare worth digging into.

What are Original Practices?

The term “Original Practices” refers to the concept of doing things the way William Shakespeare’s actors would have done them, way back in Elizabethan England. Main Original Practices include:

Universal Lighting: Shakespeare’s playhouses were lit by sun or candlelight, and the audience and actors were equally lit.

Thrust Staging: having audience on three sides of the stage puts them right in the action of the play.

Doubling: Shakespeare’s plays sometimes had as many as 40 speaking roles, but were acted by only 15 or so actors, some of whom played many roles.
 
Gender-Blind Casting: In Shakespeare’s day, since women were not permitted to act, men played women’s roles on stage – today, this practice has been reversed to allow women to play women’s roles, as well as to play men, while men play men and, occasionally, women!
 
Live Music: Shakespeare’s plays were bookended by paid musicians playing popular songs of the time; nowadays, this refers to the actors providing music before shows, at intermissions, and sometimes during the plays. From The Decemberists to Coldplay and Lenny Kravitz the stories of Shakespeare can be found in modern music everywhere.

Why Original Practices ?

Though Original Practices are 400 years old, using them creates a unique experience, cementing the bond between actor and audience by pulling spectators into the world of the play they are watching. Empty Chair chooses to explore the fascinating possibilities found in live productions where everyone is part of the performance.

History:

Empty Chair Theater Company  was founded in 2007 by Julia Sears and Elizabeth Nearing both juniors in high school at the time. The company was formed with the goal to give students a creative outlet and the chance to explore deeply layered texts while working with their peers. Empty Chair performed a Shakespeare Showcase in June of 2007,  Taming of the Shrew in January of 2008, and Richard III in July 2008.   Empty Chair became incorporated through the state of Virginia in the Spring of 2008, and is pending 501(c)3 non-profit status from the IRS.

Richard III Actors Caroline Brent Michael Van Ness Tilney Brune and Daniel Cackly. Photo  by Leslie Haase.

Empty Chair is planning a future production of an original work by Company Member Matthew Minnicino.  Minnicino's premiere piece is a trilogy based on Queen Elizabeth I and written in  Shakespearean style.  It will be performed with renaissance staging practices.