Out of the glitz and glamour of New York City, the CorkScrew Theater Company has blossomed into fruition as another alumni-heavy theater group. Founded in mid-June by three Brown alums - Meredith Mosbacher '11.5, Ted Cava '11 and Daniel Gonon '12 - along with Jonathan Gordon and Auden Thornton, the company debuted their inaugural show, "Ecology of a Visit," in August.
The CorkScrew Theater Company was founded on the idea of putting on accessible theater, while simultaneously exploring the intimate and complicated realities of day-to-day human interactions through the use of non-archetypal characters, according to Mosbacher. Its members wanted to put on shows that "investigated those moments where we don't know whether to laugh or cry ... that razor's edge that feels like the twisting of a corkscrew," she said.
Mosbacher moved to New York in March, where she began conversations with fellow Brown theater alums regarding the creation of a company.
"I got a group of people together who I respected a lot as performers," Mosbacher said. Together with Gordon and Thornton, an actress and childhood friend of Mosbacher's, the group began to discuss ideas they sought to incorporate in their debut piece.
"Ecology of a Visit" came out of a collaboration with Brendan Pelsue '08, whom Mosbacher said she has admired since they met. He had the ability to evoke multiple emotions at once, something she was seeking in her company. Each member of the group had input in the creation of the script, she said.
Both Gonon and Mosbacher said their college theater experiences helped prepare them for this next step.
Gonon said though he was primarily an actor during his time at Brown, he felt comfortable working with multiple facets of theater production. "In a company, you know that you are more than the title given in the program," Gonon said.
"Ecology of a Visit" follows the story of four friends in an isolated cabin in Maine, where they find their calm evening ruined by an unexpected visitor. The play sought to address "the boundaries we put up and how we communicate in that context, and what happens to situations when those boundaries are let loose or those safety valves are exposed," Mosbacher said.
The name of the play, based in part on a line in the show referring to the set as "a little closed ecosystem," reflects these social situations, Gonon said.
"It was a wonderful opportunity to work with friends that are so talented and different, but bring things to the table as a result," said Mosbacher. "And it is nice to have control and take ownership of something from start to finish," she added.
With every show performing to a full house, Mosbacher said the company's success has encouraged them to collaborate again in the future.
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