Is Chris Hardman sabotaging the American theater or is he saving it?” |
INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNAThe first professional job I landed was rehabbing the Dragon Cave Funhouse in Coney Island. And at the same time I became aware of a sideshow illusion called Pepper’s Ghost. Watching audiences rock through the ghostly maze, then jump in fear at the inexplicable appearance of Peppers Ghost, cause me to become forever intrigues by what odd ball events could be called theater and what theater could be.
My career has been spent creating new forms of theatrical experiences. This website will tell of the various forms invented throughout the years such as Walkmanology …but wait I’m getting ahead of our story… |
Reinventing Theater Since 1980
Original productions blending technology and art.
Receive
We invite diverse voices to tell their stories. |
Transform
We reimagine the form to create collaborative, original experiences. |
Transmit
We share our art via innovative forms. |
“We chose ‘Antenna Theater’ as a name because we were interested in creating experiences that would foster active collaboration with our audience and the world. We were interested in creating productions that would act like an Antenna, that is Receive, Transform, and Transmit.”
– Founder and Artistic Director Chris Hardman
– Founder and Artistic Director Chris Hardman
Created in 1980, the Antenna experience can take the shape of a carnival, an immersive maze, a performance piece, a radio program, a mystery tour, a sideshow or a giant walk-through sculpture. Antenna uses them all to put the audience member, or “audient”, into the middle of the action.
Antenna Theater is a 501c3 nonprofit organization.
Antenna Theater is a 501c3 nonprofit organization.
New Theater Forms
The Invention of Walkmanology.
The name Antenna was chosen because we were not only interested in creating theater but finding a way to have an active collaboration with our audience- thus Antenna, which I took to mean; To Receive (like an antenna does) To Receive input, To Transform it, and then To Transmit it back.
Vacuum was the first show Antenna ever produced and for Vacuum we interviewed a multitude of vacuum cleaner salesmen and housewives and then cut their voices into the tape we used for the performance- they became co-collaborators. It was 1980 and Antenna Theater had just produced its first show called Vacuum and the show was a big success and among other thing it was invited to go to Europe.
Chris Hardman, ANTENNA Artistic Director:
…now I’ve always found airplanes to be claustrophobic, there is always a kid crying in the back and you forgot the book you intended to read so you realized that you’re stuck there for hours with nothing productive to do. Then this new fangled bizarre device came out on the market called a Walkman and I decided to get one.
So just as the airplane was about to lift off. I turned on the Walkman and just as the airplane lifted into the sky The Ride of the Valkyries began to play.
Suddenly I realized that there was this amazing theatrical event happening and it was called Syncronicity! The visual and the audio were working in sync and furthermore instead of watching from afar I was literally inside the event.
The Invention of Walkmanology.
The name Antenna was chosen because we were not only interested in creating theater but finding a way to have an active collaboration with our audience- thus Antenna, which I took to mean; To Receive (like an antenna does) To Receive input, To Transform it, and then To Transmit it back.
Vacuum was the first show Antenna ever produced and for Vacuum we interviewed a multitude of vacuum cleaner salesmen and housewives and then cut their voices into the tape we used for the performance- they became co-collaborators. It was 1980 and Antenna Theater had just produced its first show called Vacuum and the show was a big success and among other thing it was invited to go to Europe.
Chris Hardman, ANTENNA Artistic Director:
…now I’ve always found airplanes to be claustrophobic, there is always a kid crying in the back and you forgot the book you intended to read so you realized that you’re stuck there for hours with nothing productive to do. Then this new fangled bizarre device came out on the market called a Walkman and I decided to get one.
So just as the airplane was about to lift off. I turned on the Walkman and just as the airplane lifted into the sky The Ride of the Valkyries began to play.
Suddenly I realized that there was this amazing theatrical event happening and it was called Syncronicity! The visual and the audio were working in sync and furthermore instead of watching from afar I was literally inside the event.
Meet our leadership
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The somewhat sadish story of the Antenna Website
Learning to live with websites and social media
ANTENNA has been around ages before Computers became personal and to communicate with our audience in those days -we sent postcards!
Then Computers came and people talked of websites which sounded like a giant energy sink and to be avoided at all costs so.... every time we were lucky enough to have young savvy energy-ball offer their efforts we would have them work on the website. Needless to say the site had many starts and fits.
But now that a website and"social" media are a necessary to communicate, it's time I get control of this communication system that has replaced the book and replaced the painting and touch and smell and taste.
So our focus has turned to the website as a necessary part of the ANTENNA oeuvre. Return as often as you wish, we will be constantly be adding new material, plans for the future and projects from the past. Should be intriguingly and scrappy adventure.
Chris
Learning to live with websites and social media
ANTENNA has been around ages before Computers became personal and to communicate with our audience in those days -we sent postcards!
Then Computers came and people talked of websites which sounded like a giant energy sink and to be avoided at all costs so.... every time we were lucky enough to have young savvy energy-ball offer their efforts we would have them work on the website. Needless to say the site had many starts and fits.
But now that a website and"social" media are a necessary to communicate, it's time I get control of this communication system that has replaced the book and replaced the painting and touch and smell and taste.
So our focus has turned to the website as a necessary part of the ANTENNA oeuvre. Return as often as you wish, we will be constantly be adding new material, plans for the future and projects from the past. Should be intriguingly and scrappy adventure.
Chris