Cast and directors of The Reader - from left to right: Brian Morri, Chris Dolan, Jean-Louis Rodrigue, Stewart W. Calhoun, Allegra Fulton, Christian Lebano, Ann Stocking, Rhett Nadolny.
Montalvo Arts Center is housed in the historic “Villa Montalvo”, In 1939, Villa Montalvo was opened to the public as an arts center with artists in residence and a small gallery in the Villa. Today, Montalvo’s facilities now include two theaters, an art gallery, the historic Villa, a ten-acre artist residency complex, and a 175-acre park with hiking trails and formal gardens. The Center offers the following programs, enjoyed by more than 200,000 people each year: 1) Performing Arts; 2) Visual Arts; 3) Literary Arts; 4) Sally and Don Lucas Artist Residency; 5) Education and Outreach and 6) Montalvo Park.
Jean-Louis Rodrigue and Chris Dolan working on The Reader.
Bob Sain, the Executive Director of the Montalvo Arts Center stated in his invitation to Jean-Louis Rodrigue : “The development of The Reader and its process exemplifies Montalvo’s mission of engaging the community in the arts through dialogue and direct participation in creative practice, in addition to Montalvo’s goal of facilitating the creation of new works. Our upcoming theme exploring Iraq through the arts would be directly related to the public workshops and panels around The Reader, by bringing a historical context to the issues facing our society regarding global responsibility, literacy, and the human consequences of war. In addition, we are committed to inviting local youth and community members to participate in the development of The Reader and surrounding public conversations. The Montalvo Arts Center is very pleased to invite you here as a fellow in 2008 and beyond in support of the development of your work developing The Reader into a full theater production.” A reading of the play as a work-in-progress will take place at the Montalvo Center in April of 2008. Chris Dolan, the Scottish author of the play adaptation will be participating in the week-long residency. Bernhard Schlink, the acclaimed author of the novel, has also been invited as a fellow and he will participate in events surrounding the reading.
