Material Advantage

The Open Door: A Staged Reading of Work by Gregory Kiewiet

October 14, 2023 at 8:00pm

October 15, 2023 at 3:00pm

Seating is first come first serve.

Influenced by Cubism, Jazz, and vanguard movements and approaches, it is no surprise that Gregory's work is complex. Just as this writing opened doors for him about cultural consciousness: i.e. art as exploration; and risk of discovering the Self, this Staged Reading offers layered contemplation of everyday life experiences.

With poetry from Book Two Begins, a one-act play, A Beautiful Day and an excerpt from the play, She's A Beauty .

Purchase Tickets

The Open Door on WDET

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Gregory Kiewiet

Gregory Kiewiet earned his MFA in writing (2010) from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and an MA in English (Creative Writing) (2001) from Wayne State University. Gun for Hire, Kiewiet’s MA thesis at Wayne State, was a finalist in the Lois Heck-Rabi Dramatic Writing Competition in 2001. In 2007 Past Tents Press published the book of poetry In the Company of Words. Work has appeared in The Columbia Poetry Review, Marks: An Online Journal of the Arts, Dispatch Detroit, Box, Woodward Magazine, Graffiti Rag, and others. Translations from the Dutch poet Coert Poort appeared in 2004 in volume four of Dispatch Detroit.  

MEET THE CAST AND TEAM OF
The Open Door

LEE STILLE

Lee Stille is a Theatre & Performance Studies professor at Eastern Michigan University, specializing in the performance of Shakespeare, actor and voice training, and dramaturgy. As a performing artist, Lee has worked as an actor, director, and voice/accent coach for hundreds of productions over the course of his career. Locally his work has been seen at the Performance Network, Planet Ant, Blackbird Theatre, Three-fold Productions, Riverside Arts, and Matrix Theatre. Currently, he serves as the Director of the School of Communication, Media & Theatre Arts at EMU.

EMILIO RODRIGUEZ

Emilio Rodriguez is a theatre artist who began his career at the age of 2 performing one-kid adaptations of The Wizard of Oz in his parents’ living room using a broom, a funnel, and his mama’s high heels. Since then, he got his degree in theatre from U.C. Irvine and went on to pursue acting, directing and playwriting. He has taught Acting and Playwriting at Kalamazoo College, Michigan Actors Studio and Detroit Institute for Music Education. Emilio has directed for companies like Shakespeare in Detroit, Two Muses Theatre, and Black and Brown Theatre for which he is the current Artistic Director.

TAYLER JONES

Tayler Jones, a versatile theatre artist based in Detroit, wears many hats as an actress, director, and teaching artist. Holding a Master of Fine Arts in Applied Drama and Theatre for the Young from Eastern Michigan University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Wayne State University, she's also undergone advanced actor training at the Moscow Art Theatre School. With a passion for education, Tayler teaches playmaking at Matrix Theatre Company and improv in Detroit Public Schools as part of the Detroit Creativity Project. She is also an Associate Artist with Limelight, contributing to the creation and performance of applied theatre works. Tayler has graced stages across Michigan, with companies like A Host of People, Shakespeare Royal Oak, Obsidian Theatre Festival, Black and Brown Theatre, Theatre Nova, Detroit Repertory Theatre, Planet Ant, and Shakespeare in Detroit. Tayler's advocacy for the transformative power of arts education has even landed her on Good Morning America.

JULIANA GONZALEZ

Julianna Gonzalez is a playwright and theatre-maker from Paterson, NJ with her BA in Drama from Vassar College. Since moving to Michigan in 2017, she has had the pleasure of working with several theatre companies including Black and Brown Theatre, Shakespeare Royal Oak, Ringwald Theatre, and of course Matrix Theatre. She is thrilled to have found such a collaborative and supportive creative community.

Director: Amy Johnson

Creating performance experiences is Amy’s wheel house. Most notably, she produced two devised shows for Eastern Michigan Univerity: A Head Full of Snakes, centering around myth and impact of Medusa and [Something Between], exploring the word, idea, and feelings regarding walls. Using original and existing texts, she has also developed, built, and directed several award willing Reader’s Theaters for competition at ARTa (American Reader’s Theater Association). In 2016 and 2017 with her coconspirator, Marisa Dluge, she built the immersive, space-based performance experience It(s) About Time. Amy also writes and performs as a founding company member and Associate Producer for the UnTheatre Company in Detroit that produces the show "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind”.