SITI Company

SITI Company
Name	SITI Company
Founded	1992
Founders	Anne Bogart; Tadashi Suzuki (artistic collaborator)
Location	New York City
Genre	Theatre; experimental theatre; ensemble theatre
Notable works	The Chairs; The Trojan Women; Hotel Cassiopeia; A Midsummer Night's Dream

SITI Company SITI Company is an American ensemble theatre company founded in 1992 in New York City by director Anne Bogart with artistic collaboration from theatre artist Tadashi Suzuki. The troupe is known for combining techniques drawn from the Suzuki Company of Toga training, Viewpoints practice associated with Mary Overlie and Anne Bogart, and ensemble-based creation influenced by companies such as Bread and Puppet Theater, The Wooster Group, and Complicité. SITI has produced staged adaptations of canonical works and new plays while touring extensively across venues like Lincoln Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and international festivals including the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Avignon Festival.

History

SITI Company began when Anne Bogart and colleagues originally trained in Suzuki methods and American improvisational structures sought to formalize an ensemble in New York City. Early seasons included collaborations with artists from Japan and projects referencing dramaturgy linked to Euripides, Samuel Beckett, and Anton Chekhov. During the 1990s and 2000s SITI established links to institutions including Yale School of Drama, Columbia University, New York University, and guest residencies at Princeton University. SITI's history intersects with movements in contemporary theatre led by figures such as Richard Foreman, Robert Wilson, and ensembles like The Wooster Group and Royal Shakespeare Company. The company received support from funders like the National Endowment for the Arts and participated in initiatives with theaters such as American Repertory Theater and Signature Theatre Company.

Productions

SITI's repertoire spans classical adaptations and original ensemble works. Notable productions include a staging of Euripides' The Trojan Women, an interpretation of Samuel Beckett's The Chairs, a reimagining of William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, and contemporary pieces like Hotel Cassiopeia. The company has mounted works by playwrights and adapters including Sarah Ruhl, Tony Kushner, Hélène Cixous, and directors influenced by Tadashi Suzuki, Anne Bogart, and collaborators from Complicité. SITI's production history features collaborations with designers and composers linked to companies such as Pilobolus, Wooster Group, and institutions like The New York Philharmonic for multidisciplinary projects. Touring schedules have taken productions to festivals like Spoleto Festival USA and venues including The Public Theater.

Artistic approach and repertoire

SITI's artistic approach synthesizes Suzuki training, Viewpoints practice, and ensemble composition, drawing lineage from practitioners such as Tadashi Suzuki, Mary Overlie, Suzuki Company of Toga, and choreographers like Pina Bausch. The ensemble emphasizes physical discipline inspired by Suzuki Method techniques, vocal work informed by traditions including Kabuki and contemporary voice pedagogy, and improvisational devising practices associated with Anne Bogart and Mary Overlie. Repertoire choices often engage texts by Euripides, Sophocles, William Shakespeare, Samuel Beckett, and modern playwrights like Caryl Churchill and Harold Pinter, as well as original ensemble-generated pieces. The company frequently integrates music, visual art, and movement, collaborating with artists from Merce Cunningham's circle, composers educated at Juilliard School, and visual designers with credits at Museum of Modern Art exhibitions.

Company structure and personnel

SITI operates as an ensemble theatre company with a core group of actors, directors, designers, and administrators. Leadership historically centered on Anne Bogart as artistic director alongside resident artists trained in Suzuki and Viewpoints. The ensemble has included performers and collaborators who studied at institutions such as Yale School of Drama, Juilliard School, Tisch School of the Arts, and Brown University. Key collaborators have included directors and designers affiliated with Brooklyn Academy of Music, dramaturgs linked to New Dramatists, and composers connected to Lincoln Center. Administrative functions were supported through partnerships with producing organizations like The Public Theater and grant programs from foundations such as the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Tours and residencies

SITI has toured extensively across North America, Europe, and Asia, performing at centers including Lincoln Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Avignon Festival, and Spoleto Festival USA. International residencies and workshops have taken place at institutions such as Shizuoka Performing Arts Center, Gate Theatre (Dublin), and university programs at Princeton University and Columbia University. The company engaged in exchange programs with ensembles like Suzuki Company of Toga and participated in cultural festivals organized by governments and arts councils including those of France, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

Reception and impact

Critical reception of SITI has ranged from praise for physical rigor and ensemble clarity by critics writing in outlets covering The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Village Voice, to critique from commentators aligned with postdramatic and fringe aesthetics. Scholars in theatre studies at institutions like Harvard University, New York University, and University of California, Berkeley have analyzed SITI's methods in relation to pedagogies from Tadashi Suzuki and Mary Overlie. The company's influence is evident in the adoption of Viewpoints and Suzuki-based training in conservatories and ensemble projects internationally, affecting programs at Juilliard School, Yale School of Drama, Carnegie Mellon University, and regional theaters such as Steppenwolf Theatre Company. SITI alumni have gone on to work with companies including Lincoln Center Theater, Royal Shakespeare Company, and National Theatre.

Category:Theatre companies in New York City