Theatre Louisiane has received critical acclaim for highly diverse artist-centered performances that range from progressive, revisionist versions of the classics, to cutting edge plays, to organic original projects. New pieces are written and developed by our group’s artists. We also use the work of playwrights who are Theatre Louisiane artists, or that of existing playwrights (typically those playwrights whose work is considered 'classic' or, at least, soon-to-be-'classic'). We prefer non-traditional projects and the pushing of boundaries. We are committed to bringing accessible, affordable, high-quality artistic presentation to South Louisiana and beyond. A key part of our mission is to offer work that is not typically done in this region so that audiences can experience this work despite their financial or social status. We are by Louisianians. And ultimately we are for Louisianians.

Theatre Louisiane operates as a collective; a laboratory of allied individuals we call "resident artists" who pool resources (venue, publicity, staff) to create our body of work. Our artists are residents in our group as in the European style, not contracted-by-project as in the American style. We use a method of long-term creative development to enhance our artistic results. We emphasize the collaborative and the experimental, and we explore the creation of visionary, vibrant art that includes fringe work.

Theatre Louisiane is not a building or a venue: we don't rent space to others. In fact, we don't even operate out of a regular building: we rent spaces from arts presenters. We aren’t a business, an established production company, or an institution that has plenty of resources. We're also not a community theatre company: we're comprised of professional artists. We sometimes cannot pay ourselves for our work: one of our major objectives is to one day pay our artists a living wage, so that dedicated artists can live in Louisiana and still continue to pursue their art. We don't promise to sustain the conditions and pay required by Actors’ Equity or any other professional union, despite our great efforts to create that kind of environment. Being artists is our vocation: we ARE of a professional focus, committed to actively building a vibrant collective, and are aware that while Theatre Louisiane strives for professional levels in all that it does, it will continue to be in the process of pursuing those levels.

Theatre Louisiane has performed in a variety of spaces throughout the New Orleans area, including two traditional theatre spaces, a warehouse, a restaurant, galleries, multi-arts spaces, and a nightclub. We’ve performed at the New Orleans Dramarama Festival five times, and we've been funded before by the Jazz & Heritage Foundation of New Orleans. We’re now pursuing touring engagements, with recent appearances at McNeese University Theatre, the Montréal Fringe Festival, and Goddard College in Vermont. Theatre Louisiane Professionnel, Inc. was founded in 1999 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was incorporated as a non-profit, private professional arts organization in the Great State of Louisiana in 2001.

Contacting Us

You're welcome to contact the artists of Theatre Louisiane at any time. We're very nice people. We'll get back with you as soon as time allows. Over the years we've found that 9 out of 10 site visitor questions are answered on this website, so please: avoid filling up our email box by first reading our website with rapt attention and heaving bosoms. Because despite being very nice people, we may have to ignore your inquiry because it’s answered prominently on our website and therefore constitutes a dumb question. We can't justify responding to you if you've ignored the info here, so nanny-nanny-boo-boo.

Why would you contact us? There are three reasons, and they are listed right here. All other questions are already answered in the About Us section above, or in our past work descriptions or artist bios. All of which you read previously, right? Right??

Q: “What are you doing next?!”

A: If we have anything scheduled, a description of what we're working on next is always posted here! All project information is always subject to change. Please regularly check our website for updates.

Q: “I want Theatre Louisiane to perform at my space!"

A: We have a serious interest in performing in various spaces regionally, nationally, and internationally, and we have developed formal booking policies that we would be happy to share with your space. Our performances are versatile, affordable, and accommodating to the needs of the situation. We are also very compact and self-sufficient in any space that we bring work to; it is guaranteed that you will have a highly pleasant and professional experience if you choose to bring us in. Please do contact us (see Info Below) if you are interested in booking one of our performances for your space!

Q: “I want to join Theatre Louisiane so bad it hurts!”

A: So you want to be the next Ariane Mnouchkine? Okay, we respect that. However, we aren’t actively seeking artists because our limited production schedule really only requires a certain number of participants. Not to mention that Theatre Louisiane went partially dormant after the hurricanes of 2005 because several key artists had no choice but to move from the city. So we won’t ignore you, but we may not have a place for you at the moment. If you are definitely still thinking this will rock your world, begin by reading through Theatre Louisiane’s project history on this website. Then: come to a show. If you know and understand our work, we’ll be more likely to take you seriously.

Personnel begin their work with us as associate artists, and then can quickly move up into a resident artist position (explained further at the time of application). Hours are highly flexible. Pay cannot be guaranteed, but a good show can help. Our group is interested in those with training in stage performance, installation art, dance art, choreography, theatre design, all mediums of visual art, literature, and musicians. If you’re an artist, you’ve met the first requirement. We give preference to those who are open to multi-disciplinary arts projects/events, and collaborative approaches to work. Our artists are expected to be versatile and willing to participate in multiple ways in the organization. (Just to clarify: we’ve never accepted freelance theatre artists or unsolicited stage scripts from playwrights. Our style of working as a collective doesn’t have a place for those.)

We also oversee an exclusive apprenticeship program for those with little or no artistic experience and a desire to learn about professional art intensively. This program is free of charge to accepted applicants, and starts with designing a structured plan based on the goals of the apprentice. The apprentice then works part-time with a resident artist who serves as their mentor. Apprentices are awarded a certificate on completion of the program (and can receive credit from any scholastic institution pending approval of that school; apprenticeships can be non-academic also). The program provides a unique and valuable opportunity to receive hands-on professional experience at no cost.

So ... contact us (see Info Below) with these circumstances in mind.

Info Below

in person: the FINEST way to contact us is live in person! Come to one of our shows and approach one of our friendly artists after the performance. It’s nice to answer questions in person. And it’s nice to have people come to shows. [Our rehearsal space(s) and private offices, primarily located in Uptown New Orleans, aren’t open to the public. We don't own a theatre space so we perform at various spaces all over the planet. Come to a show. What are you, chicken?]

electronic mail: our address is zzzartists AT theatrelouisiane.com (remove the zzz's), and it's a decent secondary means of contact. But dumb questions aren't permitted. And if you must email a document to us, it has to be included in the text of the email, not as an attachment. We delete attachments, unread.

phone: we never found an affordable voice mail box. Come to a show, or email us without attachments. And no, we don't answer dumb questions.

snail mail: we don't do that anymore. Get yer but to a show, or email us without attachments. No dumb questions, we beg you.

Love and other indoor sports,

Theatre Louisiane

xxooo

This site is maintained in-house by the Theatre Louisiane staff.  The Foole-de-Lis logo is the property of Theatre Louisiane: all rights reserved. You may not use it, ever. We kill you if you do. All photographic images used on this website are also the property of Theatre Louisiane and may not be used without consent.

This site is property of Theatre Louisiane, Inc. The term "site" includes all associated pages found under the domain of theatrelouisiane.com and all content therein. Linked pages outside of the theatrelouisiane.com domain do not apply, and Theatre Louisiane, Inc. is not responsible for the content of any linked pages.