Undermain theatre

The Undermain Theatre is an 80-seat regional theater, home to the professional theater company, Deep Ellum Theatre Group, is located in Deep Ellum, Dallas, Texas. Deriving its name from the actual location of the basement space “under Main Street”, this ensemble group of theatre artists perform new and experimental works throughout Dallas, New York, and Europe and have become known for producing many contemporary writers.

Undermain Theatre History

In the fall of 1983, Katherine Owens and Raphael Parry arrived in Dallas. Both were interested in presenting new and experimental material with an ensemble company in the Deep Ellum area. They began producing together at Stage Number One's Greenville Avenue Theater, in association with Dallas Actor’s Theater, on a triple bill of "Action", "Killer’s Head" and "Icarus's Mother" by Sam Shepard. In early 1984 they found the vacant basement space of the now historical Interstate Forwarding Company building on 3200 Main Street. By the spring of 1984, they had their first production, "Excavations: Killer’s Head, Twirler, Waking Up", in the Main Street space.

"Excavations" was part of a Gallery Walk event and was presented in a promenade style due to the lack of seating in their basement/theater space. This show was a series of one-acts that both Ms Owens and Mr. Parry directed and performed in. By the end of their first season they were on their way to building their ensemble. In April 1985, Bruce DuBose joined the cast of Dario Fo’s "Can’t Pay/Won’t Pay", beginning a long time relationship that would eventually take Mr. DuBose to the position of Executive Producer of Undermain Theatre.

With each season, Undermain continued to thrive and grow. By its third season, the Dallas critics began to take notice and by the end of the 4th season, in the spring of 1987, Undermain flew in playwright John O’Keefe to develop his play, "All Night Long". In September of that year Undermain developed a relationship with Jeff Jones while producing "Seventy Scenes of Halloween". This friendship proved to be quite advantageous leading to Undermain’s long standing relationships with playwrights Len Jenkin, Mac Wellman, and Eric Ehn and the subsequent productions of "Poor Folks Pleasure", "Harm’s Way", "A Murder of Crows", and "The Red Plays", among other shows, establishing Undermain Theatre’s name among the language playwrights in New York City and around the country.

Travel

In 1995, Undermain Theatre traveled to the former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia to perform Goran Stefanvovski's "Sarajevo" in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the United Nations. Undermain also performed at the ancient Roman Theatre at Bittola and at the Ohrid Theater Festival. In 2000 the theater company traveled to New York City for the first time, producing three shows in NYC ("Coaticook" by Lenora Champagne, "Gold Into Mud" and "Swedish Tales of Woe" by Erik Ehn) as well as four shows in Dallas. In 2001 the company returned to the Balkans with a new work and performed at the DAH Teatar Anniversary Celebration in Belgrade, Yugoslavia.

The Building

This unique building, built in 1913 by B.D. Milam and E.C. Connor as the first US Customs warehouse in Dallas, is a six-story, Chicago-style building billed as absolutely fireproof with an exterior that was made with red and ironspot bricks and concrete. Jim and Michelle Herling, the owners of the building in the early 1980s, were patrons of the arts, already housing an art gallery on the first floor of the building, and were willing to allow both Ms. Owens and Mr. Parry to rent the entire basement floor at a very low price. From that, Ms. Owens and Mr. Parry transformed this warehouse basement located in the legendary Deep Ellum area of Dallas into a unique performance space that was to become the home of Undermain Theatre. In 1989 Undermain Properties bought the building on 3200 Main Street. It was adapted for residential use in 1991 by Graham Greene & RTHL to include 28 residential units, keeping both the theatre and the art galleries in their perspective places. The building became a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1991 and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. It is also a City of Dallas Landmark.

The Chairs

The 90-seat house at Undermain Theatre is also unique. These chairs, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, were originally housed in the Kalita Humphreys Theater. Obtained by the Undermain from the Dallas Theater Center in 1989, the seating was designed by [http://www.franklloydwright.org/index.cfm?section=content&action=taliesinarchitects Taliesin architects] , the firm that completed many of Frank Lloyd Wright’s projects after his death in 1959. Its design was based on a variety of ideas promoted by Wright himself and by Paul Baker (Director of the Dallas Theater Center in 1957).