"A strange loop arises when, by moving up or down through a hierarchical system, one finds oneself back where one started. Strange loops may involve self-reference and paradox. A tangled hierarchy is a hierarchical system in which a strange loop appears."-Wikipedia
A tangled hierarchy is an appropriate way to describe Strangeloop Theatre. Strangeloop Theatre has established itself as an artistic entity with a lack of clear hierarchical structure. There is no artistic director as in most theatre companies. We have instead opted for a conciliar model with an administrative board of eight people (an unthinkable size for most young theatre companies!), and artistic decisions are made by the company as a whole. Our name, Strangeloop Theatre, was decided upon as the result of a very large and very long meeting with the artistic members of the company (plus lots of drinking).
The acting members of the administrative board are Letitia Guillaud, Bradley Gunter, Nathan Hart, Martin Monahan, Thomas Murray, Jillian Rafa, Danni Smith, Dustin Spence. The administrative board meets once a month to discuss the intense business of running a theatre company.
Another point worth mentioning, a strange loop by its very nature is self-referential. By happenstance all of Strangeloop Theatre's artistic endeavors have included an element of the meta-theatrical. Our meta-theatrics, a play making reference to itself and calling attention to the instrument of theatre during the act of putting on a play, are often utilized in the person of a narrator. Come see The Millionaire Farmer for our most thorough use of a narrator yet! Meta-theatre can also be attained through the use of a very stylized theatre (Welcome to the Moon and other plays by John Patrick Shanley) or the direct address of the audience (New Works Workshop specifically "L Stories").
Strangeloop Theatre, true to its tangled hierarchy, has not yet made this a conscious choice in our theatrical endeavors. To see if the trend continues you will just have to stay tuned!
