A MESSAGE FROM DAVID & KAREN
This March will mark the fifth anniversary of The Salon.
Many of the talented theatremakers who regularly join The Salon have been with us from the beginning, when we were a scrappy but determined group meeting in random spaces around Nashville, Tennessee. Many more joined during the pandemic, when we moved the program online and expanded our reach internationally. And still more joined as the world reopened and in-person theatre began to rediscover its groove.
Throughout our 150 sessions of the Salon, these artists have lifted our spirits, made us think more critically about storytelling and its place in the world, and become our friends and trusted collaborators. Put simply, they've made our hearts happy. And though we’ve derived great joy in carving out this space for play development and seeing the new assortment of faces each session, we feel a need to tend to other creative pursuits. For this reason, we have made the difficult decision to put an indefinite pause on the Salon.
Our final three Salons will be February 5, February 19, and March 4.
This doesn’t mean that we’re done with play development or collaborating with our beloved Salon family. It just means an end to The Salon as it currently exists. In case you hadn’t noticed, we get a kick out of developing new work.
​
There's more to come in the Pipeline. Watch this space.
HOW WE GOT HERE
The Salon is a one-of-a-kind gathering of playwrights, directors, and performers that helps to shape theatrical works-in-progress.
​
Curated by Pipeline-Collective’s Producing Artistic Directors David Ian Lee and Karen Sternberg, The Salon supports the development of new work and international artists, as part of Pipeline-Collective’s mission to empower theatremakers to tell their stories. Each three-hour session is designed to not only benefit playwrights, but to bring together collaborators in a crucible of time and creativity, exploring new relationships and furthering the development of new, visceral theatrical work.
At The Salon, playwrights maintain the momentum of their writing and hear pages aloud at regular intervals – a critical component of new play development – while directors and actors work “on their feet,” investigating new texts and partnerships in a model more accommodating than the constraints of an audition or the product-based needs of a rehearsal hall.
​
Launched in-person in February 2019, The Salon shifted to an online format in March 2020. Now, The Salon features theatremakers from around the world. Works created at The Salon have seen further development and production regionally and internationally, and The Salon has been recognized at national theatre conferences.
​
The Salon is a free program and is welcoming of artists from all backgrounds.