Mind-bending: Elmhurst native stages David Byrne’s ‘Theater of the Mind’
Theater artist Andrew Scoville has his father to thank for his collaboration with David Byrne, the acclaimed multidisciplinary artist whose show “Theater of the Mind” is in previews in Chicago.
The Elmhurst native directs the immersive theater project by the Talking Heads co-founder and writer Mala Gaonkar, opening next week at Chicago’s Reid Murdoch Building, in collaboration with Goodman Theatre.
Scoville was a child when his musician dad introduced him to Talking Heads, the influential new wave band founded in 1975 by songwriter, frontman and guitarist Byrne, bassist Tina Weymouth, drummer Chris Frantz and guitarist/keyboardist Jerry Harrison.
Scoville was hooked.
He saw the band’s groundbreaking concert film “Stop Making Sense” for the first time as a New York University undergraduate. He also attended Byrne’s New York City gallery shows and art installations.
Scoville met Byrne when he was serving as associate director to Alex Timbers, who helmed “Here Lies Love,” Byrne and Fatboy Slim’s musical about the Philippines’ disgraced former first lady Imelda Marcos, which premiered off-Broadway in 2013.
Scoville credits Timbers with teaching him how to stage large-scale, immersive productions. So, when Byrne spoke to Scoville a few years later about creating an immersive project rooted in theater and neuroscience, Scoville was prepared and intrigued. The York High School graduate has long been interested in creating work that combines theater, art and science.
The show, which Scoville describes as “the story of a life lived backward” that “challenges our perception of reality,” percolated for several years until the Denver Center for the Performing Arts expressed interest. Scheduled for the 2020 season, “Theater of the Mind” was delayed two years by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There have been stops and starts, but it’s been a consistent process,” said Scoville, who started out as an actor, but gravitated toward directing at NYU.
Ultimately, it’s collaboration that inspires and energizes him.
“What I’m here to do is guide (fellow theater artists) and bring out everybody’s best work,” he said, adding, “to bring out everybody’s best work is to make them feel valued.”
Scoville’s job is to figure out his colleagues’ superpowers and encourage them.
“I’m just trying to facilitate people doing their best work … so everyone can be proud of what we created,” he said.
Working with Byrne and the all-Chicago cast has been a joy.
“David is one of the most collaborative and curious people I’ve ever worked with,” said Scoville, who praises his Chicago colleagues.
“The actors here in Chicago are so thoughtful, so talented,” he said. “I’ve been having a lot of fun with this entire group.”
As for the impact of “Theater of the Mind,” Scoville hopes it will inspire “a shared sense of humanity, the ability to appreciate people around us and ways we can support each other.”
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“Theater of the Mind”
Showtimes: Starting at 6 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; 2 p.m. Wednesday; 5 p.m. Friday; noon Saturday; and 12:30 p.m. Sunday through May 31. Performances begin every 15 minutes and last about 75 minutes.
Where: Goodman Theatre at the Reid Murdoch Building, 333 N. LaSalle St., Chicago, (312) 443-3800, TheaterOfTheMindChicago.com
Tickets: $66-$96