Tony Awards group releases a movie about Philly’s funny ‘This Is The Week That Is’
The American Theatre Wing released a documentary Friday that follows the history of Philly's year-end satire tradition.
This Is the Week That Is, the home-grown Philly stage satire of the year’s craziest news stories, has now been immortalized in film.
On Friday, the American Theatre Wing – the organization that created and sponsors the Tony Awards – released the documentary Conceived in Satire – The Making of This Is the Week That Is. Commissioned by the ATW, the 20-minute film follows TITWTS from its 2006 inception at 1812 Productions to the present.
The documentary, viewable on the 1812 Productions website, now joins the ATW’s permanent archive as part of its “In the Field” series, which follows the creation and performance of noteworthy stage works. Other documentaries in the series have spotlighted recent Broadway revivals of Children of a Lesser God and Once on This Island, a Bedlam Theatre Company adaptation of Sense and Sensibility, and the career of Cicely Tyson.
This Is the Week That Is is a Philly institution. The 1812 Theatre Company, located at Plays & Players Theatre, puts on the show (named after BBC’s That Was the Week That Was) at the end of each year, lampooning big moments in politics and the news with musical parodies, skits, and assorted mayhem. Each night the script is different, with a great deal of cast improvisation.
In a statement, Jennifer Childs, producing artistic director at 1812, said, “I am so grateful to the many people who have worked on this show over the years and helped make it the institution it is."
The documentary was made by Philly film company Capture, led by Jorge Cousineau, a familiar name in lightning and set design from many Philly stage projects, including This Is the Week That Is.
TITWTI next takes the stage Nov. 29 (through Jan. 5, 2020).