Mixed Blood seeks actress to play late teen in its production of the dark comedy Distracted, directed by Jack Reuler. Auditions are Friday, June 20 by appointment. Call 612-338-7892 on 6/18 or 6/19, 2-4PM to schedule an audition, which will be a reading from the script.

Swearing Jack Productions…ever heard of ‘em? They’ve got a new show called Titus running right the eff now! So we thought we’d catch Artistic Director Natalie Novacek for this week’s FringeFamous Five. Enjoy!

For those who are unfamiliar, where did Swearing Jack come from (the name/the company/the whole shebang)?

NATALIE NOVACEK: Swearing Jack was started in 2004 in Fargo, ND by Natalie Novacek & Megan West. The two recognized a lack of opportunities for ladies in the arts and wanted to create exciting, risky, and challenging opportunities for female artists. The name is from Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. Kate calls Petruchio a “mad-cup ruffian and a swearing jack”. It’s derogatory name for a man. Swearing Jack moved to Minneapolis in 2007.

Part of Swearing Jack’s mission statement is to “denounce the boundaries and limitations placed by society and individuals between artistic endeavors”. What are some examples of these boundaries and limitations?

NN: Swearing Jack perceives there to be extensive compartmentalization in the arts; between specialties, genres, and mediums. It is our hope to create collaboration and communication between the forms, visions, and people in order to create a wholly artistic experience for both the artists and the audience. We want to move away from a label of “theatre” or “theatre company” and create live, theatrical events; entertainment for an audience using many disciplines. At Swearing Jack, we seek to remove labels and return to creation rather than explanation.

Has Swearing Jack run into any specific challenges that you feel might be unique to a feminist company?

NN: One of the largest challenges of running a feminist company can to be justify the participation of men on stage, in production, and as management. Swearing Jack believes strongly that men can be feminists too and we hope to include that energy and presence in our events.

Your current show, Titus, is being performed in a parking lot? How does that work?

NN: There is fire performance included in the production. Because of this, we felt that an outdoor venue would be ideal. We wanted a dirtier, industrial feel for Titus. We’ve chalked out a seating area in the parking lot and defined the playing space. Having an audience on the ground near the actors is very similar to how performance spaces were set up for the public during Shakespeare’s time. We wanted to return to that immediate and communal relationship to our audience. The parking lot provided all of these aspects that were very important to us.

What’s on the horizon for Swearing Jack, that most excites you?

NN: In October, we will be holding our 2nd annual themed fashion show. This event highlights local fashion designers and makeup artists. Last year’s was really exciting — zombie models and avant-garde fashion. This year promises to be bigger and better! This year we are mixing machinery and material; robot models and high fashion.

Natalie Novacek is the Artistic Director of Swearing Jack Productions. She is also a freelance director who has worked locally with Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Nautilus Music-Theater, Theatre Unbound, Theatre Limina, and the Eden Prairie Players. She is the Artistic Producing Associate of Theatre Pro Rata and a Core Artistic Company Member of 20% Theatre Company Twin Cities. Natalie was a Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival National Selection Team Directing Fellow and her production of Never Swim Alone by Daniel MacIvor was an invited production at the National XXXVII KC/ACTF.