NEXT ITERATION ENSEMBLE
Living, breathing , thought-provoking theatre
Houston, TX | Portland, ME



Photograhy by Pin Lim

 

Next Iteration Ensemble (NIE) was the brainchild of dianne k webb, Artistic Director and Director. After participating in the Houston theater scene for a few years, it became clear that there was a space that Next Iteration could fill as we set out to commit to produce underrepresented voices, whether playwrights, characters, actors with thought-provoking narratives through new devised work, contemporary plays, and the reworking of known works.

Several seasons later Next Iteration had produced 2 Biennial ReadFest's, 4 annual Intercultural Play Readings Series, created Next Iteration Presents (collaborative use of our theater rentals with other performance groups), Next Iteration Next Iteration Ensemble is a company steeped in thought-provoking work, questioning of the status quo, and imagining beyond the known. We are committed to thoughtful investigation in our devised work, through character, movement, and stories.

With our ensemble of actors, our commitment to our professional development and the development of the theater scene, our mission to bring underrepresented voices to the stage, and our practice of collaborating with others, Next Iteration Ensemble still has dreams. And we arecommitted to pursing them.
With you. Conversations (professional development for Houston's acting community), a worldwide premiere, a workshop production of Deb Margolin's Turquoise, and the workshop development of our first devised piece, Open Carry, It’s Loaded..

Next Iteration Ensemble is a company steeped in thought-provoking work, questioning of the status quo, and imagining beyond the known. We are committed to thoughtful investigation in our devised work, through character, movement, and stories.

With our ensemble of actors, our commitment to our professional development and the development of the theater scene, our mission to bring underrepresented voices to the stage, and our practice of collaborating with others, Next Iteration Ensemble still has dreams. And we arecommitted to pursing them.
With you.

At NIE we believe that theatre is action. It is dynamic, living, interactive, generative, creative. In theatre, what gets under the skin, what gnaws at the bones is the intimate storytelling, the breath, the voice, the body almost within reach enacting life—mine or yours, or someone else's to provoke, challenge assumptions, dare us to see more—to understand anew. In the space of the theater we are free to uncover, uncork, unveil, reveal all the nooks and crannies of our humanness.


"I am a story teller at heart... I do know a good story. I saw one presented last night by Next Iteration Ensemble. Deb Margolin weaves three remarkable tales in Turquoise. Dianne K. Webb deftly directs these stories with a tender touch....Good stories need to be told." —Gwen Flager, playwright

FROM TARA GAINES AND THE HOUSTON PRESS:

"One of those cool newbies on the block, Next IterationTheater Company, founded a year ago by theater director and visual artist Dianne K. Webb and writer and business consultant Tayyba Maya Kanwal, has taken it upon itself to give a very unusual theatrical gift to the city, an absolutely free, three-day play reading festival."

"With six plays, six theater companies, three nights and one venue, ReadFest will allow audiences to experience intriguing new and new-to-Houston theatrical works while maybe also giving them an introduction to some of the smaller and most innovative theater companies in town."

"ReadFest might also turn out to be the theatrical socialevent of the fall."

“ReadFest created the first forum ever in Houston where theatre professionals from various underground theatres arranged staged readings - which helped diverse playwrights develop their play.”- William R Duell, Houston Dramatists Guild


“I never before saw the idea of multiple, smaller theatre groups banding together under one umbrella like that of ReadFest. It really was inspiring to open up the program and see the names of up-andcoming and established small companies who are already well-respected in the community sharing the same stages under the ReadFest banner.” - Seán Patrick Judge, Actor (Houston: Black Lab, Catastrophic, Main Street)