The Watermill Center hosts the second in a series of conversations surrounding the publication of The Watermill Center - A Laboratory For Performance: Robert Wilson's Legacy on Thursday, January 26 at 6:30 p.m. Watermill: The Science Behind Making Art, will focus on the uncanny history of The Watermill Center—once a Western Union research facility for communications technology and now Robert Wilson's laboratory for performance. The evening will include a conversation between José Enrique Macián, general editor of the The Watermill book and Ann Lombardo, the current Board President of the Water Mill Museum. Images of the Western Union building, provided by the Museum, will be on display and an 18-minute film ("Watermill 1993") by Stefan Kurt will be shown, with never-before seen footage of The Watermill Center in the summer of 1993.

About José Enrique Macián

José Enrique Macián is a Spanish-American writer, dramaturg, translator, and former Fulbright Fellow. He graduated from Brown University with degrees in theater and writing. Since 2008, he lives and works in Berlin. Since 2010, he has been a board member of The International Heiner Müller Society. In the theater, Macián has collaborated most closely with directors Dimiter Gotscheff and Robert Wilson. He was general editor of the compendium The Watermill Center – A Laboratory for Performance: Robert Wilson’s Legacy (DACO-VERLAG, 2011). Currently, he is translating the newest book of German theorist Hans-Thies Lehmann into English. José’s scholarly and literary writing has been published in both English and in German translation. In autumn 2012, he will begin reading for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Sussex.

About Ann Lombardo

Ann Lombardo is the current Board President of the Water Mill Museum at 41 Old Mill Road in Water Mill. In her volunteer role as president, Ann acts as the museum director, overseeing initiatives in restoration, operations, management and programming. The museum has been run by volunteers for over 40 years. Prior to that, the building has been used for various purposes-all of which are on exhibit at the museum, which is open from May through October. Ann has a background in art and communications, sales and PR, and resides in Water Mill with her husband, photographer Anthony Lombardo.

About Stefan Kurt

Stefan Kurt is a Swiss-born theater and film actor, graphic artist, and sound artist based in Berlin. Kurt has worked with Robert Wilson for over two decades, performing in such productions as The Black Rider (1990), Alice (1992), Time Rocker (1997), Leonce and Lena (2003), and Three Penny Opera (2007).