Peter Alzado co-directs and stars in Ashland Contemporary Theatre’s production of John Logan’s “Red,” playing March 26 through April 3 at the Ashland Community Center. Alzado (who served as artistic director of Ashland’s Oregon Stage Works for seven years and Talent’s Actors’ Theatre for another seven) is a brilliant actor. I saw “Red” on opening night. Alzado as Mark Rothko, the abstract expressionist painter, and Reece Bredl, as his assistant and artistic foil, deliver a dynamic two-man tour-de-force.

EH: I saw you in “Portlandia.”

PA: I think more people saw what I did in “Portlandia” than saw all of the work that I did here for 15 or 16 years.

EH: Tell me about “RED.”

PA: Rothko and his assistant are involved in working on the Seagram murals. As they work on them, there is an uncovering of secrets and also an uncovering of Rothko’s art and its relationship to the world. It is all about the work. Continue reading ‘Red’ dives deep into Rothko’s color fields →