The Pickup's Culture coverage is brought to you by Tulsa Artists' Coalition Gallery, 40 Years of Empowering Tulsa Artists. Visit TAC Gallery to see American Highway Revisited by VC Torneden and Melinda Harvey Green, June 5 – 27, 2026.
Michael Wright is no stranger to experimental theatre. His work with The People Playhouse in New Orleans first sparked an interest in nontraditional performance, which later led to years of practice and international travel that introduced him to the work of artists like Viola Spolin, Jerzy Grotowski, and Richard Foreman. During his time in Tulsa, that experimental wind blew him to the Tulsa Artists’ Coalition Gallery, which for more than a decade has been the site of his own playful exploits, including a brand new piece premiering Friday and running through next weekend.
Experimental theatre can take different forms, and Wright’s repertoire at TAC has offered a feast of uniqueness through the years. In one of his shows, the audience played amateur detectives and were tasked with solving a fictional disappearance based on three stories they heard from actors and an evidence wall. Another year, the performance included a gallery of black and white photography as well as color photography of human faces depicting “emojis that don’t exist.” In another piece, Wright stewed apples during the performance and everyone got a warm snack at its conclusion.