And the rest, as they say, is history. It would be an understatement to claim that WET -whose main office and theater is on Capitol Hill - has made a big splash since its inaugural season in 2004. With a rare combination of talent, passion and adherence to a mission of producing daring new work by young, up-and-coming playwrights, the ensemble has changed the face of fringe theater in Seattle.
CONTINUING SUCCESS
Marya Sea Kaminski is one of WET's founding members, and the only person from that original group of five still with the organization. In a sense, that fact is one sign of the ensemble's continuing success; many of WET's members have branched out, seeking their fortunes in places like New York.
"I'm very proud," Kaminski said of her cohorts' moving on to other venues. She mentions the success of co-founder Lathrop Walker, a talented actor and artistic designer who is seeking his fortunes in the Big Apple.
"Looking back, my heart stops beating," Kaminski said of WET's evolution from startup ensemble to an established presence in the city's fringe-theater scene. "It has been such an adventure."
She said she hopes "that we've helped influence the city in terms of young people making art." Kaminski notes that, when WET first started, there were some 60 ensemble companies around town; by her on-line count the other day, there are now about 280.
"We didn't know that we weren't supposed to know how to do it," Kaminski said.
It would be a mistake, however, to think the ensemble during its early years was completely wet behind the years. For instance, Kaminski herself has written and acted in more than 20 original solo shows, and she has performed in such far-ranging locations as New York, Philadelphia, Montana and Edinburgh.
She has appeared locally at the Seattle Rep, Intiman Theatre and On the Boards and directed the Northwest premiere of Adam Rapp's "Finer Noble Gases."
Currently, she is teaching acting at Cornish College, Eastside Preparatory Academy and Freehold Studios.
Perhaps one of her most challenging projects came earlier this year when she starred in the Seattle Rep's production of "I Am Rachel Corrie," the one-woman show based on the life and writings of the 23-year-old Olympia native who was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in March 2003 while trying to protect the home of a Palestinian family.
She said she believes the show had a strong effect on audiences: "It did what theater should do. As Americans, we feel so impotent that we don't get to see someone care that much."
A WET lawsuit
Such artistic challenges, however, likely appear welcome in the face of a new and unexpected challenge currently confronting WET.
Last year, Washington Ensemble Theatre received an official letter, dated Dec. 4, 2006, from the New York-based law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett threatening legal action if the company failed to "cease and desist" in its use of the "WET" acronym.
The notice was filed on behalf of one Women's Expressive Theater, a "company founded in 1999 and designed to produce media that transcend female stereotypes and advocate for equality." According to the letter, WET's use of "WET" is likely to "infringe on our client's valuable intellectual copyright and create confusion in the marketplace as to whether these two groups are affiliated."
Washington Ensemble Theatre was given 10 days from the date of initial notice to stop calling itself WET; to date, that hasn't happened. A subsequent letter from the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati notes that Seattle's WET has offered to refrain from using the acronym in its web address or in any materials that do not also include the full name of Washington Ensemble Theatre. Nonetheless, the New York company appears to demand nothing short of a complete erasure of the acronym in anything having to do with the ensemble.
And further certified letters apparently have pushed the matter toward the precipice of litigation. A Sept. 6 letter to "WashEn," as the lawyers are calling it, included a draft of the to-be-filed complaint by Women's Expressive Theater.
"This is a distressing situation," Kaminski said of the wrangle over the acronym, "but we are hopeful that we will still be able to come to an amicable solution."
She notes that, locally, "the support and outcry from the community has been overwhelming."
COMMITMENT TO PROJECTS
Aside from this legal obstacle, Kaminski appears to be excited about the continued evolution of the company.
"There's a number of things on the horizon," she said, including an upcoming production of "blahblahblahBANG," a re-envisioning of Ibsen's "Hedda Gabler" that has been commissioned by On the Boards.
WET is, in turn, commissioning a new play by Paul Mullin, "The American Book of the Dead," which will open at Empty Space Theater next spring.
Kaminski said WET is also planning a new work to premiere during the next presidential election - a move that is similar to the company's production of "Laura's Bush," a political satire that ran around the time of Bush's re-election.
Kaminski said the crew at WET is "starting to be adults about" their status as a real, active theater - another sign of the company's continuing growth.
"Now, we kind of have a process for it," she said about WET's continued development of new work. "I feel like what we're doing this season as kind of a prototype. Everyone is so freaking committed; I think most of us are in it for the long haul."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
One of the questions facing WET right now, Kaminski explained, is figuring out the company's role in the broader context of the local theater scene - as she puts it, making WET's mission "clearer and clearer."
It's clear to Kaminski that local theater is undergoing a serious and often troubling transformation, as funding sources dry up and a number of theaters have been forced to close shop.
In such an environment, Kaminski said, staying vital and fresh becomes more important than ever. "We've talked a lot about sustainability," she said of her cohorts. "We don't want to get bigger. I don't think we care to move out of that house until we're bursting at the seams."
There is the possibility in the future, Kaminski said, of WET taking their show on the road. For now, however, the company's feet are planted firmly in Capitol Hill: "Who knows what's going to become of theater around here," she added. "We've been able to sustain and build an audience. I feel really blessed."
