2:22 Devising Lab

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Aradhana Tiwari invited a core group of actors to her home to discuss continuing the experimental work they had been doing in a less focused and more playful atmosphere. 2:22 stands for two hours and twenty two minutes of time spent bi-weekly exploring themes and topics that interest the artists, actors, dancers and musicians participating. As an example of a prompt she suggested a word as arbitrary as “stain.” A dance, scene, music or image could all be created using that prompt.

Five actors arrived and sat around the dining room table discussing theater and modern day divas. When the time was right we all went into the studio space which was a room perhaps 15 feet by 20 feet. I joined the actors in doing viewpoints which began simply with everyone walking the room in a grid pattern. As we progressed I became more aware of how the people around me were moving through the space. When we were asked as a group to form either a clump or a line, we began to think as a group. Imitation and repetition had me mimicking dancers moves and at times we all moved as a flock. Two people had never done this exercise before and I had only tried it once, but we all learned fast. The important thing was to get past the notion of right or wrong. What was important, was that the six people involved became an ensemble.

The second half of the evening was more challenging for me and it involved improvising scenes. The more people involved in a scene tended to make it harder to expand and explore the possibilities. What often resulted was an individual facing a crowd. The scenes that flourished when improvised were usually between two people. The number of scenarios explored was mind boggling. We became children, Navy Seals, criminals, campers, shamans… It was fun and playful but put me way outside my usual comfort zone. I am an observer, someone who takes time to quietly sketch. Thus initiating some conflict or dramatic interpersonal exchange isn’t what I am used to. I am certain that by interacting in the experience, I learned much that might not have been gained with a simple sketch.

2:22 is an ongoing theatrical experiment. If you are interested in experiencing the fun, contact Aradhana Tiwari at Play the Moment Productions. There is no cost and you will experience an evening of childlike playful creativity.

My Name is Rachel Corrie

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“My Name is Rachel Corrie” was presented by John DiDonna and Seth Kubersky and was an Empty Spaces Theater production. The play is part of The Dangerous Play Series. When I made my way inside Studio B of the Shakespeare Theater, I found Rebekah Lane, the star of the show, seated in the front row seat checking her iPhone. This was the first time I had seen her since rehearsals for “Project F.” The assistant director Alex Richmond was lying across the bed and I included her in the sketch thinking she must play a small roll in the play. I was wrong. Before the house was opened, Rebekah crawled under the covers and pulled the sheet up over her head as she sprawled out with hands and feet dangling awkwardly over the edges of the mattress. The room was a mess with books and clutter everywhere. The walls are covered with pictures of Rachel Corrie’s childhood idols like Picasso and Spiderman. Cinder blocks, sand and construction wire was haphazardly piled up against the back wall.

From the moment she woke up, the show was a non-stop high energy monologue. All the thoughts, reflections, silly girlish banter and growing mature convictions were taken directly from the writings and journals of Rachel Corrie. The opening act presents Rachel’s fun playful side as she talked of silly matters like going to clubs in slutty boots. She was a beautiful idyllic 22 year old who was a dreamer. Thanks to the International Solidarity Movement she ended up going to Palestine where she hoped she could make a difference by helping children in the region. Living in a Palestinian home she discovered a growing conviction that she had to help the people suffering around her. Change can happen in life suddenly.

In the end a bulldozer operated by an Israeli threatened to demolish the home of a pharmacist named Doctor Shamir. Rachel spoke of the Doctor often in her journal entries. This was a personal battle for her. Just as in Tienanmen Square she hoped to stop the demolition by acting as a human shield. The exact details of what followed varied depending on eye witness accounts. The bulldozer did not stop. She climbed up on the mound of dirt that was forced up in front of her and then she was sucked down under the bulldozer and rolled over. She died shortly after in a Palestinian Hospital.

I was impressed with Rebekah Lanes performance. Being able to internalize, memorize and perform the whole show alone was an amazing accomplishment. It took three directors to help find the humanity and reasoning behind everything Rachel did. She often had to balance conflicting directors notes to find her character. Director, Emily Killan had performed in 9 Parts of Desire which was another play that dealt with women who had to live in a violent world. She used the experiences and depth of those characters to help shape Rachel Corrie’s actions in this show.

The talk back, conducted by John DiDonna, following the play was just as enlightening as the play itself. Some people consider Rachel a martyr while others demonize her. Her memory was used by both sides in a violent struggle. The play tried to present her humanity. Anytime someone takes a stand with honesty and integrity, they open up a dialogue. One member of the audience felt the directors were tarnishing Rachel’s memory since they would not acknowledge her death as a murder. John countered that the case is still being tried and the only person who truly knows the truth is the bulldozer driver.

Another audience member felt that we are loosing intimacy in this world, yet we still have the need to gather together in a dark room and listen to controversial stories which force us to think. The only danger is when people no longer feel the need to have an open debate. We had listened to one girl’s view of a very complicated issue for an hour and a half. You might not agree with her convictions, but as long as people are willing to try and understand both sides of an issue then there is hope. Amy Richmond, the assistant director, admitted that because of her involvement in this production she went to a demonstration for the first time in her life. This play reminds us that we all have to find our strength and passion and use it for good. Do that with every single ounce of energy you have and you may awaken that passion in other people. Childhood ideals should never be ignored. This is an amazing lesson to learn from a quiet evening of theater.

Twelfth Night

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There was a free staged reading of Twelfth Night at the Shakespeare Theater (812 East Rollins Street.) There was an inspired twist to this performance which peaked my interest, the entire cast was male. In Shakespeare’s time this is how the show would have been cast. In the beginning there was surprised laughter and murmuring in the audience but then as the plot unfolded people settled in and the honest and unaffected performances helped suspend disbelief. It became obvious that Shakespeare wrote the play with an all male cast in mind. Many of the comedic moment became even funnier knowing a man would perform the part. The play is full of women disguised as men and men disguised as women. Thus the audience had to accept a man playing a woman disguised as a man. This sort of multi-layering was surprisingly simple and fun to follow. I highly respect the actors who played the female rolls. They played their parts with dignity and grace never pushing towards stereo typical flamboyant feminine performances.

“Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them. ” I have heard this quote before but never seen it played out to its full comic effect. The words were uttered by Malvoio, played by Eric Zicot, is pretentious, ambitious and very full of his own self worth. Merry makers play a trick on him by writing a love letter that Malvolio believes is written by Countess Olivia, played by Timothy Williams, whom he serves as a steward. As he recites these lines about his greatness, he is strutting before his Countess like a peacockwearing outlandish bright yellow socks, and everyone knows Olivia abhors yellow socks. This over the top performance was the funniest moment in the play.

After the the show there was a question and answer session with the cast. Again and again women in the audience complimented the actors for how well they played the women’s rolls. Michael Wanzie a pruducer, director and radio personality, noted how clever and funny the play was when performed soley by men. Added humor and heightened meaning comes to the play when performed by the male cast. It is as if Shakespeare is poking fun at the theatrical traditions of which he was a part. Romeo and Juliet will have a similar all male cast reading at the Shakespeare Theater on Sunday, March 13, 2011 at 7 p.m. Mark your new 2011 calenders, you don’t want to miss it!

Woolite

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Mona Washington the author in residence at the Kerouac House, hosted a reading of her one act play Woolite. Mona began as the narrator setting the scene. In a laundry room, a male character played by Dennis Neil, is doing a load of laundry when he stuffs something in his pocket. The female character played by Val Gamble enters. The couple flirts and cuddles affectionately. It becomes apparent that they are a loving married couple. As they hug, Val notices the bulge in her husbands pocket. She pulls out a pair of woman’s panties, not hers. What followed was a long argument in which she questions her husbands fidelity. She comes to realize she almost wished he had cheated on her since THIS could not be discussed with anyone. The play was laugh out loud funny at times. For instance she suddenly realized that he must have been a panty thief in college.

The question and answer session after the reading was just as outlandish and funny. As one member of the audience said, “Every rabbit has her habit.” During the argument, the husband counters with the fact that she is very loud in bed. Of course she was getting her freak on within the confines of the marrage while he was sniffing other women’s panties. How men and women vary in defining infidelity is explored with great comic effect.

There was a going away party for Mona with snacks and wine after the reading. Rachel Leona Kapitan told me a bit about the book she is working on. Scott Donald, one of the partners at Neon Forest, arrived after the reading and told me about how the gallery was doing. Mona and I discussed the possibility of working on a graphic novel together. The story centers around a young college art student who moves to Orlando and discovers the thriving quirky art scene. Who knows where this story might lead?

Carving Pumpkins

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I got an invite to attend the Stauton Spookerific Pumpkin Party 3 . I also got a nice note from actress Lindsey Cohen saying she hadn’t seen Terry or me for the longest time, and we should come to the party. Terry and I had just seen the movie “Social Network.” I pulled out my calender and we debated on where we should go next. We decided to head to the pumpkin carving party. We stumbled around in the dark for a bit searching for the house. When we walked in, everyone was on the floor stabbing pumpkins. There was plenty of frenetic activity as pumpkin guts were scooped out and thrown into the trash can. I had told Terry I didn’t need to sketch at the party, but I couldn’t resist.

I stood in the kitchen with a nice counter to rest my art supplies on. Meggin Stailey, an wonderful comedic actress walked into the kitchen with a bowl of freshly gutted pumpkin seeds. She spread the seeds out on a cookie sheet and then reached up into a cupboard. A spice container leaped out at her and landed on the cookie sheet sending seeds trampolining all around the room with a crash. She apologized, but I had not been struck by any of the projectiles. She then rubbed down the stove top quickly. Her frenetic energy was endearing. I first saw Megin perform in a REP production where she played a demure woman focused on reading her book, while Brandon Roberts played a waiter who was constantly trying to win her attention. She remained oblivious. It was delightfully funny. I also saw her perform in Crimes of the Heart where she played the sister trying to keep some normalcy in a dysfunctional family.

Brandon was gutting a truly ugly green pumpkin with warts. Before he finished carving it he announced to everyone that he wasn’t feeling well and he needed to lie down. After Terry and I left the party, I found out Brandon had to be taken to the emergency room by Patrick Braillard and Melissa Mason. Brandon suspected he had a kidney stone. They waited in the ER till 1am. He finally got out of the hospital gown since the pain had passed. Shivering in the ER must have cured him since he had to pay a $150 co-pay.

Project F Projections

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At the last minute on a Sunday I got a Text Message saying I should come out to a Project F rehearsal because something new was in the works. I jumped in my car and drove way out to Bithlo where several actors, Ryan Price and Aradhana Tiwari were gathered. When I entered there was chocolate cake and red wine on the table. Aradhana’s lovebird was flying about the place perching on peoples shoulders on occasion to say hello. I got myself some cake and opted to get a coke instead of a wine. From the dining room table where everyone was seated I could see a blue glow coming from the next room. Aradhana disappeared into that room and I heard her talking to Ryan. I grabbed my cake, soda and then a pillow I found in the hallway and went into the empty room. A digital projector was set up along with a laptop computer. Ryan had set up a cool way of projecting video where the actors image is sent through filters and processors which distort and create halo effects.
Becky Rankin was the first actress to try out the new imaging effect. She sat in front of the computer and acted like she was typing. The video effects distorted her image making intriguing imagery. Whenever she would move the negative space she had just occupied showed a Facebook page in a stuttered digital effect which resembled stop motion animation. Soon Ryan and Aradhana were experimenting with different ways to alter the imagery by waving such items as gauze clear plastics and the ultimate find an old doily. These items when waved in front of the camera lens would set a color tone over the image and add intriguing patterns and distortions. Whe the recorded video was played back on the wall, everyone would whisper, “Ooooh, Ahhhh!”. Just as if they were watching fireworks. The process was fun experimental and fully interactive.
Soon Aradhana had the actors waking in front of the projector creating a viewpointing session like no other where the final result made the actors look like they were surrounded by a blue halo. If an actor stopped moving they would disappear from view and then they would reappear when they moved again. The final effect was ghostly and mesmerizing to watch.
Another filter was tried which pixelated the actors image to the point of barely being recognizable. Again Becky was the first to try out the technology. She sat and acted as if she were working at her computer screen. Ryan and I experimented with lighting and settled on using the projector lighting up the wall as a light source that he then kept moving to alter the image. What was really nice about these images is the fact that the Facebook blue was the primary color in the scene. It was a joy to be a part of this playful afternoon of play and discovery. The actors were giddy with delight when they saw the unexpected final video results. Chelsea Anderson had to use the bathroom. When she returned the light from the open bathroom door created an amazingly clear image on the computer screen. Aradhana asked her to enter the room again leaving the door open when she did. She then sat down at the computer screen and a fabulous scene was created all because of a chance combination of factors that bought the image to life. Such moments of pure serendipity are a spark of pure genius because everyone was open and ready for any new discovery. Project F is truly a cutting edge production.

Tomorrow Thor will sketch DRIP musician auditions at 4502 Old Winter Garden Road Suite E2 between 10AM and 10PM.

Play in a Day – Showtime!

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After a solid day of rehearsing, Beth Marshall called all the writers, actors and directors into the Margeson Theater for a last minute prep talk. Everyone had worked hard all day to to get these six productions up and running. Lindsay Cohen had written a piece about high school girls getting locked in a bathroom during a high school prom. In this piece, Sarah Lockhard played a drugged out youth and she was hilarious. She spun on the floor and used toilet paper to play a game of “He Loves Me, He Loves Me not.” At one point, she put her ear to the floor on one of the colorful circles and started pounding her fist, screaming “Get us out of here!” My favorite line of all the shows was screamed out by Sarah, “ROYGBIV your a beautiful freaking genius!” This was particularly funny because of the colorful 70’s themed “School House Rock!” set.
The night before Lindsay had gone with fellow writer Tod Caviness to the Drunken Monkey Coffee Bar to try and write. The plan backfired when a guy kept hitting on her. He just wouldn’t take the hint that she had work to do. Her play started as a Unabomber dance party, but gradually was reworked into the high school prom bathroom drama we saw. Lindsay wrote all night, and finished at 6:50am and before running over to the Shakes to hand off the script to Laurel Clark, the play’s director.
A production that was like a 70’s sitcom similar to “Sanford and Son”, looked to me like it was going to crash and burn based on the rehearsal I saw. Marty Stonerock, the lead actress in that piece, looked at me while Beth was talking to the assembled group, and she took her scarf and made a gesture like she was being hung, sticking her tongue out comically. In this play, the lead actor, Barry White, craves a drink from his trusted bottle of ripple that he keeps under the desk. Marty had taken the ripple off stage by mistake. As the helpless actor searched for the now missing bottle, Marty finally rolled the bottle into the theater and it got the loudest laugh of the night.

Shotgun

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Shotgun, written by John Biguenet, and directed by David Karl Lee, is without a doubt the best play I have seen this year. The play was in the intimate Goldman Theater inside the Lowndes Shakespeare Center as part of PlayFest! The Harriett Lake Festival of New Plays. Dennis Neal, who plays Dexter, gave tickets to Mary Hill, his former wife, and I went along to do a sketch.The play takes place in New Orleans after the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina. Beau, a white middle class plumber, and his teenage son rent an apartment in a shotgun duplex from Mattie, an African American woman, and her father, Dexter. Dexter is a bit like a black version of Archie Bunker, not liking the idea of renting to white tenants. He is however under his daughters care so he has to toe the line.
The set for this show is fascinating to watch. When a scene switches from the porch to the apartment inside, the walls fold back creating the side walls of the interior room. The first time it happened, I let out an Ooooh, just like I was watching fireworks. This effect became a bit distracting however since the scenes kept switching form the porch to the interior. The most gut-wrenching scene comes about at the end of act one when Beau, played by Rus Blackwell, and Mattie, played by Chantel Jean-Pierre, are sitting at the kitchen table in his apartment sharing a bottle of liquor. Mattie asks him what happened to his wife and he tells the long painful tale of how she died days after the hurricane from injuries she sustained trying to get out of the house from a jagged hole he had cut in the roof using an ax. He sobs uncontrollably since it was his decision to stay in his home. Mattie consoles him. This scene had me in tears.
Love blossoms between Mattie and Beau and this causes racial tensions for both families. Beau’s son Eugene, played by Brandon Peters, suddenly lets out a racial slur when he sees Mattie come out of his dad’s bedroom. Willie blames his dad for his mom’s death and refuses to forgive him. In the end, the racial divide it too great and Beau moves back with his son to the devastated white suburban neighborhood where they start building their life again from scratch. Love does not always triumph.

Play in a Day

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Having a bad day. My truck was rear ended and the guy said he had to run because he was picking someone up at the airport, so there was no police report. I looked at my cell phone only to find the battery dead. We did exchange insurance info. People need to slow down and relax. A friend sketched a peace sign into the dirt on the back of my truck. When I got home after the accident I rubbed it out thinking it might have been a bulls eye for the road raged Daytona driver that hit me.
Play in a day is hosted by Beth Marshall at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater. Six groups of Orlando’s most talented actors and playwrights had just 24 hours to put together their consecutive plays. Writers were given a theme and certain ideas that had to be in the play. They then wrote late into the night some of them all night long for the production starting the next day.
When I arrived Beth Marshall was directing a musical political satire written by Margot Knight. Margot explained her process a bit and it was fascination. She had a long list of free associated ideas that she jotted down in quick succession. No ideas were rejected and many ended up in the final production. She said she even was writing as she drove which is a practice I have started following her example. The fact that I had a fender bender this morning is an entirely unrelated event. I was rear ended and I wasn’t writing at the time. Margot’s production was a fun romp about health care reform. The political quagmire was best represented by using Alice in Wonderland as the vehicle to start the production. At one point Alice tries to read the legal document of the health care reform bill and she is rightfully confused by the language where up is down and down is up.
Britni Leslie had the lead roll as Alice. She had several song numbers to sing and Beth was concerned that her voice might not carry well enough in the theater. Beth arranged to get a wireless mic. The rehearsal was fast and furious with tech setting up lights and sound cues on the fly. I am amazed as how the actors could retain so much dialogue so fast. When it came time to present the play in front of an audience, I felt it went rather well. watching rehearsals I knew where a few blunders and slip ups had happened, but when there was an audience the adrenaline and focus kicked in making everything flow smoothly.

Spring Awakening

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Jeremy Seghers invited me to go to a rehearsal for “Spring Awakening” written by Frank Wedekind. The reading took place at the offices of Broadway Across America right near Lake Eola. When I walked into the conference room where the rehearsal was to take place, I was surprised at how many of the actors were high school aged. Everyone introduced themselves around the table and talked about what shows they had last been in. Many of the students were working on a production of “Rent” for the Fringe and many also all seemed to be putting on a high school production of “Moby Dick.”
As we all waited for the last of the actors to arrive, Sean, picked up his green water bottle and the cap flopped off spilling his water all over the table. He jumped up screaming and apologizing as he ran into the next room looking for paper towels. He had been nervously talking to Sarah who was wearing a loose low cut shirt that made her look like she had just come from a job as a bar maid. His comical timing and actions were worthy of Chaplin. Everyone burst into laughter. When the reading started the mood grew more serious. Spring Awakening deals with a group of German students who for the first time face their sexuality and passions. One scene between a daughter, Wendla, played by Sarah Villegas and her mom,Frau Bergmann, played by Nicki Darden was both humorous and sad. The daughter wanted her mom to explain how babies are born. Although the mom wanted to tell he daughter everything, she found herself unable to.
FRAU BERGMANN: Come here, child, come here, I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you everything–… In order to have a child — one must love — the man — to whom one is married — love him, I tell you — as one can only love a man! One must love him so much with one’s whole heart, so — so that one can’t describe it! One must love him, Wendla, as you at your age are still unable to love — Now you know it!
In the next act the daughter finds herself in a hay loft with a boy and then ultimately pregnant.
In another scene Sean Flinn contemplated a painting by Palma Veccio titled Venus. His impassioned plea to this goddess was so lascivious as to make any audience member blush. This play has often been banned for its sharp, pointed look at the hypocrisy of a society that felt that children should grow up ignorant of their sexuality. The play also deals with very serious issues of rape and suicide. The language in the original play is beautiful. Originally staged in 1906, the play is amazingly contemporary. In 2006 the play was bought brought to Broadway, this time as a musical by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater.
This reading of Spring Awakening is a joint venture between Heidi Dog Productions and Kangagirl Productions. This reading will be a continuation of a series of “Queer Quills” readings. You can see this staged reading on April 18th at 7:00 PM at the Breakthrough Theater (421 West Fairbanks Avenue Winter Park). A suggested $5 donation will benefit the Paul Wegman Scholarship for actors at Valencia Community College.