The Flick presents hopes and aspirations in a tiny movie theater.

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Gen Y Productions presents The Flickwritten by Annie
Baker and was the winner of the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and 2013 Obie Award for Play writing. The Flick Premiered
Off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons in 2013 and will run at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (445 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL) starting today through July 12.

Bonnie Sprung designed the set for The Flick. She confided that the theater seats were rented from the recently closed Theater Downtown. The sconces on set are actually the bases to lava lamps. She was busy cutting and building the set right up until the rehearsal started. This was the first run through in the new space. Producer Aaron Safer arranged to get me in for the sketch.

The play is set in a single screen movie theater in Central Massachusetts that has the last remaining 35mm film projector. Sam (Daniel Cooksley) shows Avery (Marcellis Cutler) the ropes of the job on Avery’s first day at the job. The job simply involves cleaning up the wrappers and refuge people left behind after leaving the movie theater. Rose (Jessie Grossman) with her bright green hair is the projectionist and Sam feels he should have been promoted to that coveted position. He shouts up to her and she either can’t hear him or ignored him. “She hates me” Sam confides to Avery. When Rose came down from the booth, she asks Sam if he told Avery about the employee “dinner money” tradition. The “dinner money” was skimmed from ticket sales without the owners knowledge. Avery agonized in the front row with his head in his hands but ultimately gave in, not wanting to upset his co-workers.

Scene after scene plays out in the empty theater. Sam told a story about how a huge chunk of the ceiling once fell down landing just inches from an old lady. Sam and Avery play a game of six degrees of separation as they clean and it turns out that Avery in an encyclopedia of film knowledge. A love triangle develops as Rose comes on strong to Avery. The flirting escalates to an embarrassing moment when they watch a film together after hours. Each of the characters is a misfit. Avery once tried to kill himself, Rose is unable to have a relationship for more than four months, and Sam rides along as if the theater job was his only aspiration in life. Rose was appealing with her brash accent and bold entrances. She later turned on Avery and it became clear that every character was strictly looking after their own interests. Friendships aren’t as strong as the need for a minimum wage paycheck. One of my favorite scenes is when Avery recites Ezekiel 25:17 from Pulp Fiction. The drama among the employees turned out to be bigger than the dramas that played out on the big screen. I cared deeply for each character hoping they might find happiness but in this fast changing world, that hope seems mercurial. The digital age made the 35mm projector obsolete. Avery in particular yearned to keep the analog tradition of projected film alive. It turned out that if you don’t need a projector. You don’t need a projectionist. Everyone wants more for less and quality isn’t necessarily the ideal.

Kenny Howard directed the Orlando cast and I liked that there were long moments where characters had time to think and reflect. Action on a movie screen happens at a break neck pace with maybe 2 seconds before cutting to a new shot. But the action after the film ended felt more real, imperfect and more heart felt.  These characters weren’t playing their parts, they were simply living in the moment. At three hours, this is a long show. Turn off those cellphones and unwrap those wrappers and don’t leave a mess because someone has to clean up after you.

Show dates: June 17-July12, 2015

Show times vary

Tickets start at $35.00

Alexis and Jim Pugh Theater

Lobby Doors open 60 minutes prior to show time.

Theater Doors open 30 minutes prior to show time.

Ruby Darling

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The dressing room at Theater Downtown is small and cluttered. The walls are covered with actors signatures from shows throughout the years. The mirrors are mounted on a wall with exposed two by fours. Odd items like plastic doll’s legs and birds were also stapled to the walls. All the visual chaos left me wondering where to look.

Ruby Darling, the mistress of ceremonies for the Vaudeville show sat down to get her makeup done. She had a duel leveled lime green make up box filled with theatrical makeup. Her hair was already beautifully shaped to give her a vintage 40’s era look. The hair style contrasted against her Led Zeppelin T-shirt. High heels were clustered here and there on the counter. A box of “light gloves” would probably be used in one of the acts for the Video Game themed show that would follow right after the Vaudeville show let out. They are now gearing up for a Burlesque Mega Show on Friday February 17th, 10pm, at Sleuth’s Mystery Dinner theater during Megacon!

Susan Woodberry was putting on pasty green makeup and spattering blood on her clothing for her part as “Little Sister” in the Portal themed video game show. I wanted to sketch but I was also nervous about going on stage to do my sketch. I paced around and peered through the thin translucent red curtains to see the acts proceeding the circus act. The audience was having a blast. From back stage we clapped and laughed the loudest.

Video Game Burlesque Rehearsal

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Rehearsals were running late at Theater Downtown. After the Vaudeville acts had been rehearsed, the second show, a Video Games Burlesque was run through. Chan Sterling worked as the MC in a white lab coat, a deep grey ascot and big black rubber boots. Ruby Darling appeared at the end of the runway in a sultry black and white dress that came down tight at the knees forcing her to walk like Morticia from the Addams Family. 0n the day of the show, she would be entangled in wires and deliver a menacing monologue. I’m not sure what video game the scene is from, but the burlesque dance that followed was easy enough to understand.

Jolie Hart and her boyfriend cuddled in the front row. Jolie performed an amazing high energy retro dance routine that had her gasping for air when she burst back stage. The blood covered chair at the end of the runway was for Cory Violence and Shy La-Buff’s Bio-Shock burlesque number. Shy wore a strange bunny’s mask and wore a tattered green dress that Violence would later rip off her in shreds.

My favorite number of the rehearsal was when Ruby Darling sang “Soon or a Later” to Nekkid RoboJoe. As she sang she got some Duct tape and taped him to the chair he was sitting in. When the number was over, she dragged him off stage. This routine would certainly have the audience roaring.

Vaudeville

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Thanks to Shy La Buff, I found myself as part of a Vaudeville act at Theater Downtown. The lobby of Theater Downtown felt like a large cluttered living room. There was a pool table in the corner and a small piano in front of a makeshift stage. Theater posters and large photos littered the walls. I didn’t see any theatrical sketches. I planted myself in a comfortable leather seat. Actresses arrived one at a time, listening to iPods and swinging their hips.

There was a rehearsal wrapping up on the main stage so, Ruby Darling started blocking out the Circus act of which I was a part. Cory Violence stood in the center of the red carpet and began reciting “Live Circus” by Tom Waits. He had to read the lines off his iPhone at first but soon he was off script.

Every actress in the room was soon recruited to be in the act. Ruby herself became One Eyed Myra, the queen of the galley. Cherry Bob-omb took the role of Horse Face Ethel and her ‘Marvellous Pigs In Satin’. She wore a dark beard and moved with a dancers grace. A-manda Lorian had a petite frame draped in an over sized mans outfit. The floppy hat was a size too large and it always kept half her face hidden in shadow. She swayed and staggered like a drunk sailor. She reminded me of a feminine version of Charlie Chaplin. Siber Digit was Yodeling Elaine the Queen of the air. She moved with languid and heavy depression having lassoed and lost another tipsy sailor. Shy La Buff was on target as Poodle Murphy. She held her arms high and arched her back so I could sketch. Chan Sterling as Funeral Wells stood prepared to throw his hardware. He tested the sharpness of the blade with his thumb.

I only had five minutes to do the sketch on my digital tablet hooked up to a projector. I had to plan everything out in advance so I could finish in time. Each knife was on its own layer in Sketchbook Pro, so when Violence shouted, “Leave the bum!” I could flick a knife layer on and it would appear on the sketch. No physical knives were thrown only digital hardware.

Chemonologues

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Marilyn Wattman, a cancer survivor, wrote Chemonologues and I went to the first reading of the play at Theatre Downtown (2113 North Orange Avenue). The play reading was supported by a professional development grant from United Arts. When I got to the theater, the front doors were locked. Tommy Wingo was also waiting with a huge collection of sound equipment. He made a cell phone call to Brian Feldman, Marilyn’s son, and was told to knock loudly. Sure enough, after several loud knocks the doors opened. Marilyn immediately greeted us and showed us into the theater. Tommy set up in the center section and I sat down at stage left and started sketching the stage area. I used my time by penciling all the chairs in the proper locations and when the actors arrived I sketched each in ink on a chair. The theater is a dark intimate space and I fell in love with it immediately.
Chemonologues is set up as a cancer survivors support group. Marilyn interviewed dozens of cancer survivors in order to find the different voices in the play. She began as a reporter but over time realized she was personally and intimately involved. During the talk back after the reading, Mr. Feldman got choked up as he described how Marilyn hated going to support groups. He continued by pointing out the never-ending costs of cancer; medical bills keep piling up and there is no way for the family to deal with it.
Several times during the reading characters clashed and disagreed, but overall the play was more educational rather than dramatic. The information is presented in a preachy manner at times rather than being presented through conversation and action. For me, the play ran too long, but I can see the amazing potential in the premise. One audience member pointed out that too many of the characters in the play were in the acceptance stages of the disease. She wanted to see other stages of grief and denial, like anger, bargaining and depression. She pointed out that it would be nice to get more of a feeling of the day-to-day struggles of living with cancer, and how our health care system often leaves survivors up the creek without a paddle.
The harsh realities presented in this play are difficult to face, but I do feel I understand and can empathize more with families that have to live with the disease. Most everyone I know has had their family touched by cancer at some point and yet it is not something that we talk about very often. This play is a diamond in the rough that could still use some more polishing.
Thumbs up to the cast who only read the play once before this reading and to Marilyn who is taking bold chances, and I hope she continues to do so.