Ain't no business like show business.

Musings on theatre from the heart of Charleston, SC.

[thelaziestbird]

Gloria Snuck Up On Me

Rehearsals recently began for the College of Charleston’s production of “By the Way, Meet Vera Stark” by Lynn Nottage, in which I portray a fictional 30′s movie star named Gloria Mitchell. Gloria has a secret. A secret that, if revealed would destroy both her career and reputation. Gloria is an octoroon- 1/8 black, but she passes as white and has managed to successfully conceal her race and move up the Hollywood ladder. The word “octoroon” is no longer used. I heard it for the first time in this play. Gloria’s cousin is Vera Stark, who works as her maid and has dark skin, but harbors a dream of becoming an actress as well. Vera helps Gloria keep her secret, though in the long run Vera’s own career never reaches the height of Gloria’s because of her darker skin tone. 

Gloria is a daunting undertaking. The whole play is pretty intimidating. I’ve been at a bit of a loss on where to ”start” my work, aside from actually reading and re-reading the play. Before winter break I had read the play 3 times and was letting it simmer and live in my brain for a bit. I found myself over-analyzing Gloria to the point of anxiety. I didn’t feel like I knew her at all. Or was capable of knowing her. Not good. 

So I went to New York right before the New Year. It may have been the first time I’ve ever been in the city and not seen a Broadway show. Instead, I went to museums. First the Metropolitan and then the new Whitney. I love Modern Art the most, so was anticipating going to the Whitney. I have always gone to the MoMA, which is spectacular, but seems familiar and comfortable now. I wanted something new. 

There were 2 big exhibits at the Whitney. The first, a retrospective of Frank Stella and the second was “Jazz Age Modernist”, works by black painter Archibald Motley. Motley was known for his vibrant scenes of the Harlem Renaissance which reminded me of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s images of the Berlin streets. 

Saturday Night by Archibald Motley

Street, Berlin by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner

However, these exciting group scenes were not the first paintings in the exhibit. The first few paintings were portraits of solo figures. Each woman was a varied degree of black. As I listened to my museum guide, I learned that Motley had painted women of all backgrounds to portray the diversity of race within race. How is a light skinned black person different than a white person? They aren’t. Except that the light skinned black person continues to be threatened by segregation and racism. There’s a certain absurdity to it. To me, these works drive home the idea that everyone is equal and they challenge the viewer to examine their own concepts of race. 

When I walked into the Archibald Motley exhibit something unexpected happened. The second painting was titled “The Octoroon Girl”. The subject was young, she could have been my age and looked white. I think my jaw literally dropped open. I even looked around like ‘where are the cameras’, thinking it must have been some cosmic joke. Yet, here was my inspiration for Gloria, hanging on this wall, waiting for me. Why did I ever worry? She had just been waiting for the perfect moment.

The Octoroon Girl by Archibald Motley

[thelaziestbird]

Fusing the Visual Arts and Theatre Through “Failure: A Love Story”

No one knows what dramaturgy is. I’m here to help. Its a really ugly word that means something quite beautiful- it is the theory and practice of theatrical composition- the art and science of theatrical collaboration and the research and historical context that places every play in an appropriate reality. I am personally still grappling with what a dramaturg keeps track of, because there are times when it seems that they are involved in each separate aspect of theatre making from sound design to season curating. 

Often times the dramaturgy of a piece is spun by the entire creative team rather than one individual dramaturg. My first dramaturgical project was “Failure: A Love Story”, by Chicago playwright Philip Dawkins, which played at PURE Theatre in the fall of 2015. The story follows the lives and deaths of each member of the Fail Family, who live and work in Chicago during the Great Depression. I worked with fellow College of Charleston student Rachel Feldman for the duration of the project. Our casebook for the show was the final project for our Introduction to Dramaturgy course. Together we: Attended rehearsals, compiled a historical research packet with images and timelines for the cast, created a lobby display which incorporated set designer Susan Klein’s original concept art as well as a map of Chicago which highlighted the real locales mentioned in the play and ran a packed audience talk-back with the cast and director Rodney Lee Rogers.

Before rehearsals started, the creative team met once a week to discuss ideas and speculate over cost and efficiency. The first meeting centered around the art of Susan Klein, a local Charleston artist who designed the set. Her work was simultaneously being featured at The Halsey Institute for Contemporary Art, in a show entitled “Shadow Things”, which was being cross-marketed with PURE’s production of “Failure: A Love Story”. The images below feature Susan’s watercolor mock-ups of her initial design, which would later be featured in our dramaturgical lobby display. 

The set pieces were individually cut out, which allowed the director and other designers to experiment with different setups and to see what might not work or fit. These images also led to the ultimate color choices. Time is a huge theme of the play, so indicators of time were included whenever possible- notice the hourglasses within the cubes, and the clock faces that are able to be placed anywhere. The play is presented as an ensemble piece, in which the actors work directly with the set and props to create situations and characters.  This initial concept reflects that idea.

As dramaturgs, we observed everything as it came together and asked lots and lots and lots and lots and lots and lots of questions. Most of them were answered through rehearsal. The original design morphed to meet the demands of the actors movement and the visual aesthetic that occurred when the design met the space. The following images are taken about one week apart. The second image incorporates the lighting, wall decoration, and full paint job. 

The car is obviously a central part of the set and plot of “Failure”. It is in this car that the Fail Family parents meet their demise in the first half of the show. The car veers off the road into the Chicago River. A driving idea behind the set design was to create the illusion of everything being underwater- including the car, which is why it appears to be sunk into the ground, as if sitting at the bottom of the river. The fabric draping on the walls reflect this as well, as did aspects of the sound design. 

Our lobby display combined Susan Klein’s design concepts as well as her renderings of a heron and feral monk parakeets, which figure as prominent characters in the play. The parakeets fly around an old map of Chicago, and the production poster featuring actors (Top to Bottom) Evan Parry, Camille Lowman, Michael Smallwood, Mia Rogers, and Bella Rogers. 

We decided to go with the second round of design concept art, as the floor painting morphed significantly within the first few weeks of rehearsal. We included color swatches and many of the individual, movable pieces, including many that ended up not being used. We wanted to communicate that many beautiful ideas had to be tossed as production continued due to practicality and time. 

The second, more informative aspect of our lobby display was the vintage map of Chicago with the actual locations mentioned throughout the show marked and summarized. As dramaturgs, we were surprised to find that these places were real, especially in a play as fantastical as “Failure”. Grounding the play in reality, even a vague one, made the ethereal aspects of the show even more striking. 

Accompanying the map is a lettered list of the locations with brief descriptions, as well as our dramaturgical note. Many of the locations have changed since the 1930′s, which made using an old map imperative, as the locations didn’t exist on more contemporary maps. 

Overall, our dramaturgical input focused on the collaboration between art and theatre- Susan Klein’s work and the play. This is the core idea behind our lobby display and our research. We also wanted to ground the play in some kind of tangible reality, to allow the fantastical elements of the plot and quirkiness of the storytelling to shine. 

[thelaziestbird]

Plush Velvet Sometimes: Sometimes Just Pretzels and Beer

Whenever I find myself at the end of a significant change in life, this crazy song from Sondheim’s musical Follies comes to me (Singing words of wisdom, “I’m Still Here”). The show is a personal favorite, though I’m annoyed with myself, since I fell in love with it at such a young age, I’ve had to wait (and am still waiting) to be old enough to actually play the characters. Its been maddening, let me tell you. 

The character who sings this song has seen some things, man, and some stuff. She’s been through the ringer. She knows loss. She knows success. She knows pain. She knows love. But she’s fabulous and brassy (and 60) and accepts every situation for just what it is and has accepted that sometimes in life you get plush velvet and sometimes you get shit.

That being said, I’m in a pretzels and beer kind of place right now (though lets be real, there’s always gonna be a little velvet in my life, its simply unavoidable). I’m in college again. For the 3rd time in my life. Which just occurred to me, and looks very strange now that I’ve written it down. Yet, here I am. I’ve been waking up at 6 and going to bed at 2 (OK, 4) and am working harder than I have in years. But in the time leading up to what is quickly becoming the “intellectual revolution” of my life, I wasn’t taking it easy. I was getting thrown around and battered by the world. I was living really hard and now I’m thinking really hard. 

So I’m a student again. Not only of theatre, but of the world. And being a student is humbling. I’m flexing creative muscles that I had forgotten I possessed, because I had gotten lazy living the high life. And I have so much F-ing work to do. THERE IS NO ROOM FOR VELVET. But damn, I miss it. So here I am, drinking beer and eating pizza. Hi- ho the glamorous life! (Another Sondheim reference for those of you paying attention)

The times when I’ve been lucky enough to live in the land of velvet, I feel like I’ve arrived at a destination. It’s a big event or the conclusion of something. But it never lasts very long, and trying to sustain that life is exhausting. I haven’t been there for a moment (but like I said, there are always moments... I own a lot of velvet), but I’m finding out that the alternative is just as glamorous. I’ve begun to appreciate the cathartic and pensive qualities of a refreshing beer - or 4- at the bar on a wednesday night. Its a more subtle glamour. These are the nights that teach you the most. Then, you take what you learn and teach yourself how to get back to the land of velvet. 

This is something universal (its gotta be)- the highs and lows of life- and how you handle all of it. The song is like a (not so) subtle reminder that no matter what you’re drinking...at least you’re drinking. And surviving. And like I said, I’ve got work to do. 

Good times and bum times, I've seen them all- And, my dear, I'm still here

Plush velvet sometimes- Sometimes just pretzels and beer, but I'm here.

I've been through Reno, I've been through Beverly Hills, and I'm here. 

Reefers and vino, rest cures, religion and pills, and I'm here.

I should've gone to an acting school, that seems clear-

Still someone said, "She's sincere", so I'm here.

Black sable one day, next day it goes into hock, but I'm here.

Top billing Monday, Tuesday, you're touring in stock, but I'm here.

I've run the gamut, A to Z- Three cheers and dammit, C'est la vie.                       

I got through all of last year, and I'm here.    

Lord knows, at least I was there, and I'm here-Look who's here, I'm still here.

[thelaziestbird]

                   ~David Adjmi’s MARIE ANTOINETTE at PURE Theatre ~

                                               April 16~May 9 2015

[thelaziestbird]

Downtown and On the Road

This is an article I wrote for www.charlestongrit.com about the time I've spent working for 34West Theatre Company, in Charleston. They are very good friends of mine and have taken me on wonderful adventures, so I decided to write them a love letter~

There is a lot to be said about a theatre company that serves Jack Rudy Cocktails and Westbrook IPA. There’s even more to say about a theatre company that writes all of their own material, and produces it with a cast and crew of no more than 4 people. There’s the most to say about a theatre company that allows their employee and co-star to eat #allthepopcorn in the dressing rooms. Popcorn that should be being sold to loyal patrons….

They had a lot of patience with me.

Before coming to Charleston, 34West Theatre Company co-founders Stephen Wayne and Jeff Querin spent a lot of time touring with their original shows. Like 15 years of touring. FIFTEEN YEARS. Their company of 4 included New York-based actors Magdalyn Donnelly and Nathan Gurr, who continue to perform with them now. They performed in Ohio, Florida, Connecticut, off-Broadway in New York City and for Charleston’s own Piccolo Spoleto before finally settling down in Charleston in the Summer of 2014.

I have been working with 34West for seven months now and it has been an unexpected whirlwind of theatricality that I never saw coming. They opened their doors last July with an original, three person musical called Doo Wops and Beauty Shops, which ran for two months. It starred Mary Fishburne, a Best of Charleston nominee for Female Vocalist, and a good friend of mine. She did the show for a month before leaving to have a baby, and passing the torch on to me- funny, as one of the two characters that we played in the show is pregnant.

Mary left me her script, with every cue, prop, and costume-switch marked. I used that for our 1 week of rehearsal. The boys didn’t have to take any time off, and without skipping a beat we re-opened the show. It was so exhilarating jumping in with just a little bit of fear. The time constraint, rather then causing panic, made me bust my butt. Failure was not an option. The show turned out great.

At this point- if you’re really into this story and want to know more- I’d like to direct you to this post which I wrote shortly before closing Doo Wops round one. http://thelaziestbird.tumblr.com/post/98236125419/the-energizer-bunny.

We performed five nights a week for two months. Usually by the Sunday matinee I felt like I was experiencing a permanent case of deja-vu. I would arrive at the theater every night-20 minutes before places- while the boys were busy serving drinks and snacks. I would go through the kitchen and into the dressing room to get into costume. We’d do the show, drink a beer, and then I’d go home to pass out and do it all again the next day. But the thing about it was that the show itself was so joyful, and elicited such a strong response from the audience, that it never got boring. Not to mention the number of times we broke character because everyone was laughing so hard. Stephen’s shows are FUNNY y’all.

Fast forward 4 months: The boys did two more shows- Speakin’ Easy (Starring Magdalyn Donnelly- remember her?) and A Swinging Christmas. I was in Macbeth at Woolfe Street Playhouse and auditioned for grad school, before we brought Doo Wops back as filler after the New Year. This was the first time I had ever returned to something that I had performed in before. We ran it twice before the first performance, and discovered that it had become a completely new show. It was all grown up. We performed for three weeks (about 15 shows) until closing right before Valentine’s Day.

After the last show we took down our set, packed up our props and costumes and threw it all in the truck. The next morning we left for Appalachicola, FL for two sold-out performances at the Dixie Theatre. Now, Appalachicola is not the biggest town. Its on the Gulf Coast and has really good oysters. It's beautiful there- very quaint and very charming, but very small. We basically performed for the entire population of the town. It was a blast. We got there in the evening and unloaded and rebuilt our set. We did our two shows on Valentine’s Day. Afterwards we packed up our set (again) and loaded up the truck. Then I drank two ridiculous Martinis that I absolutely deserved- A hell of a Saturday. The next day we were back in Charleston. It was a fantastic experience, and I look forward to working with them again in July. 

34West has created a wonderful environment for artists. I'm so proud of the work they do, whether I am involved in it or not. I just feel lucky that I met them. There is a sense of pride that comes from knowing that your day job is your dream job. I have 34West to thank for making that happen for me, and the many other performers mentioned in this article. They have created a wonderful tribe. The fact that there is a professional, touring theatre company here, is something Charleston should be immensely proud of.

This is the end of my tale, but the beginning of another. I haven’t mentioned that during the three week run of Doo Wops in January, Steve and Jeff were also rehearsing for their next show which opened the Tuesday after we got back. That show -Boogie Woogie Bugle Gals- runs through April 25th, and stars New York actresses Maddie Casto and Jennifer Bissell (AE). Stephen was still writing the show when these lovely ladies were cast, and used getting to know them as inspiration for their characters. I have to be careful, since he hasn’t written our next show Groovy Kind of Love yet…everything I say can, and WILL be used against me.

[thelaziestbird]

A Weeks Worth: Feb 22-28

Sunday: Playwright Derek Ahonen left for LA after the staged reading of THE TRANSCENDANTS at Woolfe Street Playhouse. Local publication Art Mag wrote it up here ~ http://theartmag.com/2015/02/review-reading-of-the-transcendents/

Monday: Spent the rainy day with Jennifer Bissel and Maddie Casto, who are in Charleston from New York performing with 34 West Theatre Company. After crepes at Queen Street Grocery, we went by the beautiful Dock Street Theatre, home of Charleston Stage Company.

Tuesday: I was a reader for some auditions at PURE Theatre for their production of David Adjmi's MARIE ANTOINETTE. Their next show OUTSIDE MULLINGAR by John Patrick Shanley runs March 6-28. Tix @ http://puretheatre.org/

Wednesday: I caught some of a tech rehearsal, and spoke with the director of Alan Bennett's THE HISTORY BOYS at Woolfe Street Playhouse. This is the inaugural production in Woolfe Street's new black box space, and will run for only six shows.

Thursday: I won't lie. I took a night off.

Friday: Attended opening night of THE HISTORY BOYS at Woolfe Street Playhouse. Tix @http://woolfestreetplayhouse.com/events/the-history-boys/

Saturday: Ok- So its not theatre, but I watched ALMOST FAMOUS today and it reaffirmed my faith in the bohemian life.

Lets do it again next week~ 

-HH

[thelaziestbird]

A Weeks Worth: February 15-21

Welcome to my new weekly post! These are my newsletters, my schedule, and my chance to share what I was able to catch in the community each week. Bear with me, as I am also a local performer, I will be including rehearsals and shows that I am personally involved with. It is especially hard to get out and see theatre when you are performing in a show but if thats the challenge, then I accept! 

Sunday: I toured with 34 West Theatre Co. over Valentine’s Day weekend. We had two sold-out shows of DOO WOPS AND BEAUTY SHOPS at the Dixie Theatre in Appalachicola, FL. We returned to Charleston on Sunday night- the boys went to unload our set at the theater, I went to bed.

Monday: The College of Charleston’s Department of Theatre and Dance produced Noel Coward’s BLITHE SPIRIT, which also ran through Valentine’s weekend. Many of the students in this production have worked professionally with a few of the local theatre companies, so its funny to think that they are still in college! A wonderful production, and an enjoyable night. More info about the department at http://theatre.cofc.edu/  

Tuesday: 34 West Theatre Co. opened their new original musical BOOGIE WOOGIE BUGLE GALS at their space downtown. A 1940’s wartime comedy and love story with 3-part harmonies expertly sung by 34 West co-founder Stephen Wayne and New York guest actresses Maddie Casto and Jennifer Bissel! Tix @ http://www.34west.org/tickets/boogie-woogie-bugle-gals-1

Wednesday/Thursday: I had rehearsals for a reading of THE TRANSCENDENTS by Derek Ahonen. The cast is made up of five of the actors (including myself) and the director of HAPPY IN THE POORHOUSE, another Ahonen play, which was produced at Woolfe Street last summer.

Friday: What If? Productions -in residence at Threshold Repertory Theatre- opened their production of THRILL ME: THE LEOPOLD AND LOEB STORY this week. The musical stars local actors Brannen Daugherty as Nathan Leopold and Brian Porter as Richard Loeb, the Chicago ‘thrill killers’ of 1924. Told mostly through song and flashbacks, this show was haunting and surprisingly funny and honest. Tix @ http://www.whatifproductions.org/season5/thrill-me-the-leopold-and-loeb-story.html  

Saturday: I am attending and participating in a reading of THE TRANSCENDENTS, a new play by Derek Ahonen. Derek acts as the playwright in residence at Woolfe Street Playhouse. A full production of THE TRANSCENDENTS will be mounted this coming July. More info about the Playhouse at http://woolfestreetplayhouse.com/  

Looking forward to another great, theatre-filled week in the Holy City! 

Thanks for reading!

-HH

[thelaziestbird]

Preservation and Play-Making

One thing that I learned very early in my time in Charleston is that you can’t go more than a day without stepping into an historic building. This is a huge part of Charleston’s charm. Its age, and the wizened, stately beauty that exists here is evident not only in the historic homes along South Battery, but in many popular restaurants, stores, libraries, and theaters. Such buildings display the Carolopolis Medal on their exterior. Over time you start to notice the black metal badges, given by the Preservation Society of Charleston, which are a subtle reminder of the history of the streets we tread daily. These awards are given ‘“to recognize outstanding achievement in exterior preservation, restoration, rehabilitation and new construction” to the individuals, the business or the organization that owns the building at the time. The newest batch of awards was presented last week and included the Woolfe Street Playhouse, recently acquired by Keely Enright and Dave Reinwald of the Village Repertory Company, a non-profit theatre company founded over 15 years ago in Mt. Pleasant. Built in 1914, the Playhouse was originally the home of Meddin Bros. Meat Packing Company. Before being purchased by the Village Rep in 2012, it had been used off and on as a storage facility for The College of Charleston. With the help of the theatre community and friends (I helped paint the front office myself), Keely and Dave transformed the building into a beautiful theatrical space.

We’ve established that Charleston appreciates the ancient. I say ancient, though I always like to remind myself that America is a relatively young country. Ancient is a fitting word though, as it exudes that mysterious and wise quality that makes Charleston so alluring. I have found that this same quality exists within many theaters, not only in Charleston but everywhere. Theatre as a craft and theatre as an event is as ancient a thing as any. Think Greek. So whenever I have performed in a show at Woolfe Street, or watched a show there, I have always appreciated that we were in a building leftover from another time. Also, Keely, Dave and Associate Artistic Director Robbie Thomas all seem to have a knack for selecting shows that will fit the aesthetic of their space. They use the exposed brick walls, the high, open-beamed ceiling and balcony space to great advantage resulting in incredibly visceral, all-encompassing sets.

London Wall by John Van Druten runs through Valentine’s Day and is a perfect example of Woolfe Street Playhouse’s brand. Set in 1930’s London, the office set is a crisp creme and black, and boasts a legitimate, old-school telephone switchboard which was reconstructed and refreshed by Dave Reinwald. The office shelves are filled with matching volumes of books, vintage telephones and electric fans. Even the music playing at intermission and before and after the show, sustains the illusion that until you walk out the door, you are a visitor to another time. The women of the cast, beautifully costumed by Julie Ziff, are powerhouse actresses and strut around the stage with so much sass that the men don’t have to try too hard to appear distracted. The women rule this show, no doubt about it.

The newest member of the workforce, Pat Milligan (McKenna Dubose) has fallen prey to the attentions of Mr. Brewer (Robbie Thomas), an associate solicitor. His constant cooing of pet-names and sly side-eye glances would be enough to make any person, man or woman, feel creepy. Ms. Janus (Becca Anderson) doesn’t want to see Pat taken advantage of, and urges her to pursue another fellow, Hec Hammond (Christian Persico), with whom Pat had been cultivating a friendship. Persico’s Hec is a gawking and adorable mess who has wonderful chemistry with Dubose’s sweet and refreshingly naive Pat. Becca Anderson is truly the guiding force of the group, though I felt so exhausted for her by the end of the second act. Having to play matchmaker for your younger friends as your own future implodes doesn’t sound like my cup of tea. Get it? Because London…

The ensemble also includes Samille Jones Basler as the batty and sophisticated Miss Willesden, Lara Allred as Miss Hooper, the one girl in the office who might just get out un-fondled and Sarah Callahan as Miss Buffton, the flirt of the group who clearly has the most fun. Bronson Taylor is a delight as ‘office boy’ Birkinshaw, and Jeff Jordan is stern and kind as the boss, Mr. Walker. Again, I have to hand it to the ladies, who handle the patronizing tone of Every. Single. Male. Character. with grace and humor, then strut their way offstage in amazing shoes.

You don’t have to be a theatre-goer to appreciate the dedication and passion that goes into a project like Woolfe Street Playhouse. Even though the Carolopolis Award only rewards the work done on the outside of the building, what goes on inside is just as important. The world of a play does not last very long, which makes the closing of shows especially hard on those involved. Once the show is over, everything gets torn down and all that remains are the memories of what you’ve created. Keely Enright says that especially in theatre, where each world they create is transient, it is a comfort to know that the building that she brought back to life will endure. Every single person mentioned in this article is a local artist, and to have an ancient, beautiful place like Woolfe Street Playhouse to practice their craft in is a testament to Charleston, and its history.

[thelaziestbird]

Why Do You Go to the Theater?

I was saddened upon waking this morning, to find that my current Broadway favorite, The Last Ship, will be closing on January 24. Its not a weeping in the corner, wondering why, questioning the universe kind of sadness. Its more of an 'I saw it coming' sadness. I'm disappointed. I'm angry that Broadway has turned into this commercial monster, where shows that carry real artistic value can't survive. But this isn't Broadway's fault. It has welcomed and hosted many shows like The Last Ship before. This is the audience's fault. Its our fault. 

Why do you go to see a particular show? Do you relate to one of the characters? Does the music move you? Is it based on a favorite Disney classic? I'll go see a show for any of these reasons! But if given the choice between something new and something old, you'd better believe I'll choose the new one, or the underdog. I want to see where the theatre is heading, and I want to say that I was a part of that movement simply by BEING there. Let me take a moment to defend commercial theatre (I don't want to sound preach-y). Shows like Phantom and The Lion King are important as well. They bring in huge amounts of money and each have their individual artistic merits, as well as being icons of musical theatre history. They are the shows that keep Broadway alive. What I'm trying to figure out, is why isn't it the other way around? Broadway is supposed to be the epitome of the American theatrical tradition, so why aren't the shows keeping it alive the shows like The Last Ship or last years Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, and Once before that. I see these shows as the new cornerstone of American musical theatre, yet in terms of mass appeal, they are low on the list. I'm not saying I don't love a great revival either, because I do, but when a NEW musical isn't able to live a full life, I see the future cloud up. The times, they are a changin'.

If you don't know about The Last Ship, let me give you a little background. Sting wrote the music and lyrics to this show, based upon his personal experiences growing up in Wallsend, a shipbuilding town in the North of England. The music reflects this- combining the good ole 'drinking song' vibe with sea shantys and ballads that drip with insight and experience. There's no 'belting' in the classic Broadway sense, and the choreography is stylized. The title song is a tumultuous and powerful anthem that drives the central plot point, the members of the town coming together to build one last ship together before the shipyard closes. It also metaphorically examines the power in/of death, the ultimate last.

In short, this is a cerebral show. It requires thought and focus and introspection to achieve understanding. I don't see this as a bad thing in a world where most TV is brain numbing and many musicals are commercial, studio driven 'mass appeal' projects. This simply makes shows like The Last Ship more important. Let's not forget what the true point of theatre is. Entertainment, sure, but also to reflect the world back at itself in a live and visceral way, to ultimately gain a greater understanding of the human experience. Its refreshing to see a less flashy and more human musical piece; More of a dramatic play with music. Again, I'm not saying that many of the shows on Broadway aren't like this, but given the choice between The Last Ship and Aladdin?  I think I've made my point.

[thelaziestbird]

Wasted Time

I have three thousand books that I haven't read. Honestly. So many books. #allthebooks. But, as I am beginning my applications for grad school, I decided now is a good a time as any to start picking them up. The first on my list was 'Letters to a Young Actor' by Robert Brustein, who served as founder and director of the Yale Repertory Company at Yale University in New Haven, CT. 

I am constantly struggling with identity, as I assume most actors do. Constantly asking myself 'Who am I?', 'Where do I fit?', and then becoming frustrated when it seems to shift day to day. I had never been able to find the words to describe how these struggles of self were often cured by getting onto a stage, and into a character. In the opening chapter 'An Actor's Calling', Brustein summarized my feelings so concisely that moved me deeply. So relieved was I, to find someone who could so accurately describe the connection between my craft and my identity~

                         "Many actors fear, however, that in assuming so many identities they may lose, or not even develop, one of their own. This is the dilemma of Luigi Pirandello's actor-heroine in his play 'Trovarsi' (To Find Oneself). Seeking her essential but elusive personality, she discovers that it lies not in her self, but in her art, in the various roles she has played. An Actor lives before a mirror and absorbs the numerous reflections being thrown back. The theatrical disguises Pirandello's heroine assumes in front of an audience are what constitute her real identity. 'It is true only that one must create oneself, create! And only then does one find oneself', the play tells us. In short, the very act of creation becomes a noble act of rebellion against existence. Actors are superior precisely because they know they use disguises. They are not only the sum of their own actions, they are also the sum of the roles they play.

                         So do put your daughter on the stage, Mrs. Worthington. She may not always make a decent living there, but she will be part of an ancient and honorable mystery, and it is on the stage that she will most likely be able to find herself."

Imagine how foolish I feel, knowing that this book with these wonderful, wise words has been sitting in my room for almost a year, and how much time I've wasted worrying about it.  Thank you Mr. Brustein. I won't waste any more time.

[thelaziestbird]

                                                  William Shakespeare's Macbeth

                                                             Photos by: Jessika Stocker

                                                               October 17~November 1

                                                               Woolfe Street Playhouse

                                                                      Charleston, SC

[thelaziestbird]

When the Lights Come On

We started tech for our 'Macbeth' at Woolfe Street Playhouse last night. A glorious 4 hour whirlwind of kilts and fog. Each day of rehearsal, when I open the doors to the theater, I am stunned by the growth of the set, but last night was like getting struck by lightening. The theater is a forest, a battleground, and a castle, all bathed in green and blue light. The lights reflect off of the silver swords and Mac's crown. It is truly a sight.

You can see the actual construction of a play most clearly during tech. Not only construction of the set, but also of the costumes, the scene transitions, and the characters. Its like watching the tiny mechanisms that make a large clock work. Tech week is the first time that I, as an actor, really feel like I am IN the play. Huge puzzle pieces start fitting together, and with that comes a strength and a shedding of inhibitions. 

Our director Evan gave us one big note last night. Make every action a matter of life or death. I tend to forget, while caught up in the theatricality of it all, what the play is really about. We have a tyrant driven mad by want of power, backed by a woman so manipulative and evil, who goes so far as to sell her soul in her first scene to give herself the strength to commit murder, in order to get her husband the crown. Like, what? Its not just about how pretty everything looks?  This is a cursed play. It is known that way, so yes, every exchange must be a matter of life or death. And if we play it that way convincingly, when the house lights come on at the end of the show, it will be jolting. 

[thelaziestbird]

You Are What You Wear

I love the Pre-Raphaelites, otherwise known as the Victorian Avant-Garde. I've been fascinated by them ever since I first saw John Everett Millais' 'Ophelia', a painting so beautiful, of one of literatures most tragic characters. 

I love the fact that he has taken a character from a play and placed her in the real world. She couldn't have asked for a more idyllic place to drown, and neither could any set designer working on a production of Hamlet.

Here is another Pre-Raphaelite painting of the famous British Actress Ellen Terry as Lady Macbeth by John Singer Sargent.

This painting is very different because its subject is an actress in costume, rather than the actual character. BUT what sets this painting apart, is the fact that Singer-Sargent actually attended the opening performance of this production of Macbeth in 1888, and was immediately inspired to paint this portrait. Ellen Terry herself wrote about her costumes in a letter to her daughter~

 "I wish you could see my dresses. They are superb, especially the first one: green beetles on it, and such a cloak! The photographs give no idea of it at all, for it is in colour that it is so splendid. The dark red hair is fine. The whole thing is Rossetti—rich stained-glass effects."

Rossetti! As in Dante Gabriel Rossetti, another member of the Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood who, from a young age, also had a passion for Shakespeare.

But I digress- I want to focus on the dress that Ellen Terry is wearing in this painting. It was made to look like a) Chainmail and b) Snakeskin.The most amazing aspect of this dress to me is the shimmer, achieved by roughly 1,000 beetle wings. The Green Jewel Beetle to be exact.

So lets do the math: Macbeth opened with Ellen Terry as Lady M. in 1888 and it is now 2014...so that makes this dress 126 years old. The dress was restored between 2009 and 2011 at a price just shy of two million U.S. dollars and was put on display in Terry's home in Great Britain. 

Oh and did I mention the cape? Complete with the gold lions found on Scotland's royal coat of arms. 

  I cannot think of a creepier, more appropriate dress for Lady Macbeth, a woman who has no problem encouraging her husband to commit murder and treason in the pursuit of power. Each beetle's wing almost seems like a small trophy that she would carry around with her. A constant reminder of the evil that she is capable of. And the cloak, a perfect metaphor for the weight and price of power. 

[thelaziestbird]

The Energizer Bunny

It just keeps going and going and going...

An accurate depiction of how I've felt these last few weeks. We are one week out from the closing of 'Doo Wops and Beauty Shops' at 34 West Theatre Company, and I have been taking stock of the manifold lessons I have learned in my time with them. 

This isn't like any other show I've done in Charleston. We ran for two months, doing 5 shows a week. This show is geared toward the tourist crowd, although local theatre goers have enjoyed it too, as it is easy to follow and contains some of the catchiest tunes from the 50's. It's really less of a show and more of an experience. It's totally immersive. My two co-stars Jeff and Stephen (who is also the writer) work the bar pre-show, churning out root beer floats and popcorn. They greet the audience and acclimate them to the idea that we are in a 50's diner. So by the time the show starts there is already this fantastic connection between the audience and us.  

I saw the show in performance twice before I stepped in, and was honestly shocked by how clever and funny it was. I was also daunted. So. Many. Props. SO MANY PROPS. #alltheprops. I also play two characters who switch back and forth the whole time...So there was that. I have played multiple parts in shows before, but the fast pacing of this show made it tough. Not only are there a million props and costume changes, the three person cast is also in charge of music and light cues. Overwhelming. I've never been good with technology.

In spite of being petrified of what I was getting myself into, I couldn't help but notice the sense of joy that this show seemed to exude. People left the theatre feeling joyous and uplifted. I certainly did when I first saw it. It was important to me that this never be forgotten, and the nights when I don't like my own performance are the nights when pure joy is lacking. WE are the ones responsible for that energy. WE have to give it to the audience so that they can feel it and give it back. 

We rehearsed for one week. Yes- Just one. I approached it in sections- focusing first on getting everything (lines AND lyrics) memorized, then moving on to blocking, then staging the songs, adding tech, and finally adding costumes. I would love to say that it went off without a hitch that first week, but there were mistakes galore and hiccups in abundance. Lucky for me, the audience never noticed. Lucky for me, I had 30 more tries to get it right. 

At this point, the show flows smoothly. The costume changes and props have become like the tiny mechanisms within a clock that keep the big hands ticking. And after two months of doing this show, I feel like the Energizer Bunny. Every night, up on the stage, over and over and over.

I think this the most important lesson I've learned. It's NEVER going to be the same show as the night before. The audience will NEVER be the same. That's the challenge after two months, continuing to make it new. Relishing every moment and every song, and bringing the audience along with you. I think about the people performing on Broadway who have been doing the same show for years and years. Its enough of a challenge making the show new for yourself every night, let alone an audience of 500 people! 

It doesn't even feel like I've done 30 shows at this point, and the thought of NOT doing it anymore feels strange. I thought it would just keep on going and going and going and going...

[thelaziestbird]

Very Good Advice

As I embark on my first professional Shakespeare production (Macbeth at Woolfe Street Playhouse) I thought it would be good to pick up 'Playing Shakespeare: An Actor's Guide' by John Barton for some help. He reminds the reader early on of some acting advice given in Hamlet~

Speak the speech, I pray you, as I pronounced it to you, trippingly on the tongue. But if you mouth it as many of our players do, I had as lief the town crier spoke my lines. Nor do not saw the air to much with your hand, thus. But use all gently. For in this very torrent, tempest, and, as I may say, whirlwind of your passion, you must acquire and beget a temperance that may give it smoothness...Be not tame neither. But let your own discretion be your tutor. Suit the action to the word, the word to the action, with this special observance, that you o'erstep not the modesty of nature...For anything so o'erdone is from the purpose of playing, whose end, both at the first and now, was and is to hold, as t'were, the mirror up to nature.

                                      So much great acting advice packed into one little paragraph and I need all the help I can get. Being given tips by Willy Shakes himself eases my anxiety. It also reminds me that theatre is meant to reflect the world back at itself- A point that I think people tend to forget. Theatre is the medium through which people can look objectively at life. One can see their own problems from a different perspective that may ultimately change and affect them in ways that they didn't expect. In short: Theatre is therapy for the human spirit and for the world it lives in. 

[thelaziestbird]

Bug Juice

OK listen. I ain't no buzzfeed. But this has to be a list post, because it's the only way to share the roller coaster that I've just been on. That roller coaster being Happy in the Poorhouse, and that roller coaster being the reason that I haven't posted anything in almost two weeks.

Now I have to tell you a little about Happy in the Poorhouse. There are 11 characters. And I mean CHARACTERS. Each one larger than life. Each one amping the energy up onstage with every entrance. This show does not skimp on big entrances. Or big emotions. It's the story of a Coney Island clan and the all-American, sometimes absurd situations that they find themselves in as family and friends. 

We, as a cast, became our own clan performing this show. It was like being at summer camp with all of your best friends. Of course this is not the first time that a cast has been connected this way; It happens all the time. But this one, being that it happened in the middle of a sweltering Charleston summer, with some of Charleston's finest performers, and the presence of the playwright made it something special. There were so many little things which occurred day-to-day that added new connections and new layers to the relationships we had, on and off the stage. 

1. Late nights at the theatre and long rehearsals. Is there anything more romantic? 

2. Seeing characters coming to life through a costume or hair/makeup and watching it over and over and over again.

3. Going to the same bars together every night.

4. Each actor claiming a space in the dressing room and seeing them live in it.

5. Seeing each actors pre-show routine and respecting it.

6. Drinking actual beer onstage during the show.

7. Someone always bringing cokes and candy-bars from the corner store before the show.

8. Derek, the playwright, seeking out each actor after each show and congratulating them. 

9. Sitting on the couch center-stage 5 minutes before the doors open, watching all the candles flickering on the cafe tables in the dim theatre. Like sitting in a church.

10. The pre-show and intermission visits from our director.

11. 2 months of rehearsals for 4 performances. 

12. Time spent in the dressing room pre-show laughing and talking.

13. Stocking the fridge onstage with beer and other assorted beverages and then getting to finish them all after the last show.

14. Derek Ahonen telling us we nailed it. And our Director Keely Enright being proud.

15. Speaking with a Brooklyn accent even after we've left the theatre.

16. Our dedication to the places bell.

17. The bruises.

18. Chick 'n' Biscuit crackers topped with Cheese Whiz.

18 1/2. Joey eating said Chick 'n' Biscuit crackers topped with Cheese Whiz out of Flossie's......cleavage.

These are the things I saw that I gave our little show such a big heart. And why, as always, the days following the closing of a show are always the hardest.  

[thelaziestbird]

Movies will make you famous; television will make you rich; but theatre will make you good.”

Terrence Mann