Monday, March 31, 2008
Saturday, March 29, 2008
The Silent Stage
In 1876, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen wrote an epic and fantastical play called Peer Gynt.
Paging though a copy, you quickly get a feel for the works massive scope: mine's a hefty 144 pages -- and I've heard that some performances have run over 5 hours! Also, the whole thing is in Verse, and an entire act is done in complete darkness. But what really made this play was its music.
Ibsen asked fellow Norwegian Edvard Grieg to go off and compose the incidental score. What Grieg brought back was a solid hour-and-a-half of some of the most touching and triumphant High-Romantic Classical music ever written. Much of it continues to be performed today (usually without the attached play - - and often in the background of TV commercials). Most will immediately recognize "In the Hall of the Mountain King," but my personal favorite is "Ase`s Death." Go ahead and press the button below to listen (it may take some time to load):
Since Ibsen and Grieg's days there has been substantially less emphases on music in non-musical theater (if you ask me, most musicals also suffer from a lack of music [real music vs. obnoxious noise] --but that's another post). Ever since John Williams, Thomas Newman, and, most recently, Jonny Greenwood's beautifully alarming works for There Will Be Blood
, film music has been more and more present in the public's artistic consciousness. But... ask yourself, when is the last time you remembered or cared to discover the composer for a play?
There are those working to reverse this disquieting (quieting?) theatrical trend. The NY Time's Art Section featured an article about a year ago on Mark Bennett's score for the Vivian Beaumont Theater production of “The Coast of Utopia,” a series of plays by Tom Stoppard. Here's an excerpt:
From the Times Article: "At first you hear the whooshing sounds of winds and ocean waves, and a distant clanking bell. A thin-toned piano begins a tentative melody as a complement of string instruments segues into a softly undulant accompaniment. That tentative melody evolves into the signature theme that will recur in altered states in later scenes."
The scope and scale of Bennett's work is admirable; I think Grieg would approve. In keeping with the "large scale" ethic of Monsterism, It is my hope that similar original dramatic music will play an important part in all our productions, contributing to a fully immersive theatrical experience.
For this, we need composers and musicians! I plan on doing some of the writing myself but I very much need the help of others in the musical community. If you are interested in helping/creating/composing/performing please comment on this blog and give me a way to reach you. Likewise, if you know someone, please direct them to this site!
Update: (Clicking the little envelope below will allow you to email this post to your trumpet-player/whatever friend!)
Paging though a copy, you quickly get a feel for the works massive scope: mine's a hefty 144 pages -- and I've heard that some performances have run over 5 hours! Also, the whole thing is in Verse, and an entire act is done in complete darkness. But what really made this play was its music.
Ibsen asked fellow Norwegian Edvard Grieg to go off and compose the incidental score. What Grieg brought back was a solid hour-and-a-half of some of the most touching and triumphant High-Romantic Classical music ever written. Much of it continues to be performed today (usually without the attached play - - and often in the background of TV commercials). Most will immediately recognize "In the Hall of the Mountain King," but my personal favorite is "Ase`s Death." Go ahead and press the button below to listen (it may take some time to load):
Since Ibsen and Grieg's days there has been substantially less emphases on music in non-musical theater (if you ask me, most musicals also suffer from a lack of music [real music vs. obnoxious noise] --but that's another post). Ever since John Williams, Thomas Newman, and, most recently, Jonny Greenwood's beautifully alarming works for There Will Be Blood
, film music has been more and more present in the public's artistic consciousness. But... ask yourself, when is the last time you remembered or cared to discover the composer for a play? There are those working to reverse this disquieting (quieting?) theatrical trend. The NY Time's Art Section featured an article about a year ago on Mark Bennett's score for the Vivian Beaumont Theater production of “The Coast of Utopia,” a series of plays by Tom Stoppard. Here's an excerpt:
From the Times Article: "At first you hear the whooshing sounds of winds and ocean waves, and a distant clanking bell. A thin-toned piano begins a tentative melody as a complement of string instruments segues into a softly undulant accompaniment. That tentative melody evolves into the signature theme that will recur in altered states in later scenes."
The scope and scale of Bennett's work is admirable; I think Grieg would approve. In keeping with the "large scale" ethic of Monsterism, It is my hope that similar original dramatic music will play an important part in all our productions, contributing to a fully immersive theatrical experience.
For this, we need composers and musicians! I plan on doing some of the writing myself but I very much need the help of others in the musical community. If you are interested in helping/creating/composing/performing please comment on this blog and give me a way to reach you. Likewise, if you know someone, please direct them to this site!
Update: (Clicking the little envelope below will allow you to email this post to your trumpet-player/whatever friend!)
Friday, March 28, 2008
and Other Monsters
A different sort of monsterism...
"As used today, the term 'Grand Guignol' (pronounced Grahn Geen-yol') refers to any dramatic entertainment that deals with macabre subject matter and features “over-the-top” graphic violence. It is derived from Le Theatre du Grand Guignol, the name of the Parisian theatre that horrified audiences for over sixty years."
"...the staple of the Grand Guignol repertoire was the horror play, which inevitably featured eye-gouging, throat-slashing, acid-throwing, or some other equally grisly climax."
There is a fascinating website with more grisly details here.
While blood for blood's sake may not be a part of our artistic philosophy, I appreciate the emphases on gritty public spectacle so embodied (so ensanguined, if you will) by Grand Guignol. ...could be great material for a Winter Holiday Show!
Update: As Mark wrote in the comments section: "Just so no one's confused about Monsterism...It has nothing to do with monsters, or blood, or "grisly climaxes." It's all about size. The "Monsterist" playwrights wanted a chance to write big plays."
I had no intention of linking the two movements; I was merely punning.
It is interesting, however, to do some limited comparitive analysis. Both movements were vibrant explosions of theatrical energy that emerged from stagnant and repressed environments. Grand Guignol was a reaction against institutional conservatism and censorship; Monsterism was a reaction against the waining scale of theatrical endeavor as artists confined themselves in literal little black boxes.
"As used today, the term 'Grand Guignol' (pronounced Grahn Geen-yol') refers to any dramatic entertainment that deals with macabre subject matter and features “over-the-top” graphic violence. It is derived from Le Theatre du Grand Guignol, the name of the Parisian theatre that horrified audiences for over sixty years.""...the staple of the Grand Guignol repertoire was the horror play, which inevitably featured eye-gouging, throat-slashing, acid-throwing, or some other equally grisly climax."
There is a fascinating website with more grisly details here.
While blood for blood's sake may not be a part of our artistic philosophy, I appreciate the emphases on gritty public spectacle so embodied (so ensanguined, if you will) by Grand Guignol. ...could be great material for a Winter Holiday Show!
Update: As Mark wrote in the comments section: "Just so no one's confused about Monsterism...It has nothing to do with monsters, or blood, or "grisly climaxes." It's all about size. The "Monsterist" playwrights wanted a chance to write big plays."
I had no intention of linking the two movements; I was merely punning.
It is interesting, however, to do some limited comparitive analysis. Both movements were vibrant explosions of theatrical energy that emerged from stagnant and repressed environments. Grand Guignol was a reaction against institutional conservatism and censorship; Monsterism was a reaction against the waining scale of theatrical endeavor as artists confined themselves in literal little black boxes.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Being a student
My only contribution to this website so far has been a semi-coherent ramble about Tysons Corner and some weirdness about my head being in a door, so I think it’s time for me to post something on the blog. Here’s one of the reasons I have faith in what we’re doing here.
The idea of being a student is one that has preserved my sense of identity and by extension my mental health a number of times so far.
I’ve always found it a little difficult as an actor to explain myself by what I do. For one thing, the vast majority of actors spend more time LOOKING for work than working. It’s a little harder to say “I’m an actor” if you haven’t been in anything for three, six, nine months. Which leaves…what? You don’t say “I’m a waiter” or “I’m a receptionist” because you don’t think of yourself that way. That’s just what you do to pay the rent. So you fudge your answer—with self-deprecating irony, with a vocational litany (“Right now I’m bartending at Applebee’s, but I’m really an actor/director/writer/composer/producer/fight choreographer/animal wrangler”), or you just change the subject.
My point is that when grasping at facets to form an identity, “actor” comes up short sometimes. In fact, all of the possible labels, roles, or categories I could use to define myself—actor, director, son, brother, friend, American, Virginian, Chicagoan, moderate Democrat, amateur psychoanalyst, subjective idealist, whatever—ALL of them have at one time or another come up short. Each one has, at certain moments, either felt not quite true (as above), or just insufficient to even begin to account for who I am.
Except for “student.”
“Student” has always been one that I could come back to. It has always felt familiar, always forgiven me for neglecting it and welcomed me back, and has always been a waypoint when I’ve been without purpose or direction, more so than any of the others.
Granted, until recently it was a technical designation. I was a student in the literal sense, from age 5 until about 9 months ago. But even after college…in fact, I’d say PARTICULARLY after college, thinking of myself as a student has given me a compass, and a way to regard the world optimistically. If nothing else, a good reason to get up in the morning.
Regarding every aspect of life—every event, every person, every experience good or bad—as something to learn from is a powerful thing. And the great benefit of it is that as long as you maintain the mantle of “student”, you will never be completely without direction. Even if you’re unsure about everything else, you can find comfort and energy in the fact that you are getting better with every hour that passes, and you’ll find your way through everything else as a result. It takes a constant vigilance, and there will still be stationary periods, but with that mindset you can rest assured that they will be brief and infrequent.
And as with anything else, there will be detractors. Some people will label “I am a student” as trite or pretentious, but what do they know. Those people tend to be the intellectually and spiritually bankrupt among us more often than not. Or people will say that “student” bears the connotation of something incomplete, or weak, or green. As if it were possible to know everything about anything. As if that wouldn’t be a dull, stagnant existence anyway.
It is a thing to be said with pride. It isn’t easy to maintain that level of discipline, and complacency is seductive.
One of the hallmarks of First Stage’s philosophy as I understand it is that everyone, from the interns to the professors, is there to continue learning. I hope that I will have the willpower and presence of mind to continue to deserve the title of student.
The idea of being a student is one that has preserved my sense of identity and by extension my mental health a number of times so far.
I’ve always found it a little difficult as an actor to explain myself by what I do. For one thing, the vast majority of actors spend more time LOOKING for work than working. It’s a little harder to say “I’m an actor” if you haven’t been in anything for three, six, nine months. Which leaves…what? You don’t say “I’m a waiter” or “I’m a receptionist” because you don’t think of yourself that way. That’s just what you do to pay the rent. So you fudge your answer—with self-deprecating irony, with a vocational litany (“Right now I’m bartending at Applebee’s, but I’m really an actor/director/writer/composer/producer/fight choreographer/animal wrangler”), or you just change the subject.
My point is that when grasping at facets to form an identity, “actor” comes up short sometimes. In fact, all of the possible labels, roles, or categories I could use to define myself—actor, director, son, brother, friend, American, Virginian, Chicagoan, moderate Democrat, amateur psychoanalyst, subjective idealist, whatever—ALL of them have at one time or another come up short. Each one has, at certain moments, either felt not quite true (as above), or just insufficient to even begin to account for who I am.
Except for “student.”
“Student” has always been one that I could come back to. It has always felt familiar, always forgiven me for neglecting it and welcomed me back, and has always been a waypoint when I’ve been without purpose or direction, more so than any of the others.
Granted, until recently it was a technical designation. I was a student in the literal sense, from age 5 until about 9 months ago. But even after college…in fact, I’d say PARTICULARLY after college, thinking of myself as a student has given me a compass, and a way to regard the world optimistically. If nothing else, a good reason to get up in the morning.
Regarding every aspect of life—every event, every person, every experience good or bad—as something to learn from is a powerful thing. And the great benefit of it is that as long as you maintain the mantle of “student”, you will never be completely without direction. Even if you’re unsure about everything else, you can find comfort and energy in the fact that you are getting better with every hour that passes, and you’ll find your way through everything else as a result. It takes a constant vigilance, and there will still be stationary periods, but with that mindset you can rest assured that they will be brief and infrequent.
And as with anything else, there will be detractors. Some people will label “I am a student” as trite or pretentious, but what do they know. Those people tend to be the intellectually and spiritually bankrupt among us more often than not. Or people will say that “student” bears the connotation of something incomplete, or weak, or green. As if it were possible to know everything about anything. As if that wouldn’t be a dull, stagnant existence anyway.
It is a thing to be said with pride. It isn’t easy to maintain that level of discipline, and complacency is seductive.
One of the hallmarks of First Stage’s philosophy as I understand it is that everyone, from the interns to the professors, is there to continue learning. I hope that I will have the willpower and presence of mind to continue to deserve the title of student.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
A Monster Season
Alright, so we're a "black box," technically that is. Whenever we find ourselves making a pitch for 1st Stage, the "pitchee" eventually says something like, "Oh, you mean this is going to be a black box theatre." Well, yes, technically I guess, only that's not the way we like to think of ourselves. Black box implies small, intimate productions with two or three actors "trapped"--more often than not-- in a small, intimate conversation about an intimate and small, albeit important, subject. And there's nothing wrong with this, but, technically speaking, it's not our aim. A few years back a group of British playwrights banded together and campaigned to halt what they saw as the lock-step march of British theatre--cash-strapped and hemmed in by shrinking budgets and shrinking audiences-- toward Black Box everywhere and all-the-time. They came to be known as the Monsterists. They no longer wanted to write small, intimate plays with two or three characters. They wanted a hand in producing big, epic productions that wowed audiences and took them to places that even a vivid imagination hadn't discovered. They wanted to create a whole world, not just a slice of life. Monsterism's "Manifesto" called for
I like all this but the truth is we are one of those studio theatres she's talking about...physically and financially, that is. In spirit and intention, we are mainstage. We're in the process now of selecting our first season of plays. It's not as easy as we thought it would be. Certainly we are confined, in part, by our size and our resources, and it would make perfect sense for us to limit our search to small, tried-and-true plays that require a minimal cast, setting, expense and, ultimately, explanation. But, for better or worse, we're not relying on what's "sensible" at this point in our development. We've bought into the Monsterist ideology. We find ourselves more excited about the how we might stage a drowning in a fierce storm on the English coast along with the town that witnesses it than we are about the more typical black box-inclined scripts. We're searching for plays about this "big, messy, complex world" of ours as well as for the actors and artists to stage them. Let us know if you have a title you'd like us to consider in hopes of seeing it brought to life in epic style and glory!...in our small, intimate space.
- Large scale, large concept and, possibly, large cast productions
- The primacy of the dramatic (storyshowing) over storytelling
- Meaning implied by action (not by lecture)
- Characters caught in a drama (not there to facilitate a polemic)
- The exposure of the human condition (not sociology)
- Inspirational and dangerous (not sensationalist)
I like all this but the truth is we are one of those studio theatres she's talking about...physically and financially, that is. In spirit and intention, we are mainstage. We're in the process now of selecting our first season of plays. It's not as easy as we thought it would be. Certainly we are confined, in part, by our size and our resources, and it would make perfect sense for us to limit our search to small, tried-and-true plays that require a minimal cast, setting, expense and, ultimately, explanation. But, for better or worse, we're not relying on what's "sensible" at this point in our development. We've bought into the Monsterist ideology. We find ourselves more excited about the how we might stage a drowning in a fierce storm on the English coast along with the town that witnesses it than we are about the more typical black box-inclined scripts. We're searching for plays about this "big, messy, complex world" of ours as well as for the actors and artists to stage them. Let us know if you have a title you'd like us to consider in hopes of seeing it brought to life in epic style and glory!...in our small, intimate space.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
The Flight to LIVE
Recent years have seen the beginning of the end for the entertainment markets as we know them.
Napster and it's successors have dealt a mortal blow to the CD-based record industry. Netflix tackled the largest video rental chain in the nation and brought it down to size. DVD sales far out perform box office receipts, and video games are outselling films(!?). In five years TV might be merely part of your internet experience... and that "internet experience" will probably be coming through your portable phone/computer/salad-shooter.
All the while, what happens to Theater?
It's good.
I have a friend, Adam Gurri, who uses a phrase: "the flight to live." "Live," as in live performance. Building on the theories of Chris Anderson, who penned a very readable augury on information economics --The Long Tail, Adam and I firmly believe that the internet (in addition to solving all of humanities ills) will usher in a new age of live performance.
Here's how:
1. The "Live" is the one entertainment product that cannot be pirated. By it's very nature the live performance requires that you go and immerse yourself in the "art". The "art" cannot be compressed and delivered to you for free by the internet or any other series of tubes. Films, Music, Books, Photographs, will all be more and more difficult to profit from (difficult is the wrong word, Byzantine perhaps, since revenue will come from advertising or other indirect means rather than through individual sales). Live performance, however, will be even more profitable because...
2. The internet has amazing marketing, advertising, and community organizing possibilities. In the future, I can imagine a world where as you walk/drive down main street, passing countless businesses, your smart phone, at regular intervals, might pipe-up and recommend local attractions that you will be interested in (and by "you" I mean YOU, because with determinate algorithms your phone will know exactly what you like). So, while in century 20, you might just walk right by 1st Stage Spring Hill, in century 21 your phone will find it, know you love theater (you're reading this blog after all), and give you notice: "THEATER HERE!"
--That's the Long Term--
Already, however, the internet makes it so much easier to find what you like in a region, and help you plan a visit. Take this website for example. Here, on the blog, you can always find the latest news about our endeavor. Soon you will be able to view our upcoming season, find links to Amazon.com pages for the plays and related materials to that season, see streaming content of segments of our productions, buy tickets, learn about classes, sign up for classes, and more. I can't (being a young person) even begin to comprehend how difficult it was (pre-internet) to publicize and make available all that information! And now, I can give you a slip of paper with 21 letters on it (1ststagespringhill.org) and you can access everything you need to know! But the internet doesn't just make theater easier to find, it makes it richer, because...
3. The special effects industry has revolutionized the motion picture. This fact alone has been often used to explain live theater's inexorable decline over the late 20th century. Why, after all, would you want to see a couple of guys on stage when you can see a very lively, charming, vibrant, TALKING FISH in 3D? There are theater purists out there that would rather see the guys, but for the majority of audience members the bright fantastical light of the movie-house projector has certainly out-shined the limelight of the stage. Now, however, digital technology and live effects processing allow movie style special effects to come to the stage. Things like "digital holographic projection" may sound like science fiction but... they are right around the corner. I don't want to give too much away, but, here at 1st Stage we intend to pioneer these technologies. If you think (judging by our warehouse accommodations and our youth) that our productions will be interesting little artsy pieces --that I might enjoy/fall asleep in-- think again.
It's a very exciting time indeed!
Napster and it's successors have dealt a mortal blow to the CD-based record industry. Netflix tackled the largest video rental chain in the nation and brought it down to size. DVD sales far out perform box office receipts, and video games are outselling films(!?). In five years TV might be merely part of your internet experience... and that "internet experience" will probably be coming through your portable phone/computer/salad-shooter.
All the while, what happens to Theater?
It's good.
I have a friend, Adam Gurri, who uses a phrase: "the flight to live." "Live," as in live performance. Building on the theories of Chris Anderson, who penned a very readable augury on information economics --The Long Tail, Adam and I firmly believe that the internet (in addition to solving all of humanities ills) will usher in a new age of live performance.
Here's how:
1. The "Live" is the one entertainment product that cannot be pirated. By it's very nature the live performance requires that you go and immerse yourself in the "art". The "art" cannot be compressed and delivered to you for free by the internet or any other series of tubes. Films, Music, Books, Photographs, will all be more and more difficult to profit from (difficult is the wrong word, Byzantine perhaps, since revenue will come from advertising or other indirect means rather than through individual sales). Live performance, however, will be even more profitable because...
2. The internet has amazing marketing, advertising, and community organizing possibilities. In the future, I can imagine a world where as you walk/drive down main street, passing countless businesses, your smart phone, at regular intervals, might pipe-up and recommend local attractions that you will be interested in (and by "you" I mean YOU, because with determinate algorithms your phone will know exactly what you like). So, while in century 20, you might just walk right by 1st Stage Spring Hill, in century 21 your phone will find it, know you love theater (you're reading this blog after all), and give you notice: "THEATER HERE!"
--That's the Long Term--
Already, however, the internet makes it so much easier to find what you like in a region, and help you plan a visit. Take this website for example. Here, on the blog, you can always find the latest news about our endeavor. Soon you will be able to view our upcoming season, find links to Amazon.com pages for the plays and related materials to that season, see streaming content of segments of our productions, buy tickets, learn about classes, sign up for classes, and more. I can't (being a young person) even begin to comprehend how difficult it was (pre-internet) to publicize and make available all that information! And now, I can give you a slip of paper with 21 letters on it (1ststagespringhill.org) and you can access everything you need to know! But the internet doesn't just make theater easier to find, it makes it richer, because...
3. The special effects industry has revolutionized the motion picture. This fact alone has been often used to explain live theater's inexorable decline over the late 20th century. Why, after all, would you want to see a couple of guys on stage when you can see a very lively, charming, vibrant, TALKING FISH in 3D? There are theater purists out there that would rather see the guys, but for the majority of audience members the bright fantastical light of the movie-house projector has certainly out-shined the limelight of the stage. Now, however, digital technology and live effects processing allow movie style special effects to come to the stage. Things like "digital holographic projection" may sound like science fiction but... they are right around the corner. I don't want to give too much away, but, here at 1st Stage we intend to pioneer these technologies. If you think (judging by our warehouse accommodations and our youth) that our productions will be interesting little artsy pieces --that I might enjoy/fall asleep in-- think again.
It's a very exciting time indeed!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Dinosaurs before script analysis
I audited one of the finest theatre classes on the market last week. It was part of a program called Classic Tales and Tunes created and taught by Jody Katz at the Arlington County Lee Center (as well as several other locations). The student body ranged in age from 18 months to 3 years. The theme that day was dinosaurs and in 45 quick and charged minutes the class sang songs about dinosaurs, interviewed a dinosaur puppet, used blocks to create the rhythm of a dinosaur walk, ate like the dinosaurs, danced like the dinosaurs, and became dinosaurs. All 12 of these young actors (as well as their adult companions--moms, grandparents, nannies, neighbors) were fully in the moment, fully real, and primed and ready to devour that poor cow in Jurassic Park. They believed as only very young--and very good actors--can believe.
When I taught high school I could pretty quickly identify the kids who were going to become believable characters onstage. The determining factor wasn't vocal quality or comfort level or technique or study--all, of course, important but not the be all and end all. It was the depth of imagination that really mattered.. Some very talented kids tried to fake it but you always knew when they didn't--or perhaps, couldn't-- fully believe in the world they were asked to create. They were caught in a sort of a lie and thus unable to drop through that membrane that separates the here and now from the "some other place" and "some other time". Some scent or aura or glint--or lack thereof--betrayed them and gave them away. They were caught!, and, to make it worse, the audience felt bad that they were caught--we were all caught in the big lie. The story they wanted to tell collapsed at their feet. You could pass it off as some fault in the story or the circumstance or the day, and sometimes that was certainly the case, but often it was more serious than that. Sometimes you just knew that the struggling actor would never be able to believe they could actually be someone other than themselves. They just couldn't get their senses to stop sending the obvious message to their brains and replace it with a less-than-obvious or more-than-obvious message. I'm not sure whether it's nurture or nature that gives some a brilliant imagination and others a roadblock to make-believe but I'm certain that classes in dinosaur dance are essential to good and great acting.
If you have, for some reason, aged past that particular dance style, then begin the search for just the right move that will shake you loose from that which holds you down. The remainder of acting problems are a cinch to solve after that.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
To Here
I have never considered myself to be a "New Yorker". So I lived there for some time, sure, but it always seemed silly to call myself a "NYer", especially in the face of people who were born there or people with families who are several generations deep. You wouldn't move to another Continent for a few years and start referring to yourself as a St. Petersburger or a Budapestian. That isn't to say I hadn't developed an affection for NY. New York is, well, I won't attempt to describe or classify my particular feelings for The City -- such a task has been done at length (and BETTER than I ever could) by many others. New York is New York. There.
I was happy there, but I never felt particularly troubled or pained to leave the City: some things I would miss, some not, and it would always be there when I got back. So it goes: you leave, you come back. Any of our fellow Gypsies will tell you, you go where the work is, you know? You come and you go for work. I'd done this many times, and it was always just fine.
Much to my surprise, when I was finally offered this extraordinary opportunity (that I had always been secretly hoping for), I found myself a bit reluctant. Leave NY? After 7 lean-ish years, I wasn't sure I was going to get to start with 7 fat years in another state, you know what I mean? Suddenly, Cab and Car honking didn't bother me, Subway commutes were a dream, my Pineapple Fried Rice from 49th and 9th was tastier, my Caporal Fried Chicken Crunchier, the days were brighter, the ladies more beautiful, what a wonderful WONDERFUL PLACE! Could I abandon my windy perch by the GW Bridge with panoramic views of the Hudson? Could I really leave all this for something I had always wanted? It seemed that the roots I never thought were there had seemingly taken hold. Of course, that's a bunch of hoo-ha. I just wasn't thinking.
Fortunately, two particular someones would abate my foolishness.
First, a close friend, a wonderful human I wouldn't mind calling my sister, left NY. It isn't her LEAVING that is interesting, it's the WHY she left. She is one of the best teachers I have had about what is truly Important in life. She was fine example of practicing what you preach. She had always proved her point grandly and boldly (and this was no exception): She had always wanted to have Paris as her home, and to be as fluent as a native speaker. She took a loan from the bank, sold her stuff, and blew town. As of this writing she is in her second term at the Sorbonne.
If that wasn't a bold enough, you know, MESSAGE or example or whatever, there was another incidental intervention -- from one (of a few) of my "Parents"-- (There are people in our lives who care deeply for us, and who know us better than we know ourselves. This is what I am refering to). As distant as I feel from the dummy I once was, sometimes, occasionally, Tom-Foolery resurfaces in our lives. B. Pearson helped me see the answer that he knew I knew (but I didn't know) that was right in front of my face. Follow? Here-- After a long walk that ended in Madison Square Park, and over burgers with a satisfying Cheese to Grease Ratio, B. Pearson (with diligent, fatherly patience) led me down the path to the answer that was in my innards -- in my heart, I mean. He helped me through all the extraneous baloney stuff and REALLY, TRULY answer the question "What do you want?" (Also, this simple question is the Key to any Acting anyone ever has done or will do). I had seen the light -- Finally. I had purpose now, and felt pulled to VA for 1st Stage. It all worked out.
Not long after, I went through my phone and invited everyone I could for a Fundraiser for what would be my last show (for the time being) in New York. The show turned out handsomely but closed as favorable reviews were surfacing. After the last performance, I had a nice quiet coffee with the best Blondie I've ever known. In the morning, by myself, I got a truck, loaded it, and made my way to the Bridge to Jersey. Now, this will sound stupid and syrupy and ridiculous, but I'm telling you it's the gods freakin honest truth: Pavarotti had passed the day before, and, as I crossed the span of the Upper Deck of the GW Bridge, I clicked the radio onto NPR. As I got my last look at NY, Pavarotti's 'Nessun Dorma' faded up as they closed the segment of "All Things Considered". The music swelled to it's moving finish as I crossed the Hudson and onto the Turnpike...to Here. To 1st Stage.
Wretch, Gag, Vomit, Lifetime-Original-Movie-Fodder though it may be, it happened. And, at the time, it was nice. I promise.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Coming soon... Virtually.
I wanted to put some information out into internets land about this website.
We've been experiencing increased traffic already, which is great (by the way, if you'd like to leave comments on any post, please do, we'd love for you to tell us who you are, and what you think about 1st Stage or our website or... anything). Soon, on the home page, there will be video features of some of our founding members/supporters sharing their thoughts, visions, progress etc.
Also, once we're in the space, building, the "Space" page (which now shows the architect's plans) will have video of construction.
As far as the "Shows" and "Training" pages go, they're empty now, but, within the week, we hope to have an outline of curriculum and information about our fist show (teaser: it's probably going to be Russian).
So, please continue to check in with us here at the website 1ststagespringhill.org. And finally, if you have any trouble viewing the pages or have any other technical concerns, feel free to email me at PVan@1ststagespringhill.org.
We've been experiencing increased traffic already, which is great (by the way, if you'd like to leave comments on any post, please do, we'd love for you to tell us who you are, and what you think about 1st Stage or our website or... anything). Soon, on the home page, there will be video features of some of our founding members/supporters sharing their thoughts, visions, progress etc.
Also, once we're in the space, building, the "Space" page (which now shows the architect's plans) will have video of construction.
As far as the "Shows" and "Training" pages go, they're empty now, but, within the week, we hope to have an outline of curriculum and information about our fist show (teaser: it's probably going to be Russian).
So, please continue to check in with us here at the website 1ststagespringhill.org. And finally, if you have any trouble viewing the pages or have any other technical concerns, feel free to email me at PVan@1ststagespringhill.org.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
The Performance/Education Connection
In my previous entry, I mentioned that we were confronted early on with the fact that the county zoning regulations don't list a theatre as an "acceptable use" of warehouse space. Maybe this will change one day but, for the present, we're occupying the space as a "school of special education". Please don't think this is some clever stretch of the law. Everything we do--from our acting classes to our rehearsals to our performance--will be rooted in our mission to train theatre artists and, by a natural extension, the audiences that watch them work. The name, "1st Stage", came about because we want to be a "first stage" for more than a few of the theatre artists--actors, managers, designers, techs--who leave universities, conservatories and training programs ready to prove their chops but still in need of that essential "learn by doing" step. If we can give them the time and a platform to "do it for real", surround them with seasoned professionals willing to pass on their real world experiences, and find them an all-too-real critical audience then we will be what we claim to be. Talent and knowledge have to be honed and there's no better place to do it than under lights.
And the education component of 1st Stage doesn't stop with professional performance. We also plan to offer acting classes for teens, adults and even seniors, weekend intensives that connect students to specialists in the theatre world, "talk-backs" and seminars for our audiences that help gain them a fresh sense of the playwright's mind and the performance process, and a summer camp that will give teens with a special interest in the arts an intensely focused and productive experience.
We have a lot on our plate for a start up (or is it upstart!) theatre company but our hearts are in the right place. We promise to do what we teach and learn as we grow.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Learning by Doing
Mark wrote, towards the close of his Homeric first parcel of blog, that a theater is more than just a building.
I'd like to echo the sentiment and declare that, for me, it's so much more... it's a website!
1st Stage will be an educational center for the artist. Already, it is one for me. Two weeks ago, I had a healthy fear of the internet. After all, if you look past all the rich color pictures, the high definition streaming video, the flood of news entertainment and networked data, not to mention the mountains of adult material, if you actually check what's behind it, you see things like this:
This happens to be part of the code for the little moving foot on the homepage(!?).
Two weeks ago, telling me, "Peter, embed a flash movie" would have been like telling me, "Peter, go into the room sized eniac computer, dodge the bolts of raw electricity, and change vacuum tube #1,456b, while avoiding breaker cables: B prime and C prime, which (of course!) lead straight to North American Missile Control."
Illustration:
But, thanks to the generous help and counsel of uncountable kind and anonymous souls on the internet, I still feel like I'm in a giant man-eating spiritual machine but... I CAN CHANGE THE TUBE! And... we have a little moving foot on the home page.
Sure, it's a small step (my apologies), but I feel energized. I feel mildly euphoric! Why?
Because I'm doing things for my art! After years of training for, preparing for, wishing for, I'm doing.
So, rather than fall into line with so many conservatory programs (which, by their very nature, conserve, seclude, and narrow the focus of the artist) it is my sincere hope that 1st stage will challenge all it's members to be extroverts with their talents and to develop them in the harsh but exhilarating light of the public eye!
Whether it's your first step onto the worldwide web, the blogosphere, or (soon!) the professional stage, it will surely be a worth-while and wild ride!
I'd like to echo the sentiment and declare that, for me, it's so much more... it's a website!
1st Stage will be an educational center for the artist. Already, it is one for me. Two weeks ago, I had a healthy fear of the internet. After all, if you look past all the rich color pictures, the high definition streaming video, the flood of news entertainment and networked data, not to mention the mountains of adult material, if you actually check what's behind it, you see things like this:
This happens to be part of the code for the little moving foot on the homepage(!?).
Two weeks ago, telling me, "Peter, embed a flash movie" would have been like telling me, "Peter, go into the room sized eniac computer, dodge the bolts of raw electricity, and change vacuum tube #1,456b, while avoiding breaker cables: B prime and C prime, which (of course!) lead straight to North American Missile Control."
Illustration:
But, thanks to the generous help and counsel of uncountable kind and anonymous souls on the internet, I still feel like I'm in a giant man-eating spiritual machine but... I CAN CHANGE THE TUBE! And... we have a little moving foot on the home page.Sure, it's a small step (my apologies), but I feel energized. I feel mildly euphoric! Why?
Because I'm doing things for my art! After years of training for, preparing for, wishing for, I'm doing.
So, rather than fall into line with so many conservatory programs (which, by their very nature, conserve, seclude, and narrow the focus of the artist) it is my sincere hope that 1st stage will challenge all it's members to be extroverts with their talents and to develop them in the harsh but exhilarating light of the public eye!
Whether it's your first step onto the worldwide web, the blogosphere, or (soon!) the professional stage, it will surely be a worth-while and wild ride!
Monday, March 3, 2008
A Little History
This initial entry is quite long. Feel free to skip to the end for where we are as of today on the long and winding road to a professional theatre in Tysons.
First, a little history: I thought this would be a breeze...rent a cheap warehouse space, hang some lights, add in a few chairs, call up a few talented actors, and put on a show. I knew that it wouldn't be as easy as the kids in those 1930's Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland movies--where a simple, "I know...let's build a theatre!" was more than enough to make it happen-but I didn't know much more. Of course now, I cringe at that original naivete but I've been told that most good things begin in the ignorant bliss of a dream.
We started looking for a warehouse space in May 2007. We wanted something in the Tysons/Merrifield area and we wanted something cheap. You may have noticed that there are few warehouses in this part of Northern Virginia and that nothing is cheap around here. But surprisingly, with the help of a great realtor, Samantha Bendigo, we found what seemed like the perfect space just off of Tyco Road. It was the right size; it was in a great location; and it was cheap...in fact, very cheap as long as we were willing to accept a short-term lease. The building was slated to be torn down in less than two years to make way for the development surrounding the new metro stations in Tysons, and the landlord was willing to let it go for next to nothing as long as we were willing to walk away an hour or so before the wrecking ball arrived. Nat Krause, a 3rd year architecture student at Carnegie Mellon, drew up some beautiful plans for the space and I headed to the county government offices for approval.
Or not...and this is where the sweet and sincere naivete morphed into embarrassing ignorance. Although well aware that new businesses don't open without the proper permits, I had no idea that securing them would be such a huge hurdle. I learned very quickly-in fact within seconds of my sitting down-that warehouses aren't zoned for theatres. (This may explain why Fairfax County is without a professional theatre, not counting Wolf Trap, a national park, or The Theatre of the 1st Amendment which has a special relationship with George Mason University. Most Washington area theatres had their start in warehouses, garages, or similar industrial sites where the open space makes for a good performance venue.) Beyond zoning there were equally high hurdles: traffic and parking, building, electrical, plumbing, ventilation, fire safety and more. And so I gave up...for about a day, but then "Saint" Linda Smyth, County Board of Supervisors (Providence District), intervened.
My friend, Sonia Guzman, who believed in this project, suggested that I speak directly to the local county supervisor who, Sonia believed, would be interested enough in the idea that she could help navigate the county government. I had my doubts but Sonia made the appointment and the three of us, Sonia, Nat and myself, sat down with supervisor Smith and her aides and made our pitch. We reasoned that Tysons had to have a theatre if it were ever to become the urban center that it should be. What city doesn't have the arts to keep it alive? I went on with great flourish to describe the delighted audiences loving their "city" all the more because of what it had to offer. She listened, smiled, looked at her aides, and said, "Zoning will be a deal breaker." Amending the zoning ordinance or even getting a variance to allow for a theatre in a warehouse would be a long and costly undertaking. Remember, at this point we still hoped to use the space on Tyco Road and it came with a short-term lease. By the time we got a variance, the building would be history. Linda Smyth suggested an alternative path. From the start, our mission always included a strong educational element. Not only was there a need and a market for more intense actor training than one could get elsewhere in the county, but it also made financial sense for the institution. An "acceptable use" for warehouses in the zoning ordinance is for "schools of special education". Hmm...interesting. Could this "theatre" be framed in such a way that even the performances could be educational components? Yes. An apt metaphor is a teaching hospital. (Grey's Anatomy fans will understand immediately.) The physicians (our actors, designers and technicians) are on a continuum of education: students, interns, residents, specialists, professors and so on. A surgeon teaches and learns even as he/she operates (creates art). The patient (the audience member) is healed (stimulated, excited, informed, challenged) by learners and teachers working side by side. Take away the blood-okay, there will be blood if we ever do a Martin McDonagh play-and the metaphor is perfect. What originally gave rise to the idea of a theatre in the first place-a home for young and emerging theatre artists who've graduated from our high schools and gone off to train for professional careers in theatre and now need a "first stage" to get their careers on the road-was the very thing that would make sense to the earnest gatekeepers in the government center. Thank you Linda Smyth. That first meeting led to a second where Supervisor Smyth had gathered the heads of just about every permit office in the county. We came prepped with and by the architectural firm of Butz Wilbern. They knew the lingo of those who might permit and were able to finesse their way through a barrage of questions and temporary refusals. By the end of the meeting everyone was in agreement that not only could this happen but that it also should happen. It was only a short while to show time. FYI, that meeting took place July 11. Carbon Dioxide had yet to come into play.
It makes perfect sense-and there really isn't any creative way around it-that any time you assemble a crowd there is likely to be a lot of breathing going on. The thought of an audience poisoned by their own CO2 doesn't make for good reviews. The Tyco Road space lacked sufficient ventilation. When the mechanical engineers suggested a $70,000 fix for the problem, we were once again back to square one. Perhaps if we had a longer lease, the investment would have made sense but as such this former tire warehouse would never find glory as a performing arts center. At least now, I knew a little more about what to look for in the commercial warehouse world. Of course, the fact that warehouses are few and far between didn't make the search easier. Samantha, the realtor, found a few but all had their own problems: one was ventilated but way too expensive, another was the right price but the wrong shape (every seat would have site line problems), still another was without parking, one came with a suspiciously strange and awkwardly tactile landlord, and one was snatched from under us even as we were calling the landlord to say we'll take it. By October, I knew every industrial space in the area but to now avail. Samantha patiently suggested we start the search from the beginning and take a look at everything available one more time. And so we arrived back at the very first building she showed me in June but was nixed at the time because it seemed too expensive. For every reason, 1524 Spring Hill Road now seemed more than right for what we wanted.
Of course it has its own problems, all of which we're trying to solve. Any time a space is undergoing a "change of use," a parking study has to be submitted to prove that the parking lot can handle additional cars. It took nearly two months to put it together and it may take two more months for the county to rule on it. Jack Wilbern and his associates at Butz Wilbern have created a beautiful and exciting set of plans for the space that now has to layered with engineer's drawings for all of the mechanical components-electric, plumbing, ventilation, etc. If all goes as we hope, we might be in the space as early as April. With additional luck, we may actually have a show (and a class) up and running by June. Keep your fingers crossed. This theatre thing may actually happen.
Oh, yeah...I don't want you to think that theatre is all about a building and nothing more. Next time, I'll try to fill you in on all of our discussions and meetings... and more discussions and meetings...about a season of plays, casting, classes, philosophy, etc. There are some great ideas brewing.
First, a little history: I thought this would be a breeze...rent a cheap warehouse space, hang some lights, add in a few chairs, call up a few talented actors, and put on a show. I knew that it wouldn't be as easy as the kids in those 1930's Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland movies--where a simple, "I know...let's build a theatre!" was more than enough to make it happen-but I didn't know much more. Of course now, I cringe at that original naivete but I've been told that most good things begin in the ignorant bliss of a dream.
We started looking for a warehouse space in May 2007. We wanted something in the Tysons/Merrifield area and we wanted something cheap. You may have noticed that there are few warehouses in this part of Northern Virginia and that nothing is cheap around here. But surprisingly, with the help of a great realtor, Samantha Bendigo, we found what seemed like the perfect space just off of Tyco Road. It was the right size; it was in a great location; and it was cheap...in fact, very cheap as long as we were willing to accept a short-term lease. The building was slated to be torn down in less than two years to make way for the development surrounding the new metro stations in Tysons, and the landlord was willing to let it go for next to nothing as long as we were willing to walk away an hour or so before the wrecking ball arrived. Nat Krause, a 3rd year architecture student at Carnegie Mellon, drew up some beautiful plans for the space and I headed to the county government offices for approval.
Or not...and this is where the sweet and sincere naivete morphed into embarrassing ignorance. Although well aware that new businesses don't open without the proper permits, I had no idea that securing them would be such a huge hurdle. I learned very quickly-in fact within seconds of my sitting down-that warehouses aren't zoned for theatres. (This may explain why Fairfax County is without a professional theatre, not counting Wolf Trap, a national park, or The Theatre of the 1st Amendment which has a special relationship with George Mason University. Most Washington area theatres had their start in warehouses, garages, or similar industrial sites where the open space makes for a good performance venue.) Beyond zoning there were equally high hurdles: traffic and parking, building, electrical, plumbing, ventilation, fire safety and more. And so I gave up...for about a day, but then "Saint" Linda Smyth, County Board of Supervisors (Providence District), intervened.
My friend, Sonia Guzman, who believed in this project, suggested that I speak directly to the local county supervisor who, Sonia believed, would be interested enough in the idea that she could help navigate the county government. I had my doubts but Sonia made the appointment and the three of us, Sonia, Nat and myself, sat down with supervisor Smith and her aides and made our pitch. We reasoned that Tysons had to have a theatre if it were ever to become the urban center that it should be. What city doesn't have the arts to keep it alive? I went on with great flourish to describe the delighted audiences loving their "city" all the more because of what it had to offer. She listened, smiled, looked at her aides, and said, "Zoning will be a deal breaker." Amending the zoning ordinance or even getting a variance to allow for a theatre in a warehouse would be a long and costly undertaking. Remember, at this point we still hoped to use the space on Tyco Road and it came with a short-term lease. By the time we got a variance, the building would be history. Linda Smyth suggested an alternative path. From the start, our mission always included a strong educational element. Not only was there a need and a market for more intense actor training than one could get elsewhere in the county, but it also made financial sense for the institution. An "acceptable use" for warehouses in the zoning ordinance is for "schools of special education". Hmm...interesting. Could this "theatre" be framed in such a way that even the performances could be educational components? Yes. An apt metaphor is a teaching hospital. (Grey's Anatomy fans will understand immediately.) The physicians (our actors, designers and technicians) are on a continuum of education: students, interns, residents, specialists, professors and so on. A surgeon teaches and learns even as he/she operates (creates art). The patient (the audience member) is healed (stimulated, excited, informed, challenged) by learners and teachers working side by side. Take away the blood-okay, there will be blood if we ever do a Martin McDonagh play-and the metaphor is perfect. What originally gave rise to the idea of a theatre in the first place-a home for young and emerging theatre artists who've graduated from our high schools and gone off to train for professional careers in theatre and now need a "first stage" to get their careers on the road-was the very thing that would make sense to the earnest gatekeepers in the government center. Thank you Linda Smyth. That first meeting led to a second where Supervisor Smyth had gathered the heads of just about every permit office in the county. We came prepped with and by the architectural firm of Butz Wilbern. They knew the lingo of those who might permit and were able to finesse their way through a barrage of questions and temporary refusals. By the end of the meeting everyone was in agreement that not only could this happen but that it also should happen. It was only a short while to show time. FYI, that meeting took place July 11. Carbon Dioxide had yet to come into play.
It makes perfect sense-and there really isn't any creative way around it-that any time you assemble a crowd there is likely to be a lot of breathing going on. The thought of an audience poisoned by their own CO2 doesn't make for good reviews. The Tyco Road space lacked sufficient ventilation. When the mechanical engineers suggested a $70,000 fix for the problem, we were once again back to square one. Perhaps if we had a longer lease, the investment would have made sense but as such this former tire warehouse would never find glory as a performing arts center. At least now, I knew a little more about what to look for in the commercial warehouse world. Of course, the fact that warehouses are few and far between didn't make the search easier. Samantha, the realtor, found a few but all had their own problems: one was ventilated but way too expensive, another was the right price but the wrong shape (every seat would have site line problems), still another was without parking, one came with a suspiciously strange and awkwardly tactile landlord, and one was snatched from under us even as we were calling the landlord to say we'll take it. By October, I knew every industrial space in the area but to now avail. Samantha patiently suggested we start the search from the beginning and take a look at everything available one more time. And so we arrived back at the very first building she showed me in June but was nixed at the time because it seemed too expensive. For every reason, 1524 Spring Hill Road now seemed more than right for what we wanted.
Of course it has its own problems, all of which we're trying to solve. Any time a space is undergoing a "change of use," a parking study has to be submitted to prove that the parking lot can handle additional cars. It took nearly two months to put it together and it may take two more months for the county to rule on it. Jack Wilbern and his associates at Butz Wilbern have created a beautiful and exciting set of plans for the space that now has to layered with engineer's drawings for all of the mechanical components-electric, plumbing, ventilation, etc. If all goes as we hope, we might be in the space as early as April. With additional luck, we may actually have a show (and a class) up and running by June. Keep your fingers crossed. This theatre thing may actually happen.
Oh, yeah...I don't want you to think that theatre is all about a building and nothing more. Next time, I'll try to fill you in on all of our discussions and meetings... and more discussions and meetings...about a season of plays, casting, classes, philosophy, etc. There are some great ideas brewing.
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- The Future of Opera
- simple and true
- Satyagraha
- Reading List
- Undeniable
- CGI
- The Silent Stage
- and Other Monsters
- Being a student
- A Monster Season
