“New York, New York It’s a Helluva Town…”

Part Two of my fellowship brings me to New York. Unlike my fellow “fellows” I do not live in New York nor have I had the opportunity to spend a significant amount of time in the city…until now!

What a gift it is to be here supported by the Drama League- seeing great theatre, meeting fascinating professionals from all branches of the industry, assisting on a huge production and directing a 30 minute play with an incredible team.

My assisting assignment was Encores production of “On The Town” at City Center. Great cast, incredible musicians and outstanding choreography. This was a “concert” production (the most produced concert you have ever been seen) It was an incredibly fast process (9 days.) Just being able to see the entire operation and watching how the director handled the pressure and the chaos was a real learning experience. Another big gift was meeting the choreographer Warren Carlyle. Three numbers are Robbins choreography and the rest are Warren’s. The first act alone had 30 minutes of non-singing dance sections. The dance and music were breathtaking. Fantastic training for my eyes and ears. The big take away lesson from this experience is “Make it happen now- no excuses!” Other highlights include the sitzprobe, casual conversations with the artistic director Jack Veirtel, and being a part of the Bernstein celebration. This whole experience was such fun for me as I was “On the Town” for the first time and filled with the romance and excitement of New York City. (I even took to wearing a sailor suit- hee hee)

The conclusion of the Drama League experience was our Showcase. I chose to direct George Brant’s short play “shop talk.” It is a dark, wickedly funny, and surprising drama. I knew I had to direct it because a) I couldn’t stop thinking about the twisted relationships, b) I knew that the play would set us all up for success- great characters each with a dynamic and complete journey, unit set, precise language, humor c) I anticipated it would be a relatively easy play to cast as all the characters were in their late 20s-mid 30s, d) I have worked with the playwright on several other productions and have a great collaborative relationship with him – I also knew that he was open to being a part of this process, e) I anticipated it would be a fun challenge but not an overly taxing piece for the designers given the budget and time- factoring in that they would also be working on 3 other short plays.

What a fun, fantastic and fruitful project it proved to be. My actors were phenomenal – one I knew well before this process, one I had only met before, and one who was a complete stranger. The playwright was supportive and involved- rewriting and tweaking throughout the process. The designers were open, creative and responsive. In spite of the time limitations, I felt like we all were working from a place of ease and joy. I credit this to the supportive environment fostered by Roger and the Drama League and the wonderful non-competitive, truly curious and deeply generous spirit of my fellow directors. How lucky I am to be in the company of Alice, Shira and Wes.

I am sad that the 4 month fellowship is over but am confident that this is just the beginning of many relationships that will grow and hopefully prove to be life long.Thank you all so much.

Toxic Avenger and Barnum: Two Musicals That Couldn't Be More Different

Wes here.  

It has been a while since my last blog entry. A lot has happened.

Here it goes - two action-packed assistantships in one blog entry. 

Number 1. Toxic Avenger at George Street Playhouse. 

Assisting John Rando on this show was a really exciting ride. The Toxic Avenger Musical (herein referred to as Toxie) is an incredibly offbeat musical with lot's of special effects and a huge 80's rock score by David Bryan (of Bon Jovi Fame). The show is based on Lloyd Kaufman's B-movie cult classic of the same name. The film is known for excessive gore and off-color jokes about the handicapped. Some people love the film and others can't stand it. I fall somewhere in between. The musical is a surprisingly touching and disarmingly funny love story between a mutant freak and a blind librarian (if you can imagine such a thing). 

At the beginning of the process John made it very clear that he needed me to be on top of special effects. So each day I arrived at rehearsal ready to test exploding props, experiment with rip-away body parts, and play with glowing toxic ooze. The goal was to keep the special effects in the low-tech, B-movie realm, which proved to be an exciting challenge. In was sort of like playing the board game Mousetrap. You pull the string, which releases the ooze, which flows through the tube and out of the toxic waste barrel. The trick was to get these homemade effects to work consistently. There was a whole team of folks working on it and eventually we got things to work really well and the audience loved it. 

Overall, it was a really rewarding experience. I did all the usual assisting stuff too (take notes, get coffee, relay messages), but it was really nice to have unique projects to work on. Watching the show, I especially enjoyed hearing the audience respond to Toxie tearing limbs off the bad guys and ooze bubbling out of barrels. I helped make those effects happen. 

Number 2. Barnum at Asolo Rep.

Barnum directed by Gordon Greenberg was a particularly interesting show to work on. Gordon was out of town a bunch and I got to run rehearsals (great!). Only trouble was Barnum is a proper musical with long numbers, circus sequences, and lots of dancing; and I didn't have much experience with proper musicals or circus skills. 

Barnum was the opener of Asolo Rep's 50th Anniversary season and it was really big deal for them. In addition to the production they also had a sideshow in the lobby that I directed. So needless to say, I was very busy. This show was sort of a crash course in big traditional musicals (and then some). It helped that we had a great choreographer and that I was assisting a director with wealth of musical theatre experience. I learned a great deal from both of them. I picked up the vocabulary quickly and realized the big musicals aren't that much different than other shows. You just have different tools to tell the story. 

I directed the third-year conservatory students in the sideshow and I really enjoyed working with them. They made the process easy for me. We rehearsed the sideshow after regular rehearsals, but I had fun regardless of the long hours. The students brought a lot to the table and made me laugh. I think what we created really added to the audience's experience of the show.    

Ultimately both assistantships were rewarding and educational in different ways. Going into this fellowship I did not imagine I would assist on two musicals, but now I couldn't imagine it differently. The two shows were on totally different ends of the musical theatre spectrum and I know infinitely more about the genre than I did a few months ago. And on top of that, I really like the directors I assisted and consider them friends. What more can you ask?

Rattlestick, week #1

Alice here.

I just finished week #1 of my first assistant directing assigement. I have been in rehearsals for GEOMETRY OF FIRE a new play by Stephen Belber, directed by Lucie Tiberghien, at the Rattlestick Theater.

Even though the play has been developed at Sundance and New York Stage and Film, Steve has been in rehearsal, doing extensive rewrites all week. It's been a real crash course for me in script development. We sit around the table, read a scene, and then start questioning 1) the timeline and 2) the who-knows-what-when aspects. Real nuts and bolts stuff, but with a play that is happening now, and about the Iraq war, Steve wants to be careful--this is a topic that a lot of people know a lot about. It matters greatly if our Iraq vet, Mel, joined the marines in 2001 after 9/11 or in 2004 after Bush was re-elected or in 2005 when the surge appeared to be a disaster.

Steve has also rewritten large chunks of one character, Cynthia. Cynthia (and the other 3 females roles) are all played by Jennifer Mudge, a longtime Belber collaborator. Steve is trying to give Cynthia a richer and more detailed backstory and journey through the play, without it seeming hamhanded.

I'm surprised by how much input from the actors affects the script, and how willing Steve is completely rewrite scenes. It's been an exciting first week, and we haven't even stood up yet.

Alliance Assistantship

My first assignment was assisting Susan Booth, the Artistic Director of The Alliance Theatre on a world premiere called "Managing Maxine" by Atlanta-based playwright Janece Shaffer.  For many years  I have admired Susan Booth for her commitment to producing new work, her skillful direction, and her bold leadership of a major regional theatre.  It was my hope that this Drama League Fellowship would give me the opportunity to observe Susan's collaboration with the playwright, to study her work with outstanding New York and Atlanta-based actors, and to be introduced to the incredible team at the Alliance Theatre.  These hopes were realized and surpassed.

During my six weeks in Atlanta I was introduced to the playwright Janece Shaffer and her body of work.  I witnessed an easeful playwright/director collaboration based on mutual respect, hearty doses of humor, and deep listening.  I hope I am not embarrassing Janece when I say how refreshing it was to have a playwright in the room who was genuinely tickled by the rehearsal process.  No cringing in the corner for her - and as a result, her affection and admiration for the text, the actors, the direction and the process lifted us all.

Before I arrived in Atlanta, Susan had emailed me asking me to pay attention to the transitions in the play.  Like many modern plays, "Managing Maxine" has several short scenes in a variety of locations and our lead character Maxine was in just about every one.  I appreciated Susan engaging me in the process from the start.  Her clear, confident and articulate vision of the play made it easy for all of the collaborators to understand the style of performance, including the transition conventions.

Aware of my interest in artistic leadership and the workings of regional theaters, Susan generously arranged meetings for me with several senior managers of the Alliance.  The members of her dynamic and talented artistic staff were incredibly welcoming, giving me an in-depth view of their community artistic engagement practices and their new play development programs.  Members of the artistic staff also took me around Atlanta, introducing me to some of the other theaters in town:  the Actors Express, Georgia Shakespeare, and the Center for Puppetry Arts.  

I am grateful to all the Atlanta ambassadors and new friends (Patrick, Celise, Lance, Courtenay, Haddon, Ben, I could go on) who introduced me to the finest and most interesting highlights in the Atlanta area: the town of Decatur, Watershed, The Brick Store, Eddie's Attic, The Virginia Highlands, Stone Mountain, Kennesaw Mountain Battleground, Holman and Fitch.  A very special thanks to Laura and Jonathan for allowing me to stay in their home.

Only downsides - the gas shortages and the southern "delicacy," souse.  As for the gas, for two weeks, I did not know where my next tank was coming from - stations were closed for days at a time and when they did have gas lines were hours long.  And the souse - well, let's just say it made me rethink my "I'll try anything once" credo!

Wonder Week and The Retreat

Wonder Week
Crushing Stereotypes

Wonder Week was designed to introduce us “to more people in five days than we would meet in five years” on our own. I am not a statistician but a think the mission was successful. We met with agents, producers, directors, artistic directors, designers, union reps., new play advocates, lit managers, and casting directors, not surprisingly, filling our notebooks with excellent practical pointers and logistical advice. What was surprising was how inspiring these meetings were. Deep care and concern for the art-making process and unabashed love for the theatre were on full display in arenas that one might stereotypically imagine being filled with cynics and hardened naysayers.

The Retreat
Provoking the Glorious

In one of our inspiring Wonder week meetings an agent talked about art’s responsibility “to provoke the glorious.” Whether or not Roger and Daniela had the same goal for the Berkshires retreat, the result was the same: truly Glorious. While I could run out of superlatives describing the setting, the food, the campfire what I will carry forward from the retreat are the examples of camaraderie, courage and collaboration that flowed freely during those three days. Camaraderie: the bond that was forged between the four fellows, Courage: in the Tennessee Williams pitch meetings, in undertaking the R&J scenes, in working with seasoned actors on the monologues, and Collaboration: the unimaginable things that can happen in a respectful and playful environment where “Yes” and “Let’s try it” are the easiest words in the world. (I would be remiss if I didn’t also include Co-ordination: MB, Roger, Daniela, and the Stump Sprouts team- many thanks!)

Observing Road Show at The Public Theater

Shira here.

I had my first day at the public yesterday - it was so fascinating. For the next 2 months I'll be observing on "Road Show" the new musical by Stephen Sondheim & John Weidman. The show has had many previous incarnations - they've been working on it for ten years - but John Doyle, the director, was very clear that he thought of this as doing a new musical, and we should think of it that way, too. It was a great way to start the day, and a really positive tone to set in the room.

He doesn't do read-throughs. We spent the first day, after the meet & greet, jumping right in and learning songs. The cast is remarkable and the story has a lot of heart.

Oskar Eustis gave a great speech at the beginning of the meet & greet, and between him and John, I learned a lot about how to present yourself on the first day. It's a leadership lesson, and one I'm always looking for tips on everywhere I go. The first day makes me crazy with fear. Both Oskar and John demonstrated excitement, and a little trepidation that they admitted to, but great joy. They were articulate about what they wanted to say, and didn't try to say everything in one 2 minute speech. It made for a happy day. I'm really happy to embarking on this adventure at such a wonderful theater.

Wonder Week and Stump Sprouts

What's up Drama League Blog!

This Wes Grantom, another of the fall fellows. 

I second everything Alice and Shira have said about the program thus far. Wonder Week and the retreat at Stump Sprouts were filled with incredible experiences that I'm excited to take with me on the rest of my Drama League journey. (A huge thanks to Sonia for taking such gorgeous photos.)

Wonder Week was informative and insightful. We met with professionals from all over the theatre community and each of them offered a unique perspective on working in the theatre. One of my favorite experiences was having dinner with Neil Pepe at Gramercy Tavern. It was totally my kind of thing: delicious food, nice wine, and amazing conversation. I also really enjoyed meeting with Morgan Jenness at Abrams and Emily Morse and John Steber at New Dramatists. All three spoke candidly and passionately about their advocacy for playwrights and theatre artists. Hearing them speak was both inspiring and reassuring. It's nice to know we have people like Morgan, Emily, and John out there making sure artists' voices are heard. And if you haven't done so, do yourself a favor and spend some time reading plays in the script library at New Dramatists. It's a wonderful way to spend a few hours or an entire afternoon.

There's so much to say about the retreat at Stump Sprouts...working with Daniella, hanging out with Roger and Mary Beth, the actors, and the food!! It was a creative stimulus extravaganza mixed with a bit of fun and relaxation. And I was continually impressed by the work of my colleagues. Alice, Laura, and Shira are all incredibly smart, imaginative directors and I am grateful I had the opportunity to feed off their genius for a few days. 

Now we're off to our assistantships. Big adventures ahead!!