“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.