Illegitimi non carborundum

The dust-up regarding this year’s Wasserstein Prize is over – at least for now – but I wanted to share these links, to create a record of the situation for us here. I admit I was a bit behind on this controversy myself.  All of these blog posts are well worth reading:

Recap from The New York Times’ ArtsBeat blog

Reaction from Boston-based playwright Kirsten Greenidge and a follow-up

NYC playwright Callie Kimball on the NPR blog

It seems appropriate, during this week when we pause to reflect on our various gifts over turkey and stuffing, to say that among the many things for which I am grateful as a playwright are colleagues such as Kirsten and Callie – and so many more – who do not shy away from taking a stand in the face of unfairness (and, in this case, absurdity). Those a bit more removed from the front lines (like me) because of other jobs, family obligations, etc., are certainly thankful for it.

[As for my own opinion, I have a one-word response to the notion that not a single play written by a woman under the age of 32 this year was deserving of such an award; however, in the interest of maintaining the family tone here, I won’t actually type the word. Instead, I will just say this: Two syllables, rhymes with “nitwit,” and begins with the letter ‘B’.]

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone.

Giving thanks

For the past four years Boston Playwrights’ Theatre has hosted a holiday thank you party for the year’s donors. Each year we ask our alumni and friends to participate in the nights festivities…here are few highlights:

John Kuntz’s interpretive dance with Dossy Peabody and Kippy Goldfarb—I’ve never seen a man move women that way.

A choir of children singing Christmas songs and Jake’s indignation that they ate all our cheese.

Dan Hunter’s loving tenderness on the guitar—that man can rock a hat like nobody can.

And of course, there’s the free wine bar.

Coming up on this year’s holiday party I’m reminded how thankful I am to work in such a wonderful, unique and utterly bizarre environment.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Globe on the Shea Play: Welcome to Somerville....

Read the write-up here.

Teaching First-Time Playwrights

Yeah. That's Euripides. Another odd bird of three.

Yesterday I taught one of my favorite sessions of my Introduction to Creative Writing class here at BU.  We've spent much of the semester learning about and workshopping poetry and fiction, and now, in the last couple weeks, we move to Playwriting. 
But, unlike the transition from poetry to fiction, the students are figuring out how to use another medium - what ends up on the page is as important as ever, but incidental to the thing we ultimately refer to as "theatre."  It is a sister art of the two, and shares a lot -- economy, the power of the voice, image and music with poetry; it shares character, some structural components (conflict, plotting, climax), and Gardner's "vivid and continuous dream" with fiction. (That's from John Gardner's The Art of Fiction, a lovely cranky book young fiction writers should own!) But it remains the odd bird of the three. 

But the kind of writing a play requires is often so different from the other two, it can feel to the first-timer, comfortable working on the page, as if I'd asked them to show up for their painting class only to find ballet shoes instead of easels. 

Writing for movement; writing for any kind of performance is a sinewy request and begs the writer to imagine the world around the challenges the words present - every step of the way (pun intended).  How do we understand the dynamic between two characters without bumbling into dull expository dialogue?  How do we keep from over-writing when the language of the actors' bodies, or the movement of a prop, or even a lighting change tells us paragraphs of information?  And most importantly, how do you trick yourself into writing action by action the content and heart of an idea? 

You can't.  You CAN'T -  if you do it by yourself.  You need to put your script down and watch actors move and speak your lines.   You need to see the letter hidden in the plant to know if it makes sense there.    You need to see actors improvise the moments you can't get right.  You need to realize that the quick change doesn't work there, that the black out stops the action too much, that your character needs to change clothes before the next scene or it doesn't makes sense.  You need a director or a designer to help you step back from the play to see the bigger shape it makes. 

What makes it my favorite class of the year?  I hand silly props (a plastic duck, an odd bird) to writers who have worked hard in their dorm rooms all semester, pair them up, and ask them to write something in ten minutes. 

A: "Hold this."

B: "What is it?"

A: "Watch!"

B: "Will it hurt?"
 

A: "You'll see."  

The ballet shoes suddenly make sense. 

New play by Molly Smith Metzler set for world premiere at Humana

Among the offerings at next spring’s 2011 Humana Festival of New American Plays, presented by The Actors Theatre of Louisville, will be the world premiere of BPT alum Molly Smith Metzler’s play Elemeno Pea. 

Molly Smith Metzler

"When Devon visits Simone for an end-of-summer sibs fest on Martha's Vineyard, she finds her little sister changed beyond recognition. As personal assistant to wealthy and demanding trophy wife Michaela Kell, Simone enjoys a lavish beachfront lifestyle that these girls never could have imagined growing up in blue-collar Buffalo—but is all this luxury really free of cost? Worlds collide and sisters square off in this keenly observed comedy about ambition, regret, and the choices that shape who we become."

This season’s Festival will also include productions of new work by Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Dan Dietz, Jennifer Haley, Jordan Harrison, Allison Moore, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, A. Rey Pamatmat, Marco Ramirez, Adam Rapp and Anne Washburn.

Molly’s BU thesis play, Training Wisteria, was the winner of multiple awards at KCACTF in 2003.

Congrats Molly!

Melinda Lopez talks 'Sonia Flew'- its journey, its timeliness, and the new production

Is this the first student production? How did it come to fruition?
There have been several student productions-- one in Miami at the University, another at NYU (perhaps more) -- but this is the first student production I have been able to see. My boss at Wellesley College, the wonderful Nora Hussey, has been wanting to produce the play for a while, but our theatre has been under construction for the past 2 years. This is the first production in the new space-- which is cool because Sonia Flew was also the first production at the Wimberly in 2004 (and also the last production at the Coconut Grove Playhouse in Miami, but that's a very different tale of woe).

You've now had the chance to see Sonia Flew in various incarnations. How has the play itself and your relationship with the play changed over the last 6+ years?

I've seen 5 or 6 productions of it, all at large regional theatres, and every one has been special. All had very different challenges. There have probably been 20+ done across the US. A few things I have learned--

1. Sometimes it's better if the writer is not in the room in early rehearsals, especially if it's not the world premiere. Actors get squirrelly.
   
2. No one wants to buy the playwright a drink. The cast makes a family, but it never includes the writer (I'm not being maudlin.) You watch a lot of TV when you are on the road.
3. The first production makes an indelible mark on you, and in some ways, you never move on. I still see moments from that production every time I see the play. I also learned, that:
4. Yes, life goes on, and at some point, you don't need to see every production that's out there. You get an e-mail, or you hear from a friend in Ann Arbor that your show is running there, and can you get them tickets? (No, I probably couldn't even get myself tickets.) It's weird, but also wonderful. Like a lover that you had a very intense romance with, and then you went your separate ways-- but you're happy to hear they are doing well.

How has the play changed as the political climate has shifted?

When I started writing the play, in spring 2003, the US had declared 'mission accomplished' in Iraq. The Taliban had been in defeated in Afghanistan. I believed that if the play was ever produced, no one would remember that we had even been at war there. When the play was produced at Steppenwolf, 2007, one reviewer ripped me apart (why are the attacks on writers always so personal?) for putting soldiers onstage in a war when we were still fighting that war. I still don't understand her point-- but it was the last time I saw the play (until Wellesley College) because the review hurt me so deeply. We were also on track for a Broadway production (whatever that means), and after the reviews in Chicago, the producers backed out. Remember, this is a play about Cuba, right? Recently I got an e-mail from the director at San Jose Rep, (2010) who said it is incredibly timely, and still resonating, and his audiences were deeply, deeply moved. The/ 9/11 part still strikes people, but what I hear much more often is the wrenching historical moment of Cuba 1961-- and how the language of the sacrifices that were made for freedom then (for Sonia's family) just rips their hearts out. It's like the current moment is intellectually challenging, but it's the Cuba stuff that people respond to emotionally. I don't know. I can't really figure it out. On the other hand-- one character says, "They're still burning. The Towers. I went, and they're still burning." I feel like those towers will always be burning. It's just seared into me.

Of all the plays you've written, is Sonia Flew your favorite?
I don't know if it's my favorite play. I love my play Gary, like an orphan-red-headed step child-- Gary is the Melinda that nobody knows. Sonia Flew is much more publicly, openly Me. I don't know if it's my best play. I do know that I captured a moment so awful and painful and true and beautiful that I know people are deeply affected by the play. And I am really proud of that.

Final thoughts on the new production:

This production at Wellesley is beautiful. We have some actors who have never been in a play before. I am really proud of that. Some of the students play really tough scenes with guest artists (professional actors) and they go head to head with them and don't back down. I love that-- Tough women. Some of the actors are getting -- for the first time-- a chance to play their own ethnicity on stage. They just ring out. This is a tough, complicated play, and this company is meeting it head on, with enormous passion. I am so excited to see the play again.


Click here for more information on the current production of Sonia Flew.
Wellesley College Theatre Box Office: (781) 283-2000

'Sonia Flew' Flies Again: This Time at Wellesley

Like other grad students at BPT, I was lucky enough to have Melinda Lopez for a playwriting teacher and mentor this past year. I had read (and heard the broadcast of) her gorgeous play, Sonia Flew, but was living in California when it was in Boston. Strangely (and annoyingly) enough, I was in Boston this year when it was in California! My friends and family saw it, and are now big Melinda fans too. The point is, I've never seen it, and I've always wanted to and...now, I finally can! There will be a limited run (through Sunday, November 14) at Wellesley College, where Melinda is a member of the faculty. Maybe you've seen this award-winning play already, or maybe you, too, have tragically missed it--either way, you should catch the student production of it. The production is a result of a collaboration process between Wellesley faculty members: Ken Loewitt, Nora Hussey, Diego Arciniegas, and Melinda Lopez. Boston actors like Scott Severance and Will Keary will join talented student artists on stage. For more information about this production click here. You can also call the Wellesley Theatre Box Office at (781)283-2000. See you there!

Playwright and Actor Wallace Shawn Birthday Today

Also according to his imdb profile, he does not own a television. Just food for thought.

Daylight Savings, What?

Well, it's been four days, and I still can't adjust to this brighter morning, darkness at the end of the workday thing. What effect, do you think, it has on the writer?

Here's a little something from the nytimes this past Sunday, including a poem from Derek.

The challenge: Not to be shy about Chi

Okay, I admit it: I’m a little shy when it comes to self-promotion. I don’t send out mass e-mails. I don’t Facebook. And you certainly won’t catch me tweeting about anything.

Why is it that the prospect of promoting my own work feels obnoxious somehow, yet I’m always interested in what other people are doing and never consider them obnoxious when they talk about it? [And on that note, fellow BPT alums, don’t forget to send me your news so we can write about it in this space.] 

Last Sunday, at the Dramatists Guild’s Town Hall in Boston, Executive Director of Creative Affairs Gary Garrison spoke of the importance of being able to talk about ourselves and our work. Gary gave the example of two friends of his, both excellent actors. One never shies from talking about herself, the projects she’s working on, and as a result ends up forging tons of connections with all kinds of people. The other – an equally excellent performer, mind you – is much quieter, and prefers to just audition and hope for the best. “Guess who gets more work?” Gary asked us. Or, was he talking to me? Ugh.

Clearly, I’m going to have to figure all this out if I plan to stick with this playwriting gig. So, with all this in mind,  here goes:

My newest short play, Jinxed, is included in LiveWire Chicago Theatre’s VisionFest 3: Feast, which continues this weekend. I’m excited about it because: 

1. Jinxed is a twisted and silly play that seems to be weaseling me into new territory, for example…
2. This is my first production in Chicago.
3. My director (also a Georgia native, like me) and the company have been great to work with...and they're fun.

And of course, as a contributor here, I gamely answered questions for their blog, too. Any Chicago readers out there, come check it out.

There – I did it. Whew. Just don’t make me write about myself again next week, okay?  ;)

7 Questions with John Shea (playwright)

John Shea

   
1. When did you attend BPT's BU MFA program, and what was the experience like for you?
I attended the BPT program from September 2001 to May 2002. The experience was my first brush with the “professional” side of theatre. So, being a professional experience, I saw the good, (Kate’s guidance and oh-so-gentle approach to writers,) the bad, (not really bad, but the tough, Derek Walcott’s brutally honest approach to writers,) and the ugly…all right so there was no ugly, I just wanted to complete the trio. The experience was terrifying, exhilarating, and I left with a very well rounded view of what life in the theatre would be like.

2. How many plays have you written? What has been your biggest success? Your biggest failure?
I have, now, 11 full length plays and dozens of shorts (my store pile for Boston Theater marathon submissions…). I think my biggest success was with, Erin Go Bragh-less, being accepted into the National Playwright’s Conference at the O’Neill Center. Had I known
what a big deal it was, I would have been too afraid to submit, but I had never heard of the O’Neill when I entered….  My biggest failure…I hope you’re talking about playwrighting here.  Let’s just say I don’t have enough of a production history to have any failures YET…and we’ll leave it at that.

3. What is different about this current play - Welcome to Somerville, Permit Parking
The only thing different about this play is the size of the cast…17. I wrote it out of sheer frustration. Stylistically, it’s very similar to my other Somerville plays, and since producers aren’t producing my 9 and 10 character plays, nor my one and two character plays, I decided to write what I wanted, and not worry about cast size. It was actually very liberating and a hell of a lot of fun….

4. Why do you need that many characters to tell THIS story?
I need this many characters because it is really the story of a city, a city finding its own identity in the shadow of Boston across the river. It’s a city where familiarity can be comforting and dangerous, a city where everyone knows everyone’s business and the large cast makes clear just how entwined everyone’s life is with those around them. What affects one, has a trickle down affect, invading (infecting perhaps,) the lives of many. I could have shown this as effectively with a smaller cast. My smaller cast plays (the 9 and 10 character plays,) focus on a particular group in a particular neighborhood, this play takes in the entire city…at least I like to think so.

5. This concert reading is the closest to self-producing you've ever gotten. What are you learning about being a producer? Why use local readers?
Being a producer sucks….too many decisions, and this isn’t even a full production. From designing print materials and paying to have them printed, advertising and blogging as often as possible for free publicity...(luckily, Somerville Access TV gave me a wonderful spot)…organizing actors and scurrying to fill a role.  But, I do like having total control. I guess I was surprised by how much energy is in constant motion.

I wanted to use local actors for two reasons: one, their friends and family and I made it hard to say, “no,” and two, they have an authentic sound, accents, inflections, that will lend a natural rhythm to the play. It’s set in Somerville, why not use Somerville voices?

6. What kind of feedback are you getting from the community? It's based on pretty recent
news, isn't it?
Oh boy…yes it’s based on recent events and the backlash…I mean feedback, has been quite interesting. Some are embracing Somerville being in the spotlight, some think I am portraying Somerville in a negative light and some have just openly attacked me, trying to ruin my reputation (as if I needed help ruining my reputation.)  I've been called a drug addict, a drunk and it's been said I have an ongoing relationship with prostitutes. (If I could afford an ongoing relationship with prostitutes and drugs…I would have no problem producing my own work.) So, now I know firsthand what it’s like to be publicly vilified, wasn’t fun.

7. What's next for you?
I am going to keep producing. I like the idea of Community Theatre in Somerville for the Somerville Community…most of my plays take place here, they should be done here using local people. I am going to produce my two character play, The Painter, (not set in Somerville oddly enough,) in the spring and take things from there. I would love to fully produce, Erin…  It’s my favorite piece and the play that got me into the BPT
program (under a different title…), then dragged me into the world of professional theatre.

---
You can read more about Welcome to Somerville, Permit Parking Only at http://www.playsbyshea.com/

Would you like a chai with your India?

When you come to Two Wives in India at BPT you can get a free chai tea! Did you know a locally owned, organic, sustainable coffee house is now open right next door to BPT? It's called Blue State Coffee and they donate 5% of sales to charity, and by the way, their baked items and beverages taste amazing--especially their chai tea lattes which perfectly complement the enchanting Indian atmosphere of Two Wives in India. On the back of your tickets to Two Wives in India you have a coupon that will entitle you to any free hot beverage from Blue State Coffee, with the purchase of a pastry item. So, go check out the play, and "visit India" through the beautiful music, the sets, the costumes, and with a nice warm cup of chai tea.

Sounds of Saris

Karen MacDonald in Two Wives in India

I love many things about Leslie Harrell Dillen's charming  Two Wives in India.  But my favorite things about the production (aside, of course, from the text and the actors--who are brilliant) are the set, and the costumes, and the soundscape that evokes the country itself.  I love the world our designers have created.  The brightly colored tapestries hanging at the sides and above the stage flow and change with every light cue (thanks to Jon Savage), and those beautiful saris sparkle and shift under the lights--they're stunning (thanks to  Rachel Padula Shufelt)!  Then there's that wonderful Indian music that calms and soothes, and then makes me want to dance....(all due to  David Remedios).  I'm hooked.  "That's India," as the play professes, and I believe it.
--Kate

Diamond's 'Harriet' a hit in KC



Lydia Diamond

Here is a really nice review for the Kansas City Rep’s production of Lydia Diamond’s Harriet Jacobs from Saturday’s Kansas City Star.

Harriet also enjoyed a successful (extended!) run last season at Cambridge’s Underground Railway Theater. The play was originally commissioned by Steppenwolf Theatre’s New Plays Initiative for its Steppenwolf for Young Adults program...and Lydia made some tweaks in workshop at BPT with Derek Walcott.

Also, read more about Lydia in Exhale Magazine.

Congratulations, Lydia!


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