Monday, December 15, 2008

Revisions the latest

I'm very pleased to report that I did actually take another reader's comments into consideration and reworked portions of"The Good Life" while I was off at Carolina Beach. The revised version is now prepared for a reading by a group of friend/actors in January -- and then the finished draft will be off to at least one point of review as soon after the read-through as I can complete the brush-up.

Meanwhile, hopefully, some word on a couple of the works out there in contest-land will have been received, and maybe things will move forward an inch or two!

We caught the sweet "Christmas Bus" performance by Kernersville Little Theatre performers on Saturday night. Not overwhelmingly attended, unfortunately. My theory is that the current state of the economy is not going to do any of the arts any big favors over the next year or two. Time to tighten down the hatches and kick into survival mode for a while!

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Hmm. We've slipped into December, always a busy month, and haven't blogged a bit about the progress of the various plays. Would that be because there has not, as yet, been any progress to report? That would be ... accurate.

It's not through any lack of desire or anything, but though I have the beginnings of a new 10-minute play on paper, the concept of another 10-minute play in my head, and I reported earlier that a full-length script had been commenced, nothing further has transpired. Part of that is due to all the other December activities and some play going (we enjoyed "Black Comedy" at Third Stage in Greensboro, and I thought that "Beautiful Star" at Triad Stage was "nice"). Part of it is due to researching and writing for a new paying project. The rest of it is lack of time and, in some cases, desire.

As I was saying to another writer the other day, sometimes when you've put lots of hours into projects and nothing has, yet, borne fruit, it's hard to maintain the desire to write MORE work that isn't going anywhere, yet. I'll get past that at some point, but right now, other than the second, only-in-concept 10-minute play, I don't have any burning desire to move forward with projects in play world until something moves forward on the work already done.

The reason for the one 10-minuter is that there is a program called "The Seven" in New Mexico that, this year, surveyed all its playwrights and others via e-mail, and then conducted an e-mail vote from selected theme ideas to come up with the 2009 final theme. All plays are written about that theme, so if I'm going to submit an entry, I've gotta write a 10-minuter to that theme. So there's actually a target there.

And I got some useful commentary on "The Good Life" the other day, so hope to do some rewriting on that script BEFORE we have a private reading in mid-January.

So while it's not full speed ahead, something is happening while I wait on responses to the various entries floating around out there. By the end of January, I hope to know something about at least one of them. Maybe.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Waiting ... um ... patiently.

I truly wish I had something earth-shattering and exciting to write for the blog, but right now, I've been too busy on home and yard and other home and yard and "real" (i.e., paying) writing projects to do any new writing on the next play (though it got a little "head" time a couple days back that might turn into a title and a clearer direction).

Instead, I'm waiting on some kind of word, some day, about all the various possibilities to which I have sent the two completed full-length scripts, and the one ten-minute play. There is a vague chance I might hear something about one of them BEFORE January 1, and then one of the places makes its choice ON January1, so at least some kind of a status report should occur by then.

And meanwhile, as mentioned before in this blog, I wait. Gah.

I do have a week away in December, however, which could be productive both for the play writing and some other pieces I will be working on (paying work, yay!). And then some friends will help, as they have before, with an out-loud reading of play #3 in mid-January. That should be both fun, and put me in a position to touch that script up and try to put it out there, too.

And then, maybe, one of them will crop up on a stage somewhere!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

A little free time is great

I haven't posted for a bit because my wife and I were busy planning and packing for our 30th wedding anniversary trip -- eight chiefly dry days in Ireland, including Dublin, Waterford, Galway and the Connemara peninsula. Fun trip, didn't hit anybody in the rental car, lots of pints of ale and a few good pub visits. Though Ireland has less by way of pubs and more that are like a pub but presented as a bar/restaurant.

And as I have found before, sometimes a few days away from a computer and other chores is good for the brain. By the time I got on the plane back from Dublin to Philadelphia (7.25 hours flight time), I had an idea for a 10-minute play, and by the time I got off the plane, the first draft was completed. It got typed in once back at home, and read/timed, and added to slightly. Now it is more or less finished. Love it when things go easily!

I had determined already that no script was doing me any good gathering dust -- and then once everything I had "finished" was sent out somewhere, I quickly decided that I needed MORE material to take advantage of the various contests/competitions out there in playwright world. So now working on getting that reading moving on "The Good Life," and have a new 10-minute script I can get in the works somewhere. It almost feels like progress!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

And we move on

Well, as I've probably already stated, writing is a challenge in itself, and then there's the joy of trying to do something with it when it's done. Unfortunately, I received the news yesterday that the county Arts Council once again decided not to give me a grant to produce my first play. Too bad. I'm going to be interested in seeing who DID get the grants, after all the glad-talk that encouraged me to submit again and, in effect, put that script in limbo for another very long six months. If once again, there was no literary grant at all, I might just be, um, lightly perturbed. [Addendum: as it turns out, I was not the only literary grant request, but once again, the "panel" failed to give ANY support to a literary project.]

But if nothing else, it put me in action to research and continue pushing the finished scripts out the door to other potential readings/productions/reviews locations and gather from online sources additional possible future outlets. I had actually mailed "Conversations" to one new play contest several days ago, and "Faith" went in the mail to another location late last night. Even negative responses can, I guess, be a form of inspiration.

Meanwhile, I started working towards a private reading of "The Good Life" and maybe, after other work gets done, I'll be back to the new play as well. There seem to be a fair number of theater company new play-reading ops out there. Now I just need additional material if this concept is ever going to become a reality.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Don't fight the muse

If there's anything I've learned in some 35-plus years of writing, it's that I should try my best not to fight the muse if and when it shows up to inspire some piece of a project.

Lately, though, I wish it could be better at timing itself.

Although just a ghost in the mist had started to form itself in my head last Tuesday while in D.C. regarding the topic, theme and setting for my next play, it actually began to jell right in the middle of watching a fine first preview of a brand new play at Round House Theatre in Bethesda, Md. last Wednesday night. Why? I have no idea. But we certainly enjoyed "How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents," based on a book of the same name -- yet I walked out of it able to articulate to my wife how I saw the next play shaping up. It's hard to maintain full attention to "A" when your head is also shaping up "B" at the same time.

So though I have done a little bit of thinking on that play since last Wednesday, it wasn't until we were in the final half-hour of "The Night of the Iguana" at Triad Stage on Saturday night that one complete line that will fit into the new play popped into my head. I then had to fight between watching the play and not forgetting the line until the play ended and I could get back to the car, find a notepad and write down the line. I really, really didn't want to lose it.

So it's upbeat that I'm getting inspiration at any time, any place. But as I commented to a correspondent recently, couldn't it be during a shopping trip to WalMart instead of during a play I really want to watch undisturbed? Ah, well, beggars can't be choosers.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Pretty good week so far

I have to say that it has been a pretty productive play-related week since we arrived in Washington DC on Saturday afternoon. First, we were able to take in a dynamic production of "1984" at Catalyst Theater, at the Atlas Performing Arts Center (where Andy works his "day job" and also designed lights for this show). Last night (Wed.), we saw the first preview of a new play, "How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents" (which was a book first), and really enjoyed it, too -- and again, Andy was involved, as ALD to Beverly Emmons.

In the meantime, I have had time in fits and starts to wrap up the second draft of "The Good Life," and passed it along to a few of my trusted readers for thoughts and commentary. Then starting sometime (often, it's hard to track down and remember the precise time), the basic concept, at least, of a possible play #4 began to form in my head and by last night after the play, I could actually articulate it to Kathy. This is always an exciting moment for me, since my usual assumption is that I'll never have another play- or book- or story-worthy idea.

And then I do. Thank goodness.

Also along the way, first at "1984" and then at Tunnicliff's, a popular bar at Eastern Market that is esp. popular on Wednesday nights late for the area theater crowd, I had a chance to chat with the artistic director of the Source Festival -- and now have submitted my 10-minute play script to the Festival for possible consideration for 2009. In 2008, they got 700 submissions, so I know the odds are formidable. But as I've no doubt written here before, if you don't submit, you got nothin'. So off it went earlier this afternoon.

Progress! Gotta love it.

Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Creeping up on them

Not really much to report at this moment, except that I am creeping up on a couple of developments. First, I am partway through a review and update of the third play script ("The Good Life"), hoping to add a little length to it and make some adjustments (a character's name just changed, for instance, and one first reader made a wise formatting suggestion). Anyway, it's coming along and may be completed by week's end.

Second, it's now in the second half of September, which means I have only two weeks or so before getting the good or the bad news about the Arts Project Grant. This could mean disappointment, or a good tightening of focus between October 1 and the end of April. And a first production on stage. That could be cool.

On a personal note, my son and fiance Sarah cooked dinner for us last night in Washington, D.C., and we had a truly pleasant meeting with her parents as well. There's a fun wedding gathering coming down the pike in October of next year. We look forward to it!!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Growing some patience

As a person not overwhelmed by in-depth patience, I find sometimes that the process of writing and trying to get published or produced seems like an eternity. Which is why I've been trying to grow some patience and understanding that the gap between finishing a piece and hoping to see it on stage can be a long thing indeed.

But I am also learning that, every bit as much as full-length fiction writing, it is just the nature of the beast. Send it out and forget about it, and move on to something else. That's just the way it has to be.

Case in point: I just mailed a copy of "All About Faith" to a New Play Festival in Greenville, SC, which I discovered thanks to the invaluable aid of Kelly Wallace. I'm quite well ahead of the deadline for the 2009 event (final due date is Feb. 1, 2009). But it might as well go now; I'm not planning to change it anytime soon. But when does the decision get made about what will be read during the Festival? August of next year. Ayiiee. That should wear me out, waiting to hear about that!

But it's not really much different for the festival of 10-minute plays in Louisville, to which I submitted my 10-minute script not too long ago. That's going to be a wait, too.

And I have moaned here before about the formerly long-seeming wait from May, when I submitted a grant request, to end of September when grant recipients are announced. At least that one's growing closer to a yes or no answer. It's that not-knowing status that can be so tiring. But again, gotta get used to it. Somehow.

Meanwhile, steps are being taken towards a more-finished script of the latest play. I should have a goodly amount of time next week to give it some undivided attention. And then maybe show it to a few more readers, see what they think. I hope.

Friday, September 5, 2008

A matter of length

It's difficult, for me anyway, when I am drafting a play to have anything more than a general idea of how long the text will "play" on stage. So when I finished up my first draft of "The Good Life," I figured I was pretty much there. Not. What I determined after giving it an out-loud read-through -- usually my first step after the first draft -- is that it isn't as long as I want it to be.

So now, in addition to making all the fixes I determined in the process of hearing it out loud AND timing it, I'm better prepared to understand that it needs more new writing work to better explain the story and make it longer at the same time. Kathy, my intrepid first reader, also had some very useful thoughts on some additional concepts and extensions that she perceived.

End result: it's going to be a little while longer now before I'll be ready to show this to anyone else. But that's the way it is with writing some times. As I well know.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Very close indeed

Well, although I already have some adjustments and suggestions to follow from my first reader, "The Good Life" has reached the point of completed first draft. All the pieces now tie together, even if some need a little filling-out and until I've read it and timed it, I won't know how much I need to add to reach a desired length. But that will come soon enough. It's just great to be at a point where the story is basically there, it just needs brush up and detailing. Yay!

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Creeping up on it

I shouldn't overstate the importance of finishing a first draft of a new play, because after all, that's just the beginning of the work. Then, one must read it through out loud and fix all the clumsy parts one can find, and make sure it all flows together. Do a little timing to see how long it runs. Then let some folks read it over and make suggestions. Then contemplate a reading gathering to see what it sounds like in other voices and interpretations. Then, maybe, you're close to a finished draft.

But all that being said, it is still exciting to me, now on the third time through this process, to be within a few pages of having a complete story. (I'm not counting the ten-minute play, since that started off as just an exercise to see if I could do one, and literally, the first draft took six hours to write. There wasn't much time to even contemplate the "process" on that one!)

Anyway, "The Good Life" has almost been glued together. At some point, there will be reading and timing and editing, but I'm always thrilled when something in my head makes its way to being, for real, on paper. And it's almost there.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Starting to apply some glue

You just never know when the time, a clear slate and a visit from the muse will coordinate, but after some years, you learn NEVER to deny those factors when they happen.

On Sunday and Monday, I'm pleased to say that the writing karma was on my side and I was able to complete the first draft of the second scene of the first act of "The Good Life." What does this mean? As I envision it, it means I have one more scene in the first act, and the opening scene of the second act, left to complete. Which implies that I'm two-thirds of the way through the first completed draft of the play.

Given the way this play has come along (see earlier post), in bits and pieces, this also means that I'm beginning the process of glueing together the ending of the show, much of which was written BEFORE the beginning of the play, by adding words to the start of the show. Eventually, I see them meeting somewhere in the middle. Wouldn't that be nice?

Anyway, nearly all of the characters in the show have now been introduced or "used," as the case may be, with only one more yet to be rolled out, and she'll make her appearance in Act Two, Scene One. In short, I pretty much know what needs to occur in the final two scenes to be written, though of course, characters sometimes have a way of taking you to unexpected places along the way. But when you're this far along, you have that feeling of relief that the thing is actually going to come together as soon as you find the time, and the inspiration, to finish the glueing process.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Writing in bits and pieces

It may be only me, and it may only interest me, but the process of writing is a fascinating thing.

For a lot of my writing, the toughest part is getting that first sentence, or paragraph or two, on the page or into the computer (yeh, being old-fashioned, I still do a fair amount of writing, or at least STARTING writing, with a pen and pad of paper). For articles, short stories, press releases -- those can often roll right off after the "start" is done, even if I go back and revise the start later on.

Of course, a lot of the "head thinking" part is done by the time those first words get corraled.

But that process, and a lot of my writing in general, tends to be very linear in nature. Write the start, write the middle, write the end. Let sit, then go back and revise. Pretty straight-forward, even if sometimes it's very hard and other times very easy, and for no good reason in either case.

This latest writing permutation, plays, started off much the same way. The first play, "Conversations in a Cafe," was very linear, too. I started it at the beginning, worked through the middle, and came up with a closing, even if that was later altered somewhat, and expanded.

"All About Faith," play two, was also chiefly that way. I had a vision basically of how the play was going to end from early on, but still, it didn't get written until a lot of the rest of the play was in the bag. And even at that, a line or two was added to the original ending when it floated into my mind. It may be -- I don't recall -- that the original ending, though, was on paper or in the computer before Scenes Three and Four were fully fleshed out.

So perhaps there was a transition from "Conversations" to "Faith," and further to the latest effort, "The Good Life." Which has been just about anything BUT linear in nature.

A lot of my writing is in bits and pieces, too, but by that, I mean that I write a sentence or a page today, and then it may be a week or more before I write the next part. Or I can get on a roll and write a scene in two days, as happened with "Faith," for instance.

With "Good Life," though, I have written bits and pieces all over the place in the course of the play. For instance, today, I "finished" the play. The final two scenes are more or less complete, and I know exactly how it will end. It might get adjusted, but the play essentially is "over."

However, I still have a huge hole in the middle of the play. I essentially know what will happen in those scenes, but the writing is still missing. And really, I had written most of Scene Two of Act Two before I ever went back and wrote Act One, Scene One and the start of Scene Two, which are done. But I still need the end of Scene Two, and a Scene Three if there will be one, and Scene One of Act Two.

What does this say about my writing process on this particular play? I have no earthly clue, except that at least it's getting written in SOME fashion, even if out of order. I do find it pretty exciting when I finally "glue" the scenes and pieces together into some kind of a whole. But maybe I should just smile and accept that things are not always linear, and maybe that's a good thing.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Exciting news

I'm pleased to report that I actually spent a couple of hours working on play number three on Friday, but that's really not important at this very moment.

I will take a proud moment's step aside from play-writing stuff to announce that two theatrical individuals have announced their intention to be wed. Although we had some advance notice (though no level of certainty), our son, Andy, and future daughter-in-law, Sarah Denhardt, called us from Culpeper, Virginia this morning, where they were overnighting and enjoying a brief getaway from the nation's capitol to inform us that they were officially engaged. Andy is a working lighting designer, assistant lighting designer, electrician and other theatrical-lighting-related taskmaster mostly in D.C. Sarah has acted and directed and is now the manager of special events with renowned Arena Stage in D.C., a huge job currently as Arena is wholly renovating its spaces and preparing for a grand reopening in a year and a half or so.

We are just so excited for both of them. The wedding itself is anticipated in the fall of 2009. Wow!

Monday, August 4, 2008

Talking is Good

Despite my chief drive and desire to be mostly hermetic in nature, shunning company and chatting to myself and my cat throughout the day and my wife when she can escape the office, there really are times when company and talk can be beneficial (as long as the talk isn't politics or specifics of religion).

Saturday was a good evening, with a number of volunteers and performers of Kernersville Little Theatre gathered for their annual banquet/meeting/ awards ceremony. It was a good year and the awards were quite inclusive, which I think is great for all concerned. Support your volunteers, and they will support you.

Afterwards, some folks gathered to wet their whistles with a beer or two, food, snack or whatever. It's this kind of meeting of those with a theatrical bent (or who are theatrically bent, either way is fine) that gets my discussion and creative juices flowing. And since then, I've had my head back where it belongs -- focusing on what is going to be happening, and what needs to be done to make those things happen, in the new play script. Yes, I have a couple of articles on assignment, but not much more can or needs to be done on either at this particular moment. So, the re-focusing at this point is quite helpful. Thanks, theater folks! You know who you are.

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Sometimes, interviewing is fun

At the risk of this sounding as odd as it actually is, I'm a freelance writer who periodically writes magazine articles about people and events, which in turn requires calling people on the telephone (as a stranger) and asking them questions.

I am also a person who doesn't really like calling up strangers on the telephone and asking them questions. It almost always turns out just fine, and productive. It's the act of picking up that phone that bothers me, until I actually do it.

Today was one of those days that the end result was just delightful. I am working on a piece about Piedmont Opera's upcoming production of "The Light in the Piazza." Earlier this week, I chatted on the phone with the author of the original novella, from 1960, on which the musical was based. Who set the hometown of the family in the story, for reasons all her own, in Winston-Salem, N.C., which of course makes the musical a perfect choice for Piedmont Opera based on setting alone. (The story's action takes place in Italy, however.)

Today, I got not only to chat with the artistic director and resident conductor, Jamie Allbritten (he's currently in Colorado, however), but with Adam Guettel, the musical's composer, who was kind enough to give me time to talk about how he found the story and made it into a six-Tony-award-winner of the 2005 Broadway season. For a smalltown resident in N.C., it's just not every day I get to do that. And how wonderful is it to get to write about the theater as part of my paid work? Among other things, I've been able to do a three-part article on NCSA's "West Side Story" production in Winston-Salem Monthly, and more recently, a Triad Stage profile of "Bloody Blackbeard" in Greensboro Monthly.

It's totally excellent, that's what it is!

The only downside to this whole experience is that Piedmont Opera did not consult with me when scheduling this production, and the three dates in mid-October fall right in the middle of the time Kathy and I will be out of the country. Darn it! Though I will probably make up for it by seeing a Samuel Beckett play in Dublin, so that should work out as a fair compromise.

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Learning by playreading

Given some of the past stories, it was with at least a little bit of trepidation that I signed on as one of a group of volunteers who undertake reading, and then advising, the Kernersville Little Theatre board concerning plays worthy of the theatre group's consideration. But thus far, it has been an enlightening and educational experience.

As has been noted earlier in this blog, Kathy and I are "active" playgoers, so yes, we do see quite a few plays on stage. But the interesting thing for me about the KLT playreading assignments is finding one's way to plays hitherto unknown to me. A good example is "Dinner With Friends," a script that won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize -- perhaps a year or two before I was paying as much attention to theater as nowadays, but still, I suspect I should have heard of it. It's making the rounds of the committee right now, though my personal opinion holds that it is not a KLT type of show. Nevertheless, I liked it very much and would enjoy seeing a production of it somewhere, some day, in the right hands.

Equally, some works that are not (IMHO) destined for Broadway greatness are entertaining to me and, by extension, the average current-day KLT audience member. Some are older (Headin' for the Hills, "a hillbilly comedy," dates to about 1950 but still has a humor I think our audience would "get," along with accents they would accept versus, apparently, British accents) and some are newer, but that's OK, too.

We are not destined to agree in all cases, either. One member saw Neil Simon's "Dinner Party" as a good opportunity for us, not perhaps his greatest comedy, but certainly adequate. I on the other hand saw its original production on Broadway, in the hands of name actors such as John Ritter and Henry Winkler, and thought it was flat and not really all that good. Was it just that production? Or would KLT founder on the same problems that the pros faced? Again, it's a matter of opinion. I'd be wary of it; others may well feel differently.

Choosing plays that will hopefully be successful in production takes a group effort, and compromise. We may not always get it right, but I feel this group has the best interests of the overall organization in mind at all times. Naturally, we try to be realistic about the interests of the audience as well.

And it's a learning experience, too!

Monday, July 21, 2008

Interesting copyright questions

I haven't yet reported that we went to see "Don't Cry for Me, Margaret Mitchell" at Stage Two of Barter Theatre, up in Abingdon, VA, a couple of weeks back. Although the story of the play sounded extremely similar to "Moonlight and Magnolias," which others had heard of and was apparently read by the KLT playreading group, to my surprise it is by two authors with names that don't match the playwright's name for "Moonlight ..."

I'm not quite sure how a copyrighted play can be written about a very specific set of events -- three people locking themselves in an office for a week to churn out a workable script for the movie, "Gone With the Wind" -- and then another play be written about the same set of events that somehow doesn't impact with the copyright on the first play. I suspect that, since only a few of the facts of that week are actually known in the public domain, perhaps the two scripts are measurably different in interpretation of what went on in that office. But still .....

Anyway, we saw this show and found it entertaining, amusing and relatively short, following the noticeable trend in some current scripts (such as "Doubt" and "Blackbird") to run 90 minutes or just under that, even with an intermission. Responding, one assumes, to the limited attention span of modern Americans.

Some day it would be interesting to read the two scripts back to back and see if they are really all that different, or one is funnier/more successful than the other, or what. But at least now I have seen one version of that story, which certainly is funny at points!

Monday, July 14, 2008

Rejecting and rejection

I caught an interesting bit of a piece Ken Ashford put up on his blog ("The Seventh Sense")recently that was notes from "rehearsing a musical" (in my opinion, those notes applied to more than just musicals!!). It basically states: A director is someone who should be 100% open to listening to comments from everyone and anyone -- and should be fully prepared to reject 80% of those comments afterwards.

It's my humble opinion that there should be a corollary to this law for playwrights. While many of the thoughts and comments I've received from individuals on my first two plays have been interesting, useful or at least have caused reflection and reconsideration, that is certainly not universally true. At the bottom line, creative works are the author's vision, and you have to try to a certain extent to continue to be truthful to that vision, but yet with as much objectivity as you can possibly muster.

This is a long lead-in to reporting that my hopes for "All About Faith" with a theater company in Washington, D.C. did not bear fruit. There were just too many differences between the reader's viewpoint on the play and my own conception, and belief, about the play, what it is about, where it is set and so on. So along with accepting that it did not entirely work for that individual, I still had to reject that particular set of commentaries and continue to believe in the play as it is written.

We'll see whether that holds up in practice! If I hear the same comments over and over again, I'll have to reconsider my stand.

Nevertheless, I have had many a year of rejection of articles, stories and novel-length works -- and in many cases, at least the articles and stories eventually found homes with someone who read the piece a different way. It's not the first, and probably far from the last, time for someone to say "no" to a work of mine.

So now the script is with two other theater companies, both in N.C., for a look, and I have some feelers out to other places. So far. It won't do any good sitting in a pile of scripts in my office or as a file on my computer. I have faith that "Faith" will come home to a stage somewhere, somehow, some time.

Meanwhile, the ticking clock on notification, one way or another, of the "Conversations in a Cafe" grant request is ... two and one half months. Tick tick tick.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

More playgoing reports

Kathy and I completed our round of the 25 Ten-Minute Plays at the Source Festival on Sunday night with the longest of the three rounds, Group C (it had nine plays; the other two had eight each; and it had one of the longest-not-really-10-minute offerings). While we enjoyed most of them, we felt that the A and B groups overall were stronger. But the acting continued to be outstanding. It was quite an event, and we were pleased to have made the effort. We also caught dinner beforehand with Andy and Sarah, who were just back from a wedding gathering in New Jersey. Fun!

Monday was spent driving to Pittsburgh and chatting the evening away with my mother and brother; most of Tuesday was spent with Mom, and then Bob joined us again for dinner Tuesday night. Wednesday was on the road to Abingdon, then we caught "Don't Cry for Me, Margaret Mitchell," a comedy, at Barter Theatre last night. More fun! Oddly enough, though the story line sounds extremely similar, it does not seem to be the same play as "Moonlight and Magnolias." Intriguing. Anyway, we enjoyed it. Then, this morning (Thursday), we made our winding way across Highway 58 in Virginia and then down into Ashe County. Lovely weather here today!

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Sixteen down, nine to go

We took in Groups B and A of the Source Festival Ten-Minute Plays at 5 and 8 p.m. yesterday (Saturday), here in D.C. where we temporarily reside. It's pretty neat: they have a "talent" who works the crowd in between the plays as the scene set is changed, and they put an intermission in the middle, too. Some of the shows have been very good, and thought-provoking in many cases, and others so-so but still not bad. Overall, however, the acting in the first two segments has been just about universally stellar. And as always, we have enjoyed watching Andy's work on the lighting design.

This evening (Sunday), we will return to Source for Group C of the shows, after meeting Andy and Sarah for dinner up that U Street area near Source. Fun as always riding the Metro around.

What's also been pleasing for me is that the ten-minute play I wrote initially just for the exercise of it seems, to my biased opinion, to be at least competitive with most of the ones we've been seeing. Who knows, maybe even the 10-minute play has some hope of a future!

Thursday, June 26, 2008

It's all over in 10 minutes

This weekend, Kathy and I will be taking in the three flights of 10-Minute Plays that kick off the annual Source Festival in Washington, D.C. Andy designed the lights for all of them (there are 8 mini-plays in each of the three flights). I've seen (once) the 10-minute plays put on by the Greensboro Playwrights' group, and they can be fun and entertaining and enlightening, too. We'll see how the D.C. group does. I understand from the web site for the Source Theatre that they chose these 24 from something like 900 submissions, so you know the competition had to be severe.

Just for the experience and a skills test, I tried my hand at writing a 10-minute play myself. I had always thought it might be tough but, fortunately, I had an idea. That always helps. So though it is not quite finished, I did a first draft and read-through in one day, and I kinda like it! I'll see if I can get it to run right at 10 minutes next.

On the trip, meanwhile, in mid-week, we'll see a show at Barter in Abingdon, VA, purely for the fun of it. The show is based on the true-life circumstances of David Selznick and two writers locking themselves in an office for a week to churn out a workable script for a little movie called "Gone With the Wind." Should be amusing!

Monday, June 23, 2008

Down to the poultry farm

Our second attendance at a musical for the weekend was Kernersville Little Theatre's presentation of the delightful and touching "HONK!" Sometimes, I fear, it is not a good thing to know too much about what goes on behind the scenes at a show like this. I went in, though, trying to forget all that and be as objective as possible. From that vantage point, despite a few technical glitches here and there (frankly, par for the course in community theatre and I have encountered much worse!), I thought it was quite charming and well presented. The story is a good one, the music is cute and touching in the right places, and the performers were good for their roles. Perhaps above it all, KLT for once achieved a level of diversity in a show's cast that it has often talked about but sometimes found hard to accomplish. Kudos for that, and for an entertaining evening at the theater!

Saturday, June 21, 2008

A lively legend

For our first musical of the weekend, we caught Triad Stage's "Bloody Blackbeard," an original production by artistic director Preston Lane with music by Laurelyn Dossett. They've worked together before on "Brother Wolf" and "Beautiful Star" for the same stage.

As usual, the set was wonderful -- a shipwreck solid in the rear and buried in the sand in the front -- yes, sand all over the floor in the thrust stage area. Lighting was good and effective, as was the sound, chiefly. At the beginning, though, it was hard to hear the female singer and discern the words; several of the early songs seemed deep in the ranges of several of the singers as well. While the music overall was generally appealing, little of it was memorable -- except for the songs given to the female performers at several points in the show.

On a equally general basis, the show had its compelling moments and the story telling was generally even-handed, but at several points the exposition got a little snoozy, such as when a captain with whom Edward Teach signs on goes on at length about pirating, and at other times, Virginia's governor and a politician give excessive detail about how the governor plans to break the law in pursuit of Blackbeard.

Bringing this North Carolina-based sea legend to life was certainly a worthy idea. With about 20 minutes of cuts, it might be an even more entertaining one.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

The musical aspects

One of the discussions Kathy and I had during our Ashe County retreat this past weekend related to the kind of music used in support of a stage play that is not a musical. With a few exceptions, I have always been a firm believer that the right music, used in a proper fashion, can further and support the theme or "story" of a play quite handily. Our discussion focused primarily, though, on the plays I have or am in the process of writing.

What I have found interesting and challenging is that, with my first play (Conversations in a Cafe), by the time I was done writing it, I had pretty much a full set of "soundtrack" songs that I would use at the beginning, intermission and end of the show to help tell the story. With my third script partially completed (The Good Life), I already have three songs in my mind that I would certainly use to illustrate the theme if I were producing or directing the play.

And for my second play (All About Faith), at this very moment, I have: absolutely nothing.

Perhaps it is the deeply serious, and sad for me, thematic material. Perhaps it is that pop or rock 'n roll music doesn't really often address the kinds of issues "Faith" presents. Perhaps I just don't know the right songs.

But even though it is unlikely I will ever direct or produce a production of this show, I like to have the "whole package" in my mind, or at least pocket, before presenting it to others. After our discussion, and given that we'll have an opportunity for some exposure to it on July 5th in West Jefferson ("Christmas in July" event), I'm going to undertake a closer study of bluegrass music. If there is some appropriately moody or serious or mournful tunes -- and as Kathy suggested, even some bluegrass versions of traditional hymns such as "Amazing Grace" -- perhaps then I would have some ideas of the "Faith" soundtrack. Given the play's story setting in the east Tennessee mountains, it seems like the right direction to take. (The action of the play is actually in a women's prison in Nashville, but the story happens in the mountains.)

We'll see how that turns out!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Good play year at the Tonys

The now-completed 2008 Tony Awards didn't exactly have a lot of surprises in the play category: "August: Osage County" took best play along with best director and lead and featured actress wins -- well-deserved -- and "The Seafarer" took a win for actor Jim Norton as featured actor. We were lucky enough to see both shows, and both deserved recognition. Though I will never quite figure out why neither David Morse nor Ciaran Hinds, the OTHER two leading actors in "Seafarer" got nominations in the acting category, it's nice that this production at least got some recognition.

As for the entire category of musicals: is it just me, or was it a pitifully weak year for musicals on Broadway? I certainly liked Patti LuPone in "Sweeney Todd" a few years back, but did we need another "Gypsy" revival this soon? And the big winner of the night -- yet another of many revivals for the year, "South Pacific." "In the Heights" and "Passing Strange" seem to have been reasonably well-received, but seem to me to be a litle bit niche-marketed. Would some additional folks with some original ideas and some other folks with the producer bucks AND the guts to get behind something not already written come along with some new stuff, please?

Monday, June 9, 2008

She won't forget THIS anytime soon!

I just had a phone call from Kathy (my wife), who is attending a conference in Boston at the moment. She had just returned from a Boston Pops concert at Symphony Hall -- apparently Fidelity, the sponsors of the conference, are major donors with the Pops. Not only did she get to tour the light booth and hit a couple of the light cues, she had the likely once-in-a-lifetime experience of being the Guest Conductor for the Pops' performance of "Stars & Stripes Forever." She was positively bubbling on the phone, and who can blame her? My highlight today was going to the Post Office and KFC. Wow! What a fun memory. She's just hoping someone took some pictures for proof purposes.

And now for more waiting

As anyone who knows me at all could tell you, patience is one of those virtues that completely passed me by. So imagine me patiently waiting, now, as I anticipate not hearing one way or the other about my bid for a grant to produce my FIRST play until October 1 or thereabouts. Add to that the sending of the script for my SECOND play to Washington, DC, and waiting to see when my son can show it to a theater company up there, and then wait until they read it and respond, one way or another. Even if I have to manufacture it, I am going to have to find any number of things to keep my mind off those matters!

We will be traveling a bit over the next few weeks, including catching the three roughly 90-minute segments of the Source Festival's 10-minute play offerings in DC -- these are being lit by Andy, and they just sound interesting in any case. And we have a play at Triad Stage, a play at Kernersville Little Theatre, and a play at Barter Theatre to see between now and July 4. That should help to keep my mind occupied. I hope.

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Peace and quiet

It really is amazing how much a little peace and quiet, with few distractions, can make in the progress on a writing project. Conveniently, I wrapped up the article on antiquing in Greensboro late last week, and also got to see the printed treatment of the Triad Stage/Bloody Blackbeard piece in Greensboro Monthly late on Friday. It's really fun, and excellent photos, too! So all of that was put behind me BEFORE leaving for the Log-Inn (our second home for a little less than a year, at about 3200 ft. above sea level in Ashe County, NC).

Anyway, I have worked through, and over, three of the four scenes in ALL ABOUT FAITH, addressing further thoughts, comments and suggestions and generally seeking not only to smooth it out but add some running length to it. I'd like the final product to run around 90 minutes beginning to end. It's getting closer but it's not quite there yet, though I have yet to attack scene four and time it.

But in a quiet, otherwise unoccupied house with a view of trees and distant ridges from the loft window, I find it easier to keep my mind on task. Even if I'm taking a break before timing Scene Three to enter words on my blog!

Friday, June 6, 2008

Play-ing and working

While I'm waiting for the new issue of Greensboro Monthly magazine to hit the stands (and the web site), with its profile of Triad Stage and the upcoming "Bloody Blackbeard" musical, I've meanwhile been wrapping up the writing of a piece for August on antiquing in Greensboro. For an enthusiast of things old, you can imagine that researching that article was fun for me!

We've made our seat reservations at Triad Stage for "Blackbeard" (we recently "named" a couple of the seats in their theater, too), and have done the same the next night for KLT's production of "HONK!" We already know we like the music for HONK!, so we're looking forward to seeing how the show turns out here in Kernersville.

I also get to deliver some newly-acquired equipment to the load-in for HONK! tomorrow morning at the Kernersville Elementary School Auditorium. We've been working, through grants and special donations, to upgrade our light and sound equipment over the past two years. Next, we turn our attention to computers from THIS century.

And then, off to check in on the mountain home and do some final play script work. Not that it's that much cooler up there, according to the Weather Channel. If nothing else, it's time to switch the humidifier from "winter" to "summer" setting!

Monday, June 2, 2008

A long leap forward

Thanks to some very special people, I am now revising and taking some useful leaps forward on the script of my second play, "All About Faith." On Sunday afternoon, Cheryl Roberts, Mikey Wiseman, Kelly Wallace, Macon Shirley, Lee Huggins and Myla O'Brien visited the house and read the script out loud. Kathy, as always, was the hostess supremo, while I took notes and basked in the sound of the play in the hands of actors (instead of just me in a back room somewhere muttering to myself.)

While I am still chiefly pleased with the overall direction and content of the play, our guests offered a number of thoughts and suggestions that I think will only help to add clarity and fill in holes in the script that may have been filled in inside my head, but not on the page. I am still thrilled overall with the direction of the show, and how people reacted to it outside of the four walls of our house. Now, I have a week or so to whip it into shape further -- then send it to DC with Andy to see if a company up there might like to produce it.

Patience is a virtue. I'm told.

Thanks again, guys, for letting me hear the play in your voices!

Saturday, May 31, 2008

It has a name

After perhaps one-third of the writing of the new (third) play has been put behind me, I now also have a name for it: "The Good Life." Surprisingly to me, I did not find any other plays with this name by searching Samuel French, Dramatists Play and other play publishing services. Go figure.

Anyway, it's about this young couple living the high life in New York City, but it's a little hard to figure out where the money's coming from ... until it all falls apart.

Work continues.

Friday, May 30, 2008

In good "Company" on TV

What a pleasure on Wednesday night to come across a TV listing for "Great Performances" on PBS, and that they were showing the Broadway revival of "Company," starring Raul Esparza. I had the great good fortune to see the revival production twice when it was in NYC, so it was like nostalgia watching it on TV. But with all the cranes and different angles and close-ups, at times it was like seeing it a third, different time. And for once, the show was run in its entirety with only an intermission break -- not the usual PBS trick of showing the most interesting stuff during a Festival fund drive. Loved it!

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Anticipation ...

Carly Simon created a great song with so many possible thematic uses when she wrote "Anticipation" back in the '70s. And that's pretty much my theme for this week. While I am carrying on with my work and various projects, the mind is more or less turned towards this coming Sunday afternoon. A group of actors whose work I have enjoyed in the past have agreed to read the script of "All About Faith" out loud for me. I'm chomping at the proverbial bit with anticipation.

Back when I wrote the first play, in the summer of 2006, Kathy and I were eventually able to gather a group in a similar fashion (finding a hole in the schedules of active actors isn't the easiest thing in the world). Those folks were extremely helpful to me -- I can read lines out loud, and give them MY interpretation, but some of the problems of having someone ELSE interpret those same lines can be evened out and sanded off with this kind of private reading.

And that's just what I look forward to happening on Sunday, along with the chance to chat, dine and talk theater with other folks in a casual setting.

Then, I have about a week to sand and touch up the script before sending it north with Andy to see if a theater company in Washington, D.C. might be interested in producing the play, presumably as a world premiere. That would be an exciting moment! (This previous sentence should be interpreted as a vast understatement.)

Meanwhile, the four-month wait will commence, until October 1, to see whether or not the Regional Arts Project Grant comes through to help finance a production of "Conversations in a Cafe." More excitement, should that happen!

And while I'm on the topic, work continues on play #3, still unnamed, but getting closer to a working title, anyway.

The Greensboro Monthly magazine article on Triad Stage and "Bloody Blackbeard" should be hitting the stands any day now as well. A pretty good concentration on the theatrical right at the moment for me. What fun!

Monday, May 26, 2008

Saving the best for last

We wrapped up our Charleston stay for 2008 today (Monday) with a viewing of Spoleto's "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," perhaps the most inventive fun I've had in a theater for a while, and also caught "Lobby Hero," a Piccolo Spoleto presentation, on Sunday evening. Patched together with Paula West's lovely jazz singing and the amusing duo with a Piccolo "I Live Next to Horses," we saw some really good stuff. The rest left something to be desired in one way or another, but still, 4 for 9 ain't all bad.

We had an uneventful drive home and now back in K'vegas getting ready for the short week ahead. Gotta love it -- Spoleto in Charleston. A fine way to spend a few days if you can.

A few personal notes from Charleston

One of the highlights of our Charleston Spoleto visits -- this is our fifth year in a row, started by when our son, Andy, first started working here -- is, of course, getting to visit with Andy. That has not always been possible due to his work schedule, but this year, we sat down with him for a late lunch on Sunday afternoon and then chatted during intermission of the opera, "Amistad," in the space for which he is master electrician. That space is shared with the Chamber Music performances this year, as the historic Dock Street Theatre is down for renovations. Which makes Andy's life more interesting due to the changeovers from the opera setting to the Chamber Music set-up, which takes 2-3 hours each time it happens.

Anyway, it is always fun for us to get the inside story on some of the activities of the festival, and then go to see them first-hand. Such was the case last night, when we saw "Amistad." About which the most I can say fairly is that I believe I have now done my duty by seeing two operas, at least one of which was highly praised. Therefore, I feel I will no longer be hypocritical when I say, I do not like opera. I can say that fairly, based on direct experience, instead of just a general feeling that I would not enjoy it. I will save my $$$$ in the future.

We have also enjoyed, as often is the case, several fine meals in the various Charleston eateries, including Circa 1886 -- very stylish, and our second visit -- MUSE, and Poogan's Porch. Good choices all.

And the sleeping has been good, too. This is our second stay at the King's Courtyard Inn, right near the Market, and this time we literally walk off the courtyard where breakfast is served and into our room. How convenient is that?

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Ah, the magic of outdoor jazz

Finally, something we could agree was outstanding. The Wachovia Jazz Series at Spoleto presents, if the weather cooperates, its jazz performers outdoors at the Cistern on the College of Charleston campus. We've enjoyed the performances we've seen here since we first came to Spoleto. Tonight's Paula West presentation was as excellent as the ones we've seen before. What a voice! What a setting! And even though as seems to happen more often these days, there are idiots who will sit there and talk through even the sensitive songs, as if they were still at home in their bleeping living rooms, it was magical, as it often is. Definitely the highlight to this point in the 2008 stay.

So far, so not so good

We've now been in Charleston since 3 p.m. Friday and just returned to our room from the fourth of nine performances we'll catch during the 2008 Spoleto Festival stay. Unlike most of our Spoleto and Piccolo Spoleto marathons past, we haven't really hit a good one yet.

Perhaps it was good that we started with what we hope was the worst, a play called "A Devil Inside." This should in no way denigrate the young actors of College of Charleston who attempted to pull it off, but this may be the worst play I've encountered since "Debunked" at Triad Stage 4-5 years back. Oh, my goodness. I really hated it, and since most of the characters wind up dead at the end, they could have hurried that along and I would have been happy. Dismal.

We then caught some "long-form" improv by a group called the Reckoning, from Chicago, starting at 10 p.m. Maybe I was just tired, but it was merely ho-hum.

Today (Saturday) at noon, we saw "God's Trombones," which told the story of early black preachers and gospel, and how they related the stories of the Bible. It was a good hour and a half show. But it lasted two hours and five minutes.

And finally, we saw "I Live Next Door to Horses," which was sketch comedy by, it turned out, two of the females from the Reckoning troupe. At about 50 minutes in length, so far the best thing we've seen. They were both very versatile, talented, a joy to watch. Fun!

Thursday, May 22, 2008

And off we go ... southeasterly

Ah, it is finally here. Time to leave in the morning for our fifth annual Spoleto Festival marathon show-going in Charleston. If I've counted correctly, we have nine performances of one kind or another between 7:30 Friday night and noon on Monday. Yippee! It's such an orgy of arts events, between Spoleto itself and the equally-intriguing Piccolo Spoleto. Thank goodness our son got a job there and drew us in -- it's his fifth year, and ours, too. And what could be better than an orgy of arts events, in a delightful historic town like Charleston? Reports can be anticipated.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Another good KLT day

Tuesday marked another pretty good day for KLT activities. It started with a meeting in the morning that dangled some realistic hope, and ended with a meeting and after-meeting that did the same.

In the morning, the topic was creating a permanent home for KLT, a subject that has been discussed and dangled for over 30 years since the first days when rehearsals were in an abandoned service station and plays were patched-together cardboard sets and whatever lights could be borrowed. KLT has come a long way since then, but while it seems impossible to some, it is my belief that a theater could happen, and maybe even sooner than we might have thought. More on that topic later!

In the evening, the monthly meeting of the newly-expanded play reading committee proved that there are a variety of good minds interested in finding and using the best plays that fit within KLT's definition of their audience. Even in the Triad, there are a lot of theater groups around selecting and presenting plays, and they mostly have and define a niche for themselves. I think we're wise to stay in the vicinity of that niche for the time being. There may come a day when we can afford and dare to undertake something that we might consider "edgy," but the income and the expenses are still a little too close to each other to get too borderline at this moment. Later ....

Nevertheless, a good gathering and, I think, a good cross-representation of the types of persons who make up a KLT audience. All for the best.

Monday, May 19, 2008

A little history of past playgoing

My personal involvement behind the scenes with community theatre is a relatively new phenomenon; my undertakings as a novice playwright are newer yet. But I have long been a supporter of and enthusiastic participant in the live theater experience.

I've dredged my memory, and as far as I can recall, the first play that qualified as memorable for me was the production of the musical "The Sound of Music" done by the orchestra and the choir members of my high school in Mt. Lebanon, Pa. when I was a tenth grader.

(We'll set aside the fact that my fourth grade teacher picked two newcomers -- me and Lynn somebody -- to play the King and Queen in a school play at Markham Elementary, made immensely more stressful because the two of us had to kiss on-stage. And oh, yes, I was Francis Scott Key in a patriotic historical play in sixth grade. Later, at church, I got to play Ebenezer Scrooge for two years running.)

I think "Sound of Music" stuck not only because it was a good production, but because though I was a member of the chorus that year, I was forbidden due to the alleged load of homework to participate in the play. I enjoyed it from the audience, but there was probably also that feeling of "I'm supposed to be up there somehow."

Fortunately, my parents lightened up and not only allowed me to get active with a barbershop quartet for junior and senior years, but to be involved with the chorus' "variety show" junior year (the budget only allowed a full-blown musical every two years) -- and then, because the director had always wanted to do "Music Man" and had a built-in quartet, I was on-stage senior year to continue my theatrical education.

After that, however, I have rarely been on-stage. I enjoyed being a member of the "jury" in Gilbert & Sullivan's "Trial by Jury" while attending Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa. But it was my experience when I was drafted to play a bartender in a student's directing project that I learned how little my brain was attuned to the concept of memorizing and repeating lines. Like so many other things in my life (like plumbing, for instance), I have since decided to leave that kind of work to the professionals.

By this time, however, I was sold on attending the theater, and remember several excellent shows at college and immediately after graduation, including "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" when it was still new. And then, my girlfriend, then fiance, then wife in shows such as "Romeo and Juliet" and "Same Time, Next Year." It was for her birthday one year that we made our first venture into mid-town Manhattan to see our first Broadway show, the original cast of "Annie." In later life, we have been there many a time.

We have seen so many shows since then, and my wife has the large box full of programs to prove it. So I am not going to give an exhaustive list of everything, but will try to hit the highlights -- the most memorable or influential events we've taken in during 30 years of playgoing.

Though we saw many plays during our time in Pittsburgh from 1978 to 1986, and Kathy acted in quite a few as well, two particular shows stick in my mind as being the ones that suggested to me that plays could have a power to unsettle you, challenge you and remind you long afterwards that you had been impacted. One was a Pittsburgh Playhouse presentation of Sam Shepard's "Buried Child," and the other was a much smaller production of Amlin Gray's "How I Got That Story." I like sweet, warm stories or even a well-done dramedy as much as the next guy, but every now and then, one should have the guts to get shaken up.

The list of good-to-great Broadway viewings is long, but given that in high school and college, I was a diehard Eugene O'Neill fan (to the point of writing several plays in the style which were fortunately lost in the sands of time), it should be no surprise that three of my favorites were revival productions of his works.

There's only been one time I can recall in my theater going when I literally cried at the end of a play not so much because of the material in the play itself, but because the production came so close to a long-nurtured vision of how that play might be done on stage. That would be O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh," which starred Kevin Spacey but possibly had the greatest ensemble of characters I've seen until the recent "August: Osage County" (and New York magazine keeps saying Letts' play is 'what O'Neill would be writing if he was alive today.')

"Iceman" had a great set on a raked stage, actors including Paul Giamatti, Robert Sean Leonard, Tony Danza and the less-known but nonetheless fine Katie Finneran and Tim Pigott-Smith. From top to bottom, it has not been overcome by anything else I've seen ... yet.

Later on, Spacey revived "Moon for the Misbegotten" and brought it from the Old Vic to Broadway, along with the awesome Eve Best as Josie. Once again, wow.

And then there was "Long Day's Journey into Night," which offered Brian Dennehy, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robert Sean Leonard and the amazing Vanessa Redgrave. Long, intense, and again, meeting up well with my expectations.

Setting aside O'Neill, I have to note several musicals for their impact, even if anyone who knows me would understand that as a general rule, I am not the biggest fan of traditional musicals. And there are certainly some I've seen that I either disliked, was bored by or (in the case of "Phantom of the Opera") were an expensive excuse for a nap. Even my wife, one of the world's greatest musical fans, agreed with me that "Mamma Mia" and "The Fantasticks" made one wish for an easy refund system. Though I enjoyed "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Lion King," I found a little bit of disappointment in "The Producers" and "Spamalot."

But for overall impact, the revival of "Cabaret" that was done at Studio 54 is that rare musical (for me) in which the music makes sense and the story isn't namby-pamby, cloying nonsense that tells you nothing. The stark, scary visual image created for the final moments of this production sticks with me to this day, as even the Emcee becomes one of those undesirables shipped to the ovens of Nazi Germany.

Other fine B'way musicals we've caught include the revival of Sondheim's "Into the Woods," and then the intriguing productions of two other Sondheim's shows, "Sweeney Todd" and "Company." For me, Sondheim has become an acquired taste -- but the idea of making the performers and musicians the same thing puts something new in the mix that I found entertaining.

We've also gotten a kick out of "Avenue Q" and the incredible energy of "Spring Awakening."

But perhaps the most influential play of recent years was "Rent." Seeing it for the first time on Broadway was the closest thing to a rock concert with a story I've ever encountered. Along with "Spring Awakening," I think it is also highly important to the theatre because, more than anything else in recent years, it has drawn the attention and affection of younger people -- without whom live theater is in some serious trouble.

And equally, perhaps the most wildly successful musical since "Rent" has been the immensely fun "Wicked." Though I rarely listen to other musicals, I have lots of cuts from these two soundtracks on my Ipod regularly.

Other Broadway highlights: "The Real Thing" (marking the first time we saw a show that later won Tony Awards); "The Little Dog Laughed"; and "I Am My Own Wife."

We've seen quite a bit in Washington, DC in recent years, especially after Andy moved there in late summer of 2006. I have been especially impressed -- and not just because of the lighting designer -- by both the plays and the productions of the Journeymen Theater company. "After Darwin" at the Church Street Theater, and "Getting Out," across the river in Arlington, made the very most of smallish theaters, in acting, sets and direction. Kudos!

Closer to home, I've already stated that we enjoy our season tickets to Greensboro's Triad Stage. They're not always winners, but they are nearly always well worth seeing. Among my recent favorites there are "Tobacco Road," "Master Harold ... and the Boys," "The Diary of Anne Frank," "The Rainmaker," and their production of "Moon for the Misbegotten." Among others.

We are also blessed with the National Black Theatre Festival, held every two years in Winston-Salem. Among many others, we would probably never have seen Avery Brooks as Paul Robeson in a one-man show, or a powerhouse production of "Topdog/Underdog" by Suzan-Lori Parks, without the NBTF.

The local North Carolina School of the Arts has presented us with a number of wonderful viewing opportunities as well, though none so impactful for me as two by Moises Kaufman: "Gross Indecencies: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde" (also produced in D.C.) and "The Laramie Project."

And then there was the awesome 50th anniversary production of "West Side Story." Ahhhh ... so special.

There's other theatre groups around, too, such as Theatre Alliance -- often challenging the audience --and Winston-Salem Little Theatre, Open Space in Greensboro and others. Perhaps the most fun event recently among these was the co-production of the musical "The Full Monty." And the most intriguing, Tracy Lett's "Bug" at Theatre Alliance.

Finally, of course, there is the group with whom we are most actively involved, the Kernersville Little Theatre. It is a pleasure to say that it is a rarity to see anything actually agonizing, which is more than some of the other groups we frequent can say. For the budgets and the tools and the all-volunteer "staff," KLT consistently does a fine job of involving community in plays that are worth seeing. Way more times than not, I leave the theater there with a smile on my face.

That being said, my favorite of recent years is the well-written and touching "Grace & Glorie." I so enjoy the intimate space of Korner's Folly each year, and this was perhaps the most pleasing overall production in several years. For me.

Saturday, May 17, 2008

A good KLT day

It takes all kinds to make a community theater work, and Kernersville Little Theatre is no exception. They've been making it work, by hook or by crook, for over 30 years. Sometimes you have to wonder how it's going to happen ... and yet it does. And don't underestimate what it takes: thousands of hours each year, many of them unseen and unknown to most, to celebrate the art of theater and allow many people, some of whom would never tread a stage or run a cable otherwise, to be part of this experience of live entertainment.

Today was a good KLT day in particular. Bev Fry and many other volunteers made the annual KLT Yard Sale happen -- and it made its budget and a little more, thanks to many a donation and lots of volunteer labor at the beginning and the end (plus those who dealt with the buyers from 7 am to 1 pm.). And two other organizations benefited by taking away all the leftovers that weren't sold. It's one of the events like Kernersville Christmas Stocking donations from the Christmas Show: it raises money AND it makes you feel good when it's over, too, because it helps other needy groups at the same time.

And then, on a perfect May afternoon, Cheryl Roberts, Mikey Wiseman, Glenn Travis and others entertained a goodly segment of KLT's eclectic group of individuals, significant others and offspring at the town's Harmon Park with a relatively recent but excellent tradition, a volunteer recognition picnic. It's not only a good social gathering opportunity, it's a well-deserved "thank you" for those folks who put in the hours. For little more reward than the good feeling that comes from helping to make KLT productions happen. Well-earned, I say.

And sitting there in the sun watching the various groups and individuals pass the time in the comaraderie built on and off stage, one realizes that there certainly are all kinds that seem attracted to this thing called live theater. And thank goodness for them all.

The latest bestest productions

As a novice playwright and, with my wife, an enthusiastic theater patron as well, I'm starting this blog to share notes on shows we see and hopefully, eventually, to record progress on the plays I'm writing as well. As of this moment, my first play, written in 2006 ("Conversations in a Cafe") is awaiting word on a possible grant to make its first production possible. I'll hear about that in early October, 2008. My second play, "All About Faith," is nearing completion -- some wonderful area actors are going to read it for me on June 1, after which I hope to wrap its final draft. And my third, as-yet-unnamed, play is partially written. I'm truly enjoying the process, and of course, hope to see them on stage some fine day.

In the meantime, we have been out and about taking in, as we often do, marathon play going events -- most recently, in New York City and in Washington, DC, where our son is a lighting designer. Over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, we will also undergo our fifth annual Spoleto Festival marathon in Charleston, SC -- started when our son began working there each year while he was still at the North Caroilna School of the Arts.

What have we seen lately that was wonderful?

I would have to say Tracy Letts' "August: Osage County" and Conor McPherson's "The Seafarer" in New York City were both awesome, and as an overall production, Arena Stage's version of Arthur Miller's "A View from the Bridge," at the company's temporary location in Crystal City, Va. impressed us measurably as well. In our own region, we continue to be impressed, show after show, with Greensboro, N.C.'s Triad Stage, most recently viewing "From the Mississippi Delta" there. And a small production of a new play called "ANIMA" by the Doorway Arts Ensemble in D.C. certainly catches the award for most in-your-face show we've seen so far in 2008. Though Barter Theatre's production of "Blackbird" up in Abingdon, Va. comes in at a close second.

So much theatre, so little time ....