Top 10 Most Viewed Posts of 2013

2013 was a giant year for Theater in the Now. Not only did we double viewership in a year, we went well beyond it! In honor of doubling, we're gonna DOUBLE and reveal the top 10 stories on Theater in the Now from 2013!

1. Always...Patsy Cline on Broadway with Crystal Bowersox?

2. Spotlight On...Elizabeth Lee

3. Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz in Betrayal on Broadway?  

4. Spotlight On...Luke Wise 

5. Review: I Was a Teenage Drama Queen  

6. Spotlight On...Anna Stromberg

7. Spotlight On...Dave Hanson

8. Spotlight On...Chris Cafero

9. Review: Lifestyles of the Rich and Privileged

10. Spotlight On...Jacob Thompson

What were you favorite stories from this year? Thank you for making it a great year! To an even better 2014!

The Best of 2013

What a year for theater! Usually everyone seems so down on the thought of "adaptation" because it's not "new" but when this year brings you some amazing adaptations that range from memoirs (Fun Home) to history (Here Lies Love) to movies (Kinky Boots) to novels (Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812) to book AND movie (Matilda), you forget the origin and focus on the brilliant material. Here's my list of top 5 productions of 2013!

1. Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812
Three locations in one year means this show was in super high demand. A Russian electronic-pop retelling of “War and Peace”, this new spin on dinner theater was everything you wanted and more. The sensational cast expertly explores the hardships of love and trust in Dave Malloy’s captivating world as you’re served a delicious Russian themed meal. Even if you were terrified of the size of “War and Peace”, Malloy and Co. make it easy for you to understand and follow along. If you missed Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812, you missed out. 

2. Pippin
The revival of the Stephen Schwartz’s was a spectacle in all the right ways. Diane Paulus’s circus themed Pippin brought a new energy and excitement to the fourth wall-breaking musical. The all star cast was mostly recognized by the Tony’s with nominations for their great work, though Matthew James Thomas was oddly left out for his portrayal as the title character. The spirit of the original is ever-present with Bob Fosse inspired choreography, even keeping his “Manson Trio” beautifully intact.

3. Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
This Christopher Durang comedy may be his best yet. The commercial hit followed a family, ironically named after iconic Chekhov characters, as they attempt to pick up the pieces of growing old in their family home. Thankfully the cast helped make the show a knockout comedy. With David Hyde Pierce, Kristine Nielsen, Sigourney Weaver (later to be replaced by the sensational Julie White), and Billy Magnussen in the title roles, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike was fun from start to finish. Oh and Kristine Nielsen’s phone monologue? Can you say Tony snub?

4. The Vandal
The Flea Theater produced one of the best plays of the year that should have been seen by everybody. Written by Hamish Linklater, The Vandal follows the intricate story of a teenage boy and an older woman simply waiting for the bus. Packed with witty dialogue and clever twists, Deidre O’Connell offers a standout performance alongside the sincere Noah Robbins.This little gem of a play may have been lost by some, but luckily it was filmed by PBS.

5. The Other Place
Quite possibly the most underappreciated show of the season, The Other Place follows the harrowing decline of a brilliant woman’s mental health. Laurie Metcalf gives a heartbreaking performance of a lifetime as Juliana, the woman dealing with the hardships of dementia just as she’s making her own scientific breakthrough. Luckily the Tony nominating committee gave her recognition for her beautiful work.

The Best of 2013: Fan Vote

It's that time of the year to kick off Theater in the Now's Year in Review! Here are the top shows suggested by you, the fans, and the 2013 Class of "Spotlight On" interviewees! What do you think?

Belleville (New York Theater Workshop)
Buyer & Cellar (Off-Broadway)
Fun Home (The Public)
Good Person of Szechwan (The Foundry)
Julius Caesar (St. Ann’s Warehouse)
Kinky Boots (Broadway)
Marie Antoinette (Soho Rep)
Matilda (Broadway)
Mr. Burns: A Post Electric Play (Playwrights Horizons)
Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 (Off Broadway)

Pippin (Broadway)
Shakespeare on Broadway: Twelfth Night/Richard III (Broadway)
The Assembled Parties (MTC)
The Glass Menagerie (Broadway)
The Last Five Years (2econd Stage)
The Other Place (MTC)
Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Broadway)
We’re Gonna Die (LTC 3)

Fan Vote: Favorite Theater of 2013!

It's that time of the year where we wrap up the year that was with lists of our favorite shows of the year. Now's your chance to let us at Theater in the Now know what your favorites were! Check back later this week where we'll reveal your picks and some of our Spotligh On interviewees' favs!

Shameless Plug: How LTR Stole Christmas

Looking for a night of Holiday cheers and jeers? Check out the third installment of How LTR Stole Christmas, an evening of music and sketches about everyone's favorite Holiday featuring an All-Star cast of performers and writers and created by one of Indie Theater Now's People of the Year 2013! I even have a naughty Christmas sketch to share! For tickets, click here.

Spotlight On...David Andrew Laws and Robin Rightmyer

For the record, this interview was conducted while the boys were eating a 2.5 lb bag of half-stale candy corn

Name:
RR: Hi, I'm Robin Rightmyer!
DL: And I'm David Andrew Laws. And we are-
DL & RR: Hamlet Isn't Dead!
DL: As is Marrick Smith. And, like a dozen other people. Too many to thank in one place, but you know who you are.

Hometown:
RR: Louisville, Kentucky!
DL: Also that for me.
RR: You are not. You're from Rineyville. The boonies.
DL: You are so cruel. I was actually born in Nashville, but...wherever.

Education:
DL: I went to Carnegie Mellon!
RR: And I went to LIPA, the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts.
DL: We're fancy.

Select Credits:
DL: Robin and I were in a musical on Theatre Row called Money (because we're a package deal) and I played Mr. Mann. And by Mr. Mann I mean, like forty parts. It was amazing.
RR: He was pretty great.
DL: *blushes*
RR: Yeah, we've been cast...four times together in New York City?
DL: Busy bees.

Why theater?:
RR: Girls.
DL: Yup.

Tell Us about Hamlet Isn’t Dead:
RR: Well, oddly enough, it was a girl.
DL: Oh, you want me to tell this story?
RR: I do.
DL: Okay, well, I was dating a girl and her ex was coming to town and starting a theatre troupe, and she was going to join him. Being the mature adult that I am, I told her "Well, I'll start my own theatre troupe"!
RR: And instead of a girl, he got me. (laughs) Really, we're just Shakespeare dorks, and wanted to perform it as much as possible. So...that's what we're doing.
DL: Definitely. I mean, I'd always wanted to start a company. Robin's passion for Shakespeare just kind of gave it focus.

Tell us about Taming of the Shrew:
DL: (turning intently to Robin) Herr Director...?
RR: Our version of The Taming of the Shrew is a Christmas farce.
DL: Holiday farce. Keep it P.C.
RR: Fair. But Santa does make an appearance.
DL: Shh!!!
RR: But seriously, it's a fast, funny, clever comedy about two...I dunno...loose-cannons. Mavericks? Something.

What is it like being a part of Taming of the Shrew?:
RR: David?
DL: What?
RR: What's it like being a part of Taming of the Shrew.
DL: What?
RR: Tiring. But fun.
DL: Just like me! (the boys laugh for a bit too long) It is though. Long nights.
RR: It's totally worth it though. The rehearsals are really fun and the show is gonna be a lot of fun to watch.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?:
RR: We're big on really engaging theatre. Anything that draws the audience in, either emotionally or literally, and doesn't let go. We hope to do that in our own work and love to see it in others'.
DL: Yeah, as long as I don't get tickled.
RR: Literally?
DL: Seriously.

Any roles you’re dying to play?:
DL: Dying? I've always said if I only had six months to live I'd wanna play Hamlet and have them actually kill me at the end.
RR: Really? Not Macbeth?
DL: No, why?
RR: Yeah! Then when you're dead they chop your head off and bring it back onstage!
DL: (giggling) Ew!

The boys then spend fifteen minutes riffing on "head" puns

What’s your favorite showtune?:
DL: Cats.
RR: That's not a showtune.
DL: Whatever.
RR: Any thing from The Wild Party. The Lippa one. Duh.
DL: Meow.
RR: Stop it.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?:
RR: Gary Oldman.
DL: That was quick.
RR: Yeah. He's my favorite actor. Actually...I'd probably want to work with a stage actor. Aw, f*** it. Gary Oldman. What about you?
DL: Joss Whedon. He owes me one.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?:
DL: Oh my god, this is basically something we talk about all the time. We're always like, "In the movie of our lives, this would be the scene where...". Can we just play ourselves? Can someone just make movie about us? Now?
RR: Wesley Snipes.
DL: I'm gonna go with Jennifer Lawrence.
RR: Dang it! That's a good one.
DL: We would have extensive character study rehearsals. Over champagne.

What show have you recommended to your friends?:
DL: Fuerza Bruta keeps saying it's going to close, but I don't believe them, cause it's literally my most recommended show in New York.
RR: That's cause you haven't seen Bedlam's Hamlet yet. Or Saint Joan. Either one of the Bedlam shows. They're absolutely incredible. Come see our show, but then go see theirs.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?:
DL: We've talked it over and we've decided-
RR: -we can't say.
DL: We can't say. Too many embarrassing things.
RR: We have too many.
DL: Tooooo many.
RR: We're very guilty people.
DL: And well-pleasured.

What’s up next?:
RR: The whole rest of the canon.
DL: And maybe a sitcom!
RR: Ooh, yeah!
DL: We're expanding into a lot of different media. Education. Possibly new works.
RR: So Like us on Facebook, Follow us on Twitter, that whole spiel.
DL: Plugged!

The boys at this point high five and swordfight into the sunset in the most epic display of awesomeness this reporter has ever witnessed

For tickets, visit http://shrew.brownpapertickets.com/

Spotlight On...Jessica Burr

Name: Jessica Burr

Hometown: I was born in Bellows Falls Vermont, known by the natives as Fellows Balls. My mother and I began moving frequently when I was five. The nearly annual relocations included London, Brooklyn, an island off the coast of Maine, Rome, and an Italian fishing village. I have been homesick my whole life, usually for nowhere in particular. Often in my work I am building a specific place. Perhaps this is an attempt to recreate the home that is in my dreams.

Education: B.A in Theatre and Dance, Bard College. Sporadic but ongoing SITI Company training workshops. École Philippe Gaulier, workshops with Msr. Gaulier in 1999.

Favorite Credits: Eurydice’s Dream is the show that for me came closest to expressing the elements of humanness that we had set out to explode. Doruntine, our first show with Teatri Oda, was incredibly rewarding. There was a delicate balance for us as Americans to adapt and perform a story that was central to Albanian culture, as we took risks with the play and cast an African-American woman as an Albanian heroine. The response was overwhelming and extremely positive. This made touring the show very rewarding. Wherever we went throughout Albania, Macedonia and Kosova we were treated like celebrities.

Why theater?: My medium is human beings. Bodies, words, memory, time, ideas, history, sculpture, movement, stories, the unspeakable, secrets – these are some of the things that I get to work with every day. And every day I’m amazed by the privilege and also the responsibility of being able to work in this form. I also get to work intimately with amazing people. They come from all over the world and different walks of life, and we are able to share and feed our passion, to create a common language, to define and redefine what it means to communicate.

Tell us about A Christmas Carol: In 1843, Charles Dickens planned to publish a political pamphlet entitled “An Appeal to the People of England on behalf of the Poor Man’s Child”, but instead wrote A Christmas Carol. This adaptation returns to the story’s original intent as an examination of an unjust socioeconomic system that benefits a few at the top while the masses struggle to meet their basic needs. It shows the capacity of an individual to break out of solitude, strive to be known, and enact positive change. This version of A Christmas Carol is deeper, darker and more complex than it is usually allowed to be, while retaining the story's inherent hopefulness and optimism that radical change is possible.

What inspired you to direct A Christmas Carol?: When Matt told me he was adapting A Christmas Carol I told him he should find another director. I don’t like Christmas. And while I love Dickens’ other work, this story has never appealed to me. It has been a long and intriguing process of development, and I have grown to love this adaptation. I am fascinated by why Scrooge is choosing to isolate himself, whether he is capable of radical change, and if the people around him will accept his efforts to connect. I am obsessed with Scrooge’s self-made isolation, and the effect that it has. The story reminds us that as humans, if we are cut off from and not acknowledged by others, we lose our compassion. Scrooge takes one small step towards a simple friendship at the end of our play, he has a moment of connection, and that is the humanizing revelation of the story. In Blessed Unrest’s version, six actors play thirty-seven roles and magically create the different worlds of the play by using a very limited palette of props. For example, a piece of fabric creates a swing, a parrot and a baby, and a door becomes a staircase, a bed and a dining table. The actors never leave the stage and are constantly shifting from one character to another. I love having to build worlds and characters with a limited and beautiful palette of people and stuff.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Theatre that is awake and questioning. That doesn’t tie stories up with little bows at the end. Theatre that makes me question my choices and behavior. Theatre that has been created with passion. I like to see humans, and sex, and beautiful things on stage. I love to see stories that take on the magnitude of human experience in a specific and inquisitive way. I don’t believe in making art about petty things, but rather biting off more that you can chew or can necessarily even conceive of and cracking it open. And it’s important to wake up the stories that we hear over and over and tell them again. The stories that are so outrageous we wouldn’t have believed them if we hadn’t been there. The secret stories that we can’t talk about otherwise. And the stories that are too painful to be alone with. Sometimes just the fact of other people in the room can give a person enough courage to explore the unthinkable. This applies to artists and audiences alike.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Ivo Van Hove, Robert Woodruff, Joan MacIntosh, Thomas Ostermeier, Elizabeth Marvel, Bill Camp, Charlayne Woodard, Romeo Castellucci, I could go on. I am also seeking other international companies who are doing groundbreaking work to collaborate with in the way we do with Teatri Oda. Finding a common language with people from other places is by far the most rewarding kind of work and I look forward to more of it.

What shows have you recommended to your friends?: Anything directed by Ivo Van Hove, Thomas Ostermeier or Robert Woodruff.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Maggie Smith. “Wander Lust”.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: On the whole, I don’t have a lot of guilt. I do have books that I’m so excited to read, I can’t read them. Right now I have a book of letters between Laurence Durrell and Henry Miller that I sneak peeks of every once in a while.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: Working against human trafficking. And growing artichokes.

What’s up next?: In January I will be heading to Eastern New Mexico University to direct Burn, Crave, Hold by Matt Opatrny. In the spring Blessed Unrest will be developing several new pieces and training together. Then in 2014 we are planning to bring our beloved collaborators to NYC from Kosova to perform The Sworn Virgin about the ancient Albanian tradition of women taking a vow of chastity to acquire the rights and responsibilities of men.



For more, visit www.blessedunrest.org

Spotlight On...Jason Pizzarello

Name: Jason Pizzarello

Hometown: Astoria, Queens

Education: B.A in Theater - Playwriting from Fordham College at Lincoln Center.

Favorite Credits: An upcoming production of a one-act comedy Good Cop Bad Cop in Pakistan. I doubt they are appreciating the irony as much as I am.

Why theater?: There’s no connection in the arts like that between a performer and a live audience. It’s immediate, naked and there’s nowhere to hide. Except for writers. Writers can hide at home. That’s why I always make it a point to write naked on my fire escape. I think it’s a fair compromise.

Tell us about After People Like You: It’s about four friends who’ve had a falling out since college (and the world started to literally end). They’re stuck on a subway ride and forced to reconcile their differences, if possible. It explores the ways in which friendships change over time, as you and your values change, and how, in extreme circumstances, you find out who your real friends are.

What kind of theater speaks to you? Who or what inspires you as an artist?: Funny, odd, honest plays. Plays with a sense of magic and a bit of danger. Plays that need to be theatrical to be told.

If you could work with anyone you have yet to work with, who would it be?: I don’t know... Jesus? Ghandi? Is this a time-traveling question? If not, I’d still like to work with lots of people from the present. I’m a big fan of The Debate Society, so I’d love to work with them on a project.

What show have you been recommending to friends?: This show with puppets called The Lion King. Really interesting piece. But also, This is My Office by Andy Bragen. Playing through Dec 8. Andy’s an incredible writer creating unique theater.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Perhaps I’d be played by the love child of Steve Buscemi and Mark Ruffalo who would star in a movie about a failed attempt to save the world. It’d be called “Armageddon 2: You Can’t Count on Me”

What's your biggest guilty pleasure?: Chinese food and summer blockbusters. Ideally at the same time.

If you weren't working in theater, what would you be doing?: Well I’m also in the Army National Guard. So, if I wasn’t working in the theater I guess I’d be doing that. Because I already am.

What's up next?: Christmas, I think? Actually I’m writing a Christmas play right now. Something uplifting. Maybe a miracle or two. I may be getting in the spirit of things... I’m also writing a play about a sinkhole in Florida that swallows a family and their dog and their pride.

Review: A Sticky, Sweet, Sexy Holiday Treat

The Nutcracker has been a Christmas staple for generations. The ballet with Tchaikovsky’s music is iconic with its sweeping score and jubilant choreography. But what happens if The Nutcracker ended up on Santa’s naughty list? You get Company XIV’s sexy burlesque inspired Nutcracker Rouge, a hot and heavy evening of dance and celebration.

The very second you enter the Minetta Lane Theater’s lobby, red lights set the mood. Above the bar, in the bathrooms, even the house lights are red. The mood lighting sets up the environment you’re about to witness. Things are about to get naughty. Dramaturgically, the evening is set up with the source material as the clear bookends. A young girl receives a nutcracker as a gift and at the end she is rescued by the Nutcracker Prince. Unfortunately this through line needs to be present more. While the music is notable and you’re well aware of the title, more references to the actually nutcracker will aid when he arrives in the flesh for his triumphant duet. The night, broken up into two actors, with the Drosselmeyers serving as emcees presenting acrobats and dancers with acts like Turkish Delight, the Licorice Boys, and the Sugarplum Fairy. There is no doubt that there is talent beyond compare on the stage. Each member of the ensemble shines in their respective discipline when given center stage. The only complaint would be some of the brilliant circus acts are forced to the edges of the stage due to the architecture of the space.
Austin McCormick you’ll be still have a fantastic time watching has his hands filled as he conceived, directed, and choreographed the production. With the burlesque feel ever-present, there are occasional jarring moments including the random song and dance to “Material Girl”. But luckily, the production is a stunning spectacle. Nutcracker Rouge is an aesthetic wonderland of color and splendor. Jeanette Yew’s lights are vibrant and variant, showcasing Zane Pihistrom’s costumes on the scantily clad ensemble.
If you’re looking for something that will put you in the festive spirit Nutcracker Rouge is definitely for you. Even if a sexy night at the theater is not your cup of tea, you’ll still have your sweet tooth satisfied.

Spotlight On...Anna Brenner

Name: Anna Brenner

Hometown: South Haven, MI, but now Brooklyn, NY

Education: BA University of Chicago, MFA Columbia University

Favorite Credits: The Three Sisters in grad school – a humble production, but still one of my favorites

Why theater?: I love the process of making something with a group of people.  The questions I get to ask, and the different tools we get to use to share a story with an audience, there’s nothing else like it for me.

Tell us about After People Like You: After People Like You is about four old friends who reunite on the R train one late night in a near-future New York.  It’s a post-apocalyptic world, where natural disasters are frequent, and where corruption is rampant and government support is limited.  It’s a stressful place, but inside all of that these are just four people trying to live their lives with some semblance of normalcy.  It’s a story about human behavior and relationships, and how each of them deals with suffering.  I’m having a really wonderful time working with everyone on this one.

What kind of theater speaks to you? Who or what inspires you as an artist?: I love theater that is made by ensembles, where you can really feel the process and commitment coming through in the performances.  I like virtuosity and vulnerability on stage in equal measure.

If you could work with anyone you have yet to work with, who would it be?: I mean I’d like Oskar Eustis, Sarah Benson, and Tim Sanford to hire me to direct at their theaters.

What show have you been recommending to friends?: I’m really excited to see the 600 Highwaymen show at Under the Radar in January.  Also, I really want to see Mark Rylance in Richard III and Twelfth Night.  And I have to give a shout out to Black Wizard/Blue Wizard at Incubator!

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: It would be a movie staring Cate Blanchett where she just listens to Tom Waits and Lucinda Williams songs on a cross country drive, called "You Don’t Meet Nice Girls In Coffee Shops".

What's your biggest guilty pleasure?: It’s a tie: watching Nashville, and drinking Manhattans.

If you weren't working in theater, what would____?:  Who knows, but if I had another life I’d want to live somewhere in nature (but not far from friends) making pottery and textiles, or rescuing horses and being the village sage.

What's up next?: I’m continuing to develop Won’t Be a Ghost with Francis Weiss Rabkin about Chelsea Manning, and in February we’re doing a Brecht Fest at Classic Stage Company.

Spotlight On...Andrea Lynn Green

Name: Andrea Lynn Green

Hometown: Greenwich, NY

Education: B.A Theater Arts Performance, Minor in Eastern European/Russian Studies

Select Credits: Harrison, TX: Three Plays by Horton Foote (Primary Stages), Giant (Dallas Theater Center), Lucy (Delaware Theatre Company), Rocket Science (Playwrights Horizons)

Why theater?: I started in summer stock at a local theater when I was about 8 years old.  I wanted to live there. I felt so alive, at home, and loved. That's how I got bit. I could feel how important the story telling was, how it moved us, and our small town audiences. This little theater in the middle of farm country was so incredibly powerful. It affected thousands of people lives. It educated me more than any summer program could have dreamed of. Theater transformed me, taught me life lessons, taught me about the world and humanity from one little stage in one tiny town. I want to spend my life passing that on.

Tell us about (un)real: After the death of her mother, Catherine, a young aspiring writer living in NYC struggling to make ends meet, gives herself the help she needs to get through the crushing loss by creating a fictional character; a twin brother. As her turbulent family past threatens to drag her deeper into her own abyss, she uncovers family secrets that bring her life of fiction into reality. 

What is it like being a part of (un)real?: It's been an amazing time getting to work with such inspiring and talented people. I love our cast, our creatives, everyone is doing such great work. I am really excited. This play is really special.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: I tend to gravitate towards stories that revolve around character. I don't care for gratuitous spectacle. I care about human stories. I love when history and fiction meet.

Any roles you’re dying to play?: Catherine in (un)real! She's a fascinating character. I also really love doing comedy, so bring on the comedic character roles.

What’s your favorite showtune?: I don't have a favorite. I love oldies though.  Oh boy do I love the oldies. Gershwin. Bob Merrill's "Mira" is beautiful. I also love Yip Harburg.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: I'm gonna say Will Farrell. I'd like to be in a comedy with him. A short sketch video, or a play.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Well, since I am an actor, I had better be playing myself. But if I'm still not famous enough yet, the role might go to someone like Emma Stone. I think she could get me. It would be a dark indie comedy. Perhaps called, "I CAN HAZ CATZ??" *Disclaimer: I only have one cat but I am obsessed with him his name is Walter.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Binge watching awesome television shows...and sometimes really crappy shows that just let my brain go hmmmmmbuzzzglarrrrrrrrrrhk.

What’s up next?: Auditions. I'm also writing in my spare time. I've started writing a few different things, I hope to get them finished this year.

Spotlight On...Jeff Takacs

Name: Jeff Takacs

Hometown: La Habra, California

Education: MFA, UC Irvine

Select Credits: Robert Cohen’s Machiavelli (Cesare Borgia, Los Angeles); many productions with Company XIV, including “Lover.Muse.Mockingbird.Whore.” adapted from writings of Charles Bukowski on women.

Why theater?: All the people in the same joint.

Tell us about Nutcracker Rouge: It’s a Dionysia, a burlesque on fertility and sex loosely arranged around a young girl’s coming-of-age.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Sad clowns or the happily condemned.

Any roles you’re dying to play?: Emmett Miller, or Herr Cazotte in an adaptation we should make of Ehrengard.

What’s your favorite showtune?: “Send in the Clowns”

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Nick Tosches

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: John C. Reilly in “I’m Not John C. Reilly”

What show have you recommended to your friends?: La Soirée and Fun Home at the Public.

What’s up next?: Who knows?

For more on Nutcracker Rogue, visit http://www.NutcrackerRouge.com. For more on Company XIV, visit http://www.CompanyXIV.com

Spotlight On...Nora McNally

Peter McNally and Santa Claus also pictured

Name: Nora McNally

Hometown: Takoma Park, MD

Education: BA in Theatre, concentration in Design and Production, from Fordham College at Lincoln Center.

Favorite Credits: Independents (FringeNYC'12); 24 Hour Plays: Nationals; 24 Hour Plays on Broadway; Words, Razors, and the Wounded Heart, Desire! [A Varsouviana] (LTR/Horse Trade)

Why theater?: There are few things in life that are assured, but the possibility to produce theatre exists no matter what. You can always make it happen, and it always will happen. That's empowering.

Tell us about How LTR Stole Christmas: It’s a three night chaotic Christmas spectacular comprised of elf choirs, alien Christmas trees, holiday sweater stripteases, a reenactment of the Hanukah story, staged readings of the worst-ever TV holiday specials, and what will likely be highly unwholesome holiday magic. And eggnog.

What inspired you to create How LTR Stole Christmas?: We know all these ultra-talented people; some of them are very jolly and some of them are very grouchy. We really wanted the opportunity to work with as many of our peers as possible, collaborate with new people, and introduce some of our favorite collaborators to one another under not too-serious circumstances. And fuck around in Santa suits. It's a win/win.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: In general, I want my world to be rocked. I like experiences that blow my mind, and then put it back together again. I'm a big fan of rule breaking. As a producer, a lot of my inspiration comes from TV shows because the story lines can be absolutely absurd, but the production value is so high that the story still works. I’ve been watching a lot of "Scandal" and "Homeland" recently. Neither have very much Christmas cheer, so I think I'm working under the “equal and opposite” reaction principal right now. #science

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: John Mulaney. And Santa Claus.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: I just saw the Yeezus Tour with Kendrick Lamar, and it was hands down the best performance I've seen all year. But also Julius Caesar at St. Anne's, Fun Home at The Public, and Marie Antoinette at SoHo Rep - none of which I think are perfect. But they’re cool (and isn’t that really the point?!).

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: "Creating and Avoiding Crisis Since 1990", starring Allison Janney. Directed by Baz Lurhman. Original score by Jay-Z and Aloe Blacc.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: childrenwithswag.tumblr.com and also Popeye’s.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: An expedition coordinator. Like for climbing mount Everest. I hate hiking—but I am fascinated by the medical needs of those situations, and I would be really good at the planning. Or a wedding planner.

What’s up next?: LTR is about to start a month long workshop of new play by Peter Gil-Sheridan, which will receive a full production at the Kraine in April. I've a got a couple of personal projects with some awesome people and a few more LTR projects lined up to start in the new year....STAY TUNED!

Spotlight On...Taylor Haven Holt

Name: Taylor Haven Holt

Hometown: Lincroft, New Jersey

Education: NYU times two. BA in Dramatic Literature and MA in Irish and Irish-American Studies.

Favorite Credits: As director: John C. Russell’s Stupid Kids with Reckless Theatre Group. As assistant director: last year’s site-specific London production of Boy George’s Taboo.

Why theater?: I was a dancer for my entire childhood and always aspired to be in the ensemble of big Broadway musicals. I was fortunate enough to have parents that loved the city, and we visited almost every weekend to see musicals galore. It wasn’t until moving here for college that I started directing, actually through my work as a choreographer. I love the community that theatre creates; theatre bonds people in a way that I think is strange and amazing and unlike anything else in the world.

Tell us about (un)real?: (un)real is a fascinating piece that questions the reality that we perceive versus the reality that exists. At its core, the play is about a young woman who has a break with reality after the sudden death of her mother.  I’m really lucky to have bribed a lot of brilliant people to both act in and design this beautiful play, and I’m very excited to share it with the world.

What inspired you to direct (un)real?: I first met Elizabeth Lee, the playwright, when we were paired together in a class as part of her MFA program at NYU. She was in the beginning of conceptualizing this play, so it’s been a journey for both of us discovering what the play is and what it’s not. It continues to be a great collaboration - it doesn’t hurt that we’re neighbors either!

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Because I’m originally from the dance world, musicals and movement based pieces are where I thrive. I love collaborating on new works, and have a penchant for darkly humorous or quirky plays. I’d love to do more devised pieces; get talented folk into a room and anything is possible. 

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Conor McPherson. I think he’s brilliant.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: The Lion King! So many of my friends still have not seen it, even though it feels as if it’s been around forever. It was my first professional job in the city, and holds a very special place in my heart (and is simply a breathtaking theatrical event).

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Let’s go with Marisa Tomei. And the title would be, “It’s A Lot.” Apparently, that phrase is a large part of my vocabulary.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Mystery novels. And Martha Graham Cracker.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: These are wildly different answers but either an event planner or owner of a small independent bookstore.

What’s up next?: Right now I’m also in rehearsal for Leah Nanako Winkler’s play Death for Sydney Black with terraNOVA collective. I’m assisting Kip Fagan, and the play is an insanely smart... and hilarious. It goes up in December. You should go. And I’m in the early stages of the next Reckless endeavor which involves banjos, murder and boxcar children. Stay tuned at www.recklesstheatregroup.com

Spotlight On...Elizabeth Lee

Name: Elizabeth Lee

Hometown: Clifton Park, New York

Education: The Catholic University of America, B.A. in Drama (2009) and New York University M.F.A. in Dramatic Writing (2013)

Favorite Credits: (un)real, of course ☺

Why theater?: Theater offers us a point of connection. No two people will have the same experience of one show. One person may love it, relate to it and need to see it again while another person may have no use for it or be offended by it. But regardless of opinions, the experience of seeing a play inevitably sparks a dialogue. That conversation is invaluable in society; it gives us a chance to cope.

Tell us about (un)real?: (un)real is about resilience made manifest in a young woman named Catherine; it’s her story. She pushes herself to get through some tough stuff by being highly imaginative.

What inspired you to create (un)real?: I had flashes of ideas of twin siblings and a woman in a break with reality…as time went on I started to solidify what the play was trying to say (read: what I was trying to get off my chest) and I let myself have fun with it. It’s not an autobiography per-se, but it’s all heart. The story dramatizes my feelings about my childhood, my parents and my very real fears about transitioning to adulthood.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Anyone who’s out there doing his or her thing inspires me. Especially people who self-produce because it’s like, why wait for the world to say yes? Create your own opportunities. I love that.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: I’m fairly new to this, so there’s no one I wouldn’t want to work with!

What show have you recommended to your friends?: Anything off, or off-off Broadway. There’s incredible work being made that doesn’t cost hundreds of dollars a seat.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Emily Blunt, because I think she’s awesome. And the title...I think it would be: “Bitty”. Bitty is a nickname some friends gave me in college (it has since taken over as my real name). They thought it suited me because I’m “small” and I can be very quiet. I think the movie would be about being “bitty” but with mighty ambition. Maybe it would be called "Bitty Fights Back"-- yeah I like that!

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Re-watching JUST the love scenes from period pieces like Sense and Sensibility or Jane Eyre. So basically, if it’s an old-timey British novel that has been made into a film, I’ve seen it, and I can recite it, I am a permanent SAP. Also, chocolate chip cookies from the bakery at Fairway.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: I think about this a lot. I want to say I’d go into fashion, but even then I think I’d still end up doing some sort of writing. Maybe writing for a fashion blog or magazine, that would be exciting!

What’s up next?: More writing, more theatre!

Review: Summer of Secrets

All families have their fair share of secrets. But it’s when they come out that defines how thick the blood is. Family Furniture by A.R. Gurney is a delicate family drama that touches on the value of parent and child relationships when all is revealed one fateful summer. When siblings Nick and Peggy discover that their mother may be cheating on their father, they struggle between sparing their father or maintaining the status quo.
Set in the early 1950’s, Gurney and director Thomas Kail tread finely between drama and soap opera, as many secrets get unearthed simultaneously. The focal point of the play is about the affair, but along the way, tiny subplots pop up attempting to distract the monotony of repeating the same conversation. While the play could be trimmed to avoid inevitable repetition, what Gurney does offer is strong. The ensemble of five does a fine job getting the 50s in their body and voice. Carolyn McCormick is divine as Claire, the classic desperate housewife. The final scene between her and Nick, played honestly by Andrew Kennan-Bolger, is the best moment of the show. McCormick pours her heart and soul into the scene, ending with the defining line of the play, “People can know and not know, Nicky. And still get along famously” with a triumphant beam on her face. Peter Scolari as Russell plays the optimistic pessimist father sublimely. Scolari survives through the truth he keeps suppressed quite possibly making him the strongest character on stage. Ismenia Mendes is sweet and genuine as Peggy, the girl with the dashed dreams.

Claudia Brown’s costume design evokes the period of the play. She does a wonderful job making McCormick look stunning from scene to scene. Bart Fasbender’s music during scene changes is fitting. For the most part, the play is set at the family’s summer home, with various corresponding locations. With the confines of space, set designer Rachel Hauck created a simple world where various size wood benches serve as all of the family furniture. Hauck and Kail rely heavily on the audience to use their imagination to see the upper-class household. While the esthetic is clever, it does seem to be a cop out. Additionally, the large column in the downstage left corner is more obtrusive than a defining location divide.
For those who enjoy Gurney and plays of this style, Family Furniture is a beautiful piece. What Family Furniture offers is a throwback to another time. What it lacks is poignancy. What was a scandal in the 50s is unfortunately common practice today.

Spotlight On...Max Reinhardsen

Name: Max Reinhardsen
               
Hometown: Nyack, NY

Education: Savannah College of Art and Design

Select Credits: 24 Hour Plays: The Nationals 2013; Romance, Dead Fish, Two Slatterns and a King (Williamstown Theatre Festival); Love's Labours Lost (Taffety Punk), A Midsummer Night's Dream, Coriolanus, Wallenstein (Shakespeare Theatre Company)

Why theater?: Participating in live theatre is unlike any other feeling. Having an immediate, visceral response to your work is a terrifyingly beautiful thing. And my parents both used to be actors, so it's their damn fault.

Tell us about Obedient Steel: The show is an examination of the nuclear area in America, following a group of young, brilliant minds as they create and testing an immensely powerful weapon, until something goes wrong and they are each sent into a consequential next chapter sans lab coats.

What is it like being a part of Obedient Steel?: Incredibly fun and inspiring. The group of artists are so talented and lovely, and I could not have been happier being a part of the process. It's my first show in NYC, and it's also a character type I have not had the pleasure of playing yet, which is very exciting.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: I really respond to new work, which is all over this city, and it's super invigorating. I am also a very big fan of Mr. Shakespeare. Groups like this one inspire me: young, smart, focused, passionate people coming together to make art.

Any roles you’re dying to play?: Lear's Fool and Hamlet. Others that I can't think of right now. All the parts!

What’s your favorite showtune?: "The Proposal" from Titanic: the Musical.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: There are far too many to pick, there are so many talented folks working in all areas of entertainment that I would die to work with. Working with one of my comedy idols like Steve Martin or Bill Murray would be pretty sweet.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: I haven't seen many shows recently in New York, but I saw a play in DC called An Iliad, which was incredible. Also pretty much anything at the Flea in NYC.

What’s up next?: I don't have any shows coming up YET, but once we close I'm going to focus on getting my stand up comedy material on its feet.

Review: The Olsen Twins Don't Know Best

Being a 20something in this day and age can be hard. Especially through the eyes of us 20somethings. Love, work, relationships, money. It’s hard to achieve success. Oh who are we kidding. This generation tends to exaggerate the woes of life. And to help emphasize this are the Olsen Twins, the former child stars who no longer want to be famous. In The Flea’s production of Mary-Kate Olsen is in Love, we watch Grace and Tyler, a young married couple experiencing the monotony of life. And the Olsen Twins and a “Call of Duty” Soldier are present to aid them in realizing life sucks and the only way out of it is to do something about it.
Mallery Avidon’s script has some nice, genuine moments but overall seems to be too confused itself to be a knockout. It is very clear why the play was presented as it has poignant themes, but why this play may not have such a clear answer. Of all celebrities in the world, why the Olsen twins? Why do these two dominant this poor woman’s mind? What do they mean to her? The lack of clarity to this central point leaves a lot of questions unanswered to the true character of Grace. The other big script question is the Amazing Girls. To no fault of their own, the Amazing Girls make no sense in the world of the play, except perhaps at the very end when you've already written them off, and serve as filler or need to add more to the cast. Clarity to their presence was much needed as well.

There is a bright light in the production and that comes in the form of Mary-Kate and Ashley. Kana Hatakeyama and Christine Lee as Ashley and Mary-Kate respectively are quite lovely, serving as the focal point of comedy. They nail their non-sequesters with ease bringing the humor to life. They are the standouts of the production. Unfortunately, there are a few miscues within the rest of the ensemble. Katherine Folk-Sullivan, like her character Grace, seems lost. Her monotonous manner and delivery lacks leading lady power. Sure, it may fit the character in some version, but Mary-Kate and Ashley’s monotone is much more interesting, outshining Folk-Sullivan’s. Grace wants to be stronger and we should be able to see that change from start to finish. Alex Grubb’s deadbeat Tyler is clear but the initiation to change is quite contrived. “I like “Call of Duty” therefore I should join the Army” may work for humor but it lacks the impact that it wants. We know Tyler may have no other choice than to join the Army, but we don’t hear him acknowledge this. Alex Mandell as the Solider is a bit inconsistent, changing midway through his appearances. He starts off as a larger than life character with an accent and suddenly drops it sentences later probably due to messiness of the script.
The world of the play is very present, from reality to insanity. Kristan Seemel establishes a maze for Grace to navigate. Her overall direction leaves much to be desired. There are some rich ideas that seem to be lost in translation. Scott Tedmon-Jones’s set has some cool surprises, but the pink chain-link that is the main focal point of the design is a lot to look at. The transformation the set takes when the girls go to Tahiti is quite lovely. John Eckert does a nice job with his lighting design, bringing color and life to the black space.
Mary-Kate Olsen is in Love is a messy miss. Maybe with better execution it would serve as a strong satire, but currently it’s a scattered assortment of ideas that don’t seem to serve as a call out on love in the 20something generation.

Spotlight On...Robert Homeyer

Name: Robert Homeyer

Hometown: Rumson, NJ

Education: B.A. and M.A. from Rutgers

Favorite Credits: Christopher Marlowe and Cassius in Christopher Marlowe's Julius Caesar, Bob Cratchit in A Christmas Carol

Why theater?: It's a portal to magic

Tell us about Three of a Kind, With Two Wild Cards: Four linked one acts about the nature of identity...mistaken identity, false identity, double identity, role reversals, etc.  The significance of the title is revealed near the end, so come and find out what it means!

What inspired you to write Three of a Kind, With Two Wild Cards?: I had specific actors I wanted to work with again and I wanted them to have plenty of opportunities to demonstrate their skills and talent.  In writing some of these pieces, a theme began to emerge which allowed me to unify them.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: Classic drama. William Shakespeare

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Tom Stoppard and David Mamet

What show have you been recommending to your friends?: My own!  And Two Alone, Too Together which opens on Dec. 5th at Theater for the New City.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: I would play myself, and it would be called "Beyond Off Broadway (BOB)".  It would be a documentary.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: The new "Dallas".

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be  _____?: A carnival barker.  Step right up, ladies and gentlemen, step right up!

Review: Honey, I'm Radioactive!

Four physicists work on a bomb. No this isn’t the start of a corny joke. It’s the premise of a smart and clever production inspired by historical events. In the age of cheery housewives and new innovations that will change the world, Chloe Brown’s Obedient Steel examines what happens when smart people have an accident and forced into a life unknown. Obedient Steel follows a group of physicists who are on the verge of a great atomic triumph when a misread changes their lives forever.
Obedient Steel started as an idea by a group of artists. As a result, Brown, director Rebecca Wear, and the rest of the Tugboat Collective team created, what their characters were hoping to produce, a sensation. The script is really broken down into two acts. The first follows team leader Bill, newfound lovers Dennis and Marnie, and spitefully hilarious Jack as they use big words and scientific lingo to create the next big thing. When they test their work and the meter was read wrong, they’re forced to leave the bunker and live a civilian life, thus leads us to act 2. While the first part is full of energy and fun, the second contrasts, sometimes falling into melodrama. The first part of the play is much more interesting and engaging than the second. While the situation has changed completely for the characters as we watch the effects on their physical being, finding the balance of humor and fun could help the energy not lag. This energy lag may also be due to the lack of Jack.

The ensemble of six is stellar, lead by a brilliant performance by Max Reinhardsen as Jack and Anastasia Olowin as Helen. Olowin embodies the bright, sunny disposition of the stereotypical 50s housewife. Reinhardsen is fantastic as the hilarious catalyst of chaos. He has brilliant timing as a comedian and is dynamic in his deeper moments. Even when he’s not the main focus on stage, your eye veers to him to see his reactions. While he’s forced to profile-standing monologues in the second part of the play, he still shines. Kate Thulin and Nathaniel Bash-Gould have a nice chemistry as the intelligent couple.
Director Rebecca Wear does a masterful job discovering the moments of light and humor and balancing it out with the dark reality of civilian life. She incorporates and welcomes the audience as they enter the theater, viewing a little party filled with dancing and lights, something that helps us know despite the science we may not understand, the characters are just like you. Wear has a skill at maintaining the story and characters and keeping them as the focal point. The only storytelling point that could be elevated much more is mad Jack at the blackboard. It’s his actions that sets the world on fire, but unless you’re watching him while Dennis and Marnie are talking, chances are you missed this key bit of plot. Eben Hoffer’s sound design, both recorded and live foley adds brilliant personality to the world of the play. The lighting by Isabella F. Byrd is quite spectacular. One of the finer moments is when Jack, Marnie, and Dennis are writing on the blackboards created by string and a blue lights illuminates the string casting a dynamic glow against the wall.
The moral of this story should be when you have an idea, you should act upon it. Even if it turns out to be a disaster like it does for the characters in Obedient Steel, it was acted upon. Fortunately for Tugboat Collective, their idea turned out to be a success.

Review: A Patchwork Taped Together

The inspiration? The Golden Age. A time when classics like Golden Boy and Death of a Salesmen and A Streetcar Named Desire were created. A period where the psychological aspect of acting were explored. The result, a modern take on the ideals of the time. Salesmen: A Meditation on Masculinity and the American Real is an experimental series of snippets and vignettes taped together to honor the past. A past that doesn’t quite mesh with this experimental style.
Conceived and directed by John Kurzynowski and created by the company, Salesmen is high in concept yet simple in structure. With very little dialogue, though inconsequential when spoken, the piece is a showcase for the masculinity and inner struggles of each of the eight actors. With only one actor receiving an acknowledged identity, the ensemble works as a chaotic unit, exploring the space with an abundance of calculated physicalities. Each ensemble member does get an opportunity to take the spotlight, including strong moments by Michael Barringer, Nick Smerkanich, and Hugh Trimble.

The ninth ensemble member was the strong sound design by ensemble member Eben Hoffer and director John Kurzynowski. The music and soundscape aided tremendously to the repetitious movements. Director Kurzynowski does a fine job curating the world he wants to explore. The program note, which is smartly incorporated into the piece, does it’s best to explain what the audience is about to see, but just like the piece itself, it’s a lot to take in. Kurzynowski’s staging is precise. At times, it’s like watching an acting class of brilliant actors. At other times, it’s like you’re at a tennis match, you’re head is going back and forth trying to take it all in. This happens when all of the actors are doing their own thing simultaneously. You focus on one or two actors and lose the rest of the less interesting action. The two "courts" made up of taped boxes serve as the stages for the company, confining the majority of the action.
Salesmen: A Mediation on Masculinity and the American Real is definitely for theater people looking to watch an experiment take shape. Don’t expect to leave changed. Go ready to watch eight actors undergo a theatrical workout.

Spotlight On...Keira Keeley

Name: Keira Keeley

Hometown: Born in Williamsport, PA but moved around America a lot growing up (Monroe, CT; Buffalo, NY; Phoenix, AZ; Mechanicsburg, PA; Clifton, VA; Elmira, NY; and then lots more moving around as an adult)

Education: BA in Theater & in English from Rollins College (magna cum laude); Actors Theater of Louisville Acting Apprentice.

Favorite Credits: Angels in America, Part 1: Millennium Approaches & Part 2: Perestroika (Harper, Signature Theatre); The Glass Menagerie (Laura, Long Wharf, Roundabout, and the Mark Taper, Theater World Award Winner); F2M (Parker, NYSF); Proof (Catherine, MRT)

Why theater?: I wanted to live as many lives as I could, so being in theater allows me to be many people with different jobs, perspectives, and passions.

Tell us about How to Make Friends and Then Kill Them: This is a twisted comedy that follows two sisters (played by me & Katya Campbell) and their friend (played by Jen Ponton) free-falling from childhood through adulthood without any guidance while trying to grow and mature into independent healthy well-adjusted adults, which is basically impossible.  They only have each other, and it’s like the blind leading the blind full of codependency, bullying, manipulation, betrayal, and fatal loyalty.  It’s a really stylized production that clips along at only 90 minutes with lots of laughter and lots of gasps.  I think it’s kind of like riding a wooden rollercoaster.

What is it like being a part of How to Make Friends and Then Kill Them?: Intense!  I feel like an athlete considering how much running and jumping and stage combat I do every night!  Or maybe a warrior!  I love the collaboration and I have a lot of fun performing this role.  This show challenges me, and I like it.  Everyone involved in this production is so smart, creative, and courageous.
What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?:  Shows that take risks, that are raw, vulnerable, and fierce.  Shows that upon seeing, change the individuals of the audience and how they perceive and interact with the world. People.  Watching people—strangers—go through moments of their day and wondering what their story is.

Any roles you’re dying to play?: I think I’d have a lot of fun playing Puck.  I’d also like a crack at Lady Gertrude or even Hamlet.  And you can sign me up for anything by Beckett.  I also really love New Works—giving a character on a page breath, life, movement for the first time.

What’s your favorite showtune?: Aw jeeze, I see musicals and enjoy them, but I don’t have a lot of showtunes on my iPod—certainly not enough to declare a favorite.  Sorry!

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Quentin Tarantino & Woody Allen.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: I bet Juliette Lewis or Parker Posey would do a bang-up job.  I’m the 4th of 5 children, and all our names start with “K,” so maybe “K4” would be a good title.  Sounds like an adventure!

What show have you recommended to your friends?: I put recommendations of shows I’ve seen on my public Facebook page; Signature Theater in NYC often delivers.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Marathon watching a TV series—easiest guiltiest way to lose a day.

What’s up next?: I have been cast in a theater production here in NYC immediately following How To Make Friends and Then Kill Them, but it’ll have to stay hush-hush until the official press release.  ☺  Stay tuned on my website www.keirakeeley.com and on my Facebook and Twitter!

Spotlight On...Colleen O'Connor

Name: Colleen O'Connor

Hometown: Frisco, TX

Education: Circle in the Square Theatre School

Favorite Credits: Two Noble Kinsmen (Circle in the Square); Free Delivery (Strange Men and Co.); FRESH PRODUCE'D NYC

Why theater?: I think theatre is one of the most powerful ways to tell a story and inspire conversation. It's a living, breathing art form and being on stage and telling stories is where I breath most clearly.

Tell us about Sexless in the Boroughs?: When I first moved to NYC I started a blog under the same title. The blog served as a kind of coming out for me as an old virgin and an outlet for me to sit down and make sense of my life and experiences. Back in February the idea struck me to turn it into a piece of theatre because I had finally figured out why I was an old virgin and I thought I had a relatable and important story to tell. So I contacted Kyle Metzger and asked him if he would be interested in helping me make it happen. Luckily he was and with his infinite gift of story telling he helped me craft my blog into a show that we are both very proud of.

What inspired you to create Sexless in the Boroughs?: A friend told me that he "doesn't fly Virgin Airlines because there is too much baggage." So I laughed because I mean that's funny and then I started to be overcome by fear of being an old spinster so I decided to just dive head first into the fear and try to figure out my struggles...in front of an audience, naturally.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: This is a tough question for me because I love all types of theatre. In this day and age it's hard for our brains to really engage in a show and not be distracted by our own thoughts but when I experience a piece of theatre that transports me into the world they've created and they allow me to live with them for the night, that's magic. As far as inspiration, well I should just tell you that the word 'inspire' in my absolute favorite word. I think inspiration comes from everyday things and I think the more open we are to being inspired by family, friends, lovers AND strangers, then it will be easier to love each other and understand each other. Does that make sense? Humans inspire me is what I am saying basically. All humans fascinate me.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: I am open and always excited to work with anyone with passion but I gotta be honest...if I could work with Mark Rylance...I would probably combust with utter joy.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: Absolutely Twelfth Night and Richard III because I think everyone should have experience and privilege of seeing Mark Rylance on stage. He will change your life. Truly.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Well I wrote a play about my life and I am playing myself...so since I am already on the 'ME ME ME' train...can I do it? If not let's give Dame Judy Dench a call. She could be my grandma but I think she would give a good showing...and I think it would be pretty funny to tell people that Dame Judy Dench is playing me. And let's call the movie "Having Sex in the Boroughs."

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Ice cream. No question.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: Wishing I was.

What’s up next?: Having sex. Ha. I'm just kidding...or am I?

For more on Sexless in the Boroughs, visit http://www.terranovacollective.org/sexless-in-the-boroughs.html For more on The Glass Eye, visit http://glasseyenyc.wordpress.com

Spotlight On...Michael Rau

Name: Michael Rau

Hometown: Chicago

Education: Wesleyan University, Columbia University MFA Directing Program

Favorite Credits: "Song of a Convalescent Ayn Rand Giving Thanks to the Godhead in the Lydian Mode" at Joe's Pub

Why theater?: Theater is the only art form that uses all the other arts (art, music, literature,) to create events in space and time.

Tell us about David’s RedHaired Death: David's RedHaired Death is an exploration of how a single event can change your life completely.

What inspired you to direct David’s RedHaired Death?: I read the script and I was excited by how open the script would be to a really visual poetic treatment. I'm interested in creating theater that isn't just a replication of reality, but allows a window into another person's experience of the world. We're using 180 degrees of projections and aerialists to find poetic ways to express the language of the text.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: I'm interested in creating experiences, and I'm fascinated by the tension between the utterly fake (theatrical) aspects of theater, and the completely true and (un-fake) aspect of theater. I've been inspired by Anne Bogart, Robert Woodruff, and Dimitris Papaioannou.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Mozart.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: Mr. Burns: A Post Electric Play

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: "On the Floor, next to the Trash"--starring The Black Keys

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: the HarmonTown Podcast.

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: There is no alternative.

Spotlight On...John Kurzynowski

Name: John Kurzynowski

Hometown: Point Pleasant, NJ

Education: BFA, NYU Tisch, Experimental Theater Wing

Favorite credits: As a director, Jaclyn Backhaus' The Three Seagulls, or MASHAMASHAMASHA! for Theater Reconstruction Ensemble. As an actor, The Really Big Once for Target Margin Theater.

Why theater?: I was bit by the theater bug at an early age. I'm from Jersey, so growing up my parents would bring me to every Broadway play or musical, and I always knew that I wanted to be a part of that world. It wasn't until college that I discovered the experimental and downtown theater scene, and the rest is history. I finally felt like I had found a community where my particular and strange artistic voice would be heard and supported, which ultimately led to the formation of Theater Reconstruction Ensemble.

Tell us about Salesmen?: Salesmen is the exploration of American realism as seen through the lens of memory and masculinity. TRE has spent this past season trying to better understand realism and that era in American drama (specifically the 1930s - 50s) and how it relates to us as a contemporary ensemble of artists. Our first production, Jaclyn Backhaus' Set in the Living Room of a Small Town American Play, charted that exploration through the use of a script written in the style of that era and our relationship to the process of telling a particular story. Salesmen is a devised piece that strays away from a narrative structure and instead charts our exploration of realism as though through memory and time itself, which are both more abstract and unreliable than plot and story. Being created and presented by a group of eight men, it also taps into the inherent masculinity of that era and our contemporary notions of masculinity in theater.

What inspired you to create Salesmen?: I have always loved the plays of the 40s and 50s, and have been fascinated by that era in theater. But the style of that period, particularly the Method, has always been a mystery to me. I studied it in college and it seems to come up over and over again, but I've always felt like it and I are just cut from two separate cloths. So naturally I wanted to better understand why I had never related to it and how it could be confronted in a new way. Essentially, I wanted to learn more about why I simultaneously love and reject that style and share that process with our audience.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: I love any kind of theater that somehow reinvents or reinterprets our established notions of right and wrong, and is essentially wholly true to itself. I'm a huge fan of established companies and artists like Target Margin Theater, Elevator Repair Service, The Talking Band, David Greenspan, and Ivo van Hove, but I'm also constantly falling in love with new companies and artists like Tugboat Collective, Fresh Ground Pepper, and Kristine Haruna Lee.

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: Taylor Mac! Hands down!

What show have you recommended to your friends?: Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812! If you haven't seen it yet, you must this fall/winter! It's one of the most beautiful shows I've ever seen!

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: I had to ask around a bit, but the general consensus is Jay Baruchel, which I personally find flattering. As far as the title goes, maybe something like "We Could Talk About Theater, or Not Talk About Theater: The John Kurzynowski Story (Brought To You By Lifetime)".

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: Netflix. By far. It's starting to control my life a bit...

If you weren’t working in theater, you would be _____?: I think I'd be working in the design field - graphic design or interior design.

What’s up next?: I'll be acting in The Talking Band's episodic puppet piece The Golden Toad, and directing TRE's latest work-in-development You On The Moors Now, by Jaclyn Backhaus and the company.

Spotlight On...Hunter Canning

Name: Hunter Canning

Hometown: Los Angeles, California

Education: BFA from the SUNY Purchase Acting Conservatory

Select Credits: War Horse (Joey as a foal, Lincoln Center); The Late Christopher Bean (Warren Creamer, TACT); Doctor Faustus (Robin, The Brick, directed by John Kurzynowski)

Why theater?: It's collaborative, demanding, energizing, thrilling, down-right terrifying at times, painful, full of hope and there's nothing else like it in my life.

Tell us about Salesmen: Salesmen is a dreamlike exploration into questions about masculinity and the genre of American Realism. As an audience member you may not always know exactly what's going on but it'll feel oddly familiar. It's like a splatter painting, shapes take form and stories present themselves. As creators, we know what's going on under each moment but it'll be up to the audience to decide what the piece is about.

What is it like being a part of Salesmen?: It's pretty trippy. A lot of the process was about trying to remember a faded, distant memory and then recreate the memory of remembering... the memory. As heady as it sounds, it often materialized in movement sequences which later became meticulous blocking we filled with story and subtext. The process of Salesmen reminds me of what I'm told about Williams S. Burroughs when he was writing Naked Lunch. He would cut up his pages into stripes and rearrange the text to create a lucid, liquid experience. The effect feels a bit like déjà vu.
Working on Salesmen is also just a ton of fun. The cast is a blast, each of the guys bring a completely different perspective to the room.

What kind of theater speaks to you? What or who inspires you as an artist?: At the risk of sounding cheesy, artists that put their heart on the line. People want to look cool all the time and you know what? Cool is boring. I also draw a lot of inspiration from photography, Robert Frank being one of my favorites.

Any roles you’re dying to play?: George in Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf.  When I was in high school that play changed my entire outlook on theater. I have a while though before I'll get a stab at it.

What’s your favorite showtune?: "Unworthy Of Your Love" from Assassins

If you could work with anyone you’ve yet to work with, who would it be?: William H. Macy, it's on my bucket list to play his son.

Who would play you in a movie about yourself and what would it be called?: Kurzynowski and I have joked that my movie would be called "From The Brick to Broadway and back to The Brick". My friends have said that Shawn Ashmore is my Hollywood doppelganger.

What show have you recommended to your friends?: I just saw Natural Affection starring the wonderful Kathryn Erbe. John Pankow as the troubled neighbor is doing heartbreakingly beautiful work.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?: I love the TV show "Castle" starring Nathan Fillion & Stana Katic. Apparently the main demographic for that show is middle aged women but I think it's fantastic. The entire cast is stellar, it's sweet, funny and gives you everything you'd want in under an hour.

What’s up next?: I'm filming a web series called Whatever this is. from the creative team who made The Outs.  Our next public screening will be hosted by The Paley Center as apart of PaleyFest: Made in New York on October 5th. There will be a cast/crew panel moderated by the wonderful John Cameron Mitchell. Episode 4 premiers October 28th at Sanos down on White Street.