Riverside - Mary's Wedding by Stephen Massicotte opens at Riverside on Thursday, April 1st. Massicotte, a Canadian playwright, describes Mary’s Wedding as “a memorial to both the Great War and Great Love.” At the outset of this two-actor drama, it is established that what the audience will see occurs the night before Mary, a young British emigrant to Canada, is to get married. Mary’s dreams form the action of the play, shifting through time and place, from rural Canada to battlefields in France.
Kalen Harriman (of Chicago) plays Mary, and Martin Andrews (of Iowa City) plays Charlie, Mary’s beloved and a skilled horseman who enlists as a cavalryman with the British forces. In some battlefield scenes, Harriman also portrays Charlie’s commanding officer, Flowers, a character based on an actual sergeant in the Canadian cavalry.
Director Sean Christopher Lewis said that the play is about the truth of love and not the romantic ideal. “We have iconic images in our minds when we think of WWI: the heroic young boy sent off to the front. His doting girl waiting at home, keeping her love close to her heart and memory. But who will that boy be when he returns, after what he does and sees in battle? And if he doesn't come home, what will become of that girl? This play is as complicated as the emotions it explores. It’s an honest portrayal of first love—which is always filled with excitement, terror, longing and even sadness.”
In addition to directing, Lewis designed the sound for Mary’s Wedding. The production also features scenic design by Riverside Theatre technical director Shawn Johnson, costume design by Monica Berry, and lighting design by Courtney Schmitz Watson.
Tickets range from $12-$26 with a $12 student rush 20 minutes before the performance. Tickets may be ordered through the Riverside Theatre Box Office at 213 N. Gilbert St., (319) 338-7672 or online.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Mary's Wedding opens at Riverside
Monday, March 29, 2010
I'd Rather Eat Dirt opens April 2nd
This weekend marks another installment of SPT's "Writer's Room" series. This one is titled "I'd Rather Eat Dirt," and the theme is unpleasant choices. Special guest stars will be Rip Russell and Steve Ginsberg on stage, with Billy Heller joining the band.
SPT is a Cedar Rapids company that focuses on presenting live original work. The Writer's Room series consists of short skits, monologues, and songs. The shows take place at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, April 2nd and 3rd at 7:30. Tickets are $20. Go to http://www.spttheatre.org/index.htm for more info.
Brucemore auditions April 6 & 7
Brucemore - Auditions for the 15th anniversary Classics at Brucemore production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 6 and 7, from 5:30 to 7:30pm in the Brucemore Visitor Center. This is an open audition for specific roles. Audition scenes will be provided.
There will be pre-rehearsal meetings in May and the rehearsal period will begin on June 7. Directed by Jason Alberty, the Classics performances are July 8 – 10 and 15 – 17 with a rain-date scheduled for July 18. The gates open at 7:00pm and the performances begin at 8:00pm.
Parts available in A Midsummer Night’s Dream:
* Lysander: Male; 20s; the basic romantic-comedy lead.
* Hermia: Female; 20s; innocent; average to shorter in height.
* Helena: Female; 20s; the foil to Hermia; above average height.
* Theseus: Male; 30s-40s; Duke of Athens.
* Oberon: Male; 20s-40s; virile, mysterious without brooding, embodiment of nature.
The Classics at Brucemore began as a collaboration between Torchlight Theatrics and Brucemore in 1996, thus launching outdoor theatre in Eastern Iowa. The Classics celebrates a rich history of quality live theatre, from Greek tragedy to Shakespearean comedy and 20th century American drama. Much more than a play performed outdoors, The Classics fully utilizes the site as the natural amphitheatre provides a lush backdrop, and the outdoor environment is incorporated into the action — actors emerge from the woods, get dunked in the pond, and help themselves to the audience’s picnic.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Acting/Model Job Opportunity
Annette Rohlk, Marketing Manager at Leepfrog Technologies, contacting our blog asking for help in getting the word out about their actor/model opportunities. They occasionally hold photo shoots and use those images for their website and collateral materials. They also occasionally hold voice recordings for training videos. They are currently gathering a casting list of potential actors/models. The photo shoots are held during working hours, Monday-Friday. They are looking for actors/models of all ages (18+), gender and ethnicity.
If you are hired for a shoot, the pay would be $25/hour. The photo shoots tend to last anywhere from 2-6 hours. They may or may not need you for that entire span, and they try to take your personal schedule in mind when setting the schedule for the day. They are asking for some general information at this time so that we have a base to work with as well as a current picture. (It does not have to be a professional image.) Some of you may have worked for them in the past; please still reply with your information. The next photo shoot will be held in April 2010 (day & location TBD).
If you would like to be included on our casting call list please email the following information to arohlk@leepfrog.com:
Name:
Gender:
Email Address:
Phone Number:
And please send a current photograph.
If you have questions, call 319-337-3877 or email the address above.
Leepfrog is a software company located in Iowa City and has been serving the Higher Education, Medical Centers, Travel Agencies, Manufacturers and other businesses for 15 years. You can find more information regarding Leepfrog Technologies by going to their website: www.leepfrog.com.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Blackbird soars
by Gerry Roe
Dreamwell - There’s something about a messy 
room that affects our expectations. I still think Mike Nichols was wrong to place George and Martha in a messy, cluttered house in the film version of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? because George and Martha don’t "mess around"; they go straight for the jugular. The messy staff break room we see in Dreamwell Theatre’s current production of David Harrower’s Blackbird seems more in tune with the play we are about to see. The people we are about to meet, Una and Ray, have to do a good deal of thrashing about before they can know how best to attack or even parry.
Ray and Una haven’t seen each other for 15 years, not since their relationship put Ray in prison for statutory rape. Fifteen years ago, Ray was 40. Una was 12. After his release from prison, Ray began a new life with a new name in a new town. To say that he is surprised to see Una is, of course, an understatement. She explains how she found him — his photo in a trade magazine gave her his employer’s name and location. The next hour and fifteen minutes or so (the play unfolds in real time) we are led on a tour through the aftermath of their illicit affair.
That’s all I’m going to say about the situation, except to give you a heads up: if you think you can see where this play is headed, you’re probably wrong. Harrower’s script is full of hairpin curves, speed traps, sharp peaks and unanticipated valleys. Under the very capable guidance of director Angie Toomsen, the actors negotiate this dangerous route with great skill
and to great effect. The direction is deft and unobtrusive, but solidly supports the actors.
And such actors! Rip Russell plays Ray and I’m so glad. Rip has the skill, the timing, the craft, and the experience to make this character work. Beyond an impressive resume, Rip has the insight and generosity of spirit to show us a real man — never a caricature. Erin Mills, as Una, takes on the unenviable task of partnering with one of Iowa City’s most experienced and talented actors. Fortunately, she has found the resources to do the job and to make it look effortless. Erin turns in a complex performance alternating great strength with heartbreaking vulnerability.
Dreamwell Theatre continues its Taboo Bijou season with great success. See Blackbird if you can!
Gerry Roe is an actor and director, having been seen onstage at Riverside Theatre, the Iowa City Community Theatre, the University Theatre, and Dreamwell Theatre. He is a lifetime member of the Iowa City Community Theatre.
Special Performance of Spoon River Anthology
On March 26 & 27, Iowa Theatre Artist's Company (ITAC) will present a special fundraising performance of Spoon River Anthology. The ticket price includes a wine-tasting hosted by Collectively Iowa, and all proceeds go towards funding ITAC's next season as well as their college internship program.
ITAC, which is moving into its third season, is a new theatre company founded by theatre veterans Meg Merckens and Tom Johnson. The non-profit focuses on finding a home for new artists as well as working professionals. The old Barn Restaurant in Amana, which has been transformed into the Performing Arts Center, serves at this home.
Spoon River Anthology is based on a collection of poems written by Edgar Lee Masters and originally published in 1915. The poems concern the fictional town of Spoon River and is based on Masters' experiences growing up in western Illinois. The citizens, all passed away now, reflect on their lives from beyond the grave. The show also contains music, presented here by The Great Bluegrass Herons.
Spoon River Anthology will be presented on March 26th at 7:30PM (with a wine tasting starting at 6) and March 27th at 1:30PM (with a wine-tasting after the show at 3). Tickets are $25 each and help fund ITAC's educational program. The Performing Arts Center in Amana is located at 4709 200th Trail, Amana, Iowa, 52203. Tickets can be purchased at 319.622.3222 or by e-mailing the box office at itac@southslope.net
Friday, March 19, 2010
ICCT's All in the Timing opens tonight
by Matthew Falduto
ICCT - There ought to be a sign on I-80, right around mile marker 250, that says "Welcome to Theatre Country." In the greater Iowa City area alone, we have two community theatres, one puppet theatre, one professional theatre, one children's theatre, and four "niche-y" theatres. Expand outward to the Cedar Rapids area, and you add another community theatre and three more professional theatres. Embrace it, folks, because whether you're looking stage left or stage right, you're going to see someone walking the boards. When ICCT had to unexpectedly cancel their show Bend in the Road and find something new that they could open in three weeks, they looked to this expansive theatre community for help. And they got it.
For their production of David Ives' one act plays collectively called All in the Timing, the actors included the presidents of Dreamwell Theatre and City Circle as well as assorted board members from both theatres. Founders from the newest theatre company, Red Door Ensemble, were on stage or backstage. ICCT's own vice president as well as other board members acted in or directed a show. In her opening remarks before the Thursday invited dress rehearsal, ICCT board member (and stage manager) Brenda Christner made a point of noting how all of the area theatres came together. This was truly a group effort from a theatre community that sticks together.
Ives' collection originally contained six plays, but has been expanded over the years. ICCT presented the original six - Sure Thing; Words, Words, Words; The Universal Language; Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread; The Philadelphia; and Variations on the Death of Trotsky - and then included three that were added later - Long Ago and Far Away, English Made Simple, and A Singular Kinda Guy. While I was disappointed that my favorite of the collection - Mere Mortals - was not included, it was great to see some of the less performed ones.
All are unique, most are whimsical and fun, and there are some common threads. Many involve word play, from the opening piece Sure Thing, where a man and a woman get to re-enact a first meeting until they get it right, to The Universal Language, which follows the story of a woman who finds purpose through learning a new language. The acting in both of these pieces was strong. Anna Maria de la Cruz and veteran actor Brad Quinn expertly maneuvered the repetitive language of Sure Thing. No Shame veterans Aprille Clarke and Adam Burton communicated the nonsense language so well that I think I could have spoken it by the end of the piece. Another that involved the clever use of words, Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread, is one that you have to just let wash over you. Is it going to make a lot of sense? Probably not. Is it fun to listen to? Sure thing. The short play is a homage to Philip Glass, a composer whose repetitive style has had a huge impact on music.
One piece didn't fit into the evening as well as the rest: Long Ago and Far Away. Though actors Kelly Scherrer and Red Door Ensemble founder Jeremy Ping did a fine job, the piece felt a little out of place surrounded by all of the comedy. Chit chat at the intermission made it clear that many in the audience didn't understand exactly what happened at the end of the piece. Popular theories included time travel and dream sequence.
Two shows that worked especially well were in the second act. The Philadelphia, directed by Krista Neumnan, featured Dreamwell board members Chuck Dufano and Jeff Emrich, whose easy chemistry and snappy patter made the funny piece fly. Words, Words, Words featured John Smick and City Circle board members Chris Okiishi, who also directed, and Megan Sands. Watching Okiishi become a chimpanzee who wants a cigarette is more than worth the price of admission.
All in the Timing only runs for this weekend so catch it if you can. For more information, go here.
Matthew has a Bachelor's degree in English from the University of Iowa. He has directed, acted in, and produced theater in the Iowa City area for over twelve years. He has worked with the Iowa City Community Theatre, City Circle and Dreamwell, of which he is a founder. Two of his plays have been produced in the Iowa City area. In another brief life, he also worked as a technical writer.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Backstage with Blackbird
Dreamwell - Blackbird by David Harrower is an intense show. The topic is incendiary and the execution is intimate. Of course, that's what Dreamwell's 2010 season - "A Taboo Bijou" - is all about. We had a chance to talk to the director, Angie Toomsen, and the actors, Erin Mills and Rip Russell about this very unique show.
Can you give me a brief synopsis of the show?
Angie: Something inappropriate happened between Una and Ray 15 years ago, when he was 40 and she was 12. Una locates Ray and visits him at his place of work. And they spend the 90 minutes traversing the distance between them, recounting the past and trying to find some kind of closure/resolution. Ray would have preferred this encounter didn't happen. For Una, this meeting is a necessity in ways she doesn't even fully understand when she first walks in the door. I won't say how it ends but they log quite a few emotional miles in this brief play.
Why did you want to direct this show?
Angie: I felt it was a very brave, very honest account of one potential scenario in the lifelong wake of an inappropriate relationship. Theatre gives us an opportunity to make a meeting like this possible. When in real life do we get the opportunity to corner someone who hurt us in a little room and hash out what really happened and why? I love it when film and theatre ask these cathartic "what if's." When I first read it, it reminded me, in many ways, of a Richard Linklater film called Tape, where a man orchestrates a hotel room meeting between two high school friends, one of whom raped the other. It's like, in these four walls - in this finite amount of time - we are going to claw our way to freedom or understanding...somehow. Blackbird has a similar structure, but there's no moderator. There's no one to "referee" this meeting. There's no one keep this encounter "on the rails." And that's where it gets dangerous. I wanted to direct this because the places it goes are not textbook. This show isn't "settling."
The writing in this piece is written with line breaks and a rhythm that is almost poetic. How did that affect your rehearsal process?
Angie: This is both helpful and extremely difficult for the actors. During one rehearsal we kind of arrived at the decision that a period at the end of a sentence was, in fact, a period. If there was no period preceding the line, it's a "cut off." It sounds really technical, and it is, but decoding the way he wrote it is absolutely necessary. What he's done, basically, is write the way we actually speak. Who speaks in perfectly formed sentences? We stop, start, interrupt each other. The key is really knowing what you were going to say. It's been hard in a lot of ways to make this natural, but it's been helpful in others. For example, when Ray stops and starts himself it's like he's catching himself, reframing what he's saying. So it very much fits.
Rip: I really thought it would be difficult to memorize the playwright’s style of writing. The difficulty comes from remembering when your character has a cut-off line or a full stop. It’s like where to put the air!
Erin: Yes, it made the rehearsal process more challenging. I am accustomed to reading prose in a script, then finding line breaks intuitively as a way to lift the character off of the page. But Harrower wrote these line breaks- incomplete interjections that are a part of natural speech - into the script, which has the effect of making them unnatural, initially. I had to work in reverse order in that way, by making sense of sputtered speech that was already written for me. However, it flows beautifully and makes a lot of sense if you're only reading it!
Rip, can you talk about your character?
Rip: Ray is a tragic figure. He has done despicable acts in his past, been punished by society, and has been left to deal with it on his own. He has admittedly ushed it away as far as he can. But it will always be with him. As a character, he is essentially a normal person with a closeted past. When confronted by Una, past emotions bubble to the surface.
Let’s talk about Una a little bit. Erin, can you tell us what it was like to portray her?
Erin: Something Angie and I concluded early on is that Una does not act like a healthily-adjusted person, mentally or emotionally. I had to realize that much of this play is about showcasing the effects that her first "relationship" had, and still has, on her. The character of Una makes a lot more sense when you understand her as a person with poor mental health, who would qualify for some clinical diagnoses. It has helped me feel comfortable saying some of the shocking things that she says. But fundamentally, she is a walking ball of emotion, and it has been somewhat tiring and very intense to play her. Yet, she's so interesting, complex, intelligent, and open to catharsis, that I do love portraying her.
Angie, how did you help your actors get into these very complex and difficult roles?
Angie: One thing that I think has helped is we have really worked very slowly into some of the tough stuff. I knew Erin a little before this process and had only just met Rip. I don't think Erin and Rip knew each other very well either. So I wanted to cultivate a sense of trust among the three of us. In a play that gets very personal like this, it's easy to think "I hope I don't creep her out" or "I hope he knows I'm okay with this, etc etc." So we have peeled back the layers each week as we've gotten to know one another better. There is a very challenging moment that I have saved to the last week prior to tech to really get into, but I feel confident that we can "go there" now. The other thing that I hope I have done to help them is just reinforcing that they are "enough" and don't have to work so hard. This play is such a roller coaster for both of them so helping them understand that they can conserve their energy by trusting that the playwright has done most of the work already. They don't need to worry about whether or not this will be compelling.
What choices did you have to make as a director to make this show work?
Angie: When I heard Erin read the role I knew that she had the special "lived" quality, despite her youth, that Una needed. Una is intelligent, wise, intuitive, but also very fragile at the core. Erin gets that. The only thing is, she was doing Wonderful Town at the time and, if I cast her, we would only really have three dedicated weeks of rehearsal. But I made that choice because I wanted her soulfulness in the play. Rip hadn't originally auditioned and I hadn't had someone who really looked that much older than Erin. When Rip came on board - even though I can't say he looks 55 - it was the right chemistry. And he is a workhorse - very serious about the process and a very generous actor. So, I really think casting was the biggest choice that I felt would set this up for success.
When working on Blackbird, were there any past theatre experiences that you drew on that helped you get into this character?
Erin: Actually, I can't think of theatre experiences as sources, since this has been my most challenging role yet! They have helped on a basic acting level, surely. But mostly I drew on personal experiences I've had with people I've talked to or known - particularly victims of sexual abuse - and my own feelings about ex-boyfriends, where it's applicable. Though it must be stated that I've never experienced anything like this situation myself. I just hope I'm conveying it well.
Can you talk about the rehearsal process in general and how you two worked together?
Rip: Erin was rehearsing Wonderful Town when we began so we had limited time together until three weeks ago. The key to his play is the chemistry of the actors. Erin is a very quick study and a very generous actor. Blackbird calls for the actors to completely trust each other and I think Erin and I are doing that nicely.
Erin: Right, the rehearsal process has been very private and driven by hard work. It hasn't felt socially appropriate to describe what we're doing in casual conversation because it's so serious and heavy. I feel that Rip, Angie, and I have worked as a true union, a force, because we are all highly committed to the show. It's the kind of show that would totally fail if we weren't. Rip is such a great actor because he's a great person - he can rebuild himself. I think we all had to let ourselves transform. But there were lighter moments, for instance, when we'd screw up a really dramatic part and watch it turn into a soap opera. Or just need to laugh because everything was so grave.
Angie, can you talk about the staging of the show, the set, the lights - all of that side of things?
Angie: It's simple. Spartan. That's all I can say. I would love to have given a designer the money to create something wildly imaginative and symbolic, but we don't have the time or the budget, and this show doesn't require all of that. It's a breakroom in a pharmaceutical supply company. It's blue collar. It's a mess, which really represents Ray's life/inner self when Una tracks him down. He's not prepared, in any way, for this meeting. So we will use props and such to create that space as best we can.
Part of the play’s power is that it can be played different ways, with more or less sympathy for Ray and Una and their individual situations – without telling us the choice you made, I wondered how you came to decide how to play it. What I mean is, did you reach an agreement as a cast, did you as director say how you wanted it played, or did the actors each decide their own way to go and allow that contrast to show?
Angie: I think the script itself naturally sympathizes with Una more than Ray. In no way does it ever say what Ray did was understandable, but I do feel the most powerful way to direct this show is to remove judgment. That can be tough. It goes without saying that all three of us firmly believe that the sexual violation of a minor is wrong! And these characters also understand it's wrong. But the characters' feelings about the situation need to be understood without judgment. It is possible to demonize Ray. It is. We have asking the last few rehearsals how much of what he says could be a lie? We have found some specific areas to consider, but I want to assume most of what he's saying is true - or, at least, he believes it to be true. And that he can care for her as a person - for her well being - on some level. That he was "sick." That's what makes this play challenging for both the audience and the actors.
Was there an aha! moment during the rehearsal process when it all sort of clicked together for you?
Angie: This process has had a steady stream of "clicks" from the start. We'll go over a section, or an idea, and suddenly I find myself saying "he gets it now" or "she knows what I meant." I suppose the initial big "click" was working with Erin and Rip and seeing how much each of them responds to direction. No one takes anything personally and they can integrate ideas and shift almost immediately. That's when I went "okay, this is going to be fun."
Rip: Last week sometime I realized that our characters were just “talking.” Not fumbling for line or thinking what is next. It was very natural and very honest. I was like, “Wow! This is working!”
Erin: I think there were several of those. A few came while I was reading psychological case studies for research. More came while Una was sharing some of her history, and I started to feel like it might as well have been mine, because I was starting to "become" her.
What is it you want the audience to take from this show?
Angie: It's hard to say "I want the audience to think/feel such-and-such." But, I do want them to feel included. That they've been allowed to witness something personal. Even feel like voyeurs at times. That takes a rare depth of stillness and lack of ego, but that's what I aspire to with this piece.
Erin: I think it will surprise you no matter what you expect to see.
Blackbird opens Friday, March 19 at 7:30 at 10 S. Gilbert in Iowa City. Tickets can be reserved online or by calling 319-541-0140. It runs March 19, 20, 26, and 27.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Baltimore Waltz cast chosen
City Circle - Baltimore Waltz tells the story of a fantastical journey that a brother and sister take together. Director Greg Redlawsk, an Iowa City Native, is just finishing his degree in Theater at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, where he recently directed an acclaimed production of Mary Zimmernan's Arabian Nights.
This show replaces City Circle's planned production of Threepenny Opera, which has been postponed indefinitely due to illness.
The Cast of Baltimore Waltz:
Carl: Bryant Duffy
Anna: Nicole Vespa
Third Man: Ben Ward
Red Door opens with well acted preview
by Sharon Falduto
Red Door - Red Door Shorts is a taste of the upcoming shows at Iowa City’s latest theatre company, this one dedicated to doing all original pieces. Rather than a staid showcase of each of the upcoming offerings, the show is presented in sketch format. Each piece flows into the next, with short interstitials that are sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant, and always well acted in between.
The actors for the show all uniformly dressed in black shirts and blue jeans, with one costume change near the end for a sitcom-esque piece in which a group of less-than-bright roommates plots how to rob a bank.
Each actor has a very expressive face, which the audience was able to see clearly in the intimate space. Red Door Shorts was performed at Public Space One, downstairs underneath Herteen and Stocker Jewelers. Three lines of folding chairs were set up in front of a slightly elevated stage, the set of which was decorated like a small studio apartment. Sometimes the set WAS an apartment. Other times it wasn’t there, or was just a background for the chairs that served as a car, or as furniture in Anita Liberty’s piece How to Heal the Hurt By Hating. In that particular scene, one of the folding chairs the actresses were using didn’t open up again on cue as it needed to. The actress seamlessly threw the chair aside and sat on the floor, all without breaking character. Meanwhile one of the actors ran out and replaced it, in a move so fluid it may very well have actually been part of the script, and not a technical difficulty.
The interstitials didn’t seem to have much relationship to the snippets of shows being presented, but they did have running themes. We got to see Newtons’ Laws of Physics demonstrated throughout the show. A young lady did some fun playacting with a broom. I’m not sure if this was intentional, but the same young lady was in charge of another stick later in the production, this time the handle of a mop that was serving as part of a device to keep a “sample zombie” at bay.
Red Door Shorts whets the audience’s appetite for an upcoming season of fascinating, locally written theater.
Sharon Falduto has been involved with theatre for many years. Notable roles include Corrie in Barefoot in the Park with Dreamwell and Myra in Hay Fever with ICCT. She has directed God for the now defunct student group, West Side Players, and Of Mice and Men for Dreamwell. She is currently out of the theatre scene, as she is busy directing the lives of Rachel, Samantha, and Piper at her home in Coralville. She still enjoys the stage, however, and hopes to trod the boards again in the future.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
All in the Timing Opens March 19th
Iowa City Community Theatre has replaced Bend in the Road with a one-weekend-only special performance of selections from David Ives' All in the Timing. The show will feature cast members from Bend in the Road and other local artists. The show includes favorites such as "Sure Thing," "The Philadelphia," "English Made Simple," and "Words, Words, Words."
Often hilarious, sometimes somber and always intelligent, Ives' work is entertaining and thought-provoking. The show will be at the Johnson County Fairgrounds at 7:30 (on March 19th & 20th) and 2:30 (on the 21st). Tickets are $15 for adults, $13 for seniors and $10 for children. Call 319.338.0443 for tickets.
Monday, March 8, 2010
A review of Killadelphia
by Angie Toomsen
Riverside - This past weekend, Riverside Theatre opened Killadelphia: Mixtape of a City, a one-man, 75-minute collage of observations and interviews about incarceration, violence, crime, loss and criminal reform.
Over the past decade, crime has skyrocketed in the city of Philadelphia. In the early 2000’s murders averaged over 400 a day, earning the city the reputation “a body a day” and the portentous moniker, “Killadelphia.”
In response to the growing wave of violence, the Mural Arts Program — an organization working to inject art into dark places — commissioned a short theatre piece about the program and the prisoners serving life sentences who create murals to help beautify the city. The intended outcome was a 20-minute piece to be performed for the population at the Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution in Graterford, Pennsylvania.
Enter Sean Christopher Lewis, playwright-in-residence with the InterAct Theatre Company. Lewis accepted the challenge and began interviewing inmates about the mural project, their imprisonment, their crimes, and how they survive the daily routine when there is no chance of freedom. After meeting and interviewing some of the “lifers” at Gratersford, Lewis found he had more questions than answers, so he widened his gaze. He began to explore the parts of the city that affect — and are most profoundly affected by — Philly’s new age of violence.
The result is a 75-minute documentary-style one-man piece—narrated in first person—that gives voice to nearly 20 individuals. His interviewees include inmates serving life sentences, corrections officers, victims’ advocates and families. His characterizations also extend to the mayor, the media, and his own family members as they responded to his involvement in the project.
At first glance, Lewis is so accessible, friendly and warm that he looks like he would be a shoe-in to host a children’s television show, which makes it all-the-more impressive when he drops into the course vernacular and rough exteriors of the inmates he meets. As a performer, Lewis does an outstanding job of removing himself from the interviews. He allows his subjects to speak through him, buoyed by his own enthusiasm.
As a writer/documentarian, Lewis also allows the subjects’ perspectives to lead him. With only gentle processing, he extracts meaning from the encounters with a light touch, never imposing. I left with a collection voices and individual stories circulating in my head, some sad, some enervating, many quite funny. Some of the most profound statements made were straight from the subjects’ mouths (through Lewis).
An inmate asks Sean how “deep” his theatre piece is going to go. Confused by the question at first, Lewis listens further as the lifer explains his philosophy of two worlds that exist outside of the facility: the one Sean Christopher Lewis lives in and the one the criminals—and potential criminals—inhabit. They exist on parallel planes that often come close enough to “collide.”
Many of the inmates Lewis spoke with had received their life sentences while they were still in their teens. A judge had already decided they were too dangerous to walk as free individuals ever again.
As one prisoner says about surviving his daily routine, “it’s all about choices.”
Throughout the piece, Lewis seems to intuit that the questions and statements he encounters are situated at the pulse of a larger set of questions. He allows questions to build themselves, never directly posing them to the audience. Except for one.
Though it’s easy to call it “evil,” it’s, more specifically, lack of self-responsibility — from a tragic momentary lapse to the kind that permanently cripples an individual’s ability to make good choices — that is the root cause of the crimes that slapped his subjects with life-sentences. So, that means that taking responsibility for one’s actions is the ultimate solution, right?
Sure, except there’s a catch 22 within the criminal justice system, as many lifers see it. If they completely own up to their crimes and meet them with complete honesty — which is the only way true rehabilitation can happen — they could lose the chance for a future pardon or shortened sentence. When it comes to murder, unequivocal confessions might heal the soul, but they more thoroughly seal a lifer’s fate. Lewis asks the audience: “what would you do?”
Here, quite possibly, is a glimmer of that intersection the inmate asks Lewis about. Can you see why someone would hold fast to their innocence, if it meant the possibility that they would feel the grass again?
Lest it seem that Lewis has forgotten that the inmates murdered people — ruined lives — he does extend his interviews to the families of victims and victim advocacy groups. He voices their losses with care. One young man lived very near Lewis in Philly and had come to the city for similar reasons. Even shared the same daily route to and from work. The victim’s family member tells Lewis, “being without him is like missing the ability to laugh.” And there are others.
Killadelphia doesn’t pardon murderers. It doesn’t side with them. But it does present them as people who have committed murders. This isn’t an act of compassion, in the conventional sense. It’s reality. If you set about trying to understand how human beings commit acts that devastate lives and ruin their own, you have to try to understand why they think the way they do. The places where choices went awry. That can mean finding the places where your thinking — your potential choices in certain circumstances — could “collide” with theirs. The parts of them that aren’t criminal.
To be clear, though, Lewis states he deliberately did not attempt to answer any questions. In fact, at first, when the show’s final blackout came, I thought “it’s not done” and, frankly, felt a little frustrated. A little uncomfortable. I told my theatre companion that I was confused because the piece comprised very focused, specific moments, infused with vitality. Still, comprehensively, it didn’t have a clear message. What was the real purpose here?
After thinking about it over the weekend — because it wouldn’t leave me, quite honestly — my initial reaction re-framed itself.
The piece doesn’t feel finished because it’s just beginning a dialogue. It’s not the piece that left me unsettled, it’s the subject. Lewis is navigating a complex, frustrating topic. When it comes to violence, inner-city crime and prison reform, the issue is so convoluted and so mired in bureaucracy and politics that the questions aren’t even clear.
Is redemption possible in the current system? What purpose do the murals serve? Can art fix anything? Should people be given the possibility of forgiveness in this lifetime? And so on, and so on. Any one of these questions could have been a guiding focus but a definitive question would have narrowed the process and prevented Lewis from collecting and telling the stories — the stories that found him as much as he found them.
Killadelphia: Mixtape of a City plays through March 14 at Riverside Theater. Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. and are followed by a talk back with Lewis after every performance.
City Circle announces auditions for Baltimore Waltz
City Circle - City Circle Acting Company of Coralville will hold auditions for Baltimore Waltz by Paula Vogel on Saturday, March 13 from 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm at the theater at the Iowa Children's Museum. Roles available for one male actor and one female actor, age 25 - 40 and one male actor of any adult age.
Baltimore Waltz tells the story of a fantastical journey that a brother and sister take together. Funny, sad, charming, and gripping, this drama from the author of How I Learned to Drive has become an audience favorite across the nation. Director Greg Redlawsk, an Iowa City Native, is just finishing his degree in Theater at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, where he recently directed an acclaimed production of Mary Zimmernan's Arabian Nights.
Baltimore Waltz replaces Three Penny Opera which has been postponed indefinitely due to an unexpected health concern within the creative team.
Questions or concerns may be directed to info@citycircle.org or by calling Chris Okiishi at 621-5179.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
A Review of Deathtrap
by James E. Trainor III
Sidney Bruhl would kill for a new play. Or would he? The whole thing seems innocent enough; the twisted genius behind The Murder Game has a few notes for budding playwright Clifford Anderson. But why did he invite Clifford into his dagger-filled den in the middle of the night? And why did he ask him to bring along the only existing copies of his sure-fire smash Deathtrap?
In case you've never seen Ira Levin' 1978 play, or the 1982 film of the same name, we won't give away too much here. Suffice to say that Deathtrap centers around two devious writers who will do anything to make it big. Levin starts with the typical recipe - an enormous concatenation of unlikely circumstances, colorful characters and malicious motives - and twists it into a delicious send-up of the classic thriller. It's a delight to watch; though we know the tools of the trade, Deathtrap holds more than a few surprises. It seems in every scene there's a brand new scheme.
City Circle's production takes place in the Iowa Children's Museum at Coral Ridge Mall. It's a small space but it works perfectly for a piece like this. Lee Iben has crafted a marvelous rendering of Bruhl's colonial, whose sinister red walls are covered with weapons of all sorts. Director Alex Iben seems to have a firm grip on the themes of the piece, and though the energy dips a bit in the first act, the action is rolling along by the end.
Scott Hughes (who plays Bruhl) and Matthew James (who plays Anderson) work quite well together. It's a lot of fun to watch them conniving, trying to gain the edge in this cat-and-mouse game. They're reserved for the most part, playing their cards close to their chest, but as the action heats up they each have some outrageous moments of pure comedy. The supporting cast rounds out a solid ensemble; in particular, Kaitlyn Busbee is hilarious as the excitable psychic Helga Ten Dorp.
Deathtrap is playing at the Iowa Children's Museum at Coral Ridge Mall from March 5-7 and 12-14 (Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30, Sunday at 2:30). Tickets are $17 for general admission, $14 for students and seniors. Tickets can be purchased at the Coralville Recreation Center or by calling 248-1750.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Killadelphia comes to Riverside
Sean Christopher Lewis's Killadelphia: Mixtape of a City comes to Riverside Theatre on March 5th.
The piece is a theatrical documentary, a solo show in the tradition of Anna Deavere Smith. Commissioned by the Mural Arts Project of Philadelphia (in conjunction with InterAct Theatre), Lewis went to Graterford Prison to conduct interviews with inmates serving life. Killadelphia contrasts these voices with others - from the street, from the press, from the families of victims - to create a theatrical mural exploring Philadelphia's crime problem, the contradictions inherent in our prison system, and the use of art as a tool for connecting and healing. Lewis has received several recognitions for his work, including the Kennedy Center's Rosa Parks Award for Social Justice in Playwriting.
Killadelphia: Mixtape of a City opens on March 5th at 213 S Gilbert St in Iowa City and runs until March 14th. Tickets are $12-16; call Riverside at 319-338-7672 or go to their website.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Another round of Slices of Life opens this week
MVLCT - Original plays will once again come to stage in Lisbon, Iowa as the Mt. Vernon/Lisbon Community Theatre present its "Slices of Life" new play festival this week. Over two hundred short plays submitted from all across the country - and even from Canada - were whittled down to thirteen. The following plays will be performed as a dessert theatre in Lisbon's Heritage Hall, 101 East Main Street, Lisbon, on March 4, 5, 6 and 7:
21st Century Espionage by Brian Tanner, North Liberty, IA
Driving Green by Martin Blank, Bethesda, MD
Stamp Act by Myron Stein, Southfield, MI
Superhero by Mark Harvey Levine, Pasadena, CA
Teacher's Lounge by Amy White, Mt. Vernon, IA
The Play-Writer by Tait Larson, Lisbon, IA
The Right Stuff by Stephen Petrick, St. Louis, MO
The Stand In by Brett Hursey, Farmville, VA
The Trouble with Day Care by Josh McIlvain, Philadelphia, PA
What Light From Yonder Window by Anne Easker, Lisbon, IA
Three Stiffs and a Stiff by James and Marianne Taylor, Mt. Vernon, IA
Wisdom by Joe Jennison, Iowa City, IA
Edge of the Pond by Mike Moran, Mt. Vernon, IA.
Directors are Chrissy Berlin, Bob Driggs, Barbara Lau, Karen Mills, Mike Moran, Braden Rood, Robin Stoker, and Amy White, all of Mt. Vernon, and Brian Markowski of Iowa City.
Shows are Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30 PM and Saturday and Sunday afternoons at 2 PM. All tickets are $12 (dessert included) and are available in advance at Shepley Pharmacy in Mt. Vernon (319-895-6248) and the Lisbon Public Library (319-455-2800).
Monday, March 1, 2010
TCR returns with The Producers!
by Sharon Falduto
TCR - Theatre Cedar Rapids is back! It never really left town, of course, operating as it did for the last year and a half in the found space near Lindale Mall. But finally, rebuilt from the devastating flood, the Iowa Theatre Building is open for business. The Producers is the perfect show to reintroduce the space. This is the musical that saved an allegedly moribund Broadway at the beginning of the Millennium; it's the show that Mayor Guiliani joked you might be able to get tickets to after September 11. It’s the perfect “Welcome Back From the Brink of Disaster” show. It’s got everything going for it: over the top personalities, spectacular dance moves, and pigeons. (No, really.)
First, I’d like to comment on the space — it looks great. The same beautiful theater building you remember, with a new coat of paint, new chairs, and an elegant gallery restaurant where a tasting plate could be had during intermission. When the flood hit, I remember watching the devastation on TV and mentally rifling through the buildings that were underwater, wondering what treasures might be getting inundated. The thing that I worried about at Theatre Cedar Rapids was the pictures. They had gorgeous framed prints from several plays throughout the years located on the walls along the lobby and upstairs outside the balcony. The pictures have returned — sort of. Now they’re broadcast on digital TV screens, scrolling slowly through several different prints. I didn’t care for this. For one thing, the crisp photographs are rendered pixilated when shown on television. Also, it discouraged people from “flowing” through the space. My companion and I spent several minutes just staring at one screen, waiting for the next picture to arrive.
But enough about the exterior, and on to the show. The premise of the show is that Max Bialystock, a washed-up Broadway producer, and Leo Bloom, a nebbishy accountant, are in collusion to produce a Broadway flop. They are operating under the idea that they can raise two million dollars (one for each conspirator), open and close the show in one right (thereby avoiding the eyes of the IRS) and skip town thereafter. To achieve their goal they find the worst play ever written, hire the worst director in town, and cast lousy actors. Murphy’s Law being what it is, they end up putting on the surprise smash of the century.
Max Bialystock is the first non-ensemble character we meet, played by Scott Schulte (of Z102.09’s Schulte and Swann fame). Before the show I wondered aloud, “Can Scott Schulte sing?” The answer is, yes, he can. He mimicked Nathan Lane’s famous New York rasp and mostly carried it off, although at times I felt the music overpowered him and it became difficult to discern all his lyrics, a shame in this show densely packed with Mel Brooks bon mots.
The show’s true heart and its best actor were Leopold Bloom, portrayed by Trevor Debth. His performance early in the show in the song “I Want to Be a Producer” is a metaphor for his entire story arc. He starts off with a little soft shoe, barely moving more than two feet on the stage, and ends the song with a splashy Broadway number, standing on a podium, surrounded by chorus girls. Leo Bloom is the growth character in this show (if one must psychoanalyze it); the fella whose character shows the most growth and change. Debth managed to command the stage even as he portrayed the inhibited Bloom, keeping his arms tight to his body and keeping the waver in his voice even while he projected.
Jason Alberty was perfectly cast as Franz Liebkind, the author of the play Springtime for Hitler. I laughed most of the time he was on stage, although to be honest this was partly because it’s hard not to laugh at a man in lederhosen.
Katie Knudson’s Ulla, although obviously intended as eye candy for the men in the audience, was fun for everyone to watch. She is lithe and very limber, as you see when she does a back flip into a split — a rare but useful talent, especially for a Svedish ingénue.
The weak link of the show, unfortunately, was another former radio man: Tim Boyle as the director of the play, Roger DeBris. The success of the show hinges on this character’s effeminacy, and he just never quite carries it off. Although he first appears wearing a dress, and he has all the mannerisms stereotypically associated with a gay man, he never seems to pull it off. In counterpoint, Nathan Cooper’s Carmen Ghia effortlessly slips into his role as DeBris’ fey little assistant.
Every ensemble song in the show is a thing of beauty. The choreography is fun and fascinating to watch, a rare treat in local theater. “You just don’t see tap dancing like that,” an audience member said. The ensemble fills the stage in various costumes — what a wonderful opportunity, I thought, for someone to get to wear a pretzel, or a beer stein, on her head! The ending of the musical-within-a-musical Springtime for Hitler, complete with roller skating be-Swastika-ed tanks, was an oddly uplifting sight.
As is fitting for the first show back in its new space, many familiar TCR faces had cameo appearances in The Producers. Doug Jackson walked on, sang one stanza of a song, and received applause — sort of like Eastern Iowa’s own version of Tom Cruise in Tropic Thunder. There was also a sly in-joke treat for those of us lucky enough to have seen Annie.
The Producers is, overall, a bit bloated — I’d hate to short anyone his or her song, and they’re all fun to hear and watch, but if you’re one of those people who edits out fluff after you see a show, you could find some things to cut.
I mentioned pigeons, didn’t I? I’ve seen the movie of this show (both of them, actually, the Gene Wilder/Zero Mostel version and the Matthew Broderick/Nathan Lane one), so I knew that Liebkind kept pigeons. I really didn’t think a local theatre would be able to pull that off, but I was wrong. Sure enough, an aviary full of fake pigeons was wheeled in for his introduction. This was a great addition, but occasionally the pigeons upstaged the actors. While I should have been paying attention to the “Guten Tag Hop Clop,” I was wondering if someone was standing behind the chicken wire operating the puppets.
I look forward to seeing many more of these Broadway-caliber shows at Theatre Cedar Rapids, both because the auditorium is so beautiful and because the shows are almost always perfectly cast and portrayed. Let’s hope the snows melt slowly and the rains hold off because although TCR handled itself admirably during its absence from downtown, nobody wants them to have to move again.
Sharon Falduto has been involved with theatre for many years. Notable roles include Corrie in Barefoot in the Park with Dreamwell and Myra in Hay Fever with ICCT. She has directed God for the now defunct student group, West Side Players, and Of Mice and Men for Dreamwell. She is currently out of the theatre scene, as she is busy directing the lives of Rachel, Samantha, and Piper at her home in Coralville. She still enjoys the stage, however, and hopes to trod the boards again in the future.
