Adventures in Moliere

Greetings! My name is Amy and I'm thrilled to be back at New Rep playing Celimene in The Misanthrope. I've been asked to share my experiences with you via this blog and give you a look into the life of an actor. So here goes my very first post...

It's been a whirlwind few weeks! I finished another show on December 23rd in Connecticut, spent Christmas Eve and Day at home in NYC, and left for Boston at 6 am on December 26th to make it to our first rehearsal at 1 pm the same day! I met my castmates and the crew, saw a model of the set design, the costumes, and we had our first table read. I'm so excited about Audra's magnificent set - I can't wait until it's built so we can play on it! And I'm grateful to Raphael for his exquisite costumes since I find they help me with character development. The table read was great fun. It's amazing to hear the script already begin to come to life!

I'm excited to be a part of this production, and I look forward to the process, but for now, all I want to do is get some sleep.

Until soon!
Amy

PS - My Dad thinks I'm in Buffalo. It's a long story...

The Misanthrope - costume designs

Backstage @ New Rep caught up with Costume Designer Rafael Jaen of The Misanthrope to get an inside peek at his inspiration for the gorgeous show.

What was your inspiration for the costumes, Rafael?

Rafael: The design process has been inspired by a Renoir painting (The Boating Party). Director Adam Zahler has said how much he likes the mood, light and texture of it. For my color palette and fabric choices I have focused in impressionistic paintings by Renoir; for silhouette I have early 1900’s period posters and also portraits from Sargent for the women. Director Adam Zahler and I want to give the show an elegant, colorful, fluid and whimsical look. The idea is to create a highly stylized Edwardian silhouette and evoke the various styles of La Belle Époque. We believe that this goes with the language and actions of the play.

View a slide show of Rafael's sketches and inspiration here: SLIDE SHOW

More about Rafael:
Rafael Jaen is a member of USITT and USA Local 829. He has been designing costumes for over 35 years. His professional design credits include drama, musical comedy, Shakespeare tragedy, opera and dance in regional theatre. His work has been featured in full-page articles in the Boston Globe, Boston Herald and national publication’s including Live Design and TD&T. Mr. Jaen was nominated for a 2006 I.R.N.E Award in Costume Design for the musical Urinetown, produced by the Lyric Stage. Mr. Jaen is currently a Costume Design Faculty at Emerson College. His book Developing and Maintaining a Design-Tech Portfolio was published in 2006 by FOCAL Press/Elsevier. Visit his website.

The Santaland Diaries makes New Rep history!

For the first time in New Rep history, a show sold out before opening night! In fact, The Santaland Diaries has been so popular that we've extended the run until January 1st and added several late-night shows. The tickets for these new shows are going fast, so don't miss your chance.

Above: Guy Olivieri is Crumpet, the wickedly funny Macy's elf.

Food Drive Success

Food Drive Success!

We're thrilled to report that we exceeded our goal of 400 pounds of food for the Greater Boston Food Bank. In just two weeks we raised 565 pounds of food.

Thank you to all of you who brought food or helped pass the word along.

"A House With No Walls" - Food Drive

New Rep partners with the Greater Boston Food Bank for all remaining performances of Thomas Gibbons’ A House With No Walls. Tickets regularly priced from $35 to $55 will be sold for only $10 to patrons who bring a non-perishable food donation. New Rep hopes to gather 400 pounds of food for the drive over the next two weeks.

more info

"A House With No Walls" - The Reviews

The reviews have started to hit:

The Boston Globe

EDGEBoston

Theater Mirror

And an interesting Blog
BLUE


What do YOU think? Leave us a comment.

"A House With No Walls" - The Audience Arrives

We checked in with Director Lois Roach after opening night to see how it felt:


Lois: "Wow - I still get the butterflies on the first show when the house opens and there are people sitting there. With programs. With expectations. And when the magic begins and you can sense the feeling in the house and you begin to feel that what you were trying to communicate is coming through...wow.

And this is one live experience that all in the room are having at the same time.
The laughter, the tears, the love - it all gets shared in one moment.

It's soooo nice when it all fits and flows. Whew!"

Basic Black - Black Theatre in Boston: A Director's Roundtable

Basic Black asks three directors immersed in Boston's dramatic arts scene to define black theater. In this episode of Basic Black, new host Kim McLarin explores the meaning of black theater and its impact on Boston's theater-going community in a roundtable discussion with Robbie McCauley, Jacqui Parker, and Lois Roach (director of A House With No Walls) as they share their personal connections with the art form.

WGBH Basic Black

Watch the interview

Photo and text taken from WGBH.org

"A House With No Walls" - Boston Globe Preview

Kortney Adams plays a slave named Ona in Thomas Gibbons's "A House With No Walls."
(Globe Photo)

Read the story,

New Rep brings home the history in 'House'

by Christopher Wallenberg.

More Show Info

"A House With No Walls" - A Timely Drama

We caught up with Lois Roach, director of A House With No Walls to ask her about the rehearsal process.

Backstage @ New Rep: Lois, what do you enjoy about rehearsal and tech week?

Lois: It is fun to see the different lives each actor brings to their individual characters!
And may I say, our full company is amazing and powerful in their portrayals.

Lines - lines - lines, yes! learning those lines while dealing with an imaginary set taped to the floor of the rehearsal hall was the first phase of getting this show on its feet. But the taped lines are no match for what has become a multi-level sculpture on stage, designed by Cristina Todesco.

Now - rhythms, pacing (and yes! all those lines!) are an important part of keeping this play flowing and alive...

More Info on the Show

"A House With No Walls" - Tech Week

If you want to know how tech week went, the best person to ask is the Production Stage Manager, so that is what we did. Carola Morrone, a member of Actor's Equity, is in her 5th season with New Rep. If anyone knows, it's her.

Backstage @ New Rep: So Carola, it looks fantastic, how did it go?

Carola: The tech for A House With No Walls went very smoothly, it hardly felt like work. The production team on this show really worked well together and made taking this piece to the next level, adding lights, sound, costumes & sets, easy. I think by the end of the weekend we were all finishing each other's sentences.

We kept this tech on schedule, created a beautiful show and managed to share a few good laughs a long the way. That doesn't happen every day.

Photo of the set:

Cast of A House With No Walls. Photo: Andrew Brilliant/Brilliant Pictures


More Show Information

A House With No Walls - rehearsals underway

A House With No Walls is underway with rehearsals, and we took some photos recently to give you a sneek peek at the show.


l. to r. Kortney Adams (Ona), Johnny Lee Davenport (Salif), Riddick Marie (Cadence) and Michael Kaye (Allen) in A House With No Walls.

l. to r. Johnny Lee Davenport (Salif) and Riddick Marie (Cadence) in A House With No Walls.

More info

Streetcar closes

Just one more quick post to say that that rattle-trap Streetcar banged through the Quarter for the last time at New Rep last night. It was a great closing performance of a show that was totally amazing to work on and to be a part of. I'm going to miss the dynamic of this particular cast, but I'm excited to move on to a different New Rep production that is actually going into its second week of rehearsal tomorrow. Yay!

Miss Conduct blogs on "Streetcar"

The cruelty of strangers

by Robin Abrahams aka Miss Conduct

Streetcar Memorabilia Auction

Above: Todd Alan Johnson (Stanley) and Marianna Bassham (Stella). Photo: Andrew Brilliant.

Several of you enjoyed Scenic Designer Janie Howland's brilliant signs as much as you enjoyed our critically acclaimed 60th Anniversary production of A Streetcar Named Desire. We've had a number of requests to purchase individual signs, so we will auction several signs to the highest bidders.

The auction opens on Tuesday, October 2, 2007 and closes on Friday, October 12, 2007.

Bid Here

"A House With No Walls" - A Timely Drama

At Mount Vernon, lives of Washington's slaves
become real

Exhibit includes a re-creation of field hand cabins

Read about it in:
The Boston Globe

Above: Kortney Adams and Johnny Lee Davenport in "A House With No Walls" October 24 - November 18, 2007

More info

The Guardian weighs in on bloggers...

"Blogging saved critics from extinction

I was in danger of becoming a dodo, but the blogosphere has breathed new life into the dying art of reviewing." - Lyn Gardner

Read More

"Streetcar" - Off and running

That we are: off and running, with already a week's worth of shows under our belts. From my backstage point of view, it's getting easier every time, as I become more confident with scene changes, transitions, pre-show and post-show work, etc. And it seems like everyone can relax a bit more now that we've all become familiar with what needs to happen for each show, and how to keep that consistent.

For just the 7 shows we've done so far, it's interesting to see how each audience is different. The opening night audience laughed the most out of any so far, and that made me very happy. Some clap when the lights come up on the first scene (also pretty cool to witness). Others are quiet, and then laugh in unexpected places.

"Streetcar" - Previews

Sorry it's been a while since I wrote, but we've been doing this thing called tech. And this other thing called previews. Which require long hours and lots of intense work. It was a little overwhelming! But everything came together. Last night was technically our second preview, after Tuesday night's 'pay what you can.' I thought it went really well- much better than Tuesday. We received a standing ovation both nights! Last night's audience made me happy because they laughed at seriously every line that had even the slightest touch of humor in it. Up until the end of act 2, one would have assumed Streetcar was a comedy. It was refreshing to hear spectators enjoying the play in that way, because after living with the play for almost a month, I tend to associate it more with the overall tragedy of the characters' situations at the end.

Tonight is our last preview and tomorrow is the official opening night. Come see the show! :)

"Streetcar" - Onstage!

Today was our first rehearsal on the actual set, with most of the show furniture pieces and props. It's a big transition moving from the rehearsal hall to the stage. Tech and stage management did lots of prep last night for the move, and there is still more to be done. Watching the actors rehearse the scenes today was interesting because they were either forced to change some things or chose to change some things in their blocking, acting choices, etc due to the new space. For example, some larger furniture pieces in the kitchen had to be rearranged because of sightline issues, so that changed some blocking for a few scenes.

Tomorrow is our first long day of tech, so I am definitely going to bed soon, otherwise I would keep writing about more randomness and how hard working and amazing these people are...

Streetcar Trailer

More Info

"Streetcar" - Stumbling through a 'Stumble Through'

Today was a little crazy! We ran (stumbled) through the entire show for the first time, piecing all the transitions together. It was good to get a feel for the pace of the play, the tracking of props and costumes, etc. The lighting designer and the costume designer were there to watch and to get a feel for the production as well, with an eye toward their respective roles as designers.
The last couple hours of rehearsal were spent working on fight choreography. Seeing as how I wince every time someone grabs at someone else onstage, it feels safer and better to know that these moments are actually planned out so no one gets hurt, but so that at the same time the fights look very real.
On a side note, I had fun taking a trip to our props and costume storage space in Newton and pulling more things to use during rehearsal. Scott (our amazing production manager) and his amazing crew did a huge cleaning job there, and the place is SO much nicer and easier. Yay!

"Streetcar" - Sexily tragic; Tragically sexy

By now we have most of the scenes staged and they are already goosebump provoking and intense. These actors do not mark things. They go for it all the way, taking risks and not just waiting for performances to 'act'. The last scene we blocked yesterday (the scene between Stanley and Blanche right before the last scene of the play) was particularly engrossing to watch unfold. Rachel is so perfect for Blanche- every affect seems so nuanced and intuitive. Especially in that scene, I love how Rick, Rachel, and Todd worked together to simultaneously bring out the inherent sexiness and the tragedy of that situation. The end of the famous "Stella! Stella!" scene that they worked on earlier with Marianna is similar in that way. Those two seemingly opposite sides of the situation are blurred for the characters as well as the audience, and it makes the scene that much more compelling.

"Streetcar" - On Its Feet!

Today we finished the discussion/table work on Streetcar and actually started staging the first scene of the play. I, having been a big fan of New Rep shows long before I began my involvement with the theatre, found it so interesting to see how these actors and this director worked together to create the blocking and stage business for these first specific moments of the play. It is such a combination of Rick's suggestions, the actors' own organic choices, the actors' chemistry together in the moment, and the playwright's already written-in stage directions. And that was only the first several pages!

Another thing to mention about the table work process with everyone: these are such fun people! I won't go into dirty detail about some of the hilarious stories that made certain people teary from laughing so hard, but I love the way that we can be uninhibited together (important for good collaboration anyway) but also really get down to business and learn a lot and do good work.

A Streetcar Named Desire- First rehearsal!

Hi, I'm Emily Brenner, the production assistant working on Streetcar. I've been appointed the exciting task of keeping a blog for this show. This is my first official season with New Rep, and I'm so thrilled to be a part of the production staff and to get to work with and learn from such wonderful people. That being said, I'll try not to gush too much in my writing, but I make no promises as I take my first steps in the world of blogging.

The full cast read-thru at today's first rehearsal was a pleasure to witness. I kept thinking what a terrific casting job Rick and Bevin did, because each actor seemed so perfectly fit for his/her role. You can just tell that this is going to be a great, dynamic group with good chemistry and energy (and a sense of humor on top of it all; they kept me laughing pretty consistently throughout the day). After reading through the play once, we went back over the beginning of the script in detail, picking apart certain lines and working out where/why/when/how the characters met one another and came to be in their respective circumstances. I find that kind of discussion ('table work,' in theatre terms) totally fascinating, especially when the play itself already intrigues me a good deal, which all of Tennessee Williams' work does.

This is going to be an amazing and educational experience and I look forward to months more of sharing it with you. Any comments would be most welcome.

More Casting for 2007-2008

The Clean House
Charles - Will Lyman

Dessa Rose
Ruth - Leigh Barrett

tick, tick... Boom!
Michael - Brian Robinson

My Name is Rachel Corrie
Rachel - Stacy Fischer

New Rep Studio - last day & performance!!!

Okay, so yesterday was our last day and we were all so so so sad to say goodbye. We did notes in the morning and then we had a run through that was by far much better than our previous ones. Everything came together, we had lots of energy, and we remembered all of our cues. After the run through we had more notes and then we broke for dinner. (It was definitely sad to be eating our last Panera dinner all together). After we came back from dinner we set our props, did our makeup, and waited for Lianne & Lina to call places. When it was time to wait in the wings we were all SO nervous.


The performance was AMAZING and as soon as we got on the stage, our nerves melted away. I want to congratulate all the girls for doing an amazing job. The audience really enjoyed it. Everything went so well, except the part where I fell out of the back of the wheelbarrow, but we just laughed it off. If we made any mistakes at all, people handled them perfectly and we all worked together to fix them. All in all, the show was fantastic.

As some of you may know, at the end of the show, it is a tradition to get the director a bouquet of flowers. But we had a better idea. Since Panera had become like our second home in these past four weeks, we decided to get ciabatta rolls instead. So at the end of the show we presented Suzanne (director), Dan (A. Director), Virgina (costumes), Kevin (music), Lianne (Stage Manager), Lina (A. Stage Manager) and Cheo (techy) with their very own rolls. I think they appreciated our creativity :)

After the performance we had a little reception where we all got to say our final goodbyes. About half way through, we all went down to the dressing room to get our things together and to just sit and talk before we split for the rest of the summer. There were tears and tons and tons of hugs. We must have sat and talked for at least 40 mintues. We talked about everything that had happened from first impressions, to the very last day. Eventually, our parents had to pry us apart.

Over 4 weeks, we have become like a family. I will always remember this camp and I know that we all stay in touch. I know that you girls will always have a place in my heart and I will always think of the good times we had.

I love you girls to death!!

Love,

Talia

New Rep Studio - Dress Rehearsal Photos

New Rep Studio- Chicago dance workshop

Hey everyone,

I forgot to mention on my last blog that we also had a dance workshop on Thursday afternoon. This guy came in and taught us a dance from Chicago, I forget the name of it but it was SOOOO SOO AMAZING. It was the funnest thing ever. The steps were pretty challenging and most of us broke a sweat but it was so worth it.

Anyway, just wanted to tell you guys we did that.
-Talia

New Rep Studio- Stage Managing workshop & Stumble through

Hey guys,

Sorry for posting so late, I had a really busy weekend. Anyway let me fill you in on what we did on Thursday and Friday. Thursday, we did a stumble through. For people who don't know what that is, a stumble through is when we run the whole show off book with mostly all the props. It went pretty well and even though we had to call for line a few times, we basically had our lines and songs memorized. Everyone did a really good job remembering all the blocking we did and remembering what props to set and how to build the barricade for the fight scene. It was really amazing watching the whole show come together after so much hard work and we were all pretty proud of ourselves.

On Friday, (my birthday!), Debra Rafson came in and did a stage managing workshop with us. We talked about all the responsibilities of a stage manager and let me tell you, they have a lot more stuff to do than I thought. One of their jobs is creating a relaxing environment for the actors and furnishing the rehearsal room so people feel relaxed. Besides working at New Rep, Debra is also one of the stage managers for Blue Man Group. For an activity, she brought in a tape of one of Blue Man Groups's performance numbers and also brought in the cue list. So what we did was we watched the tape so we became familiar with it and then we got to call the cues for the lights in the show. We read the cues off a piece of paper. (The cues coordinated with the words of the song so we knew when to call them). It was SO fun, although now I know that I definitely don't have a stage managing career ahead of me. Aside from my lack of talent, some of the girls were really good at calling the cues. It was a great workshop and we got a much better taste of what being a stage manager is like.

This coming week is our last week in camp. We're going to polish everything for the show and make sure we have everything down solid. It's going to be so sad to say goodbye-we've become so close!! It's really amazing being with 12 other talented girls around my age and putting on an extremely difficult show with minimal props and lighting. Seeing everything come together so far was such an incredible experience and we're not even done polishing things yet.

I'll make sure to keep reporting on how the show is coming along,
-Talia

New Rep Studio - Directing workshop with Bevin and Blocking

Hey everyone,

this morning Bevin came in and did a directing workshop with us. She assigned four of us the role of being the directors and the rest were actors (I was a director). We were given two person scenes that were very neutral in the sense that if you read them over, they would seem like pretty much emotionless. We had many, many jobs as a director. Some of them were to block a scene so we used as much of the stage as possible and set our props (if we decided to use them), set status between the two actors (aka which one had higher status than the other) and help the actors show that status, made a setting for the scene: where the scene took place and was it a specific time of day etc., and helped the actors think about the emotions they wanted to portray to the audience. We had 30 minutes to pull our scenes together and then we presented them to the group. Bevin then gave us feedback and gave us another 15 minutes to put the suggestions she gave us back into our scenes. Well I must say that the scenes were REALLY good. It was also really intersting to get to stand in the same shoes of Suzanne, our director for Les Mis and all of the other directors I'd worked with. It was alot tougher than I thought it was going to be and even directing a one minute scene took alot more time than I thought it was going to take. I'm a bossy person so it was hard for me to direct a scene where the actors also got to share their ideas and use them in the scene, even if it was different than what I had pictured it to be. But there were a couple of times where I was like, wow their idea is much better than what I thought of. It was also cool to see the same scene directed twice. Two of us were given the same scene to direct and the both came out really different. The ideas were so unique and they were in almost in no ways similar. Overall it was really fun and I learned alot about being the different aspects that go into creating a scene.

After the workshop, Suzanne came in and we blocked the fight scenes where all the students die (except for Marius). Although this may sound bizarre, it was awesome getting to fake our deaths. It's was hard reacting to being shot when there are no sound effects, nothing that actually hits you in place of the bullet and sometimes not even an actor that pretends to shoot you. In the part where I die, the person who shoots me is unseen so I have to make it clear to the audience that I'm being shot just by my reaction to the "bullet".

I think that pretty much every girl agrees with me in the fact that we love eachother and this camp so UNBELIEVABLY much. We all have gotten so close and it is soo fun getting to put on this show together, it's going to be AMAZING.

I'll tell you more later!!
-Talia

New Rep Studio- Stage Combat & read/sing through

Hey everyone,

Today we had a woman named Serah Rose come in and do a stage combat class. We learned how to do hair-pulls, slaps, punches and how to react to being shot. It was really fun!!! Serah Rose taught us how to position ourselves so it looked realistic from the audience and we didn't kill each other. After we learned the moves, we made scenes with partners that included the moves we learned and they were hysterically funny. After stage combat, we broke for lunch and when we returned we did a read/sing through of the play which means we sang all of the songs and read all of the lines in chronological order. I think it surprised us all how well it went. We had a great time going through everything. We had a very mixed range of emotions. We laughed when Dan, the assistant director, had to read the part of Bamatobois, a potential "customer" of Fantine, because a girl was absent and we cried when Emily (aka jean Valjean) sang (she has incredible passion for the music). Even though we stumbled through a bunch of the music, it was still awesome. We helped each other out if one of us forgot the key of the song accidentally or missed their cue and I know this sounds extremely corny but we kind of built a support system for each other.

That's all for today-more later!
-Talia

Side By Side Reviews

BroadwayWorld.com Review

Boston Globe Review

Boston Globe Feature

Boston Phoenix Review

Edge Boston Preview

Theater Mirror Reviews: Larry Stark - Beverly Creasy - Tony Annicone


Which SIDE are you on? Comment here or on the Globe Calendar.

Boston Globe Calendar

Buy Tickets

New Rep Studio - the first week in Les Mis

Sorry for posting so late, my email was down. Anyway, tuesday Brooke & Bevin came in and did an audition workshop with us before the auditions on Wednesday. We worked on creating the characters personalities in the scene, blocking choices, body language and other things that would help us to make the scene more interesting and generally more developed. It was really cool to watching the scenes be done in so many different ways by the different actresses.

On wednesday we started auditions. We prepared 16 bars of a song and read the scenes that we prepared. Although it was extremely nerve racking (no surprise there), it was not only a great bonding experience (we were all really supportive and encouraging towards eachother) but also a great acting experience. Suzanne would watch our scene and then tell us to try it another way.
Overall, we were all happy with how our auditions went. At the end of the day, we were DYING to know our parts, and Suzanne came out and told us that there would be yet another day of auditions. UGH. We went home that day apprehensive about what would happen thursday when more than half of us would have to sing again and all of us would have to read again.

The auditions went really well on thursday and after about 20 minutes of deliberation, Suzanne and Kevin finally cast the parts. I think we were all happy with the results, I know I was.

On Friday we worked with Kevin on solos and did character work with Suzanne. We also did this really fun exercise where we went into Panera Bread and observed a person for 10 or 20 minutes and took notes on their character traits and then based on the traits, made an actual character. Although most of it was from our imagination, it was a lot of fun to share our characters with the group.

It was an amazing first week and we were all really sad to say goodbye friday afternoon. We all have gotten so close in the span of five days and plenty of hugs went around before we left New Rep.


I think it's going to be a really fun process of putting together Les Miserable with such a small, talented group of girls. I'll keep you posted!!
--Talia

New Rep Studio - Les Mis Auditions

New Rep Studio's Musical Theatre For High School Actors! began on Monday.

After meeting Suzanne, the director and Kevin, the musical director, the girls had their first workshop all about auditions and résumés taught by Bevin O'Gara and Brooke M. Haney. The workshop was a crash course in how to present theatre experience, and most importantly, how to prepare for and give an audition. The two-day workshop prepared them to audition for their roles this afternoon.

More info on New Rep Studio

"Side by Side" - Pre-Press Night

So........in preparation for press night this evening, I decided it would be a nice little stress relief to bike from my apartment in the North End of Boston to the theatre here in lovely Watertown. I left myself a good 2 hours to get there, expecting I would get lost and get a flat tire, etc. (don't i sound like an optimist). Plus, I figured that I should probably shower before I suitted up for the performance this evening. LITTLE DID I KNOW that it would take me 15 minutes to make the trip, with absolutely no hitch (except for a serious car accident on the corner of Brighton Ave. and N Beacon Street). So, here I am in the administrative offices of the Arsenal Center for the Arts posting on this lovely blog for all you bloggers.

So, yes, I touched on it briefly before, but this is press evening. what that means is...absolutely nothing. honestly, I could care less. reviewers...do your thing. i won't read them, though I am sure that you are all fantastic literary scholars. its just not my thing. however, i am a reviewer sometimes, on air. i kind of hate myself when i do it. i find myself saying mea culpa. i will say, what i am excited about for this evening, is that according to the lovely box office personnel who are sitting to my left, we have a FULL house tonight. regardless, I am looking forward to the smiling, laughing, and crying faces that will be in front of us this evening. I heard a very funny Mitch Hedberg joke today that said something along the lines of "performing in front of an audience is as if you were being chased by a mob and then they all got tired and sat down." i think thats funny. do you? post a damn comment and tell me. i am quite offended that there have been no comments as of late.

during yesterday's show, somebody came up and left me a note saying "We Love Standing Room Only...You do a great job! Thanks for a wonderful show" and left their seat number. thanks again to the lovely box office staff at New Rep, I found out who they are. Aren't computers creepy?

during yesterdays show, Maryann jumped 50 bars of "I'm Still Here." Frankly, I didn't notice. Where was I? I have no idea. She's still the shit, though. the audience yesterday was so old that they didn't notice either, I'm sure. Actually, Maryann is ridiculously sexy. Her entendre song is pretty thrilling. i reccomend it to all. and after yesterdays slip up, she's still here.

tonight there will be a party. there will be wine and food. this shall be a good night. peace out all you bloggers. see you at the theatre.

Jonathan

P.S. leave me comments about how you love/hate me, or whatever. i like comments.

"Side by Side" - First Preview

phew...well thats done with. opening performance nerves were very present last night, but thats to be expected and even hoped for i suppose. the whole cast kicked it last night, and kicked it hard.

it felt so much more comfortable to get up there and do the show with a live audience. performance instincts kicked in instantly, and it just felt like a conversation with the audience. i can't wait to do the show again today, to get that relationship back.

i have to say that I am in love with watching these people sing. i am in quite a priviledged position, being able to sit onstage and watch these artists work. its kind of like if a huge rolling stones fan got to sit on the stage and watch keith richards and mick jagger do their thing. how did i get so lucky?

anyhow, hope to see you at the theatre.

Side by Side by Sondheim...first post

My fellow blog people...

To begin...my apologies for the late start on this blog. Working full time as a bartender, hosting a radio show, and doing a little show miles away from where I live (without the access to a vehicle), has made my schedule very full. but, anywho, who am I to complain...look at the people I get to share the stage with.

Brendan Mcnab. there's my first paragraph. if you haven't heard already, he has replaced Andrew Giordano in the show. Andrew exited the show at the start of the second rehearsal, and brendan was at the theatre...ready to rehearse by 2 PM. what a trooper! stand up guy! all the above, and MORE! If you don't know Brendan personally, perhaps you have seen him on every Boston stage in the past few years, including this seasons "See What I Wanna See" at the lyric, and the lead role of Leo Frank in "Parade" at Speakeasy Stage Company, and at the same company, last fall's "Kiss of the Spiderwoman." I had the opportunity to have him in the studio at WERS for each of those shows, and always knew that he was a guy id like to get to know. side by side has given me that chance, and his level of preparedness and dedication to putting this show up in 2 weeks has been very, very refreshing. props to you Brendan. mad props...

Leigh Barrett. paragraph number 2. Leigh and i have been friends for a while now, and we've been wondering when exactly we'd get to do a show together. if there's one thing you need to come to the show to see, its to see leigh sing "losing my mind." it is a religious experience every time.

Maryann. paragraph number 3. strangely...we'd never met before the show. I'd seen her onstage...she rocks.

paragraph number 4....the play itself. this show is weird. its so British. i will be the very first person to tell you that I don't think that the brits understand the American musical theatre. that being said, nobody or nothing can take away from these songs. i'll give credits to the brits back in the 70's for taking some of Sondheim's most interesting material, and putting it into an evening. the songs are very naked in this context, utilizing only a kick-ass actor and 2 baby grand pianos. that's all you need. the songs are fleshed out. you can hear, see, and feel exactly what Sondheim was thinking as he was writing them. its beautiful. i find myself shaking my head in disbelief in rehearsal a lot. i imagine my fellow actors think I'm disapproving of something they're doing, but what i'm really doing is shaking my head in disbelief at how masterful Sondheim truly is.

Rick Lombardo and i both are obsessed with a song called "I remember." Its from Sondheim's television musical "evening primrose." if you don't know the song, come to the show and take a listen. its so good.

p.s. whatever they think, all three of my fellow actors are kick ass dancers...they can really get down to the groovy Sondheim tunes.

i suppose I'll just post later about some other stuff. my boss gave me the night off, and i plan to make good use of it. any suggestions?

Jonathan Colby and the Cast of Side by Side

Listen this Saturday, July 7, 2007 to Standing Room Only on WERS as host Jonathan Colby, narrator of Side By Side By Sondheim is joined by director Rick Lombardo, music director Todd C. Gordon, and Boston Favorites: Leigh Barrett, Brendan McNab, and Maryann Zschau for a very special show.

Side By Side runs July 7-22, 2007

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More Casting for 2007-2008

A Streetcar Named Desire
Mitch - Bates Wilder
Steve - Paul D. Farwell
Unice - Maureen Keiller

Lois Roach will direct A House with No Walls

Adam Zahler will direct The Misanthrope

Stephen Nachamie will direct tick, tick... Boom!

David Gammons will direct My Name is Rachel Corrie

M. Bevin O'Gara will direct New Rep On Tour's production of The Crucible

Diego Arciniegas will direct New Rep On Tour's production of Cyrano


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2007-2008 Casting Announcements

Announcing our 2007-2008 Season casting here first!

Mainstage Shows in the Mosesian Theater

A Streetcar Named Desire
Blanche - Rachel Harker (back from her run Off-Broadway)
Stanley - Todd Alan Johnson
Stella - Marianna Bassham

The Misanthrope
Alceste - Austin Pendleton

The Clean House
Virginia - Nancy E. Carroll
Lane - Paula Plum
Anna - Bobbie Steinbach

Downstage @ New Rep shows in the Black Box Theater

tick, tick... Boom!
Susan - Aimee Doherty

A Pinter Duet: The Lover and Ashes to Ashes
Richard/Echo - Stephen Russell
Rebecca/Sarah - Rachel Harker

Pieces
Herself - Zohar Tirosh

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3-play subscriptions now available online!

Check back often for more casting announcements...

London Arts Tour - Conclusion

Finally, a few words on the conclusion of our trip. Tea at Gorings, was fine, although I had hoped it might be served without interrupting discussions. Dinner “in the neighborhood” was a fitting end to an exciting week. Most of us had time to pursue a few personal missions while in London. I benefited greatly from early morning walks, the opportunity to spectate at the Globe (“In Extremis,” a rewriting of a play on the 10^th Century love affair between teacher and student, Abelard and Heloise, which was surprisingly uplifting; it may come as a shock that a play featuring the castration of its hero can be metaphorically or otherwise labeled “uplifting,” but you had to be there to appreciate it. Carolyn accompanied Maria and me on our holy tour of Westminster Abbey and St. Paul’s, each in their own way churches glorifying the state and its servants, with a brief stop in Covent Garden. When Maria needed privacy to perfect her cough, Carolyn and I soldiered on, without Maria’s pin point map-reading skills, to the War Cabinet’s bunker and Churchill museum just off HorseGuards and then, by river, to Greenwich where we set a new world’s record for shortest tour of the Painted Room (magnificent tribute to the Hanoverian kings and implicit glorification of Handel who I imagine composed the music which accompanied the royal family from London to Greenwich and back), refectory, exterior of the Queen’s House, and Maritime Museum. Miraculously, we returned just in time to clean up for another exciting evening of theater. For those planning another trip to London, Greenwich is a must, but you are advised to spend more than 50 minutes there.

It was a fine trip. Rick was accessible to all and, I’d like to think, gathered some new ideas to add to his commitments to New Reps continued growth. Hoping to see all of you again, soon.

- Bill

The National Theatre

At several points, most notably in our meeting with the Manchester Guardian’s theater critic, Michael Billington, we discussed our different preferences

In theater, contrasting the didactic, verbal appeal of, say, LANDSCAPE performed admirably at the Cotesloe (?) stage in the National Theater from the truly astounding, effective, and surprising A MATTER OF … performed in the adjacent, Olivier Theater of the NT. It would be hard to find two such different visions of theater. Joe Penhal crafts a tight, four character play that challenges all of us, not just scientists engaged in developing weaponry, to consider the consequences of our acts. Should, for example, the manufacturer of shoes be governed solely by what sells for the biggest profit, or should he/she use replenishable materials, purchase manufactured products only from places that don’t exploit workers, concentrate on styles which improve posture and don’t damage feet …. (Apply your own ethical challenges.) I think he set up such discussions brilliantly partly because he did not pose great philosophers against each other, but rather traced the origin of the main character’s ethical growth to the clumsy dialogue of his flawed brother. Indeed, as someone in our group, I think it was Rick, said, neither the woman nor Brooks were compelling advocates for their side. They relied, not on social arguments but rather on convenience and barely disguised menace. Incidentally, I found certain physical elements in LANDSCAPE to be particularly good: the gradual physical degradation of the principal and Brooks’ menacing as he entered the scientist’s space, crossed behind him, and pranced around without a belt to his trousers. (Why? What that a wardrobe mishap?) Those of us who prefer such plays, I imagine, view theater as the opportunity to re-explore our own realities – not as entertainment as much as continued learning that burrows into some often hidden recesses of our minds and lives.

On the other hand, we learned in many ways that the state of theater does not solely depend upon intellectual fashion. Economics rules, even in the subsidized confines of the National Theater. Filling seats as well as increasing endowments are what, eventually, allow theaters to experiment. For some, theater provides a particular environment to release thoughts, not only in response to a didactic or language driven play, but also in response to an “event,” the merging of art forms in novel ways. In that sense, A MATTER OF … assaults us with metaphors. There is, of course, the spinning coin which dictates our fate. There is, also, the bumbling conductor who doesn’t always complete his assignment on time. But perhaps the strongest metaphor is our attempt to defy gravity, whether falling out of a plane or climbing moving beds.

Somewhere in the middle lies Equus. Directors have considerable choice in displaying the non-verbal elements of the play. In the production we saw last week, the malleability of the geometric set contrasted with the highly articulated versions of the horses, from reverberating hoofs to architected heads whose eyes hypnotically glowed until they were blinded. Dysart displayed the vulnerability of the analyst, the likelihood that in discovering Alan’s secret he is exposing his own secrets. A number of us commented on the one discordant choice, the beautiful, taller, seductive, and more experienced young woman drawn to Alan. Will she survive in tact? We don’t know.

- Bill

King Lear

Let me try, from memory and a few notes, conclude my comments on the week, concentrating on our day in Stratford on Thursday through our departure Sunday morning.

I won’t follow chronology exactly because in an earlier blog, written on Saturday, I shared some observations of our encounter at tea on Friday with Tristam (!) who played Peter’s role in A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH, but otherwise ignored events of Thursday and Friday.

We were well prepared for this year’s Lear thanks to an ingratiating visit with Jonathan Hyde (“Kent”) before the performance. I found that meeting him (he and all of the persons who addressed our group were riveting in style – they all spoke at times directly to each of our group – as well as substance, but Jonathan was perhaps the most engaging) particularly fortuitous. Of course, the play casts its heroes and villains without much subtlety, but I found that after meeting “Kent” I had a clear rooting interest; I cared less, alas for Lear than I did for Kent. Alas, neither audience nor chance were asked to rewrite the ending. I took away from our visit to Stratford:

· Shakespeare was reared by an upcoming, ambitious father and may not have been quite the country bumpkin (that seems a word taken from Shakespeare) the Oxfordians portray him as. Carolyn, incidentally, has more to say to support the notion that Shakespeare did, in fact, write what he is credited for.

· The type of stage influences the production. Here, in the temporary theater which the town insists self-destructs in five years, the thrust into the audience added greatly to entrances and retreats, involved the audience frequently, but also interrupted sight lines.

· Even at the Vatican of Shakespeareana, cutting a play is allowed and, as we learned, costuming choices abound.

· The recordings of great speeches at the Globe made clear that readings vary tremendously and that emphases sometime accord with timebound styles.

· If you want to see the actors after the performance, the Dirty Dog is the place to be. (Query: is there a place to which they go to drink BEFORE the performance?)

· The return of Frances Barber as Goneril was not matched with any acting pyrotechnics. Indeed, her previously repressed younger sister, Regan, physically demonstrated a blood-thirstiness at Gloucester’s blinding that was, for me, the most notable aspect of the production, eclipsing even Lear’s brief nudity. I was reminded of the appalling savagery of some our troops during the hazing and humiliating of prisoners at Abu Gharib. How civilized are any of us when faced with the humiliation of enemies? Do we not have to remind ourselves of our common humanity whenever tempted to extol our schaudenfreude? (There’s a good chance that at least one of you will correct my German spelling.)

Quite rightly, so much of our language and, more important, our metaphors stem from the Bard of Avon. It was a privilege, on the same trip, to visit both the Globe and Stratford and to find Shakespeare as living theater.

- Bill

Leigh Barrett Wins the Norton!

Leigh Barrett took home the Elliot Norton Award on Monday, May 21, 2007.

OUTSTANDING MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
Leigh Barrett, Ragtime (New Repertory Theatre)

Congratulations Leigh!!

London Arts Tour - Tuesday

Lots of action last day and a half. The particularly good news was arrival of Carol and Mitchell who added intellectual resources and charm to our group.

Some 46 years ago, I stumbled upon two precursors of Impressionism, Puvis de Chavanne, while looking for the Mona Lisa in the Louvre, and JM Turner at the then Tate Galleries while seeking refuge from intense rains. Nor surprisingly, our first order of business while on free time was to set off for Tate/Britain where more than four galleries are devoted to the largest collection of Turners anywheres.

We arrived at Gallery 9 only to be told that the Turner galleries were closed while paintings were being re-hung. Assuaging our disappointment the compassionate guard told of us three Turners on the second floor and an annex, outside the main Tate/Britain building, devoted to Turner. The suggestion led to revelation, of a truly educational facility for scholars and amateurs alike, where we explored transformations in colors (especially water colors and exemplified by how shadows can be expressed as colors). We tried to duplicate some of Turner's drawings, learn about his refutation of Goethe's color wheel, and begin to appreciate all the more what this giant, some 50 years before Impressionism swept European art, anticipated most of its precepts and, in fact, produced a greater range of experiments with changing color and light in landscapes.

While at Tate/Britain we explored an installation celebrating the demonstrations of David Haws in the shade of Parliament against the combined war against Iraq, beginning with our trade embargo. Haws' protest is commemorated thanks to a statutory accident. Parliament decreed it illegal to conduct 24 hour protests within 1 mile of Parliament. The one mile line bisects Tate/Britain, so, naturally, a black taped indicator of the one mile limit purposely bisects the installation of Haws signs, sleeping accommodations, and related paraphernalia.

Our other notable discovery at Tate/Britain was a quote from the 19th century English artist, Stickert, who proclaimed that real art is not for the drawing room but the kitchen. DISCUSS!

In the still new and exciting National Theater we met with Tom Morris, a delightful and unpretentious theatre type who co-adapted A Matter of Life and Death for which we have tickets later in the week.

He talked about the development of the Knee High theatre group in Cornwall in which cast members intensely discuss scripts which, in the process with the result that they rewrite the plays they perform. In addition to describing the creative process in which he and Emma Rice were able to produce A Matter of ..., Tom also discussed the financial realities of both privately-financed theatre, that must appeal to broad tastes and subsidized theatre whose vitality has been revived by the introduction of 10 pound plays, i.e. plays where a substantial number of seats are reserved for those who can afford only 10 pounds for their seats.

- Bill Brisk

London Arts Tour - Tuesday

Earlier today, Tuesday, we were privileged to discuss contemporary politics (mainly British, to some extent European, and to a lesser extent American) with Polly Toynbee, columnist for the Manchester Guardian who has won a number of awards and is, rightly, known as one of Britain's brightest commentators on political movements. Polly has written HARD WORK which involved much the same work that Barbara Ehrenreich explored in NICKLE AND DIMED. Her compassionate treatment of Tony Blair, which she certainly does not venerate, was an antidote to much that we have heard about the end of a 10 year run. She noted his accomplishments lay mainly in domestic economic-social policies including a prolonged effort to end child poverty (which has had actual results), similar attempts to avoid the growing gap between rich and poor, revitalization and refunding of the health system, the avoidance of economic crises with prolonged growth over an unprecedented decade, and the rise of private housing. Polly estimates that 70% of Britons now own their residences, a striking change which may have something, ironically, to do with a popular trend against Labor policies. Everyone I talked with following Polly's performance agreed that she was intelligent, eloquent, and yet conversational.

- Bill Brisk

London - Monday

Producing Artistic Director Rick Lombardo was joined by 11 of New Rep's most enthusiastic patrons on the 2007 London Arts Tour. Here, Bill Brisk keeps us informed on what they are all up to over there.

Monday evening we attended Billy Elliot -- The Musical, a play which Rodney claimed was among the most innovative in London. Others contend that it is the UK's leading musical -- ever. Basically, the story of a 12 year old caught up in his father's and other's protest against the Thatcher plan to close antiquated coal mines and convert the industry into private hands, its humor and pathos are both drawn from the incongruity of a miner's son attracted from boxing to ballet dancing. Elton John's music is immediately accessible without being memorable. 'Solidarity Forever' reverberates constantly. We were privileged to be entertained by an extremely qualified young lad who danced, sang, and acted as well as virtually any adult might. The play ended with a rousing curtain call which incorporated an encore, featuring the dancing not only of the principal but of many of the actors who had previously not danced in the play.



Some discussion afterwards attempted to ponder whether Billy Elliot could be translated directly to the U.S. Rodney pointed out that some of the humor and texture of the play is due to its director's insistence that the 'gordie' accent of Northern Yorkshire be maintained and that many in the U.S. would not be able to relate to a British mine workers strike that occurred some two decades ago. The Full Monty, may be an example of 'translating' such a play to an American audience. We didn't discuss 'Brassed Off' a movie of the same error as Billy Elliot.

Rick's critique of the lyrics was well founded; a number of the songs included only single choruses, leading to repetitions that added little to the narrative of the play. All agreed, however, that we had attended an extraordinary performance of a worthwhile play and that, as a musical, the ply made some trenchant points about past and present politics. In one light moment, a character announces that unfortunately the local M.P. could not attend a union meeting, but he would be ably replaced by a young politician on the rise who was committed to the Socialist cause, Tony Blair.

- Bill Brisk