The Mystery of Irma Vep at the Liberty Theatre

In 1996, French film director Olivier Assayas crafted an unusual film called Irma Vep.  The title character is of course an anagram of vampire.  It is a "film within a film" about a strange remake of the silent era film Les Vampires, a serial 2-reeler crime drama that had nothing to do with the mythological creatures of the title.

But that is all beside the point!

What I really want to talk about is the live performance of The Mystery of Irma Vep by Charles Ludlam as presented by Apex Theatre20 at the Liberty Theatre in Tyler, Texas.  Although listed officially as a satire, it becomes a slapstick farce of epic proportions.  Imagine Daffy Duck in Wuthering Heights and you get the idea.

Its several characters, both male and female, are portrayed by two male actors.  A huge part of the fun is the quick changes- not only of costume, but also character, voice, accent, posture, and boobs.  (Sorry about that, but it had to be said.)  The play satirizes several genres from Victorian melodrama and horror, to Hitchcock and the Marx Brothers.  Throw in some 1930's horror films and you have the tone, or tones, of The Mystery of Irma Vep.  Josh Carpenter and Nate McKeller are the heroes who were chosen to undertake the schizoid roles.  These two had to carry the entire show as they were everyone.  In the program they should have been listed as "I am Legion, for we are many."

Now the review

The show was out loud funny in many many places.  Oftentimes that humor is based on the absurdity of the changes.  Sometimes it's just the silliness of the action and words.  Ultimately the delivery of the characters drives the show.  The two actors do well.  Carpenter seems to have a good grasp of the off-kilter nature of his characters.  He also ad libs well, which both actors had to do to fill change times.  The only real flaw in his performance was less differentiation between characters.  He is, in himself, a strong character and it is hard to disguise.  McKeller had the most changes, which challenged him greatly.  Usually up to the challenge, some of his characters were reduced to mugging to the audience.  That may have been direction or decision, either way it did not work for me.

The costume changes were a problem, as they were bound to be.  There were times where the costumes were obviously beneath (and peeking out) of others.  Sometimes that led to more humor, sometimes it killed the joke.  I'm not sure if there is a really good way to solve that problem.  It is a problem, though.

Overall the show gave the feeling of an amateur show.  No one thing is to blame, nor one person.  I have worked with both actors before, and they are quite talented.  I have seen the director, Felicity Enas, do marvelous things with a cast.  We enjoyed the show.  We laughed.  We giggled.  We groaned.  It was a good night.  I expected more.

Nevermore? Nevermore.

Sunday January 26, 2014

Nevermore by Matt Ritchey, directed by Joshua Carpenter at APEX Theatre 20 has ended.  It ended joyously and sadly, as these things go.  The joy of a fulfilling and successful run.  The joy of finishing a project with new family (and finding that family).  The sadness of endings.  The sadness of partings.

The play, as described in previous entries here, is a "what if" tale that explores what might be if some of Edgar Allan Poe's darker stories were, in fact, semi-autobiographical.  I will not spoil the twists and turns and surprises that await a new audience, but suffice it to say, Poe would have approved.

The final performance, Saturday January 25th, was interesting.  For some in the cast, it was their best performance.  For others, not so much.  The biggest danger in a play such as this, in a venue such as this (a black box theatre) is overacting.  In a small intimate cast in a small intimate venue, "larger than life" can become elephantine.  It's like the difference in a movie of a close-up versus a wide shot.  Bigger might work in the distance, but up close, bigger can be a killer.  As an actor, I have to check myself a lot on this.  Most of my stage acting experience is in the large, proscenium stages.  When I have to go small, it takes an effort.

In the final performance, the author was present, having flown in from Los Angeles ("boy were his arms tired!") Thursday night.  His comments were generally complimentary, always insightful, and sometimes surprising.  One surprising comment concerned my character, Dudley.  Apparently he was supposed to be an over-the-top drunken sot comic relief character.  We, read I, played him more as a real alcoholic with a more sinister twist than comic.  Lenore and Monty he loved.  With this I heartily concur.  They both brought a quality to their work that was genuine, if a little creepy.  Okay, a lot creepy.

Matt Ritchey noted that the whole production was a surprise.  Carpenter's vision was different that his, and he liked it.  Ritchey said, "Everything on the page was there.  Everything on the stage seemed (similar)."  But the character interpretations were very different.  The actor-created backstories he found wonderful, even my twisted one.  "You put your child out there and it takes on a life of its own.  That's a good thing."

For this "child", it has grown and moved on to its next life, somewhere else in the theatre world.  I hope its new family cherishes it as much as we did.  Bon voyage, Nevermore.

Happy Birthday, Edgar Allan Poe: A Party to Remember

Sunday January 19, 2014

Saturday night was an extraordinary event.  On the eve of the birthday of Edgar Allan Poe, the APEX Theatre 20 group held a combination birthday party and performance to celebrate said birthday.  The performance of Nevermore by Matt Richey provided the third act of the day.

Act I was the inaugural Saturday Morning Sitcom "Happy Birthday Edgar Allan Poe" featuring Mother Goose and Friends.  The were flooded with well-wishing partiers from the younger set.  A good time was had by all.

Act II was an amazing late night party made up of Steam Punk, Neo Gothic, and just plain funerial clothing.  Food and drink was included in the ticket price.  There were some AMAZING outfits worn by even more amazing people.  Everyone was there for a good time, yes, but also to celebrate the natal anniversary of one of America's great writers.

Act III was of course, the play.  One of the best performances of some of the actors. (Not for all, but perfection is for wimps.)  All the performances were filled with the passion that this poet/storyteller engenders, from the unpredictable Poe of Mark Dwight to the macabre calm of Montressor from Slater Bonner.  From the ethereal beauty of the "lovely, lost Lenore" by Megan Clark Hutchings to the creepy old caretaker Dudley of John Lamb. The audience was enthusiastic in their reactions and response.  Quite gratifying.  The performance ended with live music from Lacey Carpenter on her violin.

The 4th Act was the "Poe Toaster".  Producer Felicity Enas told the fascinating story of the infamous Poe Toaster, of Baltimore followed by a reading of Poe's poem, Annabel Lee, ending with  a brandy toast of our own.  The night was amazing.  I was there, so I should know.  I just hope that there are many more of these themed nights in the future.

Closing in on Opening Night

Wednesday January 15, 2014
"Four weeks, you rehearse and rehearse
Three weeks, and it couldn't be worse
One week, will it ever be right?
Then out of the hat it's that big first night!"

Cole Porter knew a thing or three about opening nights and the chaos that leads up to them.

Most of the set is done. Most of us hit our lines each night.  Most of us have costumes and props ready to go.  Most of...   Things always get a little crazy as opening night approaches.  With a complex set with complex changes, there are always going to be glitches.  Like actors near castrating themselves on low tables in the dark during a blackout where things have been moved to new places.  Or no handle on the door.  With complex acting relationships between characters (and actors), there are always going to be nights that it "clicks"  or doesn't.  The trick is to keep moving and don't dwell.  Trust that it will be there when the curtain goes up.

On the set of Nevermore it's the same.  Actors with bruises, of body and ego.  Director stressing, as directors do (especially newbies).  Producers kibitzing, as producers do (as they're supposed to do).  Crew just trying to stay alive and keep things moving.  We have a talented cast.  Perfect? No...which is a good thing.  We have a talented director with a vision.  A strong vision is essential, but can sometimes get in the way when there are snags.  The set is lovely, but still a work in progress.  

We open in 3 days.  Whatever happens, it will be amazing!

Tech-nickel

Tonight was the first tech rehearsal of Nevermore.  For the uninitiated, a tech rehearsal is when lights and music and props and set changes are all attempted with the actors present.  Most of the time, it takes ages and is generally unpleasant for all as adjustments are made here and there.  The techies are busy adjusting endlessly what they've been working very hard to put together, and the actors can't get their rhythm rockin' because of those constant adjustments.

I say most of the time, because tonight's tech rehearsal wasn't so bad.  I did some of my best work tonight.  Well, other than coughing with an entire mouthful of "coffee water" substituting for Irish whiskey. *blushes*  Now that I no longer rely on the script, I can get into character and really start getting the meat of Dudley cooking.  This is my favorite time of rehearsal- off book and working.

We seemed to be working at an energy deficit tonight.  Hopefully tomorrow will see that solved.  I've arranged with "Poe" to do some energy exercises Kathy has taught me before rehearsal tomorrow. Maybe that'll do the trick.

I really admire the professionalism of most of the folks involved in the show.  There are bits and bobs, yeah, where a few more years of experience might smooth things out a bit, but hey- that's how you get the few years' more experience.  And they all seem very talented.

I have very high hopes for this show.

PS- I'll end with a candid shot of "Lenore" during out photoshoot.  This is from Kathy Lamb's "behind the scenes" shots.  She's really a lovely person, too.

Nevermore Poster

Nevermore Evermore

We are closing in on the opening of the Neo-Gothic play "Nevermore", by Matt Ritchey of Los Angeles, California.  This will be the first production in Texas here in Tyler at APEX Theatre 20@Potter Place.  I'm going to be very narcissistic today, so please be warned.  I'm going to talk about MY reasons for wanting to do the show, and how I got the audition, and MY reaction to the process, and of course, MY character.  Like I said...narcissistic.

I have never worked with this company before.  For the last several years I've been doing "community theater" in a small town near Tyler.  And I have enjoyed it.  With a priviso:  Lately I've been playing the same parts (basically) over and over.  Once I had at least low level professional acting chops; now they have atrophied into "Waiting for Guffman" echos.  No blame for my local theatre troupe.  They're a great group of folks.  Some are more talented than others, but we all enjoy the Roar of the Greasepaint, the Smell of the Crowd.  (And yes, there are some more talented than me, nosey.)  But I was getting into a rut.  We do the same kinds of shows over and over again...pandering to an audience that probably doesn't want to be pandered to.  Afraid of offending 3 people and so not entertaining the 300.

I wanted to exercise my acting muscles.  I needed to do it. So I joined an adult improv class in said theater in Tyler to stretch myself.  It was fun, and challenging, and it petered out.  Bummer.  But during that time I saw "Equus" there and was impressed.  One of my classmates was to be the director (losing his directorial cherry) and he asked me to audition for a particular part.  Hooray...it was the same character I've been playing for the last 15 years.  But hey...give it a chance.  I told him I was wanting to challenge myself and that part I could play half asleep and probably would.  He read me for a different character, Dudley the caretaker, and that's where he put me.  Something different at last.

Their process is different than I have had before.  Audition...read through...nothing for a while-"learn your lines."  Then rehearsal once a week for a bit.  Okay, let's skip a couple. (Ack!)  Now director sick.  Now me out of town.  Now me sick.  Now other actor sick.  Now me sick again...and again.  I tend to learn my lines best on stage when paired with the blocking.  We are now just over a week from showtime and we just blocked my last scene.  I have only rehearsed with my fellow actors five times including read through.  Only twice on the stage, and both of those were for blocking.  (I repeat...Ack!)

AND YET ---

The show sounds good.  The costumes look good.  There is a really good vibe and energy around the show.  Actors feeling their parts.  Atmosphere out the gazoo!  Dammit, I think this is going to be a really great show!  I'm going to get my wish.  I'm getting to stretch my acting muscles, work with an edgier group of actors, do a different sort of play than would be allowed at our theater, and I'm having to work hard to get this right.  Subtle acting is required, not broad stereotypes.  I play Dudley, the caretaker in a "Steampunk Gothic Manor" owned by the childhood friend of Edgar Allan Poe.  I am not a nice person.  There are strange things afoot at Montressor Manor.  But that's all you get.  Come and see for your self.
Follow us on facebook  https://www.facebook.com/events/702012646510252/  or on the web at http://apextheatre20.com/

RENT this space

This past Saturday night, Kathy and I braved the chilly East Texas version of winter to travel to Tyler, Texas to see a performance of RENT at the Liberty Hall theater.  (This despite the fact that I had just rolled in from a four-day conference in Houston minutes before.)  Neither of us had seen anything in the Liberty, so we were looking forward eagerly to this new space.  We found a good parking spot, took the de rigueuer selfie from the opposite side of the street, and found our way inside.

We were greeted with convivial smiles (and wine) and a couple of familiar faces.  Good start.  We already had our tickets in hand and so walked on in.  Goodness continues.  Sat next to some lovely people.  Things look good.  Lights dim... magic begins.

[In review like this, it is customary to be universally positive in order to remain on good terms with people you might be working with sometime soon.  There is much good to talk about.  There are also problems about which I will write in order that we may grow as performers, and so that you can believe what I write is true and not whitewash.  Enough disclaimer-- on with the review.]

Let's start with the positives...  The acting was really good.  At times it was great.  Of special note were JC Schimdt (Angel), Kristen Bedevian (Joanne), and Joshua Carpenter (Tom).  Their acting was spot on with emotional highs and lows that carried the audience with them.  There was a lot of honesty in their work.  Even though the character of Angel is an "over-the-top" personality, the portrayal was very honest.  I've known people like Angel and that's how they are (or were).  Joanne's frustration with an inconstant and mercurial partner were apparent, yet completely believable.  She showed power and vulnerability with poise and pain.  The best part of Joshua's performance as Tom was at the beginning and the end.  It was the painful contrast of the high of rapturous joy in love found and the crushing pain of a loved one lost.  The love itself is never lost.

The music was both a strength and a weakness.  The band sounded great!  But they frequently overpowered the vocals. [suggestion: let the electric instruments have a volume control on the sound board as well as with the musician.  On stage the balance is hard to hear.]  Also in that same vein, there were microphone problems galore.  It is hard for an actor to deliver a balanced performance with they must shift from talking to shouting with no notice.  Sometimes it can't be helped...sometimes it can.  Another strength and weakness in the music came from the vocals.  Wonderful strong voices, full of passion and joy and angst.  But tuning became an issue.  I'm picky- understand that- more than almost anyone in the audience has a right to be.  But there were wonderful emotional moments ruined for me by flat notes from the primary vocal.  It may have been the inability to hear themselves over the stage band, I don't know.  For most around me, there was no problem.  Maybe it was just me.  I'll stop there about that.

For me, one of the highlights of this show was the "second intermission".  Right after the second act began, just as "Seasons of Love" is coming to a conclusion... the smoke alarms went off due to an overzealous smoke machine.  We cleared the theater into the cold.  On the sidewalks the cast and audience together began a rousing chorus of "La Vie Boheme" to the defiance of the demon enemies of Thespis.  Once cleared, we went back inside and rebooted Act II.  That last burst of comraderie only cemented the wonderful feelings and bonds of caring for what was happening on stage.

With all my carping and bitching and moaning, I thoroughly enjoyed the show.  The emotion was real.  The passion showed through.  The pure delight in performance pervaded the night.  I can't wait to see what's next.

MisQuoth the Raven, "Ever More"

Forever Plaid is going to have to wait.  I'll keep listening to the music and trying to get my part, but the rest of life is kicking my butt right now.  We got together and watched the movie archive of the stage show.  It was really great.  I see that this is a huge undertaking for folks with day-jobs.
*sigh*

We've had three rehearsals for "Nevermore".  I have a problem- I'm not giving the director what he needs for the part of Dudley.  I'm just not sure I'm good enough (or have enough spare focus) to react to the changes he's making.  Dudley is one of the most subtle characters I've gotten to play.  Well, I wanted to be challenged!  Be careful what you wish for.  My vision of the show does not match the director's, and it must be his vision that prevails.  It's his show...he's the director... that's the way it should be.  I just hope I'm good enough and flexible enough to get the job done.  I won't give anything away here, so just stop it.  No...stop asking... I won't tell you.

My day job is also demanding more and more of my attention, as it should.  As always, I have spread myself too thin.  It's like peanut butter on a piece of bread:  too thin and there's no taste left- just bread.
*sigh part II*

I will "endeavor to persevere".  Those things kicking my ass right now shall in their turn have their asses kicked by me.  I will prevail!  (cue heroic music)

"Equus" in Tyler- a review

This evening I experienced the amazing "Equus" by Peter Shaffer.  This classic play performed at Theatre20 @ Potter Place in Tyler, Texas, under the direction of Felicity Enas.  After all my years watching and performing in the theater, I had never seen the play nor even read the script.  I came to the black-box theatre with a clean slate.  Oh, of course I had my preconceived ideas based on the fame of the show, the big names who have performed in it over the years, and the "shocking" male nudity (although why male nudity is more shocking than female nudity I'm not quite sure).  The best of those ideas came to fruition, and the rest fell by the wayside like discarded blinders.

This production starred Chris Abraham as Dr. Martin Dysart and Matthew Butler as Alan Strang.  Their performances were powerful and touching.  Each in their own way depicted the inner pain and suffering that only the passionate can feel.  Passion from the character- passion from the actor.  Abraham, with at times unnerving calm, exposed Dysart's inner fears, anguish, and rage at what has become of the shards of his life.  His depth allows the psychiatrist to fall and rise and fall again as he attempts to understand his tormented patient.

That patient, embodied by Butler, draws us into his pain and delusion with what I'll call focused distraction.  Butler's intensity is ruptured by vulnerability and complexity.  His Alan Strang is as far from one-dimensional as the Grand Canyon and just as deep.  It became a joy to see, and yet hard to watch at times for fear of falling into the depths of that neurosis.  His powerful, unselfconscious performance was enlightening.

I would be remiss if I did not also celebrate the marvelous staging of director Felicity Enas.  Her use of space and shadow and simple set pieces keeps us focused on the performers and the story.  Just the right motion.  Just enough complexity.  Just the right simplicity.  The "horses" were amazingly easy to see as horses, not actors.  Their random motions as individuals, yet unified motion when united in the title entity was entrancing and effective theater.

The entire cast were a credit to the material.  Standouts to me were Robin Morris (Dora Strang, Alan's mother), Suzanne Alford (Hesther Saloman & a horse), and Mike Leatherwood in his role of Nugget, the prime equine character.  Mrs. Strang was an explosive mixture of guilt and religion and shame that seemed very honest.  That's the best word- honest.  Alford's playing of the magistrate, Saloman, worked very solidly to keep Dr. Dysart grounded in the reality of his role.  The horse, Nugget, was a physical performance of the highest standard.  All that said, there wasn't a weak link.  The truth of the play was not lost in egotistical performances, as can so easily happen.  The father, the employer, the lover- all felt real.

It is the reality... the honesty... of "Equus" that sets it apart in the ragtag world of theater.  It asks more questions than it answers, leaving us, the audience to search for those answers ourselves.  This is theater at its best.

There are three more performances of "Equus" October 19, 25, and 26 at 7:30 PM.
APEX Theatre20 @ Potter Place.  719 West Front Street (round back), Tyler, Texas
http://apextheatre20.com/tickets/#equus

I'm proving a little bit

I had a tough time at improv class last night.  I just couldn't find "the groove".  From feedback, I think I was trying to be funny instead of just being.  You know- trying to come up with that zinger, that top laugh, the climax to the scene.  That made me less generous and less genuine...a fatal combination.  I got into this class to push myself and improve as an actor, not just to do improv.  I'm glad to say I'm being stretched.  I hope I'm getting better.

This Friday is the read-through for "Nevermore".  I'm excited and a little anxious.  I haven't really stretched my acting muscles in a while. Not only that, but this is an entirely new group of people.  New dynamics; new expectations; new egos to match my own sometimes overstretched one.  Saturday I'll post an analysis of the sitch.

2x: Improv-ing my skills... Nevermore

Improv-ing my skills
Hidee-ho gang!  September 9th I started working in an Adult Improv class in Tyler, Texas, USA.  It's held at the APEX Theatre 20 on Monday nights.  I mainly joined to sharpen my acting skills.  For a while I've felt like my acting muscles were atrophying.  I enjoy working with this great group of folks in Palestine, but I don't feel like I'm growing as an actor/artist.  I'm getting mentally flabby!  Last Monday was our 3rd class, and I'm having a blast!  I'll keep you up to date on how that goes.

"Meanwhile, back at the ranch..."

Nevermore
While "improv-ing" a week ago, I was approached by the director of an up-coming play called "Nevermore", a play utilizing several Edgar Allan Poe plots and characters, but featuring Poe as a character as well.  He, the director, invited me to audition for a particular role.  I was more than gratified by this.  Here was a chance to spread my wings a bit.  I have not acted outside of Palestine for at least a decade.  Josh (the director) sent me sides for the character of Monty.  Once at auditions, he pulled the old switcheroo, which I always enjoy actually, and had me cold read for two other characters instead.  One of them, Dudley, is a juicy part that will challenge me to really work; it's not the archetypes I've been doing.  I read.  I listened.  I read again.  Then the call- Dudley is me!  I will endeavor to be worth the effort.

So long for now.