About Me

My photo
Matthew Freeman is a Brooklyn based playwright with a BFA from Emerson College. His plays include THE DEATH OF KING ARTHUR, REASONS FOR MOVING, THE GREAT ESCAPE, THE AMERICANS, THE WHITE SWALLOW, AN INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR, THE MOST WONDERFUL LOVE, WHEN IS A CLOCK, GLEE CLUB, THAT OLD SOFT SHOE and BRANDYWINE DISTILLERY FIRE. He served as Assistant Producer and Senior Writer for the live webcast from Times Square on New Year's Eve 2010-2012. As a freelance writer, he has contributed to Gamespy, Premiere, Complex Magazine, Maxim Online, and MTV Magazine. His plays have been published by Playscripts, Inc., New York Theatre Experience, and Samuel French.

Monday, December 31, 2012

Make a gift to your favorite theater company

This year, blogging was extremely light from me. I haven't officially closed up shop here - you never know when I'm going to feel the need to write about some subject - but I realize it's been much less consistent. For those of you that have looked for me this past year and found less than they'd hoped, I apologize.

Usually, I create a list of theaters I recommend you give to before the end of the year. With the rise of IndieGoGo and Kickstarter, it's a bit less important for me to link to individual pages and tout the importance of various small theaters. So this year, I'm going to refrain from a list like that.

Still, if you haven't made a year-end gift to one or more of your favorite theaters, you should do so.  Consider, also, supporting the company or institution itself as opposed to a production or project. There's nothing better than general operating cash for small companies, gifts that are not earmarked for certain kinds of projects.

When I started this blog, I suggested gifts of $10, $25 and $50. I said those gifts add up. IndieGoGo and Kickstarter proved that's true. If you're in the habit of making those smaller donations, maybe your year-end, special gift could be $250 - which is just under $25 a month for a year. Combine that kind of giving and make one payment. It'll be more substantial for the company, and feel better for you too.

I hope your 2012 was productive and fun, and 2013 is even better.

Onwards and upwards!

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Merry Merry and Happy Happy

I hope everyone's had a lovely holiday season thus far and are looking forward to a very happy New Year.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Thursday, December 06, 2012

Ich Liebe Jesus!



This weekend, engage in some holiday cheer. Robert Honeywell's despairing, wicked, fun musical about the joys of Christian Christmas, Ich Liebe Jesus, has three more performances: Friday, Saturday and Sunday the 7th, 8th and 9th. You should and must attend. You are compelled to attend by duty. It's a German thing.

Find more info at the Brick.

The show features the only truly nasty bit of song I've ever seen on stage about lactose tolerance. Delightful. Mean, mean, mean and fun. The whole cast is great, but the MC...Jenny Lee Mitchell? Is just plain amazing.

It's on a double bill with Piper McKenzie's lovely and brief The Ultimate Fate of the Solo System and Other Plays Without Words. It feels like a collection of really groovy b-sides from one of your favorite bands.

Go! And See It!

Tickets here.

Saturday, December 01, 2012

Why We Left Brooklyn...

Working through the third draft of Why We Left Brooklyn, my newest play. Having a fine time with it.

Personally, the challenge is to craft something that is basically no-frills. There are no asides, no moments of inexplicable magical realism, nothing surreal, no jagged switches into poetry. It's a play about people I know, in the place I live, today. I think I was worried that if I wrote this play when I was younger, I'd wind up with something a bit cliche.

Of course, I'm still worried about that. I'm just hoping that a few years of experience and a little more sense of craft than I had when I started has made a play like this possible for me to write effectively.

After all, who wants to write the same play over and over?