On Theatre and Politics - Matthew Freeman

Pam on Esty

2012-01-28T09:06:00.000-08:00

Pam (whose blog is awesome and is called Phantasmaphile) contributes a blog post over at Etsy, describing some unique romantic gifts.

Take a look, you lovers.

A few days away

2012-01-22T21:33:00.001-08:00

I'm off for my day job on a week-long work trip, so blogging will be scarce this week. I mean, it sort of is every week, but it's probably especially true this week.

That doesn't mean I don't love you. I do. Love. You.

Star Wars: Uncut - Director's Cut

2012-01-21T07:35:00.000-08:00

Hoo boy. Is there anything more geek joyful than this love-letter? This is the entire original Star Wars, edited together from a billion fan-films. The reason God made the Internet.

Media Narrative Fail

2012-01-19T10:29:00.000-08:00

So if Santorum actually won Iowa, and Gingrich is in the lead in most new polls in South Carolina (and Rick Perry gives Gingrich both of his voters); how exactly is Mitt Romney marching to the nomination?

Sean Williams on where the money comes from

2012-01-18T12:34:00.000-08:00

Over on the NYIT blog, Sean Williams talks about where the funding comes from for many small theaters in NYC, and I'm sure elsewhere. Read all about it here.

Sean's done a lot of very successful producing on the Off-Off scale, and it's definitely worth a read. If I could be so bold as to sum things up a bit, he notes where most of the funding comes from (not grants or donors!) and then he says that a comparatively light and cheap style means that we're more flexible than larger theaters. That Off-Off should embrace a $10,000 as a whole lot less than it costs to make a movie, and that, in a way, is a good thing.

While that's true in some cases (not all, of course) I think there's a big missing piece.

In my view, small theaters do not ask for money well. (To be fair, it's not unique to small theaters.) We're partial to fundraisers and IndieGoGo and tossing in our own cash from day jobs. In the development world, one of the best ways to actually get someone to give you real support is to sit down with them, over lunch, at their home, and ask them for money in person. I have a job where I do this, in fact.

I'm open to be challenged on that point, but I'm curious if many small theater operations out there spend much of their time in meetings where they actually make the case for support to a single donor, and frame the highest possible gift for that individual?

2012-01-18T08:11:00.001-08:00

Read here.

Facebook and Twitter and Websites oh my

2012-01-17T06:31:00.000-08:00

Did you know I have an author page that you can "like" on Facebook? And a website that provides information on my publications and bio and photos from my work? And a twitter that you can follow?

Because I'm very modern, people. Up-to-the-minute. I'm "with it."

Matthew Paul Olmos's thoughts on the people and those who provide for the people...

2012-01-15T08:18:00.000-08:00

I don't know Mr. Olmos personally, but I think this all merits some conversation and introspection. Read on.

Cat attacks baby

2012-01-12T07:14:00.001-08:00

You know what? I'm thinking on a few fun posts to write up, and working on a few different projects, and that's all great.

But this is the internet. I don't have to have substance. I can just post this.

Buy My Books

2012-01-11T04:38:00.000-08:00

My blog's version of pop-up ads: I plug my own books.

Three of my plays, including GLEE CLUB, can be found on Playscripts.com. All three were well-received during their initial productions. I'm sure you'll enjoy them. Why not throw them in a digital cart?

(whistling, looking away)

2012-01-09T07:43:00.000-08:00

So, yes, there has been a blog post written about the "whiteness" of Broadway that attracted quite a bit of attention. I've basically avoided it. I feel like I will either come off off like a pious scold or a person that's way too accepting of unacceptable things. It's a blog-problem. A bloblem.

There is already a fiery comments section, and I don't feel the need to dip my toe in that water.

And so, here's the link. It's likely you've already read it. If not, go for it.

Mummers

2012-01-05T10:44:00.000-08:00

It's a little late in the season, but this made me bust a gut.
Traveling Group Of Medieval Mummers Is America's Top Pick For Holiday Entertainment

An Open Letter to Contemporary Writers

2012-01-05T07:28:00.000-08:00

Dear books I've been reading lately,

I would not like to read anything else that sounds like this:

Horton poured over the folder of papers he'd received from the Mr. Gundelbaum's sister. He'd looked at each photograph at least fifty times each. The smile was the same. The sweater she was wearing. The street she was standing on. Still, he knew he was missing something. What was it? How could he not see?

He ate a melted cheese sandwich, with mulit-grain bread, lightly toasted, with a side of sauteed kale and garlic. His coffee, Peet's, of course, was prepared in a paper cup. No cream, two sugars.

Or this

Dread King Horgaard sat in the great hall, his crown weighing heavily upon his brow. With a single stroke of his hand, he had ordered the deaths of Haarsgaard, Marta Jarl-Bottom, and his cousin TreeFall the Felt. Soon, the Bastards of Belt Pike Creek would be at his gate. Damn them and their Askinash God.

To commemorate the executions, he ate boiled quail and gooseberries, with spiced ground potatoes, a stew of crab and lentils. He washed it down with a delicious honey mead.

Or this

The summer was not summer at all, but spring in reverse. Granny is dead, sure, but that doesn't mean she can't speak to me. There she is now, coming up the path, ghostly, sure, but real as real gets anymore. I mean, if I can't even call my own father my real father, who am I, at the ripe age of seven, to conclude that anything is true or false? To consider reality, one must have a foundation of reality, after all.

I made a green salad, just for Granny, with fresh herbs from the garden I've been keeping in her honor. Turnips, parsley (from the store, yes), carrots, all with a light vinaigrette. The taste of Granny and Summer in those turnips! Paired with a chardonnay, cold.

Enough already.

Love,
Matt

Thoughts on Iowa

2012-01-04T07:48:00.000-08:00

Watched a bit of CNN last night, to check in on the Iowa Caucus results, because I like to see what the central, depressing, miserable narrative is from the horse's godforsaken mouth. Went to bed with Santorum and Romney neck-and-neck.

A few quick thoughts on what I saw:

Ron Paul's concession/on-to-New Hampshire speech was just so awful and I have no idea why people like this guy. I'm honestly mystified. This is the Republican version of antiwar? A guy who is antiwar not because he's generally a man of peace (he isn't, he has plenty of vitriol to go around) but because he's an isolationist. He also doesn't believe in partnership with NATO, or "getting involved in other people's affairs." This guy doesn't think the war was wrong because people died. He thinks the war was wrong because war means getting involved with countries that aren't our own.

He perpetuated the myth that vaccinations are linked to autism. He believes we should return to the gold standard and dissolve the Fed. He wants to get rid of the Department of Education. Plus, he blathers. He sounds just barely lucid.

Newt Gingrich is a delight. This is the man who battled against campaign finance reform and led a smear-heavy, brutal campaign against everyone who politically disagrees with him. He literally calls Democrats "dangerous." Then, he takes umbrage, umbrage I say, that he was buried by political attack ads. Fantastic. He's going to take his whole party down in flames, just to be an asshole. I love it.

Santorum won in Iowa (and he did, let's face it, he got within 15 votes of Romney with almost no money) because he actually did the retail politicking and because he's the only far-right bigoted conservative out there for the far-right bigots to vote for left. Plus, he and Romney look alike. These people want someone that LOOKS like Reagan, more than someone who governed like him.

Romney? Jesus. There's a reason Republicans feel like they have a settle on this guy. He's their John Kerry. Wait, no. He's worse. I actually liked John Kerry, but why did everyone go for him? They thought he could win. We all thought Bush was awful and vulnerable so we should pick a guy the rest of the country could maybe get behind.

Unfortunately, you see where that sort of logic gets you. Romney has no pluses. He just lacks the minuses of the other candidates. His own financial accomplishments - running a business - makes him look like the villain of the story, not the hero. His "I'm not a career politician" line is instantly disintegrated by the fact that he was the Governor of Massachusetts, ran for office many times, and seemingly has been running for President, for a living, for something like five years.

Anyhow, these are not stellar candidates. That's not news.

Three things that stuck out to me, from the news coverage alone.

First, the fact that the news does not bring up Santorum's bigotry is shameful. If a politician was a known, professed racist, would the press focus on his views about tax policy and "family values?" It's like talking about a member of the Klu Klux Klan's views on the Gold Standard. (Wait...this all sort of brings us back to Ron Paul, uncomfortably.)

Also, this insistence, by Republicans, that they're Reagan-like is horrifying. First of all, Reagan presided over some seriously awful shit, like the denial of the AIDs crisis, a massive arms-race, and Iran-Contra. He wasn't a hero. Plus, he would have found the current crop of conservatives far too ideologically rigid. He was, when it came to tax policy, able to compromise and find something reasonable to do when pressed. I guess he wasn't a slave to Grover Norquist.

Finally, listening to the Republicans describe Obama is bizarre. The right wing has actually invented an entirely different person than Obama and called that person "Obama" and they hate that fake person. Obama, himself, is moderate almost to a fault, has achieved tremendous military victory, and has searched for market solutions to problems like health care reform all along. It's like listening to a funhouse mirror. So to speak.

Something theater does better than the movies

2012-01-02T15:04:00.001-08:00

3-D.

New Year's Eve Live Webcast 2012 from Times Square

2011-12-30T19:38:00.000-08:00

I'm one of the Associate Producers of the Worldwide Webcast of the New Year's Eve celebration from Times Square. This is my third year working on the show.

The show runs live from around 6pm until just after midnight. Hope you'l check it out and enjoy. Happy New Year!

Watch live streaming video from 2012 at livestream.com

Samuel French titles available as eBooks

2011-12-29T23:15:00.000-08:00

In an rather exciting development, Samuel French titles are being released as eBooks exclusively (for now) through the iBookstore, for Apple devices. Here's the information and list of currently available plays.

I'll let you know when WHEN IS A CLOCK becomes available, of course!

Scott Walters at Theatre Ideas

2011-12-27T14:20:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since I've linked to Scott at Theatre Ideas. He's still cooking up a storm over there.

He's recently put for an idea to debate, and I think it's definitely worth some back-and-forth.

"Any theatre that transfers a production to a commercial venue automatically loses its non-profit status."

And so? What say you?

Phantasmaphile

2011-12-23T07:23:00.001-08:00

My wife's blog is called Phantasmaphile. Also, if you haven't yet, go take a look at it. It's really gorgeous and inspiring. Like her!

Happy Holidays

2011-12-23T07:19:00.000-08:00

I wish the best to you and yours (and theirs, I guess). Also, if you're feeling blue, there's The Hobbit Trailer to fix it.

Merry, Happy and Sincerely.

Confessions of a Serial Intern reaction

2011-12-22T07:19:00.000-08:00

Over on howlround, an essay/post by Annah Feinberg...Confessions of a Serial Intern. Not a surprising read (I think her observations are perennial), but it is frank, sharply written, and I'm sure it will ruffle some feathers. Always a good thing to featherruffle. Plus, she makes the point, which can't be made enough, that an upper-middle class upbringing gives you a leg-up as an artist in this country.

I'm sure a lot of the debate will center around the validity of her claim that interns don't get hired by the theaters they volunteer for very often. (Some comments over there are already talking about that.) Two thoughts about that from me.

One is that I've always found that whole process questionable anyway. Is her point, "Look I gave you my free labor in order to move to the front of the hiring line, and I was able to do so because I can afford it. But this unfair advantage I thought I would get was misrepresented?" I know it isn't, of course. It's just a bit too much inside-baseball, first-world problems, writing a memo to Human Resources, to really keep me invested.

Second, it's less interesting to talk about post-internship hiring practices than it is to talk about the way in which financial constraints force large artistic organizations to use free labor on a mass scale. Don't we have a jobs crisis in this country? Couldn't these unpaid internships, with a little public funding, become jobs? There's a strong economic argument to be made that better funded theaters and dance companies, large and small, could employ more people. And if these were jobs, even part-time or seasonal jobs, wouldn't that reduce the disparity in the class issue? It would mean that people who need to be paid for their work would still have "working at a theater" as an reasonable option.

On a personal note, I must confess, whenever I read about the "industry" I sort of die inside. I keep forgetting I'm in an industry. Or maybe the problem with my career thus far, such as it is, is that I'm expressly not in the industry. I just write plays and try to get them put on. I'm doing this wrong.

Then again, I think I want to be in the industry. Don't I? But then again, it's an industry. Isn't it?

Other theater apps we need

2011-12-16T08:13:00.000-08:00

We're living in the App Era. The age of the App. I wonder if there are kids that won't know why it's called an App (lication.) I also wonder if there are children who don't know why it's called a "C" drive. I mean, I guess they never had to sit up for hours with their friend Marshall and remove every damn thing on their home computer from a C prompt just so they could transform their entire computer into an "X-Wing" arcade machine.

But I digress.

Apparently Scene Partner is an app that helps people memorize their lines. Because a yellow highlighter and a patient friend, or heck, just a room by yourself, is no longer good enough. We need the funky iPhone version of learning things.

So, I think I'd like to request a few more theater related apps. Things that will replace age-old problems with newfangled problems.

CUE ME APP - Keep your iPhone in your pocket on stage. It will buzz whenever it hears the three words preceding your next line.

WRAPPER REMOVER - An app that reminds you to remove the fucking peanut M&Ms from their wrapper now, five minutes before the play starts, while you're reading your program, not the second Mark Rylance comes onstage.

RIGHT FOR ME? - An app with several parts. First, you upload your headshot. Then, you put in your resume. Then, your friends anonymously can upload notes about the parts you're best for. Then, when a listing for an open call shows up, and your mind is feverishly looking for rationales why you should audition for Romeo at 47, you can consult the objective app and get your shit together.

NEW PLAY DEVELOPMENT APP - Replace the entire development process with an app that gives all the standard notes that you will receive during a talkback session, but fills them in MadLibs style from the details for your play. For example:

"I didn't believe it when MARTA confessed to DANIEL."

"I just think you should raise the stakes for HAROLD."

"What you need to ask yourself is 'Why is this night more important for GINA than any other night?'"

"I felt like THE ANGEL GABRIEL was from a different play."

"Shorter."

"Do you have any questions that you would like this APP to provide feedback on?" [ENTRY SCREEN] "Yes, the APP agrees that part could be tightened up."

"Why isn't this a screenplay?"

INSTANT REVIEW - An app that reads your play, the cast, the director, the company and the venue, and quickly writes the review you know you will receive before you even start rehearsing. It even will emulate the reviews from different sources, such a three star review from Time Out or an exasperated review from Charles Isherwood.

LITERARY DEPARTMENT APP - Send your play to this app for your daily dose of deadening rejection. It fills in the name of your play: "We loved reading THE JUNIPER BUSH" and makes a single comment that seems personalized before rejecting you. "The characters were unique and the structure inventive. We're sorry, it does not match our needs at this time." (Works especially well with the iPhone 4s.)

NEW PLAY APP - Enter a premise and characters, and this app will produce a 70 minute, intermissionless play with an ambiguous ending and a progressive social theme.

HEADSHOTS! - a new iPhone app that uses the camera to create the perfect digital headshot from any standard picture. Closes up on your face, finds your best side, whitens teeth, adds hand-on-your-chin with photoshop, creates either brick-building or stoop background with state-of-the-art digital technology. Then, instantly sends to agents and online depositories of dreams.

----

You're welcome, entrepreneurs.

Wave of the future, wave of the future

2011-12-16T06:43:00.000-08:00

DPS inks e-Book deal. I love the use of the work "ink" here. That's intentionally ironic right?

The War in Iraq is Over

2011-12-15T10:51:00.000-08:00

Apparently, even the New York Times says so.

So did we win? The war? That lasted? 9 years? Based on? Lies?

Did the thousands dead make us more free, or safe?

Was the cost of the war in human lives, human suffering, faith in our institutions, world opinion and pure dollars...worth it?

Playscripts Holiday Sale - Today and Tomorrow

2011-12-15T07:10:00.000-08:00

Today and tomorrow only, Playscripts.com is offering a 40% Holiday discount on all its titles. Valid only today and tomorrow, December 16th.

That means if you want to make a gift to a loved one of a new play or anthology (or if you'd like to make a special sort-of gift to good old Matt Freeman by buying one of his books) now is a great time. Use the code GIFT at checkout.

Playscript titles by Matthew Freeman
Glee Club
Rabbi Hersh and the Talking Lobster (or Trayf)
The Death of King Arthur

Top 10 of 2011

2011-12-14T08:02:00.000-08:00

That's right it's time for a year-end list of Top 10 things. To explain a bit about the process:

First, I look at the things over the course of the last year that were, and I put them into categories and lay them out over a table. Some get blue stickers, some red, some green, depending. Then, I try to make sure there are at least an equal number of all three stickers, so that it's fairly and widely distributed among the potential things that are "top."

Once all those things are gathered, I do what I call the annual "gut check." Some things just feel right and others don't. I think we often get too analytical, and it makes us forget how much instinct drives us. That's what might explain why one year, on the Top 10, we left off Cormac McCarthy's The Road. Overthought things, you know? I'll always regret that.

Anyway, after the "gut check," we (my wife and I) go through a more complicated process of ordering things in Excel, trying to quantify. We take into account influence, reach, "the long tail," page views, aggregates, points, polls, overall sales, total sales, net versus gross, Nielsen ratings, our Pop-O-Meter, state-by-state polling data, unsubscribes and Twitter followers.

This usually brings the list into something like a near-focus. Finally, we use a dart board. Ten bullseyes later, our Top 10 list is complete.

And so, without further ado

10. The Walking Dead
9. Occupy Wall Street
8. Jerusalem
7. Spearmint Gum / Pepper Spray (Tie)
6.Obamneycare
5. Flashpoint
4. CM Punk
3. Earthquake, Japan
2. The Oprah Network
1. Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark

New Dramatists has a new website

2011-12-14T06:46:00.001-08:00

Fan-cy! Social media! Updates! Twitter!

nytheatre.com's People of the Year 2011

2011-12-10T12:15:00.001-08:00

Read the list here.

From the new play

2011-12-09T08:43:00.001-08:00

Hey. Who wants to read something I've recently written? As it's a blog about being a playwright?

Here's a quick snippet from the newest play. Because you heard it here first.

LEANNA

It’s not a second career. It’s a fourth career. When I waswriting, I was always also working for the recruiter, and when I decided I’dmake the transition to writing professionally, that never really counted asbeing a writer. That was content. I was a content provider. Which was betterthan being a recruiter, especially if you wanted to be a writer. The illusionwas that I was incrementally moving towards writing by providing content, as ifbecause both involved words they are related. The novel I wasn’t writing oreven that short story that’s about five hundred words from done; they juststayed not written. So fuck it... I’m like “writing is bullshit and no oneneeds me to be a writer.” So I’m at school, and I’m going to get this degreeand it’s not so bad, it’s CUNY so it’s not destroying me financially, andthat’s awesome. But now I have this totally bizarre side job just to pay forschool, so that I can go into a career in interior design, someday, instead ofany of the things I’ve spent all my life doing. Which is great and fine andwhatever. I win, someday, or I just keep losing like I’m winning, or something.

BFG Collective

2011-12-08T14:47:00.001-08:00

Three top Off-Off Broadway theater companies combine to form Voltron. Read all about it here.

Sad Playwright

2011-12-07T21:38:00.001-08:00

As if to commemorate my birthday, this website appeared before me on Facebook.

Sad Playwright.

What a beautiful place on the web.

36th Birthday

2011-12-07T06:06:00.001-08:00

A day that shall live in infamy.

Indie Theater Now offerings

2011-12-06T11:46:00.001-08:00

Just a reminder, you can find three of my plays available in digital editions on Indie Theater Now. Each play offers excerpts, a sample review, character breakdown, and notes on the original cast production.

The Most Wonderful Love (which got a pretty great New York Times review in 2006, here).

When Mother and Father celebrate their long and happy marriage with an unprecedented ceremonial unwedding, their friends and relations gather from all over to feast on the spoils; get ready for this sprawling satire on contemporary marriage and American fundamentalism.

The Great Escape (one of my favorites)

Things have changed since Henry last visited Mom; for starters, the décor is decidedly kitschier, and his sister Catherine decidedly creepier; and Mom has a new husband; and she’s locked herself upstairs.

The Americans

A young man writes a poem, “The Americans,” so beautiful that the walls of his room rise into the sky and explode, covering New York in wood and plaster rain; for three young men vaguely nervous about what their lives are becoming, it is, at least, something different.

Times Square from New Year's Eve - Webcast 2011

2011-12-06T07:18:00.001-08:00

I'll be, once again, a producer on and the senior writer for the webcast from Times Square on New Year's Eve. I'll embed it here, and on my website. It'll be fun. I hope you check it out. From your hovel, where you hide.

Give to your favorite theater company (part two)

2011-12-05T05:38:00.001-08:00

Last week I posted this, about end-of-year giving to the theater company you care about.

I'd like to ask a question about your own giving strategy.

Do you tend to give whatever you can to a single arts organization, to maximize your impact? Or do you give a little to lots of smaller companies, to spread the wealth around? Or, do you not contribute in this way? Do you simply buy tickets as a way to show support?

More eBooks about theater

2011-11-30T10:37:00.001-08:00

I'm liking the eBook trend. This time, it's a book by Terry Schreiber called Producing on a Short Shoelace, published as an eBook by NYTE. Certainly seems like a no-brainer for any small theater producer to pick up.

Three kinds of impossible...

2011-11-30T08:15:00.001-08:00

Over on the Coyote Commission Blog, Kyle Ancowitz (my long-time collaborator and one of the artistic directors of Blue Coyote Theater Group) writes a post about "three kinds of impossible" things in plays.

Quote:

"As a producer,I'll admit that I often read plays with a wary eye towards impossible ideas. By impossible, I mean ideas that are either simplyunstageable with our budget or that contribute needlessly to downtown theater’sreputation for being pretentious and/or incomprehensible. Come to think of it,let’s say there are three categories of impossible:

BORING AND IMPOSSIBLE:Car chases. Climactic gunfights. Enormouscountry-style breakfasts.
INTRIGUING BUT IMPOSSIBLE: Thermonuclearexplosions. Singing alien plants. Journeys to the Heaviside Layer.
TOTALLY BANANAS AND IMPOSSIBLE: Characters vomitingmythological creatures. Giant thumbs that bleed abstraction. Talking Jewish lobsters.

Does myresistance to unconventional ideas such as these represent a failure ofimagination? Or am I just doing my job? I want to explore this idea with ourcommission playwrights: Won’tyou please tell us about a time when your "challenging" and"unconventional" experiment never made it to the stage because somedirector or producer shut you down? What happened next? And who wasright?"

In a giving mood? Give to your favorite theater company

2011-11-28T17:19:00.001-08:00

It's that time of year again. I've made a bit of an annual tradition out of suggesting that you, dear reader, make a charitable donation to the small theater company or even individual artist of your choice. I certainly hope that other bloggers and tweeters will post their own year-end lists of companies to support, as well.

You can support many of your favorite playwrights by just buying their books. (Hint. Also, maybe you'd like to try here or here or here or here. Heck, don't forget about this.)

Most of all, your favorite small theaters need you more than ever right now. Day jobs are scarce. Funding is dry. Audiences are careful with a dollar. A $50 donation to public radio is a terrific idea, and it means a lot to them. But a $50 donation to the company that just did that cool new play in a black box up the street? It's exponentially more important, more useful, and it will be put immediately to use paying for the work you love.

Here's a few examples of companies that I think would benefit from even a small donation. $25, $50, $100. Whatever you can give. Stretch this year, maybe. Give more than you did last year. But give.

First draft of new play

2011-11-27T17:02:00.001-08:00

Completed the first draft of my new play "Why We Left Brooklyn" this weekend. Always a good feeling.

Turkey Day

2011-11-22T13:14:00.001-08:00

I hope you all have a lovely holiday.

Plug!

2011-11-21T07:43:00.001-08:00

Monday plug!

Purchase The Americans for Kindle or Nook! Only $1.99!

Question

2011-11-20T07:07:00.001-08:00

With the change to the design of the blog, the blogroll has been dropped off. Is that something you'd like put back on the site? Or do you tend to view the site through a portal like Google Reader and not see the blogroll anyhow? I'm not sure if it's something that is still good manners/necessary/expected or not, at this point.

The Occult in Modern Art - tonight

2011-11-17T21:38:00.001-08:00

My wife, Pam, (whose awesome blog is called Phantasmaphile and should be read religiously) is presenting a lecture tonight (Friday) at Observatory called The Occult In Modern Art 101. You really must be there. It shall be smashing, informative, and inspirational.

Check out the event, and all the kick-ass events at Observatory, here.

Also

2011-11-15T09:21:00.001-08:00

Game of Thrones! It does this thing where its just so incredibly boring that I wonder why I keep reading, and then it's good for a minute, and then it's incredibly boring again.

Please, book, please. Uncle.

Sorry for the radio silence

2011-11-15T09:15:00.001-08:00

I've been traveling for work.

I am sending good thoughts to those in the Occupy Movement.

To me, if you have a problem with people sleeping in public parks, maybe you should be battling poverty, not the impoverished.

No, Sarah Wharton...

2011-11-07T11:24:00.000-08:00

...you're the wonderful one!

Read all about what acting is like here.

Writing a play is like reposting an old post

2011-11-05T21:20:00.001-07:00

I was paging through some older posts and found this one from last year, which I liked quite a bit. Here it is again.

Writing a play is like...

Juggling

2011-11-04T11:52:00.000-07:00

I'm having a fine time writing my newest play, but it's come with a fun problem I'm not quite used to. It has extended scenes where there are many characters on stage, at basically a Brooklyn dinner party. I'm not a big fan, in instances like these, of the "everyone is just talking at once" thing. I feel like I'm trying to write a very traditional play in a lot of ways. Still, though, that requires a little sleight of hand in places, and a lot of juggling. I'll be trucking along with a little scene or progression of beats, when I realize someone hasn't spoken for quite a while. Then, of course, I have to go figure out where the heck Dawn went while Jason and Michelle were going on about moving to Columbus.

When I write a play, one of the biggest challenges for me is keeping in balance the desire to speak with instinct and spontaneity; and organizing the entrances, exits, order of speakers, fitting the pieces together. It's sort of like trying to finish a jigsaw puzzle with all the force you can muster.

Things I am absolutely not doing instead of writing

2011-11-02T12:54:00.000-07:00

- Reading the third book of Game of Thrones
- Playing Uncharted 3
- Playing Batman: Arkham City
- Watching Fringe

That would be the behavior of a child, not a grown up with a job and things to do. I wouldn't behave that way.

Introducing...my website!

2011-10-28T13:47:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's a website that is not a blog. About me. Matt Freeman. Designed by my good pal Ernest Hemmings, who also lives and breathes over here. It's jagged and punchy and weird. Just like I like.

www.matthewfreemanwriter.com

Tonight and Tomorrow: Playwrights For Pets

2011-10-27T09:16:00.000-07:00

Tonight and tomorrow are the performances of Playwrights for Pets: Heavy Petting, from Blue Coyote Theater Group. Billed as a night of unlikely romance, it will feature performances and new works. Should be fun, especially if you love pets, which I know you do.

The play I'll be presenting is a staged reading of The White Swallow, a popular short from a few years back, affectionately known by some as "the egg play." It's directed by Kyle Ancowitz and is performed by the crack team of Laura Desmond, David DelGrosso and Matthew Trumbull. I love it, it makes me laugh, and I think it will make you laugh too.

Tickets can be purchased in advance here.

More information about the show can be found at www.bluecoyote.org

(My cats names, for the record, are Albee and Remedios Varo.)

Quilt: A Musical Celebration and Reflection on 30 Years

2011-10-27T08:06:00.000-07:00

I recommend you consider attending this upcoming benefit, which takes place on November 28th, and reflects on the past 30 years of raising AIDS awareness. A lot has been accomplished, but there's a long way to go. Looks like a special evening, with a lot of talent involved.

From the website:

Thirty years after the virus devastated New York City, swept the nation, and forever changed the world, a new threat looms, that of complacency. HIV/AIDS is a problem that has yet to be overcome, and as the harrowing days of the early 1980s slip further from the public conscience and strides are made in treatment, there is the widespread and dangerous misconception that the virus no longer serves as cause for concern. Through the use of the performing and visual arts, this event will honor all those who have been lost senselessly due to this vicious disease, celebrate those who have championed the afflicted, and mark a renewed commitment to ending this pandemic that has robbed us of too many bright futures.

Tickets are here.

Time Out NY rates the 25 best screen adaptations of Shakespeare

2011-10-26T08:24:00.000-07:00

The list is here.

Can't say I entirely agree on all counts. I'm sure you won't either. That's the fun of lists.

For example, they place the Michael Almereyda's dull Hamlet (the one in Manhattan with Ethan Hawke) above the Kenneth Branagh version, which I really can't see. I guess if you do a lot less, there's less to screw up?

They also put Julie Taymor's Titus above Prospero's Books. Hrm. Not feeling it. To me, Prospero's Books is bolder, less literal, more built for the screen. Taymor's Titus is grand and grim (I definitely loved it), but it's essentially a massive, expensive stage production.

Don't forget

2011-10-25T08:57:00.000-07:00

To pick up a copy of When Is A Clock
Or any of these editions published by Playscripts

Favorite Reviewers and Critics

2011-10-24T10:37:00.000-07:00

I think it's very easy for artists to find fault with critics - but I'm curious...which theater reviewers, writers and critics do you tend to enjoy and why? Anyone out there you find particularly insightful? Fun to read?

Ken Davenport gives some good advice

2011-10-21T07:55:00.001-07:00

On producing.

The power of being prolific

2011-10-20T06:23:00.000-07:00

A provocative tweet by the amazing Taylor Mac on October 12th:

"I'm learning that new elite r prolific writers/tweeters/bloggers who dominate the conversation via onslaught of material."

I think there's something to this, and I think I might be implicated. Is there a bias towards (on the web anyway) writers who produce a great deal of material? Twitter and Facebook and Blog Posts? For example, if I were to write one essay here per month, and labored over it for days, would that mean I had fewer visitors, less interest, and therefore a smaller overall platform? If you don't feed the beast, does it move on to eat something that's still bleeding a bit more profusely?

And does that, you know...matter? It doesn't seem like the most successful artists feel the need to have much of a web presence. In fact, there are very few playwrights (from my unscientific perspective) out there that seem to even have their own websites. And it's 2011.

How significantly are the conversations about theater online impacting the art of theater that is being done, anyway? Or is it, really, a form of entertainment and connection, a broad conversation about life in the trenches, more than a critical conversation about the work?

Murderer!

2011-10-18T10:09:00.000-07:00

Kristen Palmer writes about killing characters, a revision at a time, in this blog post.

It's an interesting feeling, removing an entire character from a play. It's tough enough to remove a line, or a scene, but characters have a way of being sticky, of wanting to live. I've very rarely actually entirely removed a character. I think recently in THAT OLD SOFT SHOE, I had originally written a character named Phillipa, who didn't make it to draft two. I'll miss you Phillipa. You could have been funnier, but that's really my fault, isn't it.

Any writers out there in a draft process finding themselves holding the red pen over a fictitious life?

Blue Coyote Theater Group's Coyote Commission Project Blog

2011-10-14T10:49:00.000-07:00

Blue Coyote Theater Group - where I've called home since 2004 - are off on a new and exciting endeavor - the Coyote Commission Project.

The first commissioned playwrights are Robert Attenweiler, Kristen Palmer, Christine Whitley, John Yearley, and David Zellnik. Read new blogs from them, get updates on their work, and check out the results on the new Coyote Commissions Project Blog.

Here is a post from John Yearly

And another from David Zellnik.

Also, Blue Coyote is now on twitter. Follow them here.

Performing Arts are a form of employment

2011-10-13T09:40:00.001-07:00

...and therefore, performing artists are also screwed.

Yogurt Shop

2011-10-11T07:01:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is really funny.

Zack talks to Matt

2011-10-10T10:48:00.001-07:00

Zack Calhoon interviews my dear friend and long-time collaborator Matt Trumbull here.

Blessing with a curse attached

2011-10-07T19:49:00.000-07:00

Charles Isherwood writes a blog post on the New York Times website about his desire to stop reviewing Adam Rapp's plays. No really. You must read it.

I'm not sure how I feel about it.

To quote:

"I’ve come to the conclusion I’ve rapped Mr. Rapp’s knuckles enough for a lifetime. I’d like to hand the ruler to someone else next time."

Mike Daisey on Steve Jobs

2011-10-07T10:41:00.001-07:00

Read. Yes, you.

Occupy Wall Street

2011-10-03T15:44:00.000-07:00

When the political class and the media wish out loud that the Occupy Wall Street protests were more coherent, more single-minded, more "on-message," more recognizable, more organized; they are not wishing for the success of the movement.

I have heard the Occupy Wall Street protests compared to the Tea Party movement. The Tea Party movement was, and is, simply an off-shoot of a Republican message, funded by mainstream conservative activists in shadow, to promote conservatism in the face of a popular, charismatic and non-traditional (in look and name) Democratic President. It's uniform message and political savvy are not the result of passion, but of calculation.

Occupy Wall Street is steadfastly revolted by calculation, and is driven entirely by a complex set of emotions and thoughts. Let's celebrate complexity and passion. Let's remember that the sentiment of a group of individuals fighting for an ideal, pointing out injustice, should outstrip and outgun the media's desire for soundbites and slogans. It is dangerous to believe that the merits of an ideal are related to how simple the ideal is to communicate.

2011-10-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

Final performance of in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More...tonight

2011-10-01T07:54:00.000-07:00

Tonight is our third and final performance of the workshop of in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More. Tickets can be found here.

Superfluities Redux Turns 8

2011-09-30T10:21:00.000-07:00

Read here. Plus, a thesis about the theater blogosphere. Whoa.

Oh shit

2011-09-30T08:59:00.000-07:00

My blog template changed entirely, and entirely by accident. Oh well. I was considering changing the template. And at last, it happened, because I clicked something weird. I feel a bit odd about that. Perhaps there's a life lesson to be found here.

"Why bother?" Why ask?

2011-09-30T08:05:00.000-07:00

Terry Teachout writes a real hamdinger of a sad luck piece one the Wall Street Journal here. After noting that Tony Kushner doesn't make a living as a playwright, he goes on to say:

"The question all but asks itself: Why is anybody still writing plays? Theater, after all, is no longer a central part of the Americancultural conversation, the way it was when Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williamswalked the earth. Nowadays most educated people would just as soon stay homeand watch "Breaking Bad" as shell out a hundred bucks to see aBroadway play—assuming that there are any plays on Broadway worth seeing, whichlong ago ceased to be a safe bet.

So if you can't make any moneywriting for the stage, why bother? Putting aside the obvious attraction ofbeing able to make up your own characters, I can think of one excellent reason:You meet the nicest people."

Ouch.

Honestly, I do like that I've met nice people, but as a playwright, that is not why I write plays. I also don't write plays because I really like sitting in the room and hearing the reactions (a luxury, apparently, that TV writers don't get?) I don't do it for applause, or to satisfy myself or feel the love of others. Frankly, the theater I like is usually a bit terrifying and difficult: the sort that makes people leave feeling unsettled, and not like they love you.

I write plays because they are the long-standing, traditional form of art that I've chosen for my medium. Does there need to be further explanation than that? Just because photographs exist, does that mean painters need to explain why they still paint? I do not concede that drama is no longer a part of the cultural conversation. Tony Kushner may not make thousands of dollars from Angels in America...but it's still Angels in America. It's value is immeasurable; it's a permanent part of the American canon. That's work of a value that is expressly disproportional to the amount that he is paid for it. He gets paid less than a baseball player. Fine. So do schoolteachers. Does anyone ask why teachers bother?

Should poets stop writing poetry just because none of them is Robert Frost? Because the culture has changed? Are poets, in fact, just writing poems because poems are fun to write? No. They are important, and valuable, and necessary. Even the ones you've never heard of. Even the ones you've never read.

Theater is like any art. I honestly am amazed when people ask why it's made.

Outtakes

2011-09-29T13:03:00.000-07:00

Tonight we open our three night run of in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More. I hope to see you there!

Tickets here.

On an ENTIRELY different note, I popped by the set of The Professionals, a Youtube series that features my good friend David DelGrosso, to shoot a scene alongside my pal Matt Trumbull. The episode is fun, for sure. My favorite thing is the outtakes. About halfway through this, you can see me and Matt Trumbull and Dave attempt to get through a take rather endlessly and unsuccessfully. It's fun, I think.

So...enjoy this (if you're interested to see how I basically look and sound, blog readers - even if I was looking a bit red-faced and sweaty).

Tickets now on sale for in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More

2011-09-25T09:41:00.000-07:00

Tickets are now available for the three-night workshop production of in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More. Pick 'em up here.

What are your playwrighting best practices?

2011-09-23T05:12:00.000-07:00

So asks Marisela Trevino Orta on 2AMt.

#1 (The Han Solo Rule) - Ignore the odds.
#2 - Persist.

The Wicked Stage

2011-09-23T04:38:00.001-07:00

Has some wicked thoughtful posts lately. Check it.

Weekly Updates? Perhaps!

2011-09-22T08:31:00.000-07:00

I think I might try to formalize a "What's Up With Me" update on the blog weekly. Not sure if it would help anyone but me, but whatever. It's my blog.

- I've written and directed in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More. It's a three night workshop, at the Brick Theater in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Details on the Brick website. $10 tickets only. Come out and see it.

- My play The Metaphor will be included in an upcoming Smith & Kraus anthology Best Ten Minute Plays 2012.

---

Where To Buy My Plays

When Is A Clock
Glee Club
The Americans (Kindle) (Nook) (IndieTheaterNow)
The Death of King Arthur
Trayf
The Great Escape (IndieTheaterNow)
The Most Wonderful Love (IndieTheaterNow)

Ah the French!

2011-09-22T06:54:00.001-07:00

Having dinner and drinks with my buddy Dave last night, he reminded me that this is perhaps the finest of all YouTube videos, and one of the reasons the internet is a wonderful thing.

Change the world!

2011-09-20T19:41:00.001-07:00

In your own way.

Signature Theater announces it will stage new works by five resident playwrights

2011-09-20T07:01:00.000-07:00

The Signature Theater Initiative will develop and stage new works by these writers, to help them establish themselves...

Annie Baker, Kenneth Lonergan, Katori Hall, Regina Taylor, and Will Eno.

Ahem. Let me rephrase. The Signature Theater will pay for and produce plays written by the successful and terrific playwrights known as...

Annie Baker, Kenneth Longergan, Katori Hall, Regina Taylor and Will Eno.

Anyway, at least we'll get new plays from kick-ass writers. I just wish theaters would stop helping playwrights so much and just produce them. (It's sort of like giving Tony Kushner money or something.)

Congratulations to the winners of the NYIT Awards 2011

2011-09-20T06:43:00.001-07:00

A lovely evening, highlighted by some really charming and impressive presenters.

The Onion on poetry

2011-09-19T12:17:00.001-07:00

The Onion in its fullest "blow your brains out this is so sad and funny" mode.

Access Theater

2011-09-19T10:53:00.001-07:00

The Time Out NY description of the Access Theater makes me feel all legit and stuff.

NYIT Awards

2011-09-19T07:07:00.000-07:00

Tonight is the 2011 NYIT Awards. I have never been nominated for one of these awards, because of, I believe, I have strange and scaly wings. It makes me repulsive and unpopular.

I did, though, write the presenter's text. So if Jay O. Sanders or David Henry Hwang says something stupid, it's really on me.

in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More

2011-09-16T11:37:00.000-07:00

Where: The Brick
When: September 29th, 30th and October 1st
What: A staged workshop of this new play

Written and directed by Matthew Freeman
Music by Benjamin Warfield

Featuring Lindsey Carter, Maggie Cino, Stephanie Cox-Williams, Rebecca Davis, Alexis Sottile, Stephanie Willing, and Morgan Anne Zipf

Attackwatch

2011-09-13T13:49:00.001-07:00

Pretty cool.

An interesting conversation evolving about theater blogs

2011-09-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

Naval gazing? Sure. But isn't that fun? Read George Hunka's post here and also some thoughts about the evolving place of theater blogs in the comments section here.

This blog has been around for about six years. As I'm late to the Twitter world, I entirely missed how the conversation evolved into being centralized about #2amt and other more institutional conversations (heck, I'm not even on the www.2amtheatre.com blogroll!).

So...do you think blogs like this one (single playwrights or artists speaking for themselves) is a mere precursor to the wider conversation that's going on as a part of social networking? Are blogs being supplanted, or supplemented, or simply co-opted? Has the novelty worn off? Or do you just figure it blogs are just a part of the world now, and they're fun, and that's that?

This man is a true hero

2011-09-13T12:16:00.001-07:00

How do you read this blog

2011-09-13T08:28:00.000-07:00

I'm curious. How do you read this blog? Do you click through a link on Twitter? On Facebook? Do you use Google Reader? Do you actually go to the matthewfreeman.blogspot.com webpage?

Buy this book!

2011-09-12T13:26:00.000-07:00

When you're clicking around on Amazon.com today, thinking about buying that book about locally sourced organic mushrooms that you can grow on the moist face of a recently weeping child...buy a copy of When Is A Clock.

10 years

2011-09-11T13:45:00.000-07:00

It's early evening on Sunday, September 11th, 2011. Ten years later. I've struggled to say something, but it hasn't felt right. I can't believe it's been ten years. I was in the city that day. I don't have much to contribute to the dialogue. That's about it.

I will only say that I have found it strange and perpetually challenging to share what was a profoundly local event with the nation and with national politics.

"9/11" and what happened in New York City on September 11th, 2001 are not, in fact, the same thing.

One is an idea, shorthand, a stand-in for a thousand fears and policies, for conjecture and projection.

The other is a time, a date, that something terrible happened downtown. I remember the date, and how I felt, and who I talked to, and who I was with. That belongs only to me. I remember when New York City felt like. That belongs to us.

From Brandywine Distillery Fire

2011-09-09T13:36:00.000-07:00

As I'm a playwright, and this is my blog, it's sometimes fun to just share some of my writing with you guys. Some text from "Brandywine Distillery Fire."

When youtravel remember to carry one thing with you. That thing is a wad of fake bills.Then, when a native tries to steal from you, you give him the fake bills andhe’s fooled. Trust me… those people are no match for cunning moves like thisone. A guy like that has never seen real dollars. He’ll hold up a makeshiftrevolver and say “Give it up” and you say “Here you go” and you give him thefunny money and he grabs it and runs away from you as if you’re made of nuclearfission or radioactive… something or other. As if you’re Hiroshima. As ifyou’re the Eastern Front.

Even thoughyou’ve lost nothing, take a mental picture of this kid. Take your grievanceback to the American embassy. Not long after that, you’ll be home and on TVyou’ll see the place you left, this place where you were only a tourist, whereyou went scuba diving… buried in a sea of fire. You’ll see the very face thatrobbed you covered in flies and smoke. You’ll be sure it was your fault, andfeel guilty, and both of those impulses are right. Still: that’s justice foryou.

Then, put onthose shoes you like. The ones that are in the back of the closet. You practically forgot they were there. Putthose on. You deserve it.

You can read the entire play here.

Politics?

2011-09-09T08:35:00.000-07:00

I realize this blog is called "On Theatre and Politics" and I've barely written substantively about politics in a very long time. Part of that is that it was just easier under Bush, as his presidency was a constant source of outrage. It's tougher under Obama. Partially, to be honest, because I've gotten more disappointed in my compatriots on the left than in Obama himself. I get bored and tired of listening to progressives essentially throw up their arms over and over again. What is so shocking? He ran as a moderate, and he's attempted to govern like one. If he's been less bold on some issues, and even been unable to make changes in places I wish he would, that's just how politics works. But in the end, I think he is an intelligent human being who is attempting to get the best results for the American people considering the political realities of the moment.

I like that he resists (sometimes to a fault) the impulse to fight fire with fire. The GOP's tone is not something I'd like to see matched. I'd like to see it be treated as inexcusable.

That being said, I'd like to throw out this one thought. There are a few media mantras that often drive me up the wall. One of those is that an "election is a referendum on the incumbent." The idea here is that the American people do not actually care who the President is running against, they're voting, basically, almost entirely to send a message about whether or not they believe the current officeholder is doing well. They've vote against him, the idea is, if the economy is bad, and for him if it isn't, case closed.

Of course, the truth is Obama is no more or less the "incumbent" than are his Republican counterweights. No matter how the House Republicans cast themselves as in favor of less government, it's clear that by setting the agenda and appearing as a bunch of older white men on the evening news in bulk...that they are the government. The face of exactly what exasperates the American people. If any Republican candidate stands beside them, I can't imagine he or she won't be treated as an "incumbent" in the eyes of the American people, if by incumbent what we really mean is "who we believe is currently managing things."

LATFH

2011-09-08T13:43:00.001-07:00

I love this goddamn website, even if it is sooooo last year.

Monologues Tailored For You

2011-09-08T07:54:00.000-07:00

I was poking around online, found Bekah Brunstetter's blog (which is primarily fun and personal) and also found this.She'll write you a personalized monologue for a small fee.

Now, this seems like something a lot of actors would be interested in, and also something other playwrights should be considering. How many bookfuls of short plays have been sold to actors as "Those auditions pieces you haven't heard or tried yet!" Why not just go straight to the source?

Anyway, thought it was worth a link. What do you think? Sounds like a great idea? Or no?

Notes added to "The Americans"

2011-09-07T07:33:00.000-07:00

For those interested, I've added personal notes about the text of The Americans to its page on the Indie Theater Now site. Enjoy.

New plays available - The Great Escape and The Most Wonderful Love

2011-09-07T07:30:00.000-07:00

Two of my plays, The Great Escape and The Most Wonderful Love, are now available as a part of the Indie Theater Now digital library. These plays, first produced in 2004 and 2006 respectively are two that I've always been extremely proud of, and they were well-received during their original runs. The New York Times was especially effusive about The Most Wonderful Love. From the review:

"Talk about taking a cleaver to the Cleavers. Themid-American family at the heart of Matthew Freeman's fearless new satire, 'The Most Wonderful Love,' is decidedly fractured when the playbegins. By the time it's over, a complete dismemberment has been performed. Nowonder Mr. Freeman, in his biographical note in the program, felt compelled toassure his real family, 'This play is not about you.'

Not that much blood is shed in this hilarious tale; Mr. Freeman's slicing and dicing of the mainstream Americanhome is nonviolent, though as savage as any slasher film."

Oddly enough, the play was never workshopped elsewhere, produced or published. I'm glad that, five years later, it's seeing the light of day. I certainly hope you give it a look. It's big and rowdy and fun.

The Great Escape, for its part, was the first play I had produced with Blue Coyote Theater Group and the first directed by Kyle Ancowitz. The premise involves two siblings wrapping their newly remarried mother in a sack and holding her hostage. It's, you know, funny. For those few that follow my plays, it's become pretty closely associated with "what I do." The characters are often named after people in my real life, the situations very close to home. It's another play that I feel would love to be remounted and revisited.

Check all of three plays available through the site here.

James Comtois: "Full Stop"

2011-09-06T10:03:00.000-07:00

It's really not my place to tell the story, so I recommend you hear the most recent true-life tale from playwright James Comtois himself. Most of you that follow the theatrical blogsphere have read his posts, read his plays, seen his plays, and gotten to know him and his company Nosedive. I'm glad he's okay, but yeah, everyone take care of yourselves.

Read about it here. Leave him good thoughts.

Directing one's own work

2011-09-06T07:38:00.000-07:00

Tonight begins rehearsals for the workshop of in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More. I'm directing myself, which I'm excited about, but it's also a position I usually sidestep. I've consistently with directors and partners for years, mostly because it's incredibly helpful, and also because I'm wary of directing one's own work on principle. The lack of perspective is, by it's nature, a hindrance. Perhaps. Maybe familiarity is a good thing in this case.

Any advice from experienced directors or playwright-directors out there?

Incubator Arts Project's blog goes live

2011-09-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

The Incubator Arts Project (who played host to Brandywine Distillery Fire last year) have launched a blog. Looking forward to reading it diligently! Add to your readers/feeds etc!

9/11 Collection on Indie Theater Now featuring The Americans

2011-08-31T22:41:00.000-07:00

Indie Theater Now is a website which allows theater lovers access to the best plays of the New York City Indie Theater scene over the past decade or so. It launched just last month, and now has expanded with the 9/11 Collection, a collection of plays written on that theme, to commemorate the 10 year anniversary.

You can check out the entire collection here. Among the playwrights represented are Julia Lee Barclay, Leslie Bramm, Richard Hinojosa, Kelly McAllister. It also includes my play The Americans.

I'd love to know if you're using Indie Theater Now, and how it's working for you. If not, why not?

next up: a workshop at the Brick Theater

2011-08-25T07:08:00.000-07:00

Those lovely guys at The Brick have given me some time in their house to workshop a new script. The play (which I've mentioned in this space before) is called in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More. Much like Exposition or Denouement two years ago, this production will have a three night performance schedule, September 29th, 30th and October 1st.

The cast is a terrific group of actors: Lindsey Carter, Maggie Cino, Stephanie Cox-Williams, Rebecca Davis, Alexis Sottile, Stephanie Willing and Morgan Anne Zipf.

Also, I will be directing the project myself! Shudder!

More details to come. The piece is extremely musical and architectural; I certainly look forward to hearing responses.