Happy Endings - Final Performances / Benefit

Tonight and tomorrow will be the final two performances of Blue Coyote's Happy Endings. If you haven't seen it yet, and you live in the area, you definitely should include it in your plans.

Also, buy tickets in advance, because it's been very popular.









Then, on Sunday, Blue Coyote is hosting a fund-raiser called Afterglow. Details, you ask?

Sunday, March 2nd, 7pm
@Access Theater
380 Broadway, 4th Floor
(Broadway and White St.)

Join us on the Happy Endings set to celebrate our latest hit and our upcoming new work!

• Hors d'ouvres by celebrated chef Ed Cotton and pastry chef Mina Pizarro of Veritas, prepared by the staff
• Open bar
• Live entertainment
• prizes and raffles

ALL FOR ONLY $25!

Top shelf hooch and delicious food and surprise performances and tons of your friends dancing on stripper cubes and backstage antics and spinning lights and giveaways and you KNOW it always ends with someone kissin' on someone and sheepish phone calls the next day... All This Action for $25.00 are you KIDDING ME?!!

Love to see you there! All are welcome! Bring friends!

Netscape Navigator - R.I.P.

Little piece of sad news: Today is the last day that Netscape Navigator will be supported as a web browser. Tomorrow, it officially gives up the ghost.

Trav SD in the hizz-ouse

Welcome to the theatrosphere Trav S.D.

Frank Rich on Durang from 1981

After reading this post, and realizing that the New York Times has opened up its archives online (Praise the Lord) I went digging for old Frank Rich reviews and found this one, about the 1981 production of Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You. Here's a bit of it.

Mr. Durang successfully escalates this comic confrontation to a literally violent climax that strips the nun's moral authority bare even as it allows her to retain her crippling psychological power over her students, past and present. As the playwright sees his villainness, she will tolerate no failings in others - but will gladly use church law to rationalize even murder when it suits her own authoritarian purposes. In making his extreme case, Mr. Durang receives strong help from the director, Jerry Zaks, who wisely keeps his actors in realistic bounds. The entire cast is first-rate, including Mr. Stefan's catechism-reciting choirboy, and Miss Franz is brilliant. After her real - and insane - personality is revealed, she still remains all too frighteningly human.

Now, I expect if Rich was having a bad day, he could ruin someone's life. But he could also, as he does here, lionize simply by honestly engaging with the work. His excitement by the ideas, not just their presentation, is obvious. It's the sort of review that can make a career.

Or maybe I'm just mythologizing.

Theatrosphere is alive!

I've been following the Presidential election and working on my plays. So I don't know, my posting has been light, fun, harmless, without ambition. Thanks for checking in, continuing to read (if you are) and being patient with me.

Also... William F. Buckley Jr... is still dead.

Elsewhere there is a great fire a-blazin'.

Leonard Jacobs goes after the "Endless and Boring Bashing of the American Theatre."

Scott Walters has been posting up a storm about, well, all sorts of stuff.

Devilvet asks how to change theatre in 250 words or less. (Lots of responses to be found.)

And Issac Butler asks, today, if we could find one "stoplight" (a small, universally agreed upon problem) and fix it... what would it be?

Great discussions going on all around. I suggest you take a look!

Vampire Cowboys - Fight Company?

Qui Nguyen discusses his company's identity and how it reflects on their upcoming show on his blog.

I really appreciate this post: it's not an abstract question or comment on an "issue-of-the-week"... it's an artist with a distinctive identity exploring what he's actually making.

William F. Buckley Jr. Dead

Died during the waning days of the Second Bush Presidency. How appropriate.

We can't get Bush impeached...

...but we have time to go after baseball players!?!

"Downright disturbing!" "Punishing!" "Hell is other people's sexual fantasies!" "Priceless!" "Fractured!"

This is from the first, and positive, review of Blue Coyote's Happy Endings. It can be found at theateronline.com.

Dan Callahan thinks there may be something...wrong with me. Whoo-hoo!

I would like to stress that what happens in my play has never happened to me or anyone I know. Because that would be really, really weird.

UPDATE: Happy Endings is a Backstage Pick.

UPDATE: The New York Times chimes in. I'm big enough to post to it. Rachel Saltz seemed to forget to laugh. Oh well. She did provide me with perhaps my favorite pull quote, though. So, whatever, I'll take it. ("...in Matthew Freeman’s “White Swallow,” hell is other people’s sexual fantasies.")

UPDATE: The New Theater Corps gives us a fine review, and calls "The White Swallow" one of the highlights of Happy Endings.

UPDATE: Aaron Riccio at That Sounds Cool reviews Happy Endings.

Flavorpill Speaks Highly of "Happy Endings"

Won't you finally love me again when I stop shilling?

No, no. You love it when I shill.

Flavorpill sayeth Go Forth!

Beer Goggle Tuesday - One Last Time

So tonight is the final "Beer Goggle Tuesday" for Blue Coyote's Happy Endings. We start at 9pm tonight, and the booze is discounted.

That's right. We get you drunk before we treat you with the respect you deserve.

So tonight is a fine night to come, if you have been remiss in getting your groove on.

According to Arizona

The Most Wonderful Love existed. Which, you know, is heartening.

Thanks Google!

So you're at work, bored, browsing Amazon.com

Maybe you should pop on over to the website of your favorite theater company and make a small online donation? Why not?

Think of the Karma...

"American Voices" at the Greenwich Playhouse

The Most Wonderful Love and The Americans will be featured in series of readings and semi-staged productions at the Greenwich Playhouse, produced by Grey Light Productions. Other playwrights featured will be Jeni Mahoney, Kevin Crawley and Trav S.D.

Here are some details.

Hello Dave

Well...it's my blog. So I can share things I think are just plain wonderful.

I've loved The League of Gentleman for a while now. You've heard of them right? You love them too, right?

This is from Series 2. Enjoy.

Make yourself Happier tonight!

(Here goes nothing...)

Guess what? The weather is miserable in NYC. Going out sounds like hell!

So why not go to Hell in Style? With Hookers and Go-Go Dancers?

Come see Happy Endings tonight! I will, personally, be there. You know why? Because I might see YOU there! Will I? Will I see you there? Despite the weather?

I know that I will!

(Freeman, Freeman...you're so desperate. Shutupshutupshutup!)

PLEASE COME!

(I am humiliated by my own begging!)

For God's Sake...what do you want? Money?! Buy a ticket NOW! It's a great show!

Michelle Obama's "misstep"

Michelle Obama caused an "uproar" among imbeciles when she said:

"For the first time in my adult life, I am really proud of my country. Not just because Barack is doing well, but I think people are hungry for change."

I have made the phrase bold, so that anyone unfamiliar with the flap this statement caused can be, um, keyed in.

Michelle Obama was born in 1964. Let's say she begins counting her adult like at age 18. Voting age. That would be 1982. What was up in 1982? Let's look at Wikipedia.

LeAnn Rimes was born. That's bad. Ronald Reagan was President. Ouch. A recession begins in the US. First lethal injection in the US. Cold War ongoing. Falklands War.

Yick.

Look... I hate to be a big bastard...but my generation, and the preceding one, were RAISED to be cynical by former hippies that voted for Ronald Reagan. And since 1982, it's not like the US has actually been a shining beacon of light in the world. Reagan got a second term, Bush got a term, Bill Clinton had his tumultuous Presidency, George W. Bush is still in the midst of his two-term presidency.

We've had a shitty record on Human Rights, especially lately.

We've meddled in the Middle East; we've become obsessed with Reality Television; we've given high ratings to Friends; we gave an Oscar to Titanic. We've tortured prisoners, traded guns for hostages; had a President impeached by a lynch mob Congress obsessed with extra-marital affairs (and a President having them); our public heath system has been increasingly untenable; we've still got massive gaps between the economic and scholastic access of the rich and poor, the black and the white; it took us years to even acknowledge the AIDs crisis; gay rights are still not entirely defended; abortion rights are under attack; women still earn less than men; the arts are grossly underfunded.

That's just some of it.

Essentially... the idea that this election (between the first woman with a real shot at the Presidency, who is an accomplished Senator and public servant; and a young, black, Harvard educated former community organizer with a father for Kenya and a mother from Kansas) might be the first time that someone feels really proud of her country is completely understandable to me.

Is the US entirely without merit? Fuck no. But through MY own adult life (I'm sure I'm not alone here) being truly proud of the US is a stretch. I'm proud to say that there are ideals in this country that I think are beautiful, and through an accident of birth, I have access to many rights and freedoms that others are denied. That's great. Proud of it? I don't know. It seems like something I didn't earn. Throughout my life, flag waving bullsh*t ("We're the land of the Free!") is carted out whenever we want to avoid discussing the reality of our foreign policy and domestic priorities.

I am proud of the country right now. It's exciting. Maybe we'll live up to the promises we keep making about equality and opportunity. Or maybe we'll elect John McCain. Who knows?

But let's be real. Mrs. Obama hasn't had a lot to cheer about as a black woman in the United States for a great deal of her adult life.

If she's proud now...so be it. I'd rather she spoke from her true experience than trot out some trite, patriotic hogwash that has little-to-no basis in reality.

In the interest of fairness...

#1 - Marsha Norman would be deeply disappointed in me. I have yet to see August: Osage County.

#2 - Anyone have an AVERSE reaction to this production/play?

Freeman at the Movies

I saw Atonement and Rambo. Both are hilarious.

Except for New Hampshire...

...pretty much every primary has gone...exactly as common sense would have dictated. Even though the media has been reporting tight races in just about every primary since Iowa, the races have been won in significant margins by the candidate most likely to win any given race.

For example... conventional wisdom said that Obama was a lock for winning Wisconsin until about three days before the actual voting. Then, out of nowhere, all these stories appeared about how the state was actually very close and that the demographics supported Hillary Clinton.

Then, Obama won Wisconsin by almost 20 points.

Makes you wonder if the thing that's calling the election results into the most doubt is, um, high ratings for CNN?

That would be beyond the pale, of course. News isn't a business.

Which is more to blame?

The Bush Administration? Or reality television?

"Beer Goggle Tuesday" Tonight

I shill! You take it!

Blue Coyote's Happy Endings continues tonight. Special time (9pm start) special prices (discounted alcohol!) and special treatment!

Wait. Nix the last one. You'll be treated like everyone else.

The entire first week was almost sold out, so if you're planning on seeing it, tonight is a good time. Especially with the very, very cheap drinkies.

Yesterday was Presidents Day

Which President was on your mind on that day?

Not all things love a comments section

For example...stage reviews. Like this one.

Happy Birthday!

To Pam!

Happy Endings! Get 'em while they're hot!

Happy Endings had a wonderfully successful opening last night. We sold out the opening night! All of you who are planning on attending take heed...get your tickets in advance. We're looking at full houses all the way through.

For this week, use the code "in&out" for $10 tickets.

Notes from Underground at the Brick

You should go and see this. I would very much like to. By all accounts it's amazing.

The New York Times DVD Review Section

I know. I know. I'm just not a big enough student of film or too beholden to the studio system. I have poor taste...but I despise the New DVDs section of the New York Times.

When I'm thinking about buying a new DVD, which I do relatively frequently, I entirely ignore the opinion of The New York Times. It's DVD section is for people who really care about Eisenstein.

Today is an excellent example: LUBITSCH MUSICALS!

For the love of God! I mean, once in a while is one thing. But it's always like this.

Does anybody else out here...feel...the way I...do?

Haven't seen "Grace"...

Was invited to. Been a bit busy. Read the review this morning, and it sounds (qualifications for snarkiness aside) like pretty compelling stuff.

But I will say...where I come from... declaring yourself an Episcopal priest doesn't exactly set you in stiff opposition to the secular humanist world. I'd be curious if the play addresses the difference between kinds of Christian faith. Because the Episcopal Church is pro-gay and pro-green and its Presiding Bishop is a woman and a scientist. Sure, its had its issues... but it's not like aligning yourself with Pat Robertson.

I'm not saying the Episcopal church is, um, without God. But man... I can't imagine anyone being pissed about an Episcopalian. Unless they forgot to bring coffee cake or took their parking spot or something.

At the very least, I'm really interested in checking it out now. Has anyone seen it? Thoughts?

Why is this happening to me?!

How much money will I spend on this before I finally die?

Whatever. I'm watching all of this. I don't care. You can all judge me. I can feel your judgment. I don't care.

john.he.is

via TPM.

It's all connected

So sayeth Comedy Central's brilliant post today.

In the interest of fairness...

Does anyone actually disagree with Mike Daisey?

Watch this...

Now... sign this confession. Or we'll make you watch it again.

Happy Endings Opens Tuesday, February 12th

Happy Endings opens on Tuesday, February 12th. Two days before Valentine's Day.

Get tickets now!

Really, is there a better Valentine's Day date (or cure) than a series of short plays about the lives of sex workers?

Of course not!
For the first week, if you can use the code "In&Out" (yes, it's like that) to get $10 tickets.

Tuesday performances start at 9pm (jot that down) and feature discounts on beer and wine. We're calling it "Beer Goggle Tuesdays."

It's the time for romance!

Wait. Wait a second. Mukasey is...evil?

So according to this, the Attorney General (who, if you recall, refused to take a stand on torture back when his confirmation was being debated) now says that the Department of "Justice" cannot engage in an investigation about the criminal use of torture, because the Justice Department APPROVED of its use beforehand.

Meaning, the Justice Department can declare its actions legal at will and therefore protect itself from Congressional oversight.

Which means they're only guided by their own judgment?

This might be the most frightening assertion to come directly out of Bush Administration officials yet. It's not that they're hiding anymore. It's too late for that. Now they're saying, simply, that they can declare their own actions (actions like torture) legal. That they are nakedly above the law. That they make the law by stating their opinion.

Unchecked executive power.

January 2009 can't come too soon. This has to stop. The Congress should spend the rest of the year impeaching him, simply to keep its dignity.

Do you love Jesus?

I'm just curious... if you're comfortable talking about it... what's the religious background or experience of some of the people that read this blog? Were you raised Catholic and wound up agnostic? Are you currently attending regular church or temple? Are you an atheist?

How do you think that affects your work as an artist/critic/enthusiast? Does it?

UPDATE: Wow, quite a few responses to this question! If you haven't yet, I encourage you to take a look.

Clinton's Funniest Spin

Obama is the establishment candidate?

Do tell...

Super Tuesday Results

Obama wins more states than Clinton, Clinton wins some of the big states. Delegate count is nearly even.

So how does this shake out?

The Pro-Clinton Spin -

Clinton held off a candidate with momentum to win decisively in states with the most delegates. She won California, she won Massachusetts, she won New York. At this point, Obama can't put himself over the top, and she's winning where it counts.

The Pro-Obama Spin -

Obama is matching her delegate count, he was behind by as much as 20 points not long ago, and has made this a contest. He won more states in more places where Democrats "need to win" to win the nomination.

The Freeman take -

I can't look at this as anything but a good thing for Obama. Basically, he made it close where it should have been a blow out, made her compete in her own backyard, won in more states, pulled close enough in California to siphon off delegates, pulled ahead in Missouri, looks like he'll win New Mexico, and has turned what could have been a coronation into a real dogfight.

I heard last night a very good point - the idea that winning in California or New York as a big deal for Clinton isn't very accurate. It would have been big for Obama to beat her in either of them, but she was always ahead in those states and was always expected to win them. The same goes, despite the spin, for Massachusetts. She was leading in the polls in Massachusetts for a very long time, and winning there should have been elementary.

Obama won all over the country. If he becomes the general election nominee, it's not like he won't win in California and New York and Massachusetts. Either one of them has to win everywhere, and he's shown he can win outside of mainstay "blue" states. He also kept it close.

Sure, there's lots that Clinton can brag about. It's close and he didn't beat her. Not at all.

But we'll be watching this for months, crew. Months. That's got to be something the Clinton camp wanted to avoid.

When is a Clock at Get the Guests

Some of "When is a Clock" is up at Get the Guests.

Enjoy!

Super Tuesday!

What makes it super?

It's my Dad's birthday! Happy Birthday Reverend!

The FBI wants to know everything about you

As if they can't tell the computer from which I'm writing this blog post.

Strangely enough, my pal Marshall and I were discussing privacy over drinks just a couple of days ago. He teaches a class about privacy at a University in DC.

Suffice to say... privacy is a fundamental right and we've not only surrendered it large amount to the government and to advertisers over the last 10 years, but we've become a surveillance society of one another. That's YouTube and Myspace and Facebook and Friendster and, yes, blogs. Instead of protecting ourselves... we show the world everything there is to know, and don't complain when Google, for example, uses our own e-mails to sell us specialized goods.

This FBI database seems like the next logical step in tracking our movements, our behaviors, and our activities. As the technology increases on the side of those able to monitor us, the law must advance to protect those being watched.

Regular citizens must also be increasingly vigilant and outraged. By things like this proposed FBI database and things like RFID.

Know what that is? Take a look at this.

"For starters, learn how to cook."

Lovely little interview with Charles Simic over at the Times. Take a look.

I would like to add...

In your face, Tom Brady!

From "The White Swallow"

By way of a preview of what you'll get when you see "The White Swallow" as a part of Happy Endings...here is a line from the play:

"She’s a vegansexual. She won’t sleep with me because I eat animals and wash with things that are most certainly tested on the eyes of rabbits. I don’t blame her. How could I? I’m revolting!"

I bring good things into your lives.

So buy a ticket!

New Barack Obama Endorsements

Joan Baez and Garrison Keillor.

UPDATE: And GIZMODO!

Plus, of course, there's this...

Happy Endings Opens February 12th

Blue Coyote Theater Group will present an evening of short plays about the lives of sex workers called Happy Endings.

My contribution is "The White Swallow," which features Matthew Trumbull, David DelGrosso and Laura Desmond, with direction by Kyle Ancowitz. It will make you laugh. This I swear.

The show runs February 12th - March 1st at the Access Theater.

Buy tickets here.
Check out Blue Coyote on Myspace here.

There are eight other playwrights featured in this evening: Blair Fell, Matthew Freeman, David Foley, Brian Fuqua, David Johnston, Boo Killebrew, Stan Richardson, Christine Whitley, and John Yearley.

Should be some hot stuff, people. Be there... or be some sort of puritan prude.

What's Missing From This Picture?

The Arts. MIA.