InViolet Theater

InViolet InFocus – Marguerite Stimpson

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Marguerite Stimpson, Broadway actress and charming founder and co-host of InViolet’s popular Second Monday Socials talks backstage rituals, her introduction to InViolet, and the joys of working on the West End

InViolet: How do you identify in the theater world?

Marguerite: Actor

InViolet: Tell us about your journey as an InViolet.

Marguerite: Four years ago, one of my closest friends, company member Bixby Elliot, asked me if I would like to come to InViolet’s annual retreat. Coincidentally, my husband, Gerardo Rodriguez, was asked by company member Bernardo Cubria to come to that same retreat. So both Gerry and I were newbies at the same time. For those who don’t know, the annual retreat is an intense five-day period where we go to the woods and read a bunch of plays, cook meals together, and hang out late into the night. It felt like summer camp, and I loved every minute of it. Shortly after, we were asked to become company members, and I have happily been a part of InViolet ever since.

InViolet: What’s your favorite InViolet memory?

Marguerite: There are so many, so it’s hard to choose one! Bixby and I have organized a monthly event called Second Monday Social, and it’s open to both InViolet Theater members as well as anyone else. Our first Second Monday was so amazing because we weren’t sure if anyone would show up, and then so many people did, and it was such a wonderful night. I also have very fond memories of doing Erin Mallon’s production of BRANCHED at HERE. Erin’s writing is so sharp and funny, so the cast wanted to be sure we were on top of our lines. We got into a ritual of getting to the theater early and running them in the women’s dressing room every night pre-show. Some of my favorite memories are of hanging out in the dressing room with Andrew Blair, Michelle David and Tara Westwood and saying Erin’s very funny words.

InViolet: Our new event “Second Monday Social” is the beautiful brainchild of you and fellow company member Bixby Elliot. It’s a hit! And you two are delicious hosts! How’s this whole process been for you?

Marguerite: The whole process has been unbelievable. Second Monday has become my favorite night of each month. It’s been great to see how much people have embraced SMS, and that it has become a community in its own right. I think it’s a very simple formula, and that’s why it works: six writers are given the opportunity to have ten pages read, and we cast the pieces based on a pool of actors who sign in to read that night. The audience is incredibly generous and supportive. I’ve noticed our SMS folks are keen to laugh at the funny pieces, but are also very quick to respond to the more somber ones.

InViolet: You were in The Elephant Man on Broadway last year. Tell us all about it!

Marguerite: It was really a once in a lifetime experience. We were nominated for a Tony for best Revival of a Play, and three of our actors were nominated. We were also at the Booth Theater, where the original production of Elephant Man premiered. Watching Bradley Cooper’s process as he transformed into John Merrick was incredible. I had never experienced being in a show that was such a commercial hit- it didn’t hurt that a movie star was the lead! Our cast became very close, and the fact that we got to take it to London lessened the blow of our run ending on Broadway.

InViolet: You spent a few months performing in London last year too. What’s the London theater scene like?

Marguerite: We remounted Elephant Man at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. It was astonishing to be in this historical theater and to walk by all of the posters of shows that had been there. Apparently John Gielgud was so attached to the Haymarket that he slept there during the Blitz to watch over it. The London theater community was very inclusive and welcoming. There is such a long history and respect for theater in London, and I was constantly struck by that. It is similar to performing in New York, and yet theater has existed there so much longer, so you really feel as if you are stepping into such a long-standing tradition. I think there is less of a view of theater being a stepping stone to something else there- people really do dedicate their lives to the theater, and even the bigger names- like Ralph Fiennes, seem to return to do theater on a more regular basis. On my days off I would see as many shows as I could, and it was thrilling to do things like tour the Globe and be in the land of Shakespeare. Plus they serve ice cream at the intermissions!

InViolet: What’s up next for you?

Marguerite: I am doing a benefit reading at Shakespeare on the Sound on Friday October 28th of THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST. When Claire Kelly, the artistic director, asked me to do it and play the role of Cecily, she explained that although I wasn’t quite right age wise, it would be fun to see me do it. Since I never got to play Cecily in my ingénue days, I am thrilled to have a chance to play her for one evening. Cecily is the ingénue that got away!

InViolet: It’s the 1st week of fall. Pumpkin Spice lattes, yay or nay?

Marguerite: Oh I am boring! I basically just switch from my cold brew iced coffee to hot coffee at this time of year!

Links:
www.margueritestimpson.com
imdb: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2466185/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
Twitter: @MargueriteStimp
Instagram: mrgrtstimp

InViolet InFocus – Richard Etchison

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Richard Etchison, a founding member of InViolet, gives us the inside scoop on rehearsals for Pride and Sensibility, talks about the early days of the company, and why our co-Artistic director Michael Henry Harris is a dream bunkmate.

InViolet: How do you identify in the theater world?

Rich: A playwright. I didn’t use to be a theater-type. I didn’t go to school for theater, and I don’t act. Initially, I was into film mostly, obsessed with screenwriting and filmmaking (a long time ago, I wrote and directed a 16mm feature film – and financed (went bankrupt) it on credit cards.) Then I discovered theater’s immediacy and power and magic.

InViolet: Tell us about your journey as an InViolet.

Rich: What a ride! One of my very best friends whom I met in Atlanta in 2000, (co-artistic director) Michael Henry Harris, told me about his new undertaking back in 2007, and asked me to submit a play that could be read at the first InViolet retreat. They loved the script, and it became the first play we ever world premiered. I immediately fell in love with my fellow InViolets: we just all seemed to fit together, with our similar sensibilities – all so genuinely nice and talented and dedicated.

I think the creation of InViolet was “lightning in a bottle.” The company has workshopped several of my plays – and these experiences have been some of the best of my life. Being part of the company has changed me as a person, made me a better person. Though my wife and I moved away from NYC for a while (D.C., LA, Chicago), I remained a die hard “InViolator.” There’s nothing like having an artistic home – and family.

InViolet: What’s your favorite InViolet memory?

Rich: This is tough. 9 years of memories. Four years ago, while at our annual retreat, we received word of the first ever InViolet birth, member Annie Carlson’s daughter Caroline was born, and we all recorded a video of us singing “Sweet Caroline” for Annie. It was late at night after a long day of play readings and I found it so moving to celebrate such an event. It felt like being part of a loving family.

InViolet: We’re presenting your play Pride and Sensibility this week for our latest InProgress. Tell us all about it! What’s the process been like?

Rich: So much fun! There’s such total joy in workshopping a farce – because our cast is so gifted in comedic acting, and we laugh so much at rehearsals. It’s so different from producing a serious drama. Also, I have a lot of confidence in the script, because I have been working on it for a long time. I originally wrote it as a screenplay over 10 years ago, then adapted it last year for the stage. We read it at the 2015 retreat, and it was a scream. I think it’s especially difficult to create a quality stage comedy, especially farce – there are few truly funny plays in this genre. I have observed our cultural obsession with Jane Austen over the last 15 years, with all the adaptations and some attempts at parody, which I think all missed the mark. I’d like to think our play is the Austen comedy we’ve been waiting for. I love what director Mark Cirnigliaro has done with this workshop! Now let’s see if the audience likes it as much as we do!

InViolet: A few years ago you made the move from Chicago to NYC. Do you find the cities and theater communities to be very different?

Rich: Yes, verily. I lived in D.C., LA, and Chicago as well, over the past 10 years. Chicago has an excellent theater community, as does D.C. So many talented, enthusiastic theater people. LA – not surprisingly – has a small theatre community, but it just feels different. LA is an industry town and the industry is not theater.

InViolet: Your play Force Majeure was the very first play InViolet produced 8 years ago. What was that experience like? How has the company changed since then?

Rich: Wow, let’s get in the way-back machine. We were so scrappy and young, so naïve about facets of producing theater. For example, I needed to rewrite and workshop the script much, much more! We did not do any workshops or much script development. And I didn’t know enough to keep revising. That being said, I had a great time getting my first production. We made a million mistakes, but we DID it! And then we did it again (produced another world premiere) and knew more, and again, and so on. We have changed so much since then. We have learned a ton, and applied the knowledge. We ask questions. We try things. The company feels much more professional now, though we’re still learning.

InViolet: What’s up next for you?

Rich: After “Pride & Sensibility” this weekend, I intend to revise my newest play, a social issue drama inspired by a gripping “This American Life” podcast. I also am revising my first novel called “The Haven” based on my play of the same title that InViolet workshopped a couple of years ago.

InViolet: Of all the InViolet members you’ve been blessed to bunk with on our annual retreat, who has been your favorite roommate and why?

Rich: Michael Henry Harris’s thunderous snores provide a nice soothing white noise to fall asleep to. Plus we often cut-up and giggle and talk about girls deep into the night before we fall asleep.

The worst bunkmate was Bernardo, and he knows exactly why.

@writeretch both Twitter and Instagram
www.richardetchison.com

InViolet InFocus – Mark Cirnigliaro

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Welcome to “InViolet InFocus,” our new blog series where InViolet sits down with our members to learn more about what makes them tick.

First up is Mark Cirnigliaro, director extraordinaire, currently helming our InProgress Workshop presentation of Richard Etchison’s “Pride and Sensibility” playing this Saturday 9/24 and Monday 9/26 7pm at Theater at Blessed Sacrament (152 West 71st street, NYC) RSVP@inviolettheater.com

InViolet: How do you identify in the theater world?

Mark: If you mean discipline, I’m a director. If you mean as a white straight male, my role is to do a lot of listening, being open and allow myself to be educated. Also be sensitive to what a potential project needs, even if that means that’s not me. If you mean stylistically, my personal leanings are heavy in magical realism with a big pinch of “see the seams” kind of theatricality. Magical realism is what theatre does better than any other artistic platform. It feels like there is a renaissance of that kind of work all around me right now and that’s exciting!

InViolet: Tell us about your journey as an InViolet.

Mark: Started over a coffee with current company member Amy Villarama, and a year later I was asked to direct a one night stand by Bernardo Cubria and right after that Jennifer Bowen’s wonderful piece The Little Princess for their InViolet In Progress work. I joined them for a retreat and finished that second year becoming a full member. Since then I’ve directed a few staged readings (most recently A Mind Out of the Gutter by Erin Mallon) and another In Progress, The Judgment of Fools by Bernardo Cubria, which was met with a ton of success with its InViolet/INTAR extended co-production. Currently I am working on Richard Etchison’s Pride and Sensibility for their latest In Progress.

InViolet: What’s your favorite InViolet memory?

Mark: Out of all of the amazing moments I’ve had, the moment that sticks out in my mind is the vulnerability I saw in a playwright after they presented work to the group at retreat. A moment of love, relief, trust . . . just pure emotion. I learned everything I needed to about InViolet at that moment. What it meant to its members and their work and it’s commitment to them in return.

InViolet: What has the process been like readying Rich Etchison’s Pride and Sensibility for our InProgress this month?

Mark: It’s fun and fraught and exciting and terrifying and wonderful. Just like every other process I’ve been in. Theatre, by its very nature is trapeze work without a net. No one knows what we have till there is audience. I will say that the cast is fantastic, the script is funny and I think they are doing some really great work in the room. As long as I don’t screw it up I have high hopes!

InViolet: You’re the new Associate Artistic Director of Miles Square Theater in Hoboken. Tell us all about it!

Mark: MST is Hoboken’s own professional regional theatre just outside of NY. It’s the largest arts organization in Hudson County and we are growing quickly! We just opened a new space that is exclusively ours. We have a full education department and producing a full season of work with plans to expand our new plays development next year. Being the AAD has had a steep learning curve, but one I am happy to take on. MST is full of wonderful people, great artists and the future is really bright there. It’s exciting to be a part of such rapid expansive growth. We just closed two smaller productions and we open Dracula in Mid Oct and I am directing It’s a Wonderful Life there in Nov. www.milesquaretheatre.org

InViolet: You just directed a solo show, HONOUR, for FringeNYC to full houses and standing ovations. Proud of you pal. What was the Fringe experience like?

Mark: THE FRINGE WAS AMAZING! Honour is a very special piece that I have been work-shopping with Dipti Mehta (Writer/performer) for over a year. It is a one-woman show that has 7 characters and centers around the sale of a 16-year-old girl into prostitution by her mother in the red light district of Mumbai. It’s a challenging piece and has required a lot of work and a lot of faith. It’s full of heart, empathy, humor and truth. We’ve paired with Apne Aap, an international organization dedicated to saving girls from the sex trade in India. The best review we got was when the director of that organization said she heard the voices of the women she saves in our show; that she felt so strongly about it, she was going to go back to India to tell them someone is giving them a voice in the West. That really nailed it down for me that we had really achieved something. For a moment my art was making an actual difference. We came 36 seats short of having a sold out run at the Fringe. That means about 400 people saw us. By the last three shows most of those coming were not friends and family. That was the best part. We had broken through and begun reaching other people. www.honourcmc.com

InViolet: What’s up next for you?

Mark: Well, Pride and Sense is THIS WEEKEND. Then Honour has two shows at the Tamasha Festival Wed 9/28 and 10/2. Then It’s a Wonderful Life begins. In 2017 Honour is in prelim talks for some touring stops, but nothing concrete just yet and MST will be announcing it’s 2017 season soon! http://www.tamashanyc.org/

InViolet: If you were stranded on a desert island and could only bring one InViolet with you for company, who would it be?

Mark: Probably Bixby Elliot. He is always telling me he needs a safe zone. I can’t think of a safer place than a desert island with me. That’s what he means right? They’re all wonderful people! I’d be happy to have any of them!

Find Mark at: www.Markdirects.com
Twitter/Instagram: @markdirects

Sommerfugl

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by Bixby Elliot
directed by Stephen Brackett

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Graphic by Esther Wu

 

 

 

Bixby Elliot’s script, as directed by Stephen Brackett, smartly skips the plodding rhythms of biography in favor of the tension and immediacy of the scene.  The cast of four is magnetic

–Rollo Romig, New Yorker

Find the full review here

 

Sommerfugl is an inspiring and altogether beautiful transgender fairytale.

 

–David Clarke, Out.com

Find the full review here

 

…this tender production will leave you heart, mind and eyes open

 

-Jamie Rosler, The Public Reviews

Find the full review here

 

Find the gallery here

Branched

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by Erin Mallon
directed by Robert Ross Parker

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Graphic by Luke Williams

 

 

 

I would say without hesitation that Branched is one of my favorite off off Broadway productions of the last several years

–Greg Colomon, Theater is Easy

Find the full review here

 

Adventurous theatergoers should relish every moment of this terrific production.

 

–Joe Regan, Jr, theaterpizzazz.com

Find the full review here

 

Playwright Erin Mallon has wonderful, quirky voice.

 

-Victoria Teague, newyorktheatrereview.com

Find the full review here

 

Find the gallery here

Playwright Erin Mallon interviews Maya Grace Fischbein (Fun Home)

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Interview between Erin Mallon (playwright of A Mind Out of the Gutter)
and Maya Grace Fischbein (Rory in A Mind Out of the Gutter)

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Erin: Hey Maya! I can’t tell you how pumped I am to have you working on A Mind Out of the Gutter with us!

Maya: Thank you, I’m very excited to do this.

Erin: Last month I took my mom to see Fun Home on Broadway for her birthday present, and it just so happened that you were playing Small Alison. I had no idea your Broadway debut was the night before! You were incredible! I actually turned to my mom and said “How great would it be if this girl could play Rory in my play?” And now you are:) I’m very happy about that.

Maya: Thanks so much. I am so happy to be playing Rory. It will be so much fun and different from Small Alison.

Erin: Sooooo…. before we dive into rehearsals next week, I thought it would be fun for us to get to know each other better and do a little interview. Cool?

Maya: Sure, let’s do it

Erin: I actually don’t know how old you are, can you tell me?

Maya: I am 9 but will be 10 on June 19

Erin: Double digits! Happy almost-birthday! How long have you known you wanted to be an actor?

Maya: My parents took me to see shows from the time I was two or three. They tell me I would watch without moving for two or three hours at a time. When I was a little kid, maybe around five, I started singing and acting and I really loved it. I thought it was fun but I had no idea that I would get a Broadway opportunity so quickly.

Erin: Congrats girl, that’s super impressive. What’s it like being an understudy? How many roles do you cover? Do you have to be ready to go on at any minute?

Maya: It’s great being an understudy. The cast and crew of Fun Home has been so friendly and welcoming. I cover all three kid’s rolls. Small Alison and her younger brother John and her older brother Christian.
As an understudy you have to be at every show in case you need to go on at moments notice. There is no advanced warning, unless someone goes on vacation then we might know one or two weeks in advance.
They told me I would have my Broadway debut about two weeks before so that my friends and family from California could have time to come in and see it. I had about 100 people come to my Broadway debut from CA, NY and NJ.

Erin: That’s amazing to have such support! How did you feel the night of your Broadway debut? Were you nervous?

Maya: I think being a little bit nervous is good but I try to turn most of my nervousness into excitement. Before my first show my family asked me to rate on a scale of 1 to 10 how nervous I was and how excited. I said nervous 4 and excited 10. I think that’s just the right amount of nervousness and excitement.

Erin: You know, Bruce Springsteen says that exact same thing! (i.e. he turns his nervousness into excitement). Do you have a favorite moment in the show?

Maya: “Ring of Keys” which is Small Alison’s solo and was nominated for a Tony award. It was amazing to sing that song. I also love the last song in the show, “Flying Away” which is the song by small Alison, middle Alison and grown up Alison. The harmonies in that song are really hard and challenging.

Erin: Full disclosure? I cried like a baby when you sang “Ring of Keys.” It’s so beautiful and you sang it with such emotion and honesty. What do you think of NYC? Have you discovered any favorite places to hang out between performances?

Maya: I really like New York City. It’s fun with lots of great stuff to do. I like to hang out at the Plaza Food Hall, the Broadway Park and Amorino’s ice cream parlor and of course Central Park is great. Hanging out with all the kids from Fun Home is especially fun.

Erin: Do you ever have time to see other Broadway shows? Which ones have you really liked?

Maya: I liked Finding Neverland and Tuck Everlasting. I loved School of Rock too, I saw that twice. My favorite show to see was Les Mis. It was the first show I got to appear in in California, I played young Cosette, it was a wonderful experience. I could watch that show over and over and over again.

Erin: I never got to play Young Cosette, but I was crazy about Les Miz as a kid. I used to act out the confrontation scene between Jean Val Jean and Javert in my living room pretty much daily. Eponine’s death scene too. What other things do you like to do besides be in Broadway musicals:)?

Maya: After the shows I like to watch YouTube and just veg out. In my free time I love to sing, dance, play piano and hang out with my older brother Aiden and younger sister Lyla. They are back in California and I miss them.

Erin: I bet! They must be so proud of their sister. If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Maya: Mangoes and Nutella crepes also fried rice, ribs and lo mein

Erin: I like your style. Do you have any special, weird talents?

Maya: I do a pretty good impersonation of Miranda Sings.
I can make my tongue into a flower shape.

Erin: We’ll have to see if we can build that into the reading☺

For more Q&A see Maya’s blog at:
mayasbroadwayjourney.weebly.com

Broadway Redux

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One of the very first Broadway shows I saw was the original production of SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE.  SUNDAY was revelatory to me- I was enchanted by the set, the story, the music, Bernadette Peters and Mandy Patinkin, and by the theater we saw it in- the Booth.  At the time, I was just starting to get an inkling that I might want to be an actor- to tell stories and maybe live in New York and do it professionally.  Little did I know that years later, I would make my Broadway debut in the 2008 production of BUTLEY at the Booth, and again return to it this fall to do THE ELEPHANT MAN with Bradley Cooper, Patricia Clarkson, and Alessandro Nivola.

The thing that I’ve learned about doing a Broadway show is that it never gets old- I always want to pinch myself when I walk through the stage door.  It has been nice to return to the same theater and see that Amanda is still working at the stage door and that Sandy, a dresser from BUTLEY, is there too.  It has felt familiar and yet strange to be back there- to be flooded by memories of BUTLEY, but to also inhabit a new world of Victorian England and John Merrick’s story.

I love the ritual of arriving at the theater every night, making some tea in the dressing room, getting into my corset, chatting with my dressing room mate.  We are on the third floor and can hear everyone arriving for MATILDA.  Sometimes we hear singing from the theater next door.  After the show, I can hear people gathering outside the stage door, waiting for an autograph or photo with one of our leads.

Rehearsals already seem like a long time ago now that we’re open, but I remember the magic of being reunited with people I had done the show with at Williamstown, and meeting our new cast members too.  And each time we’ve come together to tell this story, I sense that we are all touched by the life of John Merrick and committed to honoring his memory as best we can.  There are actors in this show who take my breath away with their performances, and it has been a reminder that anytime you lead with your heart, something very special happens.

Marguerite Stimpson

InViolet Company Member

Weird, Amazing, and Hard: Writing a Play – And Letting Go

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Writing a play is weird. And amazing. And hard. Maybe in that order, and then scrambled again. Well, take it back. It’s amazing at first when you get an idea. Or for me it is. I always think whatever I’ve written is my last piece, whether it’s fiction or a play, my primary writing outlets. But then it happens again. For me, I’m usually sparked by some external creative experience. Watching someone else’s play, movie, listening to a piece of music, and then my personal inspirations rush in, a place, a theme, a character flaw, and I start writing.

That’s what happened with The Little Prince$$. Per usual, I was feeling bone dry, and my fingers had been limp for months, nary a word had been written. But then I saw my husband in a New Georges play that was part of the Germ Project. Their explorations were rooted in out of the box ideas, theater as big as you wanted to make it, no limits. Also, a lot of the playwrights were using source material. I had done that in the past with two projects, my one woman show on Anne Sexton and a confused piece of college garbage about Van Gogh that I spent almost two years researching and percolating. Perhaps that Van Gogh experience turned me off.

This is the weird part. So I saw the Germ Project, and it invited me to think about non spoon-fed theater, where the story isn’t always clear, but the audience is still guided, and hopefully, there’s a point to it. From that, I wedded that concept to the story of someone I knew who was going through a challenge, and decided to delve into some source material, The Little Prince, and hell, I was listening to a lot of Ke$ha at the time, so she became part of it too. All of a sudden I had jumped the realism train, and was writing way, way out of the box for me. All of these beginnings of new writing are weird for me, because while I have a loose grasp on the facts, it stills feels magical and other worldly that one day you don’t want to write anything, and then the next there you are, in front of your computer, attempting to get a story down.

The amazing part is always the writing. No one to judge you! Everything is flowing! Your characters are talking! Shit sometimes doesn’t make sense, but guess what, it goes down in your first and second draft anyway!! Some writers get major editor brain from the get-go. Not me. I just write and don’t care and accept it’s imperfect.

It’s such a cozy time, you and the play, during the early writing days. You’re spending a lot of quality time together like a brand new relationship. Often as I’m falling asleep, the latest scene will replay in my head, the back and forth, what was felt, what wasn’t, what was said, what wasn’t.

But the amazing time always ends, because you need to get feedback. That’s the somewhat hard, but necessary part. It’s like bringing your kid to the first day of school. You think she looks great (new dress! hair in two braids! what a smile!) But it’s possible that her fellow classmates may see her differently (buck teeth! cross eyed stare! bad breath! translation? Act II peters out, and that character of yours (INSERT NAME HERE) lacks a clear journey.)

Hard.

But necessary.

Then it bounces back and forth between hard and amazing, as one gets feedback and integrates it in edits. Since I’m an optimist, I always thing the latest draft is THE ANSWER! (if one didn’t have some hope, I don’t know how they’d get through edits.) I went through this process with InViolet, taking in notes, contemplating them, integrating the ones that resonated, and then watching InViolet actors say the words again. Rinse, wash, repeat.

Then it gets weird, hard, and amazing all at once, when two years later, after numerous drafts and iterations, InViolet wants to show people. Like, your play. Like, live.

And while I always know this is coming, it’s still a shock. That something I wrote in my living room, will be interpreted, loved, hated, dissected – and this is an end result I was always working towards.

When I first met my director Mark  Cirnigliaro at a wine bar in Chelsea to discuss The Little Prince$$, it had already been decided that InViolet would do a workshop production instead of a traditional staged reading. I had pushed for that because of the nature of the play, and was lucky to have co-artistic directors Angela and Michael say yes, and were also willing to scramble to make it happen. From that first conversation with Mark, the letting go process begins for me. I go in open, or tell myself that, to really take in what another human being has to say about my play. Mark was kind and smart and creative from the get go. While he appeared relaxed, I could tell right away he had a kind of whiz-bang mind when it came to theater. And he demonstrated that by understanding my play, and bringing some brilliant ideas to the table. The first was Shadow Puppetry since the play has multiple locations and worlds. The second was Bunraku Puppetry to visualize for the audience the central theme of transformation from childhood to adulthood.

Everything is sweet and pretty in retrospect. But in reality, I was psyched about the Shadow Puppet thing, but was like Bun-what? Puppets-who now? On stage? Say again?

I smiled and nodded, said I was into it, but left unsure. Luckily I married a good man, and when I told him Mark’s ideas, and my hesitancy on the Bunraku, he said simply, “I’d stay open to it. Why not?”

So I said yes to what Mark suggested and this all felt amazing. I trusted Mark’s capable hands, truly, and was excited to see the play realized in a way I had never expected.

Then the letting go rushes in fast. Or it does for me. I knew they only had 2 1/2 weeks and seven rehearsals to pull off something major. I always like to be there the first day, and was. To answer questions. To hear it out loud. I’ve been part of readings before where I was there every day, doing re-writes, but I knew that wasn’t going to be the case here. The actors were going to memorize their lines, so really, I didn’t have a chance to re-write. But even if it was a staged reading, I might have stayed away as much as I did.

Not to say that I wasn’t there sometimes during rehearsals. I was. But the play had been mine for so long. When it gets to a workshop production, it no longer is just mine, and that’s what I want. But I have to take step back. It’s the only way I have a chance in hell to ‘see it’ at all in the performances.

What everyone did in seven rehearsals was quite extraordinary. If you didn’t see it, it’s kind of hard to explain. There were beautiful lights and sound cues, and since Mark did a trunk show, he was able to prop and costume the show too. And the performances were rich and specific, and it still sort of baffles me what I saw. The Bunraku puppetry was so dazzling, that I know for a fact that I will integrate it in my next edit. It will now forever be part of the storytelling.

All of the above is in the amazing camp. What Mark, and the designers, and the actors did.

But for the writer? Well, when it gets into performance, it locks into one mode for me: Hard.

It’s hard because despite my best efforts to not be at too many rehearsals (what will I do there anyway??) – it’s still hard for me to see the play during the run. There are three shows, and I discover it’s best for me to sit close to the front in the theater – in the first 2 – 3 rows. That way I’m actually watching the play, and not watching people watching my play (the dreaded shifting in seats, the head slump into hand, the bored look into one’s program.) Not that any of the above happened, or maybe it did, but I wasn’t noticing it this time (other public readings of my work, this is often what distracts me.) So I did watch the play, and ride the journey, but still, it’s hard for me grasp what’s working and what isn’t. This process isn’t so challenging when I’m writing, but once things get produced, it gets murky.

Watching one’s work publically, for me, is a total act of letting go.  I meditate on not having expectations, and not looking for every audience to validate my work. This is all easier said then done. I still feel the urge to check-in with people. I try not to ask the dreaded – did you like it?? But that question can sneak in in different ways.

Two weeks later, after some discussion, I decide to look to a few trusted people to give me feedback and we will all go deeper. I wonder if a full production of The Little Prince$$ ever comes to light, if it will be easier to view. If I will take in more. It’s hard to truly see what you’ve loved and kneaded for so long. But I think that now the Band-Aid has been ripped off, it might be a little less hard the next time.

Writing a play is weird. And amazing. And hard. In that ordered, scrambled, and all at once, too.

By: Jennifer Bowen

Top 10 Reasons to see “Branched” with Erin Mallon

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Andrew Blair’s versatile nipple acting.

Rigorous lovemaking set to rap music.

The amazing faces Marguerite Stimpson makes during fight scenes.

Days-of-the-week panties.

Michelle David’s disturbing interlude with a stuffed puppy.

An epic whisper scene.

Tara Westwood’s hilariously accurate womb sounds.

Projectile whipped cream and gazpacho spit takes.

Family lap time.

Graphic hand puppets.

Co-Artistic Director Michael Henry Harris blogs!

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This week is the big fun.
It’s all fun, actually.
From my first hearing of this play at our retreat a couple of years ago, I thought, this is fun. And weird.  And oh-my-I-can’t-believe-she-did-that.

But this week, tech and opening, are the REALLY BIG fun times for me in the process.  Tech is the time to watch the magic happen- to see the hard work of the diverse artists come together in an always surprising, always inspiring way.  At this point in my age and career I am lucky enough to be working with the experienced, the proven, the truly talented who have their craft honed and are able to see things in a different way than you or I when we read a script.  It’s always a joy.

Opening is the time to celebrate.  And share.  And say thank you.  Thank you to the artists who collaborated with us.  Thank you to the InViolets who worked on this show even if they weren’t cast in it.  Thank you to our donors who make the show possible.  Thank you to our patrons who come to the theater with open hearts and minds, looking to be entertained and affected.  Thank you to the Creator, who instills in us humans the need to communicate, to express,  and to teach.  To tell stories.

It’s almost time to share this one.

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