Something Wicked Comes ... Soon-ish

  Hello, friends of theatre!  It’s been a while since I’ve graced these pages, and a few things have happened with Trident Theatre since my most recent entry.
     First of all, I want to thank those of you that took the time to attend Trident’s first full-length production, “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) [Revised].”  I’m hoping that those of you that attended enjoy a pang or two of nostalgia from the sore cheeks and guts we may have given you during the one of the performances.  Personally, I consider the production a fantastic success, mainly in that the goal of the production was to entertain.  If nothing else, I would hope attendees would at least have a better understanding of Shakespeare in performance.

  Next, I would like to thank the Sheridan Press for my recognition as one of Sheridan’s “20 under 40.”  I feel truly honored to be amongst such a magnanimous group of individuals that all are working to make Sheridan an even better community.  

  However, I’ve often felt that being recognized for a body of work has something of a dubious pleasure to it.  While I feel grateful for the recognition, I also realize that the standard that earned the recognition is now set, and I hope I can be consistent in the delivery of my product.

  Perhaps this is on my mind now, as I am now frequently met with the same question.  After I finished with “Shakespeare,” and often when I’m seen in public now, I very often have to answer the question: “So, what’s next for Trident?”  While I could leave a preview of coming attractions here, I may only offer a teaser.  I’m working on something akin to a thriller.  

As some of you that may have been following my Trident exploits for a while, you know that one of Trident’s first projects was a classic horror film festival at the WYO.  While that may be something we’d like to repeat in the future, I want to stress again that I’m more of a casual horror film fan.  However, I do love the micro-community built around the multitude of shared experiences in a theater.  For example, during the showing of “Psycho,” there were a few moments upon experiencing an unexpected fright when virtually everyone in attendance jumped at the same time, and came down from the jump at the same time, all reacting to the high of the cocktail of activated neurotransmitters at work.

  But, in that example, the proverbial fourth wall is ever present, mainly in the fact that that reality is projected on a screen.  It is a one-way communication.  There is no direct reaction in the communication from presenter to receiver.  So, I’d like to offer the concept of “fun” tension and fear as a more personal exchange.  Simply put, I want to elicit that same level of tension with the audience in real-time, in an imitation of real life, in the only kind of 3-D that needs no extra charge to be legitimate: on the stage.

  I have a few specific projects in mind, and I don’t hesitate to suggest that all would be compelling.  And, yes - I realize that Halloween has just passed.  But, I refuse to believe that any type of feeling should be relegated to a specific time of year.  Mostly, I would hope that, in the spirit of adventure you, the Sheridan audience, would be as daring as you have been in the past, and step into a theater expecting to have fun ... but maybe a more sinister concoction of fun.

I’ll see you at intermission!

Brush up your Shakespeare/ Start quoting him now ...

“All the world’s a stage, and all the people …. Something, something…” - Me

Usually, it’s suggested to start a body of writing with a profound quotation that truly speaks to the depths of not only the subject matter, but humanity in general.  This summer my company - Trident Theatre - aims to do just that … to a greater or lesser degree, for your comedic delight.  For my first full-length production under Trident Theatre, I will be presenting “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) [Revised],” a parodic delving into the full canon of the greatest writer the English language has ever known.

For those of you that may be unfamiliar, the title of this article comes from a musical number in the classic musical comedy, “Kiss Me Kate.”  In the scene, some members of the troupe find themselves onstage in musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew” and have virtually no idea what’s going on.  So, they make it up as they go along, and make it seem as if they had planned to do what they did onstage from the beginning.  If I were to encapsulate the essence of the play we’ll be presenting … it would almost be exactly that.

Let me clarify: No matter when a company produces a Shakespearean play, there will almost always be an element of the production that may be lost on a contemporary audience.  It could be that the plays come from a different time period in which the manner of staging plays was quite different than today.  Most people (audiences and actors alike) hesitate to do Shakespeare because of the language barrier.  That almost always sounds funny to me, as it’s not a different language; it’s just that he knew how to use it so well.

However, I think a lot of the “lost in translation” feeling has to do with the pre-conceived notion that it almost takes an encyclopedic knowledge of history, mythology, and vocabulary in order to “get” Shakespeare.  While that may be partly true, I will remind my readers that much of Shakespeare’s canon was written for the groundlings, the uneducated and impoverished (and often majority) of Elizabethan audiences; those that could more directly appreciate the truly basic concepts of betrayal, love, murder, and inappropriate humor.  Surely, they couldn’t be better at understanding Shakespeare than a contemporary audience.

So, to set the stage for our production, the idea of performing the entirety of Shakespeare in a single sitting should come across as a tad ambitious, to say the least.  In a line taken directly from the text: “… we are about to attempt a feat that we believe to be unprecedented in the history of civilization.”  So, are we approaching the area of not only hyperbolic, but utterly improbable?  I hope you’re nodding your head.

We do mean to encapsulate the “je ne sais quoi” of the full breadth of the Shakespearean tome, but more than anything to exhibit the utter enjoyment of live theatre altogether.

Again, allow me to elaborate.  One of my favorite qualities of live theatre is not only the audience’s expectation of the “willing suspension of disbelief,” the concept that the audience will believe the “truth” of what is seen on stage for the time that the play is performed, but also the sleight of hand that goes on.  What I mean by this is that, at any time in live theatre, something could and almost always DOES go wrong, but the play turns out just fine in the end.  The pitfalls could be completely against the will of the performers, or from lack of planning, etc., etc.  But, in some way, there always seems to be an element of expectation from the audience that the production could end in a flaming pile of mess.  Not pointing any fingers, but I think we all see the potential in live performances going awry; although we may fervently hope for the opposite, we can see the possibility.

Legendary improvisational theatre icon Keith Johnstone wrote of the phenomenon of denying the audience’s expectations of failure.  In improvisational theatre, the players tell the audience the impossible situation that they set up for themselves in performance, which inspires a measure of doubt in the audience.  Therefore, this convention is almost set in reverse: the audience is anticipating the players to fail, and will be nothing short of amazed if they can get themselves out of it.  Through little more than excellent communication, and laying out new expectations and working to exceed them, the players usually can attain their goal.  If they don’t, the audience is not necessarily let down, as they expected the players to fail somewhat anyway.  But, on the other hand, if the players prevail, then the audience sees the accomplishment as nothing short of magical.

That’s what we intend to do.  We’re telling you right now that we’re going to accomplish something within an hour and a half that is, by standard definition, impossible.  The hope is that, by the end, we’ve managed to do what we set out to do (borrowing another line from the script here): “… to capture, in a single theatrical experience, the magic, the genius, the towering grandeur of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare,” … in a manner of speaking.  What we will accomplish is giving you a sore gut from laughing at us, which in this circumstance, is entirely appropriate.  It is a comedy, after all.

How?  I’ll offer a teaser: for the classic tragedy, we do “Othello” as a rap.  Trust me, not a one of us should schedule an audition for “Hamilton.”  I’ll say no more.  I want to keep that carrot dangling.

Trident will present “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) [Revised]” at the Carriage House Theatre Thursdays through Sundays August 3-13.  Please follow us on Facebook (“Trident Theatre”), Twitter (@tridenttheatre), or at our website (www.tridenttheatre.com) for further information on ticketing and showtimes.

I’ll see you at intermission!

A Full Slate of Theatre Offerings in Spring 2017

     I hope you have your sharpies and calendars out - or perhaps in this day and age, your mobile device and stylus poised on your calendar app - because it's time to mark your calendars again.  The 2016-2017 theatre season in Sheridan is nowhere near over.  In some cases, it's just getting warmed up.
     If any of you came to see Erin Kranz and myself in the Civic Theatre Guild's production of "Bakersfield Mist," I first of all would like to thank you for your patronage.  Erin and I put a lot of elbow grease into that piece, and it was great to see our work pay off. In context though, if you attended, then you certainly heard director Gene Davis' pre-show plug for the remainder of CTG's season.  If you did not attend, it is with a playful poke in the metaphysical ribs that I say, "Shame on you."  But, I also somewhat understand how the local theatre business works, and in times of economic distress, you, the audience member, must be somewhat scrupulous in spending your entertainment dollar.  So, if you didn't attend to hear Gene's pre-show banter, I'll let you know that the CTG has some wonderful entertainment planned for the rest of the year.
     Next on CTG's slate is the small-stage classic, Beth Henley's "Crimes of the Heart," an often humorous and touching look at a family of three southern sisters that must figure out the meaning of their family's legacy.  This will be directed by my recent stage partner, and theatre virtuoso, Erin Kranz.  A treat not to be missed.
     Then, rounding out CTG's season, WYO Theater Executive Director Erin Butler will don her director's cap once again (a cap that fits her very well; I should know - I've been in two of her productions) to direct "The Musical of Musicals: The Musical."  I'm not very familiar with this play at all, but from what I've gathered, it will be a very tongue-in-cheek revue of how the genre of musical theatre has developed over the years, presented by a smaller ensemble cast.  More on ensemble casts, and on the WYO in a moment.  "The Musical of Musicals: The Musical" will play in the Mars Black Box Theater, as the annual co-production between the CTG and the WYO.  For more information on these shows, please visit the CTG's website: www.sheridanstage.com.
     As I hinted, here's more on the WYO.  Recently, the WYO developed a series of workshops in conjunction with Sheridan County School District #2 to give school-age students the opportunity to learn some of the business of being a theatre professional.  Workshop content includes how to prepare an audition, what casting directors are looking for, and in the one I'm teaching with Sheridan College Theater Instructor Lillian Sager, students will learn how stage makeup can allow them to create an incredible character using their faces as a canvas.  Lots of fun is in store, to be sure, Sheridan parents.  Make sure your kids get to these!  Call the WYO at 672-9084 for more information.
     Finally, what is Trident Theatre doing?  Well, we've got a few rabbits in our hat that we're planning to pull out.  Here's just a tease.  First off, Trident plans to produce "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) [Revised]," a humorous attempt to capture the essence of all of Shakespeare's work within a two-hour period.  This is also presented by an ensemble cast, in this case, meaning that only three actors will play all of the required parts in Shakespeare's canon, with no one actor having more stage time or importance than any other.  This will be similar to how "The Musical of Musicals" will play.  Next, we'd like to get a children's theatre series thus summer, outdoors with a few other surprises.  Finally, one play I've kept on the back burner is Terrence McNally's "Master Class."  This is a deeply moving piece (one of the most moving pieces I've ever seen onstage) about real-life opera diva Maria Callas, who taught a series of master classes at Juilliard in the 1970s.  This play is set as one such master class, and the audience is treated as the body of students in attendance.  With each piece Maria hears, the audience is transported through her memories to tumultuous times in the diva's life, forcing the audience to realize and consider the sacrifices that artists make for their art, and whether or not the sacrifice is worth the eventual cost.
     Keep in mind, fans, that Trident will TRY to get all these done.  No promises.
     So, friends and fans of theatre, you've got a lot to look forward to in Sheridan in the upcoming months.  Keep up your patronage!
     I'll see you at intermission!