Ian W. Hill (director of the production of “The Magnificent Ambersons” I did last summer) has kindly cast me in his production of the short play, “Sacrificial Offerings“. The play was written by Mr. Hill and David Finkelstein and he describes it as a “story of a drawing room séance among the upper class of many decades past.”
The show goes up in August at The Brick, more details to follow.
On Sunday I will performing in three short pieces as part of the “Playwright’s Forum” for the Festival of Jewish Theatre and Ideas being presented by Untitled Theatre Company #61.
Playwright’s Forum
Various playwrights and directors
at Marymount Manhattan
221 E. 71st St.
Sun 6/7 @ 7:00
I will be performing in the play “Doll Play” by Tony Glazer as part of the Samuel French short play festival on July 17. Tony is really great writer and he’s written a very funny play that I really look forward to working on. The festival is actually a competition of sorts and there’s the possibility that we may perform it again if we move on to the finals.
More details to follow.
More reviews have come in for Ecstasy, which I am currently appearing in.
First off, the biggie: The New York Times had some positive things to say about my performance:
[Len] could easily come off as a buffoon, but in the delicate performance of Mr. Heskett, Len is more than a joke. It’s a scene-stealing portrayal…
[ Full Review ]
Also, BackStage.com made us a “Critic’s Pick” and was positive:
…it’s an engaging play, here staged with energetic, sharp performances, directed crisply by Sara Laudonia.
[ Full Review ]
Lastly, we’ve had several positive reviews from various theatre/media/entertainment blogs:
EDIT: This is seriously exciting. We’ve had ELEVEN positive to very positive reviews.
- CurtainUp
- RetroVision Media
- flavorpill
- Theatre Is Easy
- NYC Onstage
- EDGE New York City
- offoffonline
- Theater Talk’s New Theater Corp.
- GayCityNews
- neighborhoodbee Theatre Buzz
Two reviews are up from our previews for Ecstasy by Mike Leigh (which opens tonight!) Both are very positive.
Retrovision Media and says
Lower eastside Black Box theatre aficionados are in for a treat of gritty realism…
This is a rare must see recommendation!
And Theatre Is Easy gives us a nice review as well. They were kind enough to say some nice things about my performance:
The entire cast showed great levels of talent. Special mention should be made of actor Stephen Heskett as Len. Heskett displayed a depth of character so great that an entire play could be made off of just one look at him.
I’m really excited about this play, my cast-mates are SO good in this. Every show, I just enjoy watching them.
Please come.
I have a great role in Black Door Theatre Company’s production of Ecstasy that’s opening this week with previews.
“Ecstasy covers the lives of four blue-collar friends living in 1979 London and the drunken frustration in their lives, namely that of Jean, who struggles to escape the confines of her life and the people in it. While Ecstasy speaks to a very specific time and place, the socio-economic despairs and frustrations facing each character make the story universal and timeless; especially on the eve of our own financial crisis.”
www.blackdoortheatre.com
Ecstasy
By Mike Leigh
Directed by Sara Laudonia
Stage Manager Eliza Jane Bowman
Featuring Lore Davis, Stephen Heskett, Gina LeMoine,
Josh Marcantel, Brandon McCluskey and Mary Monahan
Previews: January 5 - 8 at 8pm $15
Opens: January 9 - 25 $18
Thursday - Saturday at 8pm
Matinees Sunday at 3pm
The Red Room
85 East 4th Street
For Reservations visit www.smarttix.com
I am currently in rehearsals for Ecstasy by Mike Leigh, and we’ve started getting some press:
http://www.theateronline.com/pb.xzc?PK=19805
http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Horse_Trade_Presents_A_New_Production_Of_ECSTASY_15_20081201
http://www.nytheatre.com/nytheatre/showpage.php?t=ecst7781
I’m really proud of the work being done in this show, and I think it’s going to be something special.
We’re still trying to raise money for the production, and if you feel so inclined, you can make a tax-deductible donation by click this link:
https://www.fracturedatlas.org/site/contribute/donate/1061
I will accept donations to the show in lieu of Christmas presents!
I’ll be performing a staged reading of Lisa Ferber’s “Ye Olde Madcap Inn” on Tuesday, November 25th at Hunter College. The reading is hosted by Oberon Theatre Ensemble.
More information at http://www.oberontheatre.org/staged-reading-series/:
by Lisa Ferber When sultry Voluptua Vunderhips and her mousy sister Persnickitta pay a visit to Ye Olde Madcap Inn, owners Whitlee Repartee and Portley Brisket are unaware they are welcoming a pair of husband-killing showgirls seeking the brooch of Hellebaster Madcappe. Could the sudden appearance of sexy cowboy detective Torrance Q Pinecone mean the law is hot on the trail of Voluptua and Persnickitta, aka the Twisty Bendy Dancing Bubble Sisters?
Next week we finally begin rehearsal’s for Ecstasy by Mike Leigh. I’m really excited to do this show, it’s one of those dream-projects that I didn’t think would happen. There’s a long story behind it, but basically three classmates from my classes with Terry Schreiber and I have been conspiring to do this production for over a year now. And now we are finally starting honest-to-goodness real-life rehearsals for our production that goes up in January. I’m playing a character I’m absolutely in love with. He’s sweet, he’s joyful, and he’s damaged. It’s a nice contrast to the “sterner” characters I often play.
I cannot stress enough how solid the cast is. They are very, very good and I hope we capture the same lightning in our production that we did in our “workshops.”
More details to come.
I’ve been talking some stage combat classes at the Vampire Cowboys‘ Battle Ranch. The Vampire Cowboys are a theatre group I’ve admired from afar for some time now, and I’ve been recently thinking I wanted to work the rust off the ole’ stage combat skills. When I noticed they offer classes, I jumped on it.
Qui Nguyen, a very gifted choreographer and stage combat teacher, not only focuses on the “stage” part, but he gives a good deal of attention towards the “combat” part. He works us very hard to make sure our bodies can do the work required, and he puts us through actual martial arts drills. He has many reasons for doing this, but the greatest thing I’m getting as an actor out of it is feeling what a real fight feels like. It’s important to remember what it’s like HIT someone and BE HIT by them. There’s fear and adrenaline that sometimes gets lost when you focus too much on not hitting each other and “dancing” through your fight.
He took some pictures of us working out on the Ranch’s “porch”. Here’s a couple with me and some classmates, all of whom have been really great to work with.
More here: http://beyondabsurdity.blogspot.com/2008/10/shots-from-rabid-vamps-fight-studio.html
I made my second appearance onstage at the Ontological-Hysteric Theatre on Friday as part of their SINTESI/Dogpile “mini-festival”. It was described to me as sort of a “theatrical open-mike”. It was a series of five-minute theatre-pieces where anything goes.
I performed a piece conceived by theatre group, Pug Mike Samantha. It was really interesting to work on, and I was happy with the character I got to create in such a short time.
There were a few photographers there, and I hope to have some pictures soon. UPDATE: Pictures below.
Highlights of other pieces that night: Guy melts ice cream cone with hairdryer, a voice-over offering us cookies onstage (no actors in that piece), some incredible bass-guitar playing that captivated me more because of how the guy was breathing than playing.
The Magnificence of the Ambersons came to a close on Thursday night. It was a very short, but very enjoyable run. I have to admit that I am pretty upset that it was so quick, I really felt like we were really starting to crack the show open and while we had great audiences (turned people away on Thursday) I had many friends who just simply couldn’t make one of the four shows.
It was really great working on such a large, challenging role and the cast was fantastic to work with. Ian W. Hill and Berit Johnson were wonderful. I am honored that Ian trusted me with the role of George Amberson Minifer in a dream project of his.
The director for The Magnificent Ambersons recently sent out a publicity release for the show. In addition, we took some publicity shots at our last rehearsal. The costumes aren’t final, but I think some of the photos came out really well.
Here’s the director, Ian W. Hill who also plays the Narrator/Orson Welles role, with the rest of the cast looking on:
This photo is the core of my character’s conflict. In the foreground are my mother Isabel Amberson Minifer (Sarah Malinda Engelke) and the man she almost married in her youth and who is now courting her in later life, Eugene Morgan (Timothy McCown Reynolds). I look on from the background, disapproving of their romance.
Here’s the performance dates for The Magnificent Ambersons.
Sunday, June 1 at 8:00 pm
Friday, June 6 at 8:00 pm
Tuesday, June 10 at 8:00 pm
Thursday, June 12 at 8:00 pm
It will be at The Brick Theatre in Williamsburg.
I’m really excited about this show. Making good progress in rehearsals for this huge show (21 actors!)
I was recently cast in a May/June production of The Magnificent Ambersons. I will be playing the part of George Amberson Minifer. It’s a stage adaptation of Orson Welles’ film. Director Ian Hill intends to adapt Welles’ original cut of the film. As I understand it, the studio absolutely butchered the film.
The performance dates have not been nailed down yet, but it will be part of The Brick’s FILM FESTIVAL. I’m really excited to finally work at the Brick and to work with Ian and a certain special castmate.
Just put up my new headshots. I’m in color now!
Check them out here.
Great article about Pinter in the New York Times this week.
Talking about his new film Sleuth, which I can’t wait to see.
This week I’ll be performing in a piece at the Ontological Hysteric theatre.
It’s called Fever Dreams and Blue Morning Whistles: Four Cartoons for the Stage
Directed and written by Stephen Cedars, it consists of several short “cartoons for the stage”, with myself as a sort of curator in between the cartoons. They are all very different and all very interesting.
SHOW: Fever Dreams and Blue Morning Whistles: Four Cartoons for the Stage
WHEN: Thursday May 17 at 8:00
Saturday May 19 at 10:00
WHERE: Ontological-Hysteric Theatre at St. Mark’s Church
2nd Ave and 11th St, in the theatre space upstairs
DETAILS: Price is $15 ($10 with student ID) and the show will be less than an hour long. Each program consists of two shows but the start times for our show are those listed above.
FOR TICKETS: https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/6747
MAKE SURE THAT YOU CHOOSE THE CORRECT PROGRAM:
Again, we are on Thursday during the 7 p.m. slot and Saturday at the 10 p.m. slot
There is no surcharge for ordering online.
Richard Foreman posted an interesting discussion in his blog about how he directs his actors. I’ve added some emphasis.
I like actors that are not saying at every moment to the audience, on one level or another, love me, love me. Even when I was a young man I always disliked what I perceived as being the real content of performances which was ‘I may be suffering, I may be playing an evil person, but I want you to love me’. Obviously an actor wants to be liked. I want people who don’t, or I want to teach people how not to use that, how to have an inner laser-like intensity, that’s all inner directed, not going out so much towards the audience. One thing I’ve always told actors is that they have to think that everything they say is the most intelligent thing in the world (though they’re not saying anything in this play). They have to do it, it’s a secret that they have to assume that only one person in the audience is going to understand and they are not offering it on a silver platter for everybody. It’s a secret, so that when you’re sitting in the audience you can think Ahh I’m the one person that gets that, the other people aren’t smart enough to get it. That’s a delight, to think that it is not stated in a vulgar, general way, but you are sitting there with your partner in the theater and you poke him in the ribs and say ‘Hey did you realize what he’s saying?!’ You’ve got to have that feeling. I want a secretive kind of performance- performers that have secrets, and actually I think that gets me in trouble sometimes because I know certain people have said ‘Oh, I didn’t like the show because everybody seemed to be acting as if they had some secret and I didn’t get it.’ To me, that’s the only thing that turns me on because I do these shows to turn myself on, which would be a form of seduction, which I just said I don’t want to use. However, these are the contradictions that make up everything.
What I like about his shows is exactly that feeling he describes above: I feel like there’s all these secrets in them, and I’m the only one in the audience who gets some of them. The rest of the time I’m just wrapped up in what’s being presented viscerally while I’m thinking: “Well, I don’t get this secret, I wonder who here is?”
I went to the NY IT Awards show last night.
Two things:
1. Jess Draper was robbed.
2. JESS DRAPER WAS ROBBED.
The studio did win two (well-deserved) awards: Outstanding Actress in a Featured Role (Summer Moore) and Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role (Trey Gibbons).
The show itself was surprisingly entertaining. It was well-organized and well-produced. Even the Opening Number was pretty good. (Best lyric: “Just when I was about to give up, I got an Equity Showcase. Tier 2, bitches.”)
Ben Vereen gave an amazing speach. He spoke of how off-off Broadway dares to do what they do in spite of the Big Boys. He echoed a lot of what Terry says in class.
I think the biggest success of the show was how it introduced all these great theatre companies to each other and maybe gave them some attention from the public. I am personally really excited to check out Working Man’s Clothes and the Vampire Cowboys this year.
Congrats to all the winners! and Jess Draper was robbed.
