Company One: Changing the Face of Boston Theatre

GRIMM Youtube Trailer

2010-08-05T21:03:00.000-07:00

Have you seen our trailer on youtube? There's a discount code for GRIMM at the end!

Opening Party Pics

2010-07-25T10:04:00.000-07:00

Have you seen the photos from our opening party for GRIMM?

GRIMM is up and going!

2010-07-22T15:38:00.000-07:00

And we've had some really great feedback!

"Once upon a time, there was a little theater company that wanted to stage something ambitious for its summer show..."
Boston Globe

"Company One’s lively new stage adaptation of some of the tales by the Brothers Grimm, are as different as the battery of seven Boston-area playwrights who mobilized their talents for this ambitious undertaking: Gregory Maguire, Lydia R. Diamond, Kirsten Greenidge, Melinda Lopez, Marcus Gardley, John Kuntz, and John ADEkoje."
Boston Globe

An interview with playwright, Gregory Maguire
Boston Herald

"Despite the title, most of the remixed and re-imagined fairy-tales of Company One’s latest production, Grimm, are clever and comedic."
Boston Lowbrow

Another interview with GRIMM playwright, Gregory Maguire
Edge Boston

"do our early dreams and desires ever completely let us go?"
Edge Boston

And even the famous fairytale site, SurLaLune, likes us!

We hope you like the show as much as the critics! Subscribe and be one of the first to see our youtube video!

Interview with castmember Yurie Collins

2010-07-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

What is the first fairytale you remember reading? Why?
Rapunzel. My dad used to tell it to me before I went to bed. He used to read me a bunch of stories, but Rapunzel was always my favorite.

What do you remember most about that story?
When I hear the story now, like many fairy tales, I realize how morbid and quite disturbing the plot line is. But I wonder if I noticed any of that when I heard the story at such a young age. And now I'm wondering if parents expose their kids to these stories on purpose.

How do you connect to the stories of GRIMM?
I feel like the original Grimm fairy tales have found a way to cling onto everyone's minds, especially if you grew up reading them or hearing your parents tell them to you. I'm pretty sure I'm the same way. That's one way how Company One's re-written GRIMM stories can play tricks on you. You're so used to the plot line, until the highlighted and emphasized details make you realize "Woh. That was written for kids?"

What's the most potent lesson in a fairtytale for you?
Don't wait around for some traveling prince.

All things Beyonce

2010-06-29T11:06:00.000-07:00

Something you might all enjoy: Beyonce's Single Ladies video.

We're not going to tell you how this relates to GRIMM... yet. But for now, watch and enjoy!

Interview with playwright, Kirsten Greenidge

2010-06-20T16:05:00.000-07:00

Kristin Greenidge, author of Thanksgiving (part of Company One's GRIMM)

What is the first fairytale you remember reading?
We had a very old copy of this version of sleeping beauty. The illustrations were all in silhouette. I loved it. It is probably why I became especially drawn to and enamored by the artist Kara Walker's work.

I also remember a version of Cinderella that our school librarian read to us in first grade. I loved it so much, and was fascinated how it was so different from the animated version.

What do you remember most about that story?
I remember the idea of her getting her finger pricked and how it seemed beauty and youth were these peculiar conditions that had such profound effects. Which is powerful when you are young because you think, that is what I could grow up to be. As I grew up into my more feminist self, this made me angry, but I think that is what I really recognized in this story: beauty and youth and position are powerful things.

If you could be any fairytale character, who would it be? Why?
Cinderella. What a wonderfully karmic existence. And she has small feet, which I seriously envy.

Interview with castmember, Becca Lewis

2010-06-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

What is the first fairytale you remember reading?
The Twelve Dancing Princesses. I think mostly because the women were so independent. They had such a saucy secret and that made them powerful.

What do you remember most about that story?
The version that I made my mother read to me every single night for 7 years differs from the Grimm's version in that instead of the old soldier choosing the eldest sister for his bride after he discovers their secret, he tells the king that he is an old man and nothing would make him more happy than to see each princess marry their prince. The king then says, "Your wish is granted, but surely you would like something for yourself." The soldier then thinks back to the pig he caught and returned to the old lady (the witch who gave him the invisibility cloak so that he could solve the princess's shoe mystery) and says, "Well, Your Majesty, I've always liked pigs. I think I'd like a few pigs and a piece of land to raise them on and live out the rest of my days in peace." Pigs! I loved that part because you totally forget about the pig in the beginning of the story and then it comes back in at the end. Pigs. That's just great.

If you could be any fairytale character, who would it be? Why?
I think I would really love to play an evil villain, a wicked witch or sorceress. I think it would be incredibly challenging to discover what it is that makes someone truly wicked in their soul. That being said, I'm loving playing a dwarf in GRIMM. Oh, and Grimm's gooses are always fun. They sing songs and come up with the weirdest plot twists. "Now see, what you need here is to take this goat liver and wear it as a hat, princess." Oh, to be a talking, magical goose!

What's the most potent lesson in a fairytale for you?
Be true to yourself? It seems like so often fairytale women (mostly) are lead astray because they are taking the advice of people (or animals) who do not have their best interests at heart. This could be interpreted as "Don't trust anyone" as well, but I don't think that captures everything either. Do research. A talking goose is not always who they appear to be. If someone offers you a basket of jewelry, someone is probably missing a basket of jewelry somewhere. Don't be so naive. Everyone is inherently selfish. Take a self-defense class. Just because you're pretty doesn't mean you have to be stupid. Often times, reading a fairytale is like watching the first girl about to get killed in a horror movie. You want to scream, "What the hell are you doing?! Don't go in there!"

Photoshoot!

2010-06-19T08:12:00.000-07:00

Here's some photos from the GRIMM photoshoot! There are more photos on the way, so click on the subscribe button to see them as soon as they appear!

More photos!

2010-06-15T19:51:00.001-07:00

Here are some more photos from our first read through in May.

Read Through

2010-06-15T19:44:00.001-07:00

Check out some photos from our first read-through (on May 25):

Hello friends!

2010-06-14T19:38:00.000-07:00

GRIMM is approaching fast! The show opens in only a month!

We would like to invite you be involved with the production and help us put up posters all over the city. Pick up seven posters and put them up around Boston and you're invited to attend our open rehearsal. You'll get a sneak preview of the play before it even opens!

In addition one posterer will win a copy of the poster signed by the cast, so don't miss this opportunity to become involved with Company One! Send us a facebook message or email us at info@companyone.org to be part of this initiative!

We'll talk to you soon!

Don't wanna be... "All By Myself"

2010-06-10T10:33:00.002-07:00

Our re-telling of The Frog King includes a certain iconic song. You may have heard of it. It's called "All By Myself." We know how it fits in our play, but here are some other famous scenes employing the same piece of music!

FRIENDS - my personal favorite

Bridget Jones

Superhero Movie

And of course what is any blog post without a video of an amazing child singer?
10-year-old Lianah sings "All By Myself"

Who are these supposed brothers and why are they so GRIMM?

2010-06-10T10:33:00.001-07:00

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm were born in Hanau, Germany in the late 1700's. They began collecting folk tales around 1807 and published their first collection of stories in 1812 after Jacob was named court librarian to the King of Westphalia. This first volume of fairytales was named Tales of Children and the Home.

The Brothers Grimm traveled around Germany, gathering stories from villagers and peasants. They also may have stolen published stories from other cultures. Jacob did research and Wilhelm did most of the writing. He provided the simple, child-like writing.

In addition to being storytellers, the brothers also worked on a German dictionary. It was massive, consisted of 33 volumes and weighed about 185 pounds. They only made it from A - F before their deaths, and the dictionary was not completed until 1960.

Original Fairytales

2010-06-10T10:33:00.000-07:00

GRIMM re-vamps 7 Brothers Grimm fairytales with a Boston twist. Some of the fairytales are well known like "Hansel and Gretel" or "Little Red Riding Hood." "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" has even been picked up by Disney and turned into movie. Some of these fairytales, you will probably not have heard of. Have you ever read "Clever Elsie" or "Stories About Snakes?"

So here are the original stories! They're from surlalune.com, and even include some history if you want to go that far. And if you read these now, you'll be all ready to see how we make them modern, seductive, funny and delicious.

The Frog King
Hansel and Gretel
Little Red Riding Hood
Clever Elsie
Stories About Snakes
The White Bride and the Black One
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Enjoy! And don't forget GRIMM tickets have just gone on sale at bostontheatrescene.com!

GRIMM is in the Roberts Theatre!

2010-06-10T10:32:00.000-07:00

Company One is a resident theatre company at the Boston Center for the Arts (BCA), and this year will be our first time in the Roberts Theatre in the Calderwood Pavillion at the BCA. We're so psyched to be in there! It's also bigger so there are more seats (meaning more people can come see the show!)

Fun facts about the The Roberts Theatre and the Calderwood Pavillion:

It's in the South End, right near our offices.

The Roberts is a flexible black box.

We can put between 157 and 250 audience members in the space.

It is named in honor of long time Huntington donors and subscribers Nancy and Edward Roberts.

Currently in the Roberts is Speakeasy's Great American Trailerpark Musical.
The Calderwood is almost brand new - it was just built in 2004!

C1 GALA TONIGHT!

2010-03-25T07:03:00.000-07:00

So ladies and Gents,

Tonight is the C1 Gala.

Where else can you see the whole family decked out and ready to party?
I'll be posting pics tomorrow - but the only way to catch Tory (yes, Tory of slamboston MC fame) singing his welcome to all of us - OR - C1 alumni serenading you all night while you under bid on the fantastic silent auction items (check out the items you can bid on here: https://www.biddingforgood.com/auction/AuctionHome.action?auctionId=103141448 ).

So you can either look at the pictures here tomorrow - like the girl not invited to the party - or be featured in them yourself!

See you tonight!

Opening on the Right Foot!

2010-01-19T11:55:00.000-08:00

Good Afternoon C1 Family, Friends and the like--Sabrina here!

This past Friday, January 15th, 2010, THE GOOD NEGRO opened at the BCA Plaza theatre to a sold out audience! Having worked on the show as the assistant to director, Summer L. Williams, I was so nervous and excited to share this play that I have come to love so much. To no surprise of my own, THE GOOD NEGRO was so incredibly well received by all who came out this weekend and I have no doubt that everyone has begun to spread the word.

Being a new kid @ Company One, I was so impressed by how every single member of the company was involved right down to hammering in the last nail to make this production come off with out a hitch! It was so incredibly inspiring to be a part of a team of people who work hard, play hard and love theatre so much that they always go that extra mile to make their productions of the highest quality.

AND SO, this is why you must come see THE GOOD NEGRO. All of the hard work, love and support from the cast, creative and technical teams have come together to truly create a remarkable piece of moving, honest, hysterical and deeply reflective theatre!

Being the Marketing Associate, I would like to throw out HUGE props to Mela and Stephi's on Tremont for donating amazing appetizers for us to have at our Opening Weekend Reception.

COMING SOON: INTERVIEWS with the cast and creative of THE GOOD NEGRO!

An Interview with Christmas Belles director, Greg Maraio

2009-12-17T09:21:00.000-08:00

With Christmas Belles hitting the Boston Playwrights' Theatre stage for its final two shows this weekend, I caught up with director, Greg Maraio to give us the low down on how he found this hysterical play, his love of Christmas and a sneak peek in to what is coming up next for Phoenix Theatre Artists and Company One!

Sabrina Sydnor, Marketing Associate: So tell me about Phoenix Theatre Artists--history, company members, mission...

Greg Maraio: Phoenix started out as WAY Theatre Artists, and it was a collaborative idea between myself, Eliza Lay, and the company's first Artistic Director Julie Ohl. We produced several successful plays together including Dancing at Lughnasa, Love-Lies-Bleeding, and The Memory of Water. When Julie decided to step down as artistic director, we were prepared to go out on a high, however, I was amazed at how many people said "Please keep doing plays, we love what you are doing." So I decided to step up (nervous as I may have been) and Phoenix was born.

SS: How did you first find Christmas Belles? Had you seen the play produced elsewhere?

GM: We were looking for a crazy, alternative holiday show without pretension and had the least heart-warming message possible. We just wanted something that was fun. Fun to look at, fun to listen to, just a silly romp with silly characters and when I saw one of the writers worked on my favorite show of all time, The Golden Girls, I was hooked.

SS: What do you love about the show? Is it reminiscent of your style and past Phoenix works or is this show going out in a whole new direction?

GM: I love the characters, and I really love the actors, they make things so fun to watch. I am getting the chance to work with some old friends and actors new to Phoenix/Company One. I think that this show is different for us, we have never gone full out farce before. We did some heavy stuff, and it was a nice break to do a wacky comedy. Phoenix's mission is to try new things. Be reborn with every show, We want to give audiences tastes of all types of theatre.

SS: That being said, as a costume designer, how much weight does costume potential have on your play selection?

GM:None at all really, I mean, if I am reading a play and think, I can think of a really funny costume for this character, that's great. But in the end, the play comes first, and I think a good costume designer can find costume potential in anything. I will add though it does help when your characters are larger than life and can get away with gold lame' pants.

SS: Any major bumps in the process? GOSSIP! just kidding of course...

GM: It was tough for a while to nail the pace of the show. I knew I wanted this thing to move, and have a big force behind it. It a lot about entrances and exits. I didn't want to give the audience a lull of any kind!

SS: Cast and Creative-- who's new, who's a regular, who rocks? haha

GM: We have lots of new faces in the show, who I'm sure you will be seeing more of around Boston (at least.) And we have some regulars in the mix that you'll recognize from their two hit Superheroine Monologues productions.

SS: Did you feel that working on this piece has sufficiently gotten you in the Christmas mood or are you on literal Christmas overload?

GM: To quote Raynerd from the show, "I just love Christmas." But the answer is I have yet to do my shopping.

SS: What's next for Phoenix Theatre Artists? Tell me a little bit about 'Apple'. When does stuff kick off for that?

GM: Apple is one of the most amazing plays I have ever read. I think Vern Thiessen has created a contemporary masterpiece. The story follows Andy, a man who is in a very tough place in his life and is faced with some difficult decisions regarding his estranged wife and his young lover. I am so excited to bring this to Boston for its New England Premiere. We start rehearsals in February and I am overjoyed to say that Eliza Lay, co founder of Phoenix, is recently back to Boston and she will acting in the show. Its an intensely beautiful piece, filled with humor and heart. I hope everyone gets a chance to see it.

Is there such a thing as too much schmoozing?

2009-12-16T06:46:00.000-08:00

Hey Gang!

Monday night was Company One's inaugural Member Schmoozer down at Brownstone, bringing together anyone and everyone related to all things C1. If you happened to miss it, I hate to tell you, but you truly missed out. It was a fantastic time full of faces old and new. And I was there rubbing elbows with everyone. Best of all, from my vantage point, it appeared as though everyone there had a wonderful time. Drinks were flowing as fluidly as conversation, hugs and handshakes were exchanged at a rapid rate, and the cubes of cheese and tiny burgers were stacked high for everyone's enjoyment.

During the course of the festivities, I had the great fortune to meet so many new faces, along with reconnecting with some old ones. I met a couple who have seen every C1 show since 2003. I met artists and designers from other theatres around town. I yucked it up with actors and designers who worked on THE OVERWHELMING and whom I hadn't seen since closing night. What was so great about it, though, was that so many of the people who make a true impact on the company, not just the staff, actors, and directors, but also the donors, board members, fellow artists, and best yet, actual audience members and true fans of the work C1 is doing, were all there in one place. And how great it was to have them all together. It was a collection of so many of the people who together allow the company to exist in the first place and to continue to grow and prosper. It's not just actors, directors, and the staff that keep the theatre going; it's EVERYONE, and the event was a great and a very vital reminder of that.

A director once told me, "Theatre is the act of shared imagination." A great sentiment, though one he was certainly quoting from another director, who was probably quoting someone else, and so on and so forth. Regardless, the point remains. At the time, this director was referring to the imagination being shared between a production, or the art being portrayed on a stage, and the audience, but I think the idea still applies to last night as well. Although no art was necessarily created last night, the Schmoozer showed how theatre is bigger than just a handful of people acting out a scene on a stage. It takes more than just actors, a director, and a script to put on a show. The collective imagination of Company One was on display, and it's safe to say everyone enjoyed the view.

So, is there such a thing as too much schmoozing? God, I hope not.

Over and Out,
Max

That time of year...

2009-12-07T08:54:00.000-08:00

This weekend, I caught the opening night performance of Phoenix Theatre Artists and Company One's second stage production CHRISTMAS BELLES, and boy, was it a great time. I did not work on this show, nor did I have the chance to read it, so going into the show on Friday night, I had no idea what to expect. I walked in the packed house, and the first thing I see is a banner running across the upstage wall reading, "Jesus loves almost everyone." When I saw that, I immediately laughed, and the show hadn't even started. (Don't worry. This is the only spoiler that can be found in this post. From this point forward, out of respect to those who have yet to see the show, I will give nothing away.) From the moment the lights went down, it was one hilarious moment after the next, and it was a rioutous good time, with a great, lively cast that leaves everything on the stage. What more can you ask for? I mean, really?

One thing I always ask myself when watching a play, especially one with which I am very unfamiliar, is: "How much of what I'm seeing being played out before me was written into that script, that is, intended by the playwright(s), and how much of it are choices the director, actors and designers made during the rehearsal process?" When watching CHRISTMAS BELLES, I found that I was asking myself this alot, and even now I'm still not so sure at certain moments which was which. You see, some directors view a script as a rigid text that must be adhered to, as a piece of literature or almost like a sacred scripture. Other direstors take a script and follow it more like a loose blue print towards discoveries possibly not intended by the playwright or originator of the work. And, of course, there's everything in between.

But, back to this show, what's interesting is that as I watched the show, I could not tell what was a directorial choice and what was originally written into the script. What this means, to me anyway, is that if they were indeed directorial choices, they did not stand out as being out of place, dramaturgically. That is, they were all bold, yet wholly justified, choices, that added to the new layers to the text, and brought out new ideas that still fit in with the original concept. (Again, I'm not going to give anything away.) And with theatre, when it all fits together, and you can't tell which came first, which came last, but it all seems to fit together naturally, you can't ask for anything more. Moreover, sometimes it's not about what was originally intended by a playwright or what a director decided to do, it's just about what you see before you. The best thing to do then: enjoy!

If you'd like to know more about exactly what I'm talking about, do yourself a favor, get in the holiday sprit and see CHRISTMAS BELLES!

Over and Out,
Max

Closing Night! (and some concluding thoughts...)

2009-11-24T21:34:00.001-08:00

Hey, hey, hey!

Well, as it is well known by now, THE OVERWHELMING, sadly, has closed. The show wrapped up last Saturday with a truly brilliant performance given before a very enthusiastic and appreciative crowd. Not surprisingly, it's always sad for me to see a show wrap up. Everyone, from the actors to the crew to the design team, put so much into the show, and, in some ways, you don't want to see it ever end. There's so much preparation, so much that goes into the staging of a production, only to have the actual run just fly by. So much time is taken in getting the show ready and on its feet, and then, it's over so fast. But, this is the nature of theatre. In fact, this is what's so amazing and vital about theatre. You have to catch it before it's gone. Theatre is a must-see event that waits for no one.

What's amazing though, is how together we all created a coherent world on a formerly empty stage. We took a gutted playing space, a blank canvas if you will, and sculpted on it a fully realized, unified world by bringing together costumes, lighting, set, sound, and actors. What's amazing is how less than 12 hours after the show ended, the stage is back to its "natural" state, eager for the next company to come in and create any entirely new world. It took almost two months to create the world of the OVERWHELMING, yet it took mere hours to remove it. But, again, that's theatre for you!

Another thing I want to talk about is something that I brought up in a previous entry: the way in which the show changes over the course of a run. During the three weeks, I saw about 7 performances, and each one, however subtle, was very different from the next. Sometimes, the actors were doing things you did not necessarily want to see. Sometimes scenes moved too fast or too slow, or the actors skipped a small section of text, things that happen in all productions all the time. The kinds of things that only I or someone who's worked on the show, been at every rehearsal, and is intimately familiar with the text and flow of the show would observe, but that would easily pass by unnoticed by audience members. But, other things that changed were simply great to see. I saw so many of the actors become increasingly more comfortable in their characters' shoes and in the space. They realized new things about the text and came to a different, while still justified, delivery of a line. Sometimes, even a whole scene shifted dramatically, taking on an entirely new meaning, while still fitting in with the play as whole. What many people don't realize is that prior to the official run of a show, actors and stage management often don't have that many opportunities to run the whole show from beginning to end. I don't think many people realize this, but we ran the whole show in its nearly final state with all the actors less than 5 times prior to opening. With the myriad of things that needed to be figured out - all the scenes and scene shifts, the costume changes, the huge list of technical cues - it was hard to get in a lot of actual runs, not nearly as many as I'm sure everyone wished we could have afforded. Although the actors certainly covered it well, because they're all such skilled performers, they were still feeling out what the whole show was supposed to be from beginning to end and at the pace at which it needed to be maintained, even by opening night. The actors were still figuring things out during the run, and it was so great to see them continue to explore and try new things, while still sticking to the overall layout of the show as decided in rehearsals.

After the curtain call of the final performance and after the audience had departed from the lobby, the entire cast, crew, and C1 staff came together in the theatre and raised a glass to commemorate everyone's efforts. It was the first time in a while I saw everyone in the room together at the same time, and it was quite moving. You could feel the real emotion that was present among all of us collectively. Everyone knew they had just wrapped up something really important, and pride was resounding off the walls as hugs and kind words were exhanged. It was a joy to take on this play, and everyone certainly knew it without ever having to say it.

The book may be closed on this show, but the best thing you can do is move on to the next. Company One is following up this great show with an equally challenging yet inspiring show, THE GOOD NEGRO. I can't wait to see what happens with that. And honestly, who possibly could?

Over and Out,
Max

Opening Night!

2009-11-01T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hello All!

If you haven't heard (and, really, how could you not?), THE OVERWHELMING opened this past weekend! It's now up and running, and is it ever a pleasure to see. From my perspective, having seen this through from the very beginning of the rehearsal process, it is thrilling to watch it now. It's also odd to watch it now not making notes or looking for things to work on. To watch it for the first time simply watching it is a strange, yet unbelievably satisfying feeling.

I was talking to a friend of mine the other day, and he said something to the effect of, "Now that the show is opening, the actor's job is pretty much done." Upon my queries, he further elaborated, "Well, through all the work they did in rehearsals, they pretty much have everything they need down, so they're good to go." I think what my friend was getting at was that in rehearsals, the actors and director spent their time exploring and creating the piece, and now that the "creating" is done, performances are now a matter of replicating what has already been created and set in place. This is a huge misconception that I would like to address now.

Even through a long, productive process that includes rehearsing, teching, and dress rehearsing, a production is never entirely "set." This is what is awesome about theatre, and what really separates it from every single other kind of art. Theatre is a living, breathing artform that changes night to night depending on so many variables. It is not a portrait that once the paint dries it is complete and set in stone forever. It is not a film that, once the final edits are in place, from there exists unfixed on a film reel. Theatre yields no resulting artifacts that can be examined and appreciated years later. Theatre can only be experienced and appreciated in the moment it is presented and never again. Furthermore, to the same effect, the experience of a specific piece of theatre is unique unto itself; that is, even the following night's performance of the same piece of theatre will not produce the same experience. A piece is theatre, no matter how long it runs, changes night to night, moment to moment. In fact, for it to be successful, it has to remain fresh and spontaneous to avoid the dull product that would result from simple replication. THE OVERWHLEMING will indeed continue to grow and develop, especially in that it is now interacting with an audience, one that will never be the exact same night to night. Actors can continue to find things and discover new aspects of their characters and arcs. This is why I love seeing shows more than once, because it's always new, even if it's the same play.

Although the actor's job is not done, and certainly not for the stage management either, my duties on the show, for the most part, are pretty much wrapped up. It's an odd thing. The show is only opening now and will continue to run for the next few weeks, and yet, my job is done. From working on this side of the table, from being able to assist a director, I've seen that directing is kind of like raising a child. You guide your child and try to point it in all the right directions, but, eventually, you have to let the child go off on his/her own. The child will continue to grow, develop, and learn new things, but he/she can do those things all on their own, because you've given them the means and skills to do so. With our child, it is certainly all grown up and more than ready to tackle the world.

Over and Out,
Max

Loading in the Good Times!

2009-10-27T12:13:00.000-07:00

Hello All!

So we have now completed our rehearsal process and are now heavily steeped in tech, which commenced last night with our load-in! Now is the time in which the production team and crew assembles the world of the play, and that includes everything from lights to sound to set to props. In order to accomplish this tall order with a very limited amount of time, it meant that everyone needed to step up, pitch in and give a hand, and I was fortunate enough to be included as well. Just to give you an idea, though, if you were to meet me, you would most likely assume I am the type of person who has avoided much manual
labor his entire life, and that assumption wouldn't be far off. So the fact that I was saying things like, "Do you have a longer piece of tie-line?" and "Where did the XLR go?" is quite new to me. But, let me tell you. It was such an incredible experience for me to be part of such a hard working and collaborative team.

Even in the face of a time crunch and of a huge list of things that need to be done and worked out, it amazed me the high spirits in which we collectively found ourselves. There was a certain "lightness" among us, all of us filling the space with some banter and a few laughs, while at the same time maintining a strong and immensely productive focus. And it amazed me how everyone was working on their own projects simultaneously without getting in the way of others. Lighting crew was hanging their instruments and circuiting them while a mere feet away others are adhering sound cable to pipeline, and below both, carpenters are nailing set pieces and platforms down, while in the back painters work furiously to finish the strokes on a
back wall panel. Even though seemingly countless activities are being pursued, everyone still worked together and communicated, with no one stepping on anyone's toes and everyone being repsectful of everyone's needs.

It's so great to be working in an environment in which everyone is truly on the same page and level, with everyone doing what they can to get the job done and with no one being "above" anything. At the risk of sounding "New Age-y," the vibe was so positive in the room that it was palpable. It's a rare thing, not just in theatre but anywhere, to be in an environment in which so many people not only all want to be there but all have the same ends and goals in mind and are truly working together. To be a part of that was absolutely exhilarating.

It was a true joy to be a part of, and I know this will carry over into tomorrow night, when we actually begin tech and work through the show cue-to-cue. But more on that later . . .

That about does it for now. But don't worry; more will be coming later this week!

Over and Out,
Max

An interview with director Shawn LaCount

2009-10-24T15:42:00.000-07:00

Anne G. Morgan, Dramaturg: What initially drew you The Overwhelming?

Shawn LaCount: The Overwhelming was one of the most captivating scripts I had read in a long time. Due to the play's structure, its historical themes and the fact that it is mystery and a thriller- I found myself deeply engaged and unable to put the script down. I knew immediately that Company One had to produce it.

AM: What attracts you to the characters and relationships within this story? How do you hope an audience will identify with them?

SL: I find the characters and relationships in The Overwhelming to be real, complex, and quite familiar. J.T. Rogers has created a play that is clearly based on real people and issues. Over the course of the play I sympathize with characters at some points and get frustrated with them at others, much like I do with the people in my own life. This is a testament to the strong writing. I think audience members will identify with different characters and hopefully this will cause some interesting discussions after the show!

AM: Why do you think this is an important story to tell? How do you think this is relevant to today's audiences, 15 years after the genocide?

SL: Although The Overwhelming is set in 1994 immediately before the Rwandan genocide, I really don't see it as a play about the genocide. The play is about nationality, trust, loyalty, conviction, and family. In many ways, the relationship between Jack and Linda resembles the internal struggles of 1994 Rwanda itself. The concept of genocide or holocaust to most Americans is mind-boggling. How could things anywhere ever get so bad that one group of people decides to annihilate another? It is a difficult question, but as Joseph explains to Geoffrey, "It is not hatred that drives" such horrific events, "but fear." I always think the concept of "fear" makes for good drama. People act in the most fascinating and often irrational ways when they are faced with their biggest fears.

AM: This play is set against a very specific historical background. How does influence your approach?

SL: When directing any play, it is of the utmost importance to search for truth through integrity. If you are representing a historically accurate place with real people, it becomes even more important to do your homework and not make assumptions. However, the idea of truth is subjective. The beauty of a play like this one is that 1994 Rwanda sounds like a very different place depending on who is speaking about it. The play tries to look at the situation with the Tutsi and Hutu on a level playing field, but, at the end of the day, I don’t believe that it is possible to have a neutral standpoint on issues of life and death.

AM: What did you anticipate being challenging about telling this story and how have you approached that in the rehearsal process?

SL: This is a very complicated play with lots of information in several languages and many, many characters. As a director, I was worried about telling a clear story that would keep an audience engaged right through the end. Luckily, we have a great team working very hard on the production; from actors to designers to our dramaturge – we have many wonderful collaborators!

AM: What ideas and concepts have influenced your collaborations with the designers? What were your goals for the creation of the physical world of the play?

SL: The entire design team for The Overwhelming has made a concerted effort to keep the staging and the world of the play simple. Our aim has been to clear the way for the most fluid and exciting story possible with very few effects or theatricality. The play wants to feel like a mystery and a roller coaster ride at that same time. Audiences will likely find themselves on the edge of their seats by the time the lights go down.

Exploring vs. Settling

2009-10-21T09:38:00.000-07:00

With less than a week left before we go into tech., things are really cooking in the rehearsal hall, which brings to mind a dilemma that always fascinates me: As we are now refining and fine tuning the play, how much can we still allow the actors to continue exploring the text, their characters, and the space and allow them to continue trying new things, employing new tactics and actions, and making different choices, all the while realizing we need to lock things down and set things in place? A big question is: Is it ever too late to make changes before opening night? If so, when? What’s the deadline? You certainly wouldn’t want to set this too early, lest you stifle your actors. You want your actors to feel free and comfortable enough to explore the piece of theatre you together are creating, and you want to offer them the time to find not only what is right for the show and for their characters, but also, and in some ways most importantly, what is right for them as actors, because, in the end, they have to own it for themselves. You don’t want to cut off exploration too early because then they may settle into something they are not ready or willing to settle into, which could result disastrously in tedious and monotonous performances. A show can be successful only when the action is fresh for the actors, so that no matter how many times they run a scene, the words they say and the actions they execute always feel as though they are being done for the first time ever.

Of course, at the same time, the deadline of opening night is always looming, its approach unstoppable. Of course, decisions need to be made, blocking needs to be set, and actions need to be settled on. I feel that in our production, it is certainly not about setting an explicit deadline for all choices to be made that precludes any further exploration. Art certainly can’t work that way. For us, as with many productions, it’s all about finding something that works, and having the confidence to lock that in place, while being flexible to the prospect of discovering something new. For something that isn’t working, we are trusting that we will find the time to figure it out, all the while always keeping in mind the approach of tech. In the end, you have to trust the people around you and keep communication open. That’s the only way theatre ever works.

That’s about all for now. Next up, Tech!

Over and Out,
Max

Piecing it Together

2009-10-10T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

Max here, coming at you again from THE OVERWHELMING rehearsal hall. We have just finished working through all the scenes for at least a second time, and everyday the show is coming together more and more. What's really exciting is that all the actors are off-book and have now formed a very intimate kinship with the text, allowing us to really delve into the story of the play. In addition, whereas before when we were working and running individual scenes, we are now starting to piece numerous consecutive scenes together and even running large chunks of the play at one time. With this, we are now really starting to see how the story of the play as a whole will unfold in our production. The challenge now for the actors and for the director is to find the overall arc and pace of the play. Earlier in the rehearsal process, we focused our attention on the arc of each individual scene. The actors were required to examine where their characters were in the beginning of a scene, where they were at the end of that scene and, most importantly, how they got there. Now, the real challenge is taking all these small arcs and bringing them together to create the arc for the whole play. A big component of this, for the actors at least, is figuring out how to shift emotionally from one scene to the next. In this play, with each scene comes a new time, place, and situation, and the actors must be able to bring their characters along with that, some even having to change into entirely different characters in a matter of only moments. It's a tall order, but our actors are already attacking the challenge head-on.

Another exciting part of our current stage in the rehearsal process is that we've begun to include some technical elements, including sound, props, and set pieces, into scene work. With a show as complicated as this one with regard to the story and technical demands, it's really important to bring in these elements as early as possible, so that the actors and creative team can get a feeling for what will work and what won't. What's always interested me is how even the most seemingly inconsequential prop can be the catalyst for lengthy deliberation among the actors, director, and stage management. An audience member might think that the fact that an actor has a wine glass in one scene is not really a big deal. Yet, much thought goes into how that prop will get on stage, how it will be used, and how it will get off stage in time for when the scene shifts to an entirely new location and time in which that prop is no longer appropriate. Of course, in the end, these technical shifts occur seamlessly, their difficult nature never unveiled to the audience. Some of my favorite memories in theatre are being backstage during a show, when the audience is watching what seems like a simple and easy transition, and yet backstage countless stage hands are running around in a fury in order to maintain that the audience is always none the wiser.

That's about all for now. This week we are going to be running the show the whole way through, and we'll really see what we have on our hands. No doubt it'll be exciting!

Over and Out,
Max

Sabrina Sydnor, Marketing Associate

2009-10-06T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hello Readers, seasoned Company One fans and those soon to be!

My name is Sabrina and I am the newest addition to the Marketing team here @ C1. I’m going to cut right to the chase — “The Overwhelming” starts in less than a month now and I couldn’t be more excited to get people over to the BCA to see this amazing piece of theatre. As a Marketing Associate, my primary involvement is getting the word out to the masses and I think C1 has really stepped it up with their use of video trailers for each show. On September 29th, many hands of the cast, crew and creative, rallied around videographer, Jordan Harrison, to compile a concise yet incredibly gripping glimpse in to the world of the play.

This being my first foray in to the creation of the video trailer, I was incredibly impressed by the angles, themes and dialogue carefully chosen to capture the piece in two short minutes. I am extremely excited to see how the video trailer effects the overall outcome of the piece - not just from a Marketing/Sales stand point but also, how much the audience is already aware of the world of the play when they arrive. It’s tremendously exciting to work with a company that utilizes the growing trends in a “you-tubed” generation and uses them to draw in a new audience to live theatre. The power of multi-media marketing is here folks, and IT'S HAPPENING at Company One.

-Sabrina

Max Mondi, Artistic Associate

2009-10-02T09:37:00.000-07:00

Greetings!

Max here - I'm assisting the director, the fantastic Mr. Shawn LaCount, on "The Overwhelming". I'm going to give you the inside dish on what I'm up to, as we're now in the thick of the rehearsal process.

Already, this has proven be a new and exciting experience for me. This show is not only my first time working with Company One, but it's also my first foray into the entire Boston theatre scene. With this comes the chance to meet and work with a whole host of new (at least for me) artists and dramatists. Also, the show is a unique endeavor unto itself. I have not worked on many shows that not only have such large casts, but also demand the actors to speak such various and numerous dialects and languages, and demand the director and design team to tackle over forty scenes that take place in a vast catalogue of locations and times. From the first time I read the script, I was thrilled by the prospect of collaborating with a group eager to tackle these challenges head-on.

As I said, my role in this production will be assisting the director throughout the rehearsals. This also is a new hat for me to be wearing. In addition to getting to know the cast and production team, another main focus has been figuring out exactly how I should function in my role and how I can best support the production. What has been very rewarding is how I get to act as a second set of eyes for the director. Each rehearsal, after watching the actors work through the text, I get together with the director and dramaturg to talk about the scenes, discussing what's working, what isn't, and what needs to be done next.

So far, we've been able to take a first look into every scene in the play. It's been fascinating to see what everyone's initial impressions of the play are, and it's exciting to see what's going to happen to those impressions as we go. We've just begun working through the play for a second time, so we'll have to wait and see . . .

That's about all for now, but I'll be keeping you updated on all the happenings!

Over and Out,
Max

The Human Condition

2009-09-17T21:26:00.000-07:00

Week two has begun. I am constantly learning about and shaping Batgirl. Different audiences help with that. Sometimes you have a laugh out loud crowd. And that makes my job real easy. I know that I am making them laugh. I am funny, good. Then there are nights when there are “smilers”, people who you know are enjoying the show, but are quiet none-the-less. That is what throws me off. It has always been an issue with me and comedy…I think funny = laughs and bad = no laughs. I know that isn’t the case. But I am an actor, that’s my fear - that no one is listening. But I know they are.

A question that I have been pondering recently is line drops/mess ups. This is a big damn show to memorize, especially in a short amount of time with limited rehearsals. And sometimes mistakes happen. It happened to me…big time. But I got over it, didn’t run off the stage (thank God), and the non-theatre people didn’t see my mind explode (which it did). And after that happened, I, of course, got angry and cried. I was frustrated with myself immensely. But why? Was it because I looked stupid on stage in front of all those people? Or was it because I feel that I somehow failed my audience? They are the whole reason I perform. For them. So if I miss a line, flub my words, forget, the audience loses out on the experience…but they actually don’t. They experienced theatre. Live theatre. And sometimes it is messy. Sometimes it is wrong. But it is living and breathing and changing. And that is pretty awesome. Because isn’t failure part of the human condition?

-Liz

From the mind of Batgirl...

2009-09-06T09:57:00.000-07:00

Hello! I am Liz Rimar. I play Batgirl. I am writing a blog for you now.

So basically I got a call from our beautiful director, Greg, asking if I wanted to be part of his show, "The Superheroine Monologues". I said heck yes, and here I am. The rehearsal process has been a QUICK one. But I liked it - once I actually got the lines down, it was getting my basic blocking and then playing. Just playing. And for someone who went to drama school and has mostly found acting work in more serious plays, this is a breath of fresh air. Don't get me wrong, I love dramatic pieces and the whatnot, but I am a total goofball at heart. I did have the pleasure of performing in Company One's "Assassins", as basically the comedic character of the piece. But I need silly and ridiculous. And this is what this play is. And the brilliant thing is, as silly as it is, there are poignant moments in each and every monologue.

As for being Batgirl. Wow. She is such a wonderful character. So happy, but like all well written characters, so sad on the inside. She plays to all of my OCD-like habits, and my secret need for perfection. I get to be girly and flip my hair and talk about boys! The research was a blast. And The Poseidon Adventure = amazing! (You'll have to see the show to know what the heck I am talking about). The one thing that I am worried about is performing in my costume. It is a full on spandex bodysuit. And when I first put it on, it severely limited my movement. And I as a person move and flail about a lot. But the containment and constriction of the costume will more than likely have a positive effect on my perfect posture and perfect character. With perfect hair.

-Liz

Grace Geller: Welcome to the Theatre

2009-08-07T07:48:00.000-07:00

Hello again! If you’ve read Jess’s post you’ll know that I’m working with her in the Front of House. Our main goal is to make sure everything is set so the audience can enjoy the show!

Basically, I’ve been working in the lobby and answering any questions you have when you come to see the show. I get to the theater two hours early and set up the lobby with Jess. We work with the Boston Center for the Arts Box Office to check on ticket sales for that night and make sure there haven’t been any problems. By problems, I don’t mean disasters, I just mean that we look to make sure every patron will be happy. For example, a few nights ago a woman mistakenly bought tickets for the wrong night and so we worked with the Box Office to get her new seats in the best place possible.

After checking with the Box Office, we check in with Emily, the stage manager, to make sure there are no problems in the theater. One night we entered the theater and there was music blasting from the ceiling. It sounded like there was a radio playing – not quite ideal for watching a play. Jess and I worked with the producers to get the music (which was from another theater nearby) turned down so that it was only barely audible for our show. After talking with Emily, we do a ‘sweep’ of the seats. We don’t literally ‘sweep’ the theater every night, but we walk through to make sure there are no programs or anything left over from the previous night’s show.

Finally, the crowd arrives and we communicate with Emily (who’s talking with the actors and musicians) about when to open the house. Once the house is open, I usually help people find their seats. Jess keeps running back between the lobby and box office to see if everyone has picked up their tickets – we try not to start the show if there are many tickets waiting to be picked up, but we also can’t hold up the whole show for only a few people.

Once the show starts, Jess and I can breathe. We clean up the lobby and start doing paperwork. Over the past two weeks I have also been watching part of the show to see how it’s going. I thought the show was really great when we opened but it has grown so much over the past three weeks.

Before I go get ready for tonight’s show, I want to put a plug in for ushering. For every show we need two ushers – one to collect tickets and one to sell concessions. While they’re volunteers, they get a free ticket to the show! It’s a great way to see the play. If you’re interested e-mail Jess at comps@companyone.org.

Alright now I’m off to the theater. I hope to see you there! I can’t believe we only have two weeks left! Buy your tickets and come see “After the Quake!”

* Grace

Front of House

2009-08-04T06:46:00.000-07:00

Hi again!

So for the past few weeks I’ve been wearing my House Manager hat, as opposed to my production assistant one and life has been hectic. I am in almost constant contact with the Box Office and I’m sure they’re getting a little annoyed with me, but that’s okay. Emily, the stage manager, and I have the task of opening the house and show on time. As far as the house is concerned, she is in charge of making sure the actors are backstage, musicians in place and that everything is set for the audience to join. My job is getting the house open as close to fifteen minutes before curtain as possible. Once the house is open it’s her job to make sure we start as close to our scheduled time as possible, and my job to make sure that everyone gets into the theater. It’s like we have these goals that we come at from two different directions, and when everything goes according to plan we stay on schedule.

There’s also the fine dance of seating latecomers. You don’t want to interrupt the show, but at the same time you want your patron to be able to see what truly is an amazing show. When we decide to seat them, I usually let Grace take charge of that. More often than not she had helped the audience find their seats and knows the best place to put the patrons without disturbing everyone.

With Grace’s help we’ve been keeping records of how many people are coming to see each show and what type of tickets we’re selling. It’s really interesting to see when you get an older theater-going crowd as opposed to a curious younger one. And each night is certainly different. The paperwork and counting of tickets isn’t the most exciting thing in the world, but it is interesting to see the big picture at the end of the day.

I’m also in charge of hiring volunteer ushers. People who want to lend a hand and see the show for free. It’s a really great way to get involved even for just a few hours. You should consider it and email me at comps@companyone.org.

Well, I’m off. If you haven’t seen After the Quake yet, you should. If you have, you should tell your friends to see it. No harm in a little free advertising right?

Have a wonderful day!
Jessica

Frog becomes frog...

2009-07-23T11:02:00.000-07:00

Opening! Hurray!

The opening night performance was fantastical! The audience seemed very pleased and the actors were definitely in the zone. The Frog makeup turned out looking FABULOUS. We spray both his feet and his hair with green makeup so that he matches his green leather jacket and pants and whatnot. I must say that when spraying his hair green every night I appreciate the fact that I learned how to do it spraying my own hair weird colors in middle school and high school, otherwise I would probably screw it up.

All in all I would say it was a very smooth, high spirited opening, and I am super excited to continue with the run, because the way the show changes just slightly each night, is what makes the whole experience fun, even if it doesn't go as well as you had hoped. Now all that's left to do is sit back and enjoy the quirks of live entertainment, and of course watch Superfrog save Tokyo.

Alycia

The arch takes flight!

2009-07-22T09:13:00.000-07:00

Hello again!

Sorry for the absence, I know you all have been sitting on the edge of your seats to hear back from me and your waiting hasn’t been for nothing. In my absence we survived through tech week and opened the show to great success! Tech week was as stressful as it normally is but the good thing about a week long load-in was that it gave us time to really iron out all the little bugs on the set.

My project with the arch went…well. Differently than I originally planned, but with some creative problem solving and brain storming with Mark we managed to get it flying. Instead of using the rigging system I originally planned to use, we found out that safety cables worked much better and allowed us to adjust the height and placement a lot easier than rigging it with airline cable.

This was a fun production to work on, and I think we all did the best we possibly could and created something special and unique. When I watched the final dress I was taken aback by how far we came from the first production meeting. There were many ideas tossed around, some made it to the final product, some didn’t. But everything that did, came together beautifully and I don’t think the show would have been as powerful if it did not have all its pieces. I don’t want to give too much away about the story, set, or music, but I will say that every one of you should go see the show. I want you to see the world that we have created and to immerse your self into the story that is being told. I’m very proud of what we have produced here and I would like to thank Company One for giving me this opportunity as well as Mark for everything he has taught me as his assistant.

-Nick

Grace Geller: Opening Night Here We Come

2009-07-19T10:02:00.000-07:00

“What you see with your eyes is not necessarily real.”

This line epitomizes “After the Quake.” Watching the many technical and dress rehearsals this week, I keep being reminded that this play is a world of fantasy and storytelling. In my past blogs I’ve talked about the many transformations and transitions in the play. Now though, with everything together – lights, set, and sound – I’ve come to see that the transitions between worlds are not as important as the merger of those worlds. “After the Quake” is about a man, Junpei, creating a superhero story for Sala, a little girl tormented by nightmares. As the play progresses, the line between Junpei’s reality and story blurs. His characters are as real as himself. When Frog, Junpei’s superhero, reaches down to grab Junpei’s hand and lift him out of the shock and depression of the earthquake, the audience is shown how Junpei’s story is not just for Sala. By the end of the play, Junpei is changed from his story. He learns his own moral: that everyone is important and no one should be controlled by fear.

I can’t stress how beautiful the play is. The set and lights were designed beautifully. There are so many breathtaking moments created by great poses and use of color. I’ve also recently been struck by the humor in the play. When I first read the play, I thought that it was a fun story; however, probably because I did so much research on earthquakes, the element of fear had really come to the forefront in my mind. Fortunately, for the last two weeks, the humor in the play has reemerged. Although the story is about fear, there is in no way a dark element to the play. The fear happens before the play starts, and the humor is, in a way, how Junpei deals with it. There are so many lines and movements where the audience can’t help but crack up. Watch for Frog’s disappointment when he learns Katagiri has never read “Anna Karenina!” This week, even though I know the actions (and most of the lines), I found myself laughing throughout our dress rehearsals.

As for what I’m doing now, I’ve been helping out during the day – painting and sweeping and taking notes on the rehearsals at night. One of my favorite jobs has been acting as a stand in for the actors. I’ve pretended to play all the different roles in the cast to help the director and designers light the show. I get to jump on the platforms as Frog, hide in the boxes, and lie in the beds. I run around, say the lines, and then am told to move a step to my left.

This will be my last post as Assistant to the Director and Dramaturg. I have loved working with Shawn and Liana and am very sad that this part of my experience is over. Opening night I begin my next post – Assistant House Manager. I’ll be the one helping you in the lobby if you have any questions. I can’t wait to see you all at the show! I’m so excited for the run to start!

See you soon!

Grace

Tech...Dress...Costumes...

2009-07-15T22:29:00.000-07:00

So I just got home from rehearsal tonight and today's was the closest it's been to the final production. We've been doing tech all week but the second run today was with all the lights in the house out and everyone watched it as if they were just an audience. It was great!

Parts that were pretty funny in rehearsal were hilarious this time around and there were little bits here and there that the actors changed, like intonations and expressions, that were great! It really felt like it was coming together. Backstage, it definitely is. We added green to Frog yesterday and after the additions of some snaps, velcro, patches, and other little things, there's not too much left to do. The Big Bear hat might change before opening but really, everything is coming together. Even the bra trick is usually fast enough! Searching for the right top for Giselle was pretty tough and overall, I think most of the shopping time went to that but the top she has now is perfect and I'm glad the color works well for Sayoko, even if it wasn't what was originally planned.

The musicians have their costumes now too and they look great! The style is great on them and the color ties in well with the set without hiding them. Commuting to and from rehearsal every night this week has been a little tougher than I would have hoped but I've learned my way around Boston and the Mass Pike pretty well, which is an unexpected perk. I think my favorite part of this whole experience has been Sydney's comment about her pajamas. It's always nice to hear that a costume you worked on is an actor's "most favorite costume ever" (and she looks adorable in it). I'm really looking forward to hearing what my friends and family think of the show after it opens.

*Paige*

Grace Geller: Putting it all Together

2009-07-08T20:37:00.000-07:00

Happy July 4th to everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend. This was the first year I spent the 4th in Boston and it was beautiful! I got a spot with some friends on the Esplanade RIGHT in front of the barge. The fireworks (and Boston Pops) were amazing!

On Thursday I went to help ‘clean’ and add small touches to the set. I was under the impression this would mean sweeping (which it did), but was unaware I would also be given power tools – not my forte but I managed. I’ve been looking at the set model for weeks and enjoyed watching the elements come together. I don’t want to give anything away, but the set contains many surprises. As in “After the Quake,” where the story transitions from fantasy to reality, the set itself is full of magical transformations. Watch out for people and objects appearing out of nowhere!

As for rehearsals, we had a long break and are now in the theater! The set is mostly finished and so today we were able to play with all the different prop and set pieces. Unlike many plays where stagehands move elements of a set, such as chairs, in “After the Quake” the actors are the ones to change things. We spent a while today explaining all the transformative elements to the actors and working out kinks.

Besides using the set, tonight we also rehearsed a full run with music for the first time. We’ve added music to every section individually, but have never run through the whole play at once with all the music. Although we added a lot, the run went pretty well. It was also great to be able to hear the play – actors and musicians – and check the volume in the theater. The incorporation of music tonight went really well. The music feels very fluid and truly is a necessary character in the play.

This week we’re doing full run-throughs of the production leading in to tech next week. Because we’ve already worked in sound and set (which are normally two major components of tech week), hopefully tech will go pretty easily as we will mostly just have to work in lights.

I look forward to watching it for the next two weeks from every seat, every angle, to make sure every audience members gets the full experience. I’m so excited for the show to start! Buy your tickets! It’s going to be a great production.

See you there!

* Grace

The World Comes Together

2009-07-07T07:03:00.000-07:00

First off, I just have to say that I forgot how much I absolutely adore walking through Boston at night in the summer. One of my favorite things to do. I was thinking about that as I walked to the T from rehearsal tonight and deciding exactly what I would write in this blog entry.

That being said, the show has grown so much it’s hard to believe we have so little time left before opening. I’ve spent the past week or so away from rehearsals. When I wasn’t off celebrating the fourth (hope you had a good one) I was helping Nick and Mark build the set. Now, I’ll be honest. When it comes to carpentry, I’m much better at building a quarter-inch scale model of a set than the “full scale model”, as one of my teachers fondly refers to it. I can work an X-Acto knife much better than a table saw. Still, it was nice to be back in a scene shop. I find the smell of sawdust oddly comforting. And it was nice to be able really feel progress coming along. I mean, watching the rehearsals you can see the actors get more and more into character each night. They truly are progressing, but for me I was really gearing to go. And it was great to be given a drill, some screws and wood and told to build a step, and then to have that step there. It’s a nice little ego boost.

Problem was, the scene shop was at the rehearsal space which is not near the theater. And so we had that day where we carried every piece of furniture into a uhaul, and then out of the uhaul and into the theater. I was reminded of carrying set from the stage of my high school to the back of the bomb shelter (yea we had one, it was creepy) where we stored things. But on load-in day, when I was doing my best to help carry the bed, I just kept thinking about those long walks with some obscure piece of set. I had a little nostalgic moment there. But once we had everything unloaded in the actual space I jumped immediately back to ATQ mode. Soon enough, this little world we’ve been talking about for months was actually taking shape. And once the painting started it just started to come together that much more. I helped a bit with the texture of the bamboo and Sean did a really great job making the floor actually look like bamboo. Props to him.

But now that I’m back in rehearsals I’m a bit baffled by how far they’ve come. It’s almost a completely different show, but in a great way. There was one moment tonight where Sydney screamed a scream of terror and I had completely forgot it was coming. I literally jumped. And though I’m only twenty, my innate maternal instincts went crazy. And then I was just impressed by the work they’re doing.

You’ll just have to see for yourselves what I’m talking about. I’m really glad I’ve gotten to see this show transform so much.

Have a good one!

Jessica

Alycia Marucci, a frog?

2009-07-01T21:59:00.000-07:00

Hello again everyone!

Another week down, and I am happy to report that we have made great progress since I last posted. This week has been subject to run-thru's and long work lists of very specific moments. Its working out very well though, the scene between Sayoko and Junpei in college changed a lot this week, and now the moments in that scene are clearer than ever.

I got to play Frog this week! Well, sort of. Mike was not in rehearsal on Monday, so we worked around most of the Frog and Narrator moments, but we had to work a couple of transitions with music, so it was necessary to know the specific timing of the onstage frog to narrator quick change, which means of course that I was asked to put on an overly large mens green jacket, white gloves and the narrator hat. It was pretty hilarious I think, the jacket pretty much swallowed me. I also always feel badly when I have to stand in during scenes, because usually all of the actors are forced to adjust to the fact that I am much shorter than their usual scene partner. If I could I would remedy the situation by wearing super awesome platform shoes, or boots or something, but alas, I am not equipped with such luxuries.

We have the weekend off of rehearsal for the fourth of July, so we will be 4 days away from the show after Wednesday night's run-thru. Usually something falls apart when you take that many days off from a show, so we will see what happens. I am hoping though, that enough has solidified in the last couple of days, and we worked moments specifically enough so that everyone will be able to fall back into it when we come back from the break...and before we know it we will be in tech! I love tech, its my favorite part of the rehearsal process because it moves both the fastest and slowest of all the rehearsals throughout the whole production process. More to come next week!

Alycia

Russ likes Japanese food...

2009-07-01T08:13:00.000-07:00

The show is getting closer!! That means a lot of running around for me. In the last few weeks I’ve made some follow up e-mails and phone calls to businesses and clubs in the Boston area that expressed interest in either coming to the show, or buying advertising. Most restaurants that I called were really fun to contact for a couple reasons. First, the people even if they couldn’t make a commitment on the phone seemed genuinely interested in the show. Secondly, I came to realize just how many family- owned Japanese restaurants there are in Boston. Sometimes there was a bit of a language barrier and it was cool to be able to get our message out there despite temporary obstacles! It makes you realize how many small, family-owned companies make an imprint in our city. Third, it reminded me of just how much I love Japanese food.

This week however I start postering and leaving postcards at businesses all around Boston. That way, when someone is waiting to get their hair cut wondering what to do on July 17 there is a poster/postcard right there. This is also great because the owners of the establishments ask about the show, any of their customers also ask, and the word is spread!

So hopefully by Wednesday there will be a green poster with a frog on it saying AFTER THE QUAKE everywhere you go.

-Russ

Paige Warren: Holding Down the Fort

2009-06-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

So while Miranda is away on a vacation this week, she left me with a couple assignments to work on. I'm currently in the middle of working on Sala's (Sydney's character's) pajamas and trying to think of more ways to make the illusive 'bra trick' work as well as researching different potential narrator hats.

Last week she asked me to look up "too cool for school" hairdos for Sala which was great! I'm a huge fan of Harajuku fashions (particularly Decora and EGL) so I realized a lot of those styles, which are based on little girl hairstyles, would work really well on Sala. I happen to have the Fruits and Fresh Fruits books which I went through, marking the styles that would work for Sydney, and passed the research off to Miranda.

This process has already been really rewarding and I'm eager to get back to work on the pj's. I am a little anxious since I'll be speaking in Miranda's place for her at this Sunday's production meeting but I know I don't have too much to be worried about since everyone's always been really nice and welcoming at the meetings. Next week we're really gonna dive right into building, shopping for, and painting more of the pieces as we get closer to tech week.

*Paige*

Nick Tosches: The Technical Side

2009-06-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

Hello once again everyone out in internet land. A lot has happened since my last blog and since there is no sense in beating around the bush with pleasantries, so I shall get right down to business.

We started set build this week and things have been going awesomely. Mark asked me what project I would like to take on with the set, and after some thought I decided to work on the archway (it’s going to be a floating Japanese style pagoda roof/arch thing). I chose this project because I wanted to learn how to rig and hang something large that isn’t just a flat piece of scenery. So most of the job will be done during load in, but I succeeded in finishing building the frame work and 3 sides of the facing in only two days. Besides the set building, Mark has been teaching me the nuances of being a tech director from scheduling to what pieces of scenery are a priority and such. He has taken the time to discuss how to deal with designers and directors and how you can make their vision come true while doing your other duties, and this week’s lesson was that something should not fail simply from a lack of trying. Even though your first instinct may be to say no because what is designed or asked for seems impossible, impractical, or over budget, there is almost always a way to execute it.

So next week is looking to be just as fun and tiring as this week was, as we finish the set build and begin our load in. I am also looking forward to the designer run this weekend and hopefully we’ll be able to keep up this awesome pace that we have set for ourselves. See you all later around the blogosphere!

-Nick

ATQ: Jess Strikes Again...

2009-06-27T15:57:00.000-07:00

Hello again from your friendly PA. After the Quake is going swimmingly (I like adjectives). But honestly, as each week passes the show gets better and better. Now with the rough blocking done, the actors are starting to really delve into their characters and why they do the things they do. It’s part of what I personally love about theater, watching a play grow and transform from the first read-through to opening night. You see ‘characters’ become people and a whole be created in front of you. It’s really something and this cast is really growing with their characters.

The set is now being started as well and I’m excited to see this world literally come into being. I have a soft spot for scenic design, specifically painting, and I can’t wait to finish the building and get to work on painting it. I think the model and designs fit the concepts for this show so well, that I really just want it to be opening night so everything falls into place. I won’t give too many details; I couldn’t do it justice, so you’ll just have to come see it for yourself (:. But I just love that everything is starting to take shape. We’ve been talking about this deadline of sorts, opening night being in the middle of july, but as it gets closer and closer everything sort of starts coming together. It’s exciting and I’m so happy to be a part of it.

I really am ready to get into House Manager mode. The stage management crew and I have all been joking, we all wear glasses, but when I trade my PA hat for my house manager hat I’ll start donning my contacts. Just a little anecdote to make you chuckle. Speaking of stage management, I told Alycia I’d mention her fantastic drawings that are decorating my folder. My particular favorite is the wood that says “Hey. We’re Norwegian.” But thanks to this show Norwegian Wood is slowly climbing its way up my list of favorite Beatles songs. The music is really bringing this show together. The cast was doing such a good job, but me saying music when the script calls for it just isn’t the same as hearing the violin and bass clarinet come in with their haunting melodies. It was like the missing piece to the puzzle and it fits so organically that it’s no wonder why the script calls for so many specific music cues. I’m really just excited to see it all finished and come together.

Happy Theatering!
Jessica

P.S. If you haven’t checked out the video trailer, you should. It’s pretty baller: http://www.companyone.org/theatre_show_2008_quake/photos_videos.shtml

Grace Geller: Take Two

2009-06-23T10:25:00.000-07:00

What’s scary about boiling Brussels sprouts? I have no idea, but there’s something creepy when Frog compares inflicting ‘physiological terror’ on Big Bear Trading to boiling Brussels sprouts. This is one of my many favorite moments in “After the Quake.” Murakami is a beautiful author. His words paint an elegant story that has been masterfully translated into a play by Frank Galati.

Despite the shudders Brussels sprouts now give me, “After the Quake” is not about terror. As we’ve been working through the production process there have been many discussions about the element of ‘fear’ in the play. The play hinges on nightmares surrounding the 1995 Kobe earthquake. But, as the title states, it is a play about what happens ‘after the quake.’ It is a play about how people deal with fear – from widespread death and destruction to personal insecurities. The play depicts universal problems and showcases the best of people. There is hope for every character, from the lonely honey bear Masakichi to the central character Junpei. There is hope that everyone can face their fears.

We have a little under a month left and we’ve already started doing runs of the show. Last week we incorporated the musicians into some scenes. Music is a HUGE element to “After the Quake.” The musicians will constantly be on stage and act almost like another character, helping to drive the show. Music is also vital to help the audience understand the progression of the play, as it switches between time, place, and character rapidly. Although I knew all this from reading the play (and seeing all the music cues), it was a shock to hear the musicians actually there working with us in rehearsals. I had grown accustomed to all those awkward moments. But now, music really brings the show together; it fills in pauses and creates charming moments.

Working on the show so far has been a truly rewarding experience. I am able to talk with Shawn (the director) and Liana (the dramaturg) during each rehearsal and then watch my comments effect the scene. I’ve also been working individually with some of the actors before each rehearsal, helping them with character work and their objectives for long monologues. I feel like I’m really a part of the rehearsal process.

I’m off now to start “Norwegian Wood,” one of Murakami’s novels. You should watch the video trailer and get your tickets for this amazing play.

I’ll write again soon!

* Grace

Russ is busy!

2009-06-22T09:04:00.000-07:00

Hello Again!

The last couple of weeks have really gotten the ball rolling. E-mails and phone calls have gone out to more businesses and clubs than I can count. Each message is spreading the word about After the Quake. I have gotten feedback from many of the companies that I have called and they sound genuinely interested in our upcoming show.

Giving out postcards continues as always, and posters will be going up around town this week. The posters look fantastic!

I am going in on Tuesday to map out an effective postering strategy, and to make more calls.

Short but sweet, as things get underway.

Also remember… the best way to spread the word about After the Quake is by word of mouth. So if you can think of anyone or any groups that would be interested, let them (and me) know! We want all of Boston talking about the show!

-Russ

Alycia Marucci, ASM, Round 2...Fight!

2009-06-19T16:24:00.001-07:00

Hello again everyone!

This week has been quite productive in rehearsal. We managed to work on a lot of the dynamic between characters during scenes as well as add in music to some of the transitions. It is definitely a challenge working with live original music, but I think that the end result will be phenomenal, it already sounds really good when the chaos of adding the new element to the play subsides. We are doing our first run through on sunday, which should be super helpful for stage management to really understand the flow of the piece, as well as the specific timing for a lot of stuff that we haven't been able to work as a whole yet.

I have taken to spending my down time in rehearsal doodling on post-its and giving them to various people. Emily's and Eliza's production books are already littered with my periwinkle 2-dimensional masterpieces. So far I have successfully animated the following:

- the character of Katagiri as a cheerleader, jumping in support of Frog in the middle of his battle with worm.
- Sayoko hiding behind her japanese fan.
- the stage management team (with a caption stating that "Stage Managers are Coo.")
- the weather outside the rehearsal room on Sunday (mother nature thought it would be quite spectacular to allow the sun to show its face only during the hours of our rehearsal, and deemed the rest of the day rainy)
- a spy. (unrelated to the text of the play, it was however a secret-spy note regarding very important prop information...)

more next week once we start doing run-throughs!

Alycia

After The Quake: Paige Warren

2009-06-16T07:14:00.000-07:00

I was beside myself nervous when I first met the Costume Designer, Miranda Giurleo, for whom I would be interning, and again when I met the rest of the cast and crew for After the Quake. I had no idea what to expect since this would be my first costuming position outside of an academic setting and it was the first time I would be working in Boston. Although I kept reminding myself that the three years I spent in high school working on costumes and the two I've spent so far in college at UVM had prepared me for the majority of my responsibilities as Assistant Costume Designer, I was nervous that I would fall short and let the designer, and myself, down.

When the time came I was relieved to find out that many of my responsibilities were just what I was eagerly anticipating and that the cast and crew have been very welcoming, supportive, and helpful. Since the company and the production are a smaller scale than I expected at first, I've found that I've been able to really focus on the business side of costuming (less of what goes on stage and more of how it got there to begin with). I can't begin to describe how amazingly helpful this process has been, especially at a professional company, and how much I've learned in just the first few weeks of working. Speaking of which, I actually need to update the Costume Bible for After the Quake now. I can already tell that this production is going to be enriching in many ways.

Paige

After The Quake: Nick Tosches

2009-06-15T07:53:00.001-07:00

Greetings to you all in the blogosphere! I’m Nick and I am currently a upcoming Senior at Emerson College majoring in stage management. Yes, I know what your thinking; “What is a stage manager doing building things and not taking rehearsal notes?” Well that’s cause I also enjoy carpentry/propping/anything that requires a hammer to bang things into shape just as much as banging out paperwork. I first started working in theatre as a stagehand/carpenter at my high school. After my director asked me to be the school’s production manager my senior year, I learned that I also liked organizing and running rehearsal/tech/and the other general fiddly bits of management. So while I stage manage by night I usually spend my days as a carpenter.

This is, however, my first time as assistant technical director and I want to thank both the technical director Mark VanDerzee and production manager Sarah Cohan for giving me this great opportunity. Hopefully I just have to combine my skills as a stage manager and carpenter and everything should be fine right? So far I’ve learned that there is a lot of looking at the big picture as a TD that a stage manager does not necessarily have to do. For example, while a stage manager might have to think about the safety of an actor who has to stand up on a 5’ tall platform, a TD has to think about not only the safety of the actor, but how is that 5’ platform going to be built so that it is both safe/structurally sound/and aesthetically pleasing. It’s definitely a different way of thinking, but coming up with a solution to a problem is the fun part.

So far it’s been a read through and production meetings with the occasional meeting with Mark about budgetary and technical elements, but I am really looking forward to the build for this show because this set is kick ass! I’ve always been a fan of combining the traditional with the modern, and the set designer, Sean Cote, has taken the elegance of traditional Japanese style and combined it with the boldness of modern design. I won't give too much away as I want all of you to come see this play for yourselves. This set along with everything else truly portrays the kind of magic you can only get in theatre. And I get to build it! I know you are all jealous, but you should have thought about that before reading my blog.

So thank you all for reading this and I will catch you all later in the continuation of this blog, And as Jessica said before me, I hope you all are getting excited for the show, because I certainly am.

-Nick

After The Quake: Jessica Hegarty

2009-06-12T07:15:00.000-07:00

Hi all! I’m going to start with an introduction, which seems to be the trend. My name is Jessica and this coming fall I will be a junior at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. I’m majoring in theater and minoring in french out there in the valley and cannot express how excited I am to be back in the city and working with such a great company. Originally from the north shore, I’ve been doing theater since the age of nine and really just love everything about it. For this production I will be serving as the Production Assistant and also as the House Manager.

For me, I really just love theater. I knew I couldn’t spend another summer working in a tiny kitchen without air conditioning, pretending that I didn’t miss the stage. Well, let’s just say things seem to be working out better than I ever could have hoped. Being a production assistant is really the perfect way to just dive right in and get a great hands on experience. I change my mind every day about what career I want to pursue in theater and just being able to see all aspects, jobs I didn’t even know existed, is truly an amazing experience. So thanks Company One for making that happen :). But if you want the specifics, I
am in rehearsals, helping as much as I can. I tend to stick with the stage management team, assisting them primarily. I also work in the office at times helping with general company needs.

As far as House Managing goes, well I’ll be the one to answer your questions when you come and see this fabulous show :). I’ll be connecting with the stage managers and making sure the show starts when it’s supposed to and that you all find your seats. Front of house is going to be a new experience for me, but I’m excited to learn and try something new.

I hope you all are getting excited for this show; it’s really coming along and I think you’ll enjoy it. I look forward to blogging with y’all a bit more!

Happy theatering! <3
Jessica

After The Quake: Grace Geller

2009-06-10T11:47:00.000-07:00

Did you know that at 5:46 A.M. on January 17, 1995, the Great Hanshin Earthquake hit near the city of Kobe, destroying the city and killing over 5,000 people? I didn’t, until I started working this summer as Assistant to the Director and Dramaturg for “After the Quake.” In the past month I have learned about this earthquake and many other facts about Japan.

A little about me – my name is Grace and I’m a rising senior at Wheaton College, a Classical Civilizations major and Theater minor. I am excited to be working with Company One this summer. I started work one month ago and I’ve met so many amazing people!

So what do I do as Assistant to the Director and Assistant to the Dramaturg (yes, I do both these jobs, there was some confusion about that as the assistant stage manager thought the Assistant to the Dramaturg was just never around for the first week)? For much of May, I was working with the Dramaturg to create the Dramaturgy Packet for the actors. For any who don’t know, a Dramaturgy Packet is researched information given to the actors to help explain different aspects of that show. For “After the Quake,” the packet consisted of information on Japan, earthquakes, and Murakami, as well as shorter definitions of people or places referenced in the play.

Now that rehearsals have started, I’m working as the Assistant to both the Director and Dramaturg. I’m getting the opportunity to watch and be a part of every rehearsal. As part of my job, the Director or Dramaturg will also ask me to look up something before the next rehearsal. For example, today I’m learning how to bow properly in Japan so I can teach one of the actors.

I love working for Company One. I also LOVE “After the Quake,” Murakami has such beautiful imagery that translates perfectly into the play. Anyone reading this really ought to go buy tickets for the show. I’ll write again in a few weeks! I’m excited to see how the play develops!

-Grace

After The Quake: Alycia Marucci

2009-06-09T20:46:00.000-07:00

I suppose I should introduce myself since this is my first blog entry. I am Alycia, the second assistant stage manager for After the Quake. This is my first time blogging, so we will see how it goes. Ummm…

I am super excited to be working with Company One for the first time! I am having an amazing time in rehearsal, everyone who is here is fantastic, the attitude in rehearsal in incredibly low-key, and yet we still manage to focus and move forward really well.

We are a little over a week into rehearsal at this point. We finished blocking the show yesterday, and we are going to begin reworking scenes tomorrow morning. So far everything is going along smoothly, we are working with props and are partially off book so we are doing well.

We had to change rehearsal spaces because we had a morning rehearsal today, which meant we had to bring the props from our normal rehearsal space to the BCA studio in the south end. I must say I felt slightly ridiculous carrying 90’s cordless phone, an empty sprite can around in my bag all day.

I hope that was a good first blog entry! I would write more now except that my foot is falling asleep and I feel as though I should attend to the situation. More to come next week!

-Alycia

After The Quake: Russ Woron-Simons

2009-06-08T13:33:00.000-07:00

Hi! I'm Russell Woron-Simons. I am a native of Brookline and a rising senior at Vassar College. My double majors of Classics and Drama, as well as membership in various student-run organizations, keep me pretty busy during the school year. This summer I am very excited to be the marketing Intern for Company One!

So far my efforts have focused on getting the word out about “After the Quake”. I’ve been drafting letters and emails reaching out to different communities in Boston. I’m really trying to get people excited about the show, and am hoping to help build Company One’s reputation as a source of theatrical inspiration and thought.

I have also been handing out postcards on the street. (My job is very glamorous!) Actually, I’ve found passing out the cards has been pretty rewarding! The massive stack of cards are quickly dispersed and people seem glad to get them! And they read them! And ask questions! It has been fun to talk with all sorts of people about the play and Company One -- and I've met some really unusual people in the process.

I just began my internship a week or so ago… looking forward to seeing how else I can help as the “After the Quake” grows closer.

The Merry Month of May

2009-05-21T11:22:00.001-07:00

We are less then two months away from After The Quake. Two Months!

Let’s see where we stand…

We have our cast, we have our designers, some fantastic new assistants for the summer (who you’ll get to meet soon as well)… our team is good to go!

About a week ago we had our first production meeting, the first chance to get all the designers in one room with the director (Shawn LaCount, also known as the Artistic Director for Company One) This play is going to dip into the emotional basin of the audience, and bring to the front some amazing feelings. I hope you’re ready for the ride.

In other exciting news, the Elliott Norton Awards just passed (May 11th), and our own Summer Williams took home the 2009 award for Best Director of a fringe/small company (Voyeurs De Venus), CONGRATULATIONS!
http://www.stagesource.org/pages/22600_27th_elliot_norton_awards_2009.cfm

For those of you who have or know (or are) teenagers looking to sharpen their/your young acting chops, or need a great program for the student that does NOT want to spend their summer in the woods using an outhouse (just saying), click on this link --> http://www.companyone.org/StageOne_summer_program.shtml <-- and you'll be happy

Become acquainted with Company One's summer program: Stage One. Four two-week sessions, morning and afternoon options, running July 20th to August 14th, you can’t go wrong.

In the meantime, keep checking back here for updates!

We (of course) have some more meetings coming up, rehearsals are starting soon, and I’ll be here to leak news, (hopefully photos!!!), and anything else I can get away with!

-Alyssa

Well Hello!

2009-04-18T08:23:00.000-07:00

Who is this blogging you may ask? It’s time for another voice on the blog. For those of you who have not run into me at an audition or with a paint brush in hand, this is Alyssa McKeon, Asst. Production Manager. I want to meet you (yes, every last one of you), so I’ll let you on to a little secret. I’m working the door at The Superheroine Monologues, A Parody of Super Proportions (Check out the link if you missed the review in The Metro - http://www.metro.us/us/article/2009/04/17/01/0811-77/index.xml )

What I’m trying to say, dear people reading my posting, is that if you want to meet me, get out, get to the theatre, and come see my smiling face (along with a fantastic show!)! I’ll be there tonight, and next week, but the rest of the cast and crew will be working their spandex off all weekend long!

(Let me give you a helping hand: https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/168/1238612400000)

I’m not here to promote The Metro, but let’s be serious, they write about things I care about (like the Boston Theatre Scene) and have been known to break news before CNN (I’ve seen it happen my soon to be friends, soon to be as soon as you get out, get to the monologues and meet me… I’m serious).

The point being, right now, the BCA, home to giants such as SpeakEasy, The Theatre Offensive, Public Theatre, Up You Mighty Race, and DRUM ROLL PLEASE...Company One, is up to grab some serious money in a grant contest. 25 historic sights are competing for a $100,000 grant.

Wow.

$100,000 to go towards the BCA! The only thing missing is your vote (not mine, I’ve voted 3 times today. Do not ask questions, and do not tell…).

Click it and make it a reality: http://www.partnersinpreservation.com/boston/index.php?sec=vot.

I’m going to digress a bit, since we touched on resident companies at the BCA… lets sound some congrats out to all the Companies for a great showing at the IRNE awards! In case you weren’t there (some of us like myself tend to forget what day of the week it is or what their own name is, so we can’t always remember to make it to events…), our own MASON SAND took home the IRNE for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his role in Company One’s Assassins this past summer. Yes, I am going to tell you to share the love with Mason on our facebook page. He deserves it.

Enough about other people, lets get back to me and my life. The past few weeks have been consumed with After The Quake casting and callbacks, and I have to say, we are proud to present the Cast (head shots and all) to you on our webpage! I’m assuming you know where that is, since you clearly found this blog by facebook or our homepage… unless there’s something you’re not telling me. We’ll talk about it after we become friends at The Superheroine Monologues. Either way, we’re heading into the final stretch of preparations before full scale rehearsal breaks out! Don’t worry, we’ll be keeping you titillated until opening night (mark your calendars) on July 17th with teasers such as production photos and the by now FAMOUS Company One Video Trailers.

Ok people. I am, frankly, simply out of exciting news to tell you, unless you want to chat about the hair cut I’m planning (look out Boston!). Check back soon, I’m sure to have more links for you to click, and more things you NEED to know.

-Alyssa

THE PAIN & THE ITCH - Video Trailer + Boston Globe Article!

2009-03-09T11:10:00.001-07:00

Read the Boston Globe's article on playwright Bruce Norris and check out the video trailer for THE PAIN & THE ITCH, just released!

Company One nominated for 4 IRNE Awards!

2009-03-04T09:53:00.000-08:00

Company One has been nominated for 4 2008 IRNE Awards!

-Best Supporting Actress: Marvelyn McFarlane in VOYEURS DE VENUS

-Best Supporting Actor: Mason Sand in ASSASSINS

-Best Director of a Musical: Shawn LaCount - ASSASSINS

-Best Musical: ASSASSINS

Congratulations to all the artists involved!

To view all the nominees, visit http://www.stagesource.org/pages/22464_irne_awards_2008_page_one.cfm

Coming Up: THE PAIN & THE ITCH!

2009-03-02T13:55:00.001-08:00

Company One is proud to present the Boston premiere of Bruce Norris's controversial play THE PAIN AND THE ITCH, featuring Nancy E. Carroll. With a young daughter in serious need of attention and a ravenous creature possibly prowling the upstairs bedrooms, what begins as an average Thanksgiving for one privileged family unravels into an exposé of disastrous choices and less-than-altruistic motives. THE PAIN AND THE ITCH is a scathing satire of the politics of class and race, a compelling, painfully human examination of denial and its consequences. Following sold out runs at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre and New York’s Playwright’s Horizons, Company One is proud to stage this highly anticipated Boston premiere.

March 13 - April 4, 2009 - Boston Center for the Arts Plaza Theatre
Wednesdays + Thursdays @ 7:30 pm
Fridays + Saturdays @ 8:00 pm
Sundays @ 2:00 pm

Purchase Tickets
View Cast + Crew
View Photos

All In One

2009-02-02T10:59:00.000-08:00

Hello Ladies and Gents,

It is I, Tory Bullock, here and back in full effect for one last final post. Hold your "awwws" and "please don't go’s" because it is time for me to fade off into the sunset with my ARTiculation crew riding towards our next adventure. Due to the fact that i have fallen behind in a lot of the bloggage (yes i did in fact make up a word) this blog will be the most epic in length blog you will ever see, so brace yourself. I will be breaking down this blog into weeks so you will be brought up to speed on the entire process, and not just reflection. So our story will pick up where we left off: opening week.

OPENING WEEK:
Wow. The day is almost here. We are all set with costumes, the set is done, our dressing rooms are in order, our headshots are already up in the lobby, AND i just found out that i can get a free gift card to Qdoba which happens to be the main outlet for actual food around the theatre so it goes without saying that i am a very happy man. This is the first show that I’m not nervous for. I have done a lot of Theatre in my time - even though my time hasn't been very long, it is still time none the less and i have never not been nervous. This is due, yet again, to the fact that what we are performing has been a part of my life for so long. We have performed this piece in so many different ways that to do it in the same space with the same cast every night is really a relief. But while i am not nervous i am something else that may prove to be a little worse and that is 100% anxious. I say its worse because with my anxiousness comes the questions that actors DREAD: "Will people come?" "will they like it?" "am i going to mess up?" and those questions are currently making the rounds in my head…

OPENING NIGHT into WEEK 2:
I’m at the Theatre early. Call is at 6:30 and i am here at 5. Call it being antsy but i just could not stay home and from the looks of it neither could the rest of my cast. We are all here with the exception of Ms. Terri D. Nik is lying down on the stage doing his "actor thing" while Danny is sitting in the audience chairs going over his lesson plan for his class the next week. Lindsay is cueing lights with Mark and Eliza, Marvelyn is in the dressing room listening to Beyonce and eating mac and cheese, i am watching it all. Like an old man sitting on his porch with a cup of ice cold lemonade on a blistering hot day, i sit on the side of the stage and just watch in complete awe of everyone and everything that is about to happen. I’m still NOT NERVOUS, but there is a new feeling: pride. i am filled with such pride to share the stage with these people. From the core four all the way to the new recruits, we have become a real family and in the wonderful gypsy world of theatre you don't get too many of those – I’m still trying to figure out how i got so lucky. Fast forward two hours and we are at half hour until the show begins. We have already done our group warm ups - you could tell because the back rooms were filled with air, breathe, bellowing diaphragm supported hoots, and insane calls of UNIQUE NEW YORK (its a tongue twister try it sometime. Repeat it over and over UNIQUE NEW YORK). But the time for group warm ups has ended and we all find our own space in our dressing rooms and just get ourselves to a place where we can fully understand what we are about to do. For a lot of us this isn't just a show - this is a belief and a mantra. This show has been there for us when our own family and friends weren’t. It is much more than theatre because it is a piece of all of us. As Eliza comes through the door and gives us the call that all actors gear up for - "Places" - i stand up, look over at Nik and Danny and just say "Lets go". The Show was AMAZING! Wow it was one of those things where you couldn’t anticipate what the reaction would be, but once you got it you knew that everything was going to be ok and it was. It REALLY WAS!

WEEK 2:
So now the real game begins because since we have been chosen to be Company One’s "Page to Stage" educational production, we perform 10am shows with an 8am call - I don’t mind because I love the kids! The shows were really good - the kids get things that the late night crowd doesn’t pick up on sometimes so it was a lot of fun.

CLOSING NIGHT:
Ok so this is the big one. Emotions are running high and everyone is moving a little bit slower. I can see everyone's faces both excited and sad because this is the last time we will do this show in this space. After working on something for so long you miss it soooo much when it suddenly leaves. But we are actors and the job at hand is to put on a show and it is beyond me to not give two of the best last shows of all time.

We are back stage waiting, getting prepared to do it one last time. Before we go on stage I pull Terri, Nik, and Danny to a small section of the back corridor and we get into a huddle. Since I am a private guy (hah!) i will not tell you exactly what was said, but we all gave each other one big hug in acknowledgment of the journey that the four of us have taken as original creators of ARTiculation. Eliza comes through the doors and says "Places." We all walk out, and proceed to leave as much of ourselves as we can on that stage. Hopefully, we entertained some people while doing it.

-Tory

Opening Night!

2009-01-09T12:02:00.000-08:00

Its been a while, but I am back and in full effect.

So first off I would like to just say - wow!

This process will have special meaning for me for a long time. Since it has been a while I will start off from about a week ago. We started to build the set - I haven't done tech work in about four years so it was nice to get a drill and screws back into my hand. From the beginning I knew this was going to be something special but it didn't really hit me until I went to Boston Playwrights' Theatre for the first time and saw the most breathtaking sight i have possibly seen in my life...(dramatic pause)

ARTiculation is on the MARQUEE!!!

Outside of the theatre, we are literally the only thing on the marquee, and in that moment I realized just how big of a deal this is. When you're 18 and you say "this is what I want to do," whether it is college, a job, a career, or in my case a production, and about four years later you are standing in front of your name lit up in lights - it's pretty cool.

Now back to the set. Myself and Nik Walker had an unspoken agreement that our work on ARTiculation doesn't end with the words or rehearsal but it continues into all other areas. That's one of the things that I love about the people involved with this production - it's not about vanity or who has the most lines or who gets paid the most - it's about the family atmosphere. I love the fact that I can leave a 6 hour rehearsal and show up at the theatre an hour later ready to put up lights , sweep floors, and run errands side by side with the same people who I share the stage with. So, long story short, the set has been built and it looks amazing. Like I said in an earlier post, it is a sidewalk playground on steroids filled with poles and grates and just a lot of cool scenery.

We had our first dress rehearsals this week and they felt really good, with the exception of one where I froze and completely forgot MY LINES! I'm pretty positive it was noticeable and I was so down on myself about that because I don't forget lines! But anyway, at one point while I was sitting backstage halfway through the opening where Nik Walker is delivering "Dinner and a Conversion" I realized that we truly have a show on our hands. We have always had a performance, but we have never had a production, and this ladies and gentlemen is a production. It is the absolute best version of ARTiculation and I cannot wait to open officially in about 5 hours!

More post-opening,
Tory

2008-12-22T10:20:00.000-08:00

Hello again beautiful people. Tory here back and in full effect.

So we are wrapping up our first full week of rehearsals and WOW we are moving really fast. The week started off last Monday when we began to read through the final draft of the script. After that, we began to do what us Theatre folk call "putting it up on its feet". We played around with a lot of different staging ideas and wordplay, and what developed through the rest of the week was the beginnings of what will be the best ARTiculation show ever!

It's kind of funny because i'm just so excited about every aspect of this process from seeing the new postcards, to seeing pictures of us on the C1 web site, or even taking a glance a our brand spankin' new trailer that you'll all see on YouTube very soon. We also got a little glance at our costumes for the run and all I can say, while keeping it under wraps, is a LOT of color. The set can only be described as an emo playground on steroids - I will be the first to say it: Terri D. will hurt herself on this set. It is written.

In addition to adding a lot of new production elements we are also adding a LOT of music - we have turntables, acoustic guitars, lots of singing, electric bass, and tons of movement. This is definitely taking people out of their comfort zones, but it's also opening us up to things we never even thought about performance-wise. THANK YOU LOIS ROACH!

Ok guys and gals that's it for this time around. Good write, good night.

-Tory

ARTiculation Begins

2008-12-14T13:57:00.000-08:00

Hello beautiful people out there in internet world. This is your master of ceremonies, Duke of Linguistics, Commander of Funk, and all around good guy, Tory Bullock. For the duration of these first ever ARTiculation blog entries I will be playing the part of your poetic flight coordinator, weaving you through the ins and outs of the production. While I come with many titles, the one that I am most proud of is "co-founder of ARTiculation". For those of you who don't know, ARTiculation was founded in the steamy hot summer of 2005 by cast members Danny Balel, Terri Deletetsky, Simon Moody, Adobuere Ebiama, Nik Walker, and yours truly. Along the years we have shifted and shaped to form many different variations of which I am as proud of as the one we are currently taking. This is our first mainstage performance run of ARTiculation with four of the original founders performing. Danny, Terri, Nik and I, and new members Mike Cognata, Marvelyn McFarlane, Liz Rimar, and DJ Reazon, will be coming to you guys with 13 powerhouse shows, and we hope you're ready (i.e we hope you all have gone online and purchased your tickets!)

Since I get to talk to you guys well before the show even opens, there will be tons of breaking news (which i will represent by saying *BREAKING NEWS*) about sets, sounds, backstage updates and all of that jazz. Did Nik Walker injure himself in a musical retelling of the grinch that went awry? Did Danny Balel have an unfortunate tongue twister poem accident that resulted in him having to be sidelined for a show or two? These are the juicy gossip details that you will only find here at the C1 blog.

Enough of the small talk - here comes the juicy information that I know you all are dying for. We had our last script / production meeting last Sunday and let me just tell you all how EXCITING it was! We were sitting in our director's apartment, and just looking around the room gave me this intense feeling of "wow, we are really going to have an amazing show." For those of you who are in the dark, this run is, in part, a culmination of four years of tweaking, performing, touring, work-shopping, and testing, so I compare this run to a person who has been training for the Olympics for four years and then finally gets the chance to step onto the world's greatest stage.

That is exactly whatʼs going to happen in January when we set foot on the Boston Playwrights' stage, backed by Bostonʼs most creative and innovative Theatre company, Company One, all the while standing next to great friends who have been building this piece for years. It is going to be amazing, and I look forward to taking everyone through the process with us.

More soon...
Tory

Voyeurs Opens!

2008-11-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

Well hello all you lovely, curious folk who have stumbled across the Company One Blog! My name is Marvelyn McFarlane (you can call me marv) and I currently play the role of Saartjie Baartman in Voyeurs de Venus. I'm happy to report that we had a great opening weekend, and I especially thank all of you who came out on Halloween night!

Yeah, wow! What a crazy journey this has been. This is my second show with Co. 1 and i just love love them. Summer Williams is such an awesome director and an incredible human...although I thought she was crazy when she called and said I'd love to have you read for the role of Saartjie. And of course in my head i said "who?" and then when I read the character breakdown which said she is "a brown-skinned, voluptuously proportioned African American woman..." i thought . . . umm does she not know me? has she forgotten the lack of curves on my body aside from my forehead? Thankfully, i put all of that aside, went to the audition, and now here i am!

Being part of this project has been such a challenging and exciting process it's really hard to find the words to describe it. From the start I could tell we had a great cast. I could tell that everyone was really chill and incredibly talented. We were zipping right through rehearsals, almost everyone was off book very early on, and together we really began to see the play taking shape.

One of my personal challenges, besides trying to gain some weight so Saartjie wouldn't look so scrawny, was taking on the South African dialect. Somehow, this came easier than expected. Cheryl, our dialect coach, helped out a ton, and I also have a friend from Kenya who lived in South Africa for 10 years give me some direction. So after finding Saartjie's physical voice, the next task was how to tell her incredibly devastating life story without making her seem too sad. Summer would often tell me Saartjie is just stating the facts of her life in this scene. She's already dealt with it. This was so difficult because the more i learned about her life the more sad, depressed, and angry I became, and then I just had to make her seem complacent. Ahhhh! But somehow I've been trying to find the balance that shows her as a whole human being that laughed, cried, was angry, and yes even complacent.

So fast forward to us moving into the Plaza Theatre. We have a cast of eight, five dancers, 38 scenes, a revolving stage, present day, flash backs, and nightmares, crazy awesome lights and music, and yes - Becca - the blood and guts. All in a lil black box. Talk about in your face action! Lydia sure knows how to keep you on your toes. This is play is so loaded with content and questions that you will be chewing on it for days. In a good way, of course.

Ok so if any of you were at the talk back on Saturday you know I can talk for days so i'm gonna stop here with my random ramblings. But don't worry, there will be more to come! Come see the show and tell your friends!

-Marv

A look into Voyeurs de Venus

2008-10-16T09:45:00.000-07:00

Ahem. Hi. My name is Becca and I am playing Millicent, George Cuvier's assistant in the 1800s, in Voyeurs de Venus. Voyeurs marks my first occasion to work with Company One.

I must admit to being a titch sheepish composing the first Voyeurs blog post.

So far, my experience working on this show has been exceedingly positive. When I first read the play, my initial reactions were, "Blood! Boobs!", not necessarily in that order. I have to say that I am a huge sucker for stage gore. Knowing that the character I was auditioning for had occasion to get blood splattered it all over herself, stick surgeons tools into carcasses and play with the entrails only sweetened the deal. I was excited. Am. I can't wait. Occasionally we'll hear a direction referencing the location of the various buckets of blood around Cuvier's lab table. I celebrate inwardly at these moments. Buckets of blood! Yay.

Of course this play is about a hell of a lot more than tits and blood. It's about booty too.

Ha. I'm kidding. Kind of.

But seriously, folks, working on this production has pushed me in ways that I have never been pushed before as an actor. It is challenging as hell stepping into the skin of Millicent, into her world, allowing her to see the things that she sees, play a role in what she needs to be playing a role in and allow myself to experience these things as they happen. I find myself still struggling with that piece, giving myself permission to treat Saartjie the way she needs to be treated, the way that is true to the time and the circumstances. Damn, it's difficult.

I consistently find myself answering the question, "How does that feel?", after we've worked through a scene for a while with, "Awful. It doesn't feel good. But I think the more uncomfortable it is, the closer we are to where it needs to be."

The psychological/dream scenes are increasingly incredible to discover as well. I don't know that I've ever had the opportunity to explore the psychological side of a character before, as these nightmare dream sequences allow. One of my favorite directions so far: "Did you ever see that 'Black Hole Son' video? You know the part where their faces melt off? Yeah. Make those faces here." Melty faces. We get to make melty faces in one nightmare scene. Yay.

And the undercurrent for me through this whole experience so far is just a sense of honor. I feel honored to be working on this important and gritty and provocative piece, honored to have been exposed to it in the first place. I look around at all the creative and talented and professional actors and dancers, designers, writers, dramaturgs, dialect coaches, choreographers, stage managers and everyone involved and I'm just thrilled to be a part of it all, to be sharing the stage with them, to be dancing to "Brick House" with them. It's neat.

I can't wait to see how the show is going to evolve in the next week.

Or hell, even after tonight.

There are so so many directions for it to go.

It's exciting.

-Becca

From a Different Perspective

2008-08-19T09:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was talking with a friend about his 11 year-old cousin who owns a Mac Laptop computer and an I-Pod Touch. He was telling me about his experience of bringing his cousin to the Museum of Science, a place that used to be considered hip back in ’92 (ancient history!). The 11-year-old cousin, I-Pod in hand, was not impressed. He had one objective: to get back home to connect his I-Pod to his computer for an update.

What kind of connection is this teaching us? If you're reading this blog, you should stop now and buy a ticket for Company One's upcoming production of VOYEURS DE VENUS. Better yet, get that Company Card! I promise you it will be worth more of your time. All this blogging makes me think of Neil LaBute's introduction to his newest play "Reasons to be Pretty." He writes: "I like the person who spends more time working than on Facebook, the person who gets out there and lives his life rather than blogging about it or staring the mirror wondering about anything so damn inconsequential as looks or hair or yesterday. The future is now. It's time to grow up and be strong. Tomorrow may well be too late.”

I think we forget how unique the theatre is. There's this great play by an under-appreciated writer Alexis Clements who sums it up pretty well for me. The play is about a woman who presents a lecture on communication and asks the audience to confess their sins. She says: "Shall we make this a public confessional, a more equal exchange? Everybody loves that nowadays, right? Blogs, video, cell phones, television? But what about here in this room? In front of real, living, breathing people? Anybody want to try?" This public confessional, conversation, debate, discussion is exactly what Company One achieves, perhaps unconsciously.

"Company One redefines the typical theatrical experience by developing, producing, and promoting socially relevant plays and innovative educational programming that appeal to, represent and include Boston’s diverse urban communities." I don't think I understood what that meant when I first started out this summer with ASSASSINS, where I helped out as an assistant to Shawn LaCount (the director) and the rest of the company. I have come to interpret this mission statement as providing an atmosphere for community discussion. This starts in the rehearsal room. I had the unique role as both an insider and outsider to this process because I did not have a defined position like a Assistant Stage Manager or Designer. The most fascinating thing to watch was that Company One really does embrace collaboration, communication, and discussion. They do not fake it. I asked Shawn once “How much preparation do you put into a production? What do you do?” His response, was something like this: "Yeah, do your homework. But let the designers tell you what the scene is really about. And let the actors solve the big question." Shawn’s way of working reminds me of Anne Bogart. He lets his actors find their own way. And he’s not doing it because it’s trendy, he knows it works. Bogart, in recent interview said: “I have no interest in being in a room where people are simply doing what I want.” I think that’s pretty accurate to his process. Shawn (and the rest of the Company) are unique because they embrace disagreement as a vital part of the process and trust their staff. There's been a lot of stir about the timing of this show in the newspapers, on television, and online. But this isn't just good press. This is what Company One strives to do. To strike up a real conversation about things we don't even want to think about. I say that is a good measure of success.

Becoming involved with Company One got me off Facebook this summer. It gave me a way to "connect" to real people and not a computer. There’s a difference between interacting and collaborating. Collaboration requires intense listening. You barely see that in the office setting. I like to work in the theatre because it forces me to confront my fears, assumptions, and prejudices. In rehearsal, it forces me to get over my shyness, find a voice, be decisive, and listen to others. It makes me aware of time and space.

I could have very easily just had my part time job this summer. But I made the choice stop refreshing my e-mail and start communicating. I’m lucky I got to do it for three months. At least our audiences got a chance to really engage in some tough questions with REAL people for two hours. In the words of Mark and Summer in the ASSASSINS pre-show announcement, “Please turn of your cell phones. Not on vibrate. Please turn them off. Trust me, you don’t need them where you are going.”

Thanks again to Shawn, Sarah S., Sarah C., Mark, Summer, Sasha, Mason, the SMs Emily, Ellyn, Jess, and the entire company of ASSASSINS for an unforgettable summer. I can’t wait to work with Company One in the future!

-Greg Josselyn, Asst. to the Director

P.S. For someone who hates blogging, this entry is way too long!

And we return...

2008-08-07T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hello all. Been a long time.

I apologize for the lack of of communication. Doing this show six times a week for 5 weeks has made a certain blogger very tired, and as much I love writing for you all, believe me when I say that at this point in the game, if I'm not performing or working, I am most likely sleeping (and therefore unfortunately not filling your lives with blog material).

So this is it. The final performances. This run has been blessed...we've had only ONE not sold out show, and that was a Saturday matinee. The reviews have all been great. Audiences are really responding well, talking to us actors at great length in the lobby of the theater and providing the most interesting topics of discussion at the talkbacks.

I don't know how many of you reading this are actors yourselves, and therefore know the difficulty of a long run, but honestly, the biggest challenge for me has been keeping it fresh. I didn't know what that challenge meant until this production...the longest run of a show I'd done previous to this was three weeks, and there IS a difference. By the end of Week 3, your body knows the ins and outs of the show so well that it is way too easy to check out for a second - physically present, but mentally on another planet. Even with this threat looming, we've been turning in solid shows every night. Things that have been helping me personally keep it together... and please let me know if your experiences have been the same:

1) Reminding myself of scene objectives right before I go on. It keeps me wanting something and from simply existing onstage, which is a problem that I think a lot of us run into from time to time.

2) Connections with fellow actors. Especially in "Ballad of Booth" with David Dacosta and "Ballad of Guiteau" with Jeff Mahoney. Those guys are pros; if I find myself going off, all I have to do is reconnect to their eyes and I'm zapped right back into it.

3) Reminding myself what a privilege it is to be doing this. When I get tired, I sometimes just go "Yo. You're performing in a major Sondheim musical for wonderful sold out houses with one of the best theater companies in Boston, and many of the founders happen to be your mentors. So many people would kill for this, and you need to do your best every time." That always gets me gunning.

And on that note, as this dream of a summer starts winding down, I would like to officially go on record and say that it has truly been an honor. This has been one of the best summers of my life, and I thank every one - my cast mates, crew mates, band mates and all at C1 for this experience. And you, dear blog readers, I thank you all for listening to the mad rantings of me and a few of my friends. I hope you enjoy the show, and that I talk to you in the future.

Thanks.
-Nik

New shows!

2008-07-20T09:00:00.001-07:00

Company One has added 3 more shows to the run of Assassins.

4pm matinees on:
Saturday, July 26
Saturday, Aug 2
Saturday, Aug 9

Get your tickets soon!

Assassins Production Photos

2008-07-18T14:52:00.000-07:00

Check out photos from the show!

A View From The Other Side

2008-07-15T18:39:00.000-07:00

Another guest blogger this week! Blake L. Pfeil, playing Giuseppe Zangara in ASSASSINS, has agreed to spill his guts for us. Read and enjoy! - Nik

Hey, Blake here. We’re thru the first weekend of performances…to sold-out houses each night, mind you. Huh. I should have prepared the talented Mr. Walker, our tour-de-force Balladeer, for my guest blog spot a little better.. I have a few things I need to get off my chest, so please, if you need a glass of water, I suggest you get it now. You won’t want to get up.

I’m 20. I consider myself the baby of Company One’s cast of ASSASSINS...the youngin, the newborn, Sam Byck’s “bubula.” So imagine, for just a second, the what I might feel each time I am onstage with my fellow actors, each of whom (in some sense or another) has taught me a few things about this craft. I can go to school all I want, and I can study the mysteries of acting as much as I damn please, provided I schlep out a $40,000 check each year. But this is something much more exciting.

I’ve slowly developed more this summer (alongside truly gifted professionals) than any year of schooling will ever be able to give me. My mother knows: I’m a hands-on person. I can’t sit in a classroom filled with people and pretend to listen...instead I can watch Ed Hoopman as Czolgosz try to break a bottle every night and always get something else out of it. I can attempt to pry David DaCosta's Booth off Jon Popp's Oswald every night and always learn something different. I can sit and cry each night because Nathanael's Hinckley and McCaela's Fromme feel unworthy of somebody’s love. You can’t imagine what it does for a budding actor to listen to Mason Sand drive two entirely difficult Byck monologues home every night, swearing left and right, giving an audience something to think about…and I mean REALLY think about.

I’m trying to explain just how much these people have educated me in an artistic environment that I LOVE. It’s no mistake that I learn something different from Penny Hansen’s screams as Billy Moore for a Bubbalo Bill every night…or from the murderous rage that engulfs Liz Rimar's Sarah Jane Moore when Billy needs that goddamn Bubbalo Bill. See…when you can watch and listen to something like that night after night, it affects you.

I was talking to Jeff Mahoney, Mr. Looking-on-the-Bright-Side gonna-win-an-award-for-playing-a-real-Guiteau, about this feeling of elation that I get each night watching and listening to this group of extraordinary actors. Elaine Stritch said it best: “If somebody doesn’t have any talent, get off the stage! You’re wasting my time. But if they GOT it – and I’m talking about Mama Rose kind of talent: you either got it or you had it – I am so uplifted by talent. I can’t stop crying, applauding…screaming.” I am get this night after night after night. These people got it, and I am so thankful they do, because I am reaping so many benefits.

I’m 20. I should not be allowed onstage night after night with a company of such gifted actors. I’m learning. I’m dreaming. Somehow, by the sheer grace of God, I’m surrounded by this experience. This Wednesday can’t come soon enough.

Please come bear witness. If not for me, the 20 year-old (or, the Italian with a severe stomach problem and murderous hatred towards the government), then do it for my fellow cast members. You won’t believe your eyes. Your ears. Your head.

Heart? Oh, yes.

-Blake

Previews...

2008-07-11T10:31:00.000-07:00

Check out the previews about the show and our very own blogger extraordinaire - Nik Walker!

The end before the beginning...

2008-07-09T08:47:00.000-07:00

SO HERE IT IS. Production Week. Opening on Friday. Scary, but terribly exciting.

We're ready. I know I spent last week praising the work of my co-actors, and ironically, we weren't necessarily in as good a shape as I had thought we were, but that's to be expected when you make the move into the actual space. LaCount kicked our butts on got us right back on track. Last week was good; now we're kick ass.

The sound, lights and set have added so much. It is a straight-up playground for this material- creepy, seedy, dank and dark.

Come see it. Come see it. Come see it. Saturday the 12th is sold out, but the rest of the run is open. Go get tickets. Now.

Oh, and check out the trailer for the show posted below.

Lots of love, wish me luck.
-Nik

Assassins Trailer

2008-07-08T10:10:00.000-07:00

Check out the trailer for ASSASSINS - opening this Friday, July 11th!

We've moved in!

2008-07-01T20:35:00.000-07:00

Last night - a run for the first time in the actual theater space...wow. Walking out of the theater I realized that I have never been so moved in a rehearsal, nor have I ever been this thrilled to show something to an audience.

Granted, we haven't gotten our notes, so things may have gone horribly wrong and I just don't know it yet- but for me, this was something special. Everyone was on their game, and in the same vein as McCaela from the last entry, I will list what struck me.

Mason's Byck monologues were incredibly natural, settled in his voice and body, thought provoking and hysterical. Blake took Zangara up a notch, moving me to near tears as he pleaded with Oswald at the end of the show. Ed and Meredith's Czolgosz/Emma Goldman scene was heartbreakingly beautiful and real. Jeff and Nathanael rocked their Guiteau and Hinckley, stealing the show with their comic timing, intense physicality, and limitless emotional range. The ladies, McCaela and Liz, were riotously funny in their scenes, bringing a deep humanity to two of the craziest characters in the production. David and J-Popp's Booth/Oswald scene was on fire, and Chris was the most frustrating, hard-to-conquer stage enemy (as in his Proprietor vs. my Balladeer) I've ever had the pleasure of performing with.

Again, I could very well be in my own little bubble of excitement here, but I'm 99.99% sure that a lot of things were clicking and popping, and it is for allowing me to experience that magic that I, from the bottom of my heart of hearts, take a moment now to thank everyone involved. This is a blessing, a blessing, a blessing. I am having so much fun working alongside every person on this team, and each rehearsal is bringing with it tons and tons more to jump up and scream about.

Less than two weeks till opening night. I hope that whoever is reading this out there in Internet Land is excited for this, and that they will enjoy this crazy show as much as I am already. Yay.

-Nik

McCaela Joins the Blogging Ranks

2008-06-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

Hey, it's Nik. May I present...a guest blogger! McCaela Donovan, playing Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme, is here to share a bit of her mind with us. And it was her birthday on Wednesday, so she's really cool now.

Hey. It's McCaela.

When Nik first asked me to write a blog, my first thought (to quote Sarah Jane Moore in "Gun Song") was “…Shit!” Rather than give you some boring overview, however, I would like to take this time to give you a brief synopsis of why I love this cast:

-Nik (The Balladeer) - is the glue. There has not been one day where Nik has not been smiling, laughing, and talking to each and every member of this cast. He is genuinely thankful and happy to be there each day and you can tell he loves this show. His spirit and energy are both beautiful and palpable.

-Liz (Sarah Jane Moore)- is a character. Insane, bubbly, a clumsiness oddly reminiscent of the role that she plays. Liz is all of these things but she also has a quiet thoughtfulness to her who takes her work seriously, and then knows when to let it go and have a great time. If I were trapped on a desert island I would want Liz there to entertain me.

-Blake (Giuseppe Zangara)- is my little muffin. It is unfair because I’ve known Blake for two years prior to this experience, but I’m so thankful to be in a show with him. His raw sense of humor, solid commitment, and his ambition are just a few things I admire about him. Plus, he makes me loosen up and laugh my ass off, which is just a pure gift in itself.

-Ed (Leon Czolgosz)- is a working man, born in the middle of Michigan. Or he’s just Ed. Intimidating at first until you hear his infectious laugh, and then you just want to hug him and put him in your pocket. Although out of touch with today’s world, as in the facebook generation, we forgive him because Ed knows when it is time to work and when it’s time to crack the group up with a joke or comment. And we forgive him even though he cannot remember when to come in with his lines for Scene 16.

-David (John Wilkes Booth)- as Aretha once sang, the only word for David is R-E-S-P-E-C-T! Although I still have yet to know David as well as some others I know that he takes his craft very seriously. His commitment to this show and his dedication to this character make me want to work harder, if only to bring my work to his level. I know many among us feel the same. We could not have found a better leader.

-Jeff (Charles Guiteau)- drives a truck. Which is perfect. I don’t know why, I just love it. I have said this before, but I did not think that someone could impress me as much as Dennis O’Hare did when he played this role, but Jeff has done just that. His comedic timing and loveable spirit engulf the stage, not to mention the crazy twinkle in his eye that tells us that something is a little…off. Always professional, always positive and joyful, Jeff is a wonderful piece of the puzzle that completes this cast.

-Chris (The Proprietor)- is a badass. And he’s loving it. It has been wonderful watching Chris’ interpretation of the Proprietor grow. He keeps finding small but crucial moments to seduce us and the audience with his intentions. And if Chris’ voice could be described as a food, it would be Velveeta shells and cheese….delicious. He is quiet at first but there’s a lot to him and I look forward to getting to know him more.

-Mason (Sam Byck)- is not an asshole. His character is, but he’s not. He is a bit disconcerting when onstage, because he swears at everyone, but he has a lot of commitment to this role. His monologue work is genuine, funny, and twisted all at the same time. He’s the only person that could say ‘fuck you’ to Jeff and still be likeable.

-Penny (Billy Moore)- is a coin, but also a beautiful person. Our bonding began over a giant bowl of JP Licks ice cream and I hope it continues. A gorgeous and powerful voice, great stage presence is overshadowed by her genuine sweetness and fun personality. Don’t let her fool you, she may look sweet but there’s a wild child in there somewhere!

-Danny (David Herold)- cracks me up. He has that kind of ‘huck finn’ boyish face that I just want to squeeze. Adorable and funny, he is a no nonsense talent that I am excited to get to know when we finally have more than one rehearsal together! Plus his face in the ‘Roosevelt’ song could not be more perfect. Love it.

-Meredith (Emma Goldman)- eminates strength and beauty. Her scenes are full of power, touching moments, and clear glimpses of spot on humor that make her such a complicated character. I believe that Meredith is all of these as a person as well, and more, I’m sure. I’m excited to get to know her better as this process goes on. In the short time I’ve been around her, I feel that she has a maternal presence that makes you feel like everything is going to be ok, and maybe a little crazy sassy lady in there as well…we will see…

-Jon (Lee Harvey Oswald)- is like a ken doll except with a lot of substance. Adorable and sweet, Jon views his character with a positive hopefulness that only Jon could. Most people wouldn’t want to dig into Oswald’s motivations. Jon is not only willing to go there, but is willing to view him in a sympathetic light instead of pinpointing him as the villain. I think this speaks to Jon as a person and it will be interesting for the audience to see this side of his character as well.

-Nathanael (John Hinckley)- is my favorite duet partner. We bonded way back when we auditioned together. Nathaniel has a quiet exterior at first, but once you crack through the shell he has a ridiculous sense of humor and is just an all around great guy that you can count on. He has put so much research into his character and has made you want to root for Hinckley, even if he is a loser. And it’s nice to be around a person who you know will always make you smile.

Sorry if that was a bit indulgent and long winded, but all these people have made this a wonderful experience so far. Although I didn’t describe them, Shawn (the director), Emily (the stage manager), Jackie (the choreographer), Greg (asst. to the director), Jess and Ellyn (the asst stage managers), Jo (the musical director) and Sarah (the production manager), and everyone else with Company One have been amazing to work with, and continue to challenge me and all of us everyday. Thank you to them and everyone! (And Emily…I will try to be early to rehearsal from now on!!)

-McCaela

Putting it all together...

2008-06-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

After weeks and weeks of work, we started this week off with our first stumble-thru of the show. All crew and production team were present, and we in the cast were stoked to show them what we'd been doing.

Posted are a few photos from the rehearsal – there were a ton taken and we’ll probably post more with the next few entries.

It went through without a hitch, pretty much. A couple of mess ups on the last few songs...but let's be real. It's Sondheim. We had a good time, our "audience" enjoyed themselves, and the process continues.

Now that we've done that run, the name of the game is "clean up." Our amazing choreographer Jackie is in this week to tighten up the show - sharpen up a few of the numbers and help us pin down all things physical.

The nice thing that I've been noticing lately is that the cast is really starting to bond. Don't get me wrong, everyone's been nice for the whole process. There was a change this week, though...the "buddy-buddy-ness" stopped being just because we're all good people and started going into the "we actually like doing this show with this particular group" phase. It truly is a spectacular cast...we work hard, we bond well, and we REALLY know how to joke around and have a good time.

I'm gonna go to bed now. Cuz I'm tired. So yea.
-Nik

Words with Jon Popp

2008-06-16T07:25:00.000-07:00

Yo, what up. This week, instead of your regularly scheduled programming, we have a little treat - an EXCLUSIVE interview with Jon Popp, playing Lee Harvey Oswald. J-Popp has a busy schedule these days, not only rehearsing for the upcoming production, but currently closing out an extended run of THE HISTORY BOYS.

Here's what he had to say:

1) Where are you from originally?

JP: I was born and raised in Gloucester MA, home to the Perfect Storm, St. Peter's Fiesta, and a dying fishing industry.

2) Favorite song?

JP: Easy. Theme song to Gummy Bears. There was a phase in my life when I used to pretend that everything I drank was gummy berry juice which made me bounce really high...later I came to realize that it was just alcohol.

3) Favorite movie?

JP: I'm going to have to pull the dork card with the original Star Wars trilogy. I associate those movies with a period in my childhood where my imagination was on fire...my bed frames transformed into X-wings.

4) What first got you into theater?

JP: My 3rd grade class adapted the story of Little Red Riding Hood and The 3 Little Pigs. I played one of the big bad wolfs. I had a big pre-teen crush on the girl playing Little Red Riding Hood and I think somehow the wires got mixed up. My love for this girl blossomed into a love of theater....love-at-first-bite type thing.

5) As an actor, what are your favorite kinds of stories to tell and roles to portray? What do you enjoy conveying to audiences?

JP: I love stories that easily allow the audiences into their worlds with little resistance. They want to be transported and any show that is capable of doing so has that magic that is just so appealing to me as an actor. In this regard, strong comedic roles with lots of warmth and heart fit this type of story well for me. I find it much easier to engage with the audience if the tension and conventional walls of theater are broken with a few laughs.

6) What's it like playing the infamous Lee Harvey Oswald?

JP: When I told my mom I was playing Lee she cursed me out and said that she was not coming to see it. She has since changed her opinion, but her initial reaction was striking. It's amazing how one person can bring up such strong emotional responses from people. This guy really did have a major impact on people's lives, not just in this country, but an actual global impact. The research has been interesting, mainly because there are so many conspiracy theories to weed through.

7) Why do you think it's important for this play to be done now?

JP: Our nation is in such a state of economic and political turmoil that this upcoming election has become more important than ever. I think it's extremely important to reflect on the past and think about how the consequences of the actions of a small select group of people managed to shape an entire nation.

8) Throughout the course of ASSASSINS, the audience gets the chance to meet these people directly before, during and after their assassination attempts. If you had the chance to meet with Oswald after his assassination of President Kennedy, what would you say to him?

JP: I happen to believe in some of the conspiracy theories that mark Oswald as a patsy, so most of my questions would be focused on who else was involved and exactly how high up the chain of command the assassination plan went. I'd also like to ask him about Marina, his estranged wife. I'd like to see how much his unrequited love was a real motivating factor.

Well there you have it. Much love and thanks to Jonathan for the interview. Look forward to more cast interviews and interactions in the future!

-Nik

Ballads and Bonding

2008-06-10T18:34:00.000-07:00

Nik Walker, coming at you with round two. Thanks to Alex and eclectic_liz for commenting on my last entry. Y'all make me feel special.

Question: Why is it as hot as you know what here in jolly old Boston? What was it today, 100 degrees? God, why are you so mad at us? Not cool, man. Not cool.

Sunday, after rehearsal, some fellow ASSASSINS kiddies and I beat the heat by going to the cafe next door for some ice cream. It was mad chill bonding with them - we gotta to do it more in the future. Blake Pfeil and Danny O'Connor, our Guiseppe Zangara and David Herold (respectively), are ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS. If you see them on the street, please go up to them and ask to hang with them; they will definitely show you a rollicking good time. Also with us that day were Penny Hansen of the ensemble and Meredith Stypinski, who is playing Emma Goldman. Actually, as we speak, Meredith is right now at a callback in NYC for a touring production of Oliver! Break a leg, Stypinski.

This past week, we blocked two of my three Ballad scenes - "The Ballad of Booth" and "The Ballad of Guiteau". David and I are having a ton of fun playing around with the racially charged tensions in "Booth", especially because I happen to be a black man, and Booth is, as demonstrated in the scene, a blatant racist. I'm excited about Company One's casting decision in this instance...putting a black man forth as the representation of America in this particular show is an incredibly bold, fertile and provocative move, especially now in the midst of the Obama Mania that has swept the nation. It could potentially put a new spin on the show that's never been explored before. I've done some research, and I really can't find any other place where The Balladeer has been cast with a person of color. Anybody have any thoughts on this? I'm definitely interested to see how this pans out by opening
night.

Well, I gotta bounce. Liz Fenstermaker, the show's dramaturg, is coming to rehearsal tonight to give us historical contexts for our characters and help us out with any queries. I always love that stuff. That's right. I am pumped to get edu-ma-cated.

Talk to you soon.
-Nik

Assassins: The First Week

2008-06-04T11:32:00.000-07:00

Sup y'all. Nik Walker here, representing the cast and crew of Company One's 2008 summer mainstage, Stephen Sondheim's ASSASSINS.

Words aren't enough to describe how pumped I am to be a part of (and to be blogging with you guys about) this show. ASSASSINS has been my favorite musical since 7th grade; Company One has been one of my favorite theater companies since freshman year of high school, and The Balladeer has been one my favorite characters in musical theater for just as long - so the fact that I'm doing ASSASSINS with Company One and playing The Balladeer is just plain ridiculous. I'm not going to lie, I've never blogged before...it feels a little like I'm trapped in the ending of an episode of Doogie Howser, but anyway, look forward to a check-in on this site about once a week, with updates on rehearsals, behind-the-scenes stuff, shout outs from other cast members and tons o' fun.

We had a read-thru/sing-thru of the piece this past Monday after a week of busting out on the music. It was so good to hear everyone doing their thing, so many great choices were being made - I was bopping along uncontrollably. Jeff Mahoney is quite a force to be reckoned with - loud, proud and has put forth what is, in his words, a "Bat Shit Nuts" Guiteau. John Wilkes Booth is also electrifying in the hands of David DaCosta. We talked a couple of rehearsals back about where he wants to take the actor-turned-assassin with this production. He's done a lot of historical research on Booth, and he's very excited to see where this vantage point puts him.

Jeff, David, Mason Sand (playing Sam Byck), Ed Hoopman (playing Leon Csolgosz) and I were sitting around on our break time, discussing the large periods for each of us in the show where we don't have anything to do...the scenes for each character are pretty evenly spread. Ah, the wonders of a true ensemble piece. I think we unanimously decided that there would be plenty of runs across the street to the pizza parlor for a slice and a soda during performances. Hey, if the audience can't see us, we are most definitely not on the clock.

Talk to you soon.
-Nik

Welcome to the Company One Blog!

2008-05-05T07:06:00.001-07:00

The Company One Blog is up and running! We'll be redesigning our website this summer, so stay tuned for some great changes and blog entries.