Highlights from yesterday's tech

We're in the thick of it now! I pace around anxiously with little to do than give lame notes.

Highlights so far:

• Great blogging sound effects
• funny moment with bread
• Debating whether or not a character is "frozen", "blogged off", "trashed" or "wooshed"
• Some excellent choices in music
• The footlights!
• Amazing stop and start acting
• Wild Turkey Bourbon present from Artistic Director
• Assuming different weird physical positions while watching tech

Oh so much much much more!

Magic Theatre needs a l'il magic

Hey Folks of the ether:


The Magic Theatre, a 42 year old theater institution in San Francisco is in danger of closing its doors. They need to raise $350,000 in a few weeks to keep going.

It struck me personally yesterday as we were working on TIC on the Magic Stage. The theater my show is going up is where I saw the Magic World Premiere production of The House of Yes back in 1990 (or so?) when I was in high school. It was a production and play that socked me right in my gut (in a good pleasurable exciting way), further solidified my passion and excitement to be part of live theatre, and that there was space on stage for work that spoke to me.

Anyhoo, we're now in tech on that stage with my crazy little play. It's very meaningful and a lot of folks involved in the show have similar stories about that stage. Our local theatre ecology would be hard hit if they were to close.

For more info and to help contribute to their emergency fund,
head on over here. Or take a look around when you come see the show.

Cheap T.I.C. Previews for Friends of Peter!

Wanna see my play for $7.50?

Come to the Jan 2,3 or 4 Preview performances of T.I.C. (trenchcoat in common). All preview shows are now half off if you know the special code!

How to use The Special Code:
Buy a ticket online and enter "Peter" into the discount code field.
OR
Say "I'm using the Peter discount code" when you buy a ticket at the door for those shows
OR
Say "Peter" in a sexy hushed way when you buy a ticket.


We're in the theater now, running about the beautiful set and space. Terrifying, exciting, and hopefully awesome!

T.I.C. update

We've had a blast rehearsing T.I.C. amidst all the holiday fun and craziness. We had our designer run and the beast that is the play emerged as an entity, which I found exciting and comforting. Lots to do in the coming weeks but I think the play may very much rock.

So to tempt you, this play has

singing
private and public dancing
kissing
varying degrees of nudity
mutiple inappropriate moments
parts of bodies quoting talk show hosts
violent crime
sadness
one cheap mortgage crisis joke
a dream sequence
Internet jokes
a flasher
a buttload of sound a light cues
new terminology: Blogville (Vaudeville/Blog hybrid)
rainstick mockery
embedded truths about the playwright in hidden nooks of the play
A Mcgeyver moment

and oh so much much more

ok so that was meant to be tempting. You're tempted, right?

Favorite Movie this year

I think it's gotta be Wall*E.

Yep.

Wall*E.

Best Club Set List

On one of my trips to DC I ventured into a dance club that seemed like it had hand picked music just for me. The club was called Blowoff a more hirsute leaning club featuring two DJs one of whom is Bob Mould. I remember walking in an being instantly taken by the music and able to dance with myself with low inhibition. Another place for me to do music research!

Check out their set list!


Runner up club: Bootie SF

New Musical Delights '08

Favorite new band (new to me)
Cut Copy
I think I listened to their album In Ghost Colours several hundred times on the iPod shuffle before I misplaced the shuffle somewhere in New York City. Sign me up for this recent trend in poppy rock distortiony catchy electronica what have you. Cut Copy's album is definitely reminiscent of the Pixies/Depeche Mode/My Bloody Valentine/Thompson Twins, you know the rock of middle school for a 74'er like me and I find that very pleasing.

I actually also liked this album by West Indian Girl, 4th & Wall A little trippyish hippieish airy fun but loved its bigness and celebration of treble.

And OK, so I just bought this M83 album Saturdays=Youth about 3 hours ago (thanks to my use of Pitchfork for music research), and I am finding it amazing. Similar genre to the Cut Copy, but more epic power ballady, Oh I like it!

Also loved
Hercules and Love Affair (am I becoming a gay cliche?)
Fleet Foxes (am I becoming just a cliche?)
Panda Bear (a year late)
TV on the Radio (yeah I think i dig it, uh oh more cliche)
The Passing Strange Soundtrack


Some fave single songs of the Year:

Single Ladies by Beyonce! I WANT TO DANCE THAT

Stars by Ulrich Schnauss


Paper Planes by M.I.A. again
but this time the DFA remix. Ho wow! Me like.

Into the Nightlife by Cindi Lauper

Donkey Ride by Mr. Scruff (thanks iTunes suggestion list)

Charity Case and A Little Better by Gnarls Barkley

Superlative Month

OK so I have been swimming in rewrites of one play I may or may not have mentioned on this blog. But 'tis year end, and time to look back and think of things that I particularly enjoyed. So I'm going to do that amidst some T.I.C. updates, holiday travel, shopping, and...ok well it may be a modest effort but I'm gonna try.

TIC begins!!!

T.I.C. rehearsals officially launched with our first read through last night, though since we workshopped a couple weeks ago, it feels like we've already laid down a lot of groundwork before this weekend. Which is good because it's a quick and dirty speed process infused with Holiday cheer and this play is CRAZY. As in crazy awesome.

My page count is 120 but the play is running about a hundred minutes (Courier 12), but we're gonna chop it down some more.

As mentioned below, this is not the play where less dirty things will happen, though I am actually trying to tone back at least a few character's cussing. Not to be clean, mind you, but to make better language choices.

Aside from my token effort, this play could be a personal record setter for inappropriate moments. As one would expect in a play about privacy and exhibitionism.

I also found out that Michael Shipley reads this.

I've got to keep working on the end so this is short.

potty mouth

Just got an email which asked me

"You're bright, talented, witty. Any chance of your writing a play without wash-out-your-mouth-with-soap words?"

In the latest boom performance report from Seattle:

"One audience member left and reportedly had comments about the low morals of the show to the house manager."

Seattle Rep also counted the number of "f" words and vaiants in boom (41, apparently)

Can I write a play without cussing?

Well, the next one, absolutely not.

But the one after that? Game on.

Boom Videos, and a Cleveland Rave

Firstly, apologies for what will be an intense month of self promotion on this blog. Thoughtful observations on the foibles of life will return in 2009, when I can actually think about foibles a bit more.

Congrats to Cleveland Public Theatre for this handsome review of their production of boom

Seattle Rep has made some nice little videos around their boom production.

Hear what some audience members thought of the show!


Take a tour of the set with Seattle designer Jennifer Zeyl



And the fine folks at Woolly Mammoth have also produced their own teaser of the show! Compare and Contrast!




(Woolly Mammoth - till Dec 7!
Seattle Rep - till Dec 21!
Cleveland Public - till Dec 20!)