The Arden Insider

Arden Professional Apprentices, A View from the Trenches: Episode One

2008-12-30T11:13:00.006-05:00

A View from the Trenches: APA Bobby Bangert discusses his involvement with the workshop of Dennis Smeal's new play Meticulous Gentlemen.

Last week I had the privilege of spending some time observing a workshop of a new play written by the Arden's literary manager, Dennis Smeal. Meticulous Gentlemen explores the complex relationship between two men, Gus and Tad, who unexpectedly reunite after more than two decades of estrangement.

One of the things that drew me to the Arden when considering this apprenticeship was the work the Arden does with new plays. As an aspiring writer and director, I jumped at the chance to see the process by which new work comes into being. Terry presided over the workshop, Dennis sitting opposite and watching, absorbing everything.

The timing couldn't be more perfect, everyone bundled in sweaters and surrounded by poinsettias as the actors worked through lines about The Nutcracker, which plays in the background throughout the play's action from start to finish. The music presents a unique technical and artistic challenge, in which the actors' opinions proved useful. Ian, who played Tad, shared his dislike for music that imposes itself on an actor's performance or an audience's experience, as if dictating the way he should perform or an audience should feel. It was decided that the dynamic of the music would change throughout the reading, but the general goal was to have the music "dust the air', in Terry's words, highlighting the performances without overwhelming them. The exchange of opinions between actor, director, and playwright helped them to arrive at what worked for everyone, and, most importantly, for the play.

Fortunately, no one lacked opinions. On one occasion more than a half an hour was devoted to debating the merits of two words, in which Tad describes Gus as "guzzling, slurping"' and in that half an hour of discussion I was surprised to find the entire emotional content of the scene excavated and dismantled, then put back together. As the discussion progressed they found that those two words had drastically different implications to each of them, and that two simple words could change the whole scene. In the end, Dennis informed me that those words were cut, but the final outcome did not seem as important to me as the process by which they arrived there. It was inspiring the way every phrase and every note was crafted with such care and discernment, the same love with which Tchaikovsky must have composed his Nutcracker.

The end result was a reading of the newly revised play in which Arden staff members and other invited guests watched. Having read an earlier draft before the workshop and seeing some of the revisions throughout the week, it was a particularly rewarding experience for me to hear the changes and see the growth that had taken place over the past few days. By the time the Hallelujah chorus from The Messiah rang out over the final moments, it became clear that their work, both passionate and meticulous, had paid off.

Meticulous Gentlemen

2008-12-16T16:27:00.005-05:00

Dennis Smeal, literary manager for the Arden, discusses the workshop of his new play, Meticulous Gentlemen.

So the name of the play is Meticulous Gentlemen and I wrote the first draft exactly two years ago. When it wasn't immediately greeted with unanimous praise, submitted for the Pulitzer Prize for best unproduced play and placed on the Arden production schedule, Terry told me, "Smeal, if you wanted to write an easily producible play, you would have. But you didn't. You wrote a play that needs a workshop first, and you want a 68 year old British actor and a 45 year old American actor with very specific looks and sexual orientations which you probably shouldn't reveal if you ever actually get that workshop and find yourself blogging about it." Terry actually said some of that - the first part. Anyway, the workshop is finally happening and what is unspoken and unpromised and TOTALLY the elephant in the room is that if all goes well and I do my job and turn this rough draft into something that will amuse and inform and transport Arden audiences to another world through the miracle of storytelling, it might (finances, designers and actors availability pending) make it onto the production schedule next year!

The first day of the workshop consisted of the actors, Russell Leib (Caroline, or Change) and Ian Merrill Peakes (All My Sons etc.) reading the play once straight through, and then reading through the first act and talking about it. This was the absolutely first time I'd ever heard the play out loud per Terry's request. I had never been able to hold out before but now that Terry is the director of an Obie Award nominated play and an Emmy nominated short film, I guess we all should maybe pay a little more attention to what he says, right?

The actors read the play. The actors are awesome. The play has it's moment. (Oops that was a typo. I meant to say "moments" but think I should leave it that way now. Maybe it's a Freudian slip. Well, not exactly Freudian because it's not sexual, so more of a non-Freudian slip. I guess that would be just a slip.) But you know what IS sexual? This play. It's actually got sex stuff I can't describe on a website your children might read. And it's gay. The Arden is going to try to tell you that you don't have to be gay to like this play, and while that's true enough, trust me, you'll like it best if you're gay or you know someone who's gay or you wish you were gay or you wish you knew someone who's gay. 'Cause there's a lot of gay in this play. For example, the word "gay" is used 72 times in the play. To be fair, 9 of those times is in rapid succession and in reference to a beloved American composer who isn't Sondheim. That's actually a good test of whether you would like this play. If you know who that probably is, you would like this play. If you don't know who that is or might be, you ought to see this play anyway because while you might not like it, it will be good for you.

Anyway, bottom line at the end of day one - the first act has some problems and apparently it's the playwright's job to fix them. So I take my script to Fork where the lovely Ellen is leaving to go to a holiday party in a lovely black frock and after a hug from her I get to work. Hugs from Ellen are one of my playwriting secrets. Ssshh. I don't need Michael Hollinger or Bruce Graham hearing about this. They already have the advantage of having been born with a lot more words than I was. Terry seems to think they just make better use of their time and talents but I know it's all in the number of words you were born with. By the way, at Fork, I have the Chef's Selection of Tapas which includes the most amazing calamari ever, delicious albondigas, and a pretty terrific crab cake in a spicy but not too spicy aioli. I sit at the bar for four hours and rewrite the first 30 pages of the play, trying to make it "flow" better and hopefully making it less "bumpy". Here's what I try to do. I try to NOT be smart, 'cause I like to be smart but being smart is easy. I try instead to be honest, which is hard. That's one of the interesting things about storytelling.

You're making something up, which is inherently a lie, but then you have to make it honest if you really want anyone to connect with it. So basically the rule is "Lie honestly." So this is what I try to do. Then back to the Artist's House to type the pages, call home and get some sleep.

James Ijames Talks About Playing...James!

2008-12-09T14:24:00.006-05:00

Hey All,

James here! Yes I'm playing James in James and the Giant Peach and my real name is James. In fact my whole name is James Ijames, how cool is that?! Just wanted to say hello and introduce you to this great play and to me.

James and the Giant Peach is based on a novel of the same name written by Roald Dahl. Have you ever seen the movies Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or Mathilda? Well Roald Dahl wrote the books that those movies are based on, so you get an idea of how absolutely crazy, fun, and fantastic James and the Giant Peach will be.

I've been working really hard preparing for this character. It is one of my favorite books. I actually had my mother mail me my old worn out hard cover copy of the novel to read and carry around with me while I'm working on the show. This show is going to be amazing! The cast is full of some of the most talented actors in Philadelphia and I'm really excited to be working with all of them.

The Director is a total rock star, his name is Whit MacLaughlin and he is one of the most creative minds I know. The designers are all amazing too! There is just so much talent and positive energy in this show. I don't want to give too much away but I hear the animation in the play should make for a very interesting day at the theater. Well I have to run now. I hope to see you all at the show, it's on stage now!

My Name is Asher Lev Rehearsals Begin

2008-12-03T10:50:00.006-05:00

Aaron Posner, adaptor and director of My Name is Asher Lev, discusses the first day of rehearsals.

It was a great first day.

I started talking with Chaim and Adena Potok about bringing My Name is Asher Lev to the stage back in 1999. So to finally find ourselves at the first day of rehearsal after thinking about a project for nearly a decade is quite a trip. We have an amazing cast-- Karl Miller, Gabra Zackman, and Adam Heller-- and each have some pretty major challenges in bringing this complex and compelling story to life. To have Adena Potok be part of the rehearsal process is quite a gift, as there may be no one in the world who knows Chaim's work more intimately.

Today we all just got our feet wet. Our set designer, Dan Conway, introduced us to the world we will be inhabiting. A combination of artists studio and synagogue and open, evocative canvas for the play. Alison Roberts, our costume designer, showed us our jumping off place for how we all three actors to play 10 or 12 roles over 20 years without hardly ever leaving the stage, and James Sugg, our composer and sound designer talked about the music-- listening to what he composes will come after he has had a chance to see more of where we are heading in rehearsal.

My mind was set into high gear by all that I saw and heard in both the reading of the play and the excellent discussion that followed with the entire team, and we are starting rehearsal today, Wednesday, with an entire new draft of the script. Some new scenes. Some scenes from earlier drafts. Some cuts, some rearrangements, some shifts. I am sure this process will continue for at least the next two weeks as we find the right balances for how to tell this particular story in this particular space at this particular time.

In her own words: Edwina Findley

2008-11-07T10:52:00.006-05:00

I first heard about the ladies of Gee's Bend on Oprah. Talk about the World's Stage!

I was peeled to the television waiting for my Great Aunt, Alice Royal, to come on and speak about the Black Town my family helped pioneer in Allensworth, California after slavery. Since I was a little girl I would hear the stories of how my great-grandmother Sadie (who lived to 102 years old) and her parents (born slaves) joined a handful of emancipated slaves and free Negroes to found their rendition of the Black Promised Land- Allensworth- now preserved as a National Historic State Park.

As I eagerly awaited Aunt Alice's arrival, my attention was somewhat diverted (and later captivated), by the appearance of Gee's Bend. This small town in Alabama, forced into complete isolation for over three decades, had now produced some of the most exquisite contributions to Modern Art that this country had ever seen. The women of Gee's Bend, now nationally recognized quilters, sang and spoke of their experiences, and I sat there mesmerized.

Less than two weeks later, my agent called me with an audition for Gee's Bend.

I read the script and just knew I had to audition. My initial appointment was for the character Nella, but there was just something about the character Sadie I just couldn't shake. A few days later I requested a role change, and the rest is history.

In the last scene of the play, octogenarian Sadie considers the full course of her life- her Baptism, marriage, children, abuse, struggle for equality, loss of loved ones, and new-found stardom, and with love in her heart she looks to her Heavenly Father saying, "You brought me this far, Lord. You reached down and blessed me."

Those powerful words stick with me night after night. I consider my own great-grandma Sadie, born in an era of racial hatred and bigotry, yet ascending as a Black Town Pioneer. I consider Barack Obama, an amalgam of cultures and nationalities, raised by a single mother on the South Side of Chicago, and ascending to the highest seat in the land.

And I consider myself, raised by a single mother in Washington, DC, reared in the church and performing arts programs, and full of too many dreams to count. Will I, like Sadie Hackett Calbert, like Sadie Pettway, like Barack Obama, have stories of how God brought me from obscurity into prominence? How God took what seemed like nothing and fashioned it into something? The chart and story of my life are still being written, but like my character Sadie, I can faithfully attest that God has certainly "brought me this far".

Edwina Findley

Animation with Jorge Cousineau

2008-10-29T15:53:00.008-04:00

Jorge Cousineau, Philadelphia's acclaimed sound and lighting designer, has collaborated with award-winning director Whit MacLaughlin and the rest of the James and the Giant Peach artistic team to create "a whole imaginative universe of live actors interacting with animations. It's kinda like Pixar, but LIVE," says Whit.

An endeavor of this magnitude requires many long hours of moving paper mere millimeters and then capturing it on film. We reached out to our board members to serve as volunteers and as usual received an overwhelming response.

If you are one of these volunteers, THANK YOU, we would love for you to comment about your experience. Otherwise, read on to learn more about this exciting process.

In this photo, Jorge and board member Lee van de Velde are working together to animate the water for the ocean portion of James' adventure! James and the Giant Peach is on stage December 10 through February 8.

The Women of Gee's Bend

2008-10-08T10:16:00.012-04:00

On September 14th, actors from the Arden's cast of Gee's Bend and a small group of Arden supporters enjoyed an intimate evening with several of the amazing quilters from Gee's Bend, Alabama, who were visiting Philadelphia in conjunction with the opening of their quilt exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Gee's Bend playwright Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder led a lively discussion with the celebrated women who delighted patrons with fascinating stories and ended the evening with rousing gospel music.

Gee's Bend explores the strength of a family and the importance of tradition spanning generations. It is a great opportunity for generations to connect through this incredible story of perseverance and the power of family ties. Gee's Bend is on the Arcadia stage October 9 through December 7.

What's it like to stage manage Candide?

2008-09-26T10:43:00.010-04:00

Kate Hanley loves theatre, her family, movies, and beer - but not always in that order. She is our extraordinary stage manager for Candide - the demanding, complex musical on stage at the Arden now through October 19th.

What's it like to stage manage a show of this magnitude? She writes all about it in her own blog: Life With a Cocktail.

Visit her blog for a behind the scenes view! Want to know more? Ask your most burning questions and get the scoop from this expert insider.

Candide at Arden Theatre Company

2008-09-12T13:08:00.002-04:00

What's Your Favorite Story?

2008-09-11T12:17:00.003-04:00

Arden Theatre Company has been bringing to life great stories by great storytellers for 20 years.

What is your favorite story?

Revisit our past productions to remember the great stories we have told since 1988. Then, tell us YOUR favorite! And don't forget to check out Candide on stage now through October 19 - it just might become your new favorite!