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May 14, 2007

I am struggling more and more every morning. I am thinking more and more seriously about abandoning almost ten years of training and jobs to get back into theatre full time. Should I do this, my income will drop away dramatically for a long time. While I dont think I should have TOO much trouble finding something to be doing, it wont pay much and I will have to do a lot of volunteer work to get myself known again.

What I wish would happen is that EDS allows me to work the Fringe this year. If they do that, and I can stay here, then I will put my face to the grind stone and try and get as many calls in as possible. I will get my name into the IA and get out on some calls.

Sigh. I need to try and do this when work is slow.

August 11, 2006

Long Lost Update

No updates in a long while, no real reason why not, just didnt really feel like putting anything here. But enough has happened since June that I think I can fill up some of the page.

Another Fringe has come and gone (saddly) and I can take a moment here to talk about all the shows that were or were not in the venue.

For the second year in a row I was working in the Red River Community College Downtown Campus. Venue 11 was once again my home for two weeks and it was nice being back. In fact it felt like I had never left it, it felt like John and I were there after only being away for the weekend. John Alexander came back for another year and he and I had the run of our venue as per usual. Nothing to really report about the venue itself, other then this year, we struck the venue and loaded it onto the truck in less then an hour and a half. Theres talk about moving the booth from one side of the venue to the other which would place it closer to the main doors of the venue and to the house lights.

This year there were two less groups in the venue and therefore one show less for both John and I. My shows were Fear of a Brown Planet, The Unfunny Comic, King David's Lament and The Evelyn Reese Show.

My favourite by far was Fear of a Brown Planet. The show was a 60 minute set by stand up comedian Nile Seguin (as opposed to a lie down commedian). Nile was very funny both onstage and off and it was a pleasure to work with him (and the beer he bought me had nothing to do with that glowing review). He and I got along very well and it was a pleasure to work with him. His shows sold well and it was only because he was leaving on Sunday morning that he didnt get one of the "Best of..." spots in the venue. The most popular shows in the venue was also one of mine, The Evelyn Reese Show. This show sold out almost all performances and the actress that was in the show was so nice that it was a pleasent experience to run the show. This year all of the actors in the venue, both for my shows and for John's shows, were nice people. In the past both John and I have had experiences with people being unfriendly or egotistical or even sometimes rude. This year both John and I, while having one show each that we didnt love doing, we didnt have people in the venue who were hard to get along with and in some cases we had people in the venue who were very friendly and polite. I most definately enjoyed my time in the venue because of this.

The fringe itself was a little odd this year. This year more then 12 groups cancelled out of the Fringe, either before it began or after. This meant that there were more techs with more free time then ever before.In fact, in one venue, the tech's had so much free time, they actually got the groups that were still in their venue to do more shows. There were far more panhandlers and troublemakers in the square this year and from some of the stories, security was earning their pay. There were two muggings close to the end of the fringe and a car was set on fire one afternoon.

Overall the Fringe this year was an excellent time. I look forward to another year.

August 4, 2005

Post Fringe Review

The Fringe has come and gone and another year is over with. This was a much quieter year for me then in years past. This year a couple new things were in store for me, even before I saw any shows.

This year, for the first time in all the years of the Fringe Festival, there was no venue at the Planetarium. Since the Fringe began in Winnipeg Venue 4 has ALWAYS been at the Planetarium and for the last 6 years I have been one of the techs in the venue. This year, however, there was no venue at the Planetarium. Due to increasing cost for the venue, the Fringe chose to choose a new place to have Venue 4 in rather then pay the raising rent. I however was destined to be in Venue 11. A new venue meant a new partner as well. Venue 11 was located at the downtown campus of the Red River Community College. The venue was small, only a hundred seats in all, but still a nice one.

I had the usual amount of shows this year (five shows in all) and I had only one show that wont be worth commenting on.

My favourite this year was "Antoine Feval" with annual Fringe celebrity, Chris "Hilarious" Gibbs. Chris' site can be found here. This show kept me laughing each and every time I worked the show. The basic plot of the show is thus: It's Victorian London at the beginnings of Sherlock Holmes' popularity and somewhat slow witted Barnaby Gibbs is a huge fan. Barnaby becomes friends with the enigmatic "detective" Antoine Feval and the show is about their adventures together.

It's always a pleasure to work with Chris is a very humble guy and thusly hasn't gotten a huge head after all the acclaim he has gotten in the last couple of years. I look forward to working with him again next year.

Another show I did was "Love, Hate and Lemon Pie". I had expected to have this show fall into my list of shows I have seen or done but had no really feelings about it one way or the other, but I was wrong. After a couple shows it began to grow on me by leaps and bounds. Love, Hate and Lemon Pie is the story of two sisters stranded in Climax, Saskatchewan (a real place I swear). After Kate's car breaks down, she and her sister Leslie are forced to spend a few days together in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do but work out their problems. Leslie is on the verge of growing up and Kate is afraid to let her. The show was at times hilarious and heart warming and I am sure brought tears to some audience members eyes.

The two girls in the show, Erin and Andrea, were absolutely wonderful to work with and were so happy to be doing a Fringe show that it was impossible for me to be anything but happy around them. Erin and Andrea's stage manager was an old friend of mine who I hadn't seen in some time. Ray was a member of the comedy troop The Spleen Jockeys and someone who I went to University with for a few years and it was a pleasure to see him again.

Every year it seems that I have a kids show or a clown show to work and this year was no different. The Polly show was my kids show this year and unlike in years past, this show was a pleasure to work on. The Polly Show was a one girl show about a cleaning woman with dreams of joining the Rocket League. The show takes kids through Polly's adventures and watches her get her Rocket League stars.

While I must admit that I am NOT a fan of childrens theatre as a whole, I did enjoy doing this show immensely. The show was short enough to not bore the kids, but long enough to be worth the admission. Dianna, the star of the show, is immensely talented and it showed through her use of several stage props and physical comedy pieces. Off stage, Dianna was professional and polite at all times and it was an immense pleasure to work with her and hopefully Winnipeg will see her again next year. You can find her web site here.

The last show that I worked on was "Changling". This was a one man clown/improv/drama show. During a summer school class we see into the lives of 6 students and their teacher as they tried to learn poetry. However the class falls apart and does not end well for the students.

The actor, Thomas Jones was a skilled fellow showed a lot talent, but his show was in a very rough phase and he spent the Winnipeg Fringe rehearsing his show. I enjoyed working with him and I wished him well as he went on to the Saskatoon and Vancouver Fringes.

This Fringe was a whole series of new things for me. I spent less time out drinking this year and more time at home. I spent less time in my venue then ever before and I spent less time out on the square between shows. I wasn't working with my long time venue 4 partner, Wayne Buss!, and I found myself being more social with my actors between shows. I can't say that this Fringe was better then any other but it wasn't a bad year and I enjoyed myself.

Next Fringe is coming up fast and I am looking forward to it.

August 1, 2005

Winnipeg Fringe Festival

The festival ended on Saturday night with a MASSIVE thunderstorm and many people got VERY wet.

I had a couple excellent shows in my venue which were a pleasure to do and I will write more about them at a later date. Today is the pool party at Sue's parents house and that means steak and beer and sun. I am looking forward to it.

Expect a longer more detail fringe report in the coming days.

August 7, 2004

The Fringe

Has come and gone and while I thought I might get the chance to talk about the shows as they were actually going on, well, I just didnt find the time.

Almost all the shows in the venue this year were good, usually there is always one show either I or my venue partner hate doing and that we dread when the time for that show comes along. This year that really wasnt the case, true we had some shows we liked doing over others, but overall, we didnt (or at least I didnt) have one show that we hated. As usuall we broke the shows in half and chose certain shows to do. My shows were:

If Ugly Was a Colour
Fringe Show: A Love Story
America VS Canada
Lesbian National Parks and Services Wants You
Beard

Obviously the one I enjoyed doing the most was Fringe Show: A Love Story as it was done by the guys from Monster Theatre. This was the third year in a row that I had worked with these guys and it was a pleasure doing so. Their shows have proven to be very funny in past years and this time around it was no different. Fringe Show: A Love Story is a look at the behind the scenes happenings at fringe festivals across Canada while following the hero through his quest for love. Ryan and Bruce crack me up and always make it a great time working with them.

Here is their web page: Monster Theatre

July 26, 2004

Fringe

Well, the Fringe is over and it was another success. I know I havent written anything since July 10th, which I am kind of sorry. But I was busy.

Stories and show reviews will be coming soon.

July 10, 2004

Its coming, Its coming!

Keep an eye out for zombies roaming the city streets and trying to drag you into theatres for the next little while. It four short days, IN ONLY FOUR SHORT DAYS...

The Night of the Living Fringe BEGINS!!!! (cue ominus music).

Thats right boys and girls. So yours truly will be absent (and most likely not sober) for the rest of the month.

Behave.

February 20, 2004

JBJ

Came home today, did a little web surfing and found a couple of new comments on the old blog today. One of these comments was from John Bent Jr., an impressive sound tech with the Manitoba Theatre Centre here in Winnipeg.

He left a comment and a link! HERE is his web site. I took a quick look (I will take a longer look later for sure). He has an impressive list of links for all things theatre and Mac related items. Hey John, I never knew you were a machead.

Anyway. I am busy studying for my Windows XP Pro exam, so you will have to pardon the lull in posts.

January 23, 2004

This is a Long One...

Found these here and some of these are soooo true it isnt even funny:

You Know You're a Light Board Op When...

You have a sore on your index finger
You're dates initials are written in the beams during intermission
You keep a steady supply of drinks in a mini-fridge nearby
You wake up in the middle of the night looking for a "Go" button
Other crew members throw objects to wake you up for stand-by's
You keep a lighter by the board to wave if anyone sings a ballad onstage and you feel like making them laugh

Continue reading "This is a Long One..." »

Focus

Focus went very well.

Focus went very fast.

Enjoyed a beer out with Paul, Catherine, Anthony and Chris.

Came home late. Very tired.

Full post on Friday.... maybe.

January 22, 2004

Lighting Hang

The hang at MTYP went well tonight.

Very tired. Going to bed in a moment or two.

Will blog about the whole thing on Friday when I get home from work. Must now go and pass out.

January 4, 2004

Erik

Had lunch with Erik and Ricardo today. We WERE supposed to go to Wasabi for sushi, but it wasnt open at 1pm so we then tried a bistro down the street, which also wasnt open and then we went over to Stellas, which was open but very busy. Our last choice was a nice place, which I had not been to until today, A local dessert place called "Baked Expectations". The place does have other things on its menu, such as burgers and beer and pasta and breakfast stuff, so we ate and drank there for about 3 hours, just sitting and chatting.

I met Erik about 4 years ago when he brought a show to the Winnipeg Fringe Festival and to my venue (4 - The Planetarium). He seemed a little worried about his show and how well he was going to do, so, being a nice guy, I assured him his show would do well and that it was no big deal. He did an awsome show and all the people who came to see it, were very happy with what they saw.

Erik is a story teller of tremendous talent. He primarily tells african folk tales and fairly tales, which he does with amazing talent, but this year he told a great story about the erotic memoirs of St. Gilles. The show was tremendous as always.

Over the past couple of summers, Erik and I have become fast friends and I always look forward to him coming to the Fringe. Thusly I was immensely happy and completely surprised when a couple of days ago, he phones me out of the blue and says he is in town! OMG! I couldnt beleive it. So we made tentitive plans to get together and today we did that!

Tuesday we are doing dinner at Nikos restraunt near here and then coffee here at the apartment. I am looking forward to it.

#8

January 2, 2004

Assorted

Found this while looking for Theatre links to go here. This has got to be one of the best quotes I have ever read.

"Listen to the stage manager and get on stage when they tell you to. No one has time for the rock star bullshit. None of the techs backstage care if you're David Bowie or the milkman. When you act like a jerk, they are completely unimpressed with the infantile display that you might think comes with your dubious status. They were there hours before you building the stage, and they will be there hours after you leave tearing it down. They should get your salary, and you should get theirs." -- Lollapalooza Alumni Henry Rollins

Here are some links:

PlayBill
London Theatre Guide
Theatre Canada

Thats it for this mornings little bits. Time to get ready for work.

#3

December 19, 2003

University Paper

Here's something I wrote a few years ago.

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For as long as there have been plays there have been directors. Since Aristotle all the way to Brecht the director?s part in the play and its performance seems to have been understated. The actor is always in the spotlight and therefore can end up with praise that could be credited to the director. A good director can mold untrained actors, develop beginning designers, and even show ?green? technicians a thing or two. The director is a Jack of All Trades in the theatre. The director should have at the very least a working knowledge of everything that is connection with the play he or she is directing. A director who knows the difference between a Fresnel and a 6x9 base up Leko will be better able to tell lightning designer how to express his ideas. A director that understands what will go into the building of a set of stairs or a ramp can often assist the set designer in construction ideas, although it is considered bad when the director hassles the technicians about their jobs. There is more onstage then just actors, there is light, sound, set pieces, costumes, props, and a multitude of other bits and pieces and a director that understands that and works with each piece will improve his play greatly.

Continue reading "University Paper" »

December 17, 2003

The Lighting Designer

Light affects what we see, how we see, how we feel, and even how we hear. It is essential to the modern stage's theatrical effectiveness. It is also one of the most powerful tools the director has to control the audiences focus of attention and to enhance their understanding.

Artificial lighting (first candles and then gas) had been used to illuminate the stage since the 17th century, but by 1879 the invention of electric light had transformed overall possibilities for design in the theatre. It made possible complete control of a range of intensities and colours; it could be used flexibly to light or darken different parts of the stage; it provided a source of mood and atmosphere for the actor.

Swiss designer Adolphe Appia understood the artistic possibilities of light in the theatre. In Music and Stage Setting he argued that light should be the guiding principle of all design. He believed that light could unify or bring into harmony all production elements, including two and three dimensional objects, living and inanimate objects, shapes and things. Appia established light as an artistic medium for the theatre designer.

The subtle play of light off of a blank wall can make the audience think of water, a forest, a desert or the sky. Simple colour changes during a scene can make what the actors seem harsh and cold or warm and loving. A deep encompassing red over a large white backdrop, during a scene of love and invoke deep feelings of passion and intensity, many times without the audience being aware that it is the lights that are affecting them as well as the actors.

Many times lighting alone can make a set. With the right lighting, an empty stage, painted only black, can be anything the lighting designer wants. A blue wash with some water motion, can invoke the sea or a lake or rain. A fire gobo (a metal cut out that goes in front of the light) can bring about images of lava or fire.

Combined with sound, light can make anything appear to happen. True magic.

December 11, 2003

Stage Vocabulary

Stage vocabulary is a language that has developed over the years between director and actor to communicate quickly to each other in rehearsals. It is a kind of a shorthand in which all directions are to the actor's left or right.

Upstage means towards the rear of the acting area. Downstage means toward the front. Stage right and stage left refer to the performers right or left when he or she is facing the audience. The stage floor is frequently spoken of as though divided into sections: up right, up center, up left, down right, down center and down left.

Body positions are also designated for work largely on the proscenium stage. The director may ask the actor to turn out, meaning to turn more towards the audience. Two actors are sometimes told to share a scene, or play in a profile position that they are equally visible to the audience. An actor may be told to dress the stage, meaning to move to balance the stage picture. Experienced actors take directions with ease and frequently make such moves almost automatically.

In the audience we are almost never aware that the actor is taking a rehearsed position. But the actor's movements, along with lighting and sound, often control what we see and hear on stage.

*******

An audience should NEVER think "oh, he moved over to share the scene wonderfully", or "that light makes things look great". The minute that an audience member is thinking about actors moving or how the lights work, or dont work, then things are not perfect. The lights should be done in such a way so that an audience member goes "there were lights there, huh never noticed".

Some directors have their own language for actors (some of which shouldnt appear in print) and can have their own way of getting an actor to share a scene or dress the stage.

December 9, 2003

Not So Far From Home

Off to see the Diary of Ann Frank tonight.

Sitting here at my dad's office with a few moments to kill before KFC arrives for us to wolf down, so I thought I would write a little something.

Little Something.

Ha! I Slay me I am so funny.

But seriously folks.

Winter is now fully here and Christmas is rapidly approaching. Its going to be a tight christmas as I am still not making a lot of money nor do we have much saved up. However, my grandparents, the generous and amazing people they are, have gifted to my brother and I, a large sum of $$$ to be given to us on a monthly basis over the next ten years. It couldnt have come at a better time and be more appreciated.

The weather lately has gotten a little more harsh and picked up a little more bite. A sure sign that Old Man Winter is rolling into town and getting ready to take up residence. I like winter, dont get me wrong, but only to a degree. I hate bitterly windy cold days. If its going to be cold, I like it to be cold, but calm and sunny. Crisp if you will. I hate warm winter days, slush getting all over the place and getting you wet for sure. I like heavy snowfall days, where the snow comes down thick and heavy and everything gets quiet.

I am looking forward to going to MTC tonight, seeing John Bent Jr., saying hello and then watching the show. It is supposed to be very very good. I hope that the reviewer wasnt wrong. I think that I will post my own review when I get home later.

Well, food should be here any minute now, so I will say g,night eh?

December 7, 2003

Three Sisters

Anton Chekhov's most critically acclaimed work during his lifetime was first produced at the Moscow Art Theatre in 1901 with Olga Knipper as Masha, Stanislavski as Colonel Vershinin, and Vsevelod Meyerhold as Baron Tusenbach.

In a garrison town in rural Russia, the cultured Prozorov sisters think longinly of the exicitement of Moscow, which they left eleven years earlier. Olga, the oldest, is constantly exhausted by her work as a schoolteacher; Masha, married at eighteen to a man considered an intellectual giant, bitterly realizes that he is merely a pedant; Irina, the youngest, dreams of a romantic future and rejects the sincere love of Lieutenant Tusenbach and the advances of lieutenant colonel vershinin. Like Masha, he is unhappily married. They are immediately attracted to one another.

The Prozorovs and their friends recognize the frustration of thier lives, but hope in some vague future keeps their spirits high. For the sisters is a dream of returning someday to Moscow. The atmosphere changes when Andrey marries Natasha. The sisters immediate prospects for returning to Moscow are dashed. Irina tries to find relief in her job at the telegraph office. Natasha takes control of the household, and as time goes on the sisters are moved about in the house to make room for her two children. Andrey takes refuge in gambling and mortages the house that he and his sisters own jointly.

News that the garrison is to be transferred brings depressing prospects for the future. Irina decides to marry Tusenbach, an unattractive but gental man, who resigns his army commission in the hope of finding more meaningful work. As Masha and Vershinin, who have become open lovers, bid each other goodbye, and the regiment prepares to leave, word comes that Tusenbach has been killed by Solyony in a duel over Irina. The sisters cling to one another for consolation. As the military band strikes up, the gaiety of the music inspires them to hope that there is new life in store for them in another "millennium."

December 5, 2003

Bert Lahr 1895 - 1967


Bert Lahr

Beginning his stage career as a stand-up vaudville comic, Lahr moved on to Broadway musical comedy, became identified with the role of Cowardly Lion in the film The Wizard of Oz (1939) and closed his career as a distinquished actor best remembered for his permances as Gogo (Estragon) in Beckett's existential masterpiece.
Lahr created the role in the American premiere of Beckett's play in Miami, 1956, directed by Alan Schneider, continuing on Broadway later that same year (directed by Herber Bergof) with E.G. Marshall as Vladmir, Kurt Kaznar as Pozzo, and Alvin Epstein as Lucky. These productions are described in Notes on a Cowardly Lion (1969), a perceptive biography by his son John Lahr, a notable theatre critic.

As Estragon, Lahr was unfailing in his instincts to be clear, simple, and to the point. Audiences waited in vain for hints of his "cowardly lion", but Lahr refused to retread familar ground. His warmth and common humanity extended across the footlights and caught up audiences in a shared experience. British critic Kenneth Tynan put it this way: "Mr. Lahr's beleaguered simpleton (Estragon), a draughts-player lost in a universe of chess, is one of the noblest performances I have ever seen."

*****

Sometimes actors can be better known or show their talents better on the stage then on the silver screen. I have seen a small handful of silver screen actors on the stage and they have always shone very brightly. Dustin Hoffman was BRILLIANT in Death of a Salesman and Keanu, when he came here to do Hamlet was decent as well (ok, so he couldnt do the big stuff, but he is a tremendous physical actor).

December 4, 2003

Desire

A Streetcar Named Desire



Tennessee Williams



A Poster From The Movie With Marlon Brando

Tennesee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire was first produced at the Barrymore Theatre, New York, in 1947. Her family's Mississippi estates sold, Blanche DuBois arrives at the New Orleans tenement home of Stella and Stanley Kowalski, her pregnant sister and her brother-in-law. Blanche's faded gentility clashes with Stanley's brutish masculinity. As she seeks protection from the world, she competes with Stanley for Stella's affections but finds herself no match for his sexual hold over her sister. She tries to charm Mitch, Stanley's poker playing friend, into marrying her. However, Stanely destroy's Blanche's hopes for marriage by telling Mitch about her past drunkeness and promiscuity. As Stella reproaches Stanley for his cruelty, her labor pains begin and Stanley rushes her to the hospital.

Blanche is visited by a drunken Mitch, who accuses her of lying to him and makes and effort to seduce her. Stanely returns to find Blanche dressed for a party, fantasizing about an invitation to go on a cruise with a wealthy friend. Angered by her pretensions, Stanley starts a fight with her that ends in rape. In a final scene some weeks later, Blanche, her tenuous hold on reality shattered, is taken to a mental hospital.

The tragedy of Streetcar reveals human duplicity and desperation in Williams' modern South, where fragile people are overcome by violence and vulgarity.

**********
The Manitoba Theatre Centre did Streetcar a few years ago and it was tremendous. The sets and design were amazing and the acting was the best I have seen in a long time. And I even knew a few people in the show.

December 3, 2003

Constantin Stanislavski 1863 - 1938

Constantin Stanislavski was producer - director - actor and co-founder of the Moscow Art Theatre. As a director, Stanislavski aimed for ensemble acting and absence of stars; he established such directional methods as intensive study of the play before rehearsals began, the actor's careful attention to detail, and re-creation of the play's milieu after visting locales or doing extensive research.

The Moscow Art Theatre's reputation was made with Anton Chekhov's plays depicting the monotonous and frustrating life of the rural landowning class.

Stanislavski is remembered most for his efforts to perfect a truthful method of acting. His published writings in English - My Life in Art (1924), An Actor Prepares (1936), Building A Character (1949), and Creating A Role (1961) - provide a record of the "Stanislavski System" as it evolved.

*********

To many actors he is to modern theatre as what Henry Ford is to modern transportation.

November 23, 2003

Words From God

Found this today, I have had it for a while and I find it hilarious. An actor might not :) .

**************


We hold this truth to be self evident:

That all Tekkies are created superior.

GENESIS

In the beginning there was the Stage, and the Stage was without lights or sets, and darkness was on the faces of the actors. And the Technical Director (hereinafter referred to as the TD) said, "Let there be Lights!" and the Tekkies worked and wired, and there were lights. Spotlights and specials, areas and backlighting - yea, lights of all shapes, sizes and hues. And the TD saw the lights, that they were well aimed and focused, gelled according to the scene, and no more was there darkness on the faces of the actors. And it was good. And the evening and the morning were the First Day.

And the TD looked upon the actors and saw that although they walked in light, they did walk upon a bare stage, and had no place to be, and the TD was moved to pity. And the TD said, "Let there be a Set!": and the Tekkies scrambled and worked, and there was a set, with platforms, wagons, stairs, and furniture of various types and sized, each according to the need. And the actors did walk within the set, and did have a place to be. And the TD saw the set, that it was good, and the evening and the morning were the Second Day.

And the TD saw the actors, that although they did have a place to be, they did look like fools, for they waved their hands, clutched at open air, and struck each other with nothing. And in his heart, the TD was moved to pity. And the TD said, "Let there be Props!": and the Tekkies worked feverishly and did buy and build, and there were props. And they were good, and the evening and the morning were the Third Day.

And the Costumer looked upon the actors, and saw that they did go forth in blue jeans and the Costumer knew that this would not due. And the Costumer said, "Let there be Costumes!": and the Tekkies did cut and sew and shape, and there were costumes, each sized to the actor, according to the play, and keeping in with the role. And no more did the actors go forth in blue jeans, and the Costumer saw the costumes, that they were good, and the evening and the morning were the Fourth Day.

And the TD watched the play, and saw that the actors did wait in silence, and was moved to pity. And the TD said, "Let there be Sound!": and the Tekkies worked and taped, and there were sounds, each according to its place and cue, all at the proper levels. And the TD heard the sounds, that they were good, and the evening and the morning were the Fifth Day.

And lo, all these works were completed in five days, showing that if God had used sufficient Tekkies in the first place, He would have finished sooner.

Words To The Tekkies

Remember always that thou art a TEKKIE, born to walk the dark places of the stage, and know the secret ways of thy equipment. To your hands it is given to mold the dreams and thoughts of they that watch, and to make the Stage a separate place and time. Seek not, as do the actors, to go forth in light upon the stage, for though they strut and talk and put on airs, their craft does truly depend on you, to shape the dreams that they would show.

Remember also that although they depend on you, you exist only to aid them. Remember that thou art a team, for thou shalt party together.

My friends be not deceived by deluded actors masquerading as TEKKIES. Remember always the signs by which thou shalt recognize a true TEKKIE: they move softly during scene changes, not stumbling or falling; they are silent backstage and are aware of what is happening; they can speak with knowledge of Tools; they respect another's job and aid where they can; they do not just stand and watch. Amen.

PROVERB

Behold, my son here is wisdom. Pay heed to these words, and in the days of thy play, in the hours of thy performing, thou shalt not be caught short. For truly, it is said, pay heed to the errors of others and you shall not make them yourself, and again, as we have been told from on old, to thine own self be true.

Give not unto the actor his props before his time, for as surely as the sun does rise in the East and set in the West, he will lose or break them.

When told the placement of props by the Director, write not these things in ink upon thy script for as surely as the winds blow, so shall he change his mind.

Speak not in large words to actors, for they are slow of thought and are easily confused.

Speak not in the language of the TEKKIE to actors, for they are uninitiated, and will not perceive thy meaning.

Tap not the head of a nail to drive it, but strike it firmly with thy strength.

Keep holy the first performance, for afterwards you shall party.

Keep holy the last performance, for afterwards you shall party.

Remember always that the TD is never wrong. If appears that he is, then you obviously misunderstood him the first time.

Leave not the area of the stage during the play to go and talk with the actors, for as surely as you do, you will be in danger of missing your cue and being summarily executed or worse.

Beware of the actors during scene changes, for they are not like unto you and are blind in the dark.

Beware of actors when flying in walls, for they will stand and watch and get crushed.

Take not thy cues before their time, but wait for the proper moment to do so.

Take pity on the actors, for in their roles they are as children, and must be led with gentle kindness. Thus, endeavor to speak softly and not in anger.

Listen carefully to the instructions of the Director as to how he wants things done - then do it the right way. In the days of thy work, he will see thy wisdom, give himself the credit, and rejoice.

And above all, get carried away not with the glow-tape, or thy stage will be like unto an airport.

November 15, 2003

Bertolt Brecht

I thought I would begin my theatre entries with a short bio of one of my favourite director/writer/actor and theatre personalities, Bertolt Brecht.

Bertolt Brecht 1898 - 1956

Bertolt Brecht, who was educated in his native Bavaria, was bored by regular schooling but loved to write. While still in high school, he began to write both prose and poetry, and his work from these years shows remarkable talent. When he graduated from high school in 1917, he began to study medicine Munich, but he was drafted as an oderly in 1918.

Brecht's father offered to publish his first play Baal (1918), but only if the Brecht family name was not mentioned - a condition the playwright refused. In 1920, he moved to Munich, where he began to write plays which were produced. It was at this time, too, that Brecht married his first wife, Marianne, and had his first child, Hanne. In 1922, Brecht's Drums in the Night was awarded the Kleist Prize, one of Germany's highest literary honors. Both of these early plays were expressionistic. Shortly thereafter, he wrote Jungles of the Cities (1923) and Edward II (1924).

Brecht settled in Berlin in 1924, where he worked for a time with the directors Max Reinhardt and Erwin Piscator, but mostly with smaller experimental groups. One of Brecht's friends was the composer Kurt Weill (1900 - 1950), with whom he wrote The Threepenny Opera, the modern version of the The Beggar's Opera. While he was in Berlin, he became a marxist and at this time began to develop his theories of theatre: his concepts of epic drama and alienation. Forced by the Nazi's to flee Germany, in 1933, he lived in Denmark, Sweden, and the United States, where he did some filmwriting in Hollywood.

During his years in exile, Brecht had time to refine his ideas on epic theatre and wrote several important plays, including Mother Courage and Her Children (1938), Galileo (1938 - 1939), The Good Person of Setzuan (1938 - 1940), The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (1941), and The Caucasian Chalk Circle (1944 - 1945). In 1947, Brecht was called before the House Committee on Un-American Activities because of his leftist ideas, and he left the United States shortly there after.

He settled in East Berlin, where the government gave him his own theatre, the Berliner Ensemble, which opened in 1949 with Mother Courage. For the next 7 years, he and his wife, the actress Helene Weigel (1900 - 1971), worked to develop epic theatre. When Brecht died in 1956, his wife took over the company, which had developed into one of the foremost acting troupes in the world; it continue to produce today.

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Brecht's influence can be seen in many places, one of the most enduring and popular is the popular brodway show, Cabaret.

November 8, 2003

Theatre

Some of you my know and most of you may not, my university degree and my major chosen profession is Theatre. Actually, let me be more specific. I went to university for several years to be come a theatrical technician. I learned how to hang lights, set up a stage and many other things that are involved in a production. While I was in school and since I graduated three years ago, I have worked on dozens and dozens of shows in one form or another.

I have been a stage hand numerous times, doing everything from painting to supervising a crew of people. I have arranged a stage full of senery and I have hung a hundred or so lights. Every time I work its something new in one way or another and I love it.

Tonight, I was over at the Manitoba Theatre for Young People (link to follow) working on the "out" for a show. An "out" is what I would say when a show is over and all the lights, and scenery and sound stuff is taken down, loaded on to a truck and taken away. MTYP is currently being run by a friend of mine, Wayne Buss! The call was a lot of (a call is what I say for a job, or a gig) hard work, and I spend most of the evening loading a truck bound for Saskatoon. There were dozens of absolutely heavy cases and it was bitterly cold outside tonight, so not only are my arms sore, my hands are all numb.

The one thing I love about being a theatre tech is the people you get to work with. Most of the people I work with when I do calls are people I know and that I am pretty friendly with and so, I enjoy spending time with them. Tonight was no exception. Once all the work was done, we stopped and had some beers and chatted for a bit before joining some of the people involved with the show. A lot of laughs were had and it was a good time.

I love theatre.

Maybe you'll see some more theatre stuff here.