Duncan Pflaster is proving quite the prolific comedic playwright in recent years, with upwards of thirteen works written and produced, several of them award winners, not to mention numerous skits and sketches for various venues. Even then, he freely admits that one of his most recent works, The Taint of Equality or, I Want Your Sex, was likely the fastest in writing itself – if such can ever be said of this recalcitrant form. There is some sense of this fluid ease carried forward in the production playing at Planet Connections Theatre Festivity this year, and it may be down to the fact that Pflaster himself is directing. As author he knows distinctly the feeling he is trying to conjure and adroitly directs his cast accordingly. The result is a romping, light-hearted piece in a farcical vein, with some sturdy, crowd-pleasing muscle.

The story concerns happily partnered duo, Adrian and Javier, about to celebrate seven years of connubial bliss. Or rather, it would be connubial if legality had afforded the possibility. And now though, in New York state, it has and, well, Adrian and Javier are sensitive to the notion that perhaps their togetherness could be solemnized, completed in some manner. But as good queer theorists (Adrian is a renowned author on topics Queer) they balk at the conventional tone that marriage invokes; it goes against their queer credentials. Despite this, peer and media pressure is prompting a declaration of some kind from the pair and, well that just makes them mad, people! In fact, to reassert their standards as open-relationship, non-exclusive, unmarried queer men, they decide to engage in public sexual dalliances with other men. Damn straight! Or, for these two, maybe not. The easy pickings afforded in the contemporary gay milieu are denied them on account of a series of comically bungled sexcapades. A heavy pinch of farcical salt sees each of the duo initiate gambits and watch them unravel as situations credibly mundane (drug usage, decency policing) and broadly ludicrous (impersonation, histrionics, and pique) erupt at every turn. The mayhem is added to by well-meaning friends, and all comes to a glorious head in a pricelessly staged set piece which is the unexpected gem at the center of this production. This scene is enacted at a sex club on a blackout party night, when the men move through a darkened environment with just mini flashlights to guide them. Visually this is a stunner, comedically enriched by campy choreography (David Baxter) and some nice co-ordination by the entire cast, who happen to be – entirely naked. It’s a show-stopper.

There are some serious themes at the center of this tale, but Pflaster never gets bogged down in any of them. Entertainment is his bag, and deep thoughts about the possibility, or desirability of open relationships are paid only air-kissy acknowledgement. In Taint he holds fast to a light entertainment coda that’s purposely too soft-hearted to rank as satire. No incisor marks are left, and he’s altogether too knowing to endorse any single philosophical perspective. He does at the end, however, leave us with a twisting teaser, when Adrian – having newly plighted his troth to Javier – picks up the phone to use this information as a sexual lure for one of his earlier non-conquests. Is there the ghost of some shadow here, or is it just a case of what goes around, comes around?

In actors Alan McNaney (Adrian) and Mark-Eugene Garcia (Javier) he has two attractive leads who hint that they would be equal to a more sober examination of these dramatic themes. They are not, however, out of sync with the broader comic, caricatured presences surrounding them, and the cast gels nicely into a funny bone-seeking ensemble. Sparkling cameos are enjoyed by Joe Fanelli, Colin Godwin, and David T. Zimmerman, while some of the heavier lifting is done by Marvin Riggins, Jr., and Juan Carlos Diaz. Vin Macri is very effective at working sound and lighting effects.

As auteur/director Pflaster does show some signs of self-indulgence; a rather extended riff on Sondheim connected puns proves groaningly belabored. It seems a little gilt on the lily is too tempting to pass up; do we really require the play’s subtitle? But it’s all in good humor, plausibly with an air of self-mockery. It’s about fun, people, remember fun? There’s fun aplenty here. Last I checked, ‘taint no crime.

~~~

 .

 .

Related Posts:

• The Taint Of Equality, Or I Want Your Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• (un)missed connections – (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• Pageant Princess – Music, Make-Up And Meltdowns (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• SAFE Is A Matter Of Perspective (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)

About fifteen minutes into Duncan Pflaster‘s play, The Empress of Sex, currently showing as part of the Planet Connections Theatre Festivity, a dramatic crisis point is reached. A character, Pistos, has confessed to being in love with one of his paramours, Neara. In accord with the rules of the community of which he is a voluntary member, his life is forfeit. Love and partnered exclusivity are forbidden in this realm, and the self-proclaimed ruler, Empress Salacia, condemns him duly to death. Only, well, that would be a trifle harsh, so the sentence is commuted to banishment. Phew! Crisis averted.

The play gallops forward setting up another potentially dramatic situation. The past lover of Salacia, the faithless man who has compelled her to forswear and outlaw love in her domain, is arriving on the scene in a bid to re-seduce her. Agis, now rueful and lovesick for Salacia, seeks to reunite and redress the wrong he did her. He comes disguised as a woman for this mission, and is accompanied by Adrianna, his sister – disguised as a man, and by Coriolanus, his servant – who frankly will brook no disguises. The scene is ripe for farce and you don’t have to have seen a Shakespearean comedy to sense that a mess of confusion and misunderstanding waits to unfold. Which it does at lightening speed. Unchecked desires in this libertine society quickly connect ill-matched characters and  - oddly amongst the licentious acolytes of Salacia – abruptly deepen into forbidden love attachments. But this spells calamity for Salacia and the domain!  Sounds unbelievable?  Pflaster, and director Glory Kadigan, have chosen to create a comical, almost cartoon world, where nothing really has to be believable.

The actors here are playing for laughs, broadcasting desires and emotions with eye-popping and lip-smacking expressions; while the play is billed as “An Erotic Romantic Comedy” this production is obviously shooting for comedy over eroticism. Which brings us to another salient feature of this production: there are many parts in this play (nineteen performers) and there are many parts on display. The nudity is real, but it’s all played for comic effect.

Pflaster, in tandem with Kadigan, may very well be on to some new sub-genre in entertainment – a pastiche camp, a formally hybridized spectacle that despairs of drama, winks at burlesque review, and esteems bingo parlor humor.  The author has acknowledged a debt to theatrical writer Charles Ludlam (of Irma Vep fame) so perhaps there is a case to be made in favor of a more subversive goal here. The author’s fine language is put in the service of effete play acting and arch silliness; the director encourages mugging on the part of actors, while she also assembles the ensemble into tightly co-ordinated group movements that recall almost a Victorian artificial theatricality. The individual performances are heavily enacted in inverted commas. Except, that is, for Catherine LeFrere who plays the Empress.  LeFrere delivers an earnest deadpan performance – even when she is enjoying public cunnilingual congress in her court.  This interposition seems to place her in another play all together; which makes her turn the comedy performance of the evening. This is artifice within artifice.

Other notable contributions are made by Matthew Menendez (Coriolanus), the over actor’s over actor; Kelly Zekas (Neara), who actually comes close to deploying subtlety; and Eric Percival, whose female impersonation is as (intentionally?) bad as his masculine turn as Agis is sweet and winsome. Marissa Bergman offers a camply atmospheric, pared-down set, and Izzy Fields some knowing and comedic costumes.

This is as profound a work as a set of pasties – and as compelling. The curtain is going up and there’s a new 21st Century Faux in town.

~~~

Related Posts:

• The Empress Of Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Taint Of Equality Or, I Want Your Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The 2012 National Newborn Festival Is Almost Here!
• The National Newborn Festival: Celebrating Emerging Playwrights In Style
• Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare, Bama Theatre Company (Fringe Festival 2012)

The Empress of Sex

Benefiting: Planned Parenthood
Produced by G-Money Productions
Written by Duncan Pflaster
Directed by Glory Kadigan

“In Ancient Greece, a woman spurned in love finds a deserted island and sets herself up as the Empress Salacia, decreeing that there shall be no love allowed in her domain, only sex. She gathers some sybaritic acolytes and all is frolicsome mindless fun until Salacia’s ex-lover Agis comes to the island in disguise, to attempt to win her back.”

Show Times:

• Mon 6/4/12 – 7:30pm
• Wed 6/6/12 – 9:30pm
• Sat 6/9/12 – 5:30pm
• Tues 6/12/12 – 4:00pm
• Wed 6/13/12 – 9:00pm
• Sun 6/17/12 – 9:00pm
• Mon 6/18/12 – 4:30pm
• Fri 6/22/12 – 9:30pm

Answers by Duncan Pflaster (Playwright)

Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
How did you come up with the title for your show?

Duncan: Well, the play is about a woman who gives up on love and devotes herself to sex; she sets herself up as Empress of an island devoted to sybaritic pleasures. Unlike my other play, that was always the title from the genesis of the project. I only found out later that “The Empress of Sex” was also a title for Mae West, which I think is awfully appropriate.

Diánna Martin’s Question
If you were going to invite 5 people (from the past or present) to see your show – who would you invite … and why?

Duncan:
1. Mae West – she fought so hard against censorship in the theatre in the 1920s with her ribald plays, often going to prison and being fined for presenting her work; it would be an honor to have her in the audience (though she would probably insist on taking over the show and playing the lead).

2. Pierre de Marivaux – seeing a production of his play The Triumph of Love was a HUGE inspiration for this piece (though I inverted the sexual tropes); the character of Agis in Empress is named after a character in that play.

3. Heinrich Von Kleist – Likewise, his tragedy Penthesilea was a big influence (Which I encountered through Eric Bentley’s translation/adaptation The Fall of the Amazons).

4. Charles Ludlam – I am continually inspired by his plays and his Ridiculous Theatre ethos; with his recrafting of classical tropes infused with modern sensibilities, he’d feel right at home here. He and Mae would need to have a slap fight for the titular role.

5. Patricia Comstock – one of my favorite actresses, the play is dedicated to her (I think she already has tickets).

Antonio Minino’s Question
What is the biggest sacrifice you’ve made for your art and was it worth it?
Duncan:  Continually sacrificing. Usually worth it.

Geoffrey Paddy Johnson’s Question
Was there any unexpected discovery made during the development of this production and can you share it with us?
Duncan: I’ve been super-busy this year, since I have two shows going up in Planet Connections; Glory Kadigan is directing this one, and I’m directing The Taint of Equality ~or~ I Want Your Sex. I discovered I get very grumpy when I can’t be present at rehearsals and am thus out of the loop.

Michelle Augello-Page’s Question
What do you hope the audience receives from the experience of seeing this show?
Duncan:  Like my other show, I hope they laugh, are titillated, and still go home thinking about the philosophical issues related to love and sex that are the meat of the play.  Hehe, I said “meat”.

Another great show by playwright Duncan Pflaster! See his other 5 Things To Know …for The Taint Of Equality. Why not see both shows? Twice the Duncan – Twice the Fun!

___

Planet Connections runs from May 30 – June 24 at The Bleecker Street Theater located at 45 Bleecker Street, New York, NY. To purchase tickets to this or any of the shows click here.

Related Posts:

• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Taint Of Equality, Or I Want Your Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• Bubby’s Shadow: Whose Shadow Is It? (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The American Play (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• Scene/Unseen – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)

The Taint of Equality, ~or~ I Want Your Sex

Benefiting: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center
Produced by Cross-Eyed Bear Productions
Written/Directed by Duncan Pflaster

“Adrian and Javier are a gay couple who don’t believe in marriage- but everyone assumes they’re married. When they realize they’ve never actually opened up their “open relationship”, they decide to each go out and get laid, with hilarious and erotic results. Featuring an all-male cast of 13 in an epic satire of modern gay society. Warning: Nudity.”

Show Times:

• Fri 6/8/12 – 6:30pm
• Wed 6/13/12 – 10:00pm
• Sat 6/16/12 – 10:00pm
• Mon 6/18/12 – 7:30pm
• Thu 6/21/12 – 10:00pm
• Sat 6/23/12 – 6:30pm

Answers by Duncan Pflaster
(Writer, Director)

Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
How did you come up with the title for your show?
Duncan: It actually took a long time and I went through several titles- It began life called Fidelity, was called Sex and Sensibilities for a while, then went through a number of options that weren’t quite right: One Touch of Penis, The Salad of the Bad Young Men, I Am Into Champagne, Wang the Drum Slowly, and then I tentatively settled on the somewhat bland Equality for the first draft and private reading with my playwright group… but then I read an interview with Paul Rudd in US Weekly where he mentioned the awkwardness of doing nude scenes and pitied the poor soundman who had to look at his hairy taint- and BAM, “The Taint of Equality” it was. The pun sounds vaguely dirty and makes people giggle, but the other meaning resonates with the Gay Marriage themes of the play. And the subtitle of course is from the 80s George Michael song- since he’s struggled in his personal life with some of the same fidelity/monogamy issues as my characters (and is mentioned in the play), that just seemed to be appropriate.

Diánna Martin’s Question
If you were going to invite 5 people (from the past or present) to see your show – who would you invite … and why?
Duncan: (Singer) George Michael, (Playwright) Noel Coward, (Composer) Stephen Sondheim, (Columnist) Dan Savage, and (Gay-for-Pay Porn Star) Paul Carrigan- each of them inspired parts of the play, and I think they’d get a kick out of it.

Antonio Minino’s Question
What is the biggest sacrifice you’ve made for your art and was it worth it?
Duncan: Oh man, it seems like I’m always sacrificing something to make my shows happen. I’ve been averaging two full-length shows per year the last few years, and it’s been more and more of a difficult battle. Frankly, though I’m extremely proud of all the plays I’ve done and have been very lucky to work with such great people through the years, it’s been feeling less and less worth it as I go on. I’m considering giving up producing my own work and just doing something else for a while.

Geoffrey Paddy Johnson’s Question
Was there any unexpected discovery made during the development of this production and can you share it with us?
Duncan: Well, I wrote the first draft of this play in 2 months, which is the shortest amount of time in which I’ve ever written a full-length play (I usually average about a year), so that was unexpected; I didn’t know I could write so quickly. I’m still working on more drafts of Nothing Human, the other (more dramatic) play which I took a hiatus from to write Taint.

Michelle Augello-Page’s Question
What do you hope the audience receives from the experience of seeing this show?
Duncan: I hope they are entertained, but also leave thinking about the issues; they’re presented in a hilarious way, but deep down it’s a serious show that presents philosophical questions about relationships and what they could look like.

___

Planet Connections runs from May 30 – June 24 at The Bleecker Street Theater located at 45 Bleecker Street, New York, NY.  To purchase tickets to this or any of the shows click here.

Related Posts:

• The Empress Of Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Taint Of Equality Or, I Want Your Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• Bubby’s Shadow: Whose Shadow Is It? (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The American Play (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• Scene/Unseen – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)

As part of the Board of Directors of MTWorks I’m really proud to be involved with the National Newborn Festival. Part of my job was to help choose the Excellence in Playwriting Award (see below for the winner!) and this year I’ll be introducing one of the plays — but I won’t tell you which one!  You’ll just have to come join me at the festival.

So what is Newborn?

Now on its sixth year, The National NewBorn Festival is MTWorks playwriting competition and flagship program created to find talented emerging playwrights from across the US, introduce their work to the New York community, and open new doors to regional voices.

READINGS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

TO RESERVE YOUR SEATS CLICK HERE
(OR VISIT http://tinyurl.com/72h4jfw)

February 2-4, 2012
The City College of New York (map)
North Academic Center, 160 Convent Avenue  New York, NY
First Floor Lecture Hall (1/202)

THE 2012 PLAYS & SCHEDULE

Thursday, February 2nd at 7pm

The Tragedy of Dandelion by Duncan Pflaster, directed by Leah Bonvissuto, produced by Jessica Thornhill.

The Tragedy of Dandelion follows a Princess named Dandelion, who attempts to escape, by dressing as a boy, a forced marriage to Ratliff, a man who raped and impregnated her. She collaborates with Prince Crispin, son of Queen Alice, telling him that the baby is his, to gain a place in that kingdom and while waiting in the Queen’s orchard, meets the Queen’s daughter, Princess Cèlie, and shares a kiss with her. She gains a place in Alice’s kingdom, till Ratliff and her father King Stephano, come to Alice’s palace and point out that Dandelion is a female, and drag her away. A new lesbian verse play by Duncan Pflaster.

Friday, February 3rd at 7pm

Denny and Lila by August Schulenburg, directed by Tom Wojtunik, produced by London Griffith.

After her husband Marcus divorces her for their much younger maid Lucia, Mary turns to the con artist team of Denny, Lila and Jabber for revenge. They take the job, with Denny pretending to be the Neruda-quoting electrician ‘Fred’ to seduce Lucia; and Lila pretending to be the daffily charming British novelist ‘Mara’ to seduce Marcus. All goes well until Denny develops an unexpected connection to Nettie, Mary and Marcus’ manic-depressive daughter.

Saturday, February 4th at 5pm *Excellence in Playwriting Award Winner*

The Excellence in Playwriting Award is bestowed by the MTWorks’ Board of Directors. The board selects the winner before the festival takes place and is not influenced by the work the director and actors are achieving at the readings.

Absinthe by Joe Musso, directed by Dev Bondarin, produced by Martha Goode.

It’s July 1900, and a race riot has engulfed New Orleans, sparked by a black man killing two white policemen. At first, the violence on the streets is far removed from the genteel parlor of Grace Newman, a blind white woman cared for by her house servant, Curtis, a former slave owned by Grace’s father. Grace and Curtis’s relationship is forged by respect and compassion. However, their true feelings for each other must remain hidden from Grace’s racist brother Henry, a Civil War vet who fought for the South and who is hell-bent on bringing justice to a black man who killed two white policemen. As a race riot in the streets unfolds, Grace and Curtis’s relationship unravels.

Saturday, February 4th at 8pm *Resident Reading*

On Egdon Heath adapted by David Stallings from Thomas Hardy’s novel The Return of the Native directed by Glory Kadigan, produced by David Stallings.

Award-winning playwright David Stallings’ adapts one of the most powerful works of famed author Thomas Hardy, “The Return of the Native”. The ensemble of townspeople On Egdon Heath will take you on a journey of love, passion and folklore, centered around the beautiful and mystical Eustacia Vye. Her hunger for escape and a devastating twist of fate will affect the lives of the Yeobrights, the Wildeves and the heart of the heath.

Related Posts:

• A Day In The Life … “The Family Shakespeare” By The Numbers
• MTWorks National NewBorn Festival Kicks Off Tonight
• The National Newborn Festival: Celebrating Emerging Playwrights In Style
• Delving Into DARK WATER With Diánna Martin
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)

Monologues! Comedy! Improv! Ukulele music!

Friday, Sept. 2nd, 7-9pm

–> Bowery Poetry Club <–

Hosted by award-winning playwright Monica Bauer (Outstanding New Script, MITF 2008; nominee writing for Best Solo Show, Planet Connections 2010; finalist, Heideman Award).

Performers include:

• playwright Monica Bauer performing the Breast Pride Movement from the Diet Monologues
• John Fico performing a monologue from his critically acclaimed performance in Made for Each Other
• Duncan Pflaster, master of the Broadway Ukulele
• and others!

–> Open Mic sign up at 7 pm <–

Admission $8 (includes one free raffle ticket for a $100 Amazon.com Gift Certificate that will be raffled off that evening!)

Related Posts:

• BALLS! – Come See What Goes On In The Minds Of Men
• Last Looks At The Happiest Medium In 3-D – Pull Your Glasses Out
• Made For Each Other – ‘Til Death (Or Something Like It) Do Us Part (Planet Connections 2010)
• CLENCHED: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)
• Becoming Butch (Fringe Festival 2012)

We’re already planning ahead for after-FRIGID and what better way to face the non-festival lull than with a good ole Duncan Pflaster nekkid play? That’s right- you heard right. But why should I blather on when I’ve got the playwright of Six Silences In Three Movements right here?

What’s it all about, Duncan? (I’m humming, are you?)
Well, the story is about a straight couple and a gay couple who are best friends, but the straight guy is having a clandestine affair with one of the gay guys (unbeknownst to their partners).
It’s a long one-act piece which is experimental in form- each scene is broken up into three “movements”, analogous to those in music. There is a poem in a traditional form, then a scene where lovers talk but nothing of importance is said, then a section where, nude, the performers spout non-sequiturs at each other. It’s inspired in part by an Edward Gorey piece called L’Heure Bleu, and has to do with communication, how even when we’re as intimate as we can be with someone, we still might be holding something back.

FABULOUS! I love Edward Gorey and I love that concept.  I completely agree – we’re always holding something back.

Your show contains nudity AND poetry. What’s more controversial?
Though the poetry is unusual these days (all of it is in antiquated classical forms: a Villanelle, a Triolet, a Wyleian Sonnet, a Rondeau Redouble), I think it’s probably still the nudity. There’s a whole lot of it in this piece, and the theatre space is quite small, so the audience will be getting up close and personal views of the performers. The show is part of Manhattan Rep’s WinterFest 2011, and it’s usually in their Festival Contract that they don’t allow nudity, but they’re making an exception for this piece because they liked my play so much.

Wow, you made someone break a contract, Mr. Pflaster! Color me impressed. And a little tingly.

Give me six unrelated words that describe your show.
Natural, Love, Silence, Perfection, Desire, Penguin.

Well, I’ve nothing to add there! Always a pleasure, Duncan Pflaster, writer of Six Silences In Three Movements.  Roll tape!

Only 3 Performances -
March 19th @ 9PM
March 20th @ 6PM
March 24th @ 9PM

Tickets $20 – call 646.329.6588 / www.manhattanrep.com / www.duncanpflaster.com

Related Posts:

• The Taint Of Equality Or, I Want Your Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress Of Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Taint Of Equality, Or I Want Your Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The 2012 National Newborn Festival Is Almost Here!

The National Newborn Festival has become, over the last four years, one of the premiere playwriting festivals in the country for emerging playwrights. A flagship program created and produced by MTWorks, an ever-growing, non-profit theatre company, Newborn allows playwrights to have a work never produced in New York be read in a festival setting.

Free and open to the public, this year’s festival is being sponsored by The City College of New York’s Psychology Club & Department and begins Thursday, February 3rd, and runs through Sunday, February 6th. This year we are showcasing the works of Duncan Pflaster, Rich Rubin, Marilynn Barner Anselmi, Riti Sachdeva, and Jacqueline Goldfinger.

David Stallings

The festival will kick off the first night with the reading of The ReEducation of Arizona by MTWorks’ Artistic Director and resident playwright David Stallings, and end the final evening with the Audience Favorite Award ceremony and a raffle, as well as an extra reading of the winning play. For 2011, in addition to the Audience Favorite Award which is selected by those who attend the readings, the MTWorks Board of Directors is presenting the first annual Excellence in Playwriting Award, to be announced prior to the festival.

I have directed a reading in the last two Newborn Festivals, and will be acting in this year’s, so I’m very excited about this brainchild that MTWorks has created…one that encourages playwrights, directors, and actors to come together and celebrate the artistic process. I asked the playwrights to talk a little bit about their work and their thoughts on said process.

How did you come to hear about The Newborn Festival?

Duncan Pflaster

(Duncan Pflaster – The Empress of Sex) I’ve been a fan of MTWorks for some time now, and when I saw they were accepting applications for the festival, I jumped to send in my script.

(Rich Rubin – Costa Rehab) Spotted the posting on the nyc playwrights website, probably around this time last year.

(Marilynn Barner Anselmi – Raising Ricci) The NewBorn Festival and MTWorks was one of many companies I discovered during my desperate internet searches for possible artistic avenues.

(Riti Sachdeva – Parts of Parts & Stitches) A call in the Fund for Women Artists e-newsletter.

(Jacqueline Goldfinger – Skin & Bone) My play, “Slip/Shot,” was in the Festival last year, and it was a fantastic experience. MTWorks also produced my drama, “The Oath,” in 2009.

Describe your play in one sentence.

(Duncan Pflaster – The Empress of Sex) A woman spurned in her affairs of the heart sets herself up as empress of an island where no love is allowed, only sex; all is orgies and sensual pleasure till her ex-lover comes in disguise to try to win her back.

Rich Rubin

(Rich Rubin – Costa Rehab) A very raunchy comedy with an underpinning of great sadness.

(Marilynn Barner Anselmi – Raising Ricci) After the death of their son, two women attempt to find healing and acceptance in the home of their Southern family.

(Riti Sachdeva – Parts of Parts & Stitches) In war, it is a fine line between madness and courage.

(Jacqueline Goldfinger – Skin & Bone) Skin & Bone is a dark comedy about two little old ladies who detest aging because they can’t do the things they love anymore – like eating people.

(David Stallings – The ReEducation of Arizona) The ReEducation of Arizona opens a discussion about the trickle down effect of politicians and media upon the smaller families in our country.

What makes your work, this play in particular, stand out from the rest?

(Duncan Pflaster – The Empress of Sex) It’s a romantic comedy in the tradition of Marivaux and Shakespeare that doesn’t shy away from modern expressions of sexuality.

(Rich Rubin – Costa Rehab) I’m not sure that is does. I’m hoping that audiences will find Costa Rehab irreverent and off-kilter and at times even outrageous, but I suspect that description applies to just about everything in the festival.

Marilynn Anselmi

(Marilynn Barner Anselmi – Raising Ricci) Maybe my willingness to portray raw grief as honestly as I’m capable.

(Riti Sachdeva – Parts of Parts & Stitches) The woman-centerdness of the tone, the action, the impetus. The emotional urgency of compassion and determination.

(Jacqueline Goldfinger – Skin & Bone) I think Skin & Bone is the only comedy in the Festival this year, and the only one that utilizes the more traditional elements of Southern Gothic storytelling (a la William Faulkner, Kate Chopin, etc…).

(David Stallings – The ReEducation of Arizona) As I am the only writer that has read all of the plays (lucky me), I believe that each play uniquely shows the aesthetic of MTWorks!  I think with this play, the recent events in Arizona have made it more timely now than when it was written.

Whose work do you admire and find to be an inspiration to you as a writer?

(Duncan Pflaster – The Empress of Sex) Charles Ludlam is the top (especially for this play); his combining traditional theatrical forms with comedy and sexuality has always been an inspiration.  Also love Israel Horovitz, Christopher Durang, Theresa Rebeck, Eric Overmyer, Paul Rudnick, Tony Kushner, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Tom Robbins…. and more and more…

(Rich Rubin – Costa Rehab) The list goes on and on, and includes August Wilson, Martin McDonagh, Lee Blessing and Annie Baker. I’m also a big fan of Theresa Rebeck, Lynn Nottage, Tracy Letts and Rebecca Gilman. It might be easier to ask me to list the playwrights whose work I don’t admire.

(Marilynn Barner Anselmi – Raising Ricci) Douglas Wright, Marsha Norman, Margaret Edson and, certainly, Harper Lee.

Riti Sachdeva

(Riti Sachdeva – Parts of Parts & Stitches) So many – Audre Lorde, Nilo Cruz, Malcom X, Deepa Mehtha, Natacha Atlas, Mother Nature.

(Jacqueline Goldfinger – Skin & Bone) Recently, I’ve been inspired by the work of Martin McDonagh, Enda Walsh, and Leo Butler.

(David Stallings – The ReEducation of Arizona) I always go back to Shakespeare and Shaw when I am lost.

What do you hope the audience will walk away with after this reading?

(Duncan Pflaster – The Empress of Sex) I hope they have a good time.  I hope my words touch their hearts and their erogenous zones.

(Rich Rubin – Costa Rehab) A few laughs … and at least a subliminal sense of the tragic absurdity of war.

(Marilynn Barner Anselmi – Raising Ricci) At least a glimpse at a real life, shared experience, and the germination of healing.

(Riti Sachdeva – Parts of Parts & Stitches) To think about how each one of us has an opportunity and responsibility to stand up for the “other”.

Jacquelyn Goldfinger

(Jacqueline Goldfinger – Skin & Bone) I hope they’ll walk away having laughed a lot, and it might provoke some thought about what it means to age in America’s youth culture.

(David Stallings – The ReEducation of Arizona) I always hope that the piece was entertaining first.  And then my goal is to open a discussion.  It is easy to say that because we are New Yorkers, the nonsense going on in Arizona with their offensive Immigration bill and laughable paroling of minority studies in schools does not affect us.  But it does.  And these measures are persecuting Americans who are most vulnerable.  In this play, I give facts that seem ridiculous and fiction that, while comic, has a darker undertone.

What other projects do you have lined up for 2011?

(Duncan Pflaster – The Empress of Sex) I’ll be doing my experimental play Six Silences in Three Movements in March as part of Manhattan Rep’s 2011 WinterFest; most likely doing something in the Planet Connections Theatre Festivity this Summer (though not confirmed yet); and I’ve just been commissioned to write my first screenplay, so that’s a new adventure.

(Rich Rubin – Costa Rehab) Assisted Living, a pretty mainstream comedy-drama about a family dealing with Alzheimer’s disease, will have a second production (in Oregon) this spring. I recently finished a full-length about the disintegration of Arthur Miller’s marriage to Marilyn Monroe on the set of The Misfits, and I’m currently working on another full-length about a primatologist with a complicated love-life.

(Marilynn Barner Anselmi – Raising Ricci) More mad attempts to get my work out there (wherever that is).

(Riti Sachdeva – Parts of Parts & Stitches) My MFA thesis show La Fea: A FlamenChoreoMyth, bringing together two of my great  passions: theatre and flamenco. Produced by University of New Mexico, directed by Ricky Martinez of New Theatre, Miami.

(Jacqueline Goldfinger – Skin & Bone) My dark comedy, the terrible girls, is world premiering at Azuka Theatre Company in Philadelphia and being published by Playscripts this spring. You can read more about my work online: www.jacquelinegoldfinger.com

(David Stallings – The ReEducation of Arizona) I have The Family Shakespeare here in NYC with MTWorks in April.  So I am excited for that!

~~~

The 2011 National Newborn Festival will be held at The City College of New York, North Academic Center (NAC), 138th St at Amsterdam Avenue. The admission is free but you do need to reserve your seats as the space is limited. For a complete schedule and reservation information visit www.MTWorks.org.

Next week we’ll have a chance to talk to the directors of these readings to find out what their thoughts are on the plays that have been selected for the festival. In the meantime . . . I think the following video will also whet your appetite.

Related Posts:

• The 2012 National Newborn Festival Is Almost Here!
• MTWorks National NewBorn Festival Kicks Off Tonight
• Ever Seen A “NewBorn” Play? (Part 1)
• Delving Into DARK WATER With Diánna Martin
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)

Anyone For A Swingin’ Threesome? is a trio of comedic One Act Plays put together by Just Ask Productions.

I like One Act collections, and collections of short stories. Besides being short, I also like that – as collections – they are of different origins (even if by the same author) and that the world of the story is of a completely different universe than the others in the collection. Yet often, as with this collection, they are held together by some subtle yet powerful thread of why they were collected together in the first place.

Sometimes the reasons are obvious, other times, more subtle. The connection in Threesome leans more towards subtly; for a few days, at least, the ultimate theme eluded me. In a show titled Anyone For A Swingin’ Threesome? one might jump to the conclusion that it’s a play about throwing morals to the wind and hooking up in some unconventional way with a non-traditional number of people. However if you look at the plays shown here, the characters (as well as the audience) seem very aware that a moral conundrum is being portrayed, obviously we are being given some potential ethical dilemmas that must be figured out:

1. The Questions of the Queen (by Duncan Pflaster, Directed by Adam Samtur)

Which is more important: happiness or order?

The answer may not be as simple as it appears. Though Spock might advise: the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.

In Queen Cindy’s (Stephanie Strohm) sunny kingdom everything runs like hearts and sunshine, because if it doesn’t she’ll “Off With His Head” you sooner than Alice In Wonderland’s Queen of Hearts. Disagree with Queen Cindy – even when her direct order is to tell her the truth – and you’re signing your own death warrant. And she does it all on morning TV (Whhheeeee! Fun!). With her sycophantic Justin (Brendon Katon-Donegal) and Barry the Guard (V. Orion Delwaterman) telling her everything she wants to hear, is it any wonder she’s confused when straight talking Victoria (Sarah E. Jacobs) uses her “come on down” moment to tell Cindy that no one is happy, people hate her and life isn’t fantastic? Queen Cindy pits Victoria against Nick (Charles Coleman) who terrifyingly keeps insisting everything is fine. By the time the dust settles the Kingdom is left very very different.

2. Trials (by Will Lacker, Directed by P. Case Aiken III)

Which is more important: love or the integrity of space and time? Or: Can every relationship be fixed or are some just doomed no matter what?

Don’t we all wish we had a Groundhog Day apparatus of our own, something to make all the events which lead up to that one disastrous moment happen again so that we could divert the (perhaps not so) inevitable and make sure it all goes right this time? In Trials the twist is that perhaps this relationship isn’t worth saving – but Miles (Partrick Reidy) needed to come to that conclusion on his own, and no matter how many times he re-set his date with Judith (Vanessa Hardy), it was all to no avail until some very strange things begin to occur.

3. Park Slope Cassoulet (by Dan Via, Directed by Matthew Kagen)

Which is more important: The idea of a neighborhood or the ideas of a neighbor? In other words: You can’t step in the same Gowanus Canal twice.

Mark (Jeffrey A. Wisniewski)) and Lydia (Regina Gibson) are you typical Brooklyn couple. They live in the ‘Slope, Lydia cooks up healthy delicious dishes for herself and her family, and they live a good life.  They do things “right”, they want things “fair”, they blog about their little corner of the world and grip tightly against the gentrification, rising property costs and new neighbors like the very pregnant Jeanne-Anne (Caitlin Bruggeman) who, despite being a lesbian (good), is also a banker (bad). Jeanne-Anne is exactly the type of person who’s ruining Brooklyn for all the people who’ve been there for the last twenty five years. And . . . well . . . Lydia’s had just about enough. So she and Mark take action . . .

Ultimately, for Threesome - the theme of the plays overall is judgement. Do we have the right? And what would happen if we didn’t exercise ours correctly?

So most likely the “swingin’” in this threesome is representative of a “hangin’” (more than a sexy-fest) – the ultimate symbol in judgment. But like the Hanged Man card in the Tarot Deck these plays are symbols that can give us some guidance as we move into the second mysterious and confusing decade of this second millennium.

~~~

Related Posts:

• The Taint Of Equality Or, I Want Your Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress Of Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Taint Of Equality, Or I Want Your Sex – 5 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The 2012 National Newborn Festival Is Almost Here!

I’m sure it happens to you sometimes …  You’re walking down the street, pondering the inevitability of change and the hardship it’s apt to cause when you fail to adapt, and other foibles of the human condition…

Then suddenly you realize that the person beside you is reading your mind, and doesn’t like what they see, and is leveling their blaster at you to fire, when …

You get transported away.  

More than likely, you’ve been transported to The Starship Astrov, a play where playwright Duncan Pflaster (see an interview we did with him earlier here) takes the best of science fiction tropes and embeds many of the themes and characters of plays such as Uncle Vanya and The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov.  The result is a play (delightfully directed by Eric Parness) that will tickle your funny bone with homages that run the gamut from Star Trek to Buck Rogers, but with an over arcing sense of  nostalgia for the times in your own life when you knew you had to move on to the next stage.  You can’t help but smile as what seems (at first) to be corny caricatures change into ideal vehicles which transport the story not just across the galaxy, but also to a meaningful conclusion for our own lives.  This is more than you would have expected from something billed as a comedy.

Like Chekhov’s plays, The Starship Astrov has a rich cast of characters whose archetypes help us see the different ways people navigate the world — all leading to different conclusions.   There is the noble captain of the starship, Commander Jonas January (played by Walter Brandes) who wants to treat every personal interaction as another time to invoke his belief in the proper codes of space travel.  Jenny “Sparky” Camilo (played by Christine Verleny) is the ship’s engineer who is so embedded in the life of the ship that she is a fish-out-of-water when planetside.  Space has been her life for so long she almost dismisses everything which occurred before she joined the space forces.  She admires the captain greatly and wishes he would notice her with something other than simply admiration for her great technicalal prowess and loyalty as a crew member.

Elizabeth A. Davis plays Celaria, a telepathic alien seductress with a mind of gold who comes from a beautiful corner of the galaxy with rich but confusing stories of trees and death and love and need that illuminate the audience, but which are often taken the wrong way by other characters.  She is married to Professor Jason Cole (played by Ariel Estrada), a genius amoung geniuses who invented the “star drive” that allows all the ships to go faster than light.  This invention has consequently spread humanity across the galaxy.  He is being taken to a conference to announce a new discovery and the able little tug Astrov will get him there in 4 days — just long enough for everyone to get bored.  The Professor knows all the secrets of science but is clueless when it comes to relationships . . . and has a mysterious illness to boot.

To help care for him is is Dr. Michael Rosy  (played by Philip Emeott).  Dr. Rosy is very strongly modeled on Chekhov’s character of Astrov in Uncle Vanya.   The shy doctor hungers for living someplace where he can make a difference, but is afraid to leave the security of the known.  He has been acquainted with the captain and his family for many years – including the captain’s daughter Ensign Ally January.  Ally (played by Jennifer Gawlik) is the the little ensign that could, but oftentimes doesn’t.  She works as communications officer (al la Uhura), where she often simply repeats what is already communicated across the loud speakers, but knows her craft well enough to make a difference when she needs to, though often she still is mostly worried about being a flighty happy young thing. Ally is still learning the ropes of life as a grown up; she works hard to not be taken for granted by the rest of the crew, namely the rough and rowdy First Mate Marcus Washington.  Washington (played by Rafael Jordan) is rude and obnoxious and generally always on the edge of getting in trouble.  He is the astrogator who is most needy of normal humanity in this super-scientific place.

Rafael Jordan and Elizabeth Davis | photo by Brad Fryman

Pflaster transplants these characters into a context  subtly yet richly pulled from the plays of Anton Chekhov.  The costumes by Mark Richard Caswell help complete the image of this exciting new space drama as Isabella F. Byrd’s lighting design hit the mark with intentionally cheesy and dramatic lighting effects that are the mainstay of science fiction TV throughout the ages. The musical interludes worked in by Nick Moore help draw the audeince into the nostalgia of classic space opera.

Like Chekhov’s plays Pflaster gives us lessons of how we can deal  with our own personal crises  in a world where change  is inevitable and transformation is a necessary tool for survival.   In a universe where the incredible miracle of interstellar flight has become humdrum the characters struggle to keep the armor of their once nobel professions in tact, as secrets at the heart of the galaxy threaten to unravel the only existence they know in a way that echoes the struggles Chekhov’s characters faced as the world modernized around them.

Sometimes you want a little cheesy science fiction, sometimes you want  a bittersweet reflection on the human condition.  Luckily in the case of The Starship Astrov you can have both.  See it this week while you can as it only runs through July 31st.

~~~

Related Posts:

• Entrevista: The Starship Astrov and Asian Belle (Midtown International Theatre Festival 2010)
• Oberon Theatre’s “Othello” And “Order” At Theatre Row: Interviews With The Madmen (And Woman) Behind The Curtain – Pt. 2
• The Sensational Josephine Baker
• The Taint Of Equality Or, I Want Your Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)