“You know what my watchword is? The phrase I live by?” asks Kathleen LaRoche, the self-reliant doctor-mother character in Jonathan Wallace‘s new play, A Brief History of Thyme. “Only connect,” she says, quoting E.M. Forster. She is in high earnest when she shares this information with Madson, the central character, her daughter’s older, roommate-cum-lover. And in every sense Wallace’s play – comical, fantastical, anguished – is in high earnest about the same challenge – the possibility of establishing and maintaining intimate connection with another person in this world. What Kathleen – for all her hard-headed, scientific approach to the problems of mundane living – is blind to, however, is the enormous range in which people can effect connection. For her, someone must put a ring on another’s finger and beget a child to establish meaningful connection. Anything else is evasive, illusory, disqualified. Alas for her, Madson and her daughter, the titular Thyme, do not share this view. They shack up together in an open relationship, rarely have sex, and eschew children. It’s not even a relationship to Kathleen, and she accuses Madson of stealing her daughter’s life, of creating an alternative “perfect bubble world” which enables her to avoid real life. All human worlds are bubbles, is Madson’s sage rejoinder, and unfortunately for Kathleen, the playwright seems very much in agreement. For all her best intentions, Kathleen is the furthest removed from ever understanding the riddle of her daughter, someone, in a moment of poetical abandon, she named Thyme.

Wallace has permitted himself more than a little poetical abandon in the writing of his play. The names Madson and Thyme are relevant, but brace yourself for the other major stage presences here, Horny Man and Tiara, the imaginary friend figures of, respectively, Madson and Thyme. These conjured intimates present the hidden personalities of the two sensitive, head-dwelling, socially disaffected principals. They have all the dirt on their creators and, thankfully, quite a bit of mouthy humor to share. The introduction of these two characters, who occupy an imaginary realm, affords Wallace a broad and liberal space for investigation, and permits him to gracefully shoe-horn the “big themes” into this modestly-sized, delightful screwball comedy with bitter-sweet overtones. Finally it’s not just the possibility of human connection that is explored here, but the greater backdrop our personal dramas are played out against, and those oh-so-eternal posers it throws up, such as –  why? to what end? and, where-after?

“All mythology and all science originate in the disturbing noises issuing from behind the parental door” offers Horny Man. It’s an address entirely characteristic of Wallace’s style, at once grandiosely ambitious and comically pathetic. With Horny, we travel into Madson’s imagination, and are treated to an out-of-body experience beyond life, to the meta-narrative that is Life unfolding itself, describing itself as it does – the dreamtime, as characters refer to it here. In this “almost” space, Madson encounters the spirit of his dead mother, who answers his question as to whether there is an afterlife with – “There is a before life only.” It’s heady stuff, but carefully stripped of any self importance. In addressing the great questions, Wallace is just as inclined to have his wordy characters stumble against the ineffable. They experience linguistic brain freezes and can offer only physical gestures, comical in their failure to elucidate even as they shred concepts of time and place, unmooring us from notions of continuity and identity.  Everything here is loaded and the patter is usually fast, but give or take a few literary references, the playwright keeps it impressively simple.

He is nimbly aided in this by Tatiana Gomberg‘s subtle direction, and the full blooded performances she draws from the actors involved. Richard Brundage is watchful and nervy as Madson, a man wholly respectful of his inconveniently evolved conscience. He’s a lover, not a fighter, though in essence the two things are much closer than might be supposed. Against his unsparing tolerance, Tanis Parenteau‘s Thyme can’t help but show as prickly, brittle, and selfish, but she holds fast to her character’s integrity. Deborah Carlson is a formidable Kathleen, effortlessly commanding the stage in character, even as the playwright gently reduces her to a figure of pathos. Much fun is being had by Collin Smith as Horny, and Allison Hirschlag as Tiara, and it’s a joy when this attractive pair get into the action. ( Can you say “Imaginary Friend Smackdown”?) The cast is rounded out by Douglas Rossi – a performance that pulls a lot of weight in some short scenes – and Julie Berndt who, amidst the verbal brawling, introduces a somewhat classical note.

Wallace shows a wide vision and great assurance in his story telling, an ability to move between the outer and inner worlds. There  is much heart in this drama but, thankfully, there is as much head. He does not shy away from jagged truths – the opening and closing scenes are awash with distress. But a durable funny bone persists and a welcome, perhaps even stubborn, optimism. Which is a very good thing if you are writing comedy. Whether it does or doesn’t make us happier, we should be grateful. The Howling Moon Cab Co. are very much on board. In writing this comedy, Wallace has done a very good thing.

Related Posts:

• THM – Proud Sponsors Of Planet Connections Festivity 2012!
• Women’s History Month: Celebrating Women In The Arts – Spotlight On Alex Bond
• Women’s History Month: Celebrating Women In The Arts – Spotlight On Robin Rice Lichtig
• Women’s History Month: Celebrating Women In The Arts – Spotlight On Glory Kadigan
• Celebrating Life, Love, And Connections – Congratulating Carol Carpenter

The Starship Astrov

We continue our Midtown International Theatre Festival Q&A with writers Duncan Pflaster of The Starship Astrov, and Michelle Glick, writer and performer of the solo show Asian Belle.

Let us start with Duncan.

When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Not until about 15 years ago- I thought for a long time I was going to be an actor.  There’s something really wonderful about making an audience laugh and react, which I loved as a performer… But as a writer, you get to play all the parts!  Now I only act if people specifically ask me, or if there’s an emergency casting.

What is your show about?

It’s a play written in the style of Anton Chekhov, set on a spaceship in the year 3047.  Captain January and the crew of the Starship Astrov are frustrated because they’re stuck on a boring diplomatic mission, ferrying Professor Cole to a lecture conference he’s giving on a space station; meanwhile, January’s daughter Ally is in love with Dr. Rosy, Professor Cole’s private doctor, and Rosy is in love with Cole’s beautiful green-skinned alien wife, Celaria.  It’s like an episode of Star Trek set on a ship that doesn’t have crazy adventures every week.

If you had to single out a quality between dialogue, plot or character, which one is the strongest in your project, and why?

Definitely character, in keeping with Chekhov’s style. I attempted to find the same sort of archetypes that Chekhov used so often- Pretentious Professors, Doctors who yearn for more . . .  The plot is in that epic stretched-out Chekhovian style, where everything and nothing happens at once.  As Chekhov said, “What happens on-stage should be just as complicated and just as simple as things are in real life. People are sitting at a table having dinner, that’s all, but at the same time their happiness is being created, or their lives are being torn apart.”  It’s all gorgeous character work, and the actors are really sinking their teeth into it.

Duncan Pflaster

What is the funniest thing that has happened, and what is the most frustrating thing that has happened so far during this experience?

The funniest has been dealing with how to present the character of Celaria, the alien.  Her perspective on humanity has us consistently giggling, and Elizabeth A. Davis‘ choices for the character have been hilarious.  Most frustrating has been finding this cast; Eric Parness, the brilliant director, went through tons of performers till he finally succeeded in finding the perfect group that would complement each others’ strengths.

Name one show in the festival you are planning on checking out, and why?

——

The Starship Astrov
written by Duncan Pflaster
directed by Eric Parness

Playing July 17th through July 31st at The Becket Theatre @Theatre Row (410 W. 42th St, 1st Floor)
Tickets are $18 (Students $15) available at www.MidtownFestival.org

* * *

Asian Belle

What about you Michelle…

When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

Gosh. I never really had that “ah-ha” moment, until I was already writing. For years I journaled — it was a way of expressing myself, you know venting, dreaming and all that — :) . I find it comforting. I never really thought of it as something I’d actually “do” as part of my career endeavors, it just sort of came out of needing to express myself. I have a pretty colorful family, so I started writing about them, and then when I copyrighted my first piece I looked at my husband and said “wow. I think I am a writer!” That was a pretty cool moment.

What is your show about?

My piece is about my experiences growing up 1/2 Asian in the South. I grew up in Alabama, which I love, and I am half Vietnamese. It made for an interesting childhood! It wasn’t until I got older and left the south that I realized some of the circumstances were pretty funny and endearing. The piece explores this. Its my love letter to my Asian roots – how I FINALLY came to embrace that side of myself, after years of attempting to hide it (not realizing I was doing this) and be a “typical Caucasian.” It also explores my mother’s take on this – her experiences of coming to the south and living there post Vietnam War, her experiences with my father, her hopes her dreams and whether or not they are realized. Its deeply personal, but hey, that’s the solo show for you…

If you had to single out a quality between dialogue, plot or character, which one is the strongest in your project, and why?

Its a tough call between character and plot – its been a lot of fun working on the different characters, and challenging too. And some of them are just hilarious – they make me giggle when I think of them.  And I think my show has a nice, strong message: embracing who you are — without banging you over the head with that. The character’s journey takes you through their evolution of coming to embrace this.

Michelle Glick

What is the funniest thing that has happened, and what is the most frustrating thing that has happened so far during this experience?

My rehearsal process has been the funniest thing. I have the most amazing director, Christine Renee Miller, and she’s really helped me to find the different characters in my piece and we just crack ourselves up working on them. She is also half Asian – so we both throw on our best (loving) imitations of our mothers and go nuts! The biggest challenge is definitely the juggling of all the “behind the scenes” with being a performer and the writer. It gets CRAZY sometimes!!! But that’s also part of the adrenaline rush too – and seeing just how much you can do when you are given a great opportunity. So you just have to remind yourself to breath, take your vitamins, etc……

Name one show in the festival you are planning on checking out, and why?

The Gospel According to Josh. I know Josh and I think he is hilarious and such a warm person. Super talented. And his story sounds really intriguing to me – exploring religion – which mine also touches upon – so I think I’ll really be able to relate.

——

Asian Belle
written and performed by Michelle Glick
directed by Christine Renee Miller

Playing July 15th through August 1st at The Abingdon Theatre (312 West 36th Street, Floor 2).
Tickets are $18 (Students $15) available at www.MidtownFestival.org

Related Posts:

• The Starship Astrov: Best Of Both Worlds (Midtown International Theatre Festival 2010)
• Entrevista: Never Norman Rockwell (Midtown International Theatre Festival 2010)
• Entrevista: The Gospel According To Josh (Midtown International Theatre Festival 2010)
• The Gospel According To Josh – Light On The Gospel, Heavy On The Josh (Midtown International Theatre Festival)
• Clandestine: It’s A Secret {But Tell Your Friends} . . . (Planet Connections 2010)

We all dream about making the world a better place.  Some people just can’t sit back and dream about it, however – some people have to take action, like the two brothers in A Dream About Sunflowers (written by Jonathan Wallace and directed by Amber Gallery) who start up “Geeks Without Borders” which (much like Doctors Without Borders) uses technology to assist people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe.

When we first meet Tom (Patrick Burchill) he’s in his forties but mentally seems much older; he’s thoroughly beaten down by what he sees going on in the world, day after day through his organization.  He dreams of packing it all in and living in a cabin, growing big sunflowers  . . . because he finds them fascinating.  ”Each floret forms at random angles to the others, and yet looked at as a whole they make a mathematically predictable pattern. Free will and fatality in a flower . . . It happens whether anybody is there or not, whether anybody understands or not.” Yet there’s no conceivable end date in sight for Tom.  His work has become his life and his life has become an endless stream of  people who he feels he must save.   He constantly ask the same questions – When can you say you’ve help enough people?  When can you feel that the good you are doing outweighs the mistake you made?

Tom is  telling this to Usha (Megha Nabe) – a woman who’s quick wit and fast smile isn’t slowed by the fact that she’s apparently lifeless from the waist down.  How she became a paraplegic becomes clearer as Tom spends his off-hours in a living room, winding back the clock and reliving the watershed moments of his life, such as the day he hired Usha to come work with him, and even further back to the day when Tom and his brother Jerry (Aaron Davis) were (like their namesakes) playing a cat and mouse game.  One brother (the slicker, younger Jerry) always coming out ahead, always having the answers, always in the right place at the right time.  And the older brother, Tom – a little more plodding, a little more thoughtful, a little more apt to stop and smell the sunflowers along the way and get tangled up in the miles of metaphorical computer cord.

Tom explains how Jerry came up with the concept of Geeks Without Borders and then acted as its front man because the project  ”was sexy—a geek in a flak jacket with a bulletproof laptop in his arms. If I was lucky, you’d see half my head, to one side of him in the photograph.”  When it comes to his younger brother, admiration and jealousy are so intertwined for Tom that it’s hard for him to articulate exactly how he felt about Jerry.  All that’s solidly clear is that each emotion is tethered to a lead balloon of guilt.

Just when you’re about to question why there’s so much exposition in Sunflowers (almost every conversation between Usha and Tom begins with a “tell me again about …”) an unexpected revaluation makes it all understandable and even forgivable.  And also very, very sad.

Some say that to dream of sunflowers symbolizes warmth, abundance, longevity, and prosperity.  If that is the case, then the title alludes to the use of the phase “to dream of” as in “to hope for” . . . Tom hopes for a life of abundance and longevity not just for himself (in fact, least of all for himself) but more so for the people who are in the Geeks Without Borders trenches, fighting for the disenfranchised and the displaced.  And of course, it is for those people above all whom Tom hopes for a life of warmth, abundance, longevity and prosperity.

Megha Nabe and Patrick Burchill do a great job of taking Jonathan Wallace’s script and making it a softer thing, a more layered and less black and white story. Nabe brings a charm and a goodness to the character of Usha: a woman who, otherwise, could easily have been portrayed as brittle and jaded.  Burchill, too, layers in complex emotions to Tom that don’t always add up to an easy way out.  He makes us feel the struggle Tom goes through every day to get up out of bed after lifting this enormous weight aside just to put his feet on the floor.  But at least he’s got another day in store.

There’s a hook at the end that makes a lot of some of the more questionable choices in Sunflowers easier to forgive, such as the bedtime story feel of it all.  Two adult people probably wouldn’t spend their waking hours reliving how they met – reminding each other with phrases such as “then you  . . .” “Yes, and I . . .”.  It’s a little stilted and awkward, but the big reveal explains much of the mechanism away, and therefore gives the entire play the feeling of a fairy tale – one which Tom must repeat to himself over and over again until his time has been served and he can go be more of the “free will” part of the sunflower and less the “fatality”.  The sad thing is, he knows . . .he will continue this ritual whether anybody is there or not, whether anybody understands or not.

~~~

Related Posts:

• All My Children (Fringe Festival 2012)
• A Brief History Of Thyme (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• Entrevista: The Starship Astrov and Asian Belle (Midtown International Theatre Festival 2010)
• Clandestine: It’s A Secret {But Tell Your Friends} . . . (Planet Connections 2010)

What kinds of secret do you know?

Is it classified?  Is it torrid?  Do you feel it’s necessary to preserve your identity?  Do you have a secret identity?  Is it ruining your life?  Is it a second life? Is it real or just pretend? Do you need to expose it to be free?  Do you need to preserve it just to stay sane?

The blurb for this Planet Connections  show was very brief:

It’s a secret.

I want to keep the surprise as well so you can find the answers for yourself by coming to the play.  So the questions that are sparked within you will hopefully expose new truths to you, or make you laugh in surprise at the craziness of a situation, or cry at the irony, or smirk in bemusement at an unexpected twist, or revel in satisfying conclusions.  Or hopefully lead you on to examine yourself deeper and find new secrets about yourself.

But I will tell you one thing . . .

This show is 5 one-act plays that has a running time of 100 minutes and is a strong showcase of playwrights who have other longer pieces in this festival (Duncan Pflaster who wrote and directed Thyme of the Season,  Jonathan Wallace who wrote A Dream about Sunflowers and Glory Bowen who adapted and directed The Picture of Dorian Gray) as well as others don’t have multi-act plays in this festival, but are also cutting edge playwrights:  Nandita Shenoy and Alex Goldberg.

When looking through the program of shows in a festival like Planet Connections (such as Frigid, Fight Fest, or that other little one coming up – Fringe (here’s its schedule))  . . . How do you decide which plays to go to?  You can’t get to them all, so you have to pick and choose.  Therefore, the blurb becomes an artful attention grabber – one where you have to pick and choose your words carefully to reach the right balance.

The same can be said about a one act play.  You only have a small amount of time to get your story across and almost always you’re going to be grouped with a number of other one act plays.  It’s gutsy to have only a three word description of the play.  And it worked for me.

In the same spirit, below are “micro-reviews” of each of the one acts you’ll find in Clandestine.  But overall this is a great show with Chae-kyung Lee as House Manager, Nicole M. Smith as Stage manager, and very dramatic  lighting effects done by Eric Kasprisin and further design by Jessica M. Burgess (lighting), Dan Ozmininkowski (light) and Jacob Subotnick Sound.  NewGround Theatre Collective did a great job in getting everything in this show coordinated together and  I look forward to seeing their work in the future.  Hopefully they’ll consider putting this show together again as the components fused together really well.

UFO Weather by Jonathan Wallace
Directed by Rachel Klein

Shane (Teisha Bader) and Lainie (Mariel Matero) finish walking up the side of a small mountain so they can either see some UFO’s in the fog, or figure out what they really want to do with their lives.  The answers should surprise you.  Great sound and lighting design on this one.

Fabulous by Glory Bowen
Directed by Cindy N. Kawasaki

When two old friends meet for coffee, one keeps secrets of her liberal nature from her friend while the conservative one just keeps being inadvertantly offensive. The secrets they have from each other quickly escalate from simple small talk to accusations and much more as misunderstandings create many funny situations to keep the audience laughing throughout.  This fast paced play showcases Mariel Matero as Jean and Rosebud Baker as Clara.

Rules of Engagement by Nandita Shenoy
Directed by Luke Harlan and Assistant Director Brendan Naylor

Nora (Bona Tek) and Eugene (Eugene Oh) meet at a cafe over lunch break from the company they both work at.  Eugene tells her his secret – he loves her.  Nora says he can’t love her because they only made out that one time at a party, and she doesn’t date guys like him.  Like what?  And she tells him.  And tells him.  And tells him.  She seems to have every possible reason to not want to start a relationship with.  Eugene tries to pop each of these secret “rules” with charisma and intelligence, and Nora finds out some secrets about herself.

Lying Naked by Alex Goldberg
Directed by Michael Schwartz and Assistant Director Samantha Cooper

In this intense play Lily (Rosebud Baker) and Carter (Dominic Spillane) start off naked on a bed furiously ravishing each other.  “Naked” that is in all ways except in how they really feel about all the layers of secrecy they have in order to maintain their illicit relationship with each other.  We see in this play how being intimate and being together aren’t the same thing without honesty.  The choreography of the bedsheets is almost as good as the witty dialogue and surprising twists all packed into this one act play.

The Russet Rascal by Duncan Pflaster
Directed by Luke Harlan and Assistant Director Brendan Naylor

In this play the powers of derring-do and good reporting live in a fun and zany world with caped crusaders, super-villains and a female butler named Bertha (Leslie Nemet).  Can the Russet Rascal (Doot-doo-doo) played by Kate Michaud keep her secret identity as a rich industrial tycoon safe when a nosy reporter by the name of Alice “Ace” McAllister comes around looking for a scoop about the disappearance of an experimental prototype of the dangerous freeze-ray molybdenum gun  is stolen from her nearby factory?  Who is the likely culprit?  None other than the Spanglish Fly (Fly…Fly… Fly…) played by Matt Carr, who drops in to cause trouble in the middle of the play.  Alice and the Rascal learn each other’s secrets and Bertha finally gets what she really wants for Secretary’s Day.  This play does a great job at laughing at as well as appreciating the ridiculousness of those old super hero shows of the 50′s and 60′s (especially Bat Man and Robin).

Only one show left, Sunday June 20th at 2:30.  If you can make it you won’t be sorry.  If you can’t check out some of the other works by the playwrights of this show.

~~~

Related Posts:

• Entrevista: The Starship Astrov and Asian Belle (Midtown International Theatre Festival 2010)
• The Thyme Of The Season: Even Better The Second Thyme Around (Planet Connections 2010)
• Planet Connections Q&A: The Picture Of Dorian Gray / The Thyme Of The Season
• The Taint Of Equality Or, I Want Your Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)
• The Empress of Sex (2012 Planet Connections Festivity)