The Happiest Medium » storytelling

Dandy Darkly’s Trigger Happy!: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 21:33:43 +0000

Ten Questions. Ten Answers. And one Big Surprise in the audience …

Dandy Darkly’s Trigger Happy!

“All American Tales of Sex and Death!”

Show Info:

Tue Feb 16, 2016 | 7:10PM
Sat Feb 20, 2016 | 8:50PM
Tue Feb 23, 2016 | 5:30PM
Fri Mar 4, 2016 | 10:30PM
Sun Mar 6, 2016 | 1:50PM

UNDER St. Marks New York, NY $10/$15

Answers by Dandy Darkly
(poet, playwright, performer, pervert)

1. Forget the PR version. When you’re talking to your friends, how do you explain this show to them?
Dandy: Dandy Darkly typically explains his shows to friends via crude ransom letters. Really helps to encourage attendance!

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Dandy: I pack my storytelling performances with so much to mull over — costumes, original music, social satire. But I hope people are discussing the way I bend words around one another to spit out these perplexing paragraphs of profane (yet still incredibly pretty) poetry.

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Dandy: Dandy Darkly drives his show. The nonstop pace of the spoken words set against a beautiful, hauntingly-immersive, musical soundscape pulls the audience into another world.

4. In rehearsals, read-thrus, or prior incarnations, what’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you (or the team) the most proud?
Dandy: I’m proudest of my work when audience members offer a stunned, “I had no idea that’s what you do.” Expect the absolute unexpected.

5. If money and resources (and even reality) were no object what is the most lavish, luxurious, pointless prop, costume, effect – anything – that you would spend money on for this show?
Dandy: A pointless and luxurious prop I’d like for a show would be a massive, diamond encrusted, rocket propelled dildo that Dandy Darkly would ride side-saddle on to the stage. That would do nicely!

6. What’s the one thing you’re looking forward to regarding the FRIGID Festival itself?
Dandy: Of the international festivals I’ve performed in, I really love the FRIGID Festival. For me, this festival epitomizes the soul of what it means to be an outsider fringe artist. This is a festival where truly emerging voices are given an opportunity to flourish. Not to mention 100% of ticket sales are paid back to the artist. There’s nothing else like it in the city. Frigid is truly a throw back to an era of “art for art’s sake” that’s sorely missing from the Downtown NYC scene. I’m thrilled to see such artists express themselves and proud to be keeping St. Marks weird!

7. Is there a scene, a moment, a gesture … anything at all in the show that you anticipate may get a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Dandy: There’s a pointed political call to action near the end of the show. It will be fun seeing how it plays out considering our presently passionately charged “Bernie versus Hillary” slap fight.

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Dandy: “Disco roller skates on a towering Grace Joneses!”

9. What’s the last thing you usually do before the beginning of a show?
Dandy: One last lipstick touch up before I scare my adoring public!

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Dandy: I’d be shocked to recognize anyone in the audience. Little known showbiz secret: Dandy Darkly is blind as Helen Keller lost in a coal mine!

Well, Dandy Darkly – that explains your last name! ”Through a Theatre Darkly” — hahaha! Well, seeing as how you won’t recognize anyone in the audience, make sure you have someone tell you if anyone amazing was out there!

Thanks so much for answering our questions, Dandy Darkly!

The rest of you – don’t forget to check out Dandy Darkly’s Trigger Happy!

-*-*-

Horse Trade Theater Group will present the 10th Annual FRIGID New York Festival at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4^th Street between 2^nd Avenue and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1^st Avenue and Avenue A) February 16-March 6. All shows run 60 minutes, or less. Tickets are available for purchase in advance at http://www.horsetrade.info/

Eighth Grade: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Thu, 04 Feb 2016 18:00:22 +0000

Ten Questions. Ten Answers. And one Big Surprise in the audience …

Eighth Grade

Eighth Grade is the origin story of Nisse Greenberg’s neurosis. It’s funny in the way that losing your optimism is always a little funny. Using projections of found images and his eighth grade yearbook, Nisse shows us what it’s like inside his mind: a place no one asked to go.

Show Info:

Wed Feb 17, 2016 | 5:30PM
Sun Feb 21, 2016 | 1:50PM
Sun Feb 28, 2016 | 3:30PM
Wed Mar 02, 2016 | 8:50PM
Sat Mar 05, 2016 | 8:50PM

UNDER St. Marks New York, NY $10

Answers by Nisse Greenberg
(writer, director, and performer)

1. Forget the PR version. When you’re talking to your friends, how do you explain this show to them?
Nisse: I think of the show as a way of putting narrative to my neuroses. It’s all stories from my 8th Grade year, but it’s really about now. It’s really about who I am in this exact moment and why I am that person.

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Nisse: I hope they’re discussing themselves. My favorite type of storytelling is the stuff that opens people up pathways to memories of your self. I did a preview show with a small audience and I was excited in the bar when everyone was sharing their own middle school experiences and discussing why they were important.

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Nisse: My show is about is me. So, I guess: character.

4. In rehearsals, read-thrus, or prior incarnations, what’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you (or the team) the most proud?
Nisse: Two storytellers have told me that they felt that the twist at the ending and the reflection I have is the type of reflection they’ve never seen before in a storytelling show. That made me proud because it’s hard to feel like you have something to say that isn’t cliched when there are so many solo-shows.

5. If money and resources (and even reality) were no object what is the most lavish, luxurious, pointless prop, costume, effect – anything – that you would spend money on for this show?
Nisse: I use pictures from my yearbook when I talk about other people from my class, but if I could I would have drones filming the people in their life right now and I would project the spy footage of them in their present day life while I talked about their 8th grade self.

6. What’s the one thing you’re looking forward to regarding the FRIGID Festival itself?
Nisse: I love festivals! I’m excited to go to others’ shows, but I’m more excited to be an audience member with other people who have shows at the festival. That’s my favorite feeling: being in an audience with analytical eyes.

7. Is there a scene, a moment, a gesture … anything at all in the show that you anticipate may get a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Nisse: My ending sorta changes every night based on my own reactions to the audience’s reaction, so that is always a fun part. I try to live in the moment at the end and pull us out of the past. It’s exciting and it’s nerve-racking, but most of all it’s fun.

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Nisse: “Family is an inherently oppressive structure.”

9. What’s the last thing you usually do before the beginning of a show?
Nisse: I wish I could just talk to people right up until I am on stage performing. I wish I could just start the show in the midst of conversation. Instead I guess I just breathe and stare at the audience a little. Maybe ask them how they are doing?

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Nisse: I talk about a lot of people from middle school, but I was very careful to not feel like I’m saying anything I wouldn’t say if they were in the audience. I think I’m fair and honest about others, and try to make sure that I am presenting my perspective of them. But if I saw Jeffery, I’d be happy. The show is really for him and all the Jefferys out there. Jeffery was the guy who was always picked last when we played kickball, and got “kick-me” signs taped to his back. I would love to see him in the audience, but I’d also feel really self-conscious because I would want him to like it so bad.

Well, Nisse, while I can’t guarantee that Jeffery will be there, I’m sure there will be at least one person in your audience who has been picked last, and gotten the equivalent of a “kick-me” sign taped to them. So, in a way, you’ll have Jeffery there every night!

The rest of you – don’t forget to check out Eighth Grade.

-*-*-

Don’t Move To Toronto: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Mon, 01 Feb 2016 17:00:14 +0000

Ten Questions. Ten Answers. And one Big Surprise in the audience …

Don’t Move To Toronto

produced by Fresh Hell

The show follows Daniels’ move from a contented collegiate life to the unpredictable big city, and will be familiar to anyone who has been dumped, evicted, threatened, fired, or bankrupted. Using a musical playlist of the most heartfelt love songs of the last generation and her years of experience as a stand-up comedian and storyteller, Daniels presents the brutally hilarious tale of a perfectly happy life absolutely ruined by moving to the Big Smoke.

Show Info:

Wed Feb 24, 2016 | 5:30PM
Fri Feb 26, 2016 | 7:10PM
Sun Feb 28, 2016 | 12:10PM
Tue Mar 01, 2016 | 7:10PM
Thu Mar 03, 2016 | 10:30PM
Sat Mar 05, 2016 | 5:30PM

Under St. Marks New York, NY $15/$18

Answers by Zoe Daniels

(writer/performer)

1. Forget the PR version. When you’re talking to your friends, how do you explain this show to them?
Zoe: This show is all true stories of the insane year I had after moving to Toronto. You know all the bad things that usually happen in your 20′s? Those all happened to me, all at once. At a certain point I was just like “Yes, yes, this is the worst. Bring it on. What else can go wrong? Show me.” Just bathing in my own tears.

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Zoe: Probably the part where my neighbour goes insane or where my boyfriend dumps me in the dumbest way possible.

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Zoe: Character + theme. I do a couple characters from my year who were just too silly not to mock, but the overall show is in my voice and the theme is a combination of “You gotta laugh or you’ll cry” and “Woo0o0o0owwww, life is absurd.”

4. In rehearsals, read-thrus, or prior incarnations, what’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you (or the team) the most proud?
Zoe: A friend of mine said “I laughed, I cried, I was on my period.” A reviewer from the Pioneer Press (the big newspaper in Minnesota) said

“Daniels offers a comedic voice for a next generation [and] tells her personal stories [...] with such wit, humor and sarcasm, that it has you wanting to know what happens next and laughing throughout”

5. If money and resources (and even reality) were no object what is the most lavish, luxurious, pointless prop, costume, effect – anything – that you would spend money on for this show?
Zoe: I would bring my audience to Toronto with me an perform a year-long show where I would recreate every day in painstaking detail, including the awful apartments, ridiculous jobs, and hysterically bad trip to Europe.

6. What’s the one thing you’re looking forward to regarding the FRIGID Festival itself?
Zoe: Verrrrry excited to see what people are doing back in the homeland. I live in Canada now so it’s always sort of novel to see American theatre. Also, I hope I see some dance shows because I never tire of being like “HOLY SHIT WHAT IS THAT I CAN’T DO THAT AMAZING.”

7. Is there a scene, a moment, a gesture … anything at all in the show that you anticipate may get a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Zoe: Yeah, one of the big jokes in the middle is a kind of crushing moment – sometimes the audience gets sad instead of laughing because they’re worried about me but I gotta tell you, don’t be – it’s really, really funny.

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Zoe: “The owner was a 5 foot 2 lady the color and texture of beef jerky, she drove a pink Hummer with her initials on the side in pink and she had a ponytail facelift… and also a regular facelift.”

9. What’s the last thing you usually do before the beginning of a show?
Zoe: Pushups to waste my adrenaline.

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Zoe: Oh, for sure my ex-boyfriend who features in the show but has 100% not seen it. But honestly, that is exactly the kind of thing that was happening during that first year in Toronto – huge, comically horrible bad luck – so I wouldn’t be surprised if it did happen.

For your sake, Zoe, I’ll cross my fingers and hope that of all the surprise guests that could show up, that ex isn’t one of them. Sounds like you’ve had enough comically bad luck.

The rest of you – don’t forget to check out Don’t Move To Toronto.

-*-*-

Punk Grandpa: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Sun, 31 Jan 2016 20:29:49 +0000

Ten Questions. Ten Answers. And one Big Surprise in the audience …

Punk Grandpa

produced by Glitter Candy

Punk Grandpa is about one magical weekend 5 3/4 year old misfit Laura spent with her grandpa, portrayed through storytelling, dance, music and vintage family movies and photos. Grandpa was the most free, most inappropriate person Laura ever knew and this show portrays how he set Laura free to be herself through his humor and unpredictable, wild ways. It’ll put hair on your chest.

Show Info:

Fri Feb 19, 2016 | 5:30PM
Sun Feb 21, 2016 | 3:30PM
Mon Feb 22, 2016 | 8:50PM
Tue Feb 23, 2016 | 7:10PM
Sun Feb 28, 2016 | 6:50PM
Sat Mar 05, 2016 | 3:50PM

UNDER St. Marks New York, NY $10/$12

Answers by Laura Force Scruggs
(playwright, producer)

1. Forget the PR version. When you’re talking to your friends, how do you explain this show to them?
Laura: It’s about being different and how my grandpa helped me to find myself (by showing how he really didn’t care what anyone thought) and to be okay with who I am: a freak and a fairy (for example: Tinkerbell). My brother told me, “You aren’t just a freak in the freakshow, you are the entire freakshow.”

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Laura: I hope they’re discussing anything funny grandpa did, like pretending to communicate with spies through his hearing aids, playing in the high school band (since senior citizens could audit any class for free and he didn’t feel ready to play in a band with people his own age yet), or going to a Lost and Found and asking, “Did anyone turn in a black umbrella?” One of my top hopes for the show is for my grandpa’s legacy to be carried on, of how he found humor and spontaneity in the every day and had no fear. I aspire every day to possess the kind of freedom that he had, as my Uncle Jon says, the kind of freedom for which people would spend thousands of dollars for in therapy.

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Laura: I feel like the characters of grandpa and Laura drive the show, Laura feeling like she doesn’t fit in anywhere and grandpa helping her find herself by modeling that it’s okay to be herself by being his full-out unfiltered, spontaneous self and loving her unconditionally, while others around her don’t “get her.” The character of grandpa is always doing the unexpected, like telling other people at church who are bragging about their kids’ prestigious careers, “My kids are doing great, too. My son John, he lives in New York. He drives a big car, runs his own business. He’s a pimp. And, my daughter, Amy, she’s doing real well, too. She works for him!”

4. In rehearsals, read-thrus, or prior incarnations, what’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you (or the team) the most proud?
Laura: “It is simply put, perfect beauty.

Intersections of identity and vulnerability and honesty and history and family, executed by a very talented and special performer, coming together in a way that touched everyone’s hearts.

If you’ve ever felt different and admired the freedom that comes with just being true to that difference, no matter what other people think or say, go see it! Really.”

~Audience member at Chicago Fringe

5. If money and resources (and even reality) were no object what is the most lavish, luxurious, pointless prop, costume, effect – anything – that you would spend money on for this show?
Laura: A full big band orchestra, super over-sized objects in the dream sequence (like a donut bigger than me), lots of puppets, elves playing ice hockey in the freezer and more fairiness: a chorus of real fairies, an over-the-top fairy costume for the character of Laura with genuine fairy dust and a wand that could make wishes come true!

6. What’s the one thing you’re looking forward to regarding the FRIGID Festival itself?
Laura: I am really excited to see what a cast and director (who have never met my family) do with a show that I wrote based on my family (and originally as a one woman show), who are collaborating along with my production manager/stage manager/dramaturg, who is my cousin and shared the same punk grandpa with me. This is a New York premiere of the multiple character cast version of “Punk Grandpa” (it was first performed with multiple characters at Three Brothers Theatre in Waukegan); I’ve been performing it as a one woman show on and off for the past two years at various festivals throughout Chicago, Orlando, Indiana, Elgin and at the 2015 New York Planet Connections Theatre Festivity.

7. Is there a scene, a moment, a gesture … anything at all in the show that you anticipate may get a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Laura: Grandpa yelling out of his car window at every lady we saw on the street, as he drove us around at exhilarating rates of speed, “Hey, pick you up in an hour!”

and/or

When grandpa was asked to take a fertility test at the doctor and was handed the cup, he said, “Oh, I thought someone was going to help me.”

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Laura: That’ll put hair on your chest.

and

If someone told grandpa no (including grandma), he just thought they needed more information.

9. What’s the last thing you usually do before the beginning of a show?
Laura: Pray and hug my husband really hard.

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Laura: If Weird Al showed up, it would be astounding and magical, as he is someone who, like my grandpa, is unafraid to be himself.

I love Weird Al! Wouldn’t it be great if he saw your show and was so inspired that he contributed a song to it? Based on what you’ve told us, he’d have no shortage of material for a whole series of Grandpa songs!

The rest of you – don’t forget to check out Punk Grandpa.

-*-*-

Why So Much Shame?: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Fri, 29 Jan 2016 15:35:19 +0000

Ten Questions. Ten Answers. And one Big Surprise in the audience …

Why So Much Shame?

Nicole was six when her dad died. But she kept trying to get his attention, in hopes he’d come back. WHY SO MUCH SHAME? uses vivid storytelling to explore a child’s secret, unspoken grief, a woman’s confrontation with the truth, and the powerful things that happen when we stop pretending.

Show Info:

Wed Feb 17, 2016 | 7:10PM
Sat Feb 20, 2016 | 7:10PM
Wed Feb 24, 2016 | 10:30PM
Thu Mar 03, 2016 | 8:50PM
Sun Mar 06, 2016 | 3:30PM

UNDER St. Marks New York, NY $10/$13

Answers by Nicole Ferraro
(writer and performer)

1. Forget the PR version. When you’re talking to your friends, how do you explain this show to them?
Nicole: My father died when I was six, and I always knew I was going to write about him, but I didn’t know how until I found out the truth about his death 17 years later. Through this solo show, I’m telling a story about my lifelong longing for him, both before and after his death, and finding myself through the experience of losing him. It’s about how grief manifests when you don’t give it proper space and attention, and how the stories we’re reluctant to tell are the ones we most need to be sharing. It’s relatable, cathartic, somber, funny… All the feelings will be provided.

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Nicole: I hope they’re discussing their own stories as they relate to the themes of the show. If people leave Why So Much Shame? and get together and open up to one another about their own experiences and feel a little more full and connected as a result… well, that’s the whole point!

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Nicole: Character is probably the strongest driver in this show, and a plot twist makes its way in about halfway through, too.

4. In rehearsals, read-thrus, or prior incarnations, what’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you (or the team) the most proud?
Nicole: As a storyteller, I’ve had the opportunity to debut pieces from Why So Much Shame? in a few different storytelling series. The most rewarding experience for me is when people come up after a performance and relate their stories back to me. I found myself through the theater and through hearing other people’s stories, and giving that back in a small way, for me, is the overall point of creating anything. I can go into a performance feeling anxious and terrible, and if it ends with someone sharing with me after about how they felt or what they connected to, I go home with my heart soaring.

5. If money and resources (and even reality) were no object what is the most lavish, luxurious, pointless prop, costume, effect – anything – that you would spend money on for this show?
Nicole: Not living in any sort of reality? Well in an unreal world, I would call up my lord and savior (and, in this fantasy, BFF) Stephen Sondheim, and we would rewrite this together as a Broadway musical… starring me, because in this version of life I also have a listenable singing voice. In all seriousness, I learned the most about loss, grief, and myself through Broadway musicals, specifically Next to Normal and Into the Woods. There’s definitely a fantasy musical version of this in my mind. We could even have anthropomorphic dancing caskets…! OK. Maybe not that. Next question…

6. What’s the one thing you’re looking forward to regarding the FRIGID Festival itself?
Nicole: I’m so excited to see the other shows and discover what my fellow FRIGID participants have been working on. I’ve never been a part of a festival before, so the whole experience of being involved and immersed in an environment where people are creating independent theater is thrilling to me.

7. Is there a scene, a moment, a gesture … anything at all in the show that you anticipate may get a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Nicole: I share an anecdote about making my first “Dead Dad Joke” (a DDJ, if you will). It involves a jingle for a terrifying 90s board game called Don’t Wake Daddy. I could be wrong, but I have a feeling the reactions may vary on it. We’ll see!

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Nicole: “I am so lucky.” Those are the words that open the show (whoops, spoiler) and they resurface again toward the end. It’s my favorite line both because of how it’s used in the show, and how the meaning changes from start to finish; and because I am so lucky to get to have this experience at all, to get to be a part of this festival and to have the support of my friends and family.

9. What’s the last thing you usually do before the beginning of a show?
Nicole: Oh, it’s sort of a bundle: Panic. Drink water. Panic. Regret having been born. Pee.

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Nicole: My dad. Shocking because I didn’t know he was into indie theater. And also because he’s dead.

Well, Nicole, even if your dad was never into indie theatre before, I’m sure his spirit is supporting you now — and I have a feeling he’ll be there in the audience every night of your performance.

The rest of you – don’t forget to check out Why So Much Shame?

-*-*-

The Gospel of Sherilyn Fenn: 10 Things To Know About The Show Before You Go (2016 FRIGID NEW YORK FESTIVAL)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:00:24 +0000

Ten Questions. Ten Answers. And one Big Surprise in the audience …

The Gospel of Sherilyn Fenn

produced by Nefarious Laboratory

The Gospel of Sherilyn Fenn is a true story about the saving power of cable TV and how it delivered one young boy from religion, junior high, the dangers of the middle America meth amphetamine trade, and the Eighties.

Show Info:

Fri Feb 19, 2016 | 7:10PM
Wed Feb 24, 2016 | 8:50PM
Sat Feb 27, 2016 | 3:50PM
Thu Mar 03, 2016 | 5:30PM
Sat Mar 05, 2016 | 10:30PM

UNDER St. Marks New York, NY $8/$10

Answers by Brad Lawrence
(writer/performer)

1. Forget the PR version. When you’re talking to your friends, how do you explain this show to them?
Brad: It’s a very funny show about fear, death, guilt, eating disorders, and late night cable.

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Brad: I hope the show inspires them to laugh at the things from their own childhoods that they were either most afraid of or most ashamed of. I hope they tell the stories of those things with fresh compassion for whatever kind of screwed up kid they were.

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Brad: Mine is a solo storytelling show, so all three are kind of all on me. I’m not being evasive when I say I strive for a balance. If I rely too heavily on my performative style, then the theme and plot could be overwhelmed by schtick, but if it is all theme or all plot without a strong personality to make you interested, then you’re just getting a thesis or a biography.

4. In rehearsals, read-thrus, or prior incarnations, what’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you (or the team) the most proud?
Brad: Someone sent me a message after seeing the show and this is the part that has always stuck with me – “…the passage about faith and perspective, and compassion and forgiveness, is simply some of the most powerful stuff I have ever heard. ” I was really gratified to read that.

5. If money and resources (and even reality) were no object what is the most lavish, luxurious, pointless prop, costume, effect – anything – that you would spend money on for this show?
Brad: I would recreate the sets of bad movies and tv shows mentioned in the show – Dreamscape, Buck Rogers, Two Moon Junction – and have them seamlessly assembled one after the other behind me on stage.

6. What’s the one thing you’re looking forward to regarding the FRIGID Festival itself?
Brad: I love a festival atmosphere. Just immersing yourself in all the shows going on while at the same time, digging into your own work in a way that you don’t get a chance to normally.

7. Is there a scene, a moment, a gesture … anything at all in the show that you anticipate may get a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Brad: I mention an obscene drawing a kid had me do for him in the sixth grade. Some audiences laugh at what he had me draw, some are appalled, some don’t know what to do with the fact that these are the sorts of things that come out of the minds of twelve year olds.

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Brad: It shifts, but right now it’s “Female characters in comics run around in nothing but thigh high boots and body paint and for some reason, that scares the crap out of the criminal class, I didn’t understand that in the sixth grade, but then, I was still years away from finding out how intimidating a naked woman could be.”

9. What’s the last thing you usually do before the beginning of a show?
Brad: Well, I just gave up smoking, so I guess we’ll find out.

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Brad: My Middle School Principal. Because he’s supposed to be in jail.

Yeah, that would be shocking. I mean, some prisons don’t even allow conjugal visits, let alone furloughs to go see solo festival shows of former students. (Well, at least that’s what I’ve gleaned from Orange Is The New Black ).

Thanks so much for answering our questions, Brad!

The rest of you – don’t forget to check out The Gospel of Sherilyn Fenn.

-*-*-

For Body And Light (2014 Frigid New York Festival)

Karen Tortora-Lee — Wed, 05 Mar 2014 20:04:28 +0000

For Body And Light is so ethereal that to try and describe it flows beyond the bounds of a normal review. It’s almost as if what is expressed cannot be caught – or recreated … or defined with enough fluency to properly convey the experience of this breathtakingly beautiful production from TRAVAIL ROUGE now playing as part of the 2014 Frigid New York Festival.

For Body And Light is directed and choreographed by Stéphanie Morin-Robert in collaboration with spoken word and music artist Ian Ferrier. Together they have created a work so mesmerizing, so hypnotic, so trance-inducing that one hour with this talented group of performers will not only bring you the type of peace and calm that one usually seeks out in, perhaps, a yoga studio or a church – or in other places of meditation — but it will also have filled you with a longing to stop your own world for a little while and just … be. With phrases like ”Rosary of thought” this performance is filled with prayer – not to a god, however, but to a state of consciousness.

For Body And Light is not plot based, but there is no denying the story: the rich sound design, the dulcet spoken words and the echoing movement all take you to a place that is drenched in waves, fog, and other forms of sea and tide and tide-pool and ocean.

Have you ever sat by the sea in silent contemplation? The water – at once blank and vast – suddenly takes on subtleties and shadings which speak to you, inviting you to simply stay present in the moment. And suddenly the repetition is no longer endless and monotonous but rather lively and versatile and filled with possibility, even as it repeats its ancient progression as it always has and always will. This is what it is like to watch For Body And Light.

As Ferrier describes a world of stars, of torchlight, of “beauty and strangeness” with wondrous creatures and the water climbing over the edge we watch as incredibly graceful, lithe and limber bodies mimic the water, riding the waves, being the waves. They are twisting and churning in a beautiful, tortuous undulating symmetry.

There is a moment in For Body And Light when the dancers move together on the ground like creatures who are bonded by something timeless and ancient and unspoken. Saturated in both bright light as well as shadow, bodies roil and sway in an echo of the sounds of the surf which are played gently underneath the softly intoned words of Ferrier. As he speaks of imaginative worlds which dwell in tide pools and the shapes that move within them, of the life that is both ancient and pristine, our own corporeal frames seem to become lighter, less “mine” more universal. Watching this show, you feel both at one with the performance as well as completely alone in your own solitude.

So much light your mind is almost purged of darkness …

We’re not meant to live without shadows

The source of light is a type of pail which swings from a long rope and is raised and lowered as the movement dictates. Often it swings forcefully casting unpredictable, unexpected layers of shadow-play. Sometimes it is beamed on the swaying bodies carefully, the way a silent midnight searcher would move their flashlight on the beach in the hopes of discovering something wonderful without disturbing it. Choreographer Morin-Robert works this light expertly, part Kuroko, part ensemble performer. She moves the light (as do other dancers) and so the beam becomes another character – moving, engaging with the swaying bodies, leaving some in shadow and burning others in a stark high beam.

The words are both philosophical as well as straight-forward: take this speech at face value or let the journey of light and movement and atmosphere allow the words to become a metaphor for your life. However you take it, it remains breathtakingly beautiful.

Movement performed by: Alexia Martel, Linnea Gwiazda, Allison Burns, Marie-Pier Gilbert and Marie-France Jacques

~~~
For Body And Light
Company: TRAVAIL ROUGE

Directed and choreographed by: Stéphanie Morin-Robert
Spoken word and music: Ian Ferrier

Remaining Performances:

Mar 05, 5:30PM
Mar 06, 10:15PM
Mar 07, 7:05PM

Click HERE for tickets

Running time: 1 h 0 min
Price: $10.00 – $15.00
Seating: General Admission

The Kraine Theater
85 E. 4th Street
New York , New York 10003
2nd and 3rd Ave

Horse Trade Theater Group will present the 8th Annual FRIGID New York Festival at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4^th Street between 2^nd Avenue and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1^st Avenue and Avenue A) February 19-March 9. Tickets are available for purchase in advance at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling 212-868-4444.

Sheherizade: Why Ten Dancing Heads Are Better Than One (Fringe Festival 2012)

Stephen Tortora-Lee — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 16:18:38 +0000

When Sheherizade began, it seemed like this might just be a production where there was interpretive dance to help us feel part of the story. But once the story of the storytelling began I was quickly swept up by the organic flow of this piece, wrapped up in the stories as dance, storytelling, a strange type of puppetry, and the hopes and dreams of the characters in the stories-within-stories blended into a magical world that is a wonderful successor of the original .

Director Priscila Garcia along with Director of Movement Anne Marie Bookwalter did a great job of working together to create a beautiful flow which seamlessly transported the audience from one magical world after the next, and made this show an experience I’ll never forget.

Sheherizade starts with the story of a troubled king who has taken up the nasty habit of marrying a new woman every day, only to behead her the day after the wedding. The first scene is simple: nothing but drums and dance and flowing red silk representing the blood the King is shedding, as well as the terrible emotions he is harboring. The King’s pain and rage as well as the sadness of those having to live with the results of his murders is clearly shown through expressive dance and movement.

We then shift to an even more troubled adviser who has had the charge of minimizing the damage this mad King does by placating him as well as supplying him with new brides. He confesses the King’s crimes to his wise daughter Sheherizade hoping for some counsel or comfort, because he is truly at his wit’s end. Wanting to ease her father’s troubles as well as those of the kingdom, Sheherizade quickly colludes with her sister to hatch a plan to end the King’s reign of terror.

She does this by offering to be the next bride, but instead of waiting until the morning to await her fate as others had done, she asks for sister to come with her, for it has always been there way to end the night in a story. surely he could give into this one final request.

Before telling you a little about the three tales covered in this lush and delicious 40 minute production I wanted to make a quick note about a wonderful technique in this piece. There is not one Sheherizade, and not one King. The role of Sheherizade was passed from one character to the next after every story like some early tribesman passing a totem one to the next to allow another to speak a story around the fire in days past.

This allowed for a different cadence and enactment of the storytelling as well as allow all to be part of the stories. I fell into the story deeper as one never knew what was going to happen next. The cast worked as a wonderful organic whole from the first moment of the play to the last; many thanks to Alex Akin, Terry Kenard Barnes, Erron Crawford, Rodney Earl Jackson Jr., Michael McGuire, Jordan Phillips, Lucia Roderique, Alex Speith, Jasmine Thomas, Josh Wilder for all being the stars as well as costars of this play. Great ensemble effort.

The first story was that of Liang and the Magic Paintbrush, a well known folk tale from China. Liang is a poor man who wishes more than anything to save up his money to buy a paintbrush. A good fairy takes a magical paintbrush from a scholar who had been hoarding it away for many years, and tells Liang he must do Good with the paintbrush. When Liang finishes the final stroke in a drawing of a butterfly it flies off the page as it comes to life. Liang does many good deed from then on from drawing fish for the hungry, to drawing a well for a village. Eventually the Emperor hears of his exploits and captures Liang and commands for him to to draw him mountains of gold. Liang does this but also draws a sea between the Emperor and his gold and a boat for him to reach it by. When he is commanded to draw some wind he instead draws a hurricane that wrecks the boat and the people are freed from the emperors conceited and self-serving rule. The King who has been listening to this story doesn’t like the ending, but enjoyed the story and Sheherizade.

The second story is from the Dutch tradition of storytelling, and was called The Most Precious Thing In The World. There once was a very rich Lady (played by Michael McGuire) who was so rich that she was bored with all of her gold and jewels and sent her favorite captain out into the world with a ship full of gold to purchase The Most Precious Thing In The World. While he is gone everyone wonders what sort of thing he will return with. He brings lovely golden wheat which he says will feed all of her people and The Lady commands he toss it into the sea because she is so mad he missed the point of his assignment. There it grows and chokes off all shipping into her country and causes the ruin of her fortune. An interesting concept used in this piece was that everyone in it moved as if they were puppets with dangling arms and shuffling legs and bobbing heads. That, plus Michael McGuire’s pronouncing of the h’s in wheat really made this an entertaining piece.

The third story was about Mansa Musa The Lion King Of Mali. In the story we hear of how the famous King made his country of Mali so amazingly successful in the 14th century (taken from this 2001 version by Khephra Burns). Kankan Musa was captured by slave traders and taken deep into the desert, a place very foreign to him. He was tutored by Tariq in new ways of seeing the world and eventually learns that in order to be a good King (or human being for that matter) it is more important to be compassionate than to be fierce … more important to be knowledgeable than to be controlling. By learning humility fighting against the destructive tendencies that live in us all, this helped him to become one of the greatest leaders of a nation ever.

This final powerful story heals the King of his rage and pride at last as the overall story ends with him embracing Sheherizade and weeping.

The choices and crafting of the stories by playwright Aidaa Peerzada (along with story design of each of the individual pieces by Rodney Earl Jackson Jr., Priscila Garcia, and Anne Marie Bookwalter) was exquisitely done in a very touching and thoughtful way that is a good example to all. The music design pulled us through the story with excitement and magic, and the lighting by Calvin Johnson highlighted everyone’s strongly emotional faces beautifully throughout each scene. The costumes by Patricia Sehar Peerzada were entrancing, never distracting to the plot. They blended in beautifully with the stories.

Seeing Bathwater Productions’ Sheherizade was a very joyful and meaningful experience, and like the King in the story I was sorry when it was done and hoped I could hear just one more story before I left.

~~~

Sheherizade
Bathwater Productions
Writer: Aidaa Peerzada
Director: Aidaa Peerzada and Rodney Earl Jackson Jr.
Choreographer: Aidaa Peerzada and Rodney Earl Jackson Jr.
A Slam/Musical adaptation of The Arabian Nights, incorporating movement, puppetry and stories from around the world. The new bride of a violent king tells fantastical tales, to ward off her death, and lure the King into overcoming his sadness.
0h 40m   National   San Francisco, California
Musical   Spoken Word/Poetry
Staycation: Fantasy Island Excursion   Overseas Adventure
www.sheherizade.com
VENUE #15: The New School for Drama Theatre
Wed 15 @ 3:45  Thu 16 @ 6:30  Sat 18 @ 8  Sun 19 @ 5:15

2nd Season Mini Fridge – Tasty, Filling And Leaving Audience Wanting More! (Jun 28, 2012 – Jul 04, 2012 )

Karen Tortora-Lee — Sun, 15 Jul 2012 19:57:45 +0000

Additional reporting by Stephen Tortora-Lee

Mini Fridge was a qualified success this year, with seven shows and seven ways to beat the heat, be dazzled by a variety of entertainers and cross your fingers in the hopes that some of these great shows will be returning bigger, better and badder. Hopefully you read the Elevenses so you had your pre-show snack … and even more hopefully you caught some of the ‘fridge. But if you didn’t, here’s what was in that tiny box (besides beer of course!) —

Bare. Stripped down and honest, in your face and not making any excuses, Bare. was a riviting collaboration between paired teams of burlesque performers and seriously stimulating storytellers. The idea was to deliver stories which were uncomfortable for everyone – audience and performer alike. But sometimes what gets revealed in the uncomfortable moments is actually more familiar than we’d like to admit, and Bare. offered the unique opportunity to experience something difficult in the universally safe environment of theatre.

It was the juxtaposition of unveiling while weaving – taking away while creating – salty and sweet: the best use of your senses. The result was unconventional and groundbreaking. Issues included having sex for the first time, initial attraction to girls and one memorable performance which was the reenactment having a hymen broken. This was sensuality and strangeness … all living up to the straightforward title and leaving nothing hiding undercover.

The intention is for Bare. to go on from here; three more performances are in the works: September, November and capping off with a final show in December. For those interested in a REALLY different set of circumstances, the September show will feature a switch up: the burlesque performers will write the stories and the writers will strip down.

Curated and hosted by Peter Aguero this special Mini Fridge volume starred Adam Wade, Sarah Jenness, Diana Spechler, Magdalena Fox, Francine, Amelia Bareparts, and Mary Cyn as The Kraken.

Written by Alexis Roblan and Rachel Kerry, Bible Burlesque is what happens when your FRIGID show, Daughters of Lot, needs to raise money to get to the Edinburgh Fringe. Whereas Daughters of Lot was the story of the two bible gals told through the eyes of feminist burlesque performers, Bible Burlesque goes behind the scenes to tap into the funnier side of what goes into creating a show - especially one with a premise that tries to marry Bible with Burlesque.

“The events depicted in this show are real … at least the parts about fundraising” states the program … and so, without pulling any punches, begins the meta telling of this journey. Equal parts storytelling and burlesque (with maybe a little more storytelling) Roblan and Kerry are portrayed by Marelena Kalm and Victoria Longwell who re-enact the process of how one (or in this case, two) exactly go about creating a unique burlesque show built on biblical themes. Everything from a Noah’s Arc theme to “What if God F*cked one of us?” crossed thier minds and crossed the stage with often hilarious results.

The good news is that as of the time of the show they raised enough money for Daughters of Lot to get to Edinburgh … just not enough money for any of them to eat during their overseas stay. Let’s hope when they’re abroad they meet a dude who can work a miracle or two around some loaves and fishes. Hey, it worked once, right?

Bye Bye Bombay was full of the sights, sounds and personalities of India, all channeled through Gauri – a young woman who makes the trip to follow in her mother’s footsteps. Cara Yeates – who wrote and performed – channeled many different characters convincingly and used screen projections and a driving soundrack to bring the world of Bombay – and Bollywood – alive.

Most impressive among talents such as puppetry, mimicry and storytelling was the way Yeates performed a showstopping dance as she lip-synched to a dazzling Bollywood production number, bringing the lavish world of Bollywood to UNDER St. Marks. Yeates also notably embodied an arguing couple who fought with each other in one of the many languages spoken in India. When Ms. Yeates says she lived in India for a year, there’s no doubt about it.

By turns both forceful and delicate, Bye Bye Bombay was a true delight. As a New Yorker I thrilled to the fact that, through this one-woman-show, I was given confirmation that a place exists which appears to be crazier, more crowded, and more chaotic than New York. However, what India also appears to have is a plethora of spirituality and a means to find your center if only you can break away from the hypnotic Bollywood beat … something else which Ms. Yeates was able to capture and manifest beautifully. Bye Bye Bombay may be bye bye for now, but I’m hoping we have another chance to meet again soon.

A striking combination of futuristic noir, multimedia and music ranging from lounge to complex ambient initium/finis is a gripping story that pulls you through many layers of a world that represents – as the title implies – the beginning and the end, melding past with future.

Metropolis fans will find an echo of that world here. Ellery Royston embodies two clones who are experiencing two sides of a story which involves murder, intrigue and a journey toward self discovery in an alien future.

initium/finis was mezmerizing, with deep themes that were well executed with a stunning multimedia component which alone was worth the price of admission. It depicted an overlay of lush city scenes as well as short movies. These shorts captured Royston’s stunning range — for while she’s expressive on stage she’s even moreso in the filmed sequences.
Possibly most compelling were scenes executed in shadow play where much of the “real” action happened at times – the intrigue of this heightened version of the characters offered an extra note of theatricality and dimension.

Back after a successful FRIGID run, initium/finis shows that there seems to be no end in the near future for this deeply affecting story.

As usual Killy Mockstar Dwyer and her talented band delivered an inside-out performance – crowds who know and love KTB should know better than to expect run of the mill when it comes to this bunch! Kill the Band: Mock Bottom started off with a dark theatre – extremely so – as we’re all trapped in the darkness with Killy who gropes about and tries to figure out where she is.

Of course it’s a relief when she comes to find she was simply lost in a closet after a night of drunken debauchery right after recording Kill The Band’s new album, Mock Bottom.

Killy then launches into a strong opening performance which got the crowd pumping. What followed was 60 minutes of pure energy and frenetic joy delivered in typical Kill The Band style as Killy and her loyal (and seriously talented) musicians- Joe Yoga, Mike Milazzo, Blair Frowner and The Human Drum Machie- delivered one song after another that was both funny, thoughtful and catchy.

No simple concert, though, the songs were couched in the centeral theme of Killy at her shrink’s office with each of her band members representing one or more of the stages of grief. A monologue of the creative process would then seque into a Mock Bottom song.

And if you found yourself loving these catchy songs (which include favorites Ben Kingsley, Girl Balls, Clone U, See Something Say Something and Famous Baby) an album was included with the price of admission.

If you weren’t able make the show that doesn’t mean you have to be empty handed with no Kill The Band songs to sing – never that.

To order the hard copy CD (with 12 page art/lyrics/liner notes booklet!) visit www.KILLYTHEKID.com.
To buy the album on ITunes click here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/mock-bottom/id530564603.
To buy on Amazon http://amzn.com/B0086JZTHQ

Legendary: A Man-tasia was first described to me as a drag show without the drag, but Legendary: A Man-tasia wound up being much, much more. Sure, there was superb lip-synching with so much sass, attitude and choreography that at times it was impossible to sit still in your seat. But the story was expertly woven through the showstopping numbers – finely crafted to tug at your heartstrings. Not simply a backed-into plot to accomodate the songs, this story of two men: Larry (Michael Awusie) and his love Stev (Mark O’Connell) trying to define their relationship as they try to define themselves was heartwarming, bittersweet, loving, sexy, and a triumph. But oh, let’s talk about those lip-synch numbers!

Larry’s rendition of Sheree Whitfield’s – “Who Gon Check Me Boo?” was absolutely inspired (and I can’t stop YouTubing it. Not for the original, but in memory of Michael’s version). The show was filled with moments of pure, joyful production numbers like this. To watch O’Connell and Christopher Burris as Bishop Eddie Long (who has a naughty, nasty hold over Larry) duke it out in a battle with musical fireworks worthy of those spewed forth by Harry Potter and Voldermort as they channeled superdivas Whitney Houston & Aretha Franklin for “It Isn’t, It Wasn’t, It Ain’t Never Gonna Be” to underline the point that “he aint never, ever, never never, never gonna be your man” gave me goosebumps. In fact, it made me wanna go out and steal someone’s man just so I could re-enact this scene on my own. I mean … seriously boo.

Cap this all off with a stupendous Jennifer Holiday channeled by Kimberlee Walker who had me shaking and, well – could you want more? Oh … wait … a fantastic story. All this lucious lip-synching is draped over the terrific bones of a strong story of one man who is trying to shake off the past (Bishop Eddie Long – who is actually there in spirit, but what a spirit it is) and embrace his present: Stev, a tall drink of water who loves him like Islands In The Stream (aww! Sweet!) but can’t quite come out of the closet far enough to shout it from the mountains. Well, not yet.

And, I did mention Jennifer Holiday, right? This was A Man-tasia in the truest sense of the word -and while I actually don’t KNOW what the truest sense of the word ‘Man-tasia” actually is I will say it’s a fantasy, told from the heart, set to a driving soundtrack of amazing songs (and a little Babs in there too of course). This was no show – this was an experience. I want it back again, ASAP. Weekly if possible – with surprise guests! Pleeeez???

Xmas in July? You bet your buttons! Or, in the case of Lord Gregory & Mademoiselle Godin’s miniXMAS Spectacular - you bet your bouton!

This french brother and sister act have it all. Charm, style, talent … and what friends they have! Greg Levin and Michelle Leona Godin don the outfits of a bygone french era and the personalities of french twins to create a salon in which their charming circle could congregate to celebrate miniXMAS for our enjoyment.

One after another their talented friends came to the stage to kick up their heels with the crowd. So many! Joe Yoga was there and you know what a fan I am of his! Leslie Goshko did the most inspired version of Frosty The Snowman I ever heard … If Frosty was actually that guy whom Alanis Morrisette wrote about in You Oughta Know. (WHY did no one ever do that mashup before? No matter … Leslie did – and it’s brilliant). AND imagining FROSTY is a lot better than imagining that guy from Full House putting it to Alanis, non?

Michael Birch reminded everyone that We Need A Little Christmas … and also reminded us that the whipping sound in Sleigh Ride (1:07 in this beloved Boston Pop version) is actually … you know ... a horse being whipped. Still, it didn’t keep us from merrily participating whip and all. After-all, miniXMAS is all about tradition! Then Beezy Douglas weighed in with an anti-christmas song because it is JULY after all.

But there were skits too! Lord Gregory himself wound up playing the Santa who got caught in a sting set up for a pedophile … though he digs himself deeper and deeper (But Becky wrote me a letter! I brought this bag of toys! Children write their fantasies to me!!!) Later after Chromatic Stampede sang about wanting nothing more for christmas than consumer debt forgiveness Peter DeGiglio flipped the script on Twas The Night Before Christmas and pulled out an aresenal of voices from his bag of tricks as he told a Mook miniXMAS story — in verse. C’est Manifique

With a Krampus making an appearance via shadow puppet master Ceili Clemens the whole evening was pretty much complete.

Like any good miniXMAS there were a few other little surprises under the tree, but the real present was the great feeling of joy and good will toward men and … oh forget it. It’s JULY.

Thanks Lord Gregory and Mademoiselle Godin for sharing your love of miniXMAS – and your love of each other … and sharing your friends with us! See you next miniXMAS! Whenever that may be!

And that’s it for Mini Fridge this year. Good job everyone. See you next year, starting with Elevenses.

It’s Time For Mini-Fridge Elevenses With Bare.!

Karen Tortora-Lee — Sat, 30 Jun 2012 19:33:19 +0000

The Mini-Fridge Elevenses*

11 Questions, 11 Answers … ZERO calories, and 100% YUMMY!

*Elevenses is a snack that is similar to afternoon tea, but eaten in the morning and might consist of some cake or biscuits with a cup of coffee or tea. The name refers to the time of day that it is taken: around 11 am.

Bare.

Produced by: Your Mom Presents

Raw stories paired with raw burlesque. Bare. will rip the heart out of your chest, place it lovingly back in, and proceed to do it all over again.

Show Times:

Sunday July 1st @ 9PM

Answers by: Peter Aguero
(creator, curator, host )

1. Your tag line is featured above, so we know the PR version of what this play is about. But when you talk to your family and friends, how do you explain the show to them?
Peter: My favorite stories are the hardest to tell. My favorite burlesque acts are usually the most emotionally complicated. With this show, I’ve combined the two. Each story is paired with a burlesque act that comments on the shared theme.

2. Here’s a scenario: After the show some audience members go have a drink. What’s the part of the show you hope they’re discussing?
Peter: I hope that they are too emotionally worn out to discuss anything.

3. What drives your show – character, theme or plot?
Peter: Theme.

4. What’s the one thing someone said about the show so far that made you the most proud?
Peter: I’ve had more than one person tell me that they hated me for making them confront their own demons while watching the show.

5. Let’s fantasize for a moment. Let’s take the “off-off” off. Imagine this show is on Broadway. Would that change the production itself?
Peter: Nope. Simple is best. Though I’d probably blow the cash on fireworks and pyro for no reason.

6. Taking that one step further – after paying everyone what they’re worth of course, what is the most lavish, luxurious, frivolous thing you would spend money on if there was no constraints? (Think of the helicopter in Miss Saigon).
Peter: I’d buy myself a robotic mech suit with rocket launchers and a whiskey dispenser.

7. Is there a scene, a moment, anything that gets a completely different reaction depending on the audience that night?
Peter: Each production has different story/burlesque pairings so every time we do it, there’s a different reaction.

8. What’s your favorite line from the show?
Peter: ”Thank you for coming” – that means that we made it through alive.

9. Is the world of this play sustainable outside a theatre? In other words … do you think people live the way the characters do? Would you want a world where they do?
Peter: I tell the truth (or as close to it as possible) in my stories. I also spend most of my time with burlesque performers. Whether or not my lifestyle is sustainable is still under review.

10. You scan the audience and you see a face that stops you dead in your tracks – who is it? And why are you shocked?
Peter: My dad. I tell a lot of stories about him and he wouldn’t be pleased about any of them.

11. Time for Elevenses! Go to the mini-fridge of your fantasy hotel. What’s your dream 11:00am snack?
Peter: Coconut Macaroons and a cup of coffee.

Thanks, Peter, for having your Elevenses with us here at THM! We can’t wait to see Bare.!

If you’d like to catch Bare. at The Mini-Fridge Festival find out more by clicking this link.

~~~

HORSE TRADE THEATER GROUP IN ASSOCIATION WITH FRIGID NEW YORK PRESENT THE 2012 MINI-FRIDGE

JUNE 28 – JULY 4 @ UNDER ST. MARKS The mini-festival will play at UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1st Avenue and Avenue A) June 28-July 4. Tickets ($15/$12 students & seniors) are available online or by calling 212-868-4444.

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