by The Happiest Medium on February 29, 2012
The Happiest Medium review by guest contributor Katelyn Manfre.
Death, It Happens (Photo by Cathryn Lynne) Pictured from left to right; Maureen Van Trease, Lori Kee, Bricken Sparacino and Rebecca Chiappone)
Down at UNDER St. Marks there are four ladies discussing it. The big, black elephant in the room. Death.
Terrifying, heartbreaking and unrelentingly emotional, losing a loved one is a different journey for us all, but it is in the commonality that we find comfort. In Death: It Happens (A Girl’s Guide to Death) (directed by Lori Kee) we meet four real-life women (Maureen Van Trease, Courtenay Harrington-Bailey, Bricken Sparacino and Rebecca Chiappone) who have lost their fathers in the not-too-distant past; all relatively suddenly, all equally as shocking. They range in age, in background, they are different, but they’re hurting just the same.
This is a brutally honest account of what it means to lose your parent; from the awkward euphemisms to the choosing of the coffin, the bills, the wills and everything in between. It’s hard stuff, but it is told with humor and perspective that keeps it from being a 60-minute sob-fest. An element for which I, personally, was all-too grateful.
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by Stephen Tortora-Lee on February 26, 2012
Because Frigid slots are limited to 60 minutes some shows have needed to trim their original running time. Cutting down some of the material can sometimes break a beautifully crafted piece, as you just can’t fit it all in. Not so for Emleigh Wolf who has been bringing The Terrible Manpain of Umberto MacDougal to various audiences on numerous occasions over the last few years, often in small 5-20 minutes sketches at open mics and other venues. At its current Frigid run at UNDER St. Marks, Wolf really shines as these short skits are able to be united and lengthened. While always humorous, putting Umberto in a full narrative with a beginning, a middle, and a triumphant end makes The Terrible Manpain of Umberto MacDougal something that I think we can all identify with by the conclusion of the performance.
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by The Happiest Medium on February 9, 2012
Five Questions. Five Answers. And One Big Decision: Rock, Paper, Or Scissors?
The Terrible Manpain of Umberto MacDougal
Written by and starring Emleigh Wolf
Directed by Bricken Sparacino
Also starring Mike Ogletree
Umberto MacDougal allows you to look through the window of his tragic manpain. With a beard full of tears and a melancholy guitarist playing a sorrowful tune, Umberto reveals the pain that men feel.
Show Times:
- Thu 2/23 @ 9:00pm
- Sun 2/26 @ 7:00pm
- Mon 2/27 @ 6:00pm
- Fri 3/2 @ 7:30pm
- Sat 3/3 @ 2:30pm
Answers by Emleigh Wolf
(Writer / Performer)
Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
That’s some title. How did you come up with it – and what does it mean?
Emleigh: Umberto MacDougal’s mission in life is to educate people about manpain, the pain that men feel. To do this, he must relate his own personal manpain to the audience, and it is, indeed, terrible.
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by The Happiest Medium on February 4, 2012
Five Questions. Five Answers. And One Big Decision: Rock, Paper, Or Scissors?
Death, It Happens (Photo by Cathryn Lynne) Pictured from left to right; Maureen Van Trease, Lori Kee, Bricken Sparacino and Rebecca Chiappone)
Death, it happens: A girl’s guide to death
Company: Bricken and Birch Productions
Directed by: Lori Kee
4 different women lost 4 different fathers. Hear their true, diverse, moving and sometimes funny stories. Learn what happened, what they did to cope (or not cope) with death and what to wear to a funeral.
Show Times:
- Sat 2/25 @ 8:30pm
- Mon 2/27 @ 9pm
- Tues 2/28 @ 7:30pm
- Sat 3/3 @ 1:30pm
- Sun 3/4 @ 4pm
Answers by Bricken Sparacino
(conceiver, producer, performer and co-writer)
Karen Tortora-Lee’s Question
That’s some title. How did you come up with it – and what does it mean?
Bricken: Well, our show is about Death, I didn’t want to sugar coat it, but I also wanted there to be a little humor in it as well. Our show is honest, sometimes sad – but we also use a lot of gallows humor. I hoped to reflect that in the title. I wanted the word “Death” to stand out and the rest to follow a little smaller. Almost as if to say “Do I have your attention now?”
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by Michelle Augello-Page on August 21, 2011
Lipshtick is an ambitious play, taking the audience on a funny, poignant, and complex journey through what it meant to be a woman in 20th century America amidst a media blitzkrieg mirroring society’s perceptions, ideals, and images, while seeking to expose how women internalize and externalize these expectations as they struggle towards a sense of self and continue to define the realities and experiences of being female in American society in the present.
Written by Romy Nordlinger and Adam Burns, “Lipshtick” is centered around the Make-Me-Over Show, a reality T.V. show which eavesdrops on women’s lives by hacking into their media devices in order to find the next contestant to win an appearance on the show. The lucky winner will receive the ultimate make-over, becoming the very image of society’s ideal woman.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on April 8, 2011
Bricken Sparacino sure has been licked a lot in her life … but not exactly the way you’d expect from a show titled I’m Not Sure I Like The Way You Licked Me!. I mean, of course, there is the requisite anecdote about the guy who french kissed her in a way that was more akin to a barbecue pit chef mopping ribs with secret sauce, leaving her face covered in saliva and in need of a good rinsing … but this solo show (directed by Lori Kee) has a few more licks in it – the kind of licks that could also be called bummers, hard knocks, and just plain disappointments.
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by Michelle Augello-Page on March 31, 2011
Bricken Sparacino is an award winning/nominated performer, writer and director. She is also a bright, confident woman who has been involved in theatre for most of her life. To watch her work is to watch an artist with a powerful command of her talents. I have seen her ability to transform a space, as well as her own persona, as she captivates and connects intimately with an audience, provoking a wide range of meaningful responses to her performances.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on February 18, 2011
Welcome back to another installment of FRIGID New York Festival 2011 Q&A! We’ll be running these throughout February until the Festival starts, so be sure to check back to read all about the great shows that will be taking part in the festival. Also – don’t miss the winner-take-all game of Rock Paper Scissors! Today’s Q&A is with Bricken Sparacino, who is the actor and writer of I’m Not Sure I Like the Way You Licked Me!
Through humor, honesty and a little bit of rock and roll, come share with Bricken the battles she has fought, the mountains she has climbed and the licks she has endured.
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