Results tagged “Melissa Blackall” from Inkblog!
Readers, you just can't get enough of The Inkwell today, can you... especially on a rainy day. It's the perfect kind of day to head into a nice, cozy theater to catch a new play!
So head on down to H Street Playhouse as we close out the Inkubator Production of The F Word...running through Sunday afternoon. To whet your appetite (you're right, Melissa, there are just so many puns associated with this piece), here are some photos from the show, taken by the multi-talented playwright.
And, catch a short interview with Melissa in the Backstage column of The Washington Post! (You'll need to scroll down past the piece about Tuna does Vegas)
So head on down to H Street Playhouse as we close out the Inkubator Production of The F Word...running through Sunday afternoon. To whet your appetite (you're right, Melissa, there are just so many puns associated with this piece), here are some photos from the show, taken by the multi-talented playwright.
And, catch a short interview with Melissa in the Backstage column of The Washington Post! (You'll need to scroll down past the piece about Tuna does Vegas)
Jessica Lynn Rodriguez sings about food — GLORIOUS food.
Karl Bittner (center) rhapsodizes about numbers with Jason McIntosh (right) and Mark Ludwick (left).
And here is Karl Bittner again (he's awfully photogenic) maniaclly hawking diets.
And here is Karl Bittner again (he's awfully photogenic) maniaclly hawking diets.
Hey there, intrepid readers and playgoers -
What words are popping into your head at this very moment? We here at The Inkwell are spending a lot of time thinking about the F WORD... dirty isn't it? But not the way you think. We've been thinking about FAT. Yes, it's a dirty, dirty word, and we've put a full exploration of it onstage at H Street Playhouse.
The Inkubator production of Melissa Blackall's The F Word opened last night. It's an ambitious, provocative, and moving play about how we all struggle to find the perfect shape... from waist size to soul. The play has traveled so far over the past 18 months that we have been working with Melissa. As Melissa said last night, there's maybe 10 percent of her original draft in the piece. It's an entire transformation of the play... and it's unlikely to be the same again as Melissa continues to work on it.
We had a nice crowd who waited patiently while we set up for the show... thanks again for your patience. Opening nights are always surprising. And now we're up and running until Sunday, October 18th. Come join in on the f...un!
And now... for all those who saw or are going to see the show... tell us want you think! Melissa is very eager to get reactions from the audience.
So perhaps we can get you to ponder the following questions... and send us a response!
When you think about The F Word...
What do you think is the emotional journey of the play?
What scenes were the most surprising, moving, provocative for you? What scenes or moments are lingering in your mind now after seeing the show?
What perspective of The F Word would you like to see more fully explored?
This is an important part of the playmaking process... audience feedback... so please help us continue the conversation about The F Word.
What words are popping into your head at this very moment? We here at The Inkwell are spending a lot of time thinking about the F WORD... dirty isn't it? But not the way you think. We've been thinking about FAT. Yes, it's a dirty, dirty word, and we've put a full exploration of it onstage at H Street Playhouse.
The Inkubator production of Melissa Blackall's The F Word opened last night. It's an ambitious, provocative, and moving play about how we all struggle to find the perfect shape... from waist size to soul. The play has traveled so far over the past 18 months that we have been working with Melissa. As Melissa said last night, there's maybe 10 percent of her original draft in the piece. It's an entire transformation of the play... and it's unlikely to be the same again as Melissa continues to work on it.
We had a nice crowd who waited patiently while we set up for the show... thanks again for your patience. Opening nights are always surprising. And now we're up and running until Sunday, October 18th. Come join in on the f...un!
And now... for all those who saw or are going to see the show... tell us want you think! Melissa is very eager to get reactions from the audience.
So perhaps we can get you to ponder the following questions... and send us a response!
When you think about The F Word...
What do you think is the emotional journey of the play?
What scenes were the most surprising, moving, provocative for you? What scenes or moments are lingering in your mind now after seeing the show?
What perspective of The F Word would you like to see more fully explored?
This is an important part of the playmaking process... audience feedback... so please help us continue the conversation about The F Word.
Intrepid readers, I’d like to bring you back to the letter F in this particular blog entry and The F Word that we at The Inkwell are exploring at our Inkubator Festival this year.
If you’ve been following this blog, you’ve been following the evolution of the play The F Word by Melissa Blackall. It’s gone on quite a journey, and here we are... near the point in the road where we let this play walk on its own two feet. The point at which we give it over to actors and the director to make it into a production. Before we cross the last mile with the play, here’s what Melissa has to share with us.
----------------------------------------------------------
It’s a huge (we’ve all realized puns are literally unavoidable with this play) subject to tackle... FAT. I wanted to explore how American’s obsession and fear of fat, effects individuals. Specifically examining the questions: where does the obsession come from? Can it be stopped? Is it the individual's place to stop it or ignore it? How do individuals develop a positive body image in this culture? Is fat really that bad? Etc....
Here’s where I started. I had just finished two years with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps and was touring the country with a play that I wrote promoting National Service. As my time in AmeriCorps was waning, I looked in my writing journal and saw the list of plays I hope to someday write and one stood out to me… “A play about fat.” I thought to my myself. “Hmmm. I might be ready for that one….” That was five years ago.
I started with research – lots and lots of research. One book in particular was instrumental in the creation of this play – The Obesity Myth: Why America's obsession with weight is hazardous to your health by Paul Campos. The book is very thought provoking and one quote was so striking, I’ve included it in the written script:
“And nothing less than a revolution is needed to overthrow America’s eating-disordered culture, with it’s loathing of the most minimal body diversity, its neurotic oscillation between guilt-ridden bingeing and anorexic self-starvation and its pathologic fear of food, pleasure, and life itself.
After the first reading of The F Word at The Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival in 2007, I realized I had a great set of blueprints, but I didn’t have a play quite yet. The draft lacked an emotional anchor – it was full of concepts. Audiences don’t relate to concepts, they relate to characters. Major rewrites followed and have continued over the past two years.
Working with Director Patrick Torres during Inkwell’s Inaugural Festival in 2008 proved to be invaluable. We tackled a section of the script we have called the Symptoms Scenes. In these scenes, the seven bodies experience a metaphorically infection that is caused by the cultural obsession with Fat. Patrick and the actors helped me understand why some of the Symptoms Scenes worked and some didn’t. The scenes that took place in a concrete place (The Grand Canyon, a New Jersey bus terminal) worked much better than those that were in a void space. That staged reading gave life to the next chapter of the play and the symptom scenes and the characters were far more developed.
The Symptoms Scenes continue to be a main focus of rewrites. Jessi Burgess (an incredible dramaturge) felt it was necessary that all the characters have a symptom scene (we started this process with only five) and that they could serve as the emotional anchor that the script has been missing. She was right! So now, ALL seven characters experience a symptom in a concrete location in the United States and infect another body (like a cultural virus). The domino infection helps navigate us through this vignette play. The Symptoms Scenes have become my favorite probably because they have evolved the most over the Inkubator process, and I love that they take us all over the United States and examine universal feelings in a totally different way.
The play still needs some tweaking, but I’m much closer to the play I want to write. I’m most interested in finding threads to connect the vignette style of the piece. While some of these threads will emerge from rewriting and structure most of them will be created with the help of our wonderful and insightful Director Jessica Lefkow and the extremely talented cast. This cast has been so helpful in sharing their thoughts and bringing their craft to this process. With additional ideas from the sound designer Matt Nielson, set designer Matt Soule, lighting designer Adam Magazine, costume designer Maggie Clifton, and prop designer Suzen Mason. I have no doubt that by the end of this process all of these amazing artists will help this vignette play find a smooth rhythm and a clear dramatic arch.
The Inkwell’s Lee Liebeskind, Lindsay Haynes, Anne McCaw, Amy Kellett, and of course the fabulous Ms. Jessi Burgess have been incredibly supportive throughout my exploration and writing of this play. Without the Inkwell, I wouldn’t have been able to wrap my head or arms around this FAT play!
Above, The Inkwell team of actors, dramaturges, and producers participate in an open rehearsal of The F Word at The Inkwell's inaugural Inkubator Festival. The photo is by the playwright, Melissa Blackall.
If you’ve been following this blog, you’ve been following the evolution of the play The F Word by Melissa Blackall. It’s gone on quite a journey, and here we are... near the point in the road where we let this play walk on its own two feet. The point at which we give it over to actors and the director to make it into a production. Before we cross the last mile with the play, here’s what Melissa has to share with us.
----------------------------------------------------------
It’s a huge (we’ve all realized puns are literally unavoidable with this play) subject to tackle... FAT. I wanted to explore how American’s obsession and fear of fat, effects individuals. Specifically examining the questions: where does the obsession come from? Can it be stopped? Is it the individual's place to stop it or ignore it? How do individuals develop a positive body image in this culture? Is fat really that bad? Etc....
Here’s where I started. I had just finished two years with AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps and was touring the country with a play that I wrote promoting National Service. As my time in AmeriCorps was waning, I looked in my writing journal and saw the list of plays I hope to someday write and one stood out to me… “A play about fat.” I thought to my myself. “Hmmm. I might be ready for that one….” That was five years ago.
I started with research – lots and lots of research. One book in particular was instrumental in the creation of this play – The Obesity Myth: Why America's obsession with weight is hazardous to your health by Paul Campos. The book is very thought provoking and one quote was so striking, I’ve included it in the written script:
“And nothing less than a revolution is needed to overthrow America’s eating-disordered culture, with it’s loathing of the most minimal body diversity, its neurotic oscillation between guilt-ridden bingeing and anorexic self-starvation and its pathologic fear of food, pleasure, and life itself.
I read lots of other books, interviewed lots of people and paid attention to how the media, medical field, my peers, family, and I responded or interacted with the subject. I instantly realized that while we’re bombarded by images and judgments around fat, nobody really wants to talk about. I also realized asking someone’s weight is worse than asking their age! I read horrifying statistics, including that a majority of American woman would rather get cancer than be considered fat. And that’s how I got the title. Fat has become the new F word!
After the first reading of The F Word at The Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival in 2007, I realized I had a great set of blueprints, but I didn’t have a play quite yet. The draft lacked an emotional anchor – it was full of concepts. Audiences don’t relate to concepts, they relate to characters. Major rewrites followed and have continued over the past two years.
Working with Director Patrick Torres during Inkwell’s Inaugural Festival in 2008 proved to be invaluable. We tackled a section of the script we have called the Symptoms Scenes. In these scenes, the seven bodies experience a metaphorically infection that is caused by the cultural obsession with Fat. Patrick and the actors helped me understand why some of the Symptoms Scenes worked and some didn’t. The scenes that took place in a concrete place (The Grand Canyon, a New Jersey bus terminal) worked much better than those that were in a void space. That staged reading gave life to the next chapter of the play and the symptom scenes and the characters were far more developed.
The Symptoms Scenes continue to be a main focus of rewrites. Jessi Burgess (an incredible dramaturge) felt it was necessary that all the characters have a symptom scene (we started this process with only five) and that they could serve as the emotional anchor that the script has been missing. She was right! So now, ALL seven characters experience a symptom in a concrete location in the United States and infect another body (like a cultural virus). The domino infection helps navigate us through this vignette play. The Symptoms Scenes have become my favorite probably because they have evolved the most over the Inkubator process, and I love that they take us all over the United States and examine universal feelings in a totally different way.
The play still needs some tweaking, but I’m much closer to the play I want to write. I’m most interested in finding threads to connect the vignette style of the piece. While some of these threads will emerge from rewriting and structure most of them will be created with the help of our wonderful and insightful Director Jessica Lefkow and the extremely talented cast. This cast has been so helpful in sharing their thoughts and bringing their craft to this process. With additional ideas from the sound designer Matt Nielson, set designer Matt Soule, lighting designer Adam Magazine, costume designer Maggie Clifton, and prop designer Suzen Mason. I have no doubt that by the end of this process all of these amazing artists will help this vignette play find a smooth rhythm and a clear dramatic arch.
The Inkwell’s Lee Liebeskind, Lindsay Haynes, Anne McCaw, Amy Kellett, and of course the fabulous Ms. Jessi Burgess have been incredibly supportive throughout my exploration and writing of this play. Without the Inkwell, I wouldn’t have been able to wrap my head or arms around this FAT play!
Above, The Inkwell team of actors, dramaturges, and producers participate in an open rehearsal of The F Word at The Inkwell's inaugural Inkubator Festival. The photo is by the playwright, Melissa Blackall.
Dear readers -
If I (your ever faithful blogger, Anne) haven't whetted your appetite enough to come join us for our FIRST BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION at Page-to-Stage, describing the spirited discussion we are going to have with Nelson Pressley, Calli Kimball, Blake Robinson, and Ari Roth...
maybe I can entice you in another way... with a few tidbits from the plays we will be reading that day.
We wouldn't be The Inkwell if we didn't share with you all some mischief and mayhem leaking out of the brains of talented, up-and-coming playwrights.
At two o'clock (that's in the afternoon, folks) on Labor Day, we're producing staged readings of 20-minute excerpts from five wild plays at The Kennedy Center's Rehearsal Room One... with topics ranging from baby-making to comas to mathematics and threesomes.. as well as a preview of the new edition of The F Word by Melissa Blackall, the crazy collage of a play about fat that The Inkwell has been developing for the last year.
What will you be seeing and hearing? Here's a tiny taste...
Here's a delicious little snippet from LULLABYE by Kristen DeWulf, directed by Andy Wassenich
LIBBY
I have cows.
TIM
I have a . . . you did say cats, right?
LIBBY
Cows.
TIM
Cows, really?
LIBBY
Six cows.
TIM
That’s . . . a lot of cows.
LIBBY
I had seven--
TIM
At the same time?
LIBBY
They stay outside, of course. They like to graze around the pasture. It’s
very comforting, really, to sit outside with them as they graze on the hillside.
It’s peaceful listening to their mews.
TIM
You mean moos?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And here's one of my favorite lines from COMA, PATIENT by Shaun Raviv, directed by James Hesla
DR. PUNTOFF
Besides I’m just testing his awareness. That’s all. I’m not
going to torture him. (laughing) Then I’d be no better than
the guys who stuck my thumbs in molten hot motor oil. Don’t
bother looking. They’re still there. But my fingerprints
aren’t.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Finally, here's a provocative little exchange from SEVEN DREAMS OF HER by Sarah Sander, directed by Christopher Niebling
AUGUST
Do you want to play with your dog?
IVY
What will you call me?
GREY
Do you want to play on the slide?
IVY
I need a name.
AUGUST
She does need a name.
GREY
Not everything needs a name.
IVY
What will you call me? I NEED A NAME NOW.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After the showcase, we'll take a little break, returning at six o'clock for the panel discussion.
Then ending the evening is a staged reading of Greg Beuthin's A Time Upon, which I'll just describe to you as a totally cracked-out fairy tale with one of my all-time-favorite stage directions...
Grin's heart bursts into flames. He's oblivious to the fire. Slim's head bursts into flame… he's flaming mad. He beats Grin — viciously. For falling in love. For being an idiot. For this new wrinkle in their plans. Grin is dead. Slim returns to his position in the window.
You can learn more about Greg from his blog.
And take a look at what The Washington Post has to say about our Page-to-Stage events, with a quote from our illustrious Artistic Director, Jessi Burgess.
So I hope you can come out and join us on Labor Day at The Kennedy Center. We at The Inkwell would love you to see what a handful of ambitious playwrights are up to.
Here's the full menu of events in one place:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Inkwell invites you to our first anniversary celebration at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Page to Stage Festival
Monday, September 1, 2008
FREE New Play Events from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
in Rehearsal Room One at the Kennedy Center
In celebration of our first anniversary, and in true Inkwell style, The Inkwell offers a full day of the exploration and celebration of new works in the nation's capital! Join us for staged readings of six wildly creative and innovative plays, a timely and provocative discussion on the merits of the American play development process, and a celebration of The Inkwell's first birthday at the Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival.
2 p.m. SHOWCASE READINGS of the following new plays:
6 p.m. PANEL DISCUSSION - PLAYWRIGHTS: PAMPERED? PATRONIZED? PUSHED ASIDE?
A provocative panel discussion on how the trend to coddle new work may help it flourish or falter. With playwright Callie Kimball, Washington Post Theatre Critic Nelson Pressley, Round House Theatre Artistic Director Blake Robison and Theater J Artistic Director and playwright Ari Roth.
8 p.m. STAGED READING of A TIME UPON by Greg Beuthin, directed by Jessica Burgess
Two old women, Gran and Mum, eke out their lives in a forgotten corner of a giant futuristic metropolis. They are barely aware of the passing days until a young woman and her strange traveling companion-cum-pet enter their lives. The young woman, Fillette, is somehow related to the family, but is cagey about her answers. The pet, only known as Once, doesn't speak — but even he can smell that something else is afoot. For the entire group is being watched by an evil shadow and his crony, who want to get at what lies beneath the decrepit courtyard in which the old women have made their home. Perhaps a fairy tale told in the era of Blade-Runner, the play features shadow puppetry, physical theatre, and lyrical language, all hallmarks of Greg Beuthin's future folkloric style.
Readings feature Wyckham Avery, Frank Britton, Valerie Fenton, James Flanagan, John Geffrion, Lindsay Haynes, Lisa Hill-Corley, Q. Terah Jackson, Hilary Kacser, Amy Kellet, Lee Liebeskind, Eric Messner, Wendy Nogales, Alex Perez, Kevin Pierson, and many more!
If I (your ever faithful blogger, Anne) haven't whetted your appetite enough to come join us for our FIRST BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION at Page-to-Stage, describing the spirited discussion we are going to have with Nelson Pressley, Calli Kimball, Blake Robinson, and Ari Roth...
maybe I can entice you in another way... with a few tidbits from the plays we will be reading that day.
We wouldn't be The Inkwell if we didn't share with you all some mischief and mayhem leaking out of the brains of talented, up-and-coming playwrights.
At two o'clock (that's in the afternoon, folks) on Labor Day, we're producing staged readings of 20-minute excerpts from five wild plays at The Kennedy Center's Rehearsal Room One... with topics ranging from baby-making to comas to mathematics and threesomes.. as well as a preview of the new edition of The F Word by Melissa Blackall, the crazy collage of a play about fat that The Inkwell has been developing for the last year.
What will you be seeing and hearing? Here's a tiny taste...
Here's a delicious little snippet from LULLABYE by Kristen DeWulf, directed by Andy Wassenich
LIBBY
I have cows.
TIM
I have a . . . you did say cats, right?
LIBBY
Cows.
TIM
Cows, really?
LIBBY
Six cows.
TIM
That’s . . . a lot of cows.
LIBBY
I had seven--
TIM
At the same time?
LIBBY
They stay outside, of course. They like to graze around the pasture. It’s
very comforting, really, to sit outside with them as they graze on the hillside.
It’s peaceful listening to their mews.
TIM
You mean moos?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And here's one of my favorite lines from COMA, PATIENT by Shaun Raviv, directed by James Hesla
DR. PUNTOFF
Besides I’m just testing his awareness. That’s all. I’m not
going to torture him. (laughing) Then I’d be no better than
the guys who stuck my thumbs in molten hot motor oil. Don’t
bother looking. They’re still there. But my fingerprints
aren’t.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Finally, here's a provocative little exchange from SEVEN DREAMS OF HER by Sarah Sander, directed by Christopher Niebling
AUGUST
Do you want to play with your dog?
IVY
What will you call me?
GREY
Do you want to play on the slide?
IVY
I need a name.
AUGUST
She does need a name.
GREY
Not everything needs a name.
IVY
What will you call me? I NEED A NAME NOW.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After the showcase, we'll take a little break, returning at six o'clock for the panel discussion.
Then ending the evening is a staged reading of Greg Beuthin's A Time Upon, which I'll just describe to you as a totally cracked-out fairy tale with one of my all-time-favorite stage directions...
Grin's heart bursts into flames. He's oblivious to the fire. Slim's head bursts into flame… he's flaming mad. He beats Grin — viciously. For falling in love. For being an idiot. For this new wrinkle in their plans. Grin is dead. Slim returns to his position in the window.
You can learn more about Greg from his blog.
And take a look at what The Washington Post has to say about our Page-to-Stage events, with a quote from our illustrious Artistic Director, Jessi Burgess.
So I hope you can come out and join us on Labor Day at The Kennedy Center. We at The Inkwell would love you to see what a handful of ambitious playwrights are up to.
Here's the full menu of events in one place:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Inkwell invites you to our first anniversary celebration at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Page to Stage Festival
Monday, September 1, 2008
FREE New Play Events from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m.
in Rehearsal Room One at the Kennedy Center
In celebration of our first anniversary, and in true Inkwell style, The Inkwell offers a full day of the exploration and celebration of new works in the nation's capital! Join us for staged readings of six wildly creative and innovative plays, a timely and provocative discussion on the merits of the American play development process, and a celebration of The Inkwell's first birthday at the Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival.
THE SCHEDULE
2 p.m. SHOWCASE READINGS of the following new plays:
- HERCULE DE BERGERAC by Adam Jonas Segaller, directed by Lee Liebeskind
- LULLABYE by Kristen DeWulf, directed by Andy Wassenich
- COMA, PATIENT by Shaun Raviv, directed by James Hesla
- SEVEN DREAMS OF HER by Sarah Sander, directed by Christopher Niebling
- THE F WORD by Melissa Blackall, directed by Patrick Torres
6 p.m. PANEL DISCUSSION - PLAYWRIGHTS: PAMPERED? PATRONIZED? PUSHED ASIDE?
A provocative panel discussion on how the trend to coddle new work may help it flourish or falter. With playwright Callie Kimball, Washington Post Theatre Critic Nelson Pressley, Round House Theatre Artistic Director Blake Robison and Theater J Artistic Director and playwright Ari Roth.
8 p.m. STAGED READING of A TIME UPON by Greg Beuthin, directed by Jessica Burgess
Two old women, Gran and Mum, eke out their lives in a forgotten corner of a giant futuristic metropolis. They are barely aware of the passing days until a young woman and her strange traveling companion-cum-pet enter their lives. The young woman, Fillette, is somehow related to the family, but is cagey about her answers. The pet, only known as Once, doesn't speak — but even he can smell that something else is afoot. For the entire group is being watched by an evil shadow and his crony, who want to get at what lies beneath the decrepit courtyard in which the old women have made their home. Perhaps a fairy tale told in the era of Blade-Runner, the play features shadow puppetry, physical theatre, and lyrical language, all hallmarks of Greg Beuthin's future folkloric style.
Readings feature Wyckham Avery, Frank Britton, Valerie Fenton, James Flanagan, John Geffrion, Lindsay Haynes, Lisa Hill-Corley, Q. Terah Jackson, Hilary Kacser, Amy Kellet, Lee Liebeskind, Eric Messner, Wendy Nogales, Alex Perez, Kevin Pierson, and many more!
So I'm Q. Terah Jackson, one of the actors involved in the development of The F Word, and it's 1:28 a.m. I have gone over my final review of the play before going to sleep. And I have to admit I am excited like Christmas — about the staged reading tomorrow and what playwright Melissa Blackwell has accomplished with this script. I know if you are up late or up early reading this message before the show, you may be making up your mind whether to come to see the show. Well, for all you independent-minded people sitting on the fence, here is a special gift.
I have collected all my favorite lines from the play that have been cut and will never be read again; these are the bits and pieces those close to the project who came to the open rehearsals over the last few weeks were privileged enough to hear. Now you get to read them in the comfort of your living room.
page 5: "As my health improved and naturally I gained back some weight, people slowly stopped complimenting me. Silence is approval lost."
page 5: "I admire the will power of anorexics."
page 11: "Excuses are for irresponsible cowards. Two years ago I was on a tour of an old historic home...I stood in the hallway... The look of my friend's face as she turned to see where I was.. it's a look I'll never forget. She knew why I wasn't standing next to the group. She knew I wouldn't fit through the smaller-than-usual door frame."
page 17: "Slow down. Enjoy your food, for Christ's sakes."
page 36: "...make me feel alive."
These are a few of my favorities for they really struck a nerve when I read them. But by cutting back, Melissa has exposed the truth explored in each scene — the heart of what drives us personally and socially to be dysfunctional about body image. Patrick's direction breathed life into Melissa's words. He is truly a rare talent who leads with his mind and heart. It has been a pleasure working on this staged reading.
Now its time to go to bed or pack your bags and come to the staged reading today at noon at H Street Playhouse. See you at the there!
Hello, guest blogger Lisa Hill-Corley here. I'm Voluptuous. Well.....the character anyway, for Melissa Blackall's play The F Word. I was involved with the show at The Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival and I've loved watching all of the changes, from whole scenes gone to speeches being reassigned to two words chopped off of a line right in the middle of rehearsal. The version of the script we performed at Page to Stage was much more abstract, with the characters ("bodies") representing types as the play commented on the bizarre relationship our society has with body image.
This time Lean, Voluptuous, Toothpick, Blimp, Belly, Stout, and Huge are individuals. They are still described as "bodies" in the script, but I'm not sure if that label is accurate now. I think people who saw the earlier version and come on Saturday will see a real arc for each character, and how they cope (or don't cope) in particular. So to me, it's less about the topic of fat and body image itself and more about how these seven people deal with it. I guess that's ultimately what it has to be, it's always a little dangerous to start with a "concept" rather than a story about well-defined characters and plus, it seemed to me that the two casts and audiences responded the most to those personal moments and were more confused by the sort of grand abstract things. But I hope it doesn't lose all of the abstractness (is that a word?), because that's what made the earlier version of script felt so universal. I think I would be a little sad if I went to see the full production and it was about this pudgy guy Bill and his slightly plump wife Linda and their too skinny daughter Tara, etc....rather than body types standing in for all of us.
We're getting very spoiled having the playwright right there to ask about what things mean. However, there are some things I actually don't want to know because I'd rather just make a decision and see if something I said or did ends up in the next version. Really, how cool is that? At any rate, the experience will make me much more understanding when my next show has that inevitable moment where we'll have to go from being in the main character's living room to Disney World with only one line of text for a massive costume change for both leads, and we're all at the production meeting going, "Seriously? What the hell?"
As for Saturday, half the time I forget it's a reading we've been rehearsing for because Patrick Torres has had us moving around in scenes and letting us really play with moments. I think people are going to forget we have scripts in our hands during some of those group scenes we've fleshed out. I like those parts the best; it's just too much of a physical, lively play to sit there and just read. We don't even start by filing in and sitting down behind our little music stands, but in a big pile on the floor. It's a very lovely pile though, you'll see. Saturday will be lots of fun; we'll have the energy of a performance. And any mistakes? Well...they'll just be "new discoveries we made in the text Melissa!" Yeah....that's it...
And don't call me Sweetie. (You'll understand what that means if you see the staged reading on Saturday at noon at the H Street Playhouse).
In the photo above, we see the pile of bodies that Lisa describes in her posting. And the woman at the bottom of the image is Lisa as Voluptuous. (photo by Melissa Blackall)
This time Lean, Voluptuous, Toothpick, Blimp, Belly, Stout, and Huge are individuals. They are still described as "bodies" in the script, but I'm not sure if that label is accurate now. I think people who saw the earlier version and come on Saturday will see a real arc for each character, and how they cope (or don't cope) in particular. So to me, it's less about the topic of fat and body image itself and more about how these seven people deal with it. I guess that's ultimately what it has to be, it's always a little dangerous to start with a "concept" rather than a story about well-defined characters and plus, it seemed to me that the two casts and audiences responded the most to those personal moments and were more confused by the sort of grand abstract things. But I hope it doesn't lose all of the abstractness (is that a word?), because that's what made the earlier version of script felt so universal. I think I would be a little sad if I went to see the full production and it was about this pudgy guy Bill and his slightly plump wife Linda and their too skinny daughter Tara, etc....rather than body types standing in for all of us. We're getting very spoiled having the playwright right there to ask about what things mean. However, there are some things I actually don't want to know because I'd rather just make a decision and see if something I said or did ends up in the next version. Really, how cool is that? At any rate, the experience will make me much more understanding when my next show has that inevitable moment where we'll have to go from being in the main character's living room to Disney World with only one line of text for a massive costume change for both leads, and we're all at the production meeting going, "Seriously? What the hell?"
As for Saturday, half the time I forget it's a reading we've been rehearsing for because Patrick Torres has had us moving around in scenes and letting us really play with moments. I think people are going to forget we have scripts in our hands during some of those group scenes we've fleshed out. I like those parts the best; it's just too much of a physical, lively play to sit there and just read. We don't even start by filing in and sitting down behind our little music stands, but in a big pile on the floor. It's a very lovely pile though, you'll see. Saturday will be lots of fun; we'll have the energy of a performance. And any mistakes? Well...they'll just be "new discoveries we made in the text Melissa!" Yeah....that's it...
And don't call me Sweetie. (You'll understand what that means if you see the staged reading on Saturday at noon at the H Street Playhouse).
In the photo above, we see the pile of bodies that Lisa describes in her posting. And the woman at the bottom of the image is Lisa as Voluptuous. (photo by Melissa Blackall)
Here's another window into the development process of The F Word written by Melissa Blackall. This photograph was taken at the second open rehearsal the play held last Sunday (January 12th) at 3:00 p.m. As you can see, Director Patrick Torres is putting the bodies on stage to explore the themes of the play... body image, connection, identity. There's one more open rehearsal tomorrow at noon, leading up to a staged reading on Saturday, January 26 at noon. Melissa has told me (Anne that is) that she's getting so much from the process of working with Patrick and seeing the actors move. She will be holing herself up in her apartment this weekend to furiously rewrite the play. Who knows what we'll see a week from tomorrow? (The photograph is by the playwright herself. She's a talented lady!)
