I have begun rehearsals for an upcoming theatrical production called Heaven & Earth.  It includes a cast of 9 actors and 5 singers.  Heaven & Earth tells the story of the Gray family and the Parker family who find themselves at a traumatic crossroad on Christmas Day.  One year earlier, a shocking incident sent both families reeling and now as the anniversary of that tragic event is upon them, they must reconcile damaged emotions and searing memories – but not without a little help from above.  Heaven & Earth will play for 3 performances on Nov. 30 and Dec 1.  More details to come.

I’ve finished a rough outline of another re-write of my screenplay Twig.   Re-writes are messy, especially when you need to cut a character out or re-imagine that character.  I had to do the latter in Twig as one of the female supporting roles did not work.  I convinced myself she was quirky and added the needed lightness and romance in the story.  But after reading a couple critiques and talking to a few trusted friends, this female character was getting most of the criticism.  I had hoped I addressed problems with her in the previous draft, but in my gut I knew there was something not gelling.  I thought I could get away with keeping her.   I think most writers intuitively know when something is not working; we just pray no one else will notice.

Before I set out to re-write Twig, a friend asked me:  “How much do you love this script?”  It’s a logical question because if I’m going to spend a chunk of time re-writing, it better be worth it.   It was.  I’m glad I did it.  The new outline is a superior piece of work and the draft to come will retain a lot of the old one as there were many good elements in it.  New draft – new journey… look forward to seeing where the story takes me.

Once this re-write of Twig is complete, I will then focus my energies back to my play Animal….where another re-write awaits.

My screenplay Play Ball has placed as a quarter-finalist in the Act One Screenplay Competition.   The next round of cuts occurs October 15.   Hoping for the best.

A final note from poet Paul Valery about revising your work.  At some point re-writing does stop and you move onto the next project.  Here’s how he puts it:

“A poem is never finished, only abandoned.”