UP IN THE ATTIC

With virtually no live theatre going on right now, I thought I would take a walk down memory lane and show a sampling of some of the productions I have been involved with over the years.  There was a time when I was doing dramatic seasonal productions that had a contemporary feel to them.  I would write and direct these plays and work with volunteers who would act, create sets, costumes, lighting and in many cases original music.   One of the best experiences I had doing these productions was called UP IN THE ATTIC.    The cast above made my work easy.  The photos below give you a taste of UP IN THE ATTIC.

In STORY OF A BOY – A Christmas Story –  my sister Lisa was the main character and her part required her to age over a 50 year period.  For each decade, she would put on different wigs and aging make up.  She had a blast on this play.

COFFEE & CAKE was another of those seasonal productions which I got to play the drunk uncle who comes to visit his family for Christmas dinner and cause havoc.   Growing up, I loved to act.  I lived to be on the stage.  Not anymore.  Writing over the past  decade has taken over…but these were fun times when I performed in COFFEE & CAKE.

COFFEE & CAKE

CLOSE had some rich, beautiful colors that made the production pop on stage.   We used special effects to create deep shadows and stark differences from scene to scene.  The set consisted mostly of three trees.    It was a treat to watch this from the audience.

BLUE was a labor of love that I worked on with Jane Miller.  She shaped the script with me then went onto direct the production.  This play always holds a special place in my heart because I was able to work closely with Jane and in the end made a good friend.   Here’s a short synopsis of BLUE:   When Joel invites his two siblings to his cottage by the lake to celebrate the success of his first novel, family secrets and buried pain are unearthed and a family is forever changed.

And then there is ANIMAL.  ANIMAL is an animal.  A play that I have wrestled with for some time and continue to do so to this day.  But for each new draft, new hope springs up in me.  This was a production that was performed at the Alumnae Theatre  and it was instrumental in the re-writes that followed.  It helped me shape the play to what it is today.  And one day, another staging of this beast of a play will happen.  I have submitted the newest draft to two playwriting festivals in New York and will be submitting it to two more festivals by year’s end.

ANIMAL

Thanks for walking down memory lane with me on this Throwback Thursday kind of day.  I hope to have some news regarding ANIMAL in the next couple months.  For now, it’s back to re-writing with my screenplay BREAK AWAY.

CHIN UP EVERYONE!  And as always, be safe.