Shakespeare was right…

It is the eve before the opening of “Addicted” at the Second Storey Theatre in Port Coquitlam. I cannot describe the extent of the honour I feel in being able to Direct the Canadian Debut of such an impactful story.

I have learned so much from this process. The bonds I have built with my fellow cast and crew will live with me forever. I have experienced so much personal healing, love and friendship through the journey of making this story ready for the stage. I believe it is the purpose of theatre to do these things. Theatre is an art like nothing else; it allows us to share our soul and truth in moments of raw vulnerability without a safety net or protective equipment. Theatre has the power to change lives in one instant while simply entertaining in the next. Shakespeare had it right, “all the world is a stage and all the men and women merely players.” Theatre is life.

None of it is possible without the audience… Without you there would be no point in telling the story. You are the alpha and omega of our work and for that I extend my deepest gratitude.

Shakespeare had it right, "All the world is a stage and all the men and woman merely players."

I must thank Richard for his unwavering dedication to be on the spot and torn apart every single rehearsal for more than 10 hours each week. The process of a regular stage play has moments of challenge, in a one-man-show, challenge is a monumental understatement. The degree of vulnerability and risk you demonstrate on stage every second of this journey garners my utmost respect and admiration. I am so very proud of you.

I thank Diana for her dynamic ability to support me in my Directorial process that I am sure often resembles a convention of ADD sufferers. No one has ever quite harnessed the talent to “click” with me in the creative process like she does. Without your ability to be everything that I lack, I would have been lost.

Thanks to Brad for bringing me and this show on board with Third Degree Theatre. The mandate to attract new and seasoned audience to theatre and impact them with art has been the perfect stage for “Addicted”. I love this company and hope that we continue to affect our audiences in these ways for years to come. Your professionalism, support and talent for producing will be the cogs that make Third Degree Theatre everything it can be.

And finally, thank you to Mark Lundholm for not only living the life has been able to touch so many but for courageously telling your story with honesty and sincerity. Thank you for trusting us to carry your message to our community and use your words to connect addicts like us with “healthy” people in the hopes of reminding us simply that we are ALL human. You continue to be a hero to me.

Addicted: A Comedy of Substance
Written by Mark Lundholm
Directed by Aaron S. Davis
Performed by Richard Wiens

May 27, 28, 29, June 4 and 5
Second Storey Theatre
#201-2550 Shaughnessy Street, Port Coquitlam, BC
Doors @ 7:30pm Curtain @ 8:00pm
Tickets $15/$10 advance or $20/15 at the door
Get advance tickets at www.thirddegreetheatre.ca

Trailer for Addicted: A comedy of substance

Written by Mark Lundholm
Directed by Aaron S. Davis
Performed by Richard Wiens

Performed by talented actor, Richard Wiens and Directed by Aaron S. Davis, Third Degree Theatre presents the Canadian debut of the smash hit comedy Addicted. Written by Mark Lundholm, Americas favourite recovering drug addict turned comedian, this one man show is about making choices, and second chances. It’s fiercely funny and severely dysfunctional. This powerfully dramatic stage play is a bridge between recovery and regular folks, and skewers the disease of addiction in every form. Lundholm wrote this play based on personal experience. Clean and sober since 1988, Mark Lundholm is a former criminal, mental patient, homeless wino, resident in a halfway house who started poking fun at the insanity his life had become. The New York Times called it “riveting, dark and funny!”

May 27, 28, 29, June 4 and 5
Second Storey Theatre
#201-2550 Shaughnessy St., Port Coquitlam
Doors @ 7:30pm Curtain @ 8:00pm
Tickets $15/$10 advance or $20/15 at the door

MORE INFORMATION – www.thirddegreetheatre.ca

Produced under special arrangement from Mark Lundholm Enterprises, Inc.

Fear and Theatre Don’t Mix

Well, my intention was to start my post by sarcastically praising men’s superior laziness because I’d been the last one to blog, but Aaron just ruined that. To top it all off, what he said in his post made it hard for me to be even remotely sardonic. The truth is that I’ve wanted to write about different things over the past few days, but no point has really materialized in my mind. Then again, I know that I won’t suddenly have some genial revelation if I just sit on these ideas. So, here’s my attempt…

theatre forces us to be honest and uninhibited: both rare, and at times unwelcome, qualities to have in "the real world".

It appears that the topic that I keep coming back to is shame. Mark talks a lot about fear, and well, isn’t shame just a form of fear? People are ashamed because they fear others’ disapproval and inability to understand whatever it is they keep hidden. Sadly, I think that pain is something our society is generally afraid and – worse yet – ashamed of. Boys don’t cry, right? Sure, that stance may not be as prevalent nowadays, but it’s still present. We also seem to have an expiry date for pain. There is a point when people figure you’ve grieved enough,  but if you weren’t done, you begin to get the added bonus of being ashamed of it.

I’ve read Buddhist literature about accepting suffering as something intrinsic in life, instead of fearing it, but it’s probably one of the hardest things to do. I think actors require this same openness when they create a character; and I have to say: I have a deep respect for anyone who can embrace emotions so freely.  Most – if not every – rehearsal has left me affected in some way, and I essentially just take notes! Don’t get me wrong;  I know my work is important. I just appreciate what delving into the mind and body of another person must do to the self – especially in this case. I’m just looking into the pool, but to try swimming in it…that takes serious courage. Fear is not an option.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that theatre forces us to be honest and uninhibited: both rare, and at times unwelcome, qualities to have in “the real world”. For an art form that aims to deceive its audience, I think that theatre is the most sincere of them all. It is intensely liberating. Although I’d been in love with it a long time, I know that what actually made me dive headfirst into it was feeling unbearable pain. Theatre was the one remedy that not only didn’t feel self-destructive, but actually felt productive! There was no shame in it. So, I’m content with my addiction. Most of the time I can’t believe stage management is a “job”. All I can do once I’m calling the show is hope that the people who come see it really see it, because that connection is truly powerful.

Now for the plug: “Addicted” is a brutally honest and a fantastically told story. Working on it has been a very personal, closely knit process, which I believe is making it a very strong and pretty phenomenal piece of theatre. For anyone who values honesty and isn’t afraid of mirrors (figuratively speaking), come see it!

Addicted to the Challenge

Well this is my first ever attempt at a blog, it is also my first ever attempt at a 1-man show so I figure this is 2 birds with one stone.

When Aaron first approached me with the script, I was already very interested just from the way he described it. Then once I read it, I knew that I wanted to be a part of it. I was excited about not only playing a real live person, but a person I could relate to, even though he is so very different from myself. I didn’t come from a world where there were a lot of addicts. Sure, like everyone I know of some and even have 1 or 2 in my extended family. But to dive into someones world so different from my own was going to prove (and is proving) to be a challenge. However the more I read and the deeper I look, the I more I realize that 1 or 2 different turns in my life and I could have been LIVING Mark’s life, not just playing it. This play relates to me in ways I didn’t think it could and my hope in doing this show is that it will do the same for those who see it. Maybe leave them thinking “Hey, that could have been me!”

Rehearsing for a 1-man show isn’t really as easy as I thought it would be. I was thinking I wouldn’t have to rely on rehearsing with anyone, no other characters to do something wrong and screw me up. Quite the contrary. This may be a 1-man-er, but when the story introduces upwards of 10 characters (7 of which show up in 1 scene), my focus is no longer just on how do I portray Mark, but all the others as well. And sitting there with only 2 other people (most of the time) in the room is very nerve racking. Aaron, my Director, is watching every move I make to see what he likes or what I can change. Which kind of makes him like that really cool guy in high school, I just want him to like everything I do. Diana, the Stage Manager, hardly ever has her nose out of her binder. She’s taking down ever little note, every little error, every little piece of information that might be relevent. But when there are only 2 people watching, she now becomes that girl you just want to notice you, however if she does, you know you’re going to be thinking “Oh crap!!! She’s looking at me!” Thus far it has been a fun experience and I look forward to putting it on in front of an audience.

On one little separate side note, if I may rant for a moment, any of you planning on doing a 1-man show in the future, sign that contract first because apparently a verbal agreement to getting me my own trailer doesn’t mean that I’ll really get my own trailer! That being said, I’m probably not getting my own star on the sidewalk….oh well!!

Until next time, enjoy