Pick Your Nose, Pick Your Friends… But can you Pick a Play?

Someone once said to me that Canadian plays are different than American works when it comes to North American creations. They said that if we don’t actively produce these Canadian scripts, our culture will suffer. I could likely tell you why that is, in my opinion, and ramble on about how the subtleties in Canadian culture present themselves quite vigorously in the art of our national playwrights. I could wax poetic about the subject matter of Canadian work and its relevance to our lives. I may even be able to venture into the debate about the erosion of Canadian content and the dwindling support of our treasured national artists…

Sorry to get your hopes up but this is not about all of that juicy discussion fodder.

Critical thinking can be easily blindsided by sightless passion.

What it is about is the internal dialogue that pitter-patters around in my grey matter while I am looking for something that forces me to sink my passion into it. I’ve been lucky in that there has never been a shortage of creative meat to fuel my addiction to storytelling. I’m hunting right now… hunting for my next directorial “fix.”

I, like many theatre doers who love to direct, always have a list of five to ten scripts I dream of making tangible; Works that I love, that inspire me, that rev my engine because I know that they will make a statement…

I firmly believe that passion, above all else, is the key ingredient any director should have when they decide to make theatre magic. There may have been a time when I thought passion was the ONLY ingredient needed and that with passion, you could fuel even the impossible. I have since grown up to realize, after both assisting in management of both “community” and “professional” that passion alone is an irresponsible motivator.

Unfortunately, I have also had the magnificent opportunity to see a lot of work driven by passion alone, with zero consideration of other essential factors. I have left many theatre works that left me with only one thing to say…

“Nice set.”

Which we all know is thespian code for, “I wanted to stab myself in the eyes.” Harsh? Yes… True? Absolutely.

Anyone who produces and directs theatre is somewhat motivated by the pride in presenting something great to an audience. Anyone that tells you they are in it only for the art is either working for McDonalds, waiting for their big break or they are lying. Art and expression and everything else we are in it for are absolutely valid, but all of us are also in it for the stroking our ego gets when something wonderful hits the stage.

A positive audience reaction comes from the great storytelling. Great story telling happens when we produce professional and quality work. Sustaining a career in theatre, even a part time one, relies on building a reputation for good work.

If you have some ownership of the company that will eventually produce your “passion” than there are quite a few very pragmatic considerations to account for when doing good work. If you plan on pitching your creative outlet to a company, it is likely MORE important to have the answers to these questions before tearing off to the greenroom to plan the eventual cast party.

Let’s face it; budget is the number one consideration of any eventual production. I lust for plays that allow me to tell a story on a set that can pack into the trunk of a Chevy Cavalier. I get hot for plays that leave the storytelling to the talent and not the carpenters. The less cash required to sink into the piece, the more professional and reputable your production will be. Royalties, props, costumes, payroll, venue rentals, advertising… are all considerations that, without respect, will break a project before it is even cast. The last show I directed did not spend a single dime on advertising and sold out over 80% of its performances. I knew that was a likely hood before I even pitched it.

Even if you are not technically aware of lighting, sound and special effects, you need to KNOW that it is within your means or the company’s means to do well. Recently, we looked at performing a Canadian piece that would require us to make it rain on stage… when I finally figured out how to make it happen, it became obvious that the cost was prohibitive.

Requirements such as movement and dance are also factors that will be involved in selecting the right show. I have seen work where the company cut necessary dance because they did not have the experience to make it work well. Cutting something the author created to tell the story due to lack of skill is a sign that the company wasn’t ready to do the show. This is also true for singing. If you don’t have the chops, find a non-musical.

Likely the consideration most noticeable when it is overlooked is; does your group have the talent? And I don’t only refer to acting. Do you as a Director have the experience? I once saw a production of Glengarry Glen Ross at a major adjudicated theatre festival. Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize winning play deserves the respect of experienced actors and a Director that “gets” it. If you have to add a non speaking roll to help move the action along in a play of this calibre, go back to Neil Simon.

I choose plays that build bridges. It’s definitely a factor that Third Degree Theatre has adopted at its core. I select something that tackles an issue at the human level; that, thru storytelling, brings members of the audience to a place of mutual identification. This brings me to subject matter. It has to not only be something worth showcasing to you; it has to be relevant to the company. These days, branding is everything and part of developing a reputation is being consistent in the work undertaken.

The Beetles said once that “all you need is love.” In the world of directing, as I said earlier, love (read passion) is the most important thing a director needs to have for the script he/she chooses. Passion needs to be respected and given every opportunity to spread to the audience. Exercising some critical thinking in areas often in the blindside of creativity can only nurturing that passion.

Doing Homework

I see that our supposedly weekly blog has become bi-weekly, which is not good, but I’ll get myself into the habit of writing more often. It has been a good couple of weeks – pretty eventful for me. We’ve had some interesting rehearsals. In fact, our last one was in a racquetball court, which certainly made for interesting acoustics! If you’re wondering why on Earth we would do that, the answer is: hockey (i.e. unavailable living room). Hopefully things will be back on track after next week . We’ve had to reschedule a few rehearsals already on account of sickness, school, and improv nights. Despite that though, I think we’re making some decent progress. As Richard mentioned, he doesn’t always play just Mark, but the other characters he plays definitely have a distinct presence now.

"...when these people started talking about their thoughts and feelings, or just telling stories, I felt more at ease."

Thinking about what we’ve done in the past week, what stands out the most for me is a particular evening of research. We got the chance to listen to some people who are currently in recovery, and it was nothing short of amazing. At first, it was very intimidating; to say that I felt out-of-place would be an understatement.  But when these people started talking about their thoughts and feelings, or just telling stories, I felt more at ease. The stories were not always ones that I could relate to, but I loved hearing them and how they’ve helped turn lives around completely.

Dramatic as it may sound, it has taken some time for me to absorb and digest everything that we heard that night. That’s not to say that I was traumatized or something – not at all! On the contrary, I feel so many positive things. For one, I feel compassion and admiration for the people who shared their stories and exposed themselves without shame. That takes so much courage. I also feel relieved to know, for example, that existential crises are more common than I thought, which is extremely comforting! When it comes to “Addicted”, I feel more distant and yet somehow closer to Mark. I am a lot more aware of how different we are, but I’ve also gotten a deeper understanding of what he is talking about.

In conclusion (excuse the academic tone), researching Mark’s world has proven to be quite valuable for me – as a stage manager and a person – as well as inspiring. I feel so lucky and excited to be part of this production!