A Weekend of Theater

This weekend I went to see two shows, "Paper Angels" , directed by Victoria Linchong, and "Pretty Theft", directed by Twin Towers' own Anglea Astle. Both shows explored contemporary social issues in a concrete setting. "Paper Angels" deals with racism, unlawful internment and the nature of identity (are we more than what is written on our documents?) while "Pretty Theft" deals with idolization of the female form, the lack of justice for the rich and privileged, and the loss of innocence - to name a few. Paper Angels closed this weekend, but the University Settlement Performance Project has a great Spring Lineup, and I'll keep you informed as to what Direct Arts plans next. Pretty Theft runs through May 17th, check out the review in the New York Times.
Both productions made me realize how talented and creative the directors were, brining together all the costume, sound and lighting resources available to them. Paper Angels uses live music to accentuate some of the dramatic moments - I particularly liked when, during one conversation that takes place in Chinese, an ominous drumroll rises from nowhere as the Angel Island interpreter tells the lead character of her husband's suicide. The multimedia flashforward to present day San Fransisco, with live music and projected images, is also quite powerful. In Pretty Theft, the the female ensemble characters are all dressed as ballet dancers, mirroring the world inside Joe's head. Other characters have touches of pink beneath their clothes. The dancers are used in all the scene transitions, reminding us of the world we are in. Both plays use the space and the bodies of their actors with intent. In Paper Angels, the men and women are divided, the men inhabiting the left half of the stage, the women, the right. Both directors took the script and realized it in a unique way, leaving me thinking, "I never would have done it that way." I can't wait to see what Angela has in store for Twin Towers.

Casting Call

AEA and Non-AEA Actors for Twin Towers performing at Planet Connections Theatre Festivity this June (Pending Equity Approval)

Category: Performers
Description: Twin Towers Play (Damian Wampler, Writer/Producer and Angela Astle, Director) will be holding auditions for Twin Towers on Friday, May 1 at 132 W 21st street, between 6th and 7th. The first appointment will be scheduled at 1:00 and the last will be at 6:00pm. Auditions are by appointment only.

Indicate the desired role and an approximate call time that works best for you.

The following roles are available. Please submit head shots AND resumes via email ONLY to casting@twintowersplay.com We must receive your headshot and resume before Thursday, April 30th at noon. Late or incomplete submissions will not be considered.

Trevor Forde: Iraq war veteran, Esther’s adopted grandson, mid 20s. Trevor’s character MUST sing, dance Tango, and perform capoeira dance.

Jamal Jones: Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. Trevor’s best friend from grade school, mid 20s. Jamal MUST be able to sing and perform capoeira dance.

Olivia Walker: Young woman and mother, early 20s. Must be able to sing and dance Tango.

Male Ensemble Actor: 20s-35, must know capoeira dance. Characters include a Thug, an Army Captain, a Blind Preacher, and Trevor’s Psyche.

Female Ensemble Actress: 20s-35, must be able to move well (specifically capoeira training is helpful). Characters include Trevor’s Psyche and the Devil.

African American Actors especially encouraged to apply, but all ethnicities welcome.


Job Start Date 5/1/2009
Job End Date 6/28/2009
Salary Stipend
Pending Equity Approval
Company: Twin Towers The Play
Contact Damian Wampler: casting@twintowersplay.com
Website: www.twintowersplay.com

Sunday's Casting Call

Here is what Angela had to say about the casting call on Sunday:

"It always amazes me the plethora of talent that is in the Indie Theatre community and while we were unable to completely cast our show off of our first round of auditions, I feel like it was a successful day. I especially enjoyed meeting with the choreographer and talking a few specific capoeira moves! It was even more fun when we had two stellar artists perform those moves!

I have much respect for actors and their ability to day in and out, audition after audition, put their heart and soul out there for me to judge them. While I know my job is to find the best possible actors who can bring life to the characters within the play, it's still very difficult to be so judgmental when presented with so much talent!"

I agree completely! I was blown away.

Exciting new production with a purpose

On Sunday I got a chance to shoot a promotional piece for another upcoming show called Paper Angels. The play is set on Angel Island, the Ellis Island of the West Coast, and confronts issues of race, detention and immigration. We shot this image and three others in an antique shop in Chinatown called Sinotique (12 Mott street) where the owner Jan was able so supply us with everything necessary to recreate the formal portraits of the time period. We used real images as a reference and the final images were rendered in photoshop to look faded.

Direct Arts uses theater to educate and entertain, and I think the play speaks to contemporary American issues really well. Part of the production was funded by a grant, which proves that if you have a purpose, you can find a way to bring your vision to life. The end result is a beautiful production and some stunning images. Go see Paper Angels when it comes out!


Direct Arts in conjunction with The Performance Project @ University Settlement presents a workshop production of PAPER ANGELS by Genny Lim, Wednesday, 29 April to Saturday, 2 May 2009 for four performances only in New York's Chinatown district.

Location: Speyer Hall at University Settlement
184 Eldridge Street, bet. Rivington and Delancey
TICKETS: $18 adult, $15 student/senior
WEBSITE: www.directarts.org

Casting Call for Twin Towers, Sunday, April 12!

Casting Call for Twin Towers, Sunday, April 12!

Non-AEA Actors for Twin Towers performing at Planet Connections Theatre Festivity this June

Category: Performers

Description: Twin Towers Play (Damian Wampler, Writer/Producer and Angela Astle, Director) will be holding auditions for Twin Towers on Sunday April 12, 2009, at New Perspectives Theatre Company, 456 W. 37^th Street, Ground Floor Office. The first appointment will be scheduled at 1:00 and the last will be at 4:00pm.

All roles are available. Please submit head shots AND resumes via email ONLY to Casting@twintowersplay.com. Auditions are by appointment only, via email.

Esther Forde: Proud, wise woman, mid 60’s; grandmother to Trevor, but has raised him.

Trevor Forde: Iraq war veteran, Esther’s adopted grandson, mid 20s. Trevor’s character MUST sing, Tango, and perform capoeira dance.

Jamal Jones: Returned Peace Corps Volunteer. Trevor’s best friend from grade school, mid 20s. Jamal MUST be able to sing and perform capoeira dance.

Olivia Walker: Young woman and mother, early 20s. Trevor is the father of Olivia’s son, but Jamal comes over every night to read to him. Must be able to sing and dance Tango.

Male Ensemble Actor: 20s-35, must know capoeira dance. Characters include a Thug, an Army Captain, a Blind Preacher, and Trevor’s Psyche.

Female Ensemble Actress: 20s-35, must be able to move well (specifically capoeira training is helpful). Characters include Trevor’s Psyche and the Devil.

African American Actors especially encouraged to apply, but all ethnicities welcome.

Job Start Date: 5/1/2009

Job End Date: 6/28/2009

Salary: Stipend

Company: Twin Towers The Play

Register for the audition- Angela Astle: Casting@twintowersplay.com

Want to learn more about the production? Visit www.twintowersplay.com specific questions about the production can be sent to: info@twintowersplay.com

A call for Talent

Twin Towers is currently seeking the following to be part of the cast and crew:

• Publicist
• Stage manager/operator
• Production manager
• Costume designer/stylist/prop manager
• Fight choreographer
• Musical composer
• Lighting designer
• Sound designer
• Makeup artist/blood effects artist
• Dance choreographer (tango)

If you are interested in any of these roles please contact me to learn more about the job, the production schedule, read the script and learn about the honorarium. You can e-mail Twin Towers directly at info@twintowersplay.com

TRUTH OR...CONSEQUENCES

Last night I shot some publicity pictures for another show called Truth or... Consequences. It was written by Brianne Hogan and Carla Lopez, and deals with some of the same themes as my show. You can see all the show listings at the Planet Connections Website.

Meet the Director

I'm happy to announce that after a long search, Twin Towers has a director. I'm proud to have Angela Astle on board, she brings a lot of experience and personal contacts to the show, and she has a personal connection as well; her husband and sister are both returned Peace Corps volunteers, as am I (and Jamal). Angela went to visit her sister's Peace Corps village in the Gambia, and this understanding about how Peace Corps volunteers live and readjust to life in America will be an asset to the production. Angela's father is in the armed forces, so he can speak to the issues Trevor is dealing with. And most importanly, she has a BA in theater and business, to insure that we don't go over budget and the actors all get paid. I think this is a perfect match.

Please keep checking this site if you are interested in being part of Twin Towers. We are searching for a publicist as well as many other crewmembers, and casting begins in April.

Performance Schedule

Sketch

Here is a sketch I made before shooting the image for the play. W is for white, B is for black. I had to sketch it out because the idea was so complex I needed to know that it would work. This is not usually the way I shoot. For me, photography is about 'discovering beauty in unexpected places', about finding things by accident, about showing the world something I had unearthed. This way of shooting is completely different, but I have to say I enjoyed the process. While making the image in photoshop some of the elements I had in the sketch really didn't work so I changed them. But all in all, the finished product looks much like I had sketched in my mind.
We can move through live in two such ways as well, either discovering new things at random as we go, or by sketching out a rough plan and then trying to make that vision a reality. We just have to be prepared to modify our plans along the way, and not get upset with the final picture doesn't look like the sketch!

OLD Logo

Here is the old logo for the play. This one has a photrealistic gun, but I made one from scratch for the final version and worked on the background. Please comment!

Performance Schedule

I just got the performance schedule for Twin Towers, which will be at the Robert Moss Theater in 440 Studios at Astor Place and Lafayette.
THIS SCHEDULE HAS BEEN UPDATED!!!

Here are the dates and showtimes:

• Friday, June 12th, 5:30pm
• Sunday, June 14th, 9:00pm
• Wednesday, June 17th, 4:0pm
• Friday, June 18th, 4:00pm
• Friday, June 19th, 7:30pm
  
• Sunday, June 28th, 1:00ppm
  

New Talent

You might remember that last fall I did a reading of Twin Towers to help me get an idea as to what the play sounded like out loud. It was there that I met a few new faces, and the reading was a huge success. For their efforts I promised them free head shots, and Rob took advantage of this. A good head shot costs just under $1,000, so this is not a casual event. I shot more than 300 pictures, built a gallery of the shoot and then edited and retouched the final 20 images he selected. Editing the photos takes quite a lot of time and talent, something that people not familiar with digital just can't understand. If it takes me all day to edit photos, that's a day of work that digital photographers expect to get paid for. I made a mock up comp card to give you all an idea as to what this might look like when put together. Overall the images came out great. I love portraits as you know from my website and blog. Faces are fascinating to me, and I love how people look completely different from one photo to the next on a contact sheet. I try to find the image that represents who I think that person really is. Rob has a great personality and I hope he launches a stellar acting career, thanks to my photos. He really helped me out with my play so I'm happy to help him. If anyone else is interested in head shots, please contact me to make an appointment.

Upgrade and Contract

I just had my first meeting with the Planet Connections Theater Festivity tonight, signed my contract, bought into the festival and looked at the space at the newly renovated theaters at 440 Theaters at Astor Place and Lafayette. The people are really wonderful to work with, the space is beautiful and their vision, to make an eco-friendly, non-profit friendly theater festival is a great fit for me, the eternal volunteer. Below is a floor plan of the space. I can't stress enough how beautiful the theater is. And large. That is because on Friday I got a phone call from Planet Connections saying that someone else had dropped out and they wanted to put me in the larger of the two spaces. If I was excited before about being accepted into the festival (see earlier post) now I'm even more excited.

Important note: Over the next few weeks I'll be looking for a director, production manager, sound technician, publicist, musician, dance coreographer and who knows who else. Please check this site often for updates on what I need. Thanks!

Letting Go

A few weeks ago I was asked to entertain the idea of removing one of my characters from my play Twin Towers. OK, not just entertain- it was a prerequisite for consideration by a producer. And not just any character but one who is central to the story and also my favorite character- the Devil. The potential producer and director of the play said that the character didn't fit, was too vulgarr (it IS the Devil) and should be removed altogether. I wrestled with this idea for many nights, not wanting to let go. In Amy's class on Tuesday, we discussed the work of our fellow classmates and suggested that they too cut certain features out of their work. And not just small, inconsequential features, but major ones. For example, we suggested that Judith stop shooting flowers, for which she is well known and established, and suggested to David that he remove his macro shots, which are his bread and butter. Asking Judith to stop shooting flowers is like 'now I have to think of a great metaphor' but you get the picture. We are pushing ourselves in this class. And in writing I have to do the same. So the Devil has to go. And I have to let go of those things that are easy, comfortable, effortless, and push the envelope.

Update on the Prodution

As well as sending my play to festivals I have also been showing it to directors and producers. Sending a script to a producer is very frustrating- you never know if they actually read your work. Without a personal reference, your work probably ends up in the garbage. I did however get my play to a director who liked the show, and he passed it on to a producer, who is considering producing my play in May provided I change the script. This is a major change and I have a lot of options in front of me. The options are,

• Change the script and produce a show in a larger venue in Midtown Manhattan.
• Keep the script as it is and self produce 6 shows in the festival in a small venue.
• Do both shows, changing the script for both shows, and paying a lot of money for the second run in the festival.

All these options have their benefits and drawbacks. Financially, I can't afford to produce the show in two different venues, the second run will probably loose money. But artistically I want to keep the show as close to my vision as possible. I am open to rewriting- there is a benefit to an experienced producer telling you what elements of your work will resonate with audiences and what will sink the show. But at the same time, I there are some fundamental parts of the play that just can't change. Or, to put it bluntly, I won't change them. I have a lot of decisions to make this week, so stay tuned to learn the fate of the production of Twin Towers!

New Show

I just got an e-mail from my friend James about a new show called Soul Samurai. James is my former roomate from college, an accomplished playwright and an avid theater blogger. Check out his blog, Jamespeak, for news about new plays that aren't boring (a category I've created).
Soul Samurai is sure to fit that description. If you haven't seen anything by Qui, run to see this show. His work is highly entertaining and insightful, hijacking popular genres to tell great stories. Soul Samurai starts this week. Get info and buy tickets here.

After catching my breath...

I've finally calmed down enough to write a coherent post. On Sunday I got an e-mail accepting me into the Planet Connections Theater Festivity. Twin Towers will get six shows in a theater on Astor Place and Lafayette in the East Village. The festival will run from June 11- June 28th. You can get more info here.
While a great deal of work was put into Twin Towers up to this point, the real work is just beginning. Although I stripped down the script considerably, it is still a large production- a comfortable cast of 9, a variety of recorded sounds, a fake gun, a few military uniforms, a tango, 2 fight scenes, several songs... and that's just the first act! Suddenly, for my dream to become a reality, I need a lot of help. And probably some rewriting. And a lot of people who are willing to put in long hard hours for little or no money. This is crazy. I can't wait!

Planet Connections Festivity

Twin Towers is going to happen!! In the fall of last year and in January of this year I applied to pretty much every festival I could, and I just got offered to be a part of the Planet Connections Festivity, which runs for three weeks in June. Twin Towers will get six shows! Yeaaaaaah.

Now that that's over with. Wait... yeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Wow. Let me post later when I catch my breath. Oh, one more thing.

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!