CONCEPT ART

"Every change is a form of liberation. My mother used to say a change is always good even if it's for the worse."
- Paula Rego

A sneak preview of the postcard concept art. Designed and illustrated by Patrick Johnson. We'll be interviewing him in weeks to come. You can see more of his work at http://swazzle.com/blogs/puppetdesign.html

Ooooo, it's getting exciting now!

The Child of Neil Simon and Calvin and Hobbes

CALVIN AND NEIL

If Neil Simon and Calvin and Hobbes had a kid… it would be To Catch a Tooth. I’ll never forget reading my first Calvin and Hobbes comic book. My mom gave it to me while we were taking a train ride from California to Chicago. I read it that first night and kept my sisters up with my giggling.

Neil Simon… well, the first time I’d really sat down and read any Neil Simon was at Ventura College. I grabbed his collected plays Vol. 1 and just started reading. Come Blow Your Horn was the first one I read. And once again, I got in trouble for laughing… this time in the library.

Both pieces are different, but both are fun, with heart, and a lot of laughs.

AUDITIONS - to dream the impossible dream

Auditions have got to be one of the hardest things in the world. You go into a room of people staring at you, watching, judging, sizing you up, expecting you to be brilliant.

No pressure.

Auditions suck. Let’s face it. I would imagine, on some level, it’s a numbers game. My day job is technical recruiting. That means, I call up company after company, trying to get a hold of a manager, pitch him a candidate, and hope he has a job open. That means if I make a hundred phone calls, talk to twenty five people, maybe… just maybe, one of them will have a job open.

Auditions are like that.

A friend of mine contacted 2,500 theatres about his play… five got back to him, and one was interested. Interested.

So, I guess it’s like selling vacuum cleaners. Make the calls, pound the pavement, and do your best when you get in front of somebody.

I try to make auditions as easy as possible. First thing I have people come in, sit down, and I have them talk to me about what they like, who they are, and what they liked about the play (if they read it). Of course the whole time I’m listening to see how they answer the questions, if they got the play, if they read the play, things like that. Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, once said something along the lines of, “ I would never want to be an a deserted island, because then I couldn’t be around smart people.”

That’s the thing I’m looking for: a collaborator. Theatre is so collaborative, it’s important to surround yourself with people who will elevate the project with their ideas, talent, and energy.

I’m also looking for any major red flags: do they take direction, do they listen, do they talk over me. Things like that. Because, getting in a play is kind of like a relationship… it’s only gonna get harder, so you want to have as many cards in your favor going into it as possible.

After I’ve talked to them, I have them read the scene, or perform the monologue. Then, I’ll have them try it different ways, see how they take direction, and things like that.

After that I talk to them about the play, about their schedule, and leave it off like we’ll be in touch.

Stay tuned for the official cast notice.

Teeth Traditions!

"Don't say the old lady screamed. Bring her on and let her scream."

- Mark Twain

The tooth fairy is a character in modern Western culture said to give children a small amount of money (or sometimes a gift) in exchange for a deciduous tooth when it comes out of a child's mouth. Not if you live in Botswana! In Botswana, children throw their teeth onto the roof. In Afghanistan they drop their teeth down mouse holes, and in Egypt they fling their teeth at the sun! Travel around the world and discover the surprising things children do when they lose a tooth.

To Catch a Tooth - has been caught!

Soon-to-be-award-winning play To Catch a Tooth will premiere on April 21st at the Lonny Chapman Group Repertory theatre. It's a family comedy about a couple of kids who decide to rob the tooth fairy... with disasterous results.

I'll be documenting the development of the project from casting up until opening night. Strap yourself in and enjoy the ride.

Dylan