JOE CALARCO

Reviews Keep Coming for Ordinary Days

2011-12-07T23:12:00.000-05:00

Another rave review:

Philly Weekly Love

More Reviews for Ordinary Days

2011-12-02T11:03:00.000-05:00

Thank you Tim Dunleavy:

Talking Broadway

The First Review for Ordinary Days is In

2011-11-30T09:50:00.000-05:00

Extraordinary Ordinary Days!

More Excitement Before Opening

2011-11-29T20:54:00.000-05:00

Some more nice (just under the wire) pre-opening press:

Montgomery News

11th Hour Theatre Company: they're the real deal

2011-11-29T10:46:00.000-05:00

A terrific piece on a terrific company. I couldn't be more thrilled to be directing a show for them.

Risky 11th Hour!

Some Nice Pre- Opening Press

2011-11-22T22:41:00.000-05:00

Philadephia Weekly Preview

Ordinary Days

2011-11-09T23:48:00.000-05:00

We have started rehearsals! What a cast!

Sweeney Todd

2011-10-01T18:40:00.000-04:00

This is a show I have always wanted to direct. Well, I'm getting the chance this season. I'm going to be directing it at Carnegie Mellon just after the first of the year. The student designers of the piece have really opened up the piece for me. It's one of those shows that I have wanted to direct or so long that I've actually felt a little paralyzed approaching this production. There are so many ways to approach it. Too many choices can often cause me to make none at all. I like some obstacles. I love parameters that box me in a bit. It causes me to figure the show out. One of the things I love most about directing is that it's sort of like solving a puzzle. I was feeling a little lost about the whole thing and then the set designer on the project Brandon McNeel sent me a bunch of research he had done. Images that spoke to him about the show. Well, the stuff he sent sort of blew my mind open. Really inspiring stuff. I just got back from Pittsburgh where I got to sit down with the entire design team and work through the show. Very inspiring and productive. Looking forward....

The cast of Ordinary Days

2011-09-23T19:56:00.000-04:00

Couldn't be more excited:

Whitney Bashor as Claire

Alex Keiper as Deb

And of course Michael O'Brien as Jason and Steve Pacek as Warren

Philly Actors!

2011-09-16T22:51:00.000-04:00

Just had EPA auditions here in Philly. It was so nice for me to get to see so many actors who I don't know. Philly is an AMAZING theater town. There are so many great theaters here. And so many great actors. I'd venture to say that Philly has more nationally known theaters than any city in the country. And I love the city. I've had some of the most thrilling and satisfying experiences directing shows here in Philly. Saw crazy talented people today.

Ordinary Days

2011-09-15T12:41:00.000-04:00

Very excited about my next project-- Adam Gwon's Ordinary Days. It's a show I've loved since the first time I heard the demo. I didn't think I'd ever necessarily direct it. And then I saw a production of Rent in Philadelphia being done by 11th Hour Theatre Company. Steve Pacek and Michael O'Brien, two of the founders of the company, were starring as Mark and Roger, and I said to them after the show "You two should do Ordinary Days together" and then said "Hm. Yeah. Let's do it." And so they decided to produce it for their company. Ask for things--- and the answer may be the one you wanted. I am in Philly at the moment to audition the two female characters in the show.

The Hollow

2011-09-08T02:04:00.000-04:00

What a beautiful show! I finally got to see the other rep show, The Hollow by Matt Conner and Hunter Foster. And it is soooo different than The Boy Detective Fails. It was so amazing to see the 8 member ensemble do totally different parts in a second show. And it was especially satisfying for me to see Whitney Bashor as the lead in this show. She is luminous in it!

It just points out how unique and great an idea Eric Schaeffer had when he decided to produce this exciting event of two world premiere musicals in rep.

My big Sis' play!

2011-09-05T23:10:00.000-04:00

I'm directing my sister's wonderful new play The Religion Thing at Theater J in D.C. later this season. Earlier this evening we got to do a reading of it as part of the Kennedy Center's Page to Stage Festival where the theaters in town can do readings of pieces they are working on or producing for the coming season. We were supposed to do the reading in one of the studios at The Kennedy Center with a seating capacity of 50. Well, there were at least 200 in line to see it and we had to move to one of the lobbies to accommodate the size of the audience who wanted to see the reading. And we had the wonderful cast who would be doing the actual production: Will Gartshore, Kimberly Gilbert, Liz Mamana, Chris Stezin, and Joe Thornhill. They were all amazing and the audience just ate it up. What an incredible response!

Listening to the audience

2011-09-01T13:04:00.000-04:00

Previews give you the last piece of the puzzle when working on a new show. That last piece is the audience. The Boy Detective Fails is a unique show. I'm not sure I've ever seen a musical like it. It has wild shifts in tone. Not one of its characters can be remotely described as typical. The two romantic leads don't exist in the realm of leading man or ingenue. Hell, he's a medicated, obsessive compulsive, former child detective, and she's a kleptomaniac who doesn't like to talk to other human beings. They're as heartbreaking as they are funny. Doing an innovative show presents problems when sussing out the audience. If it's something new, they might not necessarily "get" the show and you have to sort of endure part of the audience not going along for the ride. Now Boy Detective to me is a pretty accessible show. This is not a show where you know from the minute you start rehearsals that some people are just really not going to like. So early previews have been interesting. The audience seemed to totally be with us in the 15 minute opening when we are introduced to the world of the play and flashback to see Billy Argo's history as a boy detective. The lead character's sister commits suicide at the end of the sequence, and we find out that Billy tries to kill himself and is institutionalized and then released after a 10 year stay and put in a half way house. The next song Caroline is a beautiful one showing Billy remembering his sister and steeling himself to solve the heartbreaking mystery of why his sister took her life . We are then introduced to Billy's childhood arch nemesis Professor Von Golum who has been put in the same halfway house with Billy.

His first number is a real old school musical theater number-- -very funny. Well it has not been landing. The first change we made to address the problem: we changed his costume. Up to that point Von Golum was dressed in white silk pajamas. It is the way he is described in Joe Meno's novel. Kathleen Geldard and I met after a preview and I said "I want to try changing the costume. Let's try him in regular pajamas and robe." She totally agreed with me. After a quick costume fitting Tom Simpson who played Von Golum went on in the new costume and the response to him was VERY different. They seemed to be much more open to the character. In the white silk I think he seemed too "other" to lofty. The new costume brought the character down to earth. That little change helped tremendously. And still the number wasn't quite landing as well as it needed and deserved to. I mean Adam Gwon write a kick as number and we had to figure out a way to give it a kick as response. Well, we listened to the audience. You couldn't not listen to them. That number relied on the audience. It's a conversation back and forth between the show itself and the audience-- they tell you if they like it. And since that song's success relied on the audience going along for the ride and enjoying it, we knew something we were doing wasn't resonating. Again, they were with us for 25 minutes. In the Von Golum introduction scene we discover whey he has been put in this halfway house. He tells us that he has always had an problem with understanding women and so in order to figure out how they work, he decides to "open one up." Now yes, this is a horrifying, sick, revelation. Joe's book has some very dark humor in it. Interestingly during the workshop two years earlier, that moment stopped the show... with laughter! But you could hear it in the preview audiences. I was sitting there in the middle of them. Some would laugh out loud-- getting the dark humor. Some would laugh but very uncomfortably. Some would look at the person next to them in shock. And some were clearly angry at this revelation. After a few previews we discovered that the audience had not recovered from Caroline's suicide. In the staging she slits her wrists and blood streams down her arms. It was too much to ask the audience for laughter at such a revelation about Von Golum. Well, Joe rewrote the line and at the next performance the number played like gang busters. So.. listen to the audience!

First preview!

2011-08-25T19:55:00.000-04:00

SOLD OUT! Could not be prouder.

TECH

2011-08-22T02:00:00.000-04:00

Whew. Well that was intense. We tech-ed this show in two and a half days! It just goes to show that when something needs to get done in the theatre, theatre folk get it done. To be totally honest we still have things to do/finish but rehearsal during previews will allow time for that. Right now I'm just a little exhausted and a lot thrilled by what is up on that stage. Lighting Designer Chris Lee is a magician-- not only because he managed to cue through the entire show but also because even under time constraints, his work is gorgeous.

Balloons...

2011-08-19T22:14:00.000-04:00

We're in tech. People who have worked with me know that I have a fascination with balloons on stage. Practically speaking they break up vertical space, and aesthetically they have a lyricism I like. There is something haunting about them to me. They're about memory, childhood, amusement parks, walking hand in hand...

I have used them in many shows...

William Finn's Elegies at Signature Theatre:

Sherri Edelen

Elegies at Philadelphia Theatre Company. You can notice a couple on the floor. There were many, many, more LOL.

Will Gartshore, Michael Rupert, Donna Migliaccio, Sherri Edelen, Keith Byron Kirk

Assassins at Signature Theatre:

The dazzling, and incredibly daring cast of Assassins.

I also used them in Side Show at Signature but I can't find a picture with said balloons in it. Trust me. And here is a picture from Side Show just cause... well, I loved directing this show.

LOVED doing this show.

I'm sure I've used them in other shows I just can't think of at the moment LOL. I use them like crazy in The Boy Detective Fails. I'll just give you the "scary" balloons in the haunted toy factory:

And if one uses helium balloons, mishaps are bound to happen. We lost a balloon one day staging the toy factory sequence. Assistant stage manager Jeremiah Mullane used his height, a chair, a set piece, a pair of pliers, and sheer determination to save the day.

Cueing

2011-08-15T16:53:00.001-04:00

Because we're running and rehearsing two shows in rep, each show only has two and a half days of tech. Sounds crazy, no? But... there is a very bright light beaming at the beginning of the tech process. Today I actually get to sit in the theater with lighting designer Chris Lee and look at cues for the show. No actors, no other elements of tech to have to focus on. It's a luxury I rarely get. Usually the first time I get to sit down with the lighting designer and look at cues is the first day of tech. This time before tech gives us a chance to set up a visual vocabulary for the show. It will definitely save us time during tech. This show is especially tricky because the opening is 14 minutes long and the full cast is in it, and I've staged the sequence within an inch of its life. I'm sitting next to Chris right now and so far we're at 75 light cues and we're only on page 19. That's my kind of show. Chris and I have worked together many times and we share a similar aesthetic so usually we work very fast, but this is a complicated show, so we'll be sprinting a marathon.

The sitzprobe

2011-08-14T23:53:00.025-04:00

What is that, some of you may ask. It's basically the cast's first time sitting and singing with the orchestra. It's always one of my favorite days of the process. It is the first rehearsal that happens outside of the rehearsal studio before heading into tech week, and it is always a lovely way to start the next part of the process for me. I love rehearsing, so the rehearsal room for me is a safe little cocoon that I can get used to, but usually by this point in the process I am anxious to get into the theater. Because of the rep schedule on this show, I have to say that I was kind of itching for a few more days wrapped in the safety of the rehearsal room. But the sitz (as we theater folk like to call it) is always heartening. Once the show leaves the studio, the process for me becomes about applying icing onto the cake that is the show itself, and adding the orchestra is the glorious first layer. I'm always reminded what an integral role the orchestrator plays during the process of creating a new musical. They add colors you could never imagine. Songs that you think of as dark gain a beautiful warmth when orchestrated a particular way. We are incredibly blessed on this occasion to have Andy Einhorn as our orchestrator. He has done an extraordinary job. The score just soars because of what he has done. You could feel the excitement in the room from the actors-- the orchestra just adds incredible energy to the show. Now... on to tech!

Diving into the details

2011-08-10T15:11:00.005-04:00

We did our designer run yesterday. Since The Hollow has their designer run today, I had rehearsal today with just Anika and Stephen. I was worried that I wouldn't have much left to do with them alone and that it might be a kind of "spinning our wheels" rehearsal, but I was wrong. It was actually refreshing and incredibly beneficial to get to dive back into their scenes and really work them moment to moment figuring out details as we went. Adam and Joe have been in rehearsal every day. What a gift. They're both so articulate about their work and so, so, generous and sensitive answering questions regarding the piece. So what I thought might be an unproductive day ended up being a really fruitful one.

The Designer Run

2011-08-09T22:39:00.032-04:00

Sorry that the launch of breaking bread has taken me away from blogging about The Boy Detective Fails. Not bad to be juggling so much work. Today we had our designer run. It is the day when all the designers on the show get to see a full run of the show for the first time. A lot of staff comes to see the run too which is terrific because the cast finally gets to hear the response of an audience beyond the people who have been in the room since day one. It was also great for me and Joe and Adam and Karma and Gabe to start to "listen" to an audience. I love when new people come into the room. My eyesight and hearing sort of change. I feel like I'm seeing the show from a newcomer's point of view. I become more aware of what might be confusing or unclear. It's incredibly illuminating. The response to the run was great, which was very heartening-- giving us a sense that we're on the right track with the show. And I couldn't be prouder of or more impressed by the cast. They're really incredible.

With so little tech time for the shows, one of the great tools we now have is a video of the run that the designers can use to cue the show. Until recently there were very strict rules from Equity, the actors union, on capturing their image. They were rightfully very protected. With the explosion of youtube and social media all the theatrical unions realized that it was time to take a look at the media clauses that all the unions work under. Now theaters can tape performances and a limited amount of rehearsal time to use for publicity. It's a great help in marketing a show. These changes to the media clause also included allowing a video to be made of a run in the studio for the designers, most significantly the lighting designer, to reference while heading into tech.

Two more days in the studio...

breaking bread needs to raise some dough!

2011-08-04T21:25:00.003-04:00

Some people would say that starting a theatre company in this economic climate is a little crazy. Well, ignorance is bliss I suppose because we're nothing but determined and passionate about this venture. Please see fit to help the company out in our fundraising campaign. We promise we'll bring you exciting and daring theatre in return.

breaking bread fundraising campaign

breaking bread website!

2011-08-01T17:06:00.004-04:00

We're launched! Check out our website below!

breaking bread

Thanks to John Housley for his beautiful and fresh design. He somehow capture who we are and what we want to be as a company.

Special thanks to Laura Marie Duncan for her stunning photos. Check out her website here:

Laura Marie Duncan's Website

breaking bread

2011-08-01T10:49:00.006-04:00

For years people have told me that I should have a theatre company or they assumed that I already had one. It was an intriguing idea to me but honestly the amount of work that I knew would be involved scared me away from the idea. Cut to early 2011. I am having breakfast at Sara Beth’s on Central Park South with my friend Jen Waldman. We’ve known each other for years but hadn’t spent a significant amount of time together. Shortly before the meeting Jen asked me to teach a master class for her studio. The Jen Waldman Studio is this amazing place for actors to stretch and grow, and because Jen has such a positive encouraging spirit, her students rightfully adore her. At the end of the class that I taught, we made a date to sit down and catch up, and that’s how we ended up at Sara Beth’s. We talked about the theatre. We talked about the fact that there was something missing for each of us. We missed the energy of our first years in New York when we just did work because we wanted to do it. We didn’t ask anyone’s permission back then. We just did it. So the idea of starting a company came up and 90 minutes later we had a name and two seasons planned.

In our mission statement one of the things we say is that we are dedicated to producing the “unproduceable.” Our inaugural production will be Picnic At Hanging Rock by Daniel Zaitchik. I’ve known Daniel as an actor ever since he starred in the world premiere production that I directed of The Burnt Boys by Mariana Elder, Chris Miller and Nathan Tysen up at Barrington Stage Company. I’ve always been fascinated by the movie of Picnic At Hanging Rock, and I always thought it’d make a beautiful musical, though I knew it would have to be a very ambitious and unconventional one in order to tell that tale. One night that summer up at BSC we were out all out at a bar and I overheard Daniel mention the title Picnic At Hanging Rock, and when I asked him what he talking about, he said that he was writing a musical based on the novel. Well I immediately said, “When you’re looking for a director, remember me.” Thankfully he did! After a developmental reading at Lincoln Center and then a summer up at the O’neill Musical Theatre Conference, I was determined to get the show produced. It’s a tricky landscape out there at the moment in theatre land. In this economic climate it seems as if theatre’s are even less inclined to take a chance on a “risky” show especially regionally. Picnic is a big show: 15 women and 3 men, so I get the risk factor though I didn’t see the “it’s unproduceable” label at all. Needless to say it was disconcerting to see this beautiful show not getting a home. Catalyst #1 for starting a company.

I am a director. I am also a writer. Regionally people see me as both. In NYC? The director label tips the scales in that direction (so to speak). I love both and would never give up one for the other, and both inform the other. Writing makes me a better director and directing makes me a better writer. About a year and a half ago a friend and I were at a diner and he was expressing the need to do a piece about loss. I told him I had an old one act quirky little comedy that I had written and directed down at Expanded Arts Inc over a decade ago that might just fit the bill. We did a very informal reading of it, and I was reminded of how much I liked those characters. Now there were 9 of them, in a 54 minute one act LOL, and even I will admit that a play like that is difficult to produce. After the reading I thought I might turn it into a screenplay. Before jumping into that task I decided to “write them out” as characters, to find out more about them. Well, that turned into a three act play. Nine people in a play these days is still pretty darn risky. I know that I’m encouraged to keep cast sizes at 4. I also immediately saw the play done environmentally—the play has a certain intimacy about it, and I wanted the audience to feel like they were in the same room as the characters. A quirky little three act comedy set environmentally with 9 actors--- catalyst #2 for starting a company.

Cattalyist #3 was Jen Waldman. First of all I completely believe in her artistically and she is incredibly energizing. It’s easy to get excited about projects she’s interested in because she is so excited by them. We have a second season planned – and just to dissuade anyone from thinking that the company is just an opportunity for me to produce projects I’m involved with, I have not written either of the second season pieces, and I’m definitely not directing the first show of the second season, and the second piece will be jointly directed by Jen, Wendy, Steve, and myself. It’s an exciting venture, and it would never have happened if not for that breakfast with Jen. I know I couldn’t have done it alone. She gave me the energy and the passion to dive off the cliff.

Old Friends

2011-07-31T09:14:00.000-04:00

One of the many great things about working in the theater is that people continually re-enter your life. I first worked with Whitney Bashor on a reading of Daniel Zaitchik’s gorgeous musical Picnic at Hanging Rock at Lincoln Center.

And then we did it again later up at the O’neill Musical Theater Conference.

She then played (stunningly) Clara Johnson for me in The Light in the Piazza at Philadelphia Theater Company winning a much deserved Barrymore Award for her performance.

I hadn’t seen her in quite awhile since life so often takes us in unexpected directions. But then we both were up at the O’neill this summer working on different shows. Our time there only overlapped by a day, but I did get to see her in the final presentation of the piece she was working on, Unknown Soldier by Danny Goldstein and Michael Friedman, and well to see her lovely performance and to hear her glorious voice--- there really is no more beautiful soprano voice out there as far as I’m concerned--- heaven. So of course I am thrilled that she is playing Katrina, the female lead in the other rep show The Hollow by Matt Conner and Hunter Foster. Yesterday was our day off and we went into D.C and hit the Smithsonian—inspiring as always to wander through the National Gallery. On the way back to Shirlingon we stopped at the Pentagon City Mall and, well, Whitney is as inspiring while shopping as she is singing or acting—her enthusiasm caused this to happen…

But you know, you can’t go wrong with great shoes. They last after all.

Stumbling Through Act 1

2011-07-29T21:48:00.000-04:00

Well, it should have been a stumble through. The first act of this show is enormous. It has many scenes, some of them incredibly complicated. The opening sequence alone is fourteen minutes long. And again, the 8 member ensemble is learning two brand new shows at the same time. But I’m telling you, this cast didn’t stumble at all! About halfway through I wanted to say, “Damn, this is going really well guys” but I didn’t want to jinx it. LOL. Do we have a lot of work to do? Hell yes. But with this cast and their talent and their dedication and work ethic, I have no worries about the outcome.

Fear/Trust

2011-07-27T23:39:00.001-04:00

I’ve made my living as a writer and director for over a decade. I’ve learned a lot about both crafts, some very potent. And still I feel like there are some lessons that I have to learn over and over again, each time making me go, “Oh yeah! This always happens at this point in the process.” Two lessons I re-learn constantly: I need to just trust what I know and what I’ve learned over the years because there will be days when I have no idea what I’m going to do in rehearsal because I haven’t cracked the scene or the number yet. Those days can still be terrifying and filled with dread. Today was one of those days. Karma and I were going to stage the number together, and she had created some delightful choreography for the one part of the song we felt we really had a grasp on but honestly I had very little idea of how the rest of the number should or could function. But then we got into the rehearsal room. For me seeing actors bodies in the space always opens up a door in my brain. I start to see shapes and floor patterns and compositions. And Karma and I have always been a great team working on a number together. Again, there is no ego involved, and I think we inspire each other—each other’s ideas sparking new ones. We also gave ourselves three hours. Another lesson: when you need time to figure something out, give yourself that time. I knew it would be a bear of a number, though interestingly it isn’t that long of a song. We ended the day finishing up the number—a very satisfying rehearsal.

I started this post thinking I was going to talk about the continual discovery that if I trust myself, then the fear will diminish, but actually what I’m just now realizing is that I should just learn to trust the fear. I’ve often said that I love doing pieces that terrify me a bit—“Oh man the subject matter of this piece is devastating” or “How the hell am I ever going to stage this show? It can't be done on stage.” I like to feel that, as long as it is coupled with loving the writing and with being emotionally affected by the material – either laughing or crying. And as I say above—the days when I am scared and don’t know what I am going to do in rehearsal are often the most exciting and fruitful. So… the lesson is “When you’re terrified Joe in regards to work, trust that you’re in the right place.”

A dancing coat rack

2011-07-26T21:26:00.003-04:00

Composer/lyricist, Adam Gwon, says that when he first read the novel of The Boy Detective Fails this line, "In a moment, the lady stops vacuuming and begins dancing with a tall silver coat rack." is when he knew he wanted to turn it into a musical. Below are a few shots of choreographer Karma Camp working on the lovely, whimsical, number with Penny Maple herself-- Anika Larsen.

That went well!

2011-07-25T17:56:00.000-04:00

So today we actually ran through everything we've staged so far-- about 50 minutes --- and it's only our 7th day of rehearsal (!) This rep situation has instilled -- (how shall I put this?)--an urgency in all of us. Thank you cast! Thank you cast!

Collaboration Part Four: The Choreographer

2011-07-24T23:55:00.076-04:00

I met Karma Camp (is there a better name out there?) in 1998 when I came down to Signature for the first time to direct the world premiere of Norman Allen's play Nijinsky's Last Dance. It was the first regional gig for me, so I was given my design team and my choreographer. I didn't have a problem with it. In fact I was excited to have new voices join the conversation. Happily the whole experience was blissful and I learned many new things from my new colleagues. Karma swears to this day that I was more than a little standoff-ish at our first meeting, which I don't find hard to believe. When I'm nervous or feel intimidated or out of my element, my defense mechanisms can be decidedly chilly. Luckily for me Karma is one of the most charming people you could ever meet. It's literally disarming, and we soon found ourselves getting along famously. I'm not the kind of director who calls in the choreographer the minute that music starts playing. I like to do my own musical staging on certain numbers, and my shows tend to be pretty physical. That can be tricky with a choreographer because in the end you really don't want to see where the director's work ends and where the choreographer's work takes over. Karma and I always have intensive discussions about the story of each number and where we need to get to by the end of it in regards to story. It's never about the steps. It's about story. It's Karma's mantra which is just one more reason I love her. It's a collaboration I treasure. Once again ego never gets in the way. I know, and I'm pretty sure that Karma would agree, that we depend on each other's critical eye to assess each other's work. And I really love when we stage a number or sequence together, getting inspired by one another's ideas. And honestly, it just makes life easier during a show LOL. When I do all the staging on a show, it's just more exhausting obviously. This morning I realized on the way to rehearsal that Karma was staging two numbers all morning which allowed me to be out of the rehearsal room doing script work. Whew. Breathe. She also has become one of my dearest friends-- family really. That reminds me of another lovely benefit of working in the theatre. Each show we work on, we get a kind of new insta-family and usually, at least for me, one person from each project sticks around, becoming an integral part of my life.

Below is a picture of Karma and me from one of our most enjoyable working experiences together. We worked on a wonderful piece called Twice Charmed: an original twist on the Cinderella story that was done for Disney on one of their cruise ships. Well give me a deck chair and some sun, and I'm happy. This picture was taken on Disney's private island, Castaway Cay. The Disney Magic is behind us.

Collaboration Part Three: The Actors

2011-07-22T23:58:00.138-04:00

I love actors. I'm always surprised by directors, and writers and designers for that matter, who either say that they don't like actors or at least give every indication through their actions that they don't. I come from an acting background --it's what I wanted to do since I was a kid (I was a full on musical theatre kid geek) and my degree is in acting not in directing.

Back in college I had an acting teacher who told us that we had to make sure we were well trained because there would be times when we were going to be on our own during the rehearsal process. I'll never forget when he said to us, "Look, one day you're going to be playing Hamlet and the director is going to tell you to do "To be or not to be" standing on your head and you're going to ask why and he or she is going to say, "Because I told you to." And then he said, "A majority of directors you work with will be traffic cops, some may actually do damage by guiding you down the wrong path with a role or worse, and if you're lucky, a few may actually inspire you or teach you something." Well, when I started directing I knew I wanted to try and be a member of that final group. I also remember, when I was acting, those experiences when the cast sort of couldn't wait for the director to leave so they could do what they wanted to do. I sure as hell knew I didn't want to be that guy. And don't get me wrong, there are times when all I want to say when an actor asks me why they're doing something is, "Because I told you to!" But... to me the rehearsal room is (and yes I know this sounds pretentious) a sacred space. It needs to be safe. I think the only way to find out what works is to find out what doesn't, which means failure is going to be an inevitable part of the process.

I also always try to remind myself that actors, if they're not going to have a miserable experience, have to come in trusting, and my job is to not betray that trust. The first play I ever directed was very sexually charged and required a shocking physical intimacy between the actors. The two actors were interviewed at one point and one of them said, "We're touching each other in places where only lovers touch, and we're not lovers, we're actors." I've always found that statement really powerful, and I try to remind myself of its truth and potency going into every project. Whether they're "baring it all" literally or emotionally, the actors are being asked to wade into dangerous waters, and the safety built in the rehearsal room is the thing that keeps them afloat-- allowing them to brave deeper and deeper depths.

This cast is extraordinary-- everyone always comes into the room with good humor and ready to work. And most of them are learning TWO shows-- two NEW shows. Actors- Gotta love 'em.

Getting ready for...

2011-07-22T19:59:00.003-04:00

...the Signature Theatre Open House.

Above: Stephen Gregory Smith, Evan Casey, and Tracy Olivera going over the opening to act 2 of The Boy Detective Fails with music director Gabe Mangianti for the Signature Season Highlights Concert, one of the many events happening at Signature's yearly Open House.

I first directed at Signature back in 1998 in the Garage, and The Boy Detective Fails will be the 9th show I have directed for the theatre. To have worked at the garage and to now see not only how beautiful the new theater is but to see how it has literally transformed a neighborhood is pretty extraordinary. Eric is rightfully called the Mayor of Shirlington and to see the Open House each year... well... the number of people that shows up is extraordinary. I haven't been down here for the event since its first year and I'm sure it's gotten even more popular. Let's just hope that the heat doesn't keep people away.

Speaking of the heat-- as excited as I was to come down here to work on the show, I was also dreading the heat. But... With every building I walk into having central air, it's far more bearable than NYC would have been- picture me in my bedroom back home wrapped around my window a/c. Just another reason be grateful for this project and for Signature.

It's official!

2011-07-21T11:46:00.006-04:00

FULL CAST ANNOUNCED!

Collaboration Part Two: The Writers

2011-07-20T23:15:00.024-04:00

In yesterday's post I meant to talk about collaboration with writers. LOL. But clearly that intention got away from me. I work on a lot of new musicals, and I can tell you, if there isn't trust between everyone in the room, that process is going to be a long and arduous one. It is certainly a terrifying experience for writers. They are, after all, entrusting their, usually very personal, work to someone else, and they are trusting that the director, the actors, and the designers, will faithfully put their work onto the stage. I've been very fortunate to work with amazing writers, and I'm a firm believer that my job is to help clarify the story that they want to tell.

After discussing the whole idea of collaboration in my last post and implying that maybe true collaboration isn't necessarily common, I am here to state that the workshop of The Boy Detective Fails three summers ago was easily one of the top three most collaborative experiences I have had working on a show. The story of how Joe Meno (the bookwriter) and Adam Gwon (the composer/lyricist) came to work on the piece together is a fascinating one. Adam had gotten a commission from Signature to write a new musical. He very much wanted to adap Joe's celebrated novel The Boy Detective Fails. Eric Schaeffer handled connecting the two, and Joe offered up the possibility of writing the piece together since he is a playwright as well as a novelist, and he had already written a play of his novel. Adam jumped at the chance of course and they started writing... long distance. Joe lives in Chicago and Adam lives in New York. The first time I met Joe was the first time Adam met Joe! That occurred when we got down to Signature for the first day of rehearsal for the workshop of the show. Happily we all got along famously. Neither one of those two gentlemen is precious or overly protective of their work. They just want what is best for the piece. It was a very comfortable room-- no stress, no mistrust, no ego. And that spirit has only deepened as we get the piece up on its feet and head toward full production.

Collaboration Part One: The Designers

2011-07-19T20:10:00.214-04:00

Collaboration is a word that is thrown around a lot in the theatre. Everyone says that they collaborate--"Oh, I'm working with the most wonderful collaborators" or "Our rehearsal room is so collaborative"-- and honestly you sort of have to collaborate in order to get through any process feeling like you haven't been shredded through a meat grinder. But there are certainly stories of writers who refuse to cut a single line from a script, of directors who bludgeon and remold a script into the story they want to be told as opposed to what is actually on the page, of actors refusing to say this line or do that stage action, of choreographers and directors and writers not being allowed in the same room together because if they are, they will kill each other. Having at one point or other, over the past 20 years or so, been a director, a writer, a choreographer, and an actor, I understand the burning desire to wield whatever power you may have in whatever role you may have in whatever production you may be involved in.

It's a terrifying thing, this thing we do. Don't worry, I'm not going to go on about how tough it is to be an "artist." First of all, I don't really believe in the word "art." At least I certainly don't believe a person is an artist just because they work in the arts. Every job done in the creative process is, at least in my opinion, a craft. You have to practice it in order to get better at it. Often directors starting out in the biz will ask me what they should do in order to get their career going. I always say, "You have to go and direct." It's not easy. People are, most likely, not going to be pounding down your door asking you to direct a show for them. When I first moved to New York in the early 90s, I couldn't get a directing job to save my life, and no one was scrambling to produce any of the plays I had written. I think I expected things to come easy. I was waiting for someone to hire me. It took a few years, but I finally realized that if I wanted to work in a manner that fed and fulfilled me and that allowed me to do the kind of work I wanted to do in the way I wanted to do it, I was going to have to make that work myself. It was the best lesson I ever learned (and one that I have to keep re-teaching myself). I vividly remember doing work with friends down on the Lower East Side that we thought was daring and exciting and dangerous. And no one came. We were frustrated. At times I was furious. Why was no one taking notice? What we didn't realize though was that by doing all of that work, by practicing, we were learning and discovering what we might be. So finally, on that day when the Times showed up, we were ready. When I was told they were sending a reviewer, I panicked for about 2 seconds and then I realized, "You know, I'm ready for this to be seen. They may hate it, but what we're presenting, is what we want to present. Nothing up there is by chance." Luckily they did like it. We had practiced. We had learned. We had gotten better at our craft. So now I firmly believe that every aspect of the theatre is a craft-- a craft that if done well enough maybe, and I stress the maybe, reaches the level of art. I liken it to a Shaker chair. The Shakers believed that making something well was in itself "an act of prayer." Their striving for perfection in the making of a chair has made those chairs very costly and considered by many to be works of art. Now I used to be a proud perfectionist. Not so much anymore. It was far too costly emotionally for me, and it didn't make me a pleasant person to be around. I'm not sure perfection is possible, but I do believe that striving for it is a beautiful thing. I've just learned that it isn't probably attainable, and that fact allows me some room to breathe, and it certainly allows me freedom and joy in the process of striving for it.

Accepting and defining the work I do as a craft has been heavily influenced by designers. What they do can be mathematical at times. I mean a lighting designer is carving beauty literally out of thin air. Chris Lee is lighting both rep shows. We went to college together but didn't really know each other very well. Actually the very first show we worked on together was down here at Signature -- Side Show. Working with a new lighting designer is probably the most risky of any of the designer/director relationships. With a set designer or a costume designer you can point to something on a page and know what it is going to look like, but no matter how much you talk with your lighting designer, you really don't know if you share the same aesthetic or speak the same language until you're in tech. Chris and I just got each other aesthetically from second one. We didn't really need to discuss it.

Derek McClane is a designer I've always wanted to work with and finally, finally, on this show it has happened. Those early meetings are so very important to me. They help me find the piece 'cause sometimes I'm totally at a loss. Sitting around a table in his office throwing around ideas helped me to find the world of the play. And as each set piece comes into the rehearsal room, that world becomes more and more vivid. I also love that this set is like a jungle gym. I hate when I go to see shows and the set is treated preciously, unless it is meant to be. I like rambunctious staging and Derek has given us a set that can take it.

I didn't go to grad school, so I learned about working with designers "on the job" so to speak. Since I spent my first years in New York working under showcase contracts with no budgets, I didn't have designers. Hell, I often ran the light board. The first show I did that really taught me what a relationship with a designer could and should be was a production of A Midsummer Nights Dream at The Shakepeare Theatre Company in D.C. First of all the show had the biggest budget of any show I had worked on up until that point. The set designer on that show was Michael Fagin. Mike and I went to school together, but as with Chris Lee, we didn't really know each other very well. I do remember that when I was in a show-- Oedipus at Colonus-- that he designed at school, I thought, "I want to work with him, and when I graduate and start directing, I am going to work with him." I chose him to design Midsummer because at his "interview" he had ideas that I hadn't even thought of. Because I had not had that many opportunities to work with designers, it was exhilarating to be challenged in that way. The thing I remember most about that process was our very first design meeting together. I just wanted to talk about what the show would look like. Mike wanted to talk about the play, and we weren't getting anywhere. Mike finally said, "Let's start from the beginning. Let's start with the title. There's a decision we have to make before we can even start to talk about the literal design of the show." "What decision is that?" I asked. Mike said, "Well the dream in the title. It poses a question that we have to find an answer to." I wasn't sure what he was going on about frankly, but I was a little too embarrassed to say that out loud, so we went back and forth sort of dancing around each other until finally Mike, understandably a little frustrated, said "Joe! Who's dream is it?!" And in that moment it was like my brain cracked open. By the end of that first meeting I understood how to talk about a play with a designer, and even more importantly I understood that not only did I need to figure out from what point of view I was going to tell any tale, but I also needed to be able to articulate that point of view clearly to my collaborators. It was a great gift and one that I am forever grateful for. He has been one of the great teachers in my life, and at the beginning of every process, whether I'm working with him or not, I hear Mike's voice in my head asking, "Joe. Who's dream is it?"

A sneak peek...

2011-07-18T17:18:00.003-04:00

...at Derek McClane's set for The Boy Detective Fails in its VERY early stages. I don't want to talk about it too much but to me the world Joe Meno created in his novel and has adapted so beautifully for the stage is like a haunted Our Town.

We had a great first read of the script, and music is being learned. Tomorrow, we start staging.

Two World Premiere Musicals.... In rep!

2011-07-17T14:48:00.005-04:00

Yes, you did hear me right in my last post. I sort of glossed over the rep aspect a little bit, now didn't I? So... I am down at Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia directing the musical The Boy Detective Fails by Adam Gwon and Joe Meno based on Joe's novel of the same name. The second show is The Hollow by Matt Conner and Hunter Foster directed by Matthew Gardiner. The prospect is an exciting one mixed with a smidge of terror. This is the first time, according to the League of Resident of Theaters and Actors Equity, that such an undertaking has been attempted-- two world premiere musicals, in rep that is. Each show has its two leads exclusively with the 8 member ensemble doing both shows-- though each of them is playing a significant principle role in one or both shows. So while Matthew and I each technically have our two leads for seven out of eight hours a day, that isn't nearly as luxurious as it sounds. In Boy Detective, the amazing Stephen Gregory Smith who plays the title character, is on every page of the script except for one, but he is never on stage alone, and he has as many scenes with Tom Simpson and Harry Winter as he does with his leading lady Anika Larsen. Happily our stage managers Julie Meyer on Boy Detective and Kerry Epstein-Hayes on The Hollow are master schedulers and I have no doubt they will juggle the puzzle pieces and get both shows as much rehearsal time as possible. It all begins tomorrow!

The Next Adventure

2011-07-16T10:29:00.023-04:00

So I just finished up at the O'neill yesterday, and I head down to another artistic home away from home -- Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia-- later tonight to start rehearsals on Monday for The Boy Detective Fails by Joe Meno and Adam Gwon. It's a new musical that is being done in rep with another new musical The Hollow by Hunter Foster and Matt Conner. I am more excited than petrified even though there are moments when I think "How the hell are we going to do this with a rep cast?" Luckily Signature Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer is always ambitious and always pushes the envelope, and because he approaches such challenges with astounding passion and endless good humor, you just happily fall into line behind him marching steadfastly on toward the goal ahead. I haven't been this excited by a project or by a challenge in quite some time.

The Shadow Sparrow

2011-07-15T15:59:00.026-04:00

The show I'm working on up here at the O'neill is called The Shadow Sparrow by Anton Dudley, Charlie Sohne, and Keith Gordon. It's really beautiful and daring and inventive and it is starring Barbara Walsh and Danny Binstock. They're dazzling together.

The O'neill Musical Theatre Conference 2011

2011-07-13T13:47:00.016-04:00

Spending a glorious time up at the O'neill in beautiful Waterford, Connecticut. Can't find better scenery.

Lortel Love

2011-05-01T09:49:00.003-04:00

The Lucille Lortel Awards are tonight. This past season I had the great opportunity to direct some extraordinary new work-- none more so than the two new musicals The Burnt Part Boys and In Transit. I have a long history with both shows, and they are both very dear to my heart, so the fact that both productions happened within six months of my mother's death, getting me, not always so prettily on my part, through one of the darkest periods of my life only solidified their blessed presence in my life. Tonight both are nominees for Best Musical.

THE BURNT PART BOYS by Mariana Elder, Chris Miller, and Nathan Tysen at Playwrights Horizons.

and

IN TRANSIT by: Kristen Anderson-Lopez, James-Allen Ford, Russell Kaplan, and Sara Wordsworth at Primary Stages.

May/June Classes-REDUCED SUMMER RATES (!!)

2011-04-30T10:14:00.001-04:00

I’ve been itching to get back into the studio so I’m doing a session in May/June. And I'm offering this session at a crazily reduced summer rate, so don't miss out! Email for details.

My philosophy: I love working with actors, and while there is nothing more exciting to me than collaborating with an actor during a rehearsal process, I love the experience of just doing the work for the work’s sake—to focus solely on process with no result in mind other than to improve ones skills. I’m a huge believer that what we do as theater professionals, be it acting or directing or choreographing or designing, is a craft. You can only get better at a craft by honing it, by practicing. I’m also a firm believer, to an almost religious degree, that one must always dare to fail in order to discover what one needs to succeed. There is no better place to do this than in a class.

Scene Study through Viewpoints: This 5 week class is offered to students who have already studied with me or actors who have had some Viewpoint experience. Each student will focus on once scene for the full five weeks approaching a character from a physical place, melding the Viewpoint work with more traditional ideas of how to approach a character and a scene through text. No outside rehearsal with scene partners is necessary. All the work will be done in the room with an emphasis on the full class being “on their feet” a good deal of the time. The class takes place Mondays from 2:00- 5:00 or 2:00-6:00 (depending on number of students) starting May 23^rd and ending June 27th. We will not have class on June 13^th.

The Workshop: This 5 week class is for theater artists who are interested in the process of creating new work. Each week we will create a new piece or discover a new idea or a find a moment worth exploring further. The impetus for each “piece” might be a painting or a piece of music or a piece of text. If you and I don’t know each other or haven’t worked together before, I’ll ask for a meeting (chat over coffee or tea really) before enrollment. This class takes place Tuesdays from 2:00-5:00 starting May 24th^th and ending June 28th^rd. We will not have class on June 14^th

If you are interested in taking either of these classes send an email to JoeCalarcoClass@gmail.com

Angels In America

2011-02-13T01:02:00.003-05:00

Just got home from the Roundabout revival of Tony Kushner's extraordinary play. I did the marathon and saw both parts in one day which is the best way to see this work I think. I saw the original production which was a mind blowing, shattering, experience for me, and I feared that nothing could compare to my memories of it. Well, Michael Greif, his designers, and his extraordinary cast swept all reservations away. What a colossal piece of theater the play is... Tired and heading to bed but I will write more of my impressions soon.

I'M TEACHING A CLASS!

2011-02-02T20:12:00.003-05:00

Dear Musical Theatre Friends:

For several years now I’ve been toying with the idea of teaching a class. I love working with actors, and while there is nothing more exciting to me than collaborating with an actor during a rehearsal process, I long for and miss the experience of just doing the work for the work’s sake—to focus solely on process with no result in mind other than to improve ones skills. I’m a huge believer that what we do as theater professionals, be it acting or directing or choreographing or designing, is a craft. You can only get better at a craft by honing it, by practicing. I’m also a firm believer, to an almost religious degree, that one must always dare to fail in order to discover what one needs to succeed. There is no better place to do this than in a class. I have been fortunate, as a director and as a writer, to move back and forth between the worlds of musical theater and straight plays, though I hate the fact that we even need to differentiate the two since they both require the same high level of craftsmanship. Some of the best actors I know work most exclusively in the land of musical theater and they deserve to be taken seriously as actors with or without their musical talents. All of what I just said sounds lovely, but I probably would have sat on those thoughts and the idea of a class if it had not been for my dear friend Lucia Spina who basically said to me:

“I’m tired of just singing. I am. I want an outlet to harness my acting chops, somewhere where sustaining pitch would only be for the purposes of a sigh or a scream. I've also been dissatisfied with the various scene study offerings over the years--requiring more outside work with a scene partner than with the actual instructor--- spending hours blocking and directing my own scene. Not to mention, meeting with a scene partner is virtually impossible with an 8-show schedule.”

And then she said: “Joe I want that kind of class so teach it already!”

If it were not for her I wouldn’t be taking this last step of making the class happen, so thank you Lucia!

As some of you may or may not know, I often work with the Viewpoints during the rehearsal process when I’m directing a show, and I so often get the question, “Joe, how do I use the Viewpoints in a process where the director doesn’t use them or how can I use them on my own?” Well, I consider them extraordinarily helpful tools for any actor to use when creating a character however close to or far from that character you as a human being may be. The class will focus on that idea.

The class: 5-week Scene Study using the Viewpoints http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viewpoints to create a character. We'll meet for three hours, once a week for five weeks. The first week will be a four-hour session so I can train the class in the Viewpoints in order to establish a dialogue for the remaining weeks. We'll work on three plays that I will pick, based on the students enrolled. I will assign scenes the week before we work them. You don't have to present a finished scene, so there is no need to work with a scene partner outside of class. The point of the class will be to explore and stretch the possibilities of what you can achieve as an actor. All you have to do is read the plays and be familiar with the scenes chosen. And you have the rest of your week free to do the things you need to do.

Viewpoints will be incorporated as a means for you to create and latch onto different characters through physicality. You may have roles that are ones you'd be cast in, and you may do roles completely outside your type. I want the class to focus on training instead of focusing on being cast.

There will be THREE sections: Mondays 7-10pm, Tuesdays & Thursdays 2-5pm (first classes 6-10 and 2-6), beginning the week of February 28th. The cost of the class is $450.

If you are interested, please respond to breakingbreadclass@gmail.com and please specify which section you would like to attend--Mondays, Tuesdays or Thursdays. The class is payable by paypal, cash, or check, and $150 is due by February 16th, and the remaining balance is due the first day of class. Of course, if you can/wish, you may pay the entire amount up front as well.

If you haven't worked with me before, please submit a headshot/resume so that I can become familiar with you before class begins.

Hope to see you in class!

Joe

Jen Waldman Studio

2011-01-25T00:27:00.002-05:00

I had a terrific time making a visit to this amazing studio as part of its guest artist series. Amazing students. Friend and colleague Jen Waldman is clearly doing something --hell everything-- right.

Truth

2011-01-16T12:43:00.003-05:00

THIS really spoke to me.

More info on Signature in the Schools

2011-01-12T12:22:00.005-05:00

Writing about this year's Signature in the Schools piece reminded me of a great television feature that was done on the program last year when I wrote a piece about Shakespeare called Shakespeare, Will. (It was nice to do a comedy). Hit the link below:

Shakespeare Will

Signature in the Schools-- Image is Everything.

2011-01-12T10:32:00.001-05:00

For the past six years I've had the great opportunity to write the play for Signature Theatre's amazing education program called Signature in the Schools. Below is a description of the program from Signature's website:

"In its sixteenth year, Signature in the Schools is renowned for producing original plays that introduce high school actors and crews to professional theatre. Each year, students from Arlington County Public Schools are guided by professional artists as they embark upon an intensive rehearsal process that culminates in a world premiere production.

Signature in the Schools began rehearsals with the first read-through of Joe Calarco’s new play, Image is Everything, on December 6. The story focuses on a group of students who study the Holocaust and learn about the propaganda films made by Leni Riefenstahl for Hitler and the Nazi Party. The students are soon forced to face the fact that propaganda, used to demonize an entire segment of society, did not die with Nazi Germany, but is actually alive and well in America , including in their very own school, and is being used for an eerily similar purpose.

Guest Artist Vanessa Lock joins the cast of students as Leni Riefenstahl. She and Calarco met at Ithaca College as students in the theatre program. Lock was then cast by Calarco in his original play in the absence of spring that he directed in the Fall of 2000 at Signature, and again in 2007 at Signature in Nest by Bathsheba Doran. In addition to being an accomplished actress, Vanessa is also a talented and dedicated teacher. She is in her third year as theatre director at Oakton High School in Vienna , VA. With her talents on stage and her teaching and mentoring skills off stage, she is a wonderful and welcome addition to the cast.

Assistant Director Alexander Strain returns to Signature in the Schools for the fourth year. Usually working behind the scenes, Alexander will join Vanessa and the cast on stage this year, making his debut as Adolf Hitler.

A special Funders Opening Night performance of Image is Everything will take place on Monday, February 7. Please call (703) 820 9771 for reservations. Another public performance will be held on Monday, February 14. Tickets are free, but reservations are required. Student matinee performances will be held on weekdays beginning Tuesday, February 8 through Tuesday, February 15 at 10:15 am."

I can't tell you how much I love working with this program every year. In some ways it takes up the least time of any of my projects each year, but it is usually the most satisfying. I love that I don't have to direct it LOL and Marcia always does a brilliant job. And I just love watching the students dive into the subject matter with passion and curiosity. I go down to Signature with the first draft and spend a few days listening to them read through it and hearing their thoughts, and let me tell you these kids are smart. Their questions always lead to rewrites. This years subject matter was of special interest to them I think. The contemporary story focuses on a student (never seen on stage) who has transferred to a Northern Virginia high school from Arizona. He and his family have left the state in protest of Arizona's new laws aimed at illegal immigrants. The family has never been in the country illegally, and all are American citizens. The students of the school start out in full support of him and his family, but chatter, starting innocently enough, begins to question why the family left Arizona in the first place. Assumptions are made, lies are told, and finally, when the transfer student gets a position on a sports team over another student, he is accused online of possibly being gay, which leads to tragedy. When Marcia and I first started to talk about the piece this year, I definitely wanted to address the recent heartbreaking teen suicides happening due to bullying on the internet, and the anger boiling over in Arizona couldn't be ignored, but none of us could have predicted the heinous events that took place in Tucson this past week. Working with the Signature in the Schools program reminds me every year that you can find a way to use your craft for something beyond getting paid or getting acclaim.

Oh here's to Ithaca...

2010-12-29T09:49:00.002-05:00

Spending a couple of weeks in Ithaca trying to finish at least one of the two new plays I'm writing. Got a chance to see the gorgeous new Kitchen Theatre Company space!

Congrats to Artistic Director Rachel Lampert for making it happen and in this economy no less! Check out their website to see the exciting work they're doing.

Another act down

2010-12-10T23:19:00.001-05:00

So I got to hear the first act of Night Songs read down in D.C. and tonight I got to hear Act 2 of Separate Rooms. (yes it's three acts folks...what?!) Well actually I finished Act 2 and a bit of Act 3, so I got some actors together to do an informal reading for me so I could hear it. Very informative... Though the next step might get tricky LOL. Thanks to the amazing actors below for reading it so brilliantly:

Matthew Scott

Anne Marie Nest

Fred Berman

Erin Maquire

Julia Murney

Kelly AuCoin

Charlie Brady

Harris Doran

Kate Wetherhead

A new play...

2010-12-09T09:02:00.001-05:00

While I was down at Signature earlier this week working on Image is Everything for Signature in the Schools, I had a very informal reading for me to hear the first act of a new play of mine called Night Songs with the following lovely, amazing, actresses:

Helen Hedman

Vanessa Lock

Jenna Sokolowski

Rachel Gardner Bridges

An interview

2010-12-02T22:28:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Patrick Folliard for this very nice feature in

The Washington Blade

Some Cronkite reviews

2010-11-22T14:24:00.002-05:00

Variety

The Fairfax Times

Metro Weekly

Do not miss....

2010-11-13T10:07:00.000-05:00

....these two amazing actresses. Hit the link below and check them out:

Sherri Edelen & Nancy Robinette at work

Walter Cronkite is Dead tech

2010-10-23T16:00:00.000-04:00

A beautiful set by Jim Kronzer and lit by Chris Lee.

I had two brilliant actresses to work with. I wrote the play with them in mind.

Nancy Robinette. We have done readings together but this was the first time we actually got to rehearse a full production. A dream.

Frequent collaborator Sherri L. Edelen. We have worked together for over a decade. The best.

A tease....

2010-10-22T22:15:00.001-04:00

Here is a little teaser for Walter Cronkite is Dead...

...CHECK IT OUT

In Transit HAS OPENED!

2010-10-07T02:43:00.001-04:00

So sad I couldn't be there but I was with you all in spirit. Don't miss this cast folks. Check out the link below to see them in action.

They're amazing!

Had to miss opening night of In Transit

2010-10-06T01:17:00.000-04:00

The reason? Started rehearsals for my new play Walter Cronkite is Dead at Signature Theatre in Arlington Virignia starring the wondrous Nancy Robinette and Sherri L. Edelen so can't complain. AND... we extended even before rehearsals began.

Piazza wins 7 (!) Barrymore Awards!

2010-10-05T02:29:00.000-04:00

Best Musical, Best Director of a Musical, Best Actress in a Musical (Sherri L. Edelen), Best Supporting Actress in a Musical (Whitney Bashor), Best Supporting Actor in a Musical (Matthew Scott), Best Music Direction (Eric Ebbenga), Best Lighting Design (R. Lee Kennedy).

Here is a picture of me winning:

I have to say we all went in not expecting or needing to win anything. It's a cliche, but just doing the show was reward enough. It was just so great to all be together again that night. Directing that show was blissful and totally rewarding from the first day of rehearsal through closing night, so the awards were just incredible icing.

LOVE the artwork for In Transit

2010-09-20T14:04:00.000-04:00

In Transit: Do not miss....!

2010-09-09T02:08:00.001-04:00

...this amazing cast: Steve French, Celisse Henderson, Hannah Laird, Chesney Snow, Graham Stevens, Denise Summerford, Tommar Wilson!!

Check them out WORKING HARD FOR THE MONEY

The Memory Show--some reviews

2010-08-26T12:45:00.001-04:00

Gotta love it:

Variety and The New York Times

The Memory Show

2010-08-18T13:30:00.000-04:00

I had the great pleasure and totally satisfying experience this summer of directing a full production of this beautiful, hilarious, heartbreaking new musical by Sara Cooper and Zach Redler. And you can't have two more electrifying forces of nature than...

Catherine Cox

and Leslie Kritzer

And when you unleash those two talents on each other... forget about it.

Brian Prather's haunting set beautifully lit by Joel Shier.

The picture below that I snapped during tech says everything about these two actors and their relationship. First of all, they are both hilarious and bring such joy to any room, which is especially welcome with a show as emotional as this one. And from day one of the reading last year through this years full production, they have had the utmost respect and affection for each other. And the trust they have in each other and in me and in the piece has spoiled me.

Piazza snags 10 (!!) Barrymore Award nominations!

2010-08-02T22:06:00.000-04:00

The production I directed of Craig Lucas' and Adam Guettel's The Light in the Piazza at The Philadelphia Theater Company did pretty well today with the announcement of the Barrymore Award nominations:

Best Musical and Best Director of a Musical

Best Actress in a Musical: Sherri L. Edelen

Best Supporting Actress in a Musical: Whitney Bashor

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical: Charles Pistone AND Matthew Scott

Best Music Direction Eric Ebbenga

Best Set Design: Mike Fagin

Best Lighting Design: R. Lee Kennedy

Best Ensemble of a Musical-- the entire cast (Charlie is missing in this pic)

Ithaca is gorges.... and gorgeous too

2010-07-14T12:44:00.003-04:00

Just spent a wonderful 10 days in Ithaca--on a retreat really. Walking, sleeping, reading, writing (two !! new plays I think).

Also went to the opening of the new beautifully renovated Hangar Theater space and saw many an old friend.

The Burnt Part Boys

2010-05-12T22:09:00.000-04:00

Ladies and Gentlemen: the beautiful work of set designer Brian Prather, lighting designer Chris Lee, and costume designer Liz Flauto, not to mention a spectacular company of actors.

Noah Galvin, Andrew Durand, Al Calderon, Charlie Brady.

Al Calderon, Charlie Brady, Noah Galvin, Molly Ranson.

Molly Ranson, Al Calderon, Randy Redd, Michael Park, Asa Somers, Andrew Durand, Noah Galvin.

Charlie Brady, Michael Park, Al Calderon.

Andrew Durand, Charlie Brady, Al Calderon, Molly Ranson, Noah Galvin.

Andrew Durand, Charlie Brady, Al Calderon, Noah Galvin, Molly Ranson.

IN TECH FOR:

2010-04-24T11:44:00.000-04:00

Very Exciting News!

2010-02-24T18:44:00.002-05:00

My new play is part of Signature Theater's new season down in Virginia.

A new play from an old play?

2010-01-31T11:33:00.011-05:00

Did a reading tonight of an old one act of mine called Separate Rooms. Think I might rework it and expand it into a full length... maybe even three acts...hmmmm....

Thanks to the amazing actors below for reading it so beautifully:

Matthew Scott

Donna Lynne Champlin

Fred Berman

Marya Grandy

Charlotte Cohn

Jeremy Beck

Matthew Sincell

Steve Pacek

Kate Wetherhead

Dogfight

2009-12-20T11:59:00.000-05:00

Just finished a fantastic, very productive two weeks working at Lincoln Center on this new musical by Peter Duchan (book) and Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (music and lyrics). It is an adaptation of the River Phoenix Lili Taylor film.

In Transit is coming to the big bad city.

2009-12-03T19:49:00.001-05:00

Really looking forward to directing this project that I love which premieres at Primary Stages next Fall.

Check out the press release in Variety.

Piazza Podcast

2009-12-01T23:07:00.004-05:00

A lovely podcast below that Joel Markowitz from DC Theatre Scene did with Sherri Edelen and Matthew Scott.

Sherri L. Edelen and Matthew Scott in Philly’s The Light in the Piazza

An interview

2009-11-28T18:13:00.001-05:00

A nice interview with Joel Markowitz from DC Theatre Scene

Joe Calarco on directing The Light in the Piazza

Getting some love

2009-11-25T18:03:00.000-05:00

Reviews are in:

Philadelphia Inquirer

Delaware County News Network

Piazza Pictures

2009-11-13T02:34:00.000-05:00

Tech rehearsals for The Light in the Piazza at Philadelphia Theatre Company have been amazing. Terrific cast. Gorgeous design.

Here are some pictures taken during tech.

It's Official

2009-11-04T00:51:00.001-05:00

I'm directing The Burnt Part Boys by Mariana Elder (book), Chris Miller (music) and Nathan Tysen (lyrics) at Playwrights Horizons this spring.

Florence and environs...

2009-10-10T21:10:00.000-04:00

No words can really do the place justice so I wont try.

Pit stop in Paris

2009-10-05T01:45:00.005-04:00

It was cheaper getting to Florence by flying through Paris. Well... might as well stay a couple of nights, right? It was impossible to take a bad picture. So much to capture.

Piazza cast is announced....

2009-10-03T13:39:00.001-04:00

.... on Playbill

Light in the Piazza Casting

2009-09-07T22:04:00.000-04:00

Full Cast Announcement Coming Soon

(sorry to be coy but I'm superstitious until all contracts are signed)

The Last Days of Cleopatra Reading

2009-09-07T21:38:00.001-04:00

Tomorrow we start rehearsals for the next reading of this show that I'm VERY excited about:

We have an incredible cast!

Gia Mora as Elizabeth Taylor

Clarke Thorell as Richard Burton

John Bolton as Vic-- a reporter

Steven Skybell as Joe Mankiewicz

Mark Lotito as Spyros Skouras

Matt Bogart as Rock Hudson

Paul Anthony Stewart as Montgomery Clift

Van Hughes as the ghost of James Dean

Fred Berman as Eddie Fisher

Laura Marie Duncan as Sybil Burton

Nick Spangler as Timmy -- a photographer

And we're blessed with the caliber of performers in the ensemble!

Jill Abramovitz

Marya Grandy

Cristen Paige

Ben Crawford

Craig Waletzko

A lovely artistic summer home

2009-09-07T02:20:00.000-04:00

This is the fourth summer in a row I've spent up at Barrington Stage Company as part of Bill Finn's Musical Theatre Lab.

This year I was only there for a week to work on Memory is the Mother of all Wisdom, a beautiful new musical, by Sara Cooper and Zach Redler. We presented two readings of it.

It starred the amazing Leslie Kritzer and Catherine Cox who are both amazingly expressive singers and actors.

And when paired together, having never met or worked together before, and having only 4 days of rehearsal, their chemistry and commitment were astonishing.

Memory is the Mother of all Wisdom

2009-09-03T16:36:00.000-04:00

I'm up at Barrington Stage Company working on this beautiful show by

Sara Cooper and Zach Redler

Starring the wondrous Catherine Cox and Leslie Kritzer

Music Direction by Vadim Feichtner

Also a couple off stage. How cute are they?

The Last Days of Cleopatra Demo

2009-09-01T18:06:00.000-04:00

Take a listen!

The Last Days of Cleopatra Demo

2009-08-20T21:13:00.000-04:00

We recorded the demo for The Last Days of Cleopatra the musical I'm writing the book for with composer/lyricist Charlie Barnett. It's about the making of the 1963 Taylor/Burton film.

Our fantastic music director Christopher D. Littlefield

Chris rehearsing with our Liz and Richard

Jill Paice

Clarke Thorell

Fred Berman

Victor Wallace

Craig Waletzko

Auditions Have Begun For:

2009-08-20T01:07:00.000-04:00

Upcoming projects

2009-08-01T10:51:00.001-04:00

Very much looking forward to the demo recording of this in a couple of weeks and the reading of the latest draft in September.

And about to start working with the great writing team of Peter Duchan, Benj Pasek, and Justin Paul on their musical adaptation of:

Enjoying home and some time off.

2009-07-30T23:45:00.000-04:00

Finally home with a chance to take a walk on The High Line: The High Line was built in the 1930s, as part of a massive public-private infrastructure project called the West Side Improvement. It lifted freight traffic 30 feet in the air, removing dangerous trains from the streets of Manhattan's largest industrial district. No trains have run on the High Line since 1980. Friends of the High Line, a community-based non-profit group, formed in 1999 when the historic structure was under threat of demolition. Friends of the High Line works in partnership with the City of New York to preserve and maintain the structure as an elevated public park.

It's absolutely beautiful.

Beautiful flowers everywhere.

And completely new ways of looking at the City below.

The Boy Detective Fails presentation

2009-07-25T06:08:00.000-04:00

The prologue.

The boy detective himself.

Townspeople tell us about the boy detective.

Brother and sis.

Mr. Mammoth's Lifelike Mustache

Opening to act 2-- a 12 Step Meeting for former child detectives.

Professor Von Golum and Billy Argo-- boy detective

Billy Argo and Penny Maple

Billy Argo and co-worker Larry

Billy with childhood friend Fenton

Caroline and Billy say goodbye finally

watching the snow fall...

The Hollow presentation

2009-07-25T05:22:00.000-04:00

I didn't get as many pictures because I had not seen the show so I was busy watching it! LOL

Eric introducing the piece.

Sherri Edelen Channez McQuay

Chris Sizemore and Russell Sunday

Stephanie Waters and Sam Ludwig

Stephanie and Chris.

Come to the Cabaret... again.

2009-07-23T11:05:00.001-04:00

Another cabaret performance last night, this time featuring some hot young composers.

Adam was of course one.

Stephanie Waters singing a beautiful song of his from Ordinary Days to be produced at The Roundabout in the Fall.

Stephen and Bayla Whitten singing Little Mysteries from The Boy Detective Fails

Gotta have a first kiss.

Eleasha Gamble Stephen Gregory Smith and Danny Binstock at a 12 Step Meeting for former child detectives singing That's All.

Matt Conner's work was also featured.

Chris Sizemore

Stephanie Waters and Sam Ludwig singing a song from The Hollow

Sam

Stephanie

Tracy Olivera looking and sounding ravishing.

Come to the Cabaret...

2009-07-16T02:55:00.000-04:00

Stephen did his cabaret show tonight as part of Signatures Sizzlin' Summer Cabaret series.

It was a star studded affair. Here with good pal Eleasha Gamble

He and Amy McWilliams sang a beautiful Matt Conner song.

If you're going to blow your lungs out with Hunter Foster, it better be singing Suddenly Seymour.

I know it looks like they're singing "Somewhere" or "How Could I Ever Know?" or some such earnest anthem, but no--- it's them doing a very kitschy and very funny "Islands in the Stream"

The Riddle Song with Will Gartshore

And displaying hidden talents.

Let's start "staging"

2009-07-15T00:51:00.000-04:00

Billy Argo (stephen gregory smith), kid sister Caroline (margo seibert), and neighbor Fenton (james gardiner).

Professor Von Golum (Tom Simpson) and the Boy Detective (Stephen Gregory Smith)

A little down time.

2009-07-12T10:40:00.000-04:00

Eric generously had a party at his house last night.

Adam Gwon

Channez McQuay

Eleasha Gamble

Stephen Gregory Smith and Eric Schaeffer

Julie Meyer

Kerry Epstein-Hayes

Margo Seibert

Matthew Gardiner

Stephanie Waters

Matt Conner and Amy McWilliams

Learning the notes.

2009-07-12T01:34:00.000-04:00

The Hollow rehearses

2009-07-11T18:29:00.000-04:00

I snuck into The Hollow rehearsal today to grab a few shots.

Hunter Foster

Matt Conner

Learning Music

2009-07-10T23:20:00.000-04:00

Penny Maple and Billy Argo

Billy Argo Boy Detective

Professor Von Golum

The Hollow

2009-07-10T21:11:00.000-04:00

The other show being developed is The Hollow

Directed by Eric Schaeffer

with a book by Hunter Foster

and Music and Lyrics by Matt Conner

9:00AM Breakfast

2009-07-09T22:04:00.000-04:00

One of the great things about this process is that we get breakfast catered every morning. It's a terrific way for both shows to connect every day.

Third Fantastic Project In A Row!

2009-07-08T01:47:00.000-04:00

A fantastic new show....

Book by Joe Meno based on his fantastic novel.

Music and Lyrics by Adam Gwon

For Tony Award Winner Signature Theatre for the 21/24 Festival