REDEVELOPMENT
The Havel Festival at The Ohio Theater
We produced Vaclav Havel's REDEVELOPMENT as part of The Havel Festival produced by Untitled Theater Co. #61 in New York City.
The action of the play centers around a team of architects sent by their government bosses to design and plan the modernization of a beautiful medieval castle town. Since the production was for a festival, we decided to use large photo paper to give architecture to the space and provide Architects in the story with surfaces to draw on. Unfortunately, there are also Bureaucrats in the story, sent by the government to give the team new instructions from time to time which would destroy all their previous efforts. We decided to literal-ize this destruction of their work by having the Bureaucrat cut through their drawings whenever it got in his way. Another fun creation in the production was our large rolling dinner table which could be propelled by the feet of the actors as they sat at the table. Traditionally, large dinner scenes on stage end up looking like that classic painting of last supper with actors seated along the upstage side of the table and on the two ends. The dinner scene in REDEVELOPMENT was substantial and an important argument occurs in it. By creating a table that could move as the scene went on we gave the audience plenty of face time with all of the seven characters seated at the table. The table shifted directions based on which character was advancing the argument in the scene. We developed a fun movement mode for the production called invisible obstacles that we used to manifest the psychological limitations being placed on the characters by their government. Our greatest thrill was to meet and shake hands with President Havel during the festival.
Cast: Hillary Spector, Tracey Hostmeyer, Erik Gratton, Ric Sechrest, Tessa Zugmeyer, Ryan Farley, Aole T. Miller, Mark Macken, Elda Luisi, Shad Ramsey, Joe DiSalle, Margaret Catov, Sarah Bell, Patrick Zeller. Photo credits: David DixonTHE THIRD POLICEMAN
La MaMa, NYC
THE THIRD POLICEMAN was adapted by Artistic Director Grant Neale and Stephen Jobes from the novel by Flann O'Brien. It was performed at the legendary La MaMa experimental theater club. The production featured puppets by the one and only Ralph Lee, and incredible miniature scenery by Angela Lucido and Ron Erikson which was created for live feed projection onto a large on stage screen. We also utilized live musicians who added a foley sound-scape to the production.
Cast: Arthur Aulisi, Bairbre Dowling, LeeAnne Hutchison, Todd Licea, Grant Neale, John Robert Tillotson, Benjamin Freeman, Teresa Gilhooly, Julia Watt. Musicians: Michael Lydon, Marianne Miller, Mary Orzano's. Music and Sound Designer: Katie Down, Puppet Master: Ralph Lee, Lighting Designer: Richard Currie, Costume Designer: Sara Vandenheuvel, Stage Manager: Mark Brystowski. Photo Credit=Theo CoteTHE FOOLS LEAR
PURE Theater, Charleston, SC
“You might expect a two-hour play focusing on reaction rather than action to grow weary, but Grant Neale’s direction is so physical and dynamic that the thought never crosses your mind.
In many ways The Fool’s Lear succeeds in keeping the focus of Shakespeare’s tale on King Lear himself. So often, the old man is eclipsed by his evil daughters and the bastard Edmund; once he gives up his kingdom he loses much of his importance. Randy Neale remains true to the story but through the voice of the Fool he is able to ask the questions that I ask every time I see a Lear.
The Fool pulls silly props from every nook and cranny to aid his storytelling and jokes. Ramona Ponce’s costumes are equally colorful and absurd, making the story of King Lear appear to be a children’s fairy tale. The set and costumes firmly place us in the silly and nonsensical world of the Fool. “
- New York Theater Review, presented with Phoenix Theatre Ensemble
THE FOOLS LEAR was commissioned from Randy Neale. We developed and work-shopped the play throughout 2010 and premiered it at PURE Theater on King Street in Charleston, SC. The play and production was a critical success and was subsequently performed again in Charleston at the Piccolo Spoletto Festival, then we took it on tour to other cities on the East Coast. We then performed it as part of Variations Theater Group Festival at The Hudson Guild Theater in NYC. It had a full Off-off Broadway run at The Wild Project (NYC) co-produced by Phoenix Theater Ensemble.
This tragic-comedy follows King Lear and his Fool when they are between the scenes of Shakespeare's play and takes the tack that Lear is suffering dementia and that the Fool is Lear's bastard son. We made the scenery so that it was compact enough to fit into a cargo van. We created a large sort of mobile travel trunk that worked like a theatrical magic box that served many purposes throughout the show. Found object puppets were used by The Fool throughout the piece as he scrambles to hold Lear's mind together. There were gorgeous miniature scenic drops painted by Ron Erickson and Angela Lucido, and a metal rig hung above the entire playing area. As props that were used throughout the play were hung from it, it became a sort of giant child's mobile, that turned at the very end of the play.
Cast: Randy Neale, Craig Smith, Grant Neale. Photo credits: David Mandel POLANSKI POLANSKI
HERE Arts Center, and PS122, NYC. Teatrul Odeon, Bucharest. The Sibiu International Theater Festival, and The Transylvania Internation Film Festival, Cluj-Napoka.
"...what is presented to the audience appears to be Polanski’s inner monologue, a fever dream of suffering, egotism, and the memories that spark from his synapses about his life and most famous films.
Polanski Polanski takes advantage of the Chain Theatre’s media capabilities by using a large video screen during the photo shoot and house arrest sequence, and the rest of the set is minimal. Much of the “scenery” is provided by Joyce Liao’s lightning design, which at some points becomes shadow puppetry on the walls of the theater. It is unexpected, but welcome, element that adds to Neale’s performance and Stanescu’s words.... as hours of theater go there are few better."
- Daily Actor
POLANSKI POLANSKI was commissioned from Saviana Stanescu. The play was our imagined examination of what might be going on in the mind and heart of the famed director in relation to molestation of a young woman in Los Angeles in 1977. The action of the solo play takes place in three scenes (the Photo Shoot at which the rape took place, Polanski's exit from the U.S. on his way to LAX, and then his period of being under House Arrest in Switzerland many years later. The show was directed by Tamilla Woodard, with wonderful sound design by Hillary Charnas, video design by Jake Witlen, lighting design by Joyce Liao, and costumes by Amelia Dombrowski. The play was performed at HERE Arts Center, and PS122 in NYC, then had a three city tour in Romania playing Teatrul Odeon in Bucharest, The Sibiu International Theater Festival, and The Transylvania Internation Film Festival in Cluj-Napoka. It received and Innovative Theater Award Nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance.
Cast: Grant Neale. Directed by Tamilla Woodard, Sound Design by Hillary Charnas, Lighting Design by Joyce Liao, Costume Design by Amelia Dombrowsky, Video Design by Jake Witlen. Assistant Director Nancy Keegan. Photo Credit: Mihaela Marin.RICHARD III
Theater 54, NYC
Richard III which we called The 3rd Richard was a cut version of Shakespeare's tale of the life and death of the villainous King Richard. It had an Off-off Broadway run at Theater 54 and featured a wonderful large cast, 19 tapestry images painted by 7 artists on several panels of varying widths. These panels began each performance as white walls. The tapestry images were then revealed by the hands of the actors one by one throughout the performance as the tale unfolded. We achieved this by covering the panels with a white powder. All of the props fell used in the show from the ceiling on cue as if by magic. In this production we employed a physical idea called contact without contact so that characters could physically affect each other without actual contact but through gesture and response.
Cast: Tessa Zugmeyer, Hillary Spector, Christopher Oden, Margy Catov, Ryan Victor Pierce, Mary Conway, Colleen Desalvo. Stage Managed by Karen Oughtred. Costume Design by Ramona Ponce. Scenic Artists: Holly Moore, Ron Erickson, Judy Braun, Ros Sterling, Loretta Agro. Photo Credit=David Dixon