Kristin Cato, my director in the collaborative podcast, "The Lighted Bridge," thought I should see "The Composer is Dead, " Lemony Snicket's fascinating multimedia show directed by Tony Taccone at The Berkeley Rep, starring versatile Geoffrey Hoyle, because she kept hearing things about my current offbeat no budget dark comedy, like, the lead male broke his leg...the director is now the stage manager...the co-director is now the lead male role...the third lead has been replaced... we are working with a skeleton crew... And, that's exactly like the running gag in "The Composer is Dead."
I did not feel like dealing with my curly hair in the East Bay foggy drizzle, so I wore the wig that has helped define my characters in "The Little Nebbish" (Heather Rover) and "Firstborn" (Sister Jackie).
Heather looked as exhausted as someone who has driven or flown over 8,000 miles for her play so far in just 6 weeks, from the Bay Area to Long Beach and back, with many stops in between for auditions in L.A. She also has a lot goin' on back home. Two weeks left on "Nebbish."
Life-size puppets portrayed members of the orchestra, created and performed by the puppeteers, Phantom Limb: Jenny Campbell, Frankie Cordero, Marta Mozelle MacRostie, Edouard Sanko, and Ronny Wasserstrom. They are extraordinary and funny, and the entire production is fascinating, using film, digital animation, and live theater with recorded music performed by The San Francisco Symphony.
 | |
| Meanwhile, back in Long Beach, a local reads "The Little Nebbish" flyer. |
Best thing I learned today during the after-play Q & A: Mr. Hoyle rehearsed every single day for five and a half weeks before going onstage for his performance tonight. Anyone who tells you that you can produce a play without this level of dedication and commitment is pulling your breakable leg.
 | ||
| Some of the puppets conceived for "The Composer is Dead" by Phantom Limb. |
 | |||||||||
| These are the strings...can you tell? |
Photos by Lisa Carlson.
No comments:
Post a Comment