It's official: we're holding our next Plus One Festival in July!
Sarah Aili is our musical guest (and Plus One alum!) and we're featuring four funny and smart original shows that will run for two nights only, Saturday and Sunday, July 28 and 29 at 8 pm. Performances are at the Bridge Theatre @ Shetler Studios (244 West 54th Street, 12th floor).
And the shows are (drum roll, please...!):
And She Bakes by Daliya Karnofsky
An interactive baking show that involves lots of sex and relationship advice based solely on the principles of baking and eating.
The Circle Flying Dance by Myla Pitt
A woman's remembrances help her recapture the freedom and anarchy of her girlhood in the sixties.
Welcome to the Hallmark Card Emporium by Megan Melnyk
Lady Business: They're not Golden. They're not Designing. They're just trying to get by.
Rooftops by Jim Chu
Growing up is hard to do, especially when you're sixteen and growing up in a crack-infested tenement in the eighties.
Check back on www.tictheater.com in the coming weeks for ticketing and more about the performers!
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
TIC-tionnaire with Amanda Bruton (gleeful Gema in Humans Anonymous)
Alrighty, we open HUMANS ANONYMOUS in exactly one week, on Wednesday, May 2 at 8 pm. If you haven't bought a ticket yet, please do! https://www.smarttix.com/Show.
And now for our patent-pending TIC-stionnaire with the brilliant actress Amanda Bruton, "Gema" in HUMANS.
1. What is your biggest fear? Feel free to list up to 6 things.
Spiders, thunderstorms, anything Kardashian.
2. What is your favorite line in the play?
Gema: Hiya, Hot Pockets!
3. Who in the world would you "switch teams" to be with?
I would say non-applicable but instead I'm gonna list one of each: Colin Firth and Sigourney Weaver
4. What is the scariest movie you've ever seen?
I soaked my chair with pee during "The Exorcist." And didn't eat pea soup for months.
5. Simile this: Humans Anonymous is like...
...an actor's wet dream.
Too much?
[Artistic Director's note: never too much. Too much is... great.]
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Q&A with Gusta Johnson (Jenny in HUMANS ANONYMOUS)
Tipping our hat to Proust, Bernard Pivot and my dean from the Actors Studio, James Lipton, we devised a survey for the cast and crew of Humans Anonymous to introduce you to the talented folks involved and this fabulous comedy about addressing things we fear head-on.
Wait, what're the show details?
Humans Anonymous by Kate Hewlett
8 shows: Wed-Sat for two weeks, May 2-5 and 9-12 at the Bridge Theatre @ Shetler Studios
Tickets: $18 online at https://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?EID=&showCode=HUM1
Or call: 212-868-4444
THE FIRST-EVER OFFICIAL TIC-STIONNARIE
Meet the beautiful and funny Gusta Johnson, who plays 'Jenny' in Humans Anonymous.
TIC: All the characters in Humans list the things they fear. What are your biggest fears?
GS:
1. Losing a loved one
2. Not being a good person
3. Dying
4. Giving up on my dreams or myself
5. Heights
6. Spiders
TIC: What is your favorite line in the play?
GS: Arden's line, "I dabble in horticulture."
TIC: The play addresses same-sex crushes. Who would you 'switch sides' for?
GS: Kate Winslet.
TIC: A few characters talk about movies that scare them. What's the scariest movie you've ever seen?
GS: "The Exorcist" or "The Ring."
TIC: A few funny similes are bantered about in the show. Simile this: Humans Anonymous.
GS: Humans Anonymous is like a warm and welcoming hug from a dear friend.
Wait, what're the show details?
Humans Anonymous by Kate Hewlett
8 shows: Wed-Sat for two weeks, May 2-5 and 9-12 at the Bridge Theatre @ Shetler Studios
Tickets: $18 online at https://www.smarttix.com/show.aspx?EID=&showCode=HUM1
Or call: 212-868-4444
THE FIRST-EVER OFFICIAL TIC-STIONNARIE
Meet the beautiful and funny Gusta Johnson, who plays 'Jenny' in Humans Anonymous.
TIC: All the characters in Humans list the things they fear. What are your biggest fears?
GS:
1. Losing a loved one
2. Not being a good person
3. Dying
4. Giving up on my dreams or myself
5. Heights
6. Spiders
TIC: What is your favorite line in the play?
GS: Arden's line, "I dabble in horticulture."
TIC: The play addresses same-sex crushes. Who would you 'switch sides' for?
GS: Kate Winslet.
TIC: A few characters talk about movies that scare them. What's the scariest movie you've ever seen?
GS: "The Exorcist" or "The Ring."
TIC: A few funny similes are bantered about in the show. Simile this: Humans Anonymous.
GS: Humans Anonymous is like a warm and welcoming hug from a dear friend.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Help Yourself
Our current production, Books on Tape, (running in the New York International Fringe Festival with two remaining show Sat 8/27 @ 7 pm and Sun 8/28 @ 1:15 pm), explores New Yorkers' search for meaning and love in the big city. Donna Paige Miller, a character in the play, is an accomplished self-help writer and self-declared guru. Curious about the real-life counterparts to our four characters, we caught up with Matt Prager, a New York-based therapist and self-help author, to hear how all this self help works.
TIC: How did you get interested in the world of self-help?
MP: I had a whole other career working in Hollywood and, believe it or not, talking to people about their problems was kind of my relaxation on the weekends. I was office shrink in every job I had and, out of the necessities of work (Hollywood is completely nuts when it comes to leadship and group dynamics issues), I started doing executive coaching and leadership. Ultimately, I decided to make my hobby my career and went back to grad school.
TIC: How did you get interested in the world of self-help?
MP: I had a whole other career working in Hollywood and, believe it or not, talking to people about their problems was kind of my relaxation on the weekends. I was office shrink in every job I had and, out of the necessities of work (Hollywood is completely nuts when it comes to leadship and group dynamics issues), I started doing executive coaching and leadership. Ultimately, I decided to make my hobby my career and went back to grad school.
TIC: If you had to boil down your philosophy on therapy, what are the big themes?
New Age-y as this may sounds, my fundamental belief is that the answers to all your issues are inside you and that it's a therapist's job to help you find those answers, not give you those answers. I am violently against the notion of therapists giving advice - "yes, you tell your boyfriend how you really feel - then eat that cupcake 'cause you deserve it!" Therapy is about handing you the tools to make your own decisions. Put another way, our childhoods often result in our being on emotional short circuits, e.g. "I feel wronged therefore I get angry"; therapy is there to help you break those short circuits so you can make decisions based on the adult you are now as opposed to the person you were back then.
TIC: Any recent success stories?
Success is in the eyes of the client, not me, and, barring the occassions where a client references having used a tool I gave them, the only time I really know I'm successful is when therapy terminates (it's like a rock power ballad - you only know they love you when they leave <smile>).
For more words of wisdom from Matt Prager, check out www.ThisOrProzac.com (including his pithy-titled oeuvre of self-help books) and his Grand Online Dating Experiment http://www.datingnancyp.com/.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
A wonderful week in review!
Our first three shows of Books on Tape have gone off beautifully in the New York International Fringe Festival (with two more coming up on August 27 @ 7 pm and 28 @ 1:15 pm).
Some high points:
A sold out crowd for opening night, followed by boisterous drinks at Dorian Gray bar across the street with playwright Bill Downs, who flew in for our Fringe debut and New York City premiere of his work.
A stellar review on NYTheatre.com:
"Playwright William Missouri Downs has given us a well-balanced tale. ...Director Brock H. Hill has made desperate into funny. Jake Lipman (Adriane) is as charming as she is needy. Nate Washburn (Jeffrey) is amusing, as even an actor he cannot play along with the absurdity of his lovers. Geoffrey J.D. Payne (Father Larry) is convincing as the ultimate yes-man. Shana Wiersum's Donna Paige Miller is so self-centered she is ready to sue Kitty Kelley for writing her unauthorized biography--hysterical!"
Wonderful audiences who have praised the underlying message of the show, its witty script and strong ensemble.
Please tell your friends to come see Books on Tape and be sure to vote for us as FringeNYC Audience Favorite. Thank you to all who have come out to support us!
Some high points:
A sold out crowd for opening night, followed by boisterous drinks at Dorian Gray bar across the street with playwright Bill Downs, who flew in for our Fringe debut and New York City premiere of his work.
A stellar review on NYTheatre.com:
"Playwright William Missouri Downs has given us a well-balanced tale. ...Director Brock H. Hill has made desperate into funny. Jake Lipman (Adriane) is as charming as she is needy. Nate Washburn (Jeffrey) is amusing, as even an actor he cannot play along with the absurdity of his lovers. Geoffrey J.D. Payne (Father Larry) is convincing as the ultimate yes-man. Shana Wiersum's Donna Paige Miller is so self-centered she is ready to sue Kitty Kelley for writing her unauthorized biography--hysterical!"
Wonderful audiences who have praised the underlying message of the show, its witty script and strong ensemble.
Please tell your friends to come see Books on Tape and be sure to vote for us as FringeNYC Audience Favorite. Thank you to all who have come out to support us!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Over the moon on our opening night!
It's not quite midnight after our opening night, and what an opening it was.
Backstage, before we opened, the actors were buzzing around nervously and excitedly. We knew we were sold out, and that the playwright was coming, but you never know how a show is really going to go until it's on its feet for the first time.
From an opening bit where a voice over artist narrates, the audience exploded with laughter. Onstage, it felt like a laugh track, turned up full blast. It didn't even seem real, to be honest. But it was intoxicating.
The show flew by, and as we took our bows, it was a tremendous feeling to see 99 happy faces smiling back at us.
Thank you to our talented playwright, cast, and all who came. We could not do this without you (and a very special thanks to the unsung heroes: our crew, who toiled in the booth at tech and at every run to make our show run seamlessly).
Please tell your friends to come to our remaining 4 shows:
Friday 8/19 at 4:45 pm
Saturday 8/20 at 5 pm
Saturday 8/27 at 7 pm
Sunday 8/28 at 1:15 pm
www.tictheater.com/tickets
Backstage, before we opened, the actors were buzzing around nervously and excitedly. We knew we were sold out, and that the playwright was coming, but you never know how a show is really going to go until it's on its feet for the first time.
From an opening bit where a voice over artist narrates, the audience exploded with laughter. Onstage, it felt like a laugh track, turned up full blast. It didn't even seem real, to be honest. But it was intoxicating.
The show flew by, and as we took our bows, it was a tremendous feeling to see 99 happy faces smiling back at us.
Thank you to our talented playwright, cast, and all who came. We could not do this without you (and a very special thanks to the unsung heroes: our crew, who toiled in the booth at tech and at every run to make our show run seamlessly).
Please tell your friends to come to our remaining 4 shows:
Friday 8/19 at 4:45 pm
Saturday 8/20 at 5 pm
Saturday 8/27 at 7 pm
Sunday 8/28 at 1:15 pm
www.tictheater.com/tickets
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Venue Director Kathryn Stephens
On load-in day a few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to chat with the FringeNYC venue director for the Connelly Theater, Kathryn Stephens, to find out what drives her to volunteer at this festival and what she has going on after August.
Originally from Brooklyn/The Bronx, Kathryn majored in theater at Stony Brook University on Long Island. She traveled to London, where she worked on the International Youth Arts Festival. As the sole person running the festival production office, she learned the ins and outs of that festival in no time. Intriguingly, the International Youth Arts Festival is entirely comprised of artistically-minded folks under the age of 26.
Kathryn said she heard about the New York International Fringe Festival earlier this year from a friend who was submitting a show, and she was inspired to apply to run a venue. As all the Venue #7 shows can attest, Kathryn kept load in and tech running smoothly, and we all thank her for that.
Now that the festival is underway, she is the eyes and the ears of the theater. This fall, she departs for London to earn an MFA in Culture Policy and Management from the City University of London. Her goal is to come back to the U.S. and start her own festival. Stay tuned to see what this talented New Yorker has in store for us next!
Originally from Brooklyn/The Bronx, Kathryn majored in theater at Stony Brook University on Long Island. She traveled to London, where she worked on the International Youth Arts Festival. As the sole person running the festival production office, she learned the ins and outs of that festival in no time. Intriguingly, the International Youth Arts Festival is entirely comprised of artistically-minded folks under the age of 26.
Kathryn said she heard about the New York International Fringe Festival earlier this year from a friend who was submitting a show, and she was inspired to apply to run a venue. As all the Venue #7 shows can attest, Kathryn kept load in and tech running smoothly, and we all thank her for that.
Now that the festival is underway, she is the eyes and the ears of the theater. This fall, she departs for London to earn an MFA in Culture Policy and Management from the City University of London. Her goal is to come back to the U.S. and start her own festival. Stay tuned to see what this talented New Yorker has in store for us next!
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