The major project I’m working on right now is called “Foreign and Domestic.” The play juxtaposes a story of domestic violence with a story of US secret intervention and violence in Somalia. “F & D” invites the audience to notice the similarities, and there are many: the most prominent being the presence of secrecy attached to violent dysfunction, and the …
Repro Rights, an evening of short plays and monologues
I am helping to organize an evening of short plays and monologues on the subject of women’s bodily autonomy, to take place in October 2012 in San Francisco. We plan to find an organization to sponsor, such as Planned Parenthood, but a prime motivator is to raise awareness. There have been many political moves to roll back progress in this …
“Not Without Our Women” concert readings
The story of human rights over time has been one of “three steps forward, one step back.” As various disenfranchised groups have sought their places at the table, experience suggests that for each success, there is a failure. Each painful setback is often followed by a breakthrough. The musical play “Not Without Our Women,” by Andrew Black, Caroline Altman, and …
“Reduction in Force” Voted Best Play
UPDATE: “Reduction in Force” has won the 2011 Broadway World Award for “Best Local Play.” Central Works’ premiere production of “Reduction in Force” was nominated for several awards in the 2011 Broadway World San Francisco Theatre Awards. The results have been tabulated and are in! Gary Graves: Best Director, Gregory Scharpen: Best Sound Design, and Jan Zvaifler: Best Featured Actress, …
I’m in the San Francisco One-Minute Play Festival
It’s known as “theatre boiled down to its essence.” And, to tell you the truth, it seemed to me to be pretty hard to write. Yes, many things can happen in a minute, but they are not necessarily theatrical. And I was somewhat surprised there was not some sort of theme to help us make a unified evening’s entertainment. I’m …
Three Girls Theatre Exceeds Fundraising Goal
As you may know, I am an Associate Playwright with Three Girls Theatre Company in San Francisco. Recently we launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise $6,100 for our month-long stint of readings, performances, and special events at Thick House next March. The great news is, we’ve raised over $9,000. Thanks, backers! What’s especially exciting is that Three Girls Theatre has …
“Believers” reading scheduled
I will have a table reading of “Believers” November 19 with the Central Works writing group. The cast will be Chris Morell as Rocky, Gabi Patacsil as Grace, Amy Prosser as April, and Harold Smith as Sam: a fantastic group! In this rewrite I worked to “activate” my protagonist, Rocky, whom I saw as too passive. Because he doesn’t have …
Theatre Out to produce Strange Bedfellows
Strange Bedfellows, which I co-wrote with Andrew Black, will receive its world premiere next August (2012). Appropriately, the venue is Santa Ana (Orange County) CA – our friends at Theatre Out. I’m delighted that Theatre Out is producing this hilarious play. It features a few of my favorite characters, including Fern Mulligan, the escaped husband-murderer. “. . . a wondrous …
SART ScriptFEST: an exciting weekend
I had the opportunity to visit Asheville, NC and enjoy a reading of “Not Without Our Women” with my collaborators Caroline Altman and Andrew Black. The reading was well received by a very engaged audience. While we had a ridiculously short rehearsal time – just four hours – the cast rose to the occasion, and several seasoned professionals knocked it out of …