Torture Nazis/Bush Administration

h/t Daisey

http://www.mikedaisey.com/

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/05/verschfte_verne.html

"Critics will no doubt say I am accusing the Bush
administration of being Hitler. I'm not. There is no
comparison between the political system in Germany in
1937 and the U.S. in 2007. What I am reporting is a
simple empirical fact: the interrogation methods
approved and defended by this president are not new.
Many have been used in the past. The very phrase used
by the president to describe
torture-that-isn't-somehow-torture - "enhanced
interrogation techniques" - is a term originally
coined by the Nazis. The techniques are
indistinguishable. The methods were clearly understood
in 1948 as war-crimes. The punishment for them was death."

posting, crossposting

Eurydice at 2nd stage is amazing. Beautiful, magical
wonderful, outstanding. go see it.

Also read this tom foolery.

http://bloggingevent.blogspot.com/

plug for flux

Flux Theatre Ensemble presents:

Life is a Dream

by Pedro Calderón de la Barca, translated by John
Clifford
Directed by Kelly O'Donnell

Previews June 7
Opens June 8
Runs June 8 - 24
Wednesdays - Saturdays at 8:00pm, Sundays at 3:00pm

All tickets $18
To purchase tickets, visit this link:
http://www.theatermania.com/content/show.cfm/show/132738
OR call (212) 352-3101 or toll free (866) 811-4111

A jilted lover locked in her disguise as a man
A forgotten prince chained to his life as a prisoner
An influential father caught between love and honor
A classic play about the dream of life

Location: The Michael Weller Theatre
311 West 43rd St, 6th Floor (between 8th and 9th Aves)

Cast
Jake Alexander, David Crommett*, Michael Davis, Scout
Durwood, Tatiana Gomberg*, Katie Hartke*, Joe Medina,
Lawrence Merritt*, Christina Shipp and Isaiah
Tanenbaum

*These actors appear courtesy of Actors' Equity
Association
Production Team
Tiffany Clementi, Heather Cohn, Ryan Dowd, Jessica
Felix, Joseph Mathers, Kelly O'Donnell, Jason Paradine
and Hannah Rose

For more information visit www.fluxtheatre.org
postcard design: Isaiah Tanenbaum

FREE
Life is a Dream is the culmination of The Dream
Project, an exploration of La Vida es Sueño through a
series of free staged readings of adaptations of
Calderón's masterpiece. For reservations to the
readings, email gus@fluxtheatre.org.

The Dream Chain - Multiple authors each writing a
scene of the play. Contributing playwrights include:
Sheila Callaghan, Marcus Gardley, Amlin Gray, Jason
Grote, Carmen Rivera, Adam Szymkowicz and Candido
Tirado. Directed by August Schulenburg.
Tuesday, June 12, 8:00pm at The Michael Weller
Theatre.

La Vida es Sueño - a reading of the original Spanish
text. Directed by Jerry Ruiz.
Tuesday, June 19, 8:00pm at The Michael Weller
Theatre.

meme from Laura, I'm it

http://lauraaxelrod.typepad.com/

Here are the rules of the house: Bloggers must post
these rules and provide eight random facts about
themselves. In the post, the tagged blogger tags eight
other bloggers and notify them that they have been
tagged.

This is a little rough because I did one of these a
while back. What did I not tell you that is of
interest?

1. I am not one of those people who watches movies
over and over with the exception of Wonder Boys which
I have watched many many times.

2. I am putting off finishing my novel yet again,
this time to write a screenplay.

3. I had intended to become an engineer, not a
playwright but then I liked English more than
calculus.

4. I was an actor first. I was in 30 something plays
from kindergarten to college. I stopped because it
was terrifying and not as fun as playwriting. I
played Pozzo, Paris, Puck, Picasso, and others.

5. I played soccer.

6. Most of my notebooks are covered with these
complicated collages that I spend hours creating and
adding to.

7. I have a cat named Skeezer

8. I am a middle child, and the only boy.

I tag no one and everyone. If you want to do it it
and you read this, consider yourself tagged. If you
didn't get this far I tag thee not.

coming soon

NEW YORK THEATER REVIEW
Brook Stowe, Editor
------
Book Release and Signing

Reception Follows

Friday, June15
5-7pm
at
THE DRAMA BOOK SHOP
250 W. 40th St.
Manhattan

FREE!!!
However ... we would be remiss if we didn't stress
that seating is LIMITED to this FREE event.
Don't delay and get left out! Make your rezzie NOW at:

info at dramabookshop.com
or
212.944.0595, ext. 417

The Evening will Include Playwrights & Readings from
the 2007 Edition Plays:
Quiara Alegria Hudes (2007 Pulitzer Prize finalist for
ELLIOT, A SOLDIER'S FUGUE); Adam Szymkowicz (FOOD FOR
FISH); Anne Washburn (I HAVE LOVED STRANGERS).

PLUS

Conversations with 2007 Edition Contributors :
Garrett ( The Playgoer) Eisler, Alan Lockwood &
Caridad Svich

*******
The New York Theater Review was launched to help
increase recognition of downtown New York theater
artists and productions. The 2007 edition also
includes a great, big juicy group interview with
downtown movers and shakers Susan Bernfield, Kelly
Copper, Cynthia Croot, Mike Daisey, Lear deBessonet,
Alec Duffy, Zhenesse Staniec Heinemann, Pavol Liska,
Davis McCallum, Polybe + Seats & Kenneth Schlesinger.

Can't wait for the 15th? The 2007 Edition is available
now at the Drama Book Shop.

Our debut release features new plays from Sheila
Callaghan (the critically-acclaimed New Georges hit
Dead City), August Schulenburg (Riding the Bull) and
Ken Urban ( The Female Terrorist Project ) plus essays
and reviews ranging from Julian Beck's Living Theatre
to SoHo's own legendary Wooster Group.

Also available from Drama Book Shop .

www.nytr.org
www.dramabookshop.com

I <3 Judd Apatow

I <3 Clubbed Thumb

I saw one of the greatest funniest things ever last
night and one of the worst this morning but I can't
really talk about either one.

Let's just say the TV/Film industry is constantly
getting so much better and more innovative and at the
same time they won't stop making unwatchable dreck.

But you already know about this.

Chris Durang

33 years writing plays

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-durang/a-life-in-the-theatre-so_b_49630.html

Susan Gets Some Play

i felt it was my duty to protect all theatre people
everwhere. So i wrote this song which i think will be
in my fringe play. It's called Never Fuck The
Director and i hope you will take it to heart. here
is the beginning. To see the rest, come see my fringe
show. We're going to makes Susan dance again.

(spoken) There's a motto in my profession, goes
something like this:

Never say the Scottish play when walking round
backstage
Never kiss the understudies when they're underage
Don't fool with the lighting guy if you want to be
well lit
And stay away from the costumer if you want it all to
fit

Chorus:
And Never Never Never fuck your director
Never Never Never fuck your director

visual history of women in art

h/t Phantasmaphile

http://www.phantasmaphile.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUDIoN-_Hxs

Last chance, west coasters

last weekend for Food For Fish in LA. See it if you can. It's a great production!!

" . . .Szymkowicz has written a refreshingly perceptive work about how love, work and interior narratives act to both blind and free the individual." - Steven Mikulan, LA Weekly


"Adam Szymkowicz puts a fresh spin on Anton Chekhov's most popular play in this hilarious facelift of The Three Sisters, performed by LA's multi-talented theatre of NOTE. Three sisters from New York put their father to rest in the Hudson River, and as he quickly becomes nourishment for the river denizens, they confront their individual choices and assess if, and how, the unraveling threads of their lives can be salvaged. Examining the least flattering tendencies of human nature both draws the siblings closer and threatens to pull them apart, showing that, as in life, tragedy and comedy exist side by side." - Flavorpill LA

http://www.theatreofnote.com/

Please welcome my good friend flailing girl

http://flailinggirl.blogspot.com/

Bill Clinton

This is the beginning of my Wikipedia play written for Ars Nova--they will be done in August. As always, this is a firt draft. (JAMES in a spot. The 10 or so interns are moving around in the background trying to look useful and busy.) JAMES Recently, by some sort of a cosmic fluke, I made two million dollars. I took a couple of my notebooks and gave them to my friend who was this like assistant editor and he made them into an anti novel slacker manifesto called “Runk.” It’s not even a real word. A lot of it was doodles I did when I was supposed to be filing at various temp jobs I held. It sort of has a narrative and it sort of doesn’t. It’s funny in parts. There’s some poetry and some string and some photos of my childhood dog. One page is a coffee stain. My “book” was hailed as a work of unadulterated genius by some and a waste of time and trees by others. But now, I’m suddenly wealthy. So I sort of don’t have to do anything anymore. So I don’t . . . do anything. When my recent success got back to my alma mater, they asked me if I wanted to be part of their internship program and I thought what the hell. And so now I have all these interns but I don’t really have a lot for them to do um . . . at all. (to INTERN 1, male, who is reading from a computer screen.) How’s it coming? INTERN 1 Good, good. JAMES I got him reading the internet. I said, read the internet and then report on it. He takes it very seriously. INTERN 1 I’m learning a lot. (INTERN 2, female approaches.) INTERN 2 You want me to take your laundry? JAMES Nah. I’m sort of wearing the same thing as yesterday. INTERN 2 Oh. JAMES Maybe tomorrow. INTERN 2 OK. You want me to vacuum again? JAMES Maybe later. You want to help that guy over there answer my fan mail? INTERN 2 OK. JAMES Just write whatever you want. You can sign my name if you want. INTERN 2 Really? JAMES Yeah. (to audience) Oh, so there is one thing. So one of the interns, she um . . . (Enter INTERN 3, female, the intern JAMES was about to tell us about.) INTERN 3 Hi. JAMES Hey. INTERN 3 So what do you want me to do? JAMES What do you want to do? INTERN 3 I dunno. What do you want me to do? JAMES Um, I don’t know. What did I have you do yesterday? INTERN 3 I sort of followed you around and took notes. JAMES Did you like that? INTERN 3 Sure. JAMES OK, let’s do that. INTERN 3 Cool. JAMES So this is Janice. INTERN 3 Hi. JAMES Um, don’t listen to what I’m saying for a second. So, um I know Janice is my intern and everything, but um, I kind of— (Enter ANDY who interrupts. JAMES and ANDY are in a sort of bar space away from the busy interns.) ANDY You dig her. JAMES Well yeah, but she’s my intern. ANDY So what? You just go Bill Clinton on her ass. You’re like, hey intern girl why don’t you stay a little after everyone goes and then bam bam thank you ma’am have a cigar, don’t wash that dress, don’t tell your friend or get me subpoenaed. You know what I’m saying? JAMES I think so. ANDY I don’t think you know what I’m saying. JAMES No, no. I get it. ANDY All right. JAMES You want another drink? ANDY You buying?

a new book by my former professor

Tastes Like Cuba: An Exile's Hunger for Home (Hardcover)
by Eduardo Machado (Author), Michael Domitrovich (Author)

LA Daze, New York Days

I had a great time in LA even though I was in culture shock much of the time. And all that sun and open space and having to drive a car. But I got to meet with a lot of great people and the theatre of note production is really excellent. Go see it if you're on that coast.

But yeah I'm happy to be back in crowded subways again. I'm happy to be graduating in two days. I kind of wish I had an excuse to wear a robe every day without having to answer a bunch of questions.

on friday

I'm graduating

http://www.juilliard.edu/

upcoming

I wrote a scene in the Dream Chain which will be read
June 12 at Michael Weller Theatre:

http://www.nytheatre.com/nytheatre/drea5149.htm

As you may know, my play Food For Fish is published in
the New York Theatre Review. There is a reading and
book signing at the Drama Book Shop June 15.

http://www.dramabookshop.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp?s=storeevents&eventId=348208

The New Improved Dramatists Guild

Read about it here

http://writinglife3.blogspot.com/2007/05/gary-garrison-in-boston-for-dramatists.html