this week and next in Minneapolis

http://culturemob.com/events/5747397-the-captivity-plays-snow-all-access-and-bee-eater-mn-minneapolis-lowry-hill-east-55408-bryant-lake-bowl

Dentyne and Theatre

This is my response to the Dentyne people who want me to promote their 10 min play contest: If you want to actually help playwrights and theatre, why not commission new full length works for the stage or give cash awards to playwrights? Why do we need another 10 min contest? It's pretend help, not real help. There are people who are serious about theatre who don't have enough money to make theatre and don't have enough money to live. Why aren't you helping them instead of asking people across the country to write plays for free to promote your gum? Why not promote your gum by actually supporting the arts instead of having actors read 10 minutes of work one night at an event? Put some actual money into the arts to show that Dentyne does care about the power of live theatre to show the complexities of relationships?

Ars Nova

Please consider donating to insure continual fantastic programming

https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/store/27165/donate

Flux press and Pretty Theft Pre-Press (say it ten times fast)

http://broadwayworld.com/article/Flux_Theater_Ensemble_To_Produce_3_Plays_In_200910_Season_20090305

Where I'm at

Back in Minneapolis rehearsing for a show. My agent is sending off my two newest plays, both of which I'm hopeful about. I'm writing a spec of Sunny in Philly for my other agent and she's passing around my pilot. In April, I'll head to nyc for a couple of weeks for Pretty Theft. Then what? Not sure. Food For Fish is being done in Atlanta. Herbie is being done in DC, I think. And then Kristen and I either stick around here, head to LA or come back to NYC. Or something else entirely. Who knows?

Coming up next

In Minneapolis The Captivity Plays: Snow, All Access, and Bee Eater Award-winning New York-based playwright, Adam Szymkowicz teams up with local directors, Genevieve Bennett (Twin Cities Chekhov Festival creator) and Hayley Finn (Ruth Easton Resident Directing Fellow) to produce an evening of three very funny, sometimes heartbreaking plays about missed connections: Four friends searching for love in a snowstorm. Reporters following a bad-girl celebrity. A dog looking for a way out of his pen and into a meaningful career. Performed by a cast of local favorites including, Leif Jurgensen, Leigha Horton, Kimberly Richardson, Tim Uren and Matt Erkel. March 12 and 19 at 7pm Bryant Lake Bowl, 810 West Lake Street Minneapolis, MN $10-$15 sliding scale Reservations: 612.825.8949 or www.bryantlakebowl.com

okay, I'm on Twitter

https://twitter.com/AdamSzymkowicz

Women in Theatre, Julia Jordan

http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=25937072860&topic=5810

h/t Mark at Isaac http://parabasis.typepad.com/

yesterday

My play went really well yesterday. Like really really well. I'm very excited. It's this week only. Hope you can come. I saw Sheila Callaghan's play last night. Amazing. You have to see it. Damn. Just go see it.

Reason 2

I saw the dress rehearsal last night of our show at Juilliard, Hearts Like Fists, and I love it. It hasn't been in front of an audience yet and that will be a different test and there will be no uniform reaction, but right now, before they arrive, there is my reasction and my reaction is that I'm terribly proud of this play. I can sit in this for 40 more minutes and then I will watch people watch my play, and I will learn things and I will laugh. It is a little terrifying and will also be fun, probably. And there is nothing exactly like that thrill you get when you feel people respond to what you put down on the page months ago. And that is Reason 2 to be a playwright.

Reason 1

Sometimes when it's hard to be a playwright, it's stressful and you're poor and discouraged, you will get an email like this and it makes it all worthwhile. this is from the director of Food For Fish at Northwestern. Their show just ended. Adam- We returned a coffin to Evanston Funeral and Cremation today. The lights will be loaded out tomorrow, and then that will be that. What to do now!? The cast hit it out of the park show after show. A total, um knockout. They peaked during the last performance to a packed 11pm house and I sense are feeling rightfully very proud of their work. The designs came together beautifully (I'll certainly send along photos from the photo call). All in all, you're a HIT at Northwestern. People kept asking, "Where did you FIND this?! Who is this guy!?" I had many conversations with complete strangers about the script's poetry and truth and humor and beauty. Simply because of your story and your language, the whole weekend was by far my freshest and healthiest theatrical experience in recent memory (and I'd been living with the script since last spring!). And others seemed to agree. I learned a ton and had a blast. I will always look back upon my senior year as the mini-era of "Food for Fish." I can't describe to you how much I appreciate that you have created that world and have allowed others to live in it as well. To teach us as we laugh is a high art, and you are certainly a master. I hope that your time in NYC has been rewarding and that you're excited about any/all current coals you have on the fire. I wish you all the best with your future endeavors. Whenever you're in Chicago, know that you have quite a fan club that would love to hear from you. One such fan, Jake ps: The cast gave me a fish in a bowl with the label "Adam Szymkofish." Please tell me if that makes you uncomfortable and I will promptly begin training him with a new name.

this summer

Food For Fish in Atlanta

http://essentialtheatre.blogspot.com/2009/02/2009-power-plays-festival-lineup.html

roundup

Okay, so Food For Fish at Northwestern later this week. Hearts Like Fists the week after at Juilliard. Some new short plays at Bryant Lake Bowl when I return to MN and then in April, back in nyc, Pretty Theft. So here are some scenes to get you in the mood. A scene I cut from Pretty Theft. The beginning of Food For Fish. And a scene you have not seen from Hearts Like Fists: (DOCTOR X exits. The CRIMEFIGHTERS and LISA arrive at the slain couple. It is a crime scene now. They all put on rubber gloves as they enter. The dummies of the previous scene are replaced by CARSON and ED.) SALLY Welcome to your first crime scene. LISA It’s – not like I thought. SALLY It never is. JAZMIN Doctor X entered through the window as is his custom. He stood here. NINA I’m standing where Doctor X stood. I’m breathing the same air. It feels—I don’t know. I feel alive. JAZMIN The doctor is efficient. I’ll say that. Comes in. Kills ‘em. Goes out. NINA It makes me shiver. SALLY Any clues? JAZMIN Nothing. LISA (standing over the dead couple) Look at his eyelashes. He reminds me of— JAZMIN Who? LISA No one. Never mind. I shouldn’t think of it anyway. NINA You can’t help what you think. LISA Can’t I? SALLY Get some carpet samples. NINA I’ll take samples of where I’m standing. JAZMIN I have a sink full of dishes at home. Why do I always think of that at a crime scene? SALLY I always think of the Commissioner. NINA I think of nothing but Doctor X. LISA They were very much in love. (The CRIMEFIGHTERS gather around the dead bodies.) SALLY They were? JAZMIN Were they? LISA The way they’re holding each other. NINA I don’t see it. LISA Look how close they were. Breathing on each other until they stopped. Oh, yeah, there is no doubt. They were very much in love. (A flashback: The couple, ED and CARSON, come alive. CARSON in bed. ED moving around.) CARSON Come to bed. ED I’m coming. CARSON Did you lock the window? ED Yesss. I always lock the window. CARSON Did you lock the window tonight? ED I said I locked the window. CARSON Ok. Ok. Don’t get bent out of shape. ED I’m not. CARSON Are you sure I’m the one you want to spend the rest of your life with? ED I’m sure. CARSON Are you sure you’re sure? ED Yes. CARSON I’m sure too. ED Let’s go to sleep. CARSON Ok. Hold me. (They hold one another.) CARSON Our life is good. ED I think so. CARSON Me too. ED You were really good at Trivial Pursuit tonight. (But CARSON is asleep. ED closes his eyes. Light shift. They are dead again. The CRIMEFIGHTERS and LISA sigh.) LISA It makes you think. SALLY and JAZMIN Yeah. LISA Oh, well. NINA What’s wrong with me? I don’t feel anything. SALLY Why did I ever break it off with the Commissioner? NINA I think I don’t feel anything. LISA I think I’m going to cry. JAZMIN I’m going to be late to my date. But I ran out of fabric softener. Should I go get the fabric softener and be a little later and then carry it around on the date? Or should I just go without it and have clothes that aren’t as soft? LISA I can’t stand this. NINA Does Doctor X hate love? I think I hate love too. Do I? Is that possible? I am just like the Doctor, deep down or even on the surface too? I look at them and I don’t care. I am empty. LISA I—I— SALLY I think I’m going to call the Commissioner and say we should give it another shot. LISA I got to go. JAZMIN Are you going? LISA I got to go. I can’t wait another second. I’m sorry. (The CRIMEFIGHTERS watch her go.) SALLY We have to go to work. JAZMIN Where are the body bags? I can’t look at these anymore.

I've discovered the miracle of computer painting

It says "Paint." so I do.

the world is quiet here

and snowing.

coming soon

Hearts Like Fists by Adam Szymkowicz Directed by Evan Cabnet starring Justine Lupe-Schomp, Thorvaldur Kristjansson, Evan Todd, Joaquina Kalukango, Jo Mei, Caitlin Harrity, and Katie Tuminelly Wed, Feb 11th @ 1:30pm Thurs, Feb 12th @ 7pm Fri, Feb 13th @ 7pm Sat, Feb 14th @ 2pm Sun, Feb 15th @ 7pm Let me know if you want to go and I'll put you on the list.

Because you asked for it.

Okay, maybe you didn’t ask for it but here it is: How to bike in the winter in Minneapolis. Here is the thing. It is possible to bike year round even when it’s 20 below. It is possible. It’s also cold. On the other hand, the bus is such a drag. You have to wait for it out in the cold. There are other people on it. You have to go where the bus goes, not where you want to go. You can’t cut through the park. You can’t jump up on the sidewalk to avoid traffic. Also who wants to pay upwards of 1.75 or even 2.25 for a trip that takes relatively the same amount of time and also is not exhilarating and does not remind you you are alive? But there are some things you should know if you are going to winter bike and live. You don’t want to get run over by a car or crushed under an 18 wheeler. You also don’t want to get hypothermia or frostbite. 1. You need to be warm. It’s windy out there. I assume you’re wearing long underwear, thick socks. I assume you have two pairs of gloves on. I like to wear two face masks, one over the other and then stick my helmet on top of it. Some people don’t wear helmets, but if I get brain damage, my playwriting career is over, or at least retarded. Also, I don’t have real insurance. Okay so you have a good coat, you have gloves or mittens. It’s a good idea to wear plastic pants over your pants. Otherwise the thing can happen where you get sort of chapped legs. Also it keeps the salt and mud off the pants you are probably wearing to temp for 8 hours a day at 12 dollars an hour. 2. You need to be able to see. If you’re like me and wear glasses, you may not be able to ride when it goes below zero. Below zero, your face will hurt, but if you cover up your nose, your glasses will steam up. It is a bad idea to ride your bike if you can’t see. Try not to do that. I’m considering getting some goggles which might prevent this. I’ll let you know if it works. 3. People have said to me that it’s a good idea to lower your seat for the winter. I think they are right. That way if the brakes are iced up and fail to work, you can put your feet down to stop. Oh yeah, you might want to wear some boots too—the good-stopping kind. 4. You probably want to stick to a single gear most of the time. I like one where the back wheel spins a lot faster. That way, you get better traction by spinning the wheel faster, instead of the alternate which is that the wheel revolves slower and you spin without moving forward. You better come to terms with the fact that you’re not going to move as fast in the snow. You just aren’t. But you don’t really want to wipe out. If you’re going too fast to put your feet down and stop, you might end up under a truck if you hit some ice. And it’s also going to take a lot more effort to ride if there is snow, but if you’re in a residential area going down one of the two lane roads that is now a one lane road because of the snow, the traffic is often non-existent and you get across town pretty fast. Downtown will often be plowed. Although sometimes where you would usually ride, say over on the right, if there is no bike lane, it will be full of slush and ice. And it will be uneven. You can’t ride there. It’s slippery and harrowing. Instead, you need to just ride in the middle of the lane. Fuck the traffic. They can go around you. Or if they get confrontational, you can always hop up on the sidewalk. It may not be legal in the non-residential areas but I have never seen anyone get a ticket. Someone claimed a friend of his got a ticket once, but I’m going to assume it was in the summer. Cops have thus far ignored me riding on the sidewalk when it unsafe to ride on the street. Just don’t go too fast and don’t hit any pedestrians. 5. If you’re riding in newly fallen or unplowed snow, you’re going to have to grip the handlebars tightly with both hands if you want the bike to go in your desired direction. Remember, in the winter, biking is a full body workout. You might need to shift your weight to the front of the bike to keep it on course. 6. If shit starts to look scary, get off the bike. Get on the sidewalk. Get your bearings. Figure out how not to die. Your instincts will keep you alive. If your instincts tell you to go into a coffee shop to warm up and get a coffee, do it. Time is slower in Minneapolis. You’ll still get there on time. If your instincts tell you to stop and lie down in the snow, don’t do that, however. You may want to go into a coffee shop instead. There are a bunch of them. Take your pick. I like hot chocolate, but you should pick what’s right for you. 7. Have a good time. If you are dreading getting on the bike, you should not be doing it. If the thought of riding around while it’s snowing doesn’t make you grin, take the bus. It might take longer, but it goes most anyplace. The only reason to bike is that it’s a lot more fun. For more tips, go to other places on the internet, perhaps to actual biking groups. This list was compiled from hearsay and practice. There might be much better ideas that a non-lazy googler can find. Good Luck! Have fun!

Private screening of short film

February 6th. To obtain your tickets please email info@packawallop.org with your name and the names of the people in your party. There are a limited number of seats. Reservations are absolutely essential. (NYU security has informed us they will not allow anyone to enter the building without a reservation.) NYU Tisch School of the Arts, lower level, room 018 A special invitation-only screening of Packawallop’s new short film, The Moment. We will open the evening by presenting another Adam Szymkowicz short film, The Question, directed by Sam Buggeln. Immediately following join us for post-screening drinks at Swift, 34 E 4th St. The Moment When Jane goes in to talk to her boss, in a instant of clarity, she notices something different in him that she never saw before. He sees it too in her. A new world opens up for them. Anything could be possible if they could just hold onto that moment. “Jane” Susan Lousie O’Connor “Barry” Jeff Biehl Directed by Scott Eberold Written by Adam Szymkowicz Produced by Lauren Fritz Scott Ebersold Marc Solomon Director of photography Greg Emetaz Edited by Andrew York McNown Sound and Music design by Ryan Maeker Art Direction by Nicholas Vaughan and Kate Rusek Costume, Hair and Make-up design by Kate Rusek Script Supervisor Barry Paul Hitchcock Craft Services and Production Assistance Jennie Crotero Packawallop Productions, Inc. Scott Ebersold and Alejandro Morales, Artistic Directors Susan Louise O’Connor, Marc Solomon, Polly Lee, Board of Directors