A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

If you want to see a really cool picture, the beginnings of the publicity images for my play "Leave" (the kickoff for Season 2011 for Urban Samurai) click here.

The photo shoot this week went ridiculously well. The photographer had his own in-house studio jury-rigged in the attic. The two actors just instinctively knew how to take the ideas we had and run with them, which led to the image we all agreed on. Turning and kissing the guy next to him on the top of the head? Totally a spontaneous actor thing. Brilliant.

I was also amused and pleased how there was no jockeying for position. Because, you know, it's two guys. Of course, it helps that the actors knew each other from working together on Hamlet recently. And even thought it's the publicity for a show with gay content, it's not like it was "who's the top, who's the bottom" situation. But one person was going to be held in the other's arms, so someone was doing the holding, and someone was being held. But the actors have both played the same role, Seth the Marine, in previous incarnations of the play. So they both could have made the case for being the hold-er rather than the hold-ee.

But Nick said to Nathan, "You're taller." So if there was any nestling to be going on, logistically Nathan should hold Nick rather than the other way around. And off they went.

There were a lot of great shots, in different configurations, facing the camera as well as facing away, facing each other as well as facing away. After pouring over them, I narrowed it down to seven, with one clearly in the lead. I'll probably upload the runners-up to various places, too, just to not let them go to waste.

Scott the photographer was good about making sure we used the flag correctly. I was just concerned about making sure it never touched the ground but at one point Scott pointed out, "It's backwards. That's not good. It's a sign of distress." Same with an upside down flag. (Oh, right, I saw "In The Valley of Elah". I should have remembered that. Amazing, devastating movie, by the way. Rent it.)

Actually, technically, the flag isn't supposed to be used as a drape at all. So we're in kind of sketchy territory. I'd seen the flag used much more provocatively in other contexts, in advertising and photo spreads, prior to this, but hadn't really thought about the implications. I just thought they were compelling images. The flag has a lot of meaning for me, and I don't use it lightly. Ultimately, it's a show with a deep vein of love of country running through it. And the policies of the government are cloaking these characters, the symbols of the institution are what they're struggling against. Not "our country's bad" but "this is what you have to do right now, if you want to serve your country."

And it's still. not. over.

Which is fine, from a marketing the play standpoint. But nothing would make me happier than this thing becomes a period piece. I've been waiting for that for over ten years. We're closer. But we're not there yet.

Still, the picture looks great.

I need to rewrite the play so it's as good as that picture.