Urban Samurai Productions

One week till [title of show]!

2011-04-07T12:06:00.000-05:00

Do you have your tickets yet? You totally should. This is going to be a great show that you cannot miss. We have five amazingly talented people performing there hearts out every night!! In a little more than one week we finally get to show this to an audience. Will you be there? We are having a neat reception afterwards with a possible cooking contest. Be sure to get your tickets today!!

[title of show] f'in rocks!

2011-03-25T02:10:00.002-05:00

I'm having so much fun with this show it ought to be illegal. Seriously. Though I'm in Photoshop hell still, and have added to that the severe migraine of learning something significant about websites and their proper design, I'm still having a kick ass time with the cast and directorial staff. It helps that Ryan (the director) and I seem to be thinking with the same brain. This frightens me and intrigues me all at once. Anyway, more to come. Just wanted to squee about the show a bit.

A random article!!

2011-03-10T09:50:00.000-06:00

It is really nice when a local article shows up about us without us having to prompt it to happen. That very thing happened with Metro Magazine. Go CHECK IT OUT!!

I'm a big girl and I deserve big girl things...

2011-01-30T00:22:00.003-06:00

... like Photoshop?

Good grief, I am six degrees of confused with photoshop. Now of course I am brand new to it, and we have things to do. You know, emails, flyers, ads, and so on. And so I'm learning as I go.

There's a lot to be impressed with, I must say. Like last night, when I found a magical button that will erase the entire background of your image with one click. That's really hot, I thought to myself, and started looking for pictures to do that with. Who needs backgrounds, anyway? I can see that photoshop is powerful; so mighty in fact that it is a verb.

But the terrible awesomeness of it, the sheer size and magnitude of the thing, is a bit overwhelming. Kind of like standing in the cockpit of a plane, looking at all the dials and knobs and levers. In the right hands, you can fly a plane. In the wrong hands, well... you get the point. Let us hope that the introduction of photoshop into my life will prove to be a step forward, rather than a sure sign of the apocalypse.

Does something look different?

2011-01-03T20:32:00.002-06:00

Yup, you're in the right place. I'm now the webmaster, and there are gonna be some changes around here. In other words, this is going to be black until I figure out how to do something else. Why the change, you ask? Well, because change is good for you. And it's inevitable. So get comfortable, got it?

Actually we've been discussing changing the look of the website for some time now. The original design is endearing and wonderful, but it was time for something different, something a little more mature, something with a bigger viewing window... you get the idea.

And so, somehow, I got tapped to make this change. I have NO idea how that happened. And being the non-technical artistic type that I am, I did the only thing I could do when faced with HTML. That's right. I ran the 0ther way. Right into the arms of iweb.

Yup, mac saves the day. I can throw things around like I know what I'm doing, and generally it works. We discovered that I got a little overexcited about all the bells and whistles and made the site a little dense for most browsers (*cough*internet explorer*cough*) So I simplified things for now. And like most classy events, we're going black. Black tie, little black dress, you can't go wrong. And so it is. I reserve the right to change it whenever and however I feel like it, because I do what I want and I am drunk with power.

So visit the site, why dontcha, and bask in the glory of a not-at-all-computer-savvy girl who did a thing that got published to the interwebs. And someday I may figure out how to do other things. If I want.

Gearing up for a new year/season

2010-12-31T11:17:00.002-06:00

There is so much promise coming up for next year. We are just coming off a tremendous production of "A Few Good Men" (voted one of the top ten productions of 2010 by Lavender magazine) and we have a phenominal season planned for 2011. I feel like this could be a huge year for USP!! We've put together a very talented cast for "Leave" which opens in February. We are doing some amazing things with it as far as staging. We are doing it in the round! With the audience on stage with the performers!!

I hope everyone out there can get as excited about this season as we all are. Have a safe and happy New Year!!

Audition Jitters

2010-11-02T22:25:00.001-05:00

Despite feeling really excited about the upcoming auditions for my play, "Leave," with Urban Samurai Productions, apparently my unconscious can't help tweaking me. I woke up on Saturday morning and it took me a couple of minutes to realize, "Oh, none of that actually happened. The auditions haven't taken place yet. Everything's fine. That was a dream."

I don't normally remember my dreams, or that I've even been dreaming, so it takes something major to break through and screw with my head. This production's major, so it certainly qualifies. And the dream was more a personal sort of "Wow, I'm doing everything wrong and missing the auditions for my play" kind of thing, rather than the auditions themselves going badly. It was just all a bit surreal, and I was getting sidetracked, and felt like I was letting the production down somehow. (A subset of directors probably wouldn't mind if the playwright was missing in action. Thankfully, Artistic Director Matt Greseth would actually miss his playwright. He loves new work, has great storytelling instincts, and enjoys working with writers to develop scripts. I'm a lucky playwright.)

And I've been pounding the electronic pavement to get the word out. Of course, a lot of good actors are already committed to other shows. A bunch more actors I know are Equity and this is a non-union house at present. Then you've got the subject matter. Gays in the military in this case means gays pairing up, which means physical intimacy, and some partial nudity. That's a tough sell for some actors, gay or straight, and I completely understand that. So we have to find four actors playing in the age range of late teens to early thirties (depending on how the pairings shake out) who are willing to go there. Otherwise the play doesn't work. Toss on the pile the fact that three of them have to look convincing as military or ex-military - one Army, two Marines - and we've got another degree of difficulty. Plus, the one female role is the mother of one of those Marines, so we have to get another sort of pairing to look like it makes sense.

It was almost weirder to put the word out to my actress friends. Because, in my head, my compatriots and I are all still in our mid to late 20s. Logically, and chronologically, I know that isn't true. But the way you feel internally isn't always what's reflected back to you in the mirror over the bathroom sink in the morning. Let's face it, if I sired a kid at the age of 25, that child and I would now be able to legally sit down and have a beer together in a bar. Yikes. Time marches on. Even so, I still felt strange asking, as if it was more insulting to ask an actress friend of mine to audition for the part of someone's mother than it was to ask a guy to take a role where he'd have to kiss another dude onstage. (Not that there's anything wrong with any of that. It's just the way my brain was throwing stuff back at me.)

So, in addition to continuing to work on the rewrites, I figured I'd throw another blog entry out there. After all, no human being can see all the theater in this town. There's always a new theater company I'm being introduced to for the first time. New actors, young and old, appear on the scene with delightful and dizzying frequency. If anyone in or out of my network hasn't seen the post on Callboard or MinnesotaPlaylist, well, maybe they'll trip across the blog instead.

Here's where I'll be next Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. Perhaps I'll be seeing you there, dreams to the contrary notwithstanding.

Here's the synopsis...

Leave

Seth is a young Marine serving during wartime. Nicholas is his civilian husband who waits back home. In addition to the strain on their relationship caused by distance and absence, they must hide their love for one another behind code words and secret identities because of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy barring gays and lesbians from serving openly in the United States military.

Seth’s mother Anne assists them by providing the cover of a woman’s handwriting for Nicholas’ daily letters, but Nicholas and Seth’s resolve is starting to weaken.

Jonas, another young gay Marine in Seth’s unit just coming to terms with his identity, forms an intense bond with Seth overseas.

Tyson, a former Army soldier who got fed up with “don’t ask, don’t tell” and didn’t reenlist, now works alongside Nicholas, providing temptation as well as a reality check.

When Seth returns home for an unexpected leave, with Jonas at his side, and post-traumatic stress following him from the battlefield, old relationships are tested, and new ones bloom. In the end, the realities of war call on one man to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Audition Information

Urban Samurai Productions (USP) invites you to audition for its upcoming production

Leave
Written by Matthew A. Everett
Directed by Matthew Greseth

Leave is an original script by local playwright Matthew A. Everett regarding the U.S. Military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy. The play focuses not only on the difficulties that gay men have serving in the military, but also the effect of the policy on their loved ones back home, who must hide their feelings for fear of accidentally outing their partner. USP will open Season 2011 with a full production of this world premiere of Matthew A. Everett's expanded version of the play, which has been presented as a one-act at previous venues.

Stipend: $200

Performances: February 11-26, 2011

Rehearsals: An initial read-through and script discussion will take place before the end of the year. Regular rehearsals will begin in January 2011 and take place Sunday afternoons/Monday-Thursday evenings at SJCC.

Auditions: Monday, November 8th & Tuesday, November 9th, 6:00pm to 9:00pm

Callbacks: Thursday, November 11th, 6:00pm to 9:00pm - (please note, this is a change)
(callbacks were originally scheduled for Wednesday, November 10th)

Auditions will consist of readings from the script and actors will be seen in 10-minute intervals.

All roles in this production are OPEN:

Tyson - 20-35 - Took a voluntary discharge from the military because he refused to serve under a policy that made him hide his true self.

Seth - 20-30 - Marine who chooses to hide his homosexuality in order to serve in the military.

Nicholas - 20-30 - Seth's partner

Jonas - 18-25 - Marine in Seth's unit who is trying to come to terms with being gay.

Anne - 35-50 - Seth's mother

All male actors involved in this production must be comfortable with partial nudity and with portraying homosexual intimacy, including kissing.

To make an audition appointment for Leave, please contact Managing Director, Ryan Grimes, at ryan AT urbansamurai DOT org. As USP will be holding auditions for two productions within a week of each other, please clearly state in your email the production for which you are auditioning, the date and time you would prefer to audition, and your gender. Please bring a headshot and resume to your audition(s) and arrive early to complete an informational form. USP encourages all interested actors to audition for this production; there are no race-specific characters in Leave.

Audition, Rehearsal, and Performance Venue:
Sabes Jewish Community Center
(near the intersection of I-394 and MN-100)
4330 Cedar Lake Road
Minneapolis, MN 55416

The use of Mapquest or a similar driving directions application is strongly discouraged. Please visit sabesjcc.org for directions to the SJCC from most areas of the Twin Cities.

For more information about Urban Samurai Productions please visit our website at urbansamurai.org

Oops...

2010-09-18T14:45:00.003-05:00

So I have missed out on most of the summer of my responsibility to blog every Saturday. What can I say, I've been busy. I got married, am having a baby, and am in rehearsals for A Few Good Men.

What's that you say? When does that start? Well it starts soon!! On Friday September 24th at 7:30 this amazing production will be brought to the masses for the first time. Are going to be there to witness the birth of awesome? Are you going to be on the front lines to become a part of theater synergy unlike anything seen before? Or are you gonna come later and hear about it second hand like a loser? I knew you would be coming opening night :) You guys are so smart!!

Anyhoo, I'll be playing Lt. Jack Ross. You know, Keven Bacon. Of course, I am not playing the part like Kevin Bacon did. But I did shave my head for the part, which hasn't made the wife too happy.

So come see my newly shaved head and an amazing cast as we kick off this terrific production. We shall see you Friday...

Tuesday Samurai - Another Step in the Crescendo of Energy

2010-08-24T21:58:00.003-05:00

Yes, I've been observing the last few rehearsals as assistant director of A Few Good Men and I already have a Matt Greseth gem to quote. It's just one indication of a great rehearsal process so far. This cast is so talented and is already working off book. After three rehearsals. That's nutso!

But we're taking a break from rehearsals tomorrow night for our first ever Urban Samurai FUNdraiser at Park Tavern Bowling & Entertainment Center in St. Louis Park. With bowling, door prizes, an exhibition bowling game, grand raffle prizes, and karaoke - not to mention fun times with USP friends and family - it's sure to be an event to remember. So you should come!

If you don't have it in your plans already, drop by tomorrow night and have an amazing time. $10 gets you through the doorway to FUNtown! Don't miss it!

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

FUNdraisers!

2010-08-22T21:39:00.002-05:00

This is the first fundraiser I've ever been in charge of. It's also Urban Samurai's first fundraiser. Coincidence? I think not.

I can tell you that it has been a learning process. It has also been ulcerating. My ulcer is quite intelligent now.

But I think it will all be worthwhile when we come together on Wednesday to bowl and have a good time. Until then I'm sure I forgot at least one thing. I will remember this thing the night before. Or maybe on the drive there.

I truly hope a lot of people come, and that everyone has a good time. Cause at the end of the day, it's about the fun. Well, actually it's about raising money to match grant funds, but you understand what I mean. Matching grant funds is fun. And so is bowling.

On a semi-related note: I think raffles may be obsolete. No one carries cash or checks anymore, and it's illegal to sell them on the internet (we discovered). Whatever. So how are you supposed to sell raffle tickets if no one carries cash?

So if you are reading this, then you are a friend of Urban Samurai. So come out to Park Tavern on Wednesday and celebrate 5 awesome years of theater producing goodness. And for christsake, bring cash.

And so it begins...

2010-08-20T17:36:00.003-05:00

Well folks, yesterday evening, several actors, one director and one stage manager from all across the metro gathered together and started...A Few Good Men rehearsals. It was an unconventional start to the process with no read-thru (causing one stage manager to have to read the play before rehearsals actually started), but it didn't even faze anyone. Clearly the actors have been reading the script, studying the lines and the characters, and are already right on pace...of course this is after only one night. But when an actor comes in and can pretty much do a scene off book day one, I'm thinking these people mean business. So yay to the actors thus far! You are impressing me already!! Now just get me your bios and headshots...;)

Bowling and Running and Writing (Not Necessarily In That Order)

2010-08-19T12:28:00.000-05:00

The 2010 Minnesota Fringe Festival is history.

I saw a show in every slot again this year, including the encore. 56 performances, 53 shows (Three I went back for a second look, one of those I even had a very odd cameo appearance in). 29 reviews down, 24 to go.

The day after the Fringe, an epic Fringe Decompression podcast with Josh Humphreys and Nick Decker for Twin Cities Theater Connection, which should be posting in the near future.

Back at the day jobs, a lot of catching up to do.

And of course there's a play to write (the first of a couple, actually, which is nice)

Tomorrow, I head down to Winona with two vanloads of teammates for the Ragnar Relay's Great River Run. It's a 24 hour run from Winona, up along the Mississippi River on the Wisconsin side, and back into Minnesota around Stillwater, running on back to Minneapolis. 192 miles. 12 runners, doing three legs of the relay each. I'm the 6th runner on my team, last in my van (Van 1)to go, handing off to the 2nd half of the team in Van 2 when I'm done. We got a late start time for our team (2pm), so I won't be starting my first leg til around 6pm. 8.3 miles. Then I've got a breather til around 3:30 in the morning Friday/Saturday, when I run another 7.1 miles. Then my last leg will hit around 11:15 in the morning Saturday, only 3.5 miles. That one's rated "Moderate," my first two are both rated "Very Hard" (gulp). 18.9 miles total. Needless to say, I scheduled myself off from pretty much everything on Sunday.

And because that's not quite enough to completely derail the blogging for a few days, how about we throw in a bowling night fundraiser for my new artistic home, Urban Samurai Productions?

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

8pm to closing time

$10 to bowl all night (it includes the shoe and ball rental)

Park Tavern Bowling and Entertainment Center
3401 Louisiana Ave S
St. Louis Park, MN

You can get your tickets online or at the door.

Also, they're raffling off three monster prize packages - $10 per raffle ticket, or you can get 3 for $25. Here, too, you can order raffle tix online now, or grab yourself some the night of the event. Better yet, why not do both?

The prizes...

Grand Prize - Ultimate Jackpot Getaway
A Weekend Stay at Mystic Lake Resort & Casino
Gift card for your choice of activity at Mystic Lake
Centerspace Pilates Gift Certificate
Urban Samurai Season 2011 Tickets (includes a new full-length version of my play "Leave")
Gift Basket from Caldrea
Bottle of Wine from Wine Time
Guthrie Theater Tickets

2nd Place - Theater Lover's Package
Urban Samurai Season 2011 Tickets
Theatre Unbound Tickets
Theatre Pro Rata Tickets
Crave Restaurant Gift Certificate

3rd Place - Comedy Lover's Package
Urban Samurai Season 2011 Tickets
Comedy Sportz Tickets
Brave New Workshop Tickets
Chipotle Restaurant Gift Card

So, you know, bowl, win stuff, support live theater, everybody feels good.

The Samurai website says...

"Urban Samurai Productions is celebrating Season 2010 by knocking down pins! Everyone's invited to the Park Tavern to join us for unlimited bowling, raffles, games, karaoke, and general merriment. Whether you're the King Pin or Gutterball Grand Poobah, it's sure to be a smashing good time, all supporting theater with Urban Samurai!

Bowling on the lanes with karaoke! A raffle with FABULOUS prizes and bowling challenges for awards! HILARIOUS entertainment! Drinks and food available in the restaurant and bar for purchase. Because this is a grown up event, Park Tavern requests that all guests be 21 or older.

What if you can't make it? It can't be true! Well, life happens, (sigh). But don't fret. You can still share in the fun by entering the raffle for fabulous prizes, or making a tax deductible donation to Urban Samurai. That way, you can be a part of making future productions possible."

And the day after all that, I turn 46.

Yikes. Where'd that year go?

Checking in from the Fringes

2010-08-12T11:36:00.000-05:00

Hey all

Another Thursday out Fringing, so the only blogging you'll be seeing out of me is here...

See you after the Minnesota Fringe Festival dust has settled.

Meanwhile, don't forget the upcoming Samurai bowling night (Wednesday, August 25th!)

Tuesday Samurai - What Day Is It?

2010-08-11T11:19:00.003-05:00

I've been slacking for the last month and I know it. And this week, I thought, "Ooh, I'll post on the blog this week!" And then I logged in today and realized it's Wednesday, not Tuesday, and that I'm a moron.

Well, what else is new?

OK, so here's the deal: It's been a crazy summer and I can't even believe it's almost over. Isn't that depressing? Sure, not as depressing as this disgusting weather we've been having (don't talk to me about humidity...it won't be a fun conversation), but all that time I thought I'd have this summer...GONE!

We start A Few Good Men rehearsals in the coming weeks. That production I thought was so far into the fall is now within reach. Seriously, where does the time go? I'll be assistant directing for the production, though my time with Men will be limited due to my commitment to perform in Minneapolis Musical Theatre's Evil Dead: The Musical. Fall will be yet another busy time of this year, but I probably wouldn't want it any other way.

One thing I'm going to do to try to kick back and relax before fall is our super awesome Urban Samurai Bowling FUNdraiser that is coming up on Wednesday, August 25th. The Park Tavern in St. Louis Park has donated their fine establishment to host bowling, karaoke, games, and just all-around merriment to celebrate Urban Samurai's Season 2010. It will be a blast and we hope to see all our supporters there.

But, let's be real. What I'm really stoked about is our raffle at the FUNdraiser. There's three prize packages up for grabs, each with its own theme. The grand jackpot includes a weekend stay at Mystic Lake and a giftcard for one of the many activities available at the resort. The prize packages also include tickets to the Guthrie, Theatre Unbound, Theatre Pro Rata, ComedySportz, Brave New Workshop, not to mention season passes for Urban Samurai's Season 2011.

Are you salivating yet? OK, here's the scoop. More information about the raffle, as well as a way to get your raffle tickets online (and advance admission to the event), is at our website. More specifically, http://www.urbansamurai.org/news.

Do it up!

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Some Men and One Women

2010-08-06T10:34:00.002-05:00

Well things are underway for A Few Good Men! And so far so good! Emails are a pouring out, getting conflicts, giving information, it never seems to end. It's crazy how it's less than a month before we start and I've already learned so much from the cast, and I haven't even met half of them! But nonetheless, it will be a good one! I am truly looking forward to meeting these fine actors and settling in for a show that I actually get to work on from start to finish, with virtually no interruptions!! This scenario has not happened, since, well, um, about 3 years ago. And I say boo to that. You become so distanced when you have to take off even one night. I hate that feeling that I missed so much...even though it may only have been one 3 hour rehearsal. But alas, as I said, this won't happen during the course of this show! And thank goodness, because working with a cast this large, keeping everything straight is the most important thing.
So cheers to us, getting the ball rolling and looking forward to the read-thru!

Fringe Break

2010-08-05T23:43:00.002-05:00

Hey all

This Thursday and likely next Thursday, the only blogging you'll be seeing out of me is here...

See you after the Minnesota Fringe Festival dust has settled.

Meanwhile, don't forget the upcoming Samurai bowling night (Wednesday, August 25th!)

Taking The Rules for Granted

2010-07-29T11:12:00.005-05:00

Urban Samurai Artistic Director Matt Greseth gave me a lot of really good advice at our first script meeting for "Leave". I took those notes with me to the Great Plains Theatre Conference and poured over them any spare moment I got. They're pretty much embedded in my brain at this point. As I go through the script again to rebuild it, scene by scene, those are the guideposts I keep looping back to.

Some of it was practical advice, from the standpoint of an audience member who had never seen or read the play before, hadn't been part of any of its development, wouldn't take anything for granted. What confused him would confuse an audience member encountering the play for the first time.

There's a scene toward the beginning where Seth, the Marine, and his civilian husband Nicholas exchange letters in code. Seth's mother, Anne, is copying Nicholas' letter over in a woman's handwriting, so as not to arouse suspicion. The letter she writes, and reads, is in code. The conversation between Seth and Nicholas is the meaning hidden behind the code.

But as the scene was written, the audience might have a hard time following along. They don't know the rules of the play yet, or the rules aren't yet clear. I was taking those rules for granted. I know that Seth is overseas, and Nicholas waits back home, and that they aren't really having that conversation directly in the same space. But how is anyone else supposed to know that? I was so concerned with making sure that I established a connection between the two men, that I forgot it was also important to establish the distance between them, and their separation.

And if the audience is spending their time, even a tiny fraction of time, trying to figure out what the hell is going on in terms of structure, they'll miss what's going on in terms of story and character and content. Which would be bad, and a missed opportunity. You want to enter into a contract with your audience, to bring them along on the story - not to spoonfeed them, but also not to leave them behind.

Now Nicholas and Seth still get to be onstage together, but they don't get to see each other. Matt suggested maybe Nicholas was looking at a photo album with pictures of Seth, since Nicholas references pictures later, and a photograph of Nicholas is all that Seth can keep with him to remind him of the man he loves (though even that he needs to lie about). They are together, but separate. The letter Anne is working on seems like more of a vital link between them.

We still get a lot of the same information - the day of their first kiss that became the marker for their anniversary, the strength of the bond between them - but we also get the distance. We know that something is missing, and that something major will need to happen to bring them back together in the same place. The timetable and demands of combat don't allow for regular weekends, or dependable vacation time.

How will they each have changed by the time they see one another again? How long can the situation as it stands continue?

Hopefully we get a window into what's at risk, and what's worth fighting for, and the cost of that personal battle. And the odds of losing it.

Whew....

2010-07-24T21:34:00.000-05:00

So as you may have heard from a certain other blogger, I got married a couple of weeks ago. It is crazy how much planning goes into a wedding for about 12 hours of activities. I compared it to putting up a play. It takes about 6 months of planning in total for a production including all the marketing, money raising, pre-planning, casting, rehearsing, and teching. It is remarkable how close that is to what we did for our wedding. We had to "cast" the people who would be in the wedding. We had to raise enough money to be able to DO the wedding. We had to even rehearse and tech the thing. All this took about 9 months of planning. The big difference is that you get at least 10 runs in of a play. This whole thing was over in a day and a half (including the rehearsal dinner). What's even more weird, is that I was equally as tired after the whole ordeal. So I propose this, Twin Cities:

After every show someone should pay for everyone to go on a "Honeymoon" to recoup. How about it?! Isn't that exactly what everyone needs after a show? About a week to rest and get your minds back from the fry-zone? There should be a grant out there that would give us money to do this. I'll check on it and get back to you...

The second Hessburg

2010-07-23T20:04:00.002-05:00

Here I am, the second official Hessburg of the group:) The wedding biz is over, and quite a success. It is strange to admit, that as organized as I am, and perhaps always wanting to be in control, I completely let go and let other people take the reigns on the wedding day! Was it difficult? Not really, I guess you could say that my focus was on not crying. So I just sat back, let other people tell me what to do, where to stand, when to go...and I didn't have to worry about a thing!
But have no fear, I am back and at it in full force! I don't let my stage managing duties lay around for too long...
A Few Good Men is underway! No, not rehearsals quite yet, but emails, planning and all the whatnots are starting to pick up and get figured out! What am I excited about the most? Actually starting rehearsals! I am excited to meet all these fabulous actors and get this thing rolling! I know this will mean an end to summer...but oh well. Fall has always been my fav anyways:)

Internet, Why Have You Abandoned Me?

2010-07-22T08:48:00.004-05:00

Well, at home anyway. I can't get a consistent signal to save my life. So I spent Tuesday night stewing, and Wednesday night going from one coffee shop to the next til they all closed. Tonight, I'm just going to pester Comcast til they clear it up if it goes down yet again.

So, day job. Short entry.

If I could get online long enough, I'd be sending out messages to try and drum up some silent auction items (mostly theater tickets) for the upcoming Urban Samurai bowling night fundraiser - coming your way on Wednesday, August 25. Save the date!

Since I can't get online long enough, and have to, you know, work at work, if I'm forced offline again at home, while Comcast has me on hold, I may just do something radical like, oh, maybe focus on the rewrites of "Leave" for a while. The world outside the web holds many wonders...

Most of my non-Samurai blogging time these days revolves around the Minnesota Fringe Festival which you can find at the Twin Cities Daily Planet.

OK, day job...

A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

2010-07-17T14:28:00.007-05:00

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.

Firefly

2010-07-14T10:29:00.007-05:00

So there's this TV show that aired on Fox back in 2002 called Firefly. And I remember a lot of my friends raving about it back then, friends I believed to have reliably good taste. That told me over and over what a great show it was and how much I'd love it and how unfortunate it was that it got canceled after only one season. And then a few years later when the the season was released on DVD many other friends who I respected told me that it was an "amazing show", "So well done." and that "You'd love it Aaron, it's right up your alley". And yet for no real reason I never got around to watching it. Days slipped into years and this epic television series that was cut down by Fox prematurely due to budgetary concerns slipped out of memory.

Until this year when I happened to sit down at Matt and Marcia's as they were watching the end of the movie Serenity which as it turned out is the movie that had been produced in celebration and memoriam of this legendary tv show. Evidently there was such a public outcry when Firefly was canceled that Joss Whedon, the creator, writer, and director, was able to drum up enough dough to make a last hurrah feature film. I remember thinking as I watched the closing scene that it seemed a little well, hokey, but I assumed that it was only because I didn't know the back story and I was reassured by Matt, Urban Samurai's artistic director who I hand picked, that I would indeed love this show. If there's anyone's critiques that I take heed to on the quality of a show whether its stage or film its Matt's.

So a couple of nights ago I noticed that Firefly was now available for instant viewing on NetFlix. NetFlix described it as "The beloved short lived television series." And so I decided right then and there that I was finally going to see what the buzz was all about. I fired up the pilot which was 86 minutes long. And as the story unfolded before me in all its apparent glory I couldn't help but notice that the show was in all accounts incredibly cheesy. I mean you couldn't make the show anymore cheesy if they started dumping fresh mozzarella on their heads. If you've never seen Firefly the basic concept is Gun Smoke meets Star Trek. No seriously that's what it is, its cowboys in space. It's a group of people flying around in a spaceship that looks vaguely like a horse all wearing outfits that are the love-child of John Wayne and Mark Hamill's respective movie wardrobes. And they fly around to all these different planets that all look exactly like Arizona where they have bar brawls and shoots outs in canyons. And then occasionally the "Alliance" whose ships, uniforms, and attitude are a carbon copy of the Empire from Star Wars swoops in on a occasion to add a little extra tension. I found there was an astounding amount of predictability in the scripting and the acting a slight step above The Young and the Restless. I could not believe my eyes. This, this is what all the fuss was about? Really? They have the spaceship buzzing a herd of wild mustangs in the opening credits for crise-sakes!

Now I must admit I went into this with very very very high expectations. But what I found most appalling about this cornball show is that I effing LOVED IT!!!! I'm already half way through the season. It completely blows my mind that I can look at this show with extremely scrutinizing eyes find all its faults and still completely adore it. God I'm a geek, and my friends know it.

Tuesday Samurai - The Wedding Cometh

2010-07-06T23:49:00.004-05:00

The day we've all been waiting for, Nate and Shannon's wedding, is quickly approaching, and I'm in the middle of last-minute preparations to give the wedding a little Urban Samurai twist. What is it, you may ask? It's something I'm pretty good at, which means it involves office supplies...that's the only clue you're getting.

With the impending marriage of the giggly pair, we'll see a significant power shift in the ranks of the USP core company. We'll be evenly split between married and legally single folks, and you know what that means.

Start snapping your fingers, ladies, it's time for the gay boys to start dancing it out a la West Side Story.

OK, so there's really no power struggle, and our relationship statuses have absolutely nothing to do with how we run our theatre company.

But this will be the first wedding that can be credited to (or blamed on) Urban Samurai.

In other words, get ready for the stage debut of Shannon Kiley in a future USP production of Dinner With Friends.

Or...just buy me another drink. TIP IT!

Why I'm barely coherent when I write these blog posts is a mystery to us both. Check back next week, though, when I make a more serious attempt to muse on the theater scene in Vancouver, where I spent a glorious and patriotic Independence Day weekend where all Americans hope to find themselves on the 4th...Canada.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

my personal tech week

2010-07-02T08:54:00.002-05:00

This coming week I will be entering my own personal tech week. Why? you may ask...well I am getting married in 8 short days, and to fellow samurai, Nate:) And as with any tech week that I have ever been involved in...I'm a little bit anxious.
That's silly, Shannon, why you've done so many tech weeks, you could probably work it out in your sleep by now! you may say...
I know, but that doesn't mean that I don't get all nervous and fear that I am forgetting something every time. My issue...the need for perfection. Yes, I do have reality checks that more than likely, not everything will go my way, or as planned. And contrary to popular belief, I'm totally fine with that. When I start tech for a show, I start with a picture in my mind of what I believe the director's intentions are. I have worked side by side the director, heard everything he said (even if he has changed his mind a million times), and can hear how he is saying notes to actors. It's weird and hard to explain, but perhaps that is why I am a stage manager, because of this weird quirk. Anyways, this is how I am going into this wedding tech week. I have a picture in my mind, from 9 months of discussions and planning, and I am looking for the same results as with a production on stage. Will everything go as perfectly as I see in my head? Probably not. And as I said before, I am totally ok with that. Just as long as it turns out alright, and people enjoy themselves at the wedding.
It is, afterall, a one night engagement!!

Summer escapeth me...

2010-06-30T13:57:00.003-05:00

I'm uncertain as to how this happened. I had planned on having a great deal more room to breath at the end of a massive project push for my day job which wrapped up at the end of May. But since then things have only seemed to have ratcheted up to an absurd pace. You know that dream where you show up to work only to realize you aren't wearing pants. This scenario has become a real life active concern for me. I've had to reschedule a VO session 4 times in the last 24 hours. I feel as though I'm constantly putting out a thousand fires, half of which I helped start in the first place. I'm no longer forgetting what happened during the day a week ago, now I"m just forgetting the entire week. Someone once told me that time moves faster as you get older but this is getting a little absurd. I feel like I blink on Monday morning and when I open my eyes it's Monday morning the following week. I have a feeling that if this acceleration of time continues by the time I'm 50 I may generate a dimensional rift that sucks me into an alternate universe where people have tentacles on the backs of their knees and Carrot Top is President.

In other news I received offical word that USP got its MRAC grant for our 2011 season. Which is weird because I could have sworn I just turned that thing in a couple of days ago. Wait...which month is this?

Tuesday Samurai - Curtains

2010-06-29T14:03:00.004-05:00

The Tuesday Samurai has been a bad, little Samurai! I apologize for my absence over the last few weeks. Business trips, shows, hot weather, and a general sense of "What day is it?" all contributed to my completely spacing out on the blog! But those are silly excuses. What's important is that I'm back!

This weekend I'm off to Vancouver to explore a new city to which I've never been and spend some time with my parents, who will be "docking" in Vancouver for a conference after their Alaskan cruise, which followed a family friend's wedding in Seattle. Did you follow all that? Probably not...which means you still have your sanity. Quota nuts.

Moving on.

As I research a city to decide what I will do, I'm sure I won't shock anyone by saying that the actor son of an architect looks for the city's greatest architectural gems...theaters! Which got me thinking...I really love theaters. The actual structures. There's nothing like a classic theater in my eyes, which is why I love that USP performs at the Sabes Jewish Community Center. The house may be puzzling in it's wide and shallow seating area, but the wing space and full fly loft and attached shop...well...I just frakkin' love it!

When I was a kid, I was obsessed with theaters. I had a pad of grid paper and I would draw up plans for glorious theater buildings. Wing space, dressing rooms, rehearsal rooms, administrative offices, huge houses where every audience member has an awesome seat.

In other words, I had very few friends as a child. But the theaters I "built" were amazing!

And curtains. Don't get me started on curtains. When I was performing in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, I would often stand in the wings at the end of Act I to see the curtain fall on the "Rosemary" reprise. There's nothing like a good curtain falling to say, "See you in fifteen!"

In other words, I may have more friends now, but I'm still a huge geek.

And you know what? I'm OK with that. Because I know there's thousands of kids out there every year who are developing a love for live theater...somewhere, somehow...because of "geeky" things like floor plans and curtains. Or maybe their obsession is the look of a single light in an otherwise dark room, or how to accessorize clothing with things that look expensive but are super cheap. And all these geeky kids will come together one day and put on a show and it will make people laugh, cry, go "Wow", and wildly applaud.

And I'll be clapping with them.

Have a great Independence Day weekend! If you have any travel tips for Vancouver, shout 'em out!

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

shoes

2010-06-25T18:08:00.002-05:00

I have spent the last couple of days up to my eyeballs in shoes...I have sorted through every pair of shoes in my theatre, separated by type and color, and then put in bins in a neatly organized manner. All in all, there is a total of 182 pairs of shoes.
I have been told or have overheard the significance of shoes with actors...putting on a new pair of shoes is similar to walking in that characters shoes. It helps build character, it's supposed to help them stay in character while in rehearsal (sometimes this is not accomplished so well), and it's supposed to give insight to how this character moves and such. My question is, why just the shoes? Why not the whole costume? Maybe jewelry perhaps? or even the makeup said characters use?
So as I understand the statement, 'walking in someone else's shoes', I guess I question why just the shoes?
This is what happens to a techie who is cleaning the costume room out. Ponderings about shoes...

This Is How Plays Don't Get Written...

2010-06-23T19:31:00.005-05:00

Since I last blogged

I saw and wrote reviews for the Twin Cities Daily Planet on "Le Squat" (Friday), "Baby With The Bathwater" (Saturday), and "The Mystery of Irma Vep" (Tuesday).

Worked the full-time day job the usual Monday through Friday, plus shifts at the Guthrie box office on Saturday and Sunday.

Started a project on my family to share with my goddaughter Ursula (we'll all feel more like sharing if we agree it's for a 1 year old).

Posted some new material on my website (the front page of which is in the limbo of redesign/software failure) - some scenes I've developed for The Flowershop Project's collaboration with Project 515 about civil rights for gay couples in Minnesota, one scene of which is being performed at Gay Pride on Sunday, the full singing/dancing/acting extravaganza will be on the Patrick's Cabaret stage in the fall.

A marketing/development meeting for the Samurai last night.

And the ongoing prep for blogging about this year's Minnesota Fringe Festival

However, since I have a meeting scheduled with director Matt Greseth on "Leave" for July 1, I'd best have some actual progress on the script to share.

So, enough blogging.

Time to actually start writing a play again.

Next week, a blog about actual rewrites. That's the goal anyway.

A great first read...

2010-06-19T18:02:00.002-05:00

I was bored at work today and decided to NOT work. Instead I read our play kicking of next season "Leave". Man, is it great already. I say already because if you have been reading this blog you know Our own Thursday Samurai has been hard at work adding and cutting and making this play even more stellar than it already is. If this keeps up we are going to have a mighty fine kick off to next season indeed!!!

Speaking of seasons, has anyone else announced theirs? I'm super curious to know what everyone else is excited for in the coming year. Other than our own stuff, I'm extremely excited to see "Next To Normal" when it comes through town.

SO!! Start commenting and tell me what you all want to see next year. I'm making it a personal goal to try and see at least one show a month. I need suggestions people :)

The Beginning Is The End, The End Is The Beginning

2010-06-17T07:31:00.002-05:00

Used to be I didn’t worry about the beginning of the play “Leave” too much. But both directors who’ve looked at recently had the same reaction. “When is this first scene taking place?”

That would be this scene.

A woman is visiting the grave of a young man. Which young man, we don’t know yet.

We also don’t know, right at the top, who this woman is, or how important she’ll be to the way things play out in the story.

I’d always thought it didn’t much matter when exactly the scene took place. I just assumed it was sometime in the near future, after the funeral that filled the grave.

That was lazy of me.

Not only was it vague, and subject to misinterpretation, it was a missed opportunity.

The instinct both of the directors had was to try and tie the scene to the narrative of the rest of the play. Which makes perfect sense.

One director suggested that maybe it literally be set right after the last scene of the play, a continuation of the funeral scene with everyone visiting the grave. We don’t want to give away the occupant of the grave, but we don’t have to in order to tie the two scenes together. At the end of the play, usefully enough, that same female character, Anne, is left alone for a moment at the grave by the other characters. She’s the last to leave. In fact, we don’t see her leave. She waits there by the grave, a moment to herself. The fallen soldier’s ghost is standing there with her. She doesn’t see or hear him, but he interacts with her, and the audience sees this. So at the end, Anne isn’t really alone.

Anne’s last lines as she stands at the grave at the end of the play (right now) are, “I’m sorry. Watch over my boy.” She’s speaking to the spirit she hopes, but doesn’t know, is present. She regrets she was unable to save him, and asks him to serve as a guardian angel for others still in combat.

The director thought maybe we could see the last person leaving Anne to her moment of solitude, walking away in his funeral garb. Thinking it over, I was worried someone just walking away might look like a mistake.

OK, what’s his last line before he goes? “You coming?”
To which Anne replies, “In a minute.”
He goes, she stands by the grave and says her last lines.

That works. Any way to push it back further? “You coming?” seems almost as weird a first line as starting a play in silence.

Then I realized if you just remove the ghost and his lines from that scene, the last page of the play is two people standing by a grave, with occasional silences for contemplation.

At the end of the play, the audience gets to look behind the veil, because they know the ghost for who he is. They feel the same loss the characters do. They get to watch him reach out to the others one last time, and try to say his goodbyes.

If we see the same moments at the beginning, sans ghost, we just know someone’s gone, something’s missing, and we get to spend time with a couple of characters trying to find that something in silence.

A moment’s pause with two people by a grave. Then, the guy by the grave says...

“Damn your heroic ass.”

Pause. He starts to leave, turns back to Anne.

“You coming?”

“In a minute.”

He goes. She says,

“I’m sorry. Watch over my boy.”

She could be talking to God just as easily as trying to make contact with the person who’s dead.

Then Anne launches into the speech at the beginning of the play.

I still need to finesse the transition into the material. The original beginning is a bit presentational, almost a direct address to the audience as much as a cry to heaven. Coming off an actual moment between two characters, it might be bumpy shift.

But the idea is kind of perfect. We get to see the same moment opened up with a new element at the end, when we can fully appreciate its impact.

And the play becomes a circle. The cycle continues. That can be both good and bad. War continues. People keep dying. But other people keep surviving, and manage to stay together. Mixed blessings. The things you lose help you appreciate and hold tighter to the things you have left. And if you still have something to lose, you have a reason to fight for change.

Toe in the water now. On with the rewrites of the rest of the play.

(This new version of "Leave, or The Surface of the World" will kick off Urban Samurai Productions' 2011 season in February.)

That's right, deal with it.

2010-06-14T21:39:00.003-05:00

I'm back. I was gone, but now I've returned, and you're just gonna have to live with it. And I know deep down you are relieved, that you missed me, that you were wondering after my well being. Well you can rest easy, friend, I'm here.

Where did I go? It's a long and interesting tale. Actually not at all. I simply got so focused on performing Bright Ideas that I forgot that Sunday is the day I'm supposed to blog. And once I was out of the habit, well... you get the picture.

But I'm back to talk about something very important, something that you may previously been unaware of. Wait for it.

Wait...

Aaron Sorkin lies.

Yes, that's right. The playwright of A Few Good Men is deceiving you all. And he is very cunning with his half truths. Indeed, the cast of A Few Good Men is really almost entirely men. With a singular exception. So even the men part is not 100% accurate.

However, it's the FEW that I take issue with. Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, this bitch of a show has a cast of thousands, or so it seems looking at it from the pay-roll end of things. Or from costumes. Or casting, though Matt could speak to that better than I. And this lie is so very blatant.

A. Few. Good. Men. That is the title of the play, Ladies and Gentlemen. The promise of the playwright to his unsuspecting audience. And then he proceeds to revel in his deceits by producing not just a few good men, but a shit ton of them, I'm not even kidding.

His only possible redemption would be if he were implying that of all the testosterone on the stage, only a few of them were actually GOOD. Then I could be satisfied, and would happily retract all previous accusations and abuses of character.

In closing, Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to say that none of this means anything, that I am not, in point of fact, angry with the playwright in any way, and am writing this entire diatribe in courtroom fashion, because, well, what we have here is a courtroom drama.

And if any of you want to pony up the paycheck for any of these 'few' good men, drop me a line.

well it really isn't friday

2010-06-12T08:28:00.000-05:00

hello all. in my mind it's friday. but in reality it's saturday. i have been scrambling the last two weeks to get all my time in at work. why would i scramble you ask? well, reason being, that i am heading out to vegas vegas vegas later this afternoon, and need to get all my work done, as the pay period ends whilst i'm away winning money and laying by the pool.
my project these last couple weeks have continued to be organizing the costume 'cage,' if you will. so far so good, although, i think there is far too much crap around. you see, i'm not what you would call a hoarder, or keeper of the memory makers. i like my life around me to be as simple as possible, and find that if i really haven't noticed something in, oh let's say a year or two, i really don't need to hold onto something. now don't get me wrong, i'm not that cold hearted. i do keep some important stuff, like things from my grandparents, and other what nots. but going through this costume cage is like taking the delorean back to the past. everything is extremely outdated, almost to the point of having to ask, will this really, really be used again, ever? my answer would be no. but if i were in charge, which i kind of am, the reasonable side would kick in and state, that you really never know.
therefore, i will just continue to organize and label until it is all put away in a neat and organized system...alphabetically of course. (not the actual costumes, just the prop costumes like animal headbands, scarves, and yarmulkes.)
ta ta for now, and if you haven't heard from me in awhile, i'm probably lost in the dust of the crap that is considered valuable to some...

Tuesday Samurai - A Few Good Predicaments

2010-06-08T23:26:00.003-05:00

OK, let's be straight. I really only have one predicament to discuss, but the title of this post wouldn't have been as fun if I couldn't loop in the title of our next production.

If I were to be bold, I would say the introductions I wrote of each Bright Ideas cast member leading up to the production's opening were a success. But A Few Good Men has a much larger cast. Which means I would have to start now in order to get through everyone before we open on September 24th.

So I'll come up with some other way of introducing you to the cast. If you have any fantastic ideas, feel free to get in touch with me. Until then, I am so excited about A Few Good Men and the three shows we've selected for 2011, that I almost can't stand it.

I'll be back next week recharged and ready to gab.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

It's Friday!!

2010-06-04T09:36:00.003-05:00

At this point, being a few weeks out from doing any shows, I feel completely relaxed. I have been sleeping better at night and notice that my brain is far less scattered than usual. Although I haven't been doing shows per say, I have still been working my day job in a theatre. My mission; to finish cleaning up somebody else's mess. A year ago I did an overhaul of the prop room. What a mess that was. It was to the point that you couldn't even walk in the room. Now, everything is neatly put away in its own place, and documented exactly where it is in the room. A bit psychotic? Perhaps, but at least I know exactly what is in the room and how many items.
Now it's on to the costume cage. I have already gone through the daunting task of sorting through it all. Again, you can actually walk inside the room without tripping over everything. I had a "garage sale" of sorts and got rid of many bags of unusable "costumes." The remaining items are categorized as well as can be, and soon it will be a workable space.
My one question with going through the costumes is this: Why do people insist on putting everything 70's and 80's in a costume closet? And then keeping them for years? How often do companies actually put up a show that consists of the aforementioned costumes?
Ok, that's actually 4 questions. But you get my point. It's a lot of useless stuff to keep around, when all the costumer does is run to Savers and purchase new items. If it was up to me...everything would go and we would start anew.
But it is not, so I will just continue to make sense of a rather messy situation.

What's A Minnesota Playwright Doing In Omaha?

2010-06-03T07:14:00.005-05:00

I’ve been a very lax blogger. Apologies.

Currently, I’m down in Omaha, NE at the Great Plains Theatre Conference.

Freudian slip, I first typed “I’m done in Omaha” - which, depending on the day you caught me this week, wasn’t that far from the truth.

I comfort myself with remembrance of past blogs on the road from my pal Phillip Andrew Bennett Low when he was making his way around the country on the Fringe Festival circuit. I recall his remarks on how hard it can be to drum up an audience with a bunch of strangers. It takes a couple of years of coming back and coming back before people remember who you are. Loyalties don’t crop up overnight. And audiences aren’t all like they are in Minnesota. They feel no obligation (or interest) to come and see theater just because it’s there and it’s different and it’s something they haven’t had a chance to see before. The existence of something new in particular doesn’t excite them. There needs to be some other reason to go.

Plus if you’re a newbie, and your reading’s at 9am on a Monday morning, and a large chunk of the people you actually managed starting to get to know were out until 2:30 the night before getting drunk, well... let’s just say turnout for the reading of my play “Leave” was pretty slim.

The official attendance slip they handed me at the end, along with my two sheets of audience feedback, said 20 people. But let’s break that down, shall we? 6 of them were my cast, 2 of them were the designated responders from the conference (thank God for the designated responders at each reading or the authors wouldn’t be guaranteed any useful feedback), 1 was me, 4 were the tech crew (one of whom, god bless him, after two full days of readings and events, nodded off in a chair down the row from me - at least his labored breathing didn’t become a full-on snore, and he did wake up for the second half), 1 was I think a combination of a person who came for the first part but had to leave plus a person who sidled in toward the end reading her cell phone and sat in the back. So I actually had six audience members. 2 of whom were the parents of one of the actors, 1 of whom was a friend of the director, 1 of whom was a friend of another of the actors. So, of the community of playwrights at the conference, a whopping two showed up. Two that I’m very grateful to, and shall chat with the rest of the week, and whose readings I made sure to attend.

It’s been a good exercise in networking for me. Forcing myself to sit down with complete strangers at every meal and talk to them. Engaging them in workshops and on the fly between the various readings we’ve been attending. And I sat through readings during every slot they had one in the days preceding my own. So it wasn’t for lack of trying. But visibility takes longer to blossom in a foreign environment.

Still, it’s disheartening to go through a poorly attended reading of my own, then sit through two other readings later in the day that two to three times as many people in attendance, with the audience feedback flying through the air and enthusiasm very high.

I withdrew the day after my reading to work on a project I had a deadline for. I called home. I seriously considered leaving. But then I thought, no, I’ve already taken the time off, I’ve already driven down here, and it’s good to get away from the distractions of home and really be forced to focus on the writing, and trying to be a better writer. So I spent the day and the night Tuesday working on projects that forwarded my own writing. I took a break for lunch, since they feed us, and the lunch panel - with two men discussing their work in Africa, using theater to awaken community and promote healing after trauma. Then I plugged back into the community fully yesterday - another workshop, another reading, another evening of new theater being performed.

Even the disappointment is good because it makes me appreciate Minnesota so much more than I already did, which was quite a lot to begin with.

It makes me look forward to another major sit down with director Matt Greseth, to discuss the “Leave” script, like we did before I left for the conference - a talk I’m still processing all the notes from, but has given me a great source of inspiration with which to attack the rewrites.

And the workshops here have been helpful. And it has been good to see other plays, and types of playwriting. There are two plays in particular that really excited me, and that doesn’t happen often. Check out St. Fortune Productions - stfortuneproductions.com - and they’re also on facebook. John Gasper’s play “Strychnine” and Jack Frederick’s play “I Wouldn’t Piss Down Your Throat If Your Lungs Were On Fire” are amazing pieces of work. And the St. Fortune ensemble came down en masse from their base in Rochester, NY to support those readings and give the community here a real youth injection. It’s a good week to be one of the St. Fortune crowd. Great readings, good crowds, both well-deserved. But since I’m more than twice the age of either of those playwrights, I’m feeling more than a little old this week. Inspired, but old. Perhaps just a wee bit irrelevant, but I have to fight that.

Especially since everybody thinks “don’t ask, don’t tell” was magically solved just because it was in the news for a few days last week. I wish. It passed the House, but the Senate still has to vote on repeal “sometime this summer.” Then even if it passes as part of the defense spending bill, there are things in it the head of defense doesn’t like, and thinks are unnecessary expenditures. So he may ask the President to veto the bill, and back we go to the drawing board again. In addition, even it if clears all those hurdles, it’s not going into effect until the Pentagon finishes its survey of active duty military personnel, to see how they feel about lifting the ban. The hope is that this survey confirms that the time is right to make the change. But nothing’s certain. The Democrats are only trying to ram it through the legislature early (before the Pentagon finished their survey) because they don’t think they’ll have the votes to do it after the November elections.

It’s been a long time I’ve been waiting for this script of “Leave” to be a period piece. But it ain’t there yet. Will “don’t ask, don’t tell” be history by the February 2011 production of “Leave” by Urban Samurai? That would be a problem I’d love to have.

Well, that, and more than six people in the audience.

Tuesday Samurai - I Still Think It's Tuesday

2010-06-02T20:50:00.004-05:00

I have a sad confession to make. I have no idea what day it is. I literally thought yesterday was Monday and today was Tuesday. And it's been happening to me all week! At work today someone mentioned a meeting that occurs every Wednesday and my reaction was, "That's today?" So even though I've been reminded what day it actually is all day, I still sat down to write the Tuesday Samurai on my night off...which is always Wednesday.

What is my point? As usual, it's hard to tell in the beginning. But this week it's simple: I'm a moron.

And you know what? I'm going to embrace being a moron today. Maybe it will make me famous. As summer has unofficially began, I've been noticing all the advertisements for television's "summer season", which has traditionally been lighter fare. That's all well and good, I guess, but every summer I feel like there are even more reality-based shows. I say "based" because they aren't reality shows to me. A good reality show is something that requires talent, like Dancing With the Stars or Top Chef. What I have no interest in is what the Kardashian girls are up to today. Why do I even know who these people are? They are famous for absolutely no reason.

So, I'm going to give myself the day to do something stupid, none of which I'm being paid to put on camera, and tomorrow I'm going to wake up fresh and ready to embrace the fact that it's Thursday, not Wednesday.

My goal for the summer? Turn off the TV and see more theater. I encourage you all to do the same.

Perhaps I'll actually blog on the right day next week...

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Theater: A Summary

2010-06-02T16:26:00.003-05:00

Well, USP has closed another great show. And as we sharpen our theatrical katanas for our next production it is also a time to look back on our past endeavors for insight and wisdom to carry us into the future. In other words now is the time to reflect on the times that we've been super rockstar ninjafied awesome and also the times when we've violently spewed donkey ass all over the walls.

The challenge with running a small independent theater company, like many things, is that in order to be awesome you first have to spew a lot donkey rectum. And the more you achieve the more there invariably is to do. And then you have to learn how do that which almost always involves blowing more mule sphincter. So really its a vicious cycle of flying burro bunghole.

However, in the end when you see the final creation on stage and the joy or the tears on the audience's faces, when you look at the life long relationships that have been forged because of what you do, and look back at just how much you've made it through. It lifts you up, it inspires you to to push on, through the breech, through the countless mounds of ass anus. And that's really what being in theater is all about fighting through a whole lot of ugly to make something beautiful and meaningful.

The summer....

2010-05-29T12:04:00.003-05:00

So we didn't make it into the Fringe Festival this year (boo) so we actually get to take the summer off for a change. Well, as much as a working theater company can take time off. There is a lot of prep work for "A Few Good Men" for the fall. Have I told you how excited I am for the show?

Other than the fact that I'm getting married, I've decided to take the summer to support all of our other small theaters in this state. For the first time in a LONG time I really have nothing going on for a long stretch. I love a bunch of the theaters here in this lovely state and I have been very bad about attending other shows. Our very own Tuesday Samurai is in "Mame" in June. I must get out and see that. I also want to see "Saved By The Bell" at Bryant-Lake Bowl and "Bye Bye Liver". What else is playing that I must see this summer? Anyone got some ideas?

One week out...

2010-05-28T07:36:00.004-05:00

Well, it has been one week since all shows have ended for me. Do I feel a sense of relief? Yes. Is my mind a little clearer? Yes. Can I sleep better at night? Double Yes! Do I have an urge to get started on another show? Nope. Not yet anyways. Even though the Urban Samurai season is one complete calendar year, versus school years that other companies tend to follow, we samuraites still take the summer a bit easier. Does this mean I'm off the hook for doing anything for the whole summer? Well, not exactly. I have already started brainstorming who I would like to bring on as crew, and trying to calculate how much time I will have to take on multiple roles for the show. See, I like to be as involved as possible, especially when I am stage managing a show, because then I feel I can be on top of everything. Not in an egotistical way at all. But in a way, that by doing more, I feel more connected to the show. I know the ins and outs and what that process was to get there. I enjoy that part of getting a show up and running. To know exactly where we started and then where we ended on opening night. It's fun for me!
So what will I do for the summer? Try to put together the most perfect production I have done yet, my wedding. And now I must end, and get ready to do something I never do for a show...drive off to a fitting. There's always a first time for everything!

Tuesday Samurai - Don't Cry For Me, Argentine Tango

2010-05-25T22:47:00.004-05:00

We've got to stop meeting like this. It's not healthy to always be blogging when a Dancing With the Stars results show is playing from my DVR.

As (apparently) usual, I've managed to squeeze nuggets of poignancy out of the experience. All three of the finalists (Nicole, Evan, and Erin) chose the Argentine Tango as their favorite dance to be scored again as part of the finale. Now, even though it's easier to compare competitors when they're all doing the same thing, this is dance we're talking about. And dance is a live performance.

The sequence of dance steps may be different for each routine, but one generally knows what to expect. Similarly, the specific story told by a dance routine may change, but the general arc is "I love you, I hate you; I hate you, I love you." Or, more simply, "Let's have angry sex after this."

But it doesn't get boring. No matter how many Argentine Tangos one sees, if it's done well, it's fantastic to watch. There's the potential for unexpected brilliance on every lap around the dance floor.

Such is the excitement gained by other forms of live performance. Like theater. Why go to a play when you can get the DVD and watch it at home?

Because something very different may happen than what you expected. And that's exciting.

And speaking of something very different...it's the finale of DWTS. Which means I won't be bringing you any inane DWTS/vodka lemonade inspired posts anymore.

Or until the next season.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Bright Ideas review...

2010-05-22T15:53:00.002-05:00

Better late than never, right? Well here is a very fair review of the amazing show have been talking about. Take a look and then come see the show to form your own opinion!!

Rich in talent...

2010-05-22T11:02:00.002-05:00

I am constantly impressed with the level of talent in this city. Case one would be the incredibly tlented cast of Bright Ideas. Sometimes I'm worried these people will realize how amazingly talented they are and move away to make their millions. For now I'll be happy to have them grace our company with their awesomeness :)

so only two more shows of Bright Ideas before our summer break. If you haven't had a chance to see this show yet, you must come. I have seen it so many times and I'm still laughing. It's that good. After the break we get to begin work on A Few Good Men. I'll be backing the USP stage playing Ross, the role made famous by Kevin Bacon. I'm excited to get to work on this one. Matt is back at the helm and we have again assembled an extremely talented cast. It is the perfect show to end our 2010 season.

Can you believe it's been 6 seasons already?!

Final Weekend of Bright Ideas

2010-05-21T08:31:00.003-05:00

Hello once again! The company is entering the final weekend of one of the most fun shows I have worked on in a long time. Don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed plenty of other shows, I've enjoyed other casts, I've loved other scripts, I've loved other directors, I've enjoyed other processes, but collectively at the same time (and nearly peed my pants often)? Nope. This show had it all for me! Even though I missed about a week and a half of rehearsals, and even though I felt overwhelmed at times, I'm really going to miss this show! Perhaps a large factor can be put simply; that I was able to laugh so much of the time?! Many of the shows as of late have been very much dramas. I think I just needed a little pick me up.
So I will be leaving this show with a smile on my face...although a bit saddened because I won't be seeing these fabulous actors and the fabulous director on a regular basis, it makes me wanting more. Which, for me, is hard to come by. I can't say it enough how much I have loved working on this show.
But onwards and upwards, moving right along...I will start prepping for A Few Good Men. Making spreadsheets and starting to get a crew together! You gotta love it:)

Tuesday Samurai - Miley Cyrus Can't Be Tamed

2010-05-18T23:40:00.002-05:00

I have some big news for you: apparently, Miley Cyrus can't be tamed. What the heck that means, none of us know. It has something to do with feathers and birdcages and gay backup dancers. That's right, friends, I'm watching the Dancing with the Stars results show again late at night after a long day, mixing in blog writing and a vodka lemonade, for good measure. Didn't we previously learn what a bad idea this is?

No matter. I have a point. I'm sure I have a point. Somewhere. Let's find it together, shall we?

Miley Cyrus. Where do I begin? I don't want to use the term "talentless hack" because I'm sure there's talent in there somewhere. But the girl is just that - a girl. She hasn't fully developed yet. And I'm not talking about her body, sickos, though it does concern me that she sounds like she's been on a pack a day since infancy. What I'm talking about is the fact that she hasn't fully developed as a talent. And it's evident in her career so far. Let's not pretend she didn't get that audition for Hannah Montana because of her achy breaky dad, Billy Ray. And the last time the country collectively agreed that nepotism was a good idea, we ended up with a two-term president who still didn't know how to pronounce "nuclear" after eight years.

Wow am I ever getting off point. That'd be the vodka lemonade talking. Well, that and common sense.

My point is that Miley Cyrus got her start as a performer for no reason other than being in the right place at the right time thanks to a father who found fame singing the wrong song at the wrong time (it works out if you think of "Achy Breaky Heart" being the right song during a time when everything, in retrospect, was just wrong, very, very wrong, a.k.a., 1992).

And here I've stumbled onto my point. Bright Ideas. You should really see this show. And if you've already seen it, you should see it again. I've seen it several times now (natch), and I always find something new on which to ponder. Why are Genevra and Joshua so obsessed with getting their son into that preschool? Is it really about what's best for their child, or are they more concerned with their own "status"? What does that mean about my parents, who put me in a Montessori preschool when I was that age? Did it make a difference? Is that why I'm a successful human being? Or am I successful? What is success? Does any of it really matter, anyway? Would I have been better off having skipped preschool and merely encourage my dad to contribute some cheesy lyrics to the line-dancing craze?

I'm just full of questions for which I have no answers. And that's why I love theater. You get something new every time!

The only thing I know for sure, though, is that I'm a child of the 80s. Which means my dad couldn't have written a cheesy song for the line-dancing craze that we (shamefully) saw in the early 90s. Perhaps if he'd jumped onto the Electric Slide bandwagon, my life would be different now. I could be the one shaking my tail feather (literally...there were a lot of feathers that I'm still desperately trying to connect to the song lyrics) on the Dancing with the Stars results show.

But with my luck, I'd just end up having some crazy, drunk guy write an incoherent blog post about me.

Wait...

I'll try to be a little bit less strange (but only the tiniest bit) next week.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Second show weekend

2010-05-14T09:54:00.003-05:00

Our opening weekend went on without a hitch! Audiences just loved the show and I was so super proud of all the actors!! Especially for not breaking:) It just shows the professionalism of each of these actors. Considering they were cracking smiles or laughing at themselves or each other up until the final tech night, I was about 95% worried that someone was going to crack at some point, but I was completely wrong! Yay to the actors!
So now it's on to the second weekend, all my checklists are complete, more pasta has been made and balloons will be picked up! The stress level has far subsided now that everything is truly completed. Typically when a show opens I am already in rehearsals for another show, which means my focus has switched and even though I am nearly always on top of things, it just makes it that much harder to concentrate. But not this time! This time I get to sit back and enjoy this whole experience until the end!! And I hope you do as well!!

Tuesday Samurai - A Chat with Jimmy LeDuc

2010-05-11T22:13:00.006-05:00

Bright Ideas opened on Friday and opening weekend audiences seemed to enjoy themselves immensely. Were you among them? If not, what's wrong with you?! I kid, I kid (kind of). I know we're all busy people and we can't always make it to the opening of the latest hot show, but I'd better see you there sometime soon! You don't want to miss it - dark and biting...my kind of comedy. And the credit for bringing Eric Coble's excellent writing to the stage belongs to the marvelous director, Jimmy LeDuc.

Jimmy, the credit for our meeting belongs to mutual friend (and Bright Ideas cast member) Mykel Pennington. I heard a lot about "my friend, Jimmy" when I worked on a show with her, and I can only assume she passed on crucial information about me to you. What did she tell you and did I live up to the hype?

Mykel Pennington. She is amazing, isn't she? Not only talented but she is also charming, kind, and SEXY! I was in grad school at The University of Oklahoma getting my MFA in Directing. Mykel had just moved from Memphis (where we had first worked together when I directed her in Wit. The production was actually in Arkansas across the river from Memphis). Anywho, she mentioned working with you and Urban Samurai. The next thing I knew she was convincing me to move to the Twin Cities. She put me in contact with Matt first. I think I first met you via Facebook and Callboard. I volunteered to usher for Halfway Home and met you then. Since that time, we have gotten to know each other much better, especially when I was AD for Homeland Prayer. You have lived up to everything Mykel said. You are hilarious and talented.

How sweet you are...but it kind of seems like I was fishing for compliments, doesn't it? Hmm...let's try some less self-absorbed questions. Let's talk about YOU. Tell me about your personal history with theater.

I started doing theater when I was 9 or 10 after starting out taking tap dance at 3. I acted and also did some stage management. After college, I interned with Playhouse on the Square in Memphis. I did theatre in Memphis and then Atlanta working for several companies, mainly as an actor and teacher but I always wanted to direct. After I left Atlanta, I moved back to Memphis and began working as an assistant director and director and honing my skills. Then, I went back to school and got my MFA and now here I am. Since moving here a year and a half ago, I have worked with Lyric Arts as an actor and teacher. I also did an observership with Theatre Pro Rata, and have worked with USP twice.

Sounds like you've been all over the South, but what sold you on moving up here?

After grad school, I wanted to go to a place with a welcoming and vibrant theater community. The Twin Cities fit the bill for sure. I visited Mykel and fell in love and the rest is history, as they say.

Jimmy, we're far too young to refer to our lives as "history". At least for another year. But, I digress. How does the Twin Cities theater community compare to others of which you've been a part?

The Twin Cities is a great community. I love the people and the amazing talent here. The big difference between other communities is the sheer size of it and the amount of companies. There is not a week that goes by that you don't have your pick of a wonderful variety of plays and musicals. That is quite exciting. It is almost impossible to see everything. I love the support for the arts in the Twin Cities, too.

It's true - there is a lot of support out there, but the opportunities are almost overwhelming. I certainly hope Bright Ideas doesn't get lost in the mix! I've been so excited for this show since we first scheduled it over a year ago. What drew you to the piece and inspired you to propose it for USP's season?

In grad school, I was TA for a Performing New Plays class. I was helping the professor find plays and I stumbled across Bright Ideas. I fell in love with it. It was timely and timeless. The characters were contemporary but there was also a wonderful homage to Shakespeare and especially the Scottish play. I know USP often brings exceptional cutting-edge works and regional premieres to the area. I thought Bright Ideas fit that mission well so I proposed it. The rest is history, as they say...

No, Jimmy. We're not going to say it! Anywho...it sounds like this play has been with you for a few years. How has finally putting it on stage affected you?

The production has affected me in several ways. First off, I got to work with such a great company like USP. I really love playing with you guys. Secondly, I have worked with this tremendous cast. They have brought so much to the table and I have loved every minute of the process. This cast gave 150% every rehearsal and it shows in the characters they have created as they tell the story. Third, it is exciting to bring this timely story to life. Fourth, I have had the great pleasure of meeting so many wonderful people in the Twin Cities theater community through this process. Finally, I have also had the great fortune of being in contact with Eric Coble, who wrote this great script, via Facebook. He has been a huge supporter of our production.

That's awesome! I hope Mr. Coble knows we'd offer him free tickets... Now that Bright Ideas is open, what's next for you?

I have several projects in the works and am super excited about all of them. I am assistant directing The Glass Menagerie at the Jungle Theater. I am also assistant directing A Christmas Story at Children's Theatre Company. Next February, I go to Memphis for about four weeks to direct a production of Grey Gardens (one of my all time favorite documentaries and also musicals). We shall see what else I can get up to in the next year. I love staying as busy as possible doing as much work as I can. I always feel the more you work, the more you learn and grow.

Agreed. Though I'm exhausted/feel-like-a-slacker after looking at your upcoming projects! Jimmy, it has been such a joy to work with you, both during Homeland Prayer last fall and throughout the entire process for Bright Ideas. I hope to snag you for another project in USP's future, but in the meantime, we've been avoiding the big elephant in the room. The time is here. We need to address our mutual love for The Golden Girls.

The Golden Girls. Where do I begin? This show was a part of my childhood. We watched it every Saturday night in my house. Then, I rediscovered a love for it in reruns. I own all seven seasons on DVD. Truth be told, I had to order second copies of some of them from wearing them out. I think it is one of the funniest ensemble comedy shows ever created. The writing is crisp and the acting is stellar. Those four women were TRUE talent. I would have to say I am most like Dorothy with some Sophia thrown in. My mom's side of the family is Sicilian so I get that aspect of the humor. I also love sarcasm and quips so I just relate to that in Dorothy and Sophia. However, Blanche and Rose make me die laughing as well. Blanche's slutty quotes are brilliant and Betty White has amazing timing (and still does as SNL just showed us) The truth is, if I am having a bad day, I can turn on an episode and know I will smile. I brought the comic energy of the Girls to rehearsals by wearing my Stay Golden t-shirt (featuring a cast picture on it) whenever I could.

I know exactly how you feel. I remember watching with my family on Saturday nights as well...I even remember the "Rollin', Rollin', Rollin'" promo they did with Empty Nest in one of the later seasons. The Golden Girls is still as fresh as ever and, as you say, I always know an episode will put a smile on my face no matter how terrible my day was.

Yikes, Jimmy...could we be any gayer right now? I can't believe we're having a mutual love fest for The Golden Girls in my blog! OK, actually, I can totally believe it. The show is great, but we'll have to talk about it more later. It's time to wrap this edition of the Tuesday Samurai up...how should we end it, Mr. LeDuc?

To end this Mr. Grimes, I will leave you with one of my favorite exchanges from The Golden Girls:

Blanche: I have been told I bear a striking resemblance to Ms. Cheryl Ladd, of course my bosoms are much perkier.
Dorothy: Not even if you were hanging upside down by a trapeze!

I love it, Jimmy! Now, everyone, honor the Girls and get your tickets to Bright Ideas today by visiting urbansamurai.org!

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Success...

2010-05-08T07:40:00.002-05:00

I attended the opening night of Bright Ideas last night and I have to say it was a pretty amazing show. I have been watching these guys do this show for about a week and a half now. The amount of work the talented cast has put into the show is nothing short of astounding. They were good a week and a half ago, then they went and put in even more awesomesauce. You really must go see this one. It is truly comedic gold.

After the show we hosted an ice cream social complete with all the toppings you would ever want. I had my fill of ice cream. So did the majority of the audience. So...much...dairy....

OPENING NIGHT!

2010-05-07T10:03:00.002-05:00

Tech week has come and gone. And the conclusion: This is one funny show! I have had a blast working with such a talented group of actors and one fabulous Jimmy LeDuc:) Sound is amazing, costumes are hilarious, the actors are ready for an audience, the set is painted and fun, the noodles are cooked, and the laundry is in the wash! Do I wish I had just one more day?! Yes. I still need to fix some trouble areas with the lights and would love more than anything to have my light board placed in the audience just one last time. Nothing like a little pressure...But all in all, things will be/are really ready to go! I have my checklist for the day written up, and my pen in hand to start checking things off. Things will get done and the show will be absolutely fabulous!
See you tonight!! With an ice cream social to top it off!

Check.

Fun! Fun! Fun!

2010-05-06T09:09:00.009-05:00

All I've been hearing about the rehearsal process for Bright Ideas over the last several weeks is how good the show is and just how much fun the cast is having. Last week I had the honor of taking press photos for the show and I got a little taste of the fun they're having. And the fun you'll be having when you come to the show.

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Tuesday Samurai - Meet Mykel Pennington

2010-05-04T15:56:00.004-05:00

The time has come. What once seemed an epic undertaking - weekly introductions of the cast of Bright Ideas - is now in its final installment. Whatever will the Tuesday Samurai do next week? I'll try not to think about it for now with a distraction from the lovely and talented Mykel Pennington, who may be the last cast member to be interviewed, but in no way do I consider her the least of anything.

It's old hat by now, but why break tradition? Why don't we start with your story of how we met.

We met while loading in for USP's original production of Protection Program. I had just moved to the Twin Cities and I was willing to whore myself out to any theatre company that would take what I was offering...and apparently my acting wasn't what USP wanted then. So, after only meeting the company members of USP at the audition of Protection Program, Matt, Aaron, and Nate kidnapped me and took me one hundred miles away, where my cell phone wasn't working, and for 17 hours I helped build your set. Days later, there you and I were fixing those walls to the ground and loading in costumes.

I totally forgot about your kidnapping! For the record, I was only an actor in that show - I wasn't yet a company member and bear no responsibility for your kidnapping. But I remember having a blast chatting you up during load-in. I didn't really know who you were or why you were there, but I thought you were fabulous.

But, I think we really became friends during our production of A Gaggle of Saints, where you and I played young Mormons in love. Which is where you won your Best Actor award and Matt [Greseth, USP Artistic Director] won an award for Best Director and I won everyone's respect...which is hard for a whore, but I really think Blanche in The Golden Girls won everyone's respect and I try to emulate her.

There it is. We did it! A Golden Girls reference in every interview! I loved doing A Gaggle of Saints with you, even if I messed up my lines now and then. We had a lot of lines to learn! And it wasn't all bad - how else would I have learned to not take Benadryl right before performing, no matter how bad one's allergies may be? Speaking of which, that was about this time of year, and here I am sniffling with watery eyes. Damned pollen! Whoops...getting off track again. (Is anyone surprised?) So...now that you've been in the Cities for a few years, in what theater would we have seen you in lately?

I have been lucky to have worked with some of the best theatre companies in town. With 20% Theatre Company Twin Cities, where I am a company and board member, I have been in The Naked I: Monologues from Beyond the Binary, Perfect Pie, and Hot 'n' Throbbing. I was lucky to work with USP in Touch, where I played a whore. And you, Mr. Grimes, dressed me as a whore. I was also in A Gaggle of Saints, as mentioned before, and Sense and Sensibility with The Cromulent Shakespeare Company. Bright Ideas has been my first full-length production in over a year, since I have spent the last year perfecting my craft at the airport as a customer service agent for Delta Airlines. THAT has proven to be my most challenging role yet.

Yeesh, I'd bet! I would totally try out multiple personalities if I worked for an airline. After all, what is the likelihood you'd see those people again? In fact, what a great way to rehearse for Bright Ideas, in which you play a multitude of characters. Do you have a favorite?

My favorite has to be Cate, a Southern know-it-all bitch of a mom, a little like Dorothy from The Golden Girls. I just wish I had Bea Arthur's height, like Marcia [Svaleson, Bright Ideas costar].

Don't sell yourself short (forgive the pun). You have your own...assets...that are put to good use in the show. But I don't want to spoil it for the audience! Bright Ideas reunites you with your good friend, [Bright Ideas director] Jimmy LeDuc, who I remember hearing a lot about while we were working together on A Gaggle of Saints. How long have you known each other?

I've known Jimmy LeDuc for almost seven years now. We met in Memphis, TN, where he had just finished directing an amazing production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch and was now trying to cast the lead role in Wit. Fortunately for me, he was looking for someone who didn't have a Southern accent, and I had only been in the South for three years and hadn't yet perfected the drawl, so he cast me. Since that production, he has gone off to grad school and only become a more confident and amazing director. And I cannot believe how lucky we are to have him in the Twin Cities! Yeah! I love Jimmy!

Down, girl. But I must confess, your enthusiasm is intoxicating and I'm so pumped to see Bright Ideas in its full form this weekend! Any other projects coming up afterward?

I hope so. Right now I'm learning to balance my roles of Mother, Wife, and CSA (Customer Service Agent). Theatre is, and will always be, a huge part of who I am. But I am no longer the Theatre Whore I used to be. Right now I have to pick every project I do very carefully. Fortunately, I have some really amazing directors that I have worked with that I will work with again; if they think of a role that might work for me, hopefully they will let me know to audition. Which is why I am working with Jimmy!!! Because he is awesome and I came out of semi-retirement for him. Right now I'm looking for small, meaty parts that let me perform AND be home a majority of the week. I love theatre, but I also love my family. They are pretty awesome!

You sound so happy...it makes me sick! Totally kidding. Having met your family, I can't say I blame you. Your girls are adorable, and your gorgeous husband never seems to have a shirt on when he answers the door. Not that I noticed, or anything...hey, look, a UFO! Speaking of aliens, I have to confess I've never seen ET. Any popular "must-see" movies you'd like to confess to not seeing?

Popular movies? I've seen them all! You haven't seen ET? What?! Do you have NO soul? I just watched that with my daughter, Sophia (named after Estelle Getty's character on The Golden Girls).

Are you for real? Or are you just trying to win the contest for most Golden Girls references in a single Tuesday Samurai interview?

No matter. I had a blast with Mykel and want to thank her, Marcia, Josh, Courtney, and Ryan for making my last five weeks of blog posts such a hilarious, Golden Girls-infused adventure!

Now that you've met the cast, it's time to see them in action. Bright Ideas opens this Friday! Get your tickets now at urbansamurai.org. All opening weekend (May 7-9) tickets are 2-for-1, and we'll be having an Ice Cream Social following the opening night performance, in honor of the spirit of Bright Ideas. I hope to see all of you there!

No shirts, no shoes, no ice cream. Unless you're Mykel's husband.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Last minute shopping...

2010-05-01T15:14:00.002-05:00

Why is it that many theater companies seem to be running around completing little things to big things about a week before they open? Is it because they are completely unorganized and have no idea what they are doing? Actually I think it is because so many artist types seem to work so much better under pressure. I know I seem to find exactly what I have been looking for as far as props/costumes/sound/set inspiration in the last week and a half before the production opens. Yes, I procrastinate. But maybe it's for the better!!

What does everyone else think? Am I the only one who waits so a better product came come out of the frenzy that is tech week?

Next Stop...Tech Week

2010-04-30T15:05:00.002-05:00

This week has come and gone for me. I, unfortunately, haven't been at a single rehearsal due to my other job. But I have heard great things. In fact, after the conversation I had last night following the rehearsal, I am super duper excited to get back in the game of things and see this show come to life...
Only a few more things to get done before that can actually happen; finish off the prop list, help get all the costumes lined up, design the lights, get the set built, a little bit of painting, and then we are golden!
The show will be great...it's the anticipation of getting into tech week that's killing me. Once there and we are in the groove, there will be no stopping us, and we will knock out a fabulous show!

Ice Cream!

2010-04-29T14:26:00.003-05:00

So, when I signed on as board member, and then member of the marketing committee, I wasn't thinking I'd be scooping ice cream. Oh well...

Since "Bright Ideas" is basically "the MacBeths try to get their kid into a good pre-school," we thought opening night's reception should be in the kid-like spirit.

So save room for dessert, it's "make your own sundae" time!

I have been charged with getting the foodstuffs, while someone else takes care of the decorations.

So join us opening night of "Bright Ideas" next Friday, May 7th at 7:30pm at the Sabes JCC (4330 Cedar Lake Road South in St. Louis Park, MN) and stay around afterward for some ice cream.

It's finally the time of year when it doesn't seem crazy to eat ice cream (because, during winter in Minnesota, ice cream is still tasty, but seems redundant, since we're all human popsicles).

So, see the play, have some inappropriate laughs, be grateful your kid isn't driving you to cause people to meet with "unfortunate accidents," and reward yourself with some ice cream.

Because if there are leftovers, I may be forced to take them home.

And this might derail my fitness goals for the year.

So help a guy out.

Come see the comedy, and help me finish off the ice cream.

Next week, back to a more artsy blog entry.

Tuesday Samurai - Meet C. Ryan Shipley

2010-04-27T14:43:00.012-05:00

There's only two cast members of Bright Ideas left to introduce in the Tuesday Samurai, which means something really crazy - Bright Ideas opens in two weeks! Do you have your tickets yet? If not, get thee to urbansamurai.org immediately and get your tickets for the May 7th opening!

This week's Tuesday Samurai welcomes C. Ryan Shipley, who makes his USP debut as a bevy of characters in Bright Ideas.

I've started every introduction by asking how we met, and guess what? I'm asking you, too.

We met during How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at Bloomington Civic Theatre (BCT), which was my first show here in the Cities. We were two of FOUR Ryans in that show. I will always remember standing between you and Joe Botten during "Brotherhood of Man" and feeling incredibly short for the first time in my life. I can't believe we have known each other for almost five years!

I am entering the "older than dirt" zone. That's probably really offensive to people older than me...like all the other USP company members. Whoops, I should probably move on. Where would our audiences have seen you lately?

Well, I've mostly performed in musicals during the past five years since I graduated from St. Olaf (blatant Golden Girls reference). I've worked quite a bit at BCT, most recently in Thoroughly Modern Millie and Crazy for You. I've also done five shows at Minneapolis Musical Theatre (MMT), where I first worked with [Bright Ideas costar] Courtney Miner in Summer of '42. I also got to play the role of Goat in The Robber Bridegroom, which is my most favorite role I've ever done...ooh, and I was in Zanna, Don't, too! Last year I was in DreamBoys, which was a blast. Then last fall I was in a production of Biloxi Blues with Theatre Or ([USP venue] Sabes Jewish Community Center's theatre company), directed by Claire Avitabile. I was incredibly honored to be in that show. So...I've done a few things here and there. *wink*

I somehow get the distinct impression that you do a lot of musicals...but Biloxi Blues and Bright Ideas mark a new chapter in your career, where you take on more non-musical roles. What's that transition like?

Lately I've been trying to do things that scare me: straight theatre, waking up before 9 a.m., eating at Hooters, etc. I think that musical and non-musical theatre each have their challenges. I am finding it very refreshing to sort of rediscover what I am capable of as an actor and to sort of remind myself that I have to be an actor first, even if I am doing a musical. Biloxi Blues was the first "straight play" that I've done since college. I was really nervous because I was cast with such fantastic actors and I wasn't sure if I could pull off some of the more dramatic scenes of the play. I remember there was one rehearsal where I made an entrance and Claire said, "You just made a musical theatre entrance." And I realized that I had actually done a sort of prep-step to come onto the stage. I felt like Kurt from Glee trying to play Judd in Oklahoma. Whoa...that joke was SO gay.

Sometimes the most accurate way to explain something is to make it really gay. It's the only way I know how to explain diamond mining in Botswana. But that's for a later (and much different) blog post. You play an insane amount of characters in Bright Ideas - do you have a favorite?

Hmm...I'm not sure if I can pick one favorite. I kind of love all of them because they are SO different from each other. I really love playing the airline steward, and Mr. Scott is pretty fun to play. We're having a hard time making it through certain scenes without laughing onstage because we are cracking each other up so much. I am enjoying the challenge of creating six very different characters and Jimmy has been such a fantastic help in shaping everything.

Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy! All I ever hear is how great Jimmy is! Ugh! Enough! He can't be that great. OK, I'm totally kidding. I think he's awesome - it's why we're so excited to have him direct for us! And it's not just his love for The Golden Girls...he really has a vision for this show and everyone has been having a great time with him. But this is your time to talk about Jimmy [LeDuc, Bright Ideas director] - 3, 2, 1...go!

I feel like this is one of those movie press junkets (that word sounds hysterically inappropriate, doesn't it?) and this is where I gush about my director. In all honesty, though, Jimmy has been one of the best directors I've ever worked with. In fact, Courtney and I were just talking about this on the way home from rehearsal the other night. He is very smart and knows how to communicate the idea he is trying to get across or the moment that he is trying to create. We all know what he means when he screams, "Blanche it up!" (He means, "Slut it up!") He screams that at me a lot. And not always during rehearsals. "Blanche it up, Shipley!!"

OK, I know this interview is about you, but I'm about to go rogue here. I can't say enough how much I have come to appreciate Rue McClanahan's performance as Blanche in my adult life. All the Golden Girls are funny, but I would go so far as to say hers is the most nuanced. So many jokes of hers that I didn't get when the series first aired make me laugh so hard now. But I really need to get it together. This is about YOU, Ryan, not ME, Ryan. That makes no sense. Anyway, what's next after Bright Ideas?

Actually, I'm assistant directing Mame with MMT as we speak. I am missing the first two weeks of rehearsal for Bright Ideas and then diving right in. After that I'm playing a groomsman in Colleen Somerville and Nicholas Leeman's wedding (they also happen to be the stars of USP's fall production, A Few Good Men). After that, I will be directing the first short play of An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein at the Minnesota Fringe Festival. Possibly a couple other projects in between and afterward...fingers crossed.

Yeesh, I thought I was busy, but listening to all you have coming up is downright exhausting! With all that theater work, do you have any time to kick back and relax...maybe watch some TV? Ooh! Wouldn't it be great if your life was a TV show? If I had to pick, I'd say I wish my life was like that of Meredith Grey on Grey's Anatomy, so that the life of me and my friends was dubbed over with my poignant and eerily topical musings.

Um, I've never seen Grey's Anatomy...is that bad?

Of course not. It's a nutty show, but the perfect example for this little exercise in silliness I've concocted. What show do you want your life to be?

My ideal life would be a combo of Buster Bluth from Arrested Development, Karen Walker from Will & Grace, all four Golden Girls combined, Kenneth Parcell from 30 Rock, and C.J. Cregg from The West Wing for good measure.

Wow, that sounds really complicated. How would that even work?

I'd be an anxious, drunken, horny, ditsy, old weirdo who is also the Press Secretary for the fictional White House. Wait. That is my real life. Bwah bwaaah.

Oh, you crazy kids and your Bright Ideas! (Yes. Yes, I did.) What is going on at those rehearsals? These interviews get zanier every week! I can't imagine what will happen next week, when the Tuesday Samurai presents the final cast introduction, Mykel Pennington. She would have been the first person I thanked when I won an acting award, but those Missourians wouldn't let me speak. Grr...

Maybe C. Ryan Shipley can help me find justice when he's promoted to Chief of Staff in the fifth season.

Bwah bwaaah...

Ryan Grimes

Managing Director

Urban Samurai Productions

Last Week of Rehearsal

2010-04-25T21:45:00.002-05:00

Though there are two more weeks (give or take a day) until we open the show, there is really only one more week of actual rehearsing to be done. The last week is tech week, and that's much more about the technical delivery of the show than the content.

And so now I'm feeling the pressure, wondering where the time went, and getting really excited. It's a strange combo in my belly that could be mistaken for gas. I, however, know from experience that it is not. We've got some polishing to do, but I'm confident that the show is in a good place.

I know who else is feeling the pressure. The design team. While they've been planning the technical elements for weeks, sometimes months, the time has definitely come to put up or shut up. So there is some last minute scrambling, as there always is, because last minute saves are practically the definition of dramatic tension.

And we're dramatic folks.

Freesound.org

2010-04-24T11:06:00.000-05:00

So having done sound a number of times I have searched the internet hundreds of times for a sound bank that has everything I want. An online site that has sound samples that real people like me have uploaded for the benefit of everyone. Until this show I have never come across that site. I have sifted through pages and pages of Google searches and have never been that impressed with any of the pages I've found. Sure, there have been some sites that have a couple of gems, but nothing that really blew my skirt up.

I spoke with a great friend that I play ComedySportz with who is also really into film production. He told me about this glorious site called freesound.org. It is a database of Thousands of FREE sound effects recorded by amateurs and professionals alike and uploaded to the site. An easy search and BAM! you have a plethora of sounds at your fingertips to download. They are easily manipulated in Audacity (another must for strapped-for-cash theaters) and have a polished, professional sound.

So get out there. Check this baby out. It will change the way you find sound effects. At least it did for me...

Week 4 flew by...

2010-04-23T09:22:00.002-05:00

My goodness! Off book week was crazy stressful for myself. I can just about imagine what it was like for the actors;) But, much to everyone's dismay, it went without a hitch! Yes, there was stumbling, stammering, the couple exploitative remarks, the trying to convince me they "really suck" (which p.s. to all actors out there, that line doesn't even faze me anymore, I don't hear you/stop listening to you when you say this). But all in all, I am really starting to see a show:) And you can't go wrong there!
Despite the fact that I had to split my time between my real job and my want job, what I saw this week can be summed up in one word: crazygoodtime.
As I have said before, I am amazed at the talent of the cast, their ability to make me lose my spot in my book because they make me laugh so, and make me want to keep watching and not watch my book, is ridiculous. And could be the reason why I give out wrong lines, or skip ahead and can't find the proper spot when they do ask for lines.
So now, I am off to send line notes, yep, I am the evil person who does that:) And make sock puppets!
You can never go wrong with a show that involves sock puppets!

The Gay Thing

2010-04-22T14:00:00.009-05:00

Something continues to mystify me.

If you take on the role of Macbeth, no one thinks you're a serial killer offstage.

If you play Richard III, no one actually thinks you're a hunchback.

So what's the big deal about playing a gay character?

OK, I realize that straight guys in theater take a lot of crap, like guys in ballet, or anything that isn't considered "manly."

Like they used to think any woman involved in theater must be a prostitute. And so they didn't let them get on stage for many, many years.

But you're an actor.

It's acting.

If you're not convincing as a gay man onstage, it doesn't make you more of a man. It makes you a bad actor.

Priorities, people.

Do your job.

Screw a goat on your own time for all I care.

And if I don't care, the audience sure as hell doesn't.

Grow a pair and kiss the guy.

Touch him.

Make me believe you care about him.

Or you're screwing up the story.

No one's asking for full-on graphic anal sex in full view of the audience.

This isn't cable television. It's theater.

No one's even asking for a little tongue.

We're asking for intimacy.

Terrifying as that is to contemplate.

There are auditions and a printed script so you know what you're getting yourself into.

If you accept the role, play the role.

Or step aside and let someone who really wants the job take the role.

There are all kinds of perfectly legitimate reasons to turn down a role - artistic, monetary, personal, moral, sexual.

But if you accept the role, you've committed to creating a character *who is not you* as faithfully and completely as possible.

Or you're just phoning it in.

These are the things that worry me. When I think about them.

Most the time I don't think about them.

I assume people are professionals.

And it's only when I run smack into the wall of someone else's prejudice or discomfort or whatever possesses people in situations like that to recoil, that I'm reminded.

"Oh yeah, that's normal for me. It's running through my brain all the time because that's just who I am. But most people live in the straight world. It's a stretch. It's a leap."

Stage combat is a lot more easy to process than kissing.

I'm hoping that isn't an issue with "Leave" when we start rehearsals early 2011.

But you never know.

It's been a challenge in the past.

I was reminded of that in the first chat with director Matt Greseth. He wanted to be sure I was OK with him directing. And at first I was confused by the question. Then he mentioned someone else's name and I realized what he was driving at.

He wanted to direct it, but would I be more comfortable with a gay man directing it instead?

The other three people who directed the play in its various incarnations prior to now were gay men. I didn't seek them out because they were gay. They'd all sought me out. Probably in part because they wanted to tell a story that meant something to them personally.

But if a straight director doesn't mind directing my play, I certainly don't.

I want to work with good people, regardless of orientation. Matt knows his new plays.

In the past, it's been useful to have a gay man at the helm, because the actors haven't been gay (go figure). So a little "Gay 101" was in order. That looks more "porn scenario" when I type it than it ends up being in reality.

Basically it means there's someone there to assure the actors that "yes, we enjoy the same intimacies that straight people do" - it feels the same, it looks the same, just the gender's different. There's no secret handshake. A kiss is just a kiss. A sigh is just a sigh.

Holding hands looks more like a political act of defiance when we do it, but it's just two hands. The same nerve endings pulse beneath the skin.

(Don't make me quote Shylock in Merchant of Venice.)

The last time I acted in something other than a reading, I had to kiss a guy. A straight guy. It turns out I was actually more skittish about it than he was. He'd played gay before so for him it was no big deal. But looking back on it, I was unconsciously stalling, discussing pretty much everything with my director and acting partner to avoid, you know, actually doing the scene. Finally, the straight actor rolled his eyes, reached over, pulled me in, and planted one on me. When the first kiss was out of the way, he looked at me and said, "Now, can we get on with it?"

We spent the next couple of months kissing in rehearsal and performance, and we're still friends. I have to admit I've still got a soft spot for the guy. Not a crush so much as I just think of him fondly. After all, we'd "been through the wars together."

So I get it. If there's intimacy involved, gay or straight, it's a little weird.

As a writer, I don't ask anything of an actor lightly. There's always a reason something's there in the script. It's never unthinking or gratuitous. It's all about plot and character and relationships.

I have to watch "straight" theater all the time. And don't get me wrong, I enjoy it. I was weened on it. But when the rare chance arises to see a gay story, or better yet have the opportunity to tell one myself, I appreciate how special it is, and I want it done right.

Because at their base, most of my stories are about how, really, there isn't that much of a difference. If the audience grows to care about the characters, gay or straight starts not to matter. They want to see those characters happy, even if happy looks a little different than what they're used to. They want things to end well, or to leave with a little hope.

But they need to see those characters fully, for who they are. And humans are tactile creatures. They need to be touched. They need contact with someone who cares for them.

Four gay actors, the right gay actors, might make things a lot simpler.

But just as there are more straight people than gay people, there are more straight actors than gay ones. So, inevitably, odds are good that one or more of our actors in "Leave" is going to be a straight guy.

Look at it this way, guys. There are hidden perks.

You know how a lot of guys find the idea of two women together a real turn-on. A fair number of women feel the same way about watching two guys together. It's a great conversation starter. And you may get the chance to show the ladies just how great an actor you really are, to be crass for a moment.

Also, you get a chance to relax. Normally we're putting up so many walls between each other as men, it's hard to get to know one another at all. That's why sports and locker rooms and military barracks are such welcome escape valves. (And why the idea of an openly gay person in those environments, bringing the possibility of sex into an atmosphere already charged with intimacy, is something that meets with such resistance.) In a gay role, you're being asked to strip away all the barriers. You have permission to let your guard down.

Because we'll be able to tell if you're faking it. If you're hedging, or calling attention to the fact that "hey, I'm just playing a role here." There have been years of secret code and stereotypes and half measures on the way to full representation. Less than truthful doesn't cut it anymore.

There are four meaty, challenging roles for men in this play. The only "catch" is you need to be a convincing gay man.

But that's what acting's about - pretending to be someone you're not, so we believe you.

Just like the Marines, and our closing 2010 Urban Samurai show, we're looking for a few good men.

Four actors who are man enough to kiss another man. Touch another man. Hold another man.

You wouldn't think they'd be that difficult to find.

I'm still waiting to be proven wrong.

Thoughts from a conflicted parent

2010-04-22T08:22:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, when I was supposed to post this I was caring for my daughter who was diagnosed with whooping cough and quarantined from daycare. She of course is completely fine and played all day, laughing, and having a jolly old time. Spending the day with her reminded me of just how much I miss with her throughout the workweek, which made it so much harder to go into work today. It also made me think how crazy it is that 70% of households with children either have two parents that work full time or a single parent that works full time. That’s the exact opposite percentage compared to 40 years ago. And it seems to me that our children perhaps make just as big a sacrifice as their parents in the race to increase or just maintain our standard of living versus inflation and a middleclass income rate that has remained essentially unchanged for the last 20-30 years. Which of course is the reality of the global market that is creeping in. At some point something is going to have to give. I feel like it’s going to come down to either people having less babies or people starting to live a more humble, frugal, existence. I guess we’ll see…

Tuesday Samurai - Meet Courtney Miner

2010-04-20T19:34:00.005-05:00

In the last two editions of Tuesday Samurai, I introduced you to the actors portraying the couple at the center of our upcoming production of Bright Ideas (Marcia Svaleson and Josh Carson). Now let's turn our attention to the remaining cast members, who all pull sextuple (is that a word?) duty (if not more). First off, it's Courtney Miner, who makes her return to USP after a hilarious turn as the owner of The Girlhole in our raucous 2008 Minnesota Fringe Festival hit, Musical the Musical.

But my history with this lovely lady goes farther back than 2008. How is it that we first met?

When I first read this question, I thought, "Crap, I can never remember when we met and Ryan and I have had this conversation before!" But then, as I started to answer, I remembered! Magic!

We met at a group outing to see Triple Espresso, shortly after you saw me onstage in Debbie Does Dallas: The Musical. We hit it off because of my inappropriate sense of humor and love of reality TV.

Ah, yes...that seems so many years ago. You were hilarious in the "token lesbian scene" in that show! I just love to hear you laugh - it's what got me through way too many seasons full of annoying The Bachelor contestants. So, your list of acting credits is already sounding interesting - what else have we seen you in?

Well, I mostly do musicals, but have taken an involuntary hiatus. (a.k.a., Why don't you cast me? You know who you are.) Right before this I was in The Fresh Five with 20% Theater Company, playing an 8-year-old. In fact, most of my career has consisted of playing little girls and high schoolers. Little Sally in Urinetown, that little crazy murderer girl in Ruthless!, Gloria with a lisp in Summer of '42. Ya know...young nerds. That's what I'm good at. Young nerds.

Hush now, you're good at playing adults, too! And you finally get to play one - several adults, in fact. Do you have a favorite character of the multiple roles you play in Bright Ideas?

Well, I'm really loving Mom #2 right now, actually. She's a perfect blend of Blanche and Rose (from The Golden Girls). She has Blanche's southern accent and Rose's ditz factor. But my favorite might be Mrs. Heath in the opening scene. You'll have to come see it to find out why.

I think I have an idea, and I can't wait to see it! And it looks like the dream Josh Carson shared with me last week is coming true - The Golden Girls has been mentioned in every week's introduction so far. That must be the influence of Jimmy [LeDuc, Bright Ideas director].

He's pretty friggin' great, actually. I love his drawl and he is unabashedly his own person, no matter what. His insticts as a director are spot on. Every suggestion he's given has worked inside my dull, egotistical actor brain. So, he's brilliant, actually.

The only improvement I would suggest? If he were a little bit MORE of a Golden Girls fan, I think he would be an even better director.

OK, now you're just poking fun at my mutual love for The Golden Girls...or maybe you're just saying if Jimmy was as big a fan as me he'd be a better director. What does that mean for me? Never mind...this isn't about me! This is about you - do you want to tell me about your upcoming theater projects?

Nope. I got nothin'. I am, however, ramping up for the big musical audition season! I'm learning a new song. Rhymes with "Schmeverbody's Smirl".

Ooh! If my rhyming skills are still up to snuff, I think that may have been a suggestion from me. I can't wait for you to try it out! Perhaps you'll have to drop by and sing it for USP at our auditions for [title of show].

I'm super excited for Urban Samurai's next season. It's right up my alley. (That's what she said.)

Oh, you! This here column is a classy piece of real estate! (I can't even type that with a straight face.) It's like we're hanging out and watching TV and saying whatever comes to mind. That can only be done with a movie you've seen before and don't need to pay attention to - like one of those guilty pleasure movies from when we were younger, the kind you know you shouldn't like but will watch if it's on TV and puts a smile on your face. Is it awkward that my favorite would be The Craft starring a nutty Fairuza Balk and a scaly Neve Campbell? Please tell me I'm not alone in this!

Mine would have to be Teen Witch. With Robin Lively (what happened to her???), Zelda Rubenstein (R.I.P.), and that hunky dude that also played the jerk boyfriend in Son in Law. But there are so many others...like Mannequin (Andrew McCarthy, Kim Catrall, James Spader, Estelle Getty...SHUT UP) and She's Out of Control. (Tony Danza as an overprotective parent...what a stretch from Who's the Boss, eh?)

I don't know...was the name of his "character" Tony? Can he play anyone but himself? I haven't seen that one, and can't say that I care to, but I LOVE Mannequin. I think I asked my parents to rent that at least once a month. If only I had a Delorean and could go back and see what my parents said about me behind my back as a child. It's probably no different than what they say behind my back now.

But I need to stop making this about me! This is about Courtney...well, at least it was. It's over now, but I'm sure it made you want to know more. You'll just have to get your tickets for Bright Ideas, which are currently onsale at urbansamurai.org. And don't forget to check in next week when I introduce you to C. Ryan Shipley.

Until then, "I bind you, Nancy, from doing harm. Harm against other people and harm against yourself."

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Perfectionist ahoy!

2010-04-19T07:19:00.003-05:00

I find myself thinking about stage parents. You know the type. The ones that dress their three year olds up like adults and make them do pageant shows. The ones that live all their unrealized dreams through their children. Thank god I never had parents like that. But they exist. And Genevra is one of those parents. And it's one thing to be a perfectionist yourself, to have an insatiable desire to achieve, but I think it's something else entirely when you do that to someone else. Namely, a little someone like a child. So I'm spending a little time trying to get into the headspace where that's okay. I feel a little 'Mommy Dearest' coming on.

And this is the interesting part of being a villain. They are so much more satisfying a character to play, because they are so flawed. Someone who always does the right thing, who's never unhappy, never conflicted - that's some boring stuff. To try to see the world through the villain's eyes, to make it justified, necessary - that's a challenge. And Genevra is even more satisfying, since we see the descent to 'evil' happen. The fascination is in watching her make the wrong choices.

So strap that toddler to his high chair and make him memorize the constitution so you can make him recite it on command! It will really make your day.

Yup...I'm Kevin Bacon

2010-04-17T23:51:00.002-05:00

So as you can see from Matt's post I have been cast is Ross in A Few Good Men. I couldn't be happier. A weird part of me thinks this role will let me work out my chilhood want to be a lawyer. In fact, I wanted to be one right up to the point when I found out they have way more paperwork than trial time. I wanted to get up in front if a group of people and cross-examine or as the play says I wanted to be good at "making an argument." Unfortunately I have to wait till this fall to begin work on this one. Until then...Bright Ideas!!!

I had the opportunity to watch a run through on Wednesday and I was already laughing a lot. It was just the first stumble-through and already it is brilliant. I'm so stoked for you all to see this one. It is gonna rock your socks clean off your feet. In fact, if you're not careful, it might rock your whole feet off.

Auditions Complete

2010-04-17T09:20:00.003-05:00

Well auditions and callbacks are in the bag, and I have emerged with a stellar cast. I wrote before about how the women blew me away in auditions. Well the men did not disappoint. I had an incredible turnout for the mens audition, and much like the women making cuts to get to callbacks was very difficult.

I scheduled three hours for callbacks, thinking that three would be plenty. How naive of me!!! I would like to commend and thank all the actors for their time and talent, it must have been a long night for them.

The fight for the lawyer roles was particularity tough. I read many actors in many combinations, and EVERYONE was bringing it. It got to the point that I was hoping an actor would do something outrageous like throw up on my shoes, so I would have SOME reason to take them out of the mix.

In the end I put together a truly incredible cast. Here they are. Congrats guys!!

Pfc. Louden Downey - Troy Zimmerman
Lance Cpl. Dawson - Derek Ewing
Lt. j.g. Sam Weinberg - Dave Gangler
Lt. j.g. Dan Kaffee - Nicholas Leeman
Lt. Cmdr. Jo Galloway - Colleen Somerville
Capt. Issac Whitaker - Peter Simmons
Capt. Matt Markinson - Mark Kreger
Pfc. William Santiago - David Freeman
Lt Col. Nathan Jessup - Zach Curtis
Lt. Jon Kendrik - Mike Rylander
Lt. Jack Ross - Nate Hessburg
Cpl. Jeff Howard - John Egan
Capt. Julius Randolph - Jim Pounds
Cmdr. Walter Stone - George Calger
Dave/Orderly - Christian Spalding
Cpl. Duns - Aaron Koningsmark

This show is gonna ROCK!!!!

Matt Greseth
Artistic Director

Week 3 Complete!

2010-04-16T17:39:00.002-05:00

What a week this has been...
I will start off by addressing the A Few Good Men auditions and callbacks. What an amazing turn out from lots of talented actors!! I had the privilege of sitting in on the callbacks...and holy balls, these people made that decision very difficult. It was great to see these actors and know that this is just a portion of the talent pool in Minneapolis. I am proud to say that I live in a city where there is such a talent pool to choose from. And then, to get to see these people on stage! I am already excited to be working with this group of actors for A Few Good Men in the fall:)

As for Bright Ideas, we are still trucking along. With auditions and all, I wasn't at a portion of the rehearsals this week...but these actors continue to crack me up! Night after night! I can't wait for the next couple of weeks to fine tune this piece, and then of course, get an audience in front of them! It will be fun times!
Our first act off book date was Thursday, and I was quite surprised. After all the talk right beforehand, I can honestly say I was a little nervous. But all in all, things went well, and we are right on track!
Now it's just a matter of consistency, consistency, consistency!

Until next week...

Structure

2010-04-16T07:12:00.003-05:00

Just because you can make a play longer doesn't mean you should.

In the case of Leave, which is kicking off Season 2011 for Urban Samurai, I feel like parts of it could use a little more room to breathe.

The trick is, which parts?

If you've already made your point succinctly, there's no point in belaboring it and repeating yourself.

But if the characters get a chance to grow and deepen, feel more like people and less like mouthpieces for the author, that's all to the good.

When you start poking at the thing, to make any real changes, everything needs to be up for grabs. Then you can sort out where the strongest stuff is, and where it might be better.

Picking it apart, how about the way it begins and ends?

Right now, the script begins and ends in a graveyard. And the grave marker never goes away.

The character of Anne visits the grave. Someone she knows is in it.

Given my penchant for ghosts, I suppose it could also be her grave.

Except that she says, among other things, "If I'd done everything I could, everything I should, this boy wouldn't be in the ground."

So, not her.

Over the course of the next hour and a half, we meet four young men.

"I shouldn't have let him go back," she says.

Well, that means, in the context of this story, the military. One person isn't involved at all, so he's safe.

Two are active duty, one is inactive but former military who would go back, under certain conditions. So we have three to choose from.

At the end, we find out whose grave it is, and how and why they died.

It's not a mystery story.

But I still think it's important that we know up front, "Somebody's going to die."

That's the kind of world in which this story exists.

To do a play about the military and pretend nobody dies is cheating.

I did that in earlier drafts.

Of course, in earlier drafts, we were in "peacetime."

It's important to know the stakes.

You will get to know these people. Hopefully you will grow to care about them.

And you are going to lose one of them.

I suppose I could just bring the graveyard and death in at the end.

But that feels like a sucker punch.

"Ha! Gotcha! Didn't think I was going to kill one, did you?"

Maybe you forget it's coming. Maybe you stop seeing the grave marker on the side of the stage. Maybe that's good. But I think it should still be there.

Hanging over everything these people say and do is the fact that some of these words will be the last thing these people say to each other. Some of these things will be the last thing they do for each other.

Suspense. A foreboding. A sense of dread. I don't know.

If the play gets longer, the real trick is to make the audience care enough that they want to come back from intermission, even though they know one of these characters won't last the night.

Because it's easy to put aside the paper, click to another site, turn down the radio, change the channel on the TV, and avoid dealing with it.

We're still at war. In two countries. And soldiers and civilians on both sides are dying every day.

Most of the time, you'd never know it.

And there's something wrong with that.

Of course there's romance and comedy and sex and conflict. In fact, that's most of the play. It's not all one big downer. Death's just one part of it. But it is part of it. It's a mix of things, like life.

Trying to figure out how to keep the mix balanced, while the script grows and changes. That's the tricky part.

I think it still starts and ends with the grave. Now, where does it go in between?

Formative Years: Thoughts on modern day child rearing

2010-04-14T11:37:00.004-05:00

As opening night draws closer and closer for our production of Bright Ideas by Eric Coble I have been investing some time in researching and exploring the issues raised in this play partly for marketing purposes but also as a parent of spirited 17 month old.

Parents want their children to succeed, to work hard, and get ahead. To have more opportunities then they did. Which is a reasonable enough aspiration. But as a culture of competition has become ever more prevalent in society, many parents not only want their child to be successful, they want or even expect them to be the best, brightest, most talented, and attractive child around. Right out of the gates they’re enrolling them in music courses, early learning programs, language immersion, swimming lessons, baby yoga, and on and on. They fear that if their child isn’t a bilingual musical virtuoso gymnast with an IQ of 187 by the time they’re five then they as parents have failed them.

For these parents anything less than the best for their child in these formative years can mean the difference between raising a future doctor or a future shift manager at White Castle. They will do anything it takes, pull any string to make certain their child is known and treated as an over achieving prodigy, regardless of their child’s actual ability. This is called “Push Parenting,” and as our society becomes continually more cutthroat the pressure mounts on parents to push harder on their kids to perform beyond the bounds of reality.

On top of this, a majority of parents in this country both work full-time, which has caused the landscape of childcare to change dramatically. Childcare services and private pre-schools have never been so highly regulated, expensive, or in such high demand. It has been readily documented that many of the most popular day-care centers across the nation have such a long waiting list that often your child can reach the age of 3 before their name comes up on the list. This only adds further stress to parents, particularly those pressuring themselves to find not just suitable but exemplary care that will help lay the foundation for their child’s acceptance into law school.

Eric Cobles’ play Bright Ideas draws directly from this mentality. Using his astute observations and sharp satiric wit, Coble tells the story of Generva and Joshua Bradley, two parents that have had their three-year-old son Mac on the waiting list for the premiere preschool Bright Ideas Early childhood Development Academy since before he was even born. Now teetering at the top of the waiting list, Mac is drawing dangerously close to turning four and the grim reality is setting in that if they don’t do something now, something drastic to get him in, it will swallow any hope for a bright future.

Tuesday Samurai - Meet Josh Carson

2010-04-13T15:26:00.006-05:00

In this week's Tuesday Samurai, I continue my series of introductions of the cast of Bright Ideas by chatting with Josh Carson, who makes his USP debut as well-intentioned dad, Joshua Bradley.

As I pointed out last week, I happen to have known all the cast members before mounting this production. How did we meet, Josh?

We met ten damn years ago (A decade, Ryan! A friggin' decade!) at the University of Minnesota, where we were taught the difference between theatre and theater. (Theatre's art. Theater pays. Here's your degree.) All the college stories worth telling are being withheld until the release of my explosive, controversial tell-all, Just Joshin'?.

Ooh, I've always wanted to be a part of a scandal! Where may audiences have seen you previously?

For the last year, I've been on the front lines of interactive theater, whether it be the drunken best man in Tony 'n' Tina's Wedding or the drunken bingo caller in We Gotta Bingo. When I was cast in Bright Ideas, I was anxious to finally be playing a character that wasn't going to be groped by the real housewives of Eden Prairie or wind up shirtless, suckling at a bottle of vodka by the end of the night. Then I saw the script and realized that I'm not quite out of those woods yet. Ooh, teaser!

You've always been a big tease! Is that how you found a way to relate to your character?

It's a widely known fact that the hardest part of acting is learning to respond to a new name. Well, my character's name is Josh, so 85% of my work is already done. It does get a tad confusing during rehearsal, because statements are thrown out like, "Josh is so spineless," or "Josh is extremely off-putting," or "Josh clearly has an alcohol problem." And I'm all, "You guys are talking about Character Josh, not Me Josh, right?" Then nobody says anything for a solid six minutes. Then I say, "Why'd everybody stop talking at once?" And they say, "You guys remember Troop Beverly Hills?" And I say, "Why are you changing the subject?" And they're all, "We didn't." And I'm all, "Why won't you look me in the eye?" And they're all, "We are." And I go, "You're not even facing me!" And then they're all, "Tori Spelling was the evil Wilderness Girl in Troop Beverly Hills, isn't that crazy?" And I yell, "Quit making this about Troop Beverly Hills!" And they're all...wait, what was the question?

I'm not sure anymore. All I know is that I don't think Tori Spelling was in Troop Beverly Hills. I'll have to IMDB that...or maybe Jimmy [LeDuc, Bright Ideas director] would know. He's full of knowledge.

Jimmy is, in many ways, the perfect director for me because he speaks in very specific pop culture references. This has sped up the process considerably because I can suggest that I'm essentially playing evil Phil Dunphy and we'll both instantly be on the same page. Also, there's the Golden Girls obsession. I hope that's brought up in every interview.

I try to bring up The Golden Girls every day of my life. Is that not normal? But I totally get the evil Phil Dunphy reference. Modern Family is my favorite new show of the season, and if you're a fan of that show, you'll certainly love Bright Ideas! But enough TV...any upcoming theater work you want to tell us about?

After Bright Ideas, we're remounting the smash hit Saved by the Bell Show at the Bryant Lake Bowl (featuring the real Mr. Dewey! If you know what I'm talking about, you already got your ticket). A few buddies and I are developing a sketch comedy with the theme of breaking up. (Write what you know, eh? Sigh...) And once upon a time, I used to write and produce my own shows to some slight acclaim. I keep threatening to make a comeback, whether people want it or not. However, that comeback suddenly seems more likely within the year, so stay tuned.

I definitely will! I loved Video Guy...that was the first Fringe show I ever saw. I'm so old... Time for a Three Musketeers bar. How about you, Josh? What's your favorite candy?

Dots. No question. Everytime I eat a package of Dots, I stick two of them in my teeth, preferably red, and pretend to be a candy vampire. Every. Time. And, yes, I'm thirty.

Hey, there's nothing wrong with re-living the simple joys of childhood. I've been known to whip out a few childhood habits here and there...but that's for your scandalous tell-all book to reveal.

Thanks to Josh for the crazily hilarious chat! I wouldn't have expected anything less. And way to call Tori Spelling's role in Troop Beverly Hills - I stand corrected. What a career that nutty lady has had! Be sure to come back next week when I put one of my favorite people, Courtney Miner, in the Tuesday Samurai hot seat.

Have a good week, candy vampires!

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Memorize!

2010-04-11T21:45:00.003-05:00

I am deep in the thick of memorizing lines for Bright Ideas, which reminds me of one of the most common questions I'm asked as an actor. "How do you memorize all that?" Is asked me more often than I can count. And I'm sure every actor has their own unique method that works for them. For me, repetition is everything. So I carry the script around like a security blanket. I often fall asleep on it at night (cause osmosis might work, right?) In short, I just look at the damn thing until I can see it with my eyes closed.

Wouldn't it be marvelous to have photographic memory? Then I could look at the script ONE TIME and be good to go. Wow, that would be sweet.

The more often I look at the script, however, the more I find in it. As often happens when you revisit a thing again and again, different things jump out at me or take on new significance; perhaps because of something that happened at rehearsal, or perhaps just because. So repetitious reading helps not only my memorization but also my character development.

Speaking of which, I am still mapping out my character's descent from normal but slightly anxiety stricken woman to ca-caw crazy psycho mom. It is delightful to look for the clues throughout the script that lead me down the path to complete madness. I will be sure to keep you informed of the progress. Meanwhile, I am abusing sock puppets. That's right. You heard me. If you want to know why, you'll just have to see the show, huh?

And if you have any sure fire ways for me to memorize a ton of lines by Thursday, shout em out.

The OCD Ninja (on reading 243 of Bright Ideas)

I really can't wait....

2010-04-10T17:42:00.002-05:00

Next year's season is going to be so fun. Seriously. I honestly cannot wait for it to come. What sucks is we have so many cool things happening between now and then with this company that the awesomeness factor jumps clear off the charts. I have been listening to [Title of Show] very frequently in my car. As a matter of fact, I even got caught singing really loud at a stoplight. Yup, my windows were down. I got two big smiles and a honk from behind as I realized the light had turned green as my face had turned red. Good times.

A Few Good Men is already shaping up nicely. As Matt said, there were a plethora of talented women that came in and auditioned. It was very fun working with all of them. Even though I had to read the same side like 40 times, every person brought something different to the table which made each and every read interesting. I am so impressed with the level of talent in this city. Now it's on to the men....

Week 2 Completed

2010-04-09T13:23:00.003-05:00

In the midst of the season being announced and A Few Good Men auditions beginning, Bright Ideas is continuing rehearsals:)
Week 2 of Bright Ideas has brought a lot of fun to the rehearsal process. Blocking act 1 is out of the way, and act 2 is well underway. We are moving at a steady, well really, rather quick pace! Which can only indicate the awesomeness that is the cast of this show! Typically, during the rehearsal process, I am so focused on the technicalities of the process; the who moves where, and on which line sort of thing. But this week...well let's just saying I was really paying attention to character development this week, and nearly peed my pants on several occasions. Now, I realize the script is some pretty funny stuff, but the way in which the lines are delivered is all actor...and these actors are going balls out! And things can only keep going up, once the props, set, and costumes all come into play.
So here's to the week that was, and the week to come...perhaps I will bring extra clothes to rehearsals:)

Plotting It Out

2010-04-08T21:47:00.005-05:00

So there's a play in rehearsals (Bright Ideas)

And a play in auditions (A Few Good Men)

And then there's the play in development (Leave)

Leave (or The Surface of the World) is moving ahead on two fronts.

Matt Greseth and I sat down over the weekend and mapped out some key dates on the calendar between now and the opening of Season 2011 in February.

April 22, once Matt has auditions and casting for A Few Good Men behind him, the two of us will get together and pick the script apart scene by scene - get an idea where the strengths and weaknesses are in the script as a one act, and where the potential expansions lie, further explorations of character, situation and subject matter.

May 20, once Bright Ideas is open, we'll touch base once again. My writing group will have had its last three meetings before its summer break, so whatever hacking away I've been able to do in the interim will be ready to dig into. It'll also be good to touch base one more time before I head off to Omaha for

The Great Plains Theatre Conference, May 29 to June 5

My reading is first thing, 9am on Monday morning May 31. So, death slot, basically. I'm contenting myself with the thought that

1) I'll get getting out of town and just having the chance to be a writer and nothing else for a week

2) They're paying all my registration fees, putting me up (in a dorm - ah, nostalgia), and feeding me

3) The workshops look interesting - might jumpstart this, or other, ideas for future use.

4) It's not wall to wall events. There's breathing room around the edges and I'll just be able to kick back and scribble, bat Leave around a bit

5) It's an opportunity to work again with my pal Marty Marchitto, a director who's done three of my scripts, and whose instincts about new work I trust implicitly. He'll have a lot of insights to share.

6) Marty works with good actors, so I'll be able to pick their brains, too.

7) Whoever shows up to see the thing (there's gotta be *some*one, right?) will no doubt have their opinions and won't be shy about sharing them.

8) Seeing the script in another context, between the incubator it grew up in during 2008, and the next level it will be entering during 2010/2011, can only be a good thing.

9) Since networking and socializing terrify me, this will be a learning experience. Like auditioning, you only get better by doing. There will be plenty of other scripts being read and writers to meet, and (gasp) gatherings where mingling is kind of the point.

10) Again, I get to be a writer for a week and get the heck out of town.

June 10, a debriefing session with Matt about what I learned about the script at the conference

After the Minnesota Fringe Festival, Matt goes into A Few Good Men mode in earnest.

October 10, A Few Good Men and Season 2010 closes

November 7, a reading of whatever the new version of Leave exists with the company, and of course, more feedback

Early December - auditions, by which time, the bulk of the rewrites should be done, the new structure in place

Of course, in the process of auditioning and other actors getting their hands on the thing, we'll all see things we didn't before, and the tweaking begins.

Early January, rehearsals begin, and the last of the tweaking.

February, Season 2011 and the new version of Leave arrive in front of an audience.

All of which, when I lay it out like that, seems like no time at all.

Tick tock.

Matthew A. Everett
www.matthewaeverett.com
USP Board Member, Resident Playwright

Bright Ideas opens in 28 days
Great Plains Theatre Conference starts in 51 days
Minnesota Fringe Festival arrives in 118 days
Leave, via Urban Samurai, 10 months off

More than A Few Good Women

2010-04-08T12:21:00.003-05:00

With Jimmy LeDuc steering the ship of Bright Ideas, I am free to get the ball rolling on our upcoming production of A Few Good Men. Auditions for the women were last night and I'll be seeing the guys this Sunday and Monday with callbacks for everyone on Tuesday.

I am constantly amazed at the level of talent in this town. I saw close to 30 women last night, and as there is only 1 female role in the show I planned on inviting no more than 5 women to callbacks. Narrowing the field to 5 turned out to be a pipe dream at best.

Given the fact that the movie that was made from this script is so iconic, it is important to me that I find actors that will be willing and able to bring their own take to the production. I was presented with audition after audition of very talented women who showed me potential sides of Joanne Galloway that I had not even considered. It was an incredible experience, and my hat is off to the actresses of Minneapolis.

After a long deliberation I narrowed the field down to 7 women (the list really could have been 10-12), and I am not looking forward to the gut wrenching task of choosing only one from that group. Don't get me wrong, having more choices is better than having none. But this is going to be one of those times when any one of the 7 could kick some serious ass.

I love and hate auditions as a director. It is the beginning of the exciting process of creating a new piece of theater. But it is also the time I have to tell some very talented people no.

The guys are this Sunday, I'll let you know next week how much worse my ulcers are :)

Matt Greseth
Artistic Director
Urban Samurai Productions

The grant is in and the show is going on

2010-04-07T09:11:00.005-05:00

Hello my lovely readers, real or imagined. I'm happy to say that our MRAC grant proposal was submitted last week and unlike last year I didn't crawl in an utterly destroyed shell of a man. I entered the MRAC office with our proposal standing tall, confident, proud, and even feeling a little sexy in a grant writing kind of way.

Tonight is the first night of several nights of auditions for A Few Good Men. We have at least 4 Bahgillion people auditioning. There's a lot of excitement for this show in the local acting community and I'm certain that this excitement will be spreading over to the general populace like a pandemic of awesomeness as we approach opening night.

And then there's Bright Ideas, opening May 7th, which will be followed by you laughing your face off. I am currently doing research on the subject matter of the play which covers the mentality of many parents that feel the early formidable years of a child's life are not just important, they're almost a matter of life and death. Currently I'm reading the book Toilet Trained for Yale: Adventures in 21st-Century Parenting by Ralph Schoenstein and essentially what I'm getting out of it at this point is that I need to get my 1 year old enrolled in pre-calculus before the week is out. More on this as it develops in my mind.

Tuesday Samurai - Meet Marcia Svaleson

2010-04-06T23:23:00.009-05:00

It's still Tuesday, I swear! I'm so sorry to be coming to you late again, but I'm very excited to start a series of blogs over the next five weeks leading up to the opening of Bright Ideas on May 7th: I'm going to introduce you to each of the five cast members.

You'll already be familiar with our first featured cast member: Marcia Svaleson. She's the ninja of our company (and Sunday blogger) and will be appearing onstage in Bright Ideas as the desperate mom with a mean pesto recipe.

Marcia, I realized that I have a personal history with each cast member. How did we meet?

We met at the audition for Protection Program, and the first thing I said was, "Hey, Matt, look...this guy's taller than ME!" And then we had to hump on stage in American Apathy. That was maybe my best theater moment.

Made all the better by our kick-ass blond highlights. Now you're working on Bright Ideas - do you personally relate to your character?

Yes, because even though I'm not a mom, if I were, I would be a psycho mom. And Genevra definitely starts out normal and becomes crazy crazy. Like, ca-caw crazy.

Is working with Jimmy [LeDuc, Bright Ideas director] as awesome as I think it would be?

Well, on our first night of blocking rehearsal he showed up in a bright yellow Golden Girls t-shirt. I think that says it all, don't you?

'Nough said. Nothing endears me to a person more than a mutual love for The Golden Girls. Any theater projects coming up you'd like to talk about?

I'm really stoked about next year's season. I can't stop talking about it.

I've noticed. I think it appears right before this blog post, in fact. Not that I blame you. I've just about messed myself over Season 2011. OK, not really, but I'm really excited. Moving on from uncomfortable topics, just to prove that I'm not all business, I want to ask what your favorite nut meat is. Mine is cashew.

I do enjoy a good cashew. It's between that and almond. Peanuts are for special occasions; they remind me of drinking in bars.

Ooh, or Texas Roadhouse. But that's a treat for me when I'm visiting my parents in Iowa. Or happen to be in Coon Rapids...which never happens.

Well, there you have it, folks. Marcia and I talked about nut meats, onstage humping, and how tall we are. That's how we roll at Urban Samurai. Or, as Marcia might say...

I do what I want.

Be sure to come back for next week's Tuesday Samurai, when I chat with Marcia's onstage husband, Josh Carson.

The 2011 Season is here!

2010-04-04T18:10:00.001-05:00

I'm dancing with glee! The season is here, and we finally get to announce it!

Leave, or The Surface of the World – World Premiere – February 11-27, 2011

Season 2011 will open with the world premiere of a new, expanded version of this “don’t ask, don’t tell” drama by local playwrightMatthew A. Everett. Seth is a young Marine serving during wartime. Nicholas is his civilian husband who waits back home. In addition to the strain on their relationship caused by distance and absence, they must hide their love for one another behind code words and secret identities because of the United States military’s policy barring gays and lesbians from serving openly.

[title of show] – Regional Premiere – April 22-May 8, 2011

USP will present the regional premiere of this surprise Tony-nominated smash created by Jeff Bowen and Hunter Bell, which debuted at the New York Musical Theatre Festival and ultimately ran on Broadway. A love letter to musical theater and to the joy of collaboration, [title of show] is a musical about two struggling young writers writing a new musical about two struggling young writers writing a new musical. In the span of 90 minutes the pair, along with the help of two friends, write and perform their show-within-a-show at a musical theater festival while learning lessons about themselves as people, friends, and artists.

Rumors – September 23-October 9, 2011

Season 2011 will close by honoring the tremendous impact that Neil Simon’s work has had on our company and live theater by presenting Rumors. At a large, tastefully appointed Sneden’s Landing townhouse, the Deputy Mayor of New York has just shot himself. Though only a flesh wound, four couples are about to experience a severe attack of farce. Gathering for their tenth wedding anniversary, the host lies bleeding in the other room and his wife is nowhere in sight. His lawyer and his wife must get “the story” straight before the other guests arrive, but as the confusions and miscommunications mount, the evening spirals into classic farcical hilarity.

Baby tunes...

2010-04-03T22:54:00.002-05:00

So sound is coming along nicely for "Bright Ideas". Turns out there is some amazingly cool music being made for youngsters by current artists. Or at the very least has a modern sound. It isn't all these songs played with an acoustic guitar and some guy in a creepy high voice singing. I found tunes by They Might Be Giants, Parry Gripp, and even the Barenaked Ladies. I think many of these songs will work great for the the child-esque theme of the show. If they don't work, then I have a supremely kick-ass CD for when I have a kid.

Collaboration

2010-04-02T15:11:00.002-05:00

Our first week of rehearsals has just wrapped up for Bright Ideas. The week was a short one, one spent more on a first read and characters than anything. But one thing that has already begun to develop is the collaboration process.
As a stage manager, I have worked with hundreds of different actors and directors. Which ultimately means, hundreds of different personalities. No two people that I have come across have ever been the same in their method of acting or approach of directing. Also, as a stage manager, I get a chance to observe throughout the process. I see everything and I hear everything. Through this observation, I can pick up how the dynamic will be during the rehearsal process. And with this show specifically, I can already tell it will be an amazing trip. The juices have begun to flow between the actors and our director, ideas are coming out, one idea is building on another idea, and from this, I appreciate the process of collaboration more and more. I contribute my two cents in quietly where needed to the director, but for the most part, I just sit back and enjoy this process and learn.
The next few weeks will be a fun rehearsal process, ones that I am greatly looking forward too...

Picking A Play Apart

2010-04-01T11:32:00.003-05:00

The most liberating thing I ever learned about writing was that you didn't have to get it right the first time.

You could always rewrite.

That took a tremendous amount of pressure off getting that first draft done, which was always the hardest thing to do in the first place.

Once it's out of your head and down on paper, it's much easier to manage, and to fix.

And of course, the more you write, if you're learning anything, the better your first drafts get.

But you have to give yourself permission to write badly, or you'll never write at all.

You need the manure to grow the flowers.

The friends who make up my writing group over the years have seen some pretty horrific first drafts - which, being good friends, they're always happy to remind me of and kid me about, particularly when I get a little full of myself.

An actor friend once described them as "poop drafts" - where I get just everything on my mind to just plop out on the page, vomitting it all up, good - bad - or indifferent.

Then the sorting begins.

The trickier thing is to know when to leave well enough alone. When does rewriting become a game of diminishing returns, where you're actually doing the script more harm than good by continuing to play around with it? When have you learned all you can from a story?

They say good art is never done, it just stops in interesting places.

This particular story stopped in one place in 1999.

It stopped in a very different one in 2008.

The question is, does it still have a little traveling to do, or should I leave it alone?

Right now I'm revisiting the script for "Leave," which is going to be part of the Great Plains Theater Conference at the end of May, beginning of June. In fact, I just got an email the other day saying the reading of "Leave" would be bright and early, first slot on Monday morning June 1, 9am. So I have a couple of days to drum up a little good will and hopefully get people to show up and watch the thing.

And I have exactly two months (minus a few hours) to tinker with the script, if I want to.

The possible revision of "Leave" is really prompted by the upcoming production by Urban Samurai, however. That's still 10 months out.

The 2008 version of the script had a space it needed to squeeze into - a 90-minute space on the Bryant Lake Bowl calendar. And it did. Just barely.

"Leave" landed on Lavender Magazines Top Ten List for theater in 2008, so in its current form, it packs a punch.

But it always felt a little cramped to me.

In having my first talk with Matt Greseth, who's going to direct, he zeroed in on one place in particular that interested him.

The story is about the emotional fallout caused by the "don't ask, don't tell" policy barring gays from serving openly in the military. A former soldier and a Marine argue their positions. The ex-Army guy wants to serve, but won't go back into the closet to do it. They want him to do their killing for him, they'll have to accept him as he is. The active duty Marine feels like this is a cop-out, that the other guy's a coward. The larger question is, why do we even force people to make this decision? And since we do, why would you want to serve a country (perhaps at the cost of your life) when that country doesn't value who you are as a person? Why do you still feel a sense of duty to a country that would ask you to do that?

The scene, and play, as they stand address this to a degree, but Matt feels there's more meat to dig into there.

So that's one spot that might grow.

I've reread the script, backwards, a scene at a time, from the end to the beginning, to study the current structure.

The squeeze is going to be tight at the conference, so I could change, but probably not expand, the script - they deal with long one-acts, not full-lengths.

But if the story feels good at full-length, Urban Samurai would present it in that form. We have the theater for the evening. How much of the evening we use is up to us.

So...

Where do the rewrites lie...?

Matthew A. Everett
www.matthewaeverett.com
USP Board Member, Resident Playwright

Bright Ideas opens in 35 days
Great Plains Theatre Conference starts in 58 days
Minnesota Fringe Festival arrives in 125 days
Leave, via Urban Samurai, 10 months off

Tuesday Samurai - Dancing With the Bright Ideas

2010-03-30T23:02:00.003-05:00

My apologies for bringing you the Tuesday Samurai so late in the day. It's been an eventful day! The first rehearsal for Bright Ideas was earlier this evening, and though I couldn't be there myself, I can't wait to meet with the cast tomorrow evening and hear about all the fun that was had tonight.

Is it coincidence that the first rehearsal of Bright Ideas was on the same night as the first elimination on Dancing With the Stars? Yes, of course, that's a complete coincidence. But as I unwind with the results show (most of which can be skimmed), I'm struck by the fact that with judges' scores combined with audience voting, the people who are eliminated aren't necessarily the ones who deserve to be. Buzz Aldrin, national treasure and aerospace pioneer that he may be, is in his 80s and just not a good dancer. There's no way around that. And yet he's the sentimental favorite.

I have nothing against Buzz, but Shannen Doherty, tonight's eliminee may very well be lamenting his status as a national treasure, whereas she'll forever have the shadow of the misunderstood Brenda Walsh to battle. What the heck does any of this have to do with Bright Ideas? Well, I'll tell you. It's a loose connection, but it's there. Josh and Genevra Bradley love their son more than anything in the world and want the very best for him - namely, the very best preschool. And why shouldn't little Mac have a spot at Bright Ideas Early Childhood Development Academy?

Because life isn't fair. That's why. Is that a grim outlook? No. It just means that you have to work with the circumstances you're given and make the most of them. Some people, like Buzz Aldrin, use charm. Others, like Shannen Doherty (or, at least, her scheming alter ego) use more sinister tactics. Now, the real question is, which do you find more interesting? The charmer or the schemer?

In an ideal world, everyone would be a charmer, and we'd lolly gag about in clouds made of cotton candy, praising each other for our latest good deed. Unfortunately, that doesn't make for entertaining theater. Which is why the shenanigans that Josh and Gen find themselves in during the whirlwind of Bright Ideas will make you gasp, laugh, shake your head, and maybe even pee a little.

You'll just have to wait to see the show before you decide who you're rooting for...and to see if you agree with the results. But I guarantee it - the journey to those results will be entertaining.

Tuesday Samurai isn't so cohesive later in the day, is it? I'll try to get the brainwaves moving earlier in the day next week. Until then...our sword is the stage.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

2011 Season

2010-03-30T15:03:00.002-05:00

Good news to all those who love things Samurai. I have put the final touches on our 2011 season, and its gonna be pretty kick ass. As we are still waiting on the rights for one of the productions, I am going to keep it close to the vest for now, but stay tuned...this time next week I hope to be able to make an official announcement.

But just to wet your whistle:

We will open with an original work by local playwright Matthew Everett.

Followed up with a really kick ass musical.

And we will close with a door-slammin, stair-sprinting, toe-stubbin, make-you-pee-your-pants-its-so-funny farce.

On a personal note, anyone who has a military aircraft and has a free moment to carpet bomb Canterbury Park, would have my undying gratitude.

Remarkable News!

2010-03-28T21:23:00.002-05:00

I'm so excited that I'm the one to tell you all this.

It is my great pleasure to announce that Matt, previously known as the 'holiday blogger' will now become the regular Monday blogger! This is very exciting for all of us, because there is a small chance that we will see inside the mind of a creative genius. Why a small chance, you ask? Because Matt has a permanent case of writer's block. The worst I've ever seen. I think there are times when he would rather chew off his own fingers than write a paragraph. Despite this crippling affliction, he has agreed to attempt to share at least a small part of what makes him so awesome.

Also, Shannon will be joining in the blogging, which is also remarkable because she is so busy that she's almost like an urban legend. *Actors whispering to one another - "I here if you don't learn your lines by off book day, Shannon Kiley, uber SM of the universe, will come and yank off your pinky toenails." We are very excited to have both of them on the schedule.

And speaking of schedule, mine tells me it's almost time to start rehearsal for Bright Ideas, which makes me squee with joy. The magical journey begins on Tuesday, when the cast comes together for the read thru and critical mass of awesomeness ensues. I heard a lot of excellent things at the production meeting tonight, which makes me even more excited to get started, if such a state of excitement is even attainable. I must practice calm. I shall breathe, and meditate, and medicate if need be, lest I excite myself into a nasty case of adult bedwetting. Marketing meeting tomorrow may put me over the edge into complete frenzy.

Meanwhile, I shall memorize some lines.

Blissful Samurai, Hidden Ninja

*Tune in for our fearless leader tomorrow!*

Impending Hard Drive Failure

2010-03-25T13:52:00.004-05:00

My computer's been down for a week and a half now.

I've been told I'll finally get it back in my hands tonight.

This would make my life immeasurably easier because my backup computer (basically, the computer before this one I'm looking to reclaim this evening), while certainly handy in a pinch (I'm typing on it now, after all), is often maddeningly slow, depending on the program I'm working in. Mostly at a snail's pace in word processing, which is kind of my bread and butter, so... sigh.

I nearly had it back last night, but the thorough fellows at the Apple store ran a post-repair diagnostic and it told them "Impending Hard Drive Failure"

Phew.

So, back to the repair bench, install a new hard drive.

Just moments before, rather than after, the warranty/service plan runs out, not to be renewed (because, after all, it's their job to prompt me to buy a new computer every three to five years or so).

Thankfully this new computer comes with a handy auto-backup feature. As long as you have an external hard drive, that is. Which I also bought and learned to use apparently just in the nick of time.

So when I get it back tonight, I plug in the external hard drive and *bloop* - it's like a week and a half ago, only without the computer prompting me to take it to the doctor.

Phew.

That is, that's supposed to be how it will go. How it actually goes, we'll see when I sit down and work the backup magic.

Then I'll feel a little more grounded. And thus won't forget to blog on Thursdays.

Like I did last week.

Also I'll be able to get back to digging into "Leave" - my script which is both part of the Great Plains Theatre Conference in a little over two months' time, and then kicks off the 2011 season for Urban Samurai (and the 2010 season ain't even half over yet). To rewrite, or not to rewrite? To expand, or not to expand? I have to admit it's exciting, and humbling, to entertain the thought of what I may learn from two new directors and two new sets of actors, designers, etc., in the space of less than 12 months.

Again I say...

Phew.

More artistic blog next Thursday.

I think...

Bright Ideas opens in 42 days
Great Plains Theatre Conference starts in 65 days
Artistic Director Matthew Greseth “Holiday Blogger” Blogs in 10 days
Minnesota Fringe Festival arrives in 132 days
Leave, via Urban Samurai, 10 months off

Grant Season

2010-03-24T22:46:00.000-05:00

It's grant writing season so this blog is going to be short. Hi.

Tuesday Samurai - Creating Original Roles

2010-03-23T14:05:00.005-05:00

In last week's Tuesday Samurai, I wrote about the concerns of being a producer. This week, I'd like to get a little more personal and talk about being an actor, and specifically the opportunities I've had as an actor working with Urban Samurai Productions.

But first, I have a confession: as an actor, I'm just as egotistical as the next. It's impossible not to be. It takes a certain amount of ego to put yourself on a stage as a character and expect audiences to listen to you, to invest in what you're doing, to care what happens. What I'm really saying is that no matter how many of us try to be humble or claim that we're actors because "it's just my passion," there's still an egotistical goal somewhere - whether it be as simple as the love of the audience's applause or as complex as achieving EGOT by the age of 35. And guess what else? Goals are good. A little big of ego is a good thing. It's called confidence.

But I'm getting off-track, which is why I write such long posts. New goal: knock that off. Anyway, back to my confession...my egotistical goal is to one day have my name printed in the front of a published script, where it states, "This play was first produced...and the opening night cast was as follows..." The great thing about this goal is that I've already entered that lottery three times just by creating original roles with my fellow Samurai.

There's a certain freedom that comes with being the first actor to play a role. Starla Van Sanders (Musical the Musical) could have just been your average, run-of-the-mill drag queen. But once I got my hands on her, I decided that she was a really bad drag queen. On the page, Starla was fantastic and universally loved. On the stage, I made her a bit inept, outwardly spontaneous while inwardly lonely. That is not to say I made Starla out to be a sad creature - far from it. Characters are more interesting to me (and, I hope, audiences) when you get to see their imperfections.

Creating a role, and how it's directed, can also be helpful to the playwright. Jerry, the bum in Protection Program, had an obsession with whiskey bottles that was the invention of Matt Greseth, not the script. During rehearsals for American Apathy, I had a spirited discussion with Aaron Christopher, USP founder and Apathy playwright, about the dissonance between how Aaron had seen David in his head while writing the play, and how I saw David after getting to know him during rehearsals. It showed Aaron that what he had created on the page had taken a life of its own.

Maybe I sound like a cheesy actor right now, but the characters we play aren't just inanimate objects on a page. Figuring out what makes them tick is half the fun of rehearsing. And it's what ultimately makes theater the collaborative art that it is. Characters, and the stories they tell, aren't just the creation of a writer or the performance of an actor. They're both, and more. The clothes they wear, the way they style their hair, the objects they encounter and how they carry them, the sounds they hear, and the space they inhabit are all a piece of the puzzle. And live theater is one of few places where that character's world can change with each production.

But the first production? That's often the most fun. "Starla Van Sanders was originally portrayed by Ryan Grimes." No one else can say that.

Ego...a little bit goes a long way.

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

Babies Babies Babies

2010-03-23T12:22:00.002-05:00

Hey All, I just awoke from a heavy dose of NyQuil and I'm feeling like I could throw a cement truck...no wait I could lay under a cement truck. Anyhow, my daughter gave me a virus for the 12th time in the last 3 weeks. Kids are awesome. AWESOME!!!! And that's what our next play Bright Ideas is all about. Little, cute, disease infested children. Except there are no children actually in the play because it's actually about parents who go overboard trying to pave the way for the kids future using scorched earth tactics. Crazy funny stuff. Definitely worth checking out. I'm going nap now.

2010-03-21T22:45:00.002-05:00

As with most of my comrades, it took me by surprise that today was my turn for the blogging. Good thing I remembered. I wouldn't want to deprive anyone of my thoughts.

As I sit here and drink this excellent cider (Crispin, in case you're wondering) I ponder on what it's like to be a geek. And I know I am one. I was told as much yesterday by Matt as I was eating dinner and reading a book. The conversation went as follows:

Matt: "I don't want you to take this the wrong way."

Me: *puzzled look*

Matt: "Well I'm guessing no one else in the cast went out and found a book about getting their 3 year old into Yale."

Me: *annoyance that he's making fun of my process, then crestfallen as I realize he's right.* I'm a geek.

I would like to say, though, that Toilet Training for Yale by Ralph Schoenstein, is a comedic book, a satirical poke at the rising tide of parents pushing their toddlers to academic excellence. And since Bright Ideas is similar, I thought it would make excellent reading. I'm not trying to make excuses for myself, though. I know I'm a geek. Any of my fellow samurai could site many examples, I'm sure.

I don't see the harm in research, however. It gets me in the mood, if ya know what I mean.

Wink wink, nudge nudge.

To do theatre, you dirty minded people! Gawd, the things I put up with around here!

*Slinks off to sulk and drink cider.*

Marcia, The gluten intolerant ninja

Ewww blogging is hard....

2010-03-19T23:12:00.003-05:00

Hey folks, it's your lame duck blogger who's missed a couple of days on updates. Bright Ideas promo cards have been ordered and they're going to be awesome! This promo card will complete the series for the 2010 season which I'm entitling "The exploiting Aaron Christopher's family marketing campaign." We've also decided on nightly prizes for the free raffle during the run of the show!!! whoo hoo! Prizes! And of course there will be another grand prize drawing of a Samurai Pod. Fun stuff. Anyway, my day job is eating my brain so I'll try to stay coherent over the next couple of weeks.

Tuesday Samurai - Cutting Edge?

2010-03-16T18:01:00.007-05:00

Hey there, it's me, Ryan Grimes, your friendly Tuesday Samurai. I've been working with Urban Samurai Productions since 2006 and became Managing Director in 2008, while we were working on our Fringe Festival hit, Musical the Musical. What do I do for the company? Well, many things, but mostly I try to keep the other Samurai (and that rogue Ninja, Marcia) in line.

So, I'm here to declare officially that Bright Ideas opens in 52 days. Period.

Now that I've laid the proverbial smack down on the little stuff, let's talk about the big stuff. Urban Samurai Productions' mission is "to produce and premiere cutting edge theater and provide a voice to new and upcoming theater artists in the Twin Cities." So, what does that mean, exactly?

Well, there's a few ways to go about that. The definition of "cutting edge" is "a sharp effect or quality." For my fellow Urban Samurai and me, "our sword is the stage." How's that for a sharp effect? But, enough semantics. We focus on new and rarely produced works because we want to present our audiences with stories with which they're likely unfamiliar through perspectives they may not have seen - or may even make them a little uncomfortable.

Take a look at the movie listings at your local cineplex for this weekend. How many of those movies can you predict exactly what will happen? How many of those movies' previews have already given most of the story away? I'm not a psychologist or sociologist, so I can't tell you what exactly it means, but one thing's for sure - people don't want to be surprised anymore. Or maybe that's just what the studio executives think of us. Me? I like surprise. I don't want to figure out the end of a movie 20 minutes in. I don't want to play a game like "Avatar is really just Dances with Wolves meets Fern Gully." I want to be surprised by what I see, and live theater is the best way to attain that goal.

In May, we'll be presenting Bright Ideas. When I read the description, I expected it to be a standard comedic take on two parents trying to get their child into the best preschool. Boy, was I ever wrong. I don't want to give it away - I want you to be surprised, after all - but this isn't traditional comedy. And if you think you know how this one ends, I won't blame you, because I thought so, too. But I'd guess you'll be as surprised as I was.

Then, of course, there's A Few Good Men, which we'll produce this fall. "But, Ryan, how can that show be cutting edge?" Well, let me tell you. We're not putting the famed film on stage. Yes, someone will say, "You can't handle the truth." But that's not the only great line in Aaron Sorkin's brilliant script. He presents a topic that is as poignant as ever, and I can't wait for our audiences to experience that "sharp effect".

And for you actors out there, check out our audition posting for A Few Good Men that we just posted on Minnesota Playlist this afternoon. There are a lot of great roles, and we'd love to see you there! (I'll refrain from stating that we need "a few good men" even though, well, we do...crap, I just did it, didn't I?)

I tend to be long-winded, so I'll take my hands off the keyboard for a week. See you next Tuesday!

Ryan Grimes
Managing Director
Urban Samurai Productions

The sound guy

2010-03-13T11:38:00.004-06:00

It has been weird not being in an Urban Samurai show for almost a year now. Since I had been in the first 6 or seven shows in a row, it has been an interesting experience focusing my work with the company on the technical aspect of our shows. I have to say that one of the most rewarding things I do for the company is sound design.

I like music. Literally anything. I have an eclectic mix of music that I assault the ears of fellow Samurai when we are building a set. It wouldn't be odd to hear some Doobie Brothers followed by a little Britney Spears with a little Evita mixed in there leading into Carmina Burana. I have used that to build many of the soundtracks you hear at pre-show and intermission. As a matter of fact, we are giving away one SamuraIpod during every show that will come with some CDs that have a collection of the music you hear. Pretty cool huh?

We decide tomorrow who will be taking what job for Bright Ideas. Hopefully I can once again create aural magic for this incredibly funny show. Have I mentioned it is going to be awesome? Well it will be. I can't wait for it.

"Bright Ideas" opens in 55 days (or 54 days using the other guy's counting)

Thoughts while brushing my teeth

2010-03-11T23:34:00.004-06:00

The other night I was wondering around the house while brushing my teeth. That's quirky, but whatever. Whilst I was wandering a thought popped into my head that made me laugh, thus drooling toothpaste down my front. I'll wait while you picture that for a moment...

Okay. The thought was, "Huh. Bright Ideas is your first mom role." This is funny for several reasons. One, I'm not a mom, and therefore have no experience to draw from. That's fine, it's called acting. But any female actor will tell you, the 'mom role' means that you've reached a certain age. It's a threshold, such as the first time you get called 'm'am' instead of 'miss.' There's no going back after that. Oh sure, I'm playing a young mom, but still. The sentiment stands.

The best part about my first mom role is that I'm playing a psycho killer mom, which is not quite right, and not quite right things are my favorite.

The only thing that could possibly make it better is if I had an army of trained ninja monkeys. But I digress.

The other best part about my mom role is that is was given to me by the ridiculously marvelous Jimmy LeDuc, a southern gentlemen of excellent decorum and good looks. I will hopefully guest blog him here in the coming weeks. That is, unless the other blogging company members read my previous statement and think 'Damn! That's a good idea! I'll beat her to it.' and proceed to steal my idea. I'm warning those would be thought thieves, there will be a reckoning if this comes to pass.

Don't f@#* with me, I'm a f@#$'in ninja.

I do what I want.

Marcia (aka the Original Scandinavian Ninja)

Bright Ideas

2010-03-11T22:55:00.003-06:00

In case you were wondering what the heck Bright Ideas is about - which I was, til I read it...

It's the kind of play that results when a writer wonders, "What if, instead of trying to murder their way onto the throne of power, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were just trying to get their kid into the very best pre-school - and they'd stop at nothing to make sure it happened?"

And I mean nothing.

Thank God it's really funny, or it'd just be... well, sick.

You'll probably get more detail from company member Marcia Svaleson, blogging Sundays, since she's Lady Macbeth... I mean, Genevra, in Bright Ideas

The Accidental Board Member

2010-03-11T07:26:00.004-06:00

Matthew Everett, board member here.

That is such a weird thing to type.

Honestly, I was just looking for a theater to maybe produce one of my plays.

And when Aaron Christopher arranged to meet me for lunch, I thought that's what we were talking about.

Imagine my surprise when it turned into a recruitment meeting.

Well, that's never a surprise I guess. All my friends with theaters are looking for another set of hands to help with the work.

But normally you recruit a board member because they have money or connections to people who have money.

Which I don't.

Rather than money, they were looking for a little sweat.

And in return, my plays get a regular home to be produced in the Twin Cities.

In the almost 19 years I've lived in this town, I've never had an artistic home for my plays to grow in. I know a lot of theaters and a lot of theater people, but my work was rarely a good fit for their various missions and the type of material they were looking to produce.

There was the Playwrights' Center for a while, but that was about development rather than production.

I've been fortunate to receive support from the Minnesota State Arts Board, but that got some workshops up, independent free-floating productions that I was lucky to get an audience to come and see.

Of course you have the Fringe, too, but that's dependent on the role of chance and ping pong balls, and if I wanted to do the producing, I was kind of on my own.

Then along comes this theater company whose work I quite like, and who is committed to new work by local artists as part of the mix of what they do. And they were looking for another local playwright to have generating work for them.

The upside to getting productions mostly out of town over the years is that there's a stash of plays that have never seen the light of day in the Twin Cities metro area that the Samurai can be working their way through, while I work on more new scripts.

Meantime, the first play out of the gate will be...

"Leave" - the gays in the military drama that peeked briefly into town for two performances at the Bryant Lake Bowl after a run on the University of Minnesota's Morris campus. We got a little attention, including a mention on John Townsend's Top 10 list for theater in 2008 in Lavender Magazine. I learned a lot from that production, and the Samurai are looking to possibly expand the play. The script also got tapped to be part of the Great Plains Theater Conference down in Omaha in late May/early June this year. So there's plenty of time and opportunity to tinker with the piece. Tentative production date - February 2011, to kick off the next season.

So, I should probably stop blogging and start, you know, writing...

But I'm the Thursday guy on the Samurai blog (I know, like I need another blogging outlet), so you'll be hearing more from me here.

This whole "part of a theater family" thing is new territory for me. Certainly hasn't been dull so far. More on that later...

Bright Ideas opens in 56 days
Artistic Director Matthew Greseth “Holiday Blogger” Blogs in 24 days
Minnesota Fringe Festival arrives in 146 days

We Be Blogging: An announcement from the President of Urban Samurai Productions

2010-03-10T09:04:00.004-06:00

Greetings fellow Samurai, it is I, the Shogun of Urban Samurai Productions (USP) and I bring good tidings of great joy. For unto us a new play is given for unto us a regional premiere is about to be born! A stinking kick butt comedy is about to shoot out of USP’s birth canal and smack you right in the face and the funny bone. Ok that was a disturbing visual. However the play itself “Bright Ideas” by Eric Coble directed by the talented Mr. Jimmy LeDuc will be far from disturbing. Well it might be a little disturbing, but in a good way, a funny way, humorously disturbing. It’s about parents and pre-school so it can’t be that disturbing. What if there were cookies? Would that make it all better? I’ll ask Marcia our resident Ninja about cookies.

So we’re doing this blog thing now. We’re getting all serious and stuff about daily updates on the land of USP. So don’t forget to subscribe to read blogs from various company members on a daily basis and also keep a watchful eye out for our Holiday Blogger Artistic Director Matthew Greseth who has to be held down in a chair with samurai swords pointed at his ear, throat, and crotch in order to get him to write anything. Ear, throat, and crotch...sounds like a porn or a really creepy medical specialist.

Aaron Christopher
President/Resident Playwright

Bright Ideas opens in 57 days
Artistic Director Matthew Greseth “Holiday Blogger” Blogs in 25 days

Drama: A Comedy opening soon!!

2010-02-03T17:59:00.003-06:00

Our Winter production goes up on February 12th at the Sabes JCC!! This is an original work by one of our resident playwrights, Aaron Christopher. It is a crazy story about life under paranoia. It is a must see!! Check out our website or our Facebook page for more information. See you at the show!!!

Auditions

2009-11-24T20:54:00.002-06:00

Auditions to our Spring 2010 show "Bright Ideas" will be held on Dec. 6th and 7th. For more info head to our ad for more info!!! We hope to see many of you out there :)

Upcoming...

2009-01-20T00:12:00.002-06:00

Our next show is one I'm very excited to work on. We will be doing "Rumors" by Neil Simon. It's an all-out farce, complete with slamming doors and running up and down stairs. Should be a laugh riot! We will be holding auditions sometime around the end of March/beginning of April. Watch the website for more updates on that. The show will go up mid-May. Watch for tickets to go on sale early for this one. Get them while they're hot!!

Singing and Dancing and Acting, Oh My!

2008-07-02T22:06:00.004-05:00

We, the brave Urban Samurai, along with our merry cast, have begun the rehearsal process for Musical the Musical - an charming and funny little ditty for the Fringe Festival. I'm sorry to say there are no ninjas in it, but we can't always have everything we want. The good news is we have the best production team ever, and the cast is furiously awesome. Furiously, you ask? That's right. Furiously. As in so good you wonder if maybe the shock wave of it will harm you and/or your future unborn children. The first read thru was a real treat, laugh out loud funny, and the first singing rehearsal knocked our socks off. Their first dance rehearsal was this evening, and I'm so jazzed I can't sit still. Not to be outdone, our guest designer samurais have been busy writing music, making sets, and finding costumes. They are stealthy and efficient, two qualities I admire greatly. And so we continue building Musical the Musical towards its world premiere, a show that I feel will be something really special. Not special with ninjas. A different and equally awesome kind of special. Yay for Urban Samurai's first musical!

Good News!! + American Apathy Update

2008-03-03T15:38:00.002-06:00

First, the good news...we made it into the Fringe Festival this year!! We will be performing a locally written show called Musical: The Musical. It is written by a gentleman from CSZ named Doug Neithercott and is extremely funny. It is a send up of musicals while at the same time being a pretty darn good musical in itself. It is crude, irreverent, and coy. It will be good times had by all! Stay tuned for further updates on that.

American Apathy is coming along nicely. We have our Set, costumes, and props all figured out for the most part. Since the theme of the play revolves around American consumerism, we decided to make the set fairly bare. The two main characters are overly materialistic and we thought it would play cool to have everything they interact with be nothing special. We are building cubes to represent much of the set and the props will be mostly two-dimensional and also built of wood. It should really help build the absurdity of the play. I think it is going to look cool and I can't wait for you all to see it.

Rehearsals began last night and we have a stellar cast. It stars two core members; Marcia and myself, and a regular to USP, Ryan Grimes. Also we have two new comers to the group; Melissa Bechthold and Tim Reddy. There is a lot of talent in this cast and I'm excited to work with all of them.

AA Auditions

2008-02-11T23:03:00.001-06:00

Auditions are done and we have our cast. Our cast is diverse and very talented. We have a couple of core members, a returning regular and two completely new people to add to the Urban Samurai family.
It was also really refreshing to see many new faces at the first round of auditions. I am constantly amazed at the consistent quality of actors in this town.
Rehearsals will begin March 2nd. Cry HAVOC and let lose the dogs of war!!!!!

Non-Profit Hell

2008-02-08T14:43:00.000-06:00

Well it's official, we at Urban Samurai Productions have finally passed through the seventh level of hell. Hell being the incredibly ardouous process of applying for Non-Profit status. According to our lawyer (and she could be lying) our 1023 application for 501 c3 Non-Profit status was shipped out in the year of our lord twenty-O-eight on a dim and gray but mostly dim February afternoon.
This marks an enormous mile-stone for our company that started with me back in 2005 when I was living in my friend's parents basement staring blankly at mounds of legal forms and thinking "Mmm...grunt....non-profit good! Me like free money!" Oh how young and simean I was back then. Now three years and countless gray hairs later we have completed what was begining to seem like an unending process. Of course it's not over yet. We still have to wait for the IRS to "File" our application. Evidently it takes about 6 months, though our lawyer warned that it may take longer because the IRS is "really behind right now".
We're really only at the mid-point of the process so allow me to explain what steps are involved next. We take you to the IRS headquarters where we find a short, stocky, and fairly grungy man (Who we will call Jorge) wandering the halls. Jorge is wearing mostly leather and a dishevled hat stained with grime and his own blood. He is leading a wretched looking burro with mange and dissentery that is pulling a rickety wooden cart through the halls of the seventh floor of the IRS that for some reason looks very much like a Hormel packing plant. He arrives at a battered office door that has the name "Charles W. Turt" on it but this is crossed out and below it written in blood is "Kenneth C. Tainter". He knocks on the door...there is no sound. The door flies open revealing nothing but complete darkness, a veritable black hole. Jorge, now shaking uncontrolably, timidly extends a tattered slightly charred manila envelope toward the void as he averts his eyes. Though the lable is marred to the point of being almost illegible if one were to look closely they would make out the words"Urban-Samurai Non-Profit App. Please file". Suddenly a grisly almost inhuman hand and arm shoot forth from the darkness grasping the envelope and Jorge's wrist and pulls both he and his delievery into the nothingness. And then there is silence...for a moment you think you may have heard the screaming plea's of Jorge or our Non-Profit Application but it is only the wind. What happens after this no-mortal knows.
All I can ask of you is to pray. Pray for our application that it might survive countless indescribable horrors and come back to us in one piece and approved.