After weeks of talking about it, I am finally ready to officially announce the formation of Cue Zero Theatre Company! Cue Zero will be dedicated to cultivating and showcasing new works, young directors/designers, and rising actors. It is my hope to produce our first show this summer, ideally the second weekend in July. It took me forever to come up with a name that I liked. It needed to capture the spirit of what I’m trying to do, not come off as cheesy or pretentious, and has to be catchy/memorable. My logic behind the name is when a performance is about to begin, usually the first thing that happens is the stage manager calls the first cue (lights up, curtain rise, etc) which is usually labeled “Cue One.” So before anything begins, you are theoretically in “Cue Zero” (occasionally there is an actual cue zero, which is pre-show). I want every show we produce to have some element of “new” to it, whether it’s an original script, a rookie director, a different lighting technique/style than we’ve done before, or just something as simple as an actor in a lead role for the first time. Every show will be the first time for something. I’ve always been huge on creating opportunities for people that might not get them, especially when it comes to theater. This industry is not easy to break into. In order to get most jobs, you need experience. In order to get experience, you need to get jobs. This paradox slows down the rise of new artists, and this is my way of circumventing that roadblock. It’s not that we will work purely with amateurs, the inexperienced, or people that have no idea what they are doing. We will instead be looking to work with artists who have been training, studying, and are truly dedicated to their craft, but have not had many opportunities to work at a professional level yet. We will have a high standard for quality in every aspect of the productions. Be on the look out for updates in the near future, especially once we hit 2014.
Since I want this post to primarily about CZTC, I’ll be brief in the rest of my weekly update. I took in three very unique pieces of theatre this weekend. Friday night, I once again traveled to Portsmouth to see my good friend Gabby Archambault perform, this time in NH Theatre Project’s production of “Six Characters in Search of an Author.” While I must say that individual performances given were all very strong, I did not particularity care for the writing of the show. There was too much talking and not enough doing for the majority of the first act. It was also the wrong type of witty, as it was smarmy, too self aware, and blunt with the points it was trying to make. It really just felt more like I was watching a dramatization of a textbook on how to create a new play, which I later learned was pretty much the story of how the play came to be. The play didn’t seem very accessible to a general audience that isn’t exposed to theatre and the creative process on a daily basis, which always rubs me the wrong way. This is not to say the production that NHTP put up wasn’t well-acted, well designed, and well directed, because it was, and everyone involved should be proud of their work. I just will never seek out this play again; it just isn’t my cup of tea.
On Saturday night, I found myself once again back at the University of New Hampshire for a David Kaye original. David, who is the department head of the Department of Theatre and Dance, is well known for his unique pieces of theatre. This show, entitled “eStranged” was especially unique in that it was a “telematic performance.” Half of the show took place at UNH, while the other half was taking place on the campus of the University of Maine Orono, with the two campuses connected via the magic of the internet, and strategically placed web-cams and giant projection screens. Going into the show, I knew it was going to be something different, and the pre-show setting helped get everyone in the mood and mindset that this was not going to be your typical play. We were not presented with programs as we took our seats, the set was simply four iMac computers on desks, and there was a large projection screen on the two side walls, as well as upstage. The music playing during the pre-show was also very different. I would describe it as electronic dissonance, with small clips of various pieces of well known pop music, movie and tv show clips, and other pop culture references inter-spliced with the sound effects. This eased the audience into the world that David, his co-director N.B Aldrich, and the actors and designers had created. The show explored the strange difference between the real world and our on-line persona we created. It’s hard to explain exactly what happens in the show, and is really the type of art that one needs to experience first hand to understand. I really enjoyed it, as it was an extremely ambitious and moving piece of high art.
Finally, my Sunday was spent in the city of Boston taking in a type of theatre that is highly misunderstood and under appreciated and that is professional wrestling. The show was World Wrestling Entertainment’s “Survivor Series” which is one of their longest running pay-per-view events, and considered part of “The Big Four” events that happens every year, along with Wrestlemania, The Royal Rumble, and Summerslam. Attending each one of these at least one time has been on my bucket list for quite sometime, and this was number two of the big four for me, as I attended the 2011 Royal Rumble, also in Boston. Wrestling is always a fun, high energy, interactive type of theater, as the crowds are encouraged to cheer for their favorite performers, boo the ones they don’t like, and come up with cleaver chants that sometimes do effect what happens in the ring. The show itself was a little underwhelming. The current writing of the storylines is a bit stale, illogical, and sometimes frustrating, but the in-ring product is at a very high level. We had great seats, and were surrounded by like-minded fans who all enjoyed yelling ridiculous things during the matches, which did add to the overall enjoyment of the night, but again, I left the show feeling like I did not get my money’s worth, as the company refuses to take risks and be bold with the direction of the story.
Well in my attempt to be brief, I once again rambled on longer than need be. Hope it was enjoyable, and once again, be on the look out for more info about “Cue Zero Theatre Company” in the near future (including performances, workshops and fund raising) and anyone looking to get involved, please do contact me!
Happy Thanksgiving!