On The Dark Side of Twilight

Thank you.

2011-03-24T09:55:00.004-04:00

Looking Tough FAIL

2011-03-13T20:35:00.000-04:00

Old School [New]

2010-04-05T08:42:00.002-04:00

COME
"The Vampyres"
Music by Queue Up
Dobama's Night Kitchen
March 1997

The Internet is a cruel mistress.

2010-03-19T16:56:00.004-04:00

Today's "google alert" brought the following (certain high school) student's paper to my attention:

I thought the performance was rather boring at times, but it certainly had enough value for what it was trying to accomplish ...

... The beginning parts seemed to drag on too long, and since the playwright/”Man #1” actor admitted in the post-performance questioning that it was the first play he had written in which there are multiple actors, this is quite forgivable, when one also considers the venue at which the play was being performed and the student ticket price ...

... seeing this performance was a lot better than attending class.

How To Dance Like Nosferatu

2010-03-19T06:54:00.009-04:00

Episode 1: Push It

Episode 2: Presentation & Give Away

Episode 3: Running Deadman

Episode 4: The Count

Episode 5: The Creepy Peek

Episode 6: Get Fangsta'

Teen Self Help FAIL

2010-03-16T22:24:00.001-04:00

At last, my arm is complete again!

2010-03-11T20:06:00.003-05:00

Picture's worth a thousand words.
We closed today, our final performance was at Firestone High School. Always a favorite of mine, Mr. Z. has a vast number of dedicated performing arts students. Only "VPA" students (visual performing arts) are invited to the outreach tour performances, but at a school like this one that still means we have at least 150 people in the audience. And they always get the real obscure stuff, too - there's a Winter's Tale reference in Dark Lady of the Sonnets and theirs was the only venue that got it.

A letter from Porlock's guardian.
Sure, it was early - 7:30 arrival for a 9:15 performance, but really, we had this down to a science. Until we discovered that their set for Sweeney Todd (opening next weekend!) was already built ... with a raked stage made of planks with half- to three-quarter inch gaps between them.

Dr. & Mrs. Jonathan Hartwell.
Now ... our set was a little wobbly on the best days. Slamming that door made the whole set shake. Gave it a real "Ed Wood" feel. But placing it on an incline seemed downright disastrous. So we took every bungee cord we had, and strapped the thing to the floor - the spaces between boards was actually a benefit. We also got a number of extra stage weights from the school, and don't you know, the set was more secure than it had ever been, seriously solid.

Eddie's brother.
Many students assisted getting everything together and tearing it apart. In between, it was a rolicking performance, the three of us were really pushing it for our final go-round. I think we even made some very wise discoveries. Hate doing that on closing night. Morning. Whatever.

The post-show discussion was very interesting, and went on for a while ... what has been most interesting about these talkbacks was the opportunity for people to quiz the playwright, about writing, about rehearsing with the playwright there, editing, the future of the production, and so on. A number of the students picked up on some of the minutiae of the play - about the conceit of using "found documents" (see: Dracula) the setting for the Interview (see: Interview) even the origin of Lucy's name in the final arc (see: Dracula.)

After the show, Dusten, Emily and I had burgers at the WInking Lizard, and then it was off to dump the set and props, store all the education department materials, and return the van. And today was a beautiful, seventy degree day - the end of the tour always means the beginning of spring.

Is it you, Xanthe?
I am really going to miss this one, a lot.

Father's Day FAIL

2010-03-11T17:47:00.003-05:00

And then you die ...

2010-03-10T21:25:00.003-05:00

Allow me to begin by saying YEEELLLAAAGGGHH!!! I went running tonight!

(I have not gone for a run in almost two and a half weeks. You can read all about that on this blog.)

Final public performance today at the Akron Public Library Northwest Branch. Always a great mix there - it is usually a 1 PM performance and there are traditionally a number of seniors, members of reading groups, and maybe fifty or so high school students from Firestone who can't attend the performance we do at their school. That performance is tomorrow, that is our last performance of On the Dark Side of Twilight, period.

Today was good. There were odd things happening, my voice cracked at one point, Emily fell down backstage, and Dusten's Eddie just keeps getting dumber.

A woman came up to me after the performance and told me she doesn't like vampires, she doesn't know anything about vampires, by she like the Chekhov plays last year so much that when she heard I was in this she just had to come. That made my afternoon ... and my afternoon needed making because I had a sinus headache sending a spike into my left eye.

One more performance, tomorrow. It's been an incredible run.

wtf?

Newsies (1992)

2010-03-10T18:06:00.005-05:00

So it's early in the rehearsal process, and I make some comment about this boyish cap Emily has her hair pushed under, I say something about her looking like a turn-of-the-century paperboy. Then she starts busting lyrics like

Try bottle alley or the harbor ...
Try Central Park it's guaranteed ...

And I'm like, what the hell is that, and she asks, "Ain't you never seen Newsies?" and I'm like, "I am 40 and under what circumstances would I have seen Newsies?" So she starts singing selections from a number of songs from the movie and I am reminded of a night when I was eleven, sleeping over at a friend's house when I shared the entire production of Annie with him in my pajamas (which I realize is a sincerely gay thing to do) and I invite Emily to bring the soundtrack in sometime and we are listening to it while putting together the set at Our Lady of the Elms and she's all defensive about certain songs and I keep telling her to take it easy, I am liking what I am hearing and ask if she has a copy of the movie.

She says yes, unfortunately it's on VHS and I say, I am over 40, I own a VCR!

Last weekend, my kids and I settle in to watch the entire thing. I can understand two things. 1) Why it became popular enough when broadcast on cable for Disney to stop distancing themselves from it and release it on DVD and 2) why it was one of the bigger flops in Disney history. Em mused why they haven't turned this into one of their Broadway extravaganzas. After all, Tarzan wasn't a huge movie and they went ahead with that. The answers are simple enough to me:

A) It is about boys singing and dancing. Billy Elliott is an exception to this rule because it is about how weird it is that a boy wants to dance.

B) There are absolutely no strong female characters at all, and you can't make any money on a new musical without them.

C) As the tale of paperboys organizing against unfair wages, it has a strong anti-corporate, pro-labor message.

I did find it refreshing in that in spite of its few scenes of violence, there are absolutely no guns at all (this, as early as 1992) and then there is the joy of seeing Christian Bale sing and dance, and not particularly well. Apparently he signed on before they decided to make it a musical (wtf?) and has long derided the film. Ah well. It may not be Sound of Music, but then he is no Christopher Plummer.

We were listening to it again today, setting up for the performance at the Northwest Branch of the Akron Public Library. We close tomorrow with a show at Fiorestone High School. I never would have guessed Newsies would become one of my stronger memories from this tour. But you never really get to choose those, do you?

The moon is takin' a header

2010-03-09T22:21:00.006-05:00

That was crazy.

Meet my little friend.
I think we may have set an attendance record for the outreach tour at Olde Town Hall tonight - over 70 people turned out. And what an incredible mix, kids and teens and adults young and old, it was incredible. And they were excited for an evening of vampire fun, let me tell you.

I don't know who started it, them or us, but there was a silly energy in the air - and I mean that in the best way possible. When I start "hypnotizing" Maria in the second arc, Emily got all sleepy and bedroom-eyed and I almost lost it.

During the Nosferatu segment, I actually drooled blood down my chin.

And Dusten was on freaky-fire, his timing was great all night but by the final scene, he was just milking it - and I mean that in the best way possible. He's never had so much sex in his voice when he's telling Lucy how much he wants to cut her and drink her blood. He's also never sounded so stupid in the final scene.

I don't know if we are giddy with all the touring or if we are finally relaxing into our performances. I think each of us are trying to get everything we can out of this show before it closes on Thursday.

Dynamite crowd, great discussion afterward. We ask (sometimes) why the vampire remains a compelling figure, and several times, including tonight, the "bad boy" thing comes up. But there was also some discussion after we all broke for punch and cookies about theology. I had someone at LAK ask why there was so much talk about God in the third arc. And then, of course, Michael was asking about comparisons to the Eucharist on Sunday (thanks for that, Michael.) Today I had a nice talk with a man following the show who wanted to know if I were a person of faith - if I were Christian, to be specific. What happened on stage tonight made him feel as though I were, the way issues of faith were handled, he assumed I was. This comes to me as a relief, because though this is a satire, I am not really comfortable with denigrating or demeaning anyone's faith. Anyone's.

It's almost embarrassing the amount of help we have received lately, loading out the set. But I am grateful for it. We had GLTF company members - and students from Elyria Catholic who returned to see the show again - helping us lug everything down the big staircase. I am too wrung out and sore to say no.

Wow. This tour has been so much fun, I can't tell you.

Did I mention we were performing on the set of Oklahoma?

"That night must go nothing wrong."

2010-03-09T10:48:00.000-05:00

A little help from my friends ...

2010-03-08T22:39:00.004-05:00

Three more performances? Really, that's it?

Very nice night night, full house at the Lakewood Public Library, and lots of new and old friends, familiar faces and downright strangers on hand. Several actor-teachers, from today and years past, GLTF company members, PlayhouseSquare representatives, roommates, teachers from some of the high schools we work with, bringing their students ... it was a lovely turnout.

This evening has been filling me with anxiety since I saw how the set worked, and how deep it needed to be. Thank you, Daniel, for ordering that extra pole, it has come in very handy. I do not know how we could have managed this without it.

Using the drapes as masking - and angling them downstage - we had much more room to the sides and did not have any of our "business" showing when the doors were open.

I borrowed several key lines in the play from last fall's residency program rehearsal process, and as this was the night half of them were able to make the performance, these "private jokes" got some serious play, most notably, "Girl's gotta eat."

"Yeah, I'm looking at YOU, Mike Gatto."
I pressed several of our comrades into service to get everyone out by 9 o'clock, and dang if that wasn't the faster load-out we've ever had. You people are pros and have my endless gratitude. Thanks to Lakewood Public Library, they always do an amazing job of promoting the outreach tour, and I think we finally have the knack for handling their space. These photos look pretty good, don't they?

Tomorrow: Olde Town Hall. I love this venue, the people are always so happy to see us and excited for the show. It's a great, historied space, a 127 year-old building with a lot of style - the perfect joint for a VAMPIRE PLAY. Every year we attract a devoted, yet intimate crowd. Maybe thirty or forty. The space holds maybe two hundred. Every year I want this one place to get more people through their doors for the outreach tour - and we have been directing excited students in Lorain County (and elsewhere) to come see us again and tell their friends about the show here at Olde Town Hall.

Tomorrow we see if any of that effort has paid off!

Near Dark (1987)

2010-03-07T23:56:00.002-05:00

Directed by Academy Award winner Kathryn Bigelow.

Twinsburg High School Drama Club REPRESENT!!!

2010-03-07T17:48:00.002-05:00

This charming assemblage of young people from Twinsburg made the trip to the Cleveland Heights-University Heights Main Public Library to see our little show! Seems they recently had their own production of an adaptation of John Polidori's The Vampyre in their black box performance space, and just had to check this show out.

AND they stayed afterwards to help us pack up and load out in record time! It was an incredible afternoon - the first truly beautiful sunshiny day in ages, and yet around a hundred people turned out to check out the tour in my hometown. Lots of friends (large and small) in attendance - and GLTF company and staff members! I saw you, Heather, Chris, Terry and Todd! Also board members, GLTF subscribers, and just a whole roomful of familiar, warm faces. And Kelly's oversized laugh.

And somehow, after the show began, I lost a finger. Really, there were ten fingertips on the prop table when we started, and when I needed them, I was missing one. One of the kids said they noticed. Damn! Not sure what to do about that, I may need to contact some novelty stores tomorrow morning.

This is my girl.

"The Hunger" (1983)

2010-03-05T23:43:00.003-05:00

10 vampire books that are BETTER than the Twilight series
by Kate Kotler, who was in my production of Lysistrata in 2000.
(Hi, Kate!)

Nordonia! Nordonia!

2010-03-04T22:54:00.004-05:00

"Down For the Count" by Poopbear
Dusten broke the decanter.

The Akron Public Library in Nordonia has been a stop for the GLTF Outreach Tour in long-standing. Always a great, supportive turnout - a small space, but they always serve coffee, lemonade and cookies. We had a pretty full room - Charlie came to see us! So did Tamara, and she brought her daughter and her friends. A great mix from young to old in the house this evening.

Have I mentioned yet how much I enjoy working with Emily and Dusten? I am grateful for all of the humor and high spirits, it makes schlepping big heavy set pieces much more enjoyable.

That's quite a head I have.

Tomorrow: A new venue! We visit Actors' Summit in Hudson, it's a great space to catch a show. Come see us!

Oh - and we got a new table, to replace the one Dusten broke.

For Todd ...

2010-03-04T11:51:00.002-05:00

... did I mention Bat Boy: The Musical opens April 8th?

Getting it

2010-03-03T16:25:00.004-05:00

The high school performances have truly rocked this year! We visited Elyria Catholic High School today - a higher number than usual were in attendance in the gymnasitorium, the floor was filled and there were a lot of students in the bleachers.

Some guys believed this play was only about "Twilight" and were not necessarily looking forward to it. We do not give high school students programs before the show, out of concern that they may read them during the performances, or leave them lying around if they don't really want them - most students are compelled to attend assemblies, don't you know, and may not even like plays. But the program does explain what the show is, which is helpful if you are seeing it for the first time. So whoever is moderating the show that day (today: Lisa!) has been providing a brief explanation of the concept before curtain.

And wow. The EC kids liked The Giaour! I am not suggesting previous schools didn't, but usually they have had to just kind of take it in, and don't laugh or respond vocally until The Count. But they were with us from the very beginning, it was sweet.

Then, of course ... there's Dusten's "Lower Power." Andrew had directed that delivery to be ... potentially ... I mean, let's just say ... there was the potential for a double-meaning. Today was the first time I think anyone got that. Unfortunately, the very next line is:

LUCY: You sound like my dad.

Okay. That was wrong.

Big ups to all the students who helped us load in before and out after - I cannot tell you how much we appreciated that. Some said we would see them again at Olde Town Hall in North Ridgeville!

"Remember Me!!!"

2010-03-03T10:02:00.000-05:00

I did not know about this.

Slow'd Out

2010-03-02T23:10:00.003-05:00

Man. That was the longest load out we've done. The three of us have gotten load-out to a science - and with assistance we can get it done in about an hour. Tonight I think we clocked in a 1:45. Just taking it easy. Because honestly, and just between the two of us, we're a little tired.

Check out the curtains - and the table!
Tonight we were hosted by Kendal at Oberlin - and thank you, Kendal! We have a sizeable crowd - apparently there are those of a certain age who have been turned off by the promotional materials, not just here but at other retirement communities. This is a good thing, I think, because I'd rather people knew what they were in for. However, there were a larger than normal number of people who came from the surrounding community to attend the show. You know who I mean. TEENAGERS!!!

Or maybe college students. Fans of Twilight. There was one guy there who raised his hand admitting he'd read the book. I was proud of him.

And the table lives! In the time I had available to me this afternoon heading way across town, I had the choice of either a) getting a replacement table from the scene shop or b) picking up the extra curtain pole Daniel had ordered --

Brief explanation: three upright poles, two across and two curtains = one big curtain with a split down the middle. Four poles means the possibility of two separate curtain units - which is much more conducive to shallow performance spaces.

-- I got the extra pole. And what a difference! If we'd had this baby in Amherst, it would have cut down set-up by maybe a half-hour.

Life is good. We even got dinner, ordered from a menu! Thanks again, Kendal.

Tomorrow: A high school!

Funny cartoon.

2010-03-02T08:32:00.001-05:00

(Thanks, Dad.)

"This is a very old table."

2010-03-01T22:45:00.005-05:00

That is what I said before launching into the second arc. After being attacked, Young Porlock hit the table, as usual, and the same leg that busted yesterday collapsed. The books and everything hit the floor. Lord Darvell did not even deign to look at the destruction. Hang Poor Porlock, bleeding on the divan, he had crushed our beloved table, and there was nothing to be done.

The Narrator brought out the sound case, and put the table onto that. It was too important to simply haul off-stage. There was too much at stake.

Get it? Get it?

The major piece of the table I restored yesterday is still stuck firm, but that leg ... I have reattached it with wood glue and the clamp (which had been relocated for the larger damage and then set aside) and it may see another performance.

Kids! Read those vampire books!
The crowd at Fairview was very nice, though strangely low on Twilight fans. I mean, I was really surprised. But the folks there have always been very supportive and the turnout was high.

Margaret led her first post-show discussion tonight, and it was really great. It went into some new places, especially into the sanguine. It is so weird that Bella describes Edward's breath as smelling sweet. He eats blood, that is his diet. It doesn't matter that it is animal blood. Have you ever been hit in the face? Had dental surgery? Have you ever had am amount of blood sit in your mouth? You know how it tastes? How it smells? Now imagine that is what you eat. Stoker nailed it with his description of Dracula's personal hygiene, sweet his breath was not.

A woman came up after and asked me about Kent State. She wasn't critical, she just wanted to know why. The Interview has references to historical events in the way the other three do not. And yet, none of them are mentioned by name, not specifically. But if it weren't obvious, she was struck by the reference to "13 Seconds." I did not know that was a book, I just knew it was a fact.

Setting up and striking, Emily treated us to the weirdest mix CD I have ever heard. She's big into Wicked, apparently.

I have made this observation before, but not here. How much did Margaret Hamilton owe her performance as the Wicked Witch to Max Shreck? She is diminutive, to be sure, I am not sure she is even taller than Judy Garland. And while all around her is brightly colored (including her face) she is dressed all in black, a black which light seems to fall into. So she creates these silhouettes with her joints - her elbows, her shoulders, making shadows against the background, with those long fingers, jutting UP into Dorothy's face.

Well. It's obvious, isn't it?

Brief update

2010-03-01T22:08:00.000-05:00

Dusten broke the table again.

Land Joke - Revealed!

2010-03-01T09:16:00.007-05:00

HARKER: But professor, vampires only exist in ghost stories.

HELSING: The vampire, Mr. Harker, is a thing that lives after its death by drinking the blood of the living. It must have blood or it dies. Its power lasts only from sunset to sunrise. During the hours of the day, it must rest in the earth in which it was buried.

- From the screenplay for Dracula, 1931

... and he brought some of it with him. Get it?

Oops.

2010-02-28T18:34:00.007-05:00

Fantastic afternoon in Akron, yo. Marked improvement over when we drew 6 people for the 2008 tour (okay eight - but two walked out.) A great crowd - girls from Elms who dragged their parents in to check us out, students from Tallmadge High who have created their own adaptation of Dracula for the stage (Vlad Dracul) and even an author who was written bout John Polidori!

THANK YOU, LISA AND BERNADETTE! We were welcomed with open arms and a really big, red dolley to move things into the awesomely awesome hall at Akron Main Public Library ... only bonehead here put our already seriously abused but otherwise charming little table onto the dolley, just letting it wobble there until we hit a ramp and it went crashing into a rail. Snapped a leg right off and damaged the drawer.

It's an important table. We keep props in it that are used throughout the show and I put Dusten's face into it. Emily and Lisa worked feverishly with wood glue and a great clamp - it's great because it looks old and you can barely see it. We will get that back to you, promise!

The company of "Vlad Dracul"
The post-show discussion was great - thanks in large part to our author - going over aspects of the show which haven't been brought up much since we began. Never, for example, has the term "Terrorist Chic" yet entered the conversation. And this was the first time someone asked if I had a rationale for why Porlock ages.

Note for tomorrow: If you are coming to see us at Fairview Park Library, please arrive early. We were full up last year ... and that was for Chekhov.

Show Cancellation

2010-02-26T08:11:00.004-05:00

Our performance today at the Cleveland Sight Center has been cancelled. This is very disappointing, I love that venue. But the snow just keeps coming down, if we went ahead with the performance I would be concerned there would be no audience.

See you in Akron.

Snowpocalypse III (in 3-D)

2010-02-26T06:25:00.002-05:00

GLTF demystifies vampire craze with touring production
John Eldridge, The CWRU Observer
February 26, 2010

Modern American popular culture is on a vampire binge. From movies like Underworld, Blade, and Daybreakers over the past decade to the HBO series True Blood, and of course Stephanie Meyer's popular Twilight saga, there is no end to the material that is flowing off shelves and through the television. Why the craze? (more)

Performance today at the Cleveland Sight Center ... we think. Almost everywhere else in the world, all the schools (all of our residency schools, my own kids' schools) are closed due to the weather. The entire company expressed a desire to perform at the Center - it's always one of my favorite venues - and for it not to be cancelled. I just hope people make the journey to come and see it!

Rockynol

2010-02-24T23:54:00.003-05:00

It's all about Dusten ...

The Giaour

The Count
(Find the rat.)

The Interview

The Dusk

Thank you, Rockynol. We have a 10 am performance tomorrow in North Ridgeville. Good night.

Evaluation

2010-02-24T15:04:00.004-05:00

Following every performance we have a brief discussion between the audience and the company - and we ask that people fill out a survery included in the program. The comments so far have been very positive, I wanted to share a few of them:

"This was great. My granddaughter had a blast and thank your cast for staying and talking to them after the show."

"I have attended many GLTF productions before, but not the outreach. It was great. I'm sure the area students would love it."

"The one costume needs to be fixed for the young man."

"We really do need more arts and culture in our community, thank you so much!"

"It was wonderfully awesome."

And this answer to the question 'what was least effective about the production':

"It could have been longer."

By the way, here is an interesting fact: We do not use smoke in our production. It is water-based fog. Your coughing is psychosomatic.

The Goths of Amherst

2010-02-24T07:36:00.003-05:00

When I visited Dave Cotton at Workshop Players a month ago to prepare for the tour, he expressed his desire to fill up the place for us (and they did) but also his hope that this show in particular might attract a younger audience. Like so many theaters today, their crowd skews a bit older. He promised then that he was going to take the posters and flyers we provided to the high school right away to generate attention.

Last night Emily pointed out to me that almost the entire back row was filled with teenage girls, with long, straight, black hair.

#SADGIRLWIN!!!

Comedy of Errors

2010-02-23T23:47:00.009-05:00

Mistakes were made.

May I begin by saying our hosts at Workshop Players were stunning fabulous, resourceful, helpful and, might I add, cheery? This was a first-time venue, the GLTF Outreach Tour had never stopped here. An old, small schoolhouse, converted into a state-of-the-art community theater-in-the-round in Amherst, with a staff on hand to help us load in, set up and load out - and they made delicious, hot soup!

Honestly, this 100 seat theater has the cleanest, best appointed green room I have ever seen. And because it's downstairs, they have these cameras to keep an eye on the stage. For our purposes, tonight, however, we lost a bank of seats to make room for our set. Even so, there was not much room, and setting up and performing was a bit of scramble.

We also had a deeper, narrower stage with people on three sides, which made blocking a challenge. Some of the words coming out of our mouths were a challenge, too. I do not know what shook me at the outset but I kept bobbling words in a manner I was not used to. But the response from the full house of 90 (yes! another full house!) made it emotionally possible for me to shamelessly chew the scenery during The Interview.

A prop was misplaced ... something was said twice ... but we didn't break any furniture (that happened yesterday) and really, considering the sheer weight of costumes, props, sound cues, blood and fog, I think we are managing things pretty well.

It helps when we get soup.

On the Trail of Dr. Fang

2010-02-23T06:40:00.006-05:00

There are a few gags in the show which are for the enjoyment of hardcore vampire fans. The following exchange comes to mind:

MARIA: You miss your land very much.
PORLOCK: Truly ... though I have brought some of it with me.

Get it? Get it? Meh, what do you know from funny, go look it up.

However, the biggest inside joke I put in the script arrived thanks to GLTF homeboy and benefactor Tom Hanks who gave an interview with Scott SImon back in October which recently aired on PBS. After being asked about high school, he shares that the first play he saw his friends in school do was Dracula, and how the teacher-director decided to adapt the text to fit the fact that he cast an Asian-American student to play the part of Van Helsing (see clip.)

Hey Ladies!

2010-02-22T17:19:00.007-05:00

Okay, let me begin by saying this tour is really wearing me out. We have performed seven performances in seven days (traditionally we get Saturdays off, Jennings was a bonus) and I have not been engaging in any other extra-social business. I try to get to sleep at a reasonable hour. But waking up I feel like I have been hit by a bus.

Driving home from Akron today was a real grind, I kept nodding off at stoplights. Okay, not really. I don't want to worry anyone. So really, I didn't. Not more than once.

Now ... is it the load-in, load-out thing, the lifting heavy objects - or is it the show itself? No idea. The heavy lifting thing isn't really a big deal, the set for Seeing Red two years ago was much more strenuous, much heavier, much more awkward.

But we need to set up and tear down:

A curtain
The set facade
Racks for 18 costumes
A tub loaded with props
Fog machine
Plenty of odd make-up extras and wigs
The sound system

And then there's the show itself. Not much time to stop and breathe.

We have been blessed to have assistance at many locations. Clague ended with a lot of good friends helping us tear down. And today the girls of Our Lady of the Elms were extremely helpful in helping us pack it all together and load it out.

And today's performance? Man. I love that venue. Those girls really surprised me last year, which was our first visit to the school. We were performing Two By Chekhov, a set of the Russian playwright's hilarious one-acts. How well they would go over for a modern high school audience was a mystery.

Well. The girl at Our Lady of the Elms were prepared. They had actually read the Chekhov plays prior to our arrival. They knew what to look for in the performances - and I swear they laughed at absolutely everything.

This year, however ... a vampire play? It actually made me nervous, some of the questionable discussions about faith and God, there are some charged phrases in the production, which have really popped with the high school audiences.

As Elaine mentioned yesterday, the satire settles down a bit in the third arc, and what is at stake becomes quite serious. I think this is good, there's actually something to be afraid of, eternal damnation perhaps, that people take seriously in a way they may not all the vampire stuff.

But oh, that final arc. I was concerned the teenage audiences wouldn't like it, that it might feel condescending. I tried very hard for the conversation to be realistic ... only Emily and Dusten take it to such a level it is impossible not to laugh. And it did really seem like the girls today were laughing at every single word the actors said.

That was a good day. Well worth all the effort.

Vampire Public Radio

2010-02-21T22:32:00.001-05:00

All Things Considered:
For Love Of Do-Good Vampires: A Bloody Book List
by Margot Adler

Listen ... and learn.

(thanks, Laura!)

Full House!

2010-02-21T20:00:00.005-05:00

The Good News: We had a full house at Clague! A long-time venue for the GLTF Outreach Tour, and always very supportive, they were forced to turn away a large number of people. This was no doubt due to the fact that 1) they always have a great showing for our tour 2) a positive write-up the the PD and 3) it's got vampires in it.

The Bad News: We were forced to turn away a lot of people! I hope people who were not able to get a seat show up at one of our future venues - see sidebar for a complete listing.

HOWEVER, may I point out that last year (when there were no vampires) we had standing room only at Lakewood Public Library, Fairview Public Library and Cleveland Heights Public Library. If you are intent on coming, and plan to bring a large group with you, may I suggest the following large venues that have a history of not only enthusiastic audiences, but also large auditoriums with plenty of available seats:

Sunday, February 28 - Akron Main Public Library
Tuesday, March 9 - Olde Town Hall in North Ridgeville

Also, we have two new venues which would be well served by a huge turnout for their first tour visit:

Tuesday, February 23 - Workshop Players in Amherst
Friday, March 5 - Actors' Summit in Hudson

Today's audience was outstanding. They got everything ... I just love the reaction during the Nosferatu sequence. During the discussion Elaine made note of Arc Three, when the satire abruptly stops, and things get kind of serious for a little bit. I am glad she saw that.

Everyone at Clague was super, it's always a challenge figuring out how to get our set to work there - it is an intimate space and we always arrive during a run or just before one and often there is a realistic set on the stage we need to work around. Not only were we (with the help of the always fabulous Ron Newell) able to get the set up, and the sides well-masked, but the weird configuration backstage kept the three of us in the cast on our toes. I think that and the full house really pumped up our performance.

Vlad Dracul

2010-02-21T09:36:00.002-05:00

How cool is this?

'Vlad Dracul' at Tallmadge High School

'VLAD DRACUL', a new play based on Bram Stoker's "Dracula" will have its World Premier on March 4th and will run until March 6th at Tallmadge High School.

Written by Eric Vanderpool, a student at Tallmadge, the story follows Jonathan Harker, an English real-estate agent who comes to Austria in order to help Count Dracula sell his house. However, he soon finds himself and his family in the way of Dracula's plan to spread his power to England.

VLAD DRACUL is directed by Greg Grimes, Eric Vanderpool, and Michael Dages. This production is the FIRST ever student directed production in the history of Tallmadge High. This is an event not to be missed. Tickets are $5, and orders can be sent to Grimes.Gregory@stu.tallmadge.k12.oh.us, or Vanderpool.Eric@stu.tallmadge.k12.oh.us. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

All proceeds benefit the "Relay for Life", another great reason to come out and see this phenomenal production! Donations will also be accepted at the doors of the theater after the performance.

VLAD DRACUL runs March 4-6 in the Tallmadge High Black Box Theater (another first!), located at 140 North Munroe Road in Tallmadge. Seating is general admission. The show begins at 8:00 PM for all performances. There are only 196 seats per night, and tickets are going fast! Order yours today!

Weekend

2010-02-20T17:15:00.005-05:00

I wasn't sure about turn-out for an early afternoon performance at the Jennings Center. Who goes to a 1.30 show on a Saturday? But we had a really great mix of residents and visitors - not only children and grandchildren (yes! kids! in the audiences!) of folks who live there, but also some really good friends, too.

Brian, who read my roles in the first reading of the script back in November, brought his eleven year-old daughter. She loves vampires (real vampires - not ones that sparkle) and she said she enjoyed the show. Win!

Got a new fog machine, but this one makes a terrible sputtering noise when it is doing it's work. Sometimes that doesn't matter but it is an unhelpful distraction. Our company of three has been working together very well unloading and loading the set, it's really getting down to a science. Instead of showing up two hours early, we may soon only need a 90 minute appearance before shows.

Did you see the review in the paper today?

Frisky Seniors!

2010-02-19T22:42:00.006-05:00

Successful evening at East Park Retirement Community Center. But first:

HYSTERICAL CAMPY FUN!
- Tony Brown, The Plain Dealer

Also, I am "beady-eyed" and at my "perverse best." Thank you. Tonight some of the ladies remarked at what startling and creepy eyes I have.

And what a night! The folks at East Park were really up for a vampire show this evening. Just before the show started, one of the audience members got up on the stage (which, though it has a proscenium and is raised from the main floor of the dining room which serves as the auditorium, it feels much more like a living room than a theater stage) and lay down on the chaise lounge, inviting women to come up and suck his blood.

Blew a fuse on the fog machine right before the show ended, so we lost the Edwyn Collins tune, which was a bummer, but at least that was all they missed.

Lisa ran her first talkback for this production this evening. Point: When asked, teenagers admit they want to live forever, even or especially if it means being a vampire. Senior citizens to do not want immortality under any circumstances. Discuss.

Brief Interlude

2010-02-19T10:30:00.005-05:00

My friends Kelly and Josh presented their Shakespeare stage-combat cabaret KILL WILL at CPT's Big Box last month. It is hilarious, and they have put their foot in for a couple fringe festivals this summer.

This video is part of the show, that's Josh playing Macbeth and Kelly as Macdonwald. During the live performance they are playing this video game, the results of which make Kelly extremely irritated.

I offer it here ~~as an excuse to promote my friends' show~~ because as this blog is currently promoting the Great Lakes Theater Festival Outreach Tour, I thought it only appropriate to include some Shakespeare-oriented material.

And hey - Max Shreck wins the Dracula on Film poll!

Hard-core.

2010-02-18T17:53:00.007-05:00

The tour came to Lorain Admiral King High School today. Loading in we had the assistance of maybe a dozen volunteers who were pressed into service to help us move large bits of the set and help us get everything up and ready. The three of us have yet to put the whole thing together or tear it down by ourselves - in fact, it's usually Daniel orchestrating the load-out, which is something to see as he is the guy wearing the suit every night.

This was our first high school audience - true there were students at LCCC last night, but it was largely a mix of old and young there. We had a larger than usual audience, it was reported that there were some 8th graders with us. LAK doesn't send the entire student body to witness the outreach tour ... but I am still mystified as to exactly which students come to see us and why. A few joined us afterwards to help load out, asking us what the show was about. We pointed them to the blue sheet in the program listing future Lorain County locations (you can see the column at right.)

As for the performance itself, it went over very well. I believe this will be a trend - the high school students will watch patiently through the first two arcs and then bust out in surprise at the final two. Daniel warned me about the arcane nature of Arc One: The Giaour, and how it might go right over the heads of the high school audiences. It doesn't go over their heads exactly, but I am worried they think the entire show is going to sound like that and check out. He prepped them during the pre-show speech to let them know what the play was about - and how it eventually reaches more contemporary material.

Something else ... teenagers can read something dirty into almost anything. And today was the first time an audience really got creeped out by the old bald Count coming onto the Maria in Arc Two.

It is going to be very, very hard to get out of these high school shows within 90 minutes of the end of the talkback. So many kids want to talk to us, to sign autographs, to talk about the play! And the girls keep hitting on Dusten. Pity poor Dusten.

We got groupies!

2010-02-17T23:03:00.004-05:00

Very good second night, at Lorain County Community College. Okay, it is true, we had one drunk guy who answered his cellphone and took the call during one of my narrations, so I told him I would wait until he was done. But he didn't get the hint and Daniel had to escort him out. What is this, TV?

However, the rest of the evening was just fabulous, and a real education. There were a number of folks - younger ones - who showed up because of the Morning Journal article on Sunday, and were out to see some vampires.

During the first arc, I was worried we may have lost them, but apparently the opposite was true. What do you expect, when you came for something Twilight related and instead we begin with a pithy riposte like "my intentions are all one might expect on such an occasion" (that's original Polidori) you might be turned off. However, the teens in attendance were apparently rapt, thinking, "okay, this is new, but I'm with you." By the middle of the Dracula sequence, they were loosening up, and I think they knew there was some comedy involved.

So, by the fourth arc, we had them. Lots of positive feedback following the performance. One guy really liked the fight scenes (yay-bo, Dusten) and a girl asked ... well, I can't really say what she asked, without giving away some secrets. But Emily and I had an interestingly cryptic back-and-forth during the discussion -- honestly, Emily, you can say absolutely anything you want.

Ozen Yula's Facebook status update, 2/17/2010

"On the Dark Side of Twilight"ı seyrettim. Çok basit bir dekoru vardı. Ama David Hansen'in teksti çok güzeldi. Polidori, Bram Stoker, Anne Rice, Stephenie Meyer'in vampir hikâyeleri bir parodi çerçevesinde birbirine eklenmiş.Postmodern kan içmeyen vampirlerle son buluyor ama o da ilk hikâyeye,200 yıl öncesine bağlanıyor. Bildik film sahneleri art arda dizilmiş. Aynı sözler ama bu defa gerçekten komik!"

Translation: "On the Dark Side of Twilight" I watched. There was a very simple decor. But the text of David Hansen was very beautiful. Polidori, Bram Stoker, Anne Rice, Stephenie Meyer's vampire stories attached to each other within the framework of a parody. Postmodern ends with blood inside, but it is not the first vampire story, 200 years before connect. Familiar movie scenes repeatedly arranged. Same words, but this time, really funny!"

Thank you, Google Translate! Komik!

Did you hear ..?

2010-02-17T11:32:00.003-05:00

Check out GLTF Education Director Daniel Hahn and I being interviewed on yesterday's Around Noon.

Dusten and I taping a scene from DARK SIDE for "Around Noon"

Opening Night

2010-02-17T00:20:00.003-05:00

Well. I think that went all right.

Very nice turn out at the Alcazar tonight, a nice mix of residents, friends and family, theater people and vampire freaks. Does the show work? I think it does. The nicest thing an audience member said following the performance was, "I was surprised more people didn't come out for curtain call."

The director enjoys the performance from afar.

My little girl aged seven, was in attendance. I am looking forward to talking to her about it, during the performance I had enough self-awareness to think, "Ew. Is that line going to bend her mind?"

Most of the time, however, there was not, in fact, time for such reflection. I think there is a brief moment during the first arc where I stand stood still for a few seconds backstage thinking, "Really? Shouldn't I be putting something on/taking something off/hitting a sound cue/wiping something up?" Other than that I was mostly doing one of those things at all times, and so was everyone else.

It took five of us forty minutes to get everything out of the space. What the hell will three of us do tomorrow? But it does pack up nicely.

And holy crap! Turkish playwright Ozen Yula was in attendance to see the opening night of my show! Yeah. I think that went all right.

We open ...

2010-02-16T07:38:00.004-05:00

Andare _ Ludovico Einaudi

Final Dress

2010-02-15T22:34:00.003-05:00

First off - it's an hour five. And I am okay with that if you are.

Secondly, in all of our experiences managing the GLTF Outreach Tour, we have never been afforded the opportunity to have the final dress in the space in which we will open. Tonight we did a double-run in the Alcazar. Thank you, Alcazar! I can walk into the space tomorrow relatively relaxed and with no pulled muscles.

Speaking of which, of my. That set is cumbersome. But beautiful.

And then there's the matter of my voice, which I always tax the night before any opening because I am entirely unprofessional. Check in and see what state my state is in by listening to AROUND NOON tomorrow (Tuesday) to hear myself and GLTF Education Director Daniel Hahn!

Come and join us ... on the dark side.

Wait, wait!

2010-02-15T08:19:00.001-05:00

A woman from North Pole, Alaska calls NPR quiz show "Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me!" -- and no one believes her. (See: Bluff the Listener.)

Lorain!

2010-02-14T23:22:00.003-05:00

A Vampire stars in Lorain County:
Great Lakes tours famous tales of (bloody) romance to Workshop, LCCC, elsewhere
by Laura Kennelly

Great Lakes Theater Festival has a great big, very red (kinda bloody) valentine coming for Lorain County audiences. It’s all about the legends of vampires, romance and obsession as seen in four super-popular vampire tales. It’s all about theater, too ... (more)

The last place on earth

2010-02-14T00:28:00.003-05:00

I do not know if a record has been kept of all of the design elements of all 20 previous GLTF outreach tours. However, I am guessing we are setting a few records. No less than eighteen distinctive costume looks, we added most of those on Thursday night. For the most part, we rocked them. Then last night Richard added sound. I have not counted the sound cues, but they will be executed, in their entirety, by the three of us. We do not have a stage manager, or if we do, that would be me.

And I wrote this monstrosity. This is all my fault.

On Monday we will have a much clearer idea of how long it is going to take to set up and tear this show down. Until then, I am just tossing in my sleep over it. I was happy to have the opportunity to spend a brief, casual, social moment on Friday night following our extended rehearsal. I am very happy with this company.

Andrew appears to have been having fun with this production. There is a terrible amount of cracking up going on during scene work. This is not unusual for the outreach tour, at least not the past several years. Blame me and Andrew, I guess.

The discussion turned to source material for the script last night and I made a connection I had previously been unaware of - or had forgotten. In choosing North Pole, Alaska as the site of our final scene, a place remote and distant enough, a place someone like Eddie would head to to hide, I was making a link to the establishing setting of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, on a ship commandeered by one Captain Walton.

His destination? The North Pole.

First Dress Rehearsal

2010-02-12T11:20:00.003-05:00

Arc One: The Giaour

Arc Two: The Count

Arc Three: The Interview

Arc Four: The Dusk

Glaciers melting in the dead of night

2010-02-10T22:57:00.006-05:00

Big night - our first run-through. Kind of. It was the first time we put the entire show together. Richard was there to see it, and plot sound with Andrew, that will be added tomorrow. Esther brought the costumes, those will also be added tomorrow. And blood.

We open a week from yesterday. That's it. I do not mind saying I am a little freaked out. Three people running a show with the largest number of costumes and props I have seen in a GLTF outreach tour ... and I wrote it. Brilliant!

And hey - Count Dracula wins the literary vampire poll!

Vampires play baseball. Whatevs.

One week until opening.

2010-02-09T22:28:00.001-05:00

Pleasant dreams.

Gettin' kinda Kinski

2010-02-09T07:13:00.005-05:00

SPOILER ALERT!

One of the central twists in Murnau's Nosferatu is how the vampire is not chased down by the men (as in Stoker's novel) but rather lured to the Mina character's chamber as she offers herself as a sacrifice to save the larger community.

To make this even more obvious, I thought I remembered Murnau having Orlock almost escape with the encroaching daylight, but that Mina drew him back to her to make sure the job was finished. However, upon my last viewing of Nosferatu I was confused to discover that this is not the case.

Because that's from Werner Herzog's 1979 Nosferatu the Vampire! Ah-HA!

This is the cource for a pivotal moment in Dark Side ... though whether or not the lady's intentions are entirely pure are left to interpretation.

Dusky

2010-02-08T10:20:00.003-05:00

Teen heart-throb Edwin C. almost vomits at the sight of new student Lucy.
Tonight we stage a Matrix-style fist-fight (or whatever) and maybe answer the question of exactly how you stab a vampire with a stake to the heart and not hurt any of the actors.

I need to look up some blood recipes. If anyone has any to share, they are strongly encouraged. These need to to edible, if not tasty.

North Pole, Alaska

2010-02-07T17:28:00.005-05:00

Incorporated in 1953, this Alaskan city was named North Pole in the hopes that some major toy manufacturer would locate there to have the opportunity to label their work MADE IN NORTH POLE. This never happened, but they have had the chance to draw a certain amount of touristy attention, anyway. And as you can see, the light poles all look like candy canes.

The city website lists several recognizable chain stores as major employers and recognizes both the North Pole and Beaverbrook Malls. I have been to Fairbanks, and I think I know what this city looks like. Saying "like Fairbanks, only smaller" is akin to saying "like Tim Gunn, only nattier."

North Pole, Alaska is the setting for the final arc of this play - The Dusk. If the trip from Phoenix to Forks seemed like day and night, imagine a teenager relocating from Lahaina to this place.

No, I have never been to North Pole. But that's all right - Stephenie Meyer had never been to Forks.

TAKE THE LITERARY VAMPIRE POLL!

A Girl Like You

2010-02-06T21:35:00.002-05:00

Media

2010-02-06T07:39:00.003-05:00

We received a call in the office from a very interested high school teacher with a lot of questions about the production. She was interested in bringing her students to one of the public performances. One of the long-standing contacts for GLTF's School Residency Program, she called Lisa and she immediately handed the phone over to me. Yes, she's read the blurb, but it doesn't explain what the show is. What to expect. What will they see?

This is a teacher's job, to find out answers. For things to be clear. I respect that.

I began by explaining the origins of the piece, the original idea, to tell the story of the two-hundred year history of vampire literature. Four short plays inspired by four pivotal pieces of vampire lit.

She asked if that meant they would each be brief versions of these stories. No! They are all original, they follow the tale of one vampire - named Aubrey Porlock - though each is in a different style, representations of each of these stories.

Will it be confusing to the audience. No! We have a narrator ... as in the novel Dracula - which is made up entirely of "source" material, diaries, letters, newspaper articles, all first-person accounts - the narrator seeks to uncover the mystery by sharing such antique documents with the audience, and explain just where and when we are.

It all became very clear and we are working with this educator to find out how to bring her students to a show, to make sure they arrive at a venue where they are guaranteed of a seat.

Speaking of those "source materials," we had a great surprise this week. As the story winds on, these media become more technologically advanced, from hand-written letters and journals to newspapers and cassette-tape recordings to blogs ... and one radio broadcast. I cannot say who is featured iin the broadcast. But I can say it will sound very professional.

Nosferatu Dances to 'Poker Face'

2010-02-05T11:36:00.005-05:00

Revisiting The Count/Nosferatu last night. Hilarity! My inspiration for the script was based much more on the Dracula stage play than either the novel or the film, and Andrew has been treating it accordingly. While the first arc is arcane - a gothic voyage into an unfamiliar land, in so many ways - The Count is meant to be stagey, broad, very showy. Andrew made comparisons to the performers in the movie-within-the-movie The Purple Rose of Cairo.

And yes, we finally blocked the final scene from Nosferatu. I need to clock those moves in front of a mirror.

HAVE YOU TAKEN THE LITERARY VAMPIRE POLL?

TAKE THE POLL

2010-02-03T21:13:00.004-05:00

Straining to get this script out of my hands ... the scenes are easy, dialogue is easy. Narration is hard. Andrew has me on a very precise track for "The Narrator" but I am unhappy with my own results. Is he Rod Serling, Robert Stack, Tim Keo? I have no idea. What he isn't, or should not be, is hesitant or bookish. Hmn. Good luck with that, Dave.

The rehearsal space is so tiny ... I must remember to take a look at the scene Dusten and Emily are creating between Aubrey and Xanthe. SO much of what is going on involves glances, and stupid me, I am hanging behind the set-wall waiting for my entrances, it would take half a second (literally - half-a-second) to pop out, take a look and head back. The way these tours work, that's my only chance.

See the new poll at the right? TAKE THE POLL!

Breaking 'Dusk'

2010-02-02T22:10:00.007-05:00

"My home ... what had been my home, a little island, perhaps, but wrapped around it the many climates of the earth, volcanic, balmy, constant showers, desert, rainforest, everything but cold. Not cold, never cold. No walls, no windows, and every space a contour, undulating, constant motion in the stillness of one tiny hunk of lava. " - Lucy

The invitation had been extended at the outside - I would be open to any and all editing. This fell out pretty fast, and faster and faster as the arcs stacked up. And I did write them in order, so it is glaring to me that the last piece was put together a bit hastily.

And yet, tonight Andrew announced it was his favorite arc. Unlike the previous three scenes, this is the only one where no one says exactly what they mean, or at least not often. It's all about what is in-between the lines. I was glad to hear that.

But the editing ... I never mind suggestions to make things shorter. What I don't like is rewriting - that's like ... work. I changed a few things in the first two arcs since rehearsals started, no one else asked me to alter anything, though. Working The Interview yesterday, however, I needed to change a few lines, some humorous comments that just weren't flying. And tonight Andrew finally asked to cut an entire paragraph, when we are meeting Lucy for the first time, as she compares her home in Hawaii to where she has just moved - the city of North Pole, Alaska.

"Yes, Emily, there is a North Pole, Alaska." She thought her character was being snarky, but no, that part is true.

And here were are, two weeks before our first performance, with the shape of the show more or less blocked out ... except for the fights. And the blood, the props, the costumes ... and Nosferatu.

He looks up, behind his back to the window, she reaches out and draws his face back to her neck, and he resumes feeding. A yellow spot appears, and grows in intensity. Sunlight. He stands, turning towards the window in horror. He moves for the door, as he crosses the pane of glass, he is struck by the full-force of the light. He turns, clutches his chest with one hand, raises the other to the heavens, and disappears.

We'll get there, Andrew. Make it work.

The Writer

2010-02-01T21:02:00.004-05:00

In our breathless pursuit of getting this piece on its feet in no less than two weeks (oh yes, I keep reminding myself - two weeks) we gave some shape to the third arc: The Interview.

The third part of this story diverges considerably from the first two. The truth is, each stylistically quite different from each other. But as this piece is the first from a modern era (the 70s and 80s) it will not seem as unusual as the first two.

However, that is its own trap. The first two are so much fun precisely because they are larger than life. As we bring the vampire to our modern era he has the potential to become smaller - I mean think about it, he has to a large degree, a point which will be made painfully clear by the time we reach The Book That Must Not Be Named.

And yet, "Arc Three" is more of a ghost story than a vampire tale. And it is the piece that references the most true history, and the most real places. This can be interesting ... or talky. I hope its not talky.

Because the language is contemporary, tonight was the night I felt - as playwright - most like jumping in as director. "No, no!" I was thinking, "That's not what I meant!" In The Count its all so obvious. Here its so ... hip. Ironic. Sarcastic. Unclear. A lot like having a conversation with ME, I imagine.

But hey, there's also a bunch of physical stuff. We've been kind of and then a miracle happens whenever we reach a piece of necessary choreography (see: the Nosferatu sequence) but we did work the strangling scene ... and Dusten and I do a lot of heavy breathing on each other.

Assessment

2010-02-01T00:15:00.004-05:00

One week into rehearsal, we open two weeks from Tuesday. Remarkable how much we could get done in only four nights of work - and me, with three grants due tomorrow. Watching Dusten shift gears from sunny cluelessness in the first arc to bullhead indignation and self-righteous posturing in the second is great fun. Emily I know less well but I have been impressed by her sense of humor onstage in other productions and have been surprised at how meticulous she is in rehearsal - I suppose I shouldn't have been. She gets to play three parts in the first two scenes, Dusten only has to play one part at a time.

And me. Jesus. I have written myself some ridiculously turgid passages. What I need right now is time to memorize my own words.

The way Andrew tears through this is amazing, the hours fly by. I can't wait to see where we are this time next week.

The Count

2010-01-30T09:48:00.004-05:00

And now it's a vampire play. Moving from the language-dense first arc into this hyper-stagey melodrama ... I mean, it's just so much fun! I am trying very, very hard not to go all Lugosi, but it is a challenge. Especially because I wrote myself a monologue that is more Bride of the Monster than Dracula.

Home? I have no home. Hunted, despised, Living like an animal! The jungle is my home. But I will show the world that I can be its master! I will perfect my own race of people. A race of atomic supermen which will conquer the world! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! - Dr. Eric Vornoff

Costume fitting today!

2010-01-29T17:07:00.003-05:00

Click on to enlarge image!

Your narrator.

Lord Darvell

Maria Hartwell

Young Aubrey Porlock

Visited Esther in the costume shop today, she asked if we shouldn't postpone the fitting today because she was lacking certain pieces ... but I'd made cookies and everything, and besides, there is an awful lot to get through. I haven't even included the pictures of the Count or the contemporary Porlock. It is all going to look delicious!

Get set ...

2010-01-28T23:20:00.005-05:00

Did I mention the room we are rehearsing in is really small? But you know, so many of the spaces we will be performing in (I'm looking at you, Nordonia Branch of the the Akron Public Library) that it doesn't bother me, or Andrew. I can't speak for the rest of them.

I mean, it was tight yesterday, when we began shaping the show. But tonight we have the set, and now we really know where we stand. Or don't. Where we don't stand. Because there is little room to stand there.

I jest. The fact is, we are having great fun blocking the first arc. Because it is the most challenging arc, because it is the arc the fewest people will be familiar with. But Andrew is making great effort to make it clear, easy to follow, suspenseful - and very, very weird.

He has truly encouraged me to loosen up with my Darvell, much more Oscar Wilde than, well, Nosferatu to be honest. So when he does become menacing, it throws you. Is this guy serious?

Costume fitting tomorrow. I made cookies!

(By the way - it's not staying purple. Just so you know.)

Talkback

2010-01-28T06:09:00.005-05:00

Daniel and I visited the Alcazar yesterday, where this play will premiere on Tuesday, February 16. We traditionally head over in advance of the tour to decide which room will be suit the production - and to have a presentation for interested Alcazar residents on the tour.

We have pretty much decided to return to the ballroom on the 5th floor. Hope you can join us.

One of our concerns has been how this play will go over with people of a certain age. We know the kids dig the vampires, but what about the seniors? Well, I do not think we have much to worry about. If anything, we were reminded that everyone knows what vampires are - and you know, some people really do know more than you do.

I met a self-professed witch who is very excited about the show coming, and a woman whose husband is Romanian and faced me a couple times over Vlad Teppes. There was a lady who sounded British who confessed that she had never read a single vampire novel, ever. But she was looking forward to the production.

What I also discovered is that I can run my mouth about vampire minutiae. This is something I will need to curb during post-show discussions, which are supposed to be about issues raised in the play, and not just how smart I think I am.

During rehearsal we sketched through The Giaour. I am thrilled that, from the very beginning, Andrew is getting us on our feet and working on how we rip through this thing. Speed, speed, speed!

First Night

2010-01-27T13:10:00.005-05:00

Just the four of us, Andrew (director), Dusten (Man #2), Emily (Woman) and I (Man #1 - of course) met for three hours last night to read the script a few times and begin a discussion about how we are going to tackle it.

Speed, for certain. A sense of urgency. Why are we here? You wait, I will show you. As Andrew says, every scene ends/begins with a sinister, "Oh yeah? There's MORE."

I got to try out the Romanian and it seems to work well. Not quite Lugosi (that's a good thing) and straining to avoid Pavel Chekov. Perhaps the first rehearsal I have ever attended that included a reference to the film Dodgeball.

Peter: Alliteration aside, I think I'll take my chances.
White Goodman: Yeah, you will take your chances.
Peter: I know. I just said that.
White Goodman: I know you "just said that".
Peter: I'm not sure where you're going with this.
White Goodman: I'm not sure where you're going with this.
Peter: That's what I said.
White Goodman: That's what I'm saying to you.
Peter: Okay.
White Goodman: Touché.

WJCU "The Heights!"

2010-01-26T13:42:00.000-05:00

Thank you, Uncle Fred!

THERE REALLY ARE SUCH THINGS!!!

2010-01-25T22:42:00.002-05:00

We begin rehearsals tomorrow ... ran into Andrew this evening in the offices, we looked over the rehearsal space, big enough for maybe two of us to fit into at one time, but that's okay, there's only two of us onstage at any given moment anyway.

Man. I have to put these words I have written into my own mouth. Very strange. It's nothing I am familiar with. When I perform solo shows, it is like being me, telling stories. And I have written plays for others. But never created a fiction for myself to perform in.

There is so much business in this play, so much stagecraft, effects, combat, music, sound effects, what was I thinking?

Kelly has been pulling the program together, that's going to look good. Again - clarity, Daniel reminds us, clarity. How do we get an audience up to speed on so much history in such a brief period of time. A high school audience, an audience of geriatrics. There is a character listing, with the date of each scene (1810, 1900, &c.) and a great essay from Margaret about each novel that inspires the work. Kelly has added costume renderings from each time period, people will know what they are getting themselves into.

The costumes, by the way ... well, I just need to make an entry soon all about the costumes. Yeah. Awesome.

And it all starts tomorrow.

The Eternal ... Vampire

2010-01-24T14:49:00.003-05:00

So the question was ... in the notes for the program, should we call the film Nosfertau Anti-Semitic? I think what Daniel was most concerned about was the implication that Stoker's book is, by proxy, anti-Semitic, but we did have a good discussion about whether or not stating it so flatly isn't inviting unnecessary controversy.

I was not suggesting that the Murnau was intentionally setting out to make a Jew-hating film. But I do feel that there were and are stereotypical traits that have been ascribed to one race with are manifest in the character of Count Orlock - and that prior to the Holocaust, inarguably the horrific culmination of centuries of passive acceptance of these stereotypes by non-Jewish peoples, these negative physical, moral and spiritual traits were and acceptable way of telling a story.

I do not need to provide links to hate-sites to provide ample evidence that others, even and especially today, hold up this film as an excellent metaphor for the Jewish problem. And I do hope that this particular use of the vampire myth will make for some excellent discussions during our tour.

Rehearsals begin Tuesday. And yes, we do have a space.

Vampire Prevention Win

2010-01-21T21:19:00.001-05:00

2010-01-21T15:49:00.001-05:00

And we're live.

"Funny! Touching! Smart!"

2010-01-20T21:41:00.006-05:00

Hey, hey - here's some guerilla PR! Dan Shaurette's vampire-loving podcast: Out of the Coffin, episode #55 features a shout-out to DARK SIDE! I sent him a copy of one of the earlier drafts a month or two ago, and he and his lovely wife Michelle give it some airtime. Listen for it around the 32 minute mark.

"I love it a lot!" - Dan Shaurette, author of Lilith's Love. "Full of suspense, romance, drama and lots of laughs."

Press Release

2010-01-20T15:05:00.003-05:00

For Immediate Release:
January 20, 2010

Great Lakes Theater Festival Presents
World Premiere of On the Dark Side of Twilight
As Free Touring Production

The new play by local playwright David Hansen
will visit twenty-one venues across northeast Ohio.

Great Lakes Theater Festival (GLTF) will launch the world premiere of On the Dark Side of Twilight, a free touring production scheduled to visit twenty-one neighborhood venues throughout northeast Ohio, to kick off the company’s 2010 series of Surround outreach programming. The production features a touring company of three actors and is directed by Andrew May. The tour commences on February 16th, continues through March 11th and is designed to support the Festival’s upcoming main stage production of Bat Boy: The Musical at the Hanna Theatre, PlayhouseSquare, this Spring. All performances of the touring production are free and open to the public, with the exception of performances at area schools, which are private. The touring play is appropriate for teens through adults.

“Now more than ever, we believe it is important to share free, professional theatre with people out in their own communities,” said Daniel Hahn, Great Lakes Theater Festival’s Director of Education, when asked about the Festival’s annual tour. “When we decided to produce Bat Boy: The Musical, I knew right away that from an educational perspective, exploring classic gothic literature’s influence on contemporary society had some relevance. We are extremely fortunate to have an award-winning playwright in David Hansen on our staff, and vampire lore is somewhat of his specialty. David was very excited to take on this project, and I think audiences are going to be taken by his wonderful new play.”

Taking its title from a Bram Stoker quotation, David Hansen’s world premiere one-act drama On the Dark Side of Twilight explores the evolution of the classic vampire myth, from its literary origins in John Polidori’s The Vampyre, through Stoker’s Dracula, Anne Rice’s Interview With A Vampire, and Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight. An homage to four pivotal moments in the history of classic vampire literature, taken as a whole, On the Dark Side of Twilight describes a complete, two-century epic centering around the character of Aubrey Porlock.

The three-actor touring company features Cleveland actors David Hansen, Emily Elizabeth Pucell, and Dusten Welch. The design trio of Terry Martin (scenic design), Esther Haberlen (costume design) and Richard Ingraham (sound design) complete the play’s production team. “Andrew has directed multiple GLTF tours, and Terry and Richard have designed for this program for several years as well, so we are thrilled to have their talents again on this year’s tour. I am especially proud to feature the Surround debut of costume designer Esther Haberlen, GLTF’s assistant Costume Shop Manager.” Hahn said.

On the Dark Side of Twilight is a seventy-minute program that includes an introduction and post-performance discussion. This production is appropriate for teens through adults. Times and dates are subject to change. Call individual venues for more information about the performances.

On the Dark Side of Twilight is part of a series of community programs surrounding Great Lakes Theater Festival’s upcoming Spring Repertory production of Bat Boy: The Musical, story and book by Keythe Farley & Brian Flemming; music & lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe (April 8 – May 16, 2010 at the Hanna Theatre, PlayhouseSquare). Held throughout northern Ohio from February through October, the 2010, the Festival’s Surround offers multiple educational programs designed to connect the issues in our plays to the issues in people’s own lives. All Surround events are free and open to the public when at non-school venues.

For more information, visit the Great Lakes Theater Festival website at www.greatlakestheater.org or call the Festival’s education department
at (216) 241-5490 x307.

# # #

Oh, my.

2010-01-19T12:22:00.001-05:00

ON THE DARK SIDE OF TWILIGHT opens one month from today.

Rehearsals begin one week from today.

At present, we have no rehearsal space.

Bela Lugosi's Dead

2010-01-18T15:52:00.002-05:00

Gratuitous

2010-01-18T15:31:00.001-05:00

Speaking

2010-01-08T22:00:00.001-05:00

International Dialects of English Archive: ROMANIAN

LATER: My friend Chuck R. will be assisting me in developing a Romanian accent for the older version of Porlock ... we want to avoid some Bela Lugosi kind of thing, Porlock isn't really Romanian anyway, he just finds himself spending ninety years there.

Poster's done! See it to the side there.

New Title

2010-01-08T10:22:00.001-05:00

On the Dark Side of Twilight

Thoughts?

Rohypnol

2010-01-05T07:00:00.006-05:00

"Listening to Vampire Weekend is like being serenaded by a date rapist."
- David Hansen, 2008

Drowned In Sound review
Oh, the British. Too clever by half. Where damning with faint praise isn't some kind of tired, jaded pose, but something you merely exhale.

LATER: Hey - check out the new banner artwork. The final graphic has not been chosen yet, but we're getting close.

Torture

2010-01-04T05:58:00.005-05:00

Mildly diverting fan-fiction.

se⋅quel /ˈsikwəl/ –noun
1. a literary work, movie, etc., that is complete in itself but continues the narrative of a preceding work.
2. an event or circumstance following something; subsequent course of affairs.
3. a result, consequence, or inference.
Origin: 1375–1425; late ME sequel(e) < L sequēla what follows, equiv. to sequ(ī) to follow + -ēla n. suffix

Yes, by that definition, Dracula: The Un-Dead is a sequel. But having read the original and this work back-to-back, really highlighted the classic nature of the original, and the commonness of the follow-up.

The original novel is suspenseful, lyric, haunting, surprising, subtle and thoughtful. This book is obvious, grotesque, and desperately begging for a film option.

I will admit, from a personal point of view, Quincey Harker's and his mentor's relationship held my interest in the opening chapters, and there were aspects of the period represented which were detailed and interesting. However, once the action begins moving, it's all very trite and spelled out in broad terms, the broadest of which is the villain, Countess Bathory, who is a very irritating character. Painted as a man-hating, drag-king, lesbian-witch from Hell, she is quite simply boring in every scene she is in.

My question is, my not take the risk and create a sequel that is written like the original, in found letters and documents? That simple (yet difficult) conceit makes the story live in the moment - and makes the mystery that much more mysterious, as we live the tale through those who do not know everything. Dracula, as presented in Bram Stoker's novel, is a complete cypher, he speaks for sure, but we only hear his thoughts through others. As penned by Ian Holt (and fronted by Dacre Stoker) he and Bathory are too accessible - in his case, far too much like Lestat or other vampires who have come since, and that brings this legendary creature far too close to earth.

Why so much time spent on a review for a book I disliked? Because I felt compelled to finish it because of this play, otherwise I would have returned it to the library two weeks ago. I do not have time to read any more vampire fiction, it's 2010 and I need to get me a biography of Jesse Owens.

Nightmare

2009-12-27T11:11:00.004-05:00

Had an honest-to-God vampire nightmare last night. Only - and this is telling - I was the vampire, and I was terrified of getting caught.

I was working in collabortaion with someone, probably some kind of mentor, I cannot remember who. They had captured this plus-sized woman (Susan Boyle?) by pressing some kind of restrictive electronic bolts into her neck. I was then supposed to slash her throat open ... but I was armed with only a Phillips head screwdriver. She was all screaming and stuff and I was making these passes with the screwdriver which barely scratched her skin.

Later, I was to attack and suck the blood of a partygoer at this large, fancy, well-attended party. I was to pull them into the shadows and do my work. But I freaked out and ended up just grabbing them and running out of the party with them. At this point, I believe my intended victim was Doug Kusak, and he wasn't too bothered by my behavior because he knows me.

Huh. Why Doug? Maybe because he played a part in my other vampire play. Anyway, I was a pathetic, wimpy, scared vampire-wannabe guy.

Copy

2009-12-21T11:06:00.004-05:00

We held some informal auditions this weekend. It was very reassuring to hear how much Andrew was enjoying the material, and how much he was asking from the actors were in sync with my own feelings about these characters.

Whew!

Meanwhile, I recently had a dream that we sat down for a reading of the script, somewhere at some time, and that it suddenly occurred to me that one of my scenes was entirely plagiarized from something a contemporary of mine has written - and that she was there for the reading! Man. That was embarrassing.

Impaled

2009-12-19T06:17:00.004-05:00

Dracula: The Un-Dead first impressions: Dracula as snuff film.

I was amused to find a passing reference to "Dr. Langella." I am also using names from other pieces of literature for non-appearing characters. It's fun.

Pulp

2009-12-13T15:23:00.003-05:00

Bella's Bookshelf
"This is a blog for discussing the classic literature that Bella Swan Cullen mentions through the course of the Twilight Saga. We will also read the type of books that I think Bella would keep on her bookshelf in the cottage, as well as the works that Stephenie Meyer used as a basis for the Twilight Saga."

Well, kids, what do we say about trash-lit that steers young people toward the classics? We call them gateway drugs, don't we? I'm all for it. Reading is reading. My six year-old just finished her first chapter book all on her own - 118 pages. She devoured it in just a couple days.

Uh, she is reading over my shoulder. Right now.

Meanwhile, I am reading Dracula: The Un-Dead. It's fun! Really! The Harkers' offspring, mentioned in the Epilogue of "The Original Classic" (oops, uh, SPOILER ALERT) is a disappointment to his parents because (wait for it ...) he wants to join THE THEATRE!

So there's that. It is far too kinky (lesbians! whips!) for me to take it very seriously, but that doesn't mean the pages aren't turning.

Meanwhile ... The Giaour ... The Giaour ... The Giaour ...

Audiobooks

2009-12-12T06:19:00.007-05:00

Okay, so a few weeks ago I paid actual money to download an audiobook of Polidori's The Vampyre. It was worth it to listen to someone read the piece out loud, because the narrator, B.J. Harrison, emphasized things that I wouldn't have, and the pace was different for me. He does put on an affected accent which I do not believe is necessary, but it is a vampire story. It was worth two bucks.

However, if you are too cheap to spring for a semi-professional read, by all means dig into this presentation from HorrorAddicts.net - or as Host/Sad Girl Emerian Rich likes to call it, Horror Addicks. Once you get past all the ads and banter about exciting, eventually-to-be-written fanfiction, you will be treated to an auditory experience like no other.

Signs

2009-12-11T20:40:00.002-05:00

The photo shoot for the poster was today. This is a shot Daniel took of the monitor for one of the outtakes. I could tell you what the plan is for the final design ... but I would hate to ruin the surprise.

Loving this.

I had to miss the shoot, however. Very exciting news and the certification was finally issued so I am allowed to announce it:

Twenty artists receive Creative Workforce Fellowships
January 11, 2009 - The Plain Dealer
The fellows were scheduled to have a public introduction at the Beck Center for the Arts in Lakewood today. "Hard work sometimes pays off," said fellowship winner and Cleveland Public Theatre's director of education Chris Seibert. (more)

Here's to 2010 being a good year.

Buffy vs Edward

2009-12-10T22:22:00.004-05:00

Thanks, Jen.

Dracula: The Un-Dead

2009-12-08T12:24:00.003-05:00

So, having finally finished Dracula, I picked up THE SEQUEL TO THE ORIGINAL CLASSIC - Dracula: The-Undead ~~(and loving it.)~~

Not an "authorized" sequel, but as you can see it IS a SEQUEL - and not only that, but also positively a sequel of THE ORIGINAL CLASSIC. It was written by one Dacre Stoker who is an authentic great-grand nephew of Bram Stoker.

But hell, so am I. Well, no, but I think I am a great-grand nephew of Bob Dole. Seriously. It doesn't make me a Senator.

Prior to all of this mockery I did read two pages, and they are really bad. Mr. Stoker has a co-writer, too, Mr. Ian Holt, who at least has credit as a screenwriter. Mr. Stoker is a high school gym teacher.

Crystal

2009-12-08T06:30:00.005-05:00

Had a dynamite discussion with Daniel yesterday afternoon about the reading two weeks ago. From The Count on, we are clear. Even if people are not intimately familiar with the books in question, the stakes are clear - why these things are happening, and why they are happening now.

But The Giaour is our entrance to this world, and it must be crystal clear. Daniel quote Granville-Barker, a quotation I have been searching for in its detail but it goes something like this, "Characters we don't know speaking at length about people we haven't yet met."

A Narrator says listen to me, this is important.

A man from a different time than our own begins to write in a book, and reads as he goes. His vocabulary is quite thick, he uses unfamiliar words, lots of them, addressing his sister, now speaking of a Lord - unusual names, hard to catch - and an impending journey.

Then another man enters, played by the Narrator, is that the Narrator or someone new? And is he a vampire, this is a vampire play, right? They are talking about "ruins" what does that mean?

And in this scene here, what does the younger man want from the older - and more importantly, what does the older man want from the younger man? That is a tricky one, he is supposed to be mysterious ... but as is the case with Edward Cullen, mysterious often means 1. not saying anything or 2. saying a lot of cryptic sh*t ... but not saying anything.

From the introduction of Xanthe on, Daniel feels it makes sense. Prior to that we must know precisely what is happening or we will lose people. Think of Rockynol. Think of Admiral King. Remember your audience.

"Dracula" by Bram Stoker

2009-12-08T05:45:00.005-05:00

un⋅can⋅ny
/ʌnˈkæni/ [uhn-kan-ee]
–adjective
1. having or seeming to have a supernatural or inexplicable basis; beyond the ordinary or normal; extraordinary: uncanny accuracy; an uncanny knack of foreseeing trouble.
2. mysterious; arousing superstitious fear or dread; uncomfortably strange: Uncanny sounds filled the house.

Spoiler Alert: There will be spoiler.

In spite of a protracted final chase sequence for which it was difficult for this reader (encumbered by matters of a domestic nature) to keep his eyes open ... for several nights ... and the conclusion, which by today's standards was a bit anti-climactic (he doesn't fight back? really? just lies there?) it was impressive to me the extent to which this novel clearly sets out a series of rules, regulations, and plot structure which have defined vampire adventures ever since.

1. Ordinary people are set upon by a creature of which they are ignorant.
2. Eccentric expert appears who knows exactly what it is and precisely how to kill it.
3. They chase down the monster and slay it, all is right with the world.
4. ... or is it?

Is this novel an indictment of Victorian values, or is this novel their champion? In particular I was delighted by Mina's final-act observation of how great it is to have lots of money - that if they did not, they wouldn't have been able to fight back against this villain at all, could not have afforded passage across the wilds of Europe, certainly not with any speed or comfort, they could not have kept warm or fed themselves. Still fresh in everyone's mind prior to the publication of this book, a serial killer murdered a number of prostitutes, and no well-funded heroes set out the avenge their deaths.

To understand any of what comes after in vampire literature, this novel must be read first. Or in my case, eventually.

2009-12-07T06:54:00.002-05:00

Traumafessions: The Fearless Vampire Killers

VamPR

2009-12-05T13:50:00.006-05:00

Big P.R. pow-wow yesterday, headed by Todd with Andrew, Daniel and I in attendance. Todd and I came armed with color print-outs, I even had a sketch.

Question: How literal should the poster be? Playing off the TWILIGHT movie poster, I had mocked up a 19th century (see: Louis de Pointe du Lac) in for Edward and a goth-chick Bella.

This begs the question - in what way are we to attract fans of the book Twilight? I would like nothing more than to have teenagers attend the outreach tour with the promise of vampire romance. At the same time, we do not want to give the impression that this is a Twilight story, that it is that story or some kind of fan-fictionesque knock-off.

Some suggestions were humorous, and my concern there is if people are expecting a broad vampire-parody (see: Bat Boy: The Musical) they may be disappointed. Not that the play isn't humorous, it is. But I wouldn't call it a comedy.

We need to solidify something by Monday,. the photo shoot is scheduled for Friday. Meanwhile, there is a production meeting on Tuesday, and I am hoping to have a new draft available by Monday.

Wikipedia: The Grand Tour

2009-12-02T21:53:00.000-05:00

PUMPKINROT.COM

This is a great one.

2009-12-02T21:48:00.004-05:00

Three Of A Kind
They couldn’t wait to be old enough to get their very own chokers.

Posted using ShareThis

The (American) Cure

2009-12-01T18:14:00.009-05:00

A vampire is dead. Life has departed it, one is an animated corpse. The act of attacking a living creature, ripping its flesh to drink its blood - such a cliche, think about it, to suck the blood out of a human being, to sustain its own life ... a vein or an artery is not a drinking straw. Try pulling the liquid from a sponge with your mouth - forget the fangs for a moment, imagine what you need to do with your lips, drawing blood - dark, pungent blood - from another human's body, into your mouth, down your throat, so you may live another night.

How do you cure that? You can defeat a vampire, kill it, destroy its body in a number of proscribed ways. But how do you make something not what it is? How do you take a dead body and give it life, make it "normal" again? That's the Frankenstein story, isn't it? And how successful did that go?

Where did it first become a thing to cure vampirism?

I was listening to a podcast today where they had a "round table discussion" on The Lost Boys. The participants were maybe a half-decade or ten years younger than I. The Goonies generation. People my age were already well into high school when Goonies came out, and most of us thought it was pretty rank. Corey Feldman was great, absolutely fabulous in Stand By Me, I will give you that, everything after that is just vomit-making. My friends-who-are-slightly-younger love that flick. And The Lost Boys was made for them.

I was in college when that came out. It's insufferable. It is fun, but it is insufferable. I like Jason Patric, especially in his later work (Rush, Your Friends and Neighbors) but meeting him here for the first time I just figured Rob Lowe had turned the script down. And yes, Keifer is sexy fun ... even with a mullet.

But the Coreys? Grampa? Dianne Wiest wasted as a painfully stupid single-mother stereotype? And of course, there's the whole kill-the-head-vampire-and-you-become-human-if-you've-never-drank-blood-yet thing.

Maybe, if you kill the head vampire, all vampire children perish, I might buy that - see: The Vampire Chronicles. If vampirism is an ancient spirit being passed around, then yes, that makes sense. But you're dead. Because you are dead. Because some vampire drank your blood - you were drained of what keeps you alive and that killed you and you are being kept alive by something else but you are a dead thing.

Some say vampirism became a metaphor for AIDS in the 80s, and hence we longed for a cure (and by the way, I hope you had a good World AIDS Day) but I am not buying it. Vampirism can be a metaphor for being gay, to be sure, anything "outsider" metaphor works for that, especially stylish outsiders, even those with mullets. But I think it is more sinister - or mundane - than that. It's the American film idea that any story, every story, should have a happy ending. The puritanical idea that evil gets vanquished and that good is rewarded. If you were bad, but repent, you can be made whole again. A very simple, child-like idea.

And it makes for crap vampire stories.

Because sometimes, death happens. Sometimes people must be held accountable for their actions. And sometimes death comes to those who do not deserve it, most of the time really. It's the sad reality of life. And it goes back to the old myths. An animal jumped over your open grave, you're a vampire. Sorry. You were attacked in an alley by a vampire and several nights later you rise from your grave to feed off the blood of small children. Happens. These stories are supposed to be f*cking scary. Providing an out robs them of any potency, to me.

Don't get me started on "sucking the venom out" that doesn't even work with snakes it's something they tell people to make them think there is something you can actually do, you can't, it's venom not bubble tea you can't just suck it back out.

I liked it better when vampire stories had irrevocable consequences. And don't get me started on Jami Gertz.

2009-12-01T15:42:00.001-05:00

LoveVampires: Review of Polidori's "The Vampyre"

2009-11-30T20:26:00.003-05:00

Out of the Coffin Podcast

LATER: My own brother! A g-d damn, sh*t-sucking vampire!

EVEN LATER: Apparently, Edward Cullen's face is perfect.

Engagement

2009-11-28T23:41:00.003-05:00

Most notes, thoughst on the first reading ...

THE GIAOUR
This first section is quite unlike the rest. Honestly, I am thinking of making the third and fourth parts most different from each other, which they already are only less apparently so because each are "contemporary." But it remains that this adaptation of Polidori's The Vampyre was a stretch, to use a great deal of archaic vocabulary to set the tone, the era, etc. It borrows the most from its source than the others - but then, it is the least well-known of the the four.

Can there be less exposition, more showing, less telling? What is this "bond" Aubrey agrees to, and for what purpose and to what end? Put a different way, how can it be made clearer that he is inviting disaster through his choices, that he has broken promises, than he has brought this onto himself?

Can that be made clear at the end - can Lucy show him how he deserved what he got?

Does Darvell look better when we last see him? And if so, why?

The Giaour - Emotion and Engagement. Yes.

The World Is a Vampire

2009-11-28T17:39:00.000-05:00

Another Sexy Boy Vampire Playlist
Supermassive Black Hole - Muse
Bullet With Butterfly Wings - Smashing Pumpkins
Reckoner - Radiohead
Do You Want To - Franz Ferdinand
Brand New Colony - The Postal Service
The Sound of Settling - Death Cab for Cutie
Chelsea Dagger - The Fratellis
All I Need - Radiohead
Breakeven - The Script
Wake Up - Arcade Fire
No Surprises - Radiohead
Great DJ - The Ting Tings
Blue Light - Bloc Party
Mrs. Robinson (interlude) - Simon & Garfunkel
Walcott - Vampire Weekend

I think I figured out the Twilight Hate ... listening to today's playlist - which was generated by the GENIUS feature of iTunes - I realized that today's plump and balding Gen X-er's are hellapissed that vampires are no longer GOTH. I mean, vampires pre-existed Goth culture - Goth was an offspring of vampire culture, to be sure - but any mother can produce varied children. Today's "vampires" descend not from Peter Murphy and and Poopy Z. Brite, but from a different branch of the family tree.

From the bourgeois, from white trash, from America - not Europe. They are no longer pretentious. They are the kind of ordinary embraced by, well, Sarah Palin supporters. They aren't special. They are repressed. They are Puritan.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Distance: 6.15 miles
Temperature: 50º
Weather: cool and clear
Pavement: Uneven

A weekend at the rents, my brother and his family are in town from Minnesota. It's a big, small child weekend in Lakewood (missing the fifteen year-old in London whose birthday is today!) Took that lap around the west side of town ... West Side of Cleveland, that is, the run is the length of Lakewood and back, usually I go down Lake and Clifton, this time it was the other way 'round.

My right arm aches, I can only imagine it is from poor weight training. Every now and then I use it, but these day I mostly don't. In my imagination I do sit-ups, but in the real world, I don't. Josh told me about a study that indicated that thinking about exercise can actually be as effective as doing it. Well. Works for him (Ooh! That stings! Good night, Cleveland!)

Tomorrow, by the way, I will be performing on the stage of Severance Hall, playing Dvorak as we explain the origins of the New World Symphony. Come and check it out, it's fun.

Anyway, my arm hurts. I hope tonight's physical activity helps. Now back to eating like hell.