Magic, and First Night

As I write this, I have successfully closed out the Greatest Little Variety Show at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, where I was performing tricks and illusions along with the Hem Haw See and Saw Puppet Troupe, Belles Lingues (contortionists), as well as the Josh and Gab show. Going back to my sideshow roots, we had two shows a day, three days in a row. It was tiring, but a rather good show.

Moving on to magic, we are proud to announce that we will be joining in with the First Night Pittsburgh celebrations on New Year's eve. More details may be found on the schedule here: http://www.firstnightpgh.org/fest_event/dream-grimoire/

We are looking forward to sharing the Dream Grimoire with the community once again. In this one on one performative piece, the central character is the participant. The Librarian guides each person on their own journey of self-discovery. Given the piece's success at it's premier at Art All Night, I am looking forward to sharing this with a larger audience. Continuous performances will be held from 6pm to 10pm at First Night.

I hope to see you there, and until next time,

Andrew

Rehearsal Log #3

Well, as the saying goes in theater, "The show must go on." And on it does. We hit a few major snags recently, but after a few hair-pulling, sleepless nights, the problem seems to be solved.

Now that the cast is mostly off book, we are really starting to have a lot of fun with the physical aspects of the show. The Commedia dell'Arte is a very physical art form, and I think we are doing it justice, ranging from the circus arts of Doc Bernie, to Artie and Bo's slapstick, to the pratfalls and girlish screaming of the not so brave Captain. While all of this is going on, Kelsey is keeping a watchful eye over the cast (myself included) to make sure no one gets hurt.

We were also pleased last Friday to do a quick preview of some of the effects in the show for the Open Mic at Future Tenant. The audience response was fantastic. I hope to see you all there.

Well, I must go back to work, it seems like the paperwork never ends to produce a show. And of course, more rehearsal photos are below.

Until next time,
 Andrew

Seattle Wrap-Up.

After a long week, we have returned from working the 14/48 Festival in Seattle. I can say that it was one of the most difficult, yet rewarding theatrical experiences I have had. Thanks to the crew out there, Theatre Sans Serif is proud to be associated with making the Festival bi-coastal,  and learning how to bring the theatrical community even closer together, and to foster a new degree of collaboration and participation.
   
To be fair, I was jet lagged for five days in a row, which is understandable, considering we had the first meeting within an hour of landing in the city. I then directed one play, a romantic comedy, followed by a slasher comedy the next night. The entire time, I saw how the 14/ 48 Festival ran as a smooth machine, and took copious notes.
   
Now, with the help of the Seattle team, we will be bringing the festival to Pittsburgh. Look here and on Facebook for more details as contracts are made, and ground is gained. Also, be sure to check out our reading of "8" at the Hillman Center for Performing Arts on March 22nd.

I must now go back to work, but until next time,
Andrew.

Full Speed Ahead!

I am pleased that after a long week of meetings, the workshop Commedia production is starting to gain momentum. More cast members are signing up everyday, deals are getting worked out, and the script is coming along at a pleasant clip. All in all, this will be an experiment in circus arts and comedy, the likes of which haven't been seen in 500 years. The cast and crew are all chafing at the bit for rehearsals to begin.

The other big news is that I will be working with the 14/48 Festival in Seattle as a director, and we will be meeting to discuss the possibility of bringing it to Pittsburgh. If so, this event will also not be one to miss, as 14 new plays are created over 48 hours. Of course, they can tell it better than I can, so if you have a chance, you should check them out at http://www.1448fest.com/.

Of course, I can't post without a teaser of future work, so here is a glimpse of some of the work being done, sculpting one of the Masks:

Until next time,

Andrew