Welcome to Section 3 of Curtain Call – the 2009 Helen Hayes Nominees featuring
Ted van Greythuysen, John Vreeke, Jeremy Webb, Kenny Wollesen, Chris Youstra, Karen Zacharias, Stefanie Zadravec. Ensembles: Carmen, Goodnight Moon, In the Heart of America, Les Miserables, Measure for Pleasure, Resurrection, Romeo and Juliet, The History Boys, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot and Constellation Theatre, recipient of the John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company.
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Ted van Griethuysen – Outstanding Lead Actor, Resident Play
Major Barbara . Shakespeare Theatre Company
TvanG: Andrew Undershaft is an industrialist, the current head of a great firm that manufactures all sorts of weapons of destruction – an occupation in which he rejoices.. He is, very probably, one of the wealthiest men in the world, though that is of no particular interest to him. A wonderful Shavian character – only Shaw could have conceived him – there is more than a little of GBS in Undershaft, though Shaw was a militant pacifist. But Shaw always saw both sides of the coin.
Undershaft married “up,” the daughter of an earl, who was all lineage and no money. Because of his shameless delight in his work, he and his wife have been estranged for years and as the play begins he has returned, at her request, to be re-introduced to his son and two daughters, one of whom, Barbara, is the title character.
Creating the role …
Do you mean how, or in what way, did I identify with him? Well, one thing is that I found, somewhat to my surprise, that I agreed with him more than I expected. That people seem to find it impossible to live at peace, one with the other, that war and conflict seem to be ineradicable aspects of human life, is something that, all things considered, I find it hard to dispute, as much as I might like to. Undershaft is a pragmatist, and admires that quality in others, as I am, as well, and do. Then there is the way that he, while dealing in the most crudely powerful things in the world, is also charming, delightfully sophisticated, deeply amusing, and capable of true affection. Who wouldn’t be attracted to that combination; and, in acting, attraction is close to identification.
Well, in addition to being surprised by how much I could identify with Undershaft, I would say that what surprised me most about doing this play was what always surprises me about Shaw: how deeply human and passionate his plays are. I get nearly insensible with outrage when people who don’t know any better talk about Shaw as some unfeeling intellectual who deals chiefly in socialist tracts, or as one of our brighter drama critics once put it, “an old blowhard.”
Rubbish! Shaw cared passionately about things we are embarrassed to talk about: little things like truth, goodness, and beauty. Then there is human responsibility, the meaning of religion-if it has a meaning–along with the really hard time that love has in the world, the relation of men and women. Shaw discovered, long ago, that sex isn’t everything. He knew very well it was something; it just wasn’t everything. Indeed, I think he knew things about sex that Freud missed completely. It seems to me that the world would be a much better place if all of us were as passionate as Shaw was about the things he was passionate about.
Favorite moment …
I know I loved the more intimate family scenes when Undershaft is trying bravely to cope with his wife and the son he thinks a complete fool. What to do about the family has always proved to be too much for just about everybody, and Undershaft was no exception. Building the world’s biggest and most poweful cannon is no guarantee that one will as easily understand a woman, or a child, or indeed anyone at all, related or unrelated. Donald Trump, one could say, has had more luck with hotels than wives.
This year’s favorite performances …
That’s an easy one. I hardly ever get to see anything else as a rule, but this year, Jimmy Davis, Finn Wittrock and I had a night off from Romeo and Juliet, and we went to see Return to Mecca which was stunningly beautiful. Holly Twyford and Tana Hicken gave superb performances; the play is a fascinating, involving story; Joy’s direction and production were magical; the set an extraordinary place where life was to be found. It was one of those rare times when you just don’t want the evening to end …. And I also want to mention Michael Kahn’s production of The Way of the World. The play is one of the hardest to do and nearly impossible to make accessible to a modern audience. I thought this came about as close as can be to achieving those goals. While it was very well acted in general, I especially enjoyed Nancy Robinette’s Lady Wishfort. I love good laughter in the theatre, and there was an abundance of it for her performance, and richly deserved. Then, too, there were Jane Greenwood’s beautiful clothes-probably, all in all, the best of the season; but then, her work, like Bob Perdziola’s, always is.
Next?
Just now we are coming near the end of the run of Twelfth Night at the McCarter in Princeton – the production which was first done at the Harman Center this winter. Next week–our final one here– I will commute to Washington to begin rehearsals for Stoppard’s Rock ‘N Roll at Studio.
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John Vreeke – Outstanding Director, Resident Play
Boom . Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
Why this show?
Second production and a chance to work with the playwright on improving his script from the premiere. The challenge of creating the two separate worlds. The potential video and music production elements and how to organically incorporate.
Most challenging scene …
The final sequence before the two run out into the destroyed world … creating that type of believable behavior along with creating a heightened theatrical event is an interesting challenge.
Favorite moment …
The moment at which Baraba interrupts the proceedings … any of the surprising interruptions by Barabara. The live feed on the screen behind Barabara.
How did the final run of the show compare to what you had in mind at the start of rehearsals?
Well, it evolved from our thinking, however, it evolved much in the way we had hoped.
If you could work with anyone in the theatre…
Tony Kushner … greatest living writer for theater.
Next?
Projects at MetroStages, (Heroes), Theater J, Seattle Theatres, Salt Lake Acting Company, Kennedy Center and Woolly Mammoth.
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Jeremy Webb – Outstanding Supporting Actor, Resident Musical
Schoolmaster Kuhn, The Visit . Signature Theatre
JW: I played Schoolmaster Kuhn; one of the many villagers of Brachen visited by Claire Zachanassian. What sort of separates my character from the rest of the village, almost instantaneously, is that I sense Claire is up to no good and she has made her visit for less benevolent and charitable reasons than she suggests.
Creating the role …
When I auditioned for the project I was struck by the lean clarity of Terence McNally’s lines; how every single word seemed to count for so much. Frank Galati, our brilliant director, really inspired me to keep searching for that which made me the most active, alive and incensed onstage. I have always had a sort of moral and serious side, and I think as Schoolmaster Kuhn I was accessing that side of myself. For me the connection comes from tuning up the listening and arriving onstage as present as possible. I connected to the piece every night by hanging out backstage and listening to every word of the story and then, when arriving onstage, trying to be quite diligent about telling my portion of the story correctly.
Biggest surprise …
Walking out of the backstage area and running into Congressman Barney Frank and having a really engaging, amazing conversation with him about the play and politics. I didn’t expect to run into him at the Signature Theatre!
Favorite moment …
There is a gorgeous scene, late in The Visit when Chita Rivera is carried onstage by her retinue and left alone in the woods to sing Kander and Ebb’s brilliant song “Love & Love Alone”. This was my favorite part of The Visit. Chita was so beautifully vulnerable and spare in her movements and embellishments; she is an absolute master and the most wonderful actress. I never tired of this section of the piece. And if I listened to it correctly, it helped me to prepare for the final scene; the voting and the killing.
This year’s favorite performances …
Every single member of the large Visit company was brilliant. I have never been a part of such a beautiful, giving, loving talented company of actors. But I have to single out George Hearn for his extraordinary performance as Anton Schell. Every night when I sang “The Only One” to him, I just couldn’t believe my luck.
Next?
I am developing a new play with my friend, the playwright Anna Ziegler called The Minotaur. The Fire Department is doing it here in New York at The Players Club. In April I join the company of The Producers at The Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia. I am going to play Roger De Bris!
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Kenny Wollesen – Outstanding Sound Design, Resident Production
Macbeth . Folger Theatre and Two River Theatre
Greatest challenge …
Aside from trying to cram 3 kettle drums, 4 bass drums, a set of chimes, half of a piano and a load of percussion into the on-stage closet-sized “drum cage” it would probably be finding the sound of macbeth’s brain as it melts into greed, madness and murder ….
Your most important contribution …
Finding an abandoned piano on 72nd St. & Broadway in New York city the night before the opening and smashing it apart with a 10-pound sledge hammer (very satisfying!) ripping out the harp portion of the piano and stuffing it into the “drum cage” for the sound of the haunted “knocks” in Macbeth’s diseased brain…..
What new technology in the last few years has contributed the most to your art?
I’m still dealing with 18th century technology!!!
Dream project …
I would love to produce a full scale puppet opera about a mouse that goes on a life-long journey searching for the sound that is ringing in his ears, where all the puppets are actually home-made pedal-powered musical instruments!
Next?
Touring the world with downtown super band Sexmob, avant-garde conductor Butch Morris and MacArthur genius recipient John Zorn….
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Chris Youstra – Outstanding Musical Direction, Resident Production
Jerry Springer the Opera . Studio Theatre
Why this show?
There are 2 things I really love about this piece. The first is that the score is pretty fantastic. Unlike rock operas like Superstar, this music is actually an homage to operatic styles. There are references to Handel, Menotti, Puccini and the opening chorale sounds like it could have come straight out of Don Giovanni. It is composed very well and hangs together as a cohesive piece despite the diverse styles. The second thing is that the whole concept just makes me laugh — in the piece, you are combining the loftiest of art forms with the basest form of American entertainment, and it is a great disconnect. These passionate operatic themes combined with gutter situations is a hysterical duality that is further enhanced by a non-singing Jerry as a dispassionate observer.
Greatest challenge …
The music is actually quite difficult to begin with, and even though we were fortunate to have some really stellar voices, we had to spend the entire first week on music before we could even begin staging. What was also challenging was that the cast could barely see me and I often could not see them. Adding to that, there were no mics or monitors, so communication between me and the cast was tricky as well. Plus, balancing a great 8 piece band (that was on the same level as the cast) with unmiced voices was a delicate balancing act. So, putting all of the elements together was very difficult, but we had a lot of support from the Studio staff to pull it off.
Your greatest contribution
Actually, the best thing I did was the most challenging of all. We were trying to figure out where to put the ensemble (the “studio audience”) and Matt Gardiner suggested that they should be in the actual audience. I balked at the idea, because it would spread our ensemble across the entire theater and might hurt the cohesion we had built. However, we tried it once and from that moment, I knew we had to do it that way; it made the performances more visceral and immediate to the audience and gave us an advantage over other productions. So the best thing I did was listen to someone else.
Also, the other thing I pushed was trying to instill a true sense of opera into the music. I knew that for the piece to work, we needed to treat the music very seriously — we cast excellent singers (some of whom have sung with the Washington National Opera) and put a lot of care into the music.
If you could work with anyone…
Howard Ashman – he is truly my favorite lyricist and he also had a great sense of story and emotional content in a musical. He is behind Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid being great movies.
Is there a particular work of art you would like to see turned into a musical and why?
I have always wanted to create a musical setting of Herman Wouk’s City Boy which is a great story. I have also thought about stringing together a bunch of ABBA songs with a very flimsy script. One or the other.
Next?
I am working on Call of the Wild, a new musical, at Olney Theatre Center. I then go on to F’in A at Studio’s Second Stage and Sweeney Todd at Toby’s and finish the year back at Olney with Camelot. What I am most excited about is that I have a new musical I wrote with Ally Currin that is being produced next year at Imagination Stage – The Dancing Princesses.
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Karen Zacarías – Outstanding New Play or Musical
Chasing George Washington: A White House Adventure . Kennedy Center
the inspiration …
I was approached by Kim Peter Kovac of the Kennedy Center and the White House Historical Society about writing a play about the White House. I remembered as a child moving here from Mexico and being awed to walk through the home of the American President. I knew then that the project would have to include the point of view of children, and proposed bringing Young Playwrights’ Theater into the mix. And music by the talented Debbie Wicks La Puma.
Biggest surprise …
How engaging, funny, and relevant it was for the kids who saw the play, and how many adults were moved by the play. It was surprising how such a community oriented process created such a professional theatrical product.
When did you finish the play?
We finished right before we went into rehearsal … and kept refining it during the rehearsal period. Since the play already predicted the possibility of a woman or an African American President…the election of President Obama allows us another chance to refine the play before it goes out for a National Tour this fall.
Biggest challenge …
Incorpoating actual photographs with the theatrical fantasy of 3 children taking a trip through time. And finding a way for the script to have something representing every child that worked on the play.
Did you see the DC production?
Yes! Director John Vreeke and the designers and actors did a marvelous job.
Which scene or moment did you most especially like?
I loved the Lincoln scene in the play. It was a one of those perfect moments … when the right Director, the right actors, the right designers, all did the perfectly “right” thing and the script and the music combined in just the “right” way to tell a very surprising and powerful story. I also loved the Jackie Kennedy scene, which on the surface was a romantic song about furniture, and underneath was a wistful meditation about what we lose and gain with the passage of time.
Next?
– Legacy of Light will have it’s world premiere at Arena Stage with Molly Smith directing this May 8-June 14, 2009.
– Ferdinand and the Bull (music by the amazing Debbie Wicks La Puma) will be at Imagination Stage this Fall; Kate Bryer will direct.
– How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents,my adapatation of Julia Alvarez’s novel, will have it’s second production at Miracle Theatre in Portland Oregon in april 2010.
– Mariela in the Desert will be at the Denver Center for Performing Arts in April 2010 and
– The Sins of Sor Juana, which won a Helen Hayes Award several years ago, will be on the mainstage of The Goodman Theatre in Chicago June of 2010.
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Stefanie Zadravec – Outstanding New Play or Musical
Honey Brown Eyes – Theater J
The inspiration …
I wanted to challenge myself as a writer, so I set this play way outside my comfort zone – there are no chatty New Yorkers in this piece! Also, the use of rape in the Bosnian war was so disgusting to me, that in the back of my mind, I always knew I would write about it.
Biggest surprise …
I think I have been amazed at how it has resonated with people. We had several women from Bosnia from the play and they said I really got it right. Haing never been to Bosnia, that was especially moving for me.
When did you finish the play?
During the last preview. I made little cuts right up until the end, although the basic script was in shape after the first week of rehearsals.
Biggest challenge …
I just consulted my husband on this one and he says my biggest challenge was to sit down and stop procrastinating. If I’m honest, that’s always my biggest challenge.
Did you see the DC production?
Absolutely. I was very involved in the production as this was the first time the play has been done, and I am from DC so I had to come back several times to see the show with friends and family.
Which scene or moment did you most especially like?
I love the opening of the play, the awkwardness between the soldier and Alma. They are two people who aren’t really sure how to act in their roles of soldier and proisoner. I also loved when Zlata climbed out of the floor. There were always a few gasps from the audience which was nice. And I love the dinner scene between Denis and Jovanka for it’s humor and humanity amidst the war.
Next?
I have a new play that may be workshopped later in the year in New York, and a few theaters are looking at my play, Save Me, which is ready to be done.
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OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE NOMINATIONS
Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Play
Carmen . Synetic Theater
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
Phillip Fletcher –
The set concept for Carmen was this huge cage that covered the whole stage. I knew we were a special bunch, because when we first got the cage for rehearsals everyone was playing on it like kids on a jungle gym at recess.
Salma Qarnain –
When we first saw the set (a huge cage), the rest of the cast started climbing all over it like a jungle gym. I thought, “Wow – I’m scared, but with these folks, I’ll be fine.”
What moments in the play do you think best exemplify the ensemble’s work?
Phillip Fletcher –
The moments that stick out in my mind are the tarot card reading that forecasted Carmen’s demise, the gypsy dance when Carmen first introduced Don José to the gypsies, and the bar dance when Carmen meets and seduces Lucas the Matador.
Salma Qarnain –
Although the dancing was hot, the ominous tarot card scene, in which Carmen’s fate is foretold, electrifies me to this day. The ensemble, dressed in red and black and blowing like leaves in the wind, perfectly personified the turning of the cards.
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Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Musical
Goodnight Moon . Adventure Theatre and Tribute Productions
Michael J. Bobbitt –
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
The moment it was finally cast. 3 cast members were 3 of my favorite students from Catholic University, one was a high school and Summer youth theatre friend and other was the great Judy Simmons, whom I had worked with before.
Moment which best exemplifies the ensemble’s work …
‘Bear in Chairs’ or the ‘Star Ballet’ – both require great singing, acting, dancing and puppetry!
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In the Heart of America . Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Play
Rep Stage
Tim Getman –
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
From the first read through, I knew that the play itself was special but also that Kasi Campbell had cast an outstanding group of people for work on a very difiicult play. But really, when we started working the violence (both physical and mental), I knew that everyone was going to look out for each other and trust each other. We were all very aware of each other physically and emotionally.
What moment(s) in the play do you think best exemplify the ensemble’s work?
The moments of violence and agression I think really exemplified how we worked as a team bound by trust and care for one another. Also the moments of overlapping worlds and dialogue were very difficult to master. Kasi really drilled those scenes in particular.
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Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Musical
Les Misérables . Signature Theatre
Adam Grabau –
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
From the very first rehearsal it was clear there was a unity of purpose in this cast. Nobody had any kind of personal agenda and everybody was passionate about making the show the absolute best it could be. Also, the majority of us had little to no experience with the piece, which, I believe, made it easier to maintain intensity and freshness in our performances. I imagine anyone who has done Les Mis will tell you that you can’t help but feel honored to be a part of such a remarkable and beloved piece of art. It has the power to make even the most jaded of casts remember why they fell in love with the stage. We were no exception.
Moment which best exemplifies the ensemble’s work …
Well, the obvious answer is the Act I Finale when everyone is on and the whole of the ensemble is moving as one center stage. However, I always felt that the strongest ensemble number was Master of the House. It was the one sequence incorporating the whole chorus in which we were all directed to actually tell our own little stories. It was in that number that I think the talent of each individual performer and the overall combined caliber of our ensemble were best displayed.
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Measure for Pleasure . Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Play
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
Joel Reuben Ganz
Quite early in the process. The atmosphere of allowance in the room was great. In other words, we were there to support each other and allow each other to try things and fail and try again. That is how great work happens, because if there is no risk involved, then what you end up with is a tame version of what could be or could have been. The director (Howard Shalwitz) had a great way of reaching each of us in different ways to pull things out of us and inspire us, and the quality of the work coming from each individual pushed the others to step up their game so that everyone would be on the same level.
Andrew Honeycutt
For me it was when Howard Shalwitz early on in the rehearsal process asked the cast not to shy away from the grotesque. And from then on every one of us brought our own unique “raunch” to the rehearsal room. You should have heard the conversations during breaks.
Karen Schraf –
There was a strong suggestion of camaraderie at the first around-the-table read, a growing affection as rehearsals progressed, and then the fact that even after we opened, we would find occasion to linger in the theatre after the performance to enjoy each other’s society. We even hovered in the wings to watch each other’s scenes long into the run.
What moments in the play do you think best exemplify the ensemble’s work?
Joel Reuben Ganz –
There were great moments in scenes of just two or three people, but the work was best in moments when we had three to four actors on stage in different moments of their journeys connecting and advancing each other’s stories. The final scenes of the play where people are coming in and out at a fast pace is a great example, as each character had THEIR story to tell and path to follow, and yet we all were serving each other and the story as a whole at the same time. Also, the scene’s nature itself and our set put us in a vulnerable/risk taking place, and it takes a strong group of people to put that out there.
Andrew Honeycutt –
The moment in the play I think best exemplifies the ensemble’s work was a shared moment between one actor on stage and the remaining off stage cast members. Each performance in the last act as Dame Stickle (Kim Schraf) unknowingly heads into the dark cave of sex and orgies off stage, there waiting for her was the remaining cast members, along with some crew, gathered in a hot mass to help motivate her re-entrance of shock and horror. Let’s just say Dame Stickle never had to lie to the audience about what she had seen.
Karen Schraf –
The final scene of the play sees everyone gathered onstage in something of a love-in; there were moments of broad comedy, real tenderness and explosive euphoria. We all rode that wave each night.
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Resurrection – Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Play
Arena Stage with Hartford Stage
When did you first realize that there was something special about working with this cast?
Che Ayende –
The first day we read the play at the rehearsal.
Michael Genet –
I first realized that I was working with a special group of guys (all the actors in Resurrection are men), when during one of our table reads, our director, Oz Scott, got us all to talking about our relationships with our fathers and how those relationships affected us and shaped us into the men we are today. This was a very important question for each of us to explore in relation to the characters in the play and the personal journeys each character was on.
Well, when we started going around the table, all this amazing stuff just started to flow… stories of abandonment, fathers in prison, fathers who didn’t want to be fathers and let their son’s know it constantly, then words of wisdom that our fathers gave to us that some of us still carried in our hearts today. Minutes into this conversation we were all sitting around the table in tears as we felt the profound pain that each of us had gone through in our personal journey towards becoming a man; a real man, who wouldn’t in the end, make the same mistakes that our father’s had. I’ve never had that kind of an open to the bone conversation with a group of men before. It was and still is a very special moment that I won’t soon forget. And the end result of that moment around the table was that our understanding of the play and each of our characters took a gigantic leap forward… and from that moment on, we were bonded as brothers, not merely actors in a play.
What moments in the play do you think best exemplify the ensemble’s work?
Che Ayende –
When we helped to resurrect the child at the end.
Michael Genet –
Well the very nature and structure of Resurrection is pure ensemble, but there were two moments for me that stood out among all the rest. The scenes called DANCE MAMA, DANCE and SOUL FOOD. In both sequences every actor/character was heavily involved. And each sequence was intricately rhythm based. So much so, that if one actor were to be even the slightest bit late on his cue, the entire house of cards would have crumbled in on itself. They were both exciting moments to be in, and the challenge for me personally every night was to see if we could match that rhythm just right. The reality was that there really wasn’t any other choice. Not to match the proper rhythm was simply not an option, for it meant an absolutely busted up sequence. And that in and of itself was truly terrifying, for in both sequences, there was no one to hold onto. We were all involved, delivering our lines, our character’s emotional content, but we were essentially on our own in our respective deliveries; there was no one and nothing to hold onto. Only faith and trust that your fellow actors would be there when they were supposed to be, helping to create this delicate rhythmic dance of words eight shows a week. It was both terrifying and life reaffirming at the same time. A true RESURRECTION!
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Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Production
Romeo and Juliet . Synetic Theater
Salma Qarnain –
When did you first realize that there was something special about working with this cast?
Right away.
What moments in the play do you think best exemplify the ensemble’s work?
Any time we were working with the gears – the ensemble really had to create emotions for the gears: no one saw our faces during those scenes, but our puppets were magical. Also, the masquerade ball sequence was well-paced and extremely exciting; everyone had a part in creating the atmosphere and in moving the story along.
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Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Play
The History Boys . Studio Theatre
Andrew Honeycutt –
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
The first week of rehearsal, there were no egos just actors; humble, eager, excited and ready to work.
Moment which best exemplifies the ensemble’s work …
I think every moment the “Boys” stepped out on stage and interacted with each other because we didn’t have to fake or act our relationships, those were true. The culmination of the ensemble’s work were those damn musical numbers that popped up out of nowhere and we all were not singers but we relentlessly worked and pulled together.
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Outstanding Ensemble, Resident Play
The Last Days of Judas Iscariot . Forum Theatre
When did you first realize there was something special about working with this cast?
Cesar A. Guadamuz –
I do not believe I have ever said this before, in any other production, but after we finished the first table read of what seemed to be the longest non-Shakespeare play ever written, we all took a deep breath, sat back in our seats, looked around the conference table at each other and smiled, perhaps with the communal knowing that something truly special would be born from the work which we were about to take on.
Jason McCool –
I remember an incident from our first table read, when director John Vreeke happened to be reading in for the part of Butch Honeywell, the “everyman” Stephen Adly Guirgis ends the play with, and how John actually had to stop and hand the script off to someone else midway through because the monologue just cut too deep. I think at this point everyone in the room knew this process would represent much more than just another gig, that it would demand more of ourselves than perhaps we had ever been asked to reveal onstage before.
Jesse Terrill –
I knew this cast was special when the cast members began sharing their experiences openly about religion on the Forum Theatre blog. Forum Theatre asked each cast member to contribute their own personal experiences with religion, and the blog filled up quickly with very moving, diverse stories. I found the openness of the cast on such a personal subject to be refreshing, and we approached our characters with that honesty. In many instances, our characters beliefs mirrored our own, or we were able to fuse our beliefs into the performance of the character. I was able to watch other performances knowing a little about that performer’s past (cast members sat on the outside of the playing area the entire show when not in a scene)–and even if the audience didn’t have that information, I knew that there was a real connection going on between performer and play.
You don’t necessarily have to open up to your fellow cast members in a production, but I feel that by doing so, and by opening ourselves to challenging subject matter, we became quite a close knit ensemble.
What moments in the play do you think best exemplify the ensemble’s work?
Cesar A. Guadamuz –
In hindsight, I truly believe it had to have taken only the utmost patience, professionalism, care and discipline to be not only present on that stage for close to 3 hours but completely in-tune with your fellow actors in a piece that required and demanded nothing less. Those amazing and often unexpected group sighs, cries, laughs and jolts, I think, exemplified how much we had tuned into each other and the piece as a whole.
Jason McCool –
It’s tough to pinpoint one moment because there were so many outstanding individual performances given by enormously flexible actors, but I think the fact that audiences stayed riveted throughout the entirety of the three-hour play night after night is a testament to the level of ensemble commitment. Also, on a musical level, if you will – the deep contrast between the uproarious laughter a nd the absolute, stark, cathartic silences – and the way the ensemble knew how to conjure both so consistently.
Jesse Terrill –
I really felt the power of our ensemble at curtain call–a huge line of 15 actors holding hands across the spanse of the H Street black box theater, truly appreciating each other’s work and the audience who appreciated the story. Frank Moorman’s moving final monologue about fateful choices and consequences brought several cast members to tears each night. I knew the show we created was special because the actors took the time to look at each other during the curtain call, checking in with one another, pat Frank on the back, before appreciating the audience.
The Last Days of Judas Iscariot is a huge piece, with many scenes and characters, but at most you might have 7 actors in one scene, out of a possible 15–yet it truly requires an ensemble of equally talented individuals to tell this story. There were no divas, no central performances, no stars–just individuals working passionately together to tell a diffcult, funny, moving tale to some damn good audiences.
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The John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company awarded to
Constellation Theatre Company
from Allison Arkell Stockman, Founding Artistic Director
Discovering that Constellation was going to receive the Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company was a delightful surprise. Beginning with our first production, A Dream Play in the spring of 2007, we have produced six shows (The Arabian Nights, The Good Woman of Setzuan, The Oresteia, Temptation and The Marriage of Figaro), all of which embody our mission of creating epic, ensemble theatre with visionary design, elevated language and heightened physicality. We strive to transport the audience to a magical world that is compelling, entertaining and very different from the commonplace business of our everyday lives.
This award being named after John Aniello is a fitting testament to his longstanding support of young artists. Developing an audience base is one of the most difficult things a young theatre company does, and it is lovely that the Helen Hayes Committee created an award that draws attention to the work and encourages others to find out more about the new group. This award honors the dedication of the central team of actors, designers and technicians who founded Constellation with me, as well as the bravery of the more than 100 artists who took the chance to work with a new company during our first two years. The generous commitment of talent and time by so many people has allowed Constellation to create a strong foundation and to look towards the future with excitement and hope.
— The End —
Have you reads Sections 1 & 2?
(Section 1) David Adjmi, Che Ayende, Colin K. Bills, Michael J. Bobbitt, Andrew Call, Karma Camp, Will Chase, Andrew Cissna, Marianne Custer, Natascia Diaz, Sofia Jean Gomez, Paul Scott Goodman, Miriam Gordon, Carolyn Griffin, Marc Jacoby, Irakli Kavsadzki, Angelina Kelly, Karl Kenzler, Adam Koch, Doug Kreeger
(Section 2) Deborah Wicks La Puma, Chris Lee, Konstantine Lortipanidze, David Loud, Ariella Tepper Madover, Jennifer Mendenhall, Matthew M. Nielson, Christiane Nolle, Jill Paice, Daniel Pelzig, Andy Prosky for Robert Prosky, Marc Ramirez, Ari Roth, Kimberly Schraf, Scott Schwartz, Mark Shunock, Chris Sizemore, Nilaja Sun, Teller, Irina Tsikurishvili, Paata Tsikurishvili
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