Heather Cohn, Corey Allen, Alisha Spielmann, & Isaiah Tanenbaum of “Am I Dead? The Untrue Narrative of Anatomical Lewis, The Slave”

Flux Theatre Ensemble presents AM I DEAD? THE UNTRUE NARRATIVE OF ANATOMICAL LEWIS, THE SLAVE written by Kevin R. Free, directed by Heather Cohn, at The 14th Street Y

Listen in as director Heather Cohn of Am I Dead? The Untrue Narrative of Anatomical Lewis, The Slave, along with actors Corey Allen, Alisha Spielmann, and Isaiah Tanenbaum, discuss feeling free to laugh through a very dark comedy, learning your Egyptian myths, the history and legacy of violence against black bodies, developing a play with the playwright, what we can learn as people through the artistic process, first noticing the costume changes of your cast-mates during a performance (“subtle, yet effective!”), the effects of an individual audience’s energy, and the necessity of having sticky, difficult conversations in the theatre.

“…I think what Kevin gives us the canvas to discuss is the ways that denial functions for a variety of people…how they choose to view their own reality, accept it or deny it […] and I think the audience is forced to decide, ‘which approach do I take?’…”

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Heather Cohn, Kia Rogers, Rachael Hip-Flores, Isaiah Tanenbaum, and Jodi M. Witherell of “Salvage”

Flux Theatre Ensemble presents Salvage, written by August Schulenburg and directed by Heather Cohn“What lives on…what’s left when someone is gone?”

The kinds of things that remain can run the gamut—music boxes, stories, ephemera, bottles of booze, memories—but they can all mean something. And exploring that meaning is at the heart of August Schulenburg’s excellent new play Salvage, presented by Flux Theatre Ensemble.

Listen in as the show’s director Heather Cohn, actors Isaiah Tanenbaum and Rachael Hip-Flores, lighting designer Kia Rogers, and stage manager Jodi M. Witherell discuss Flux’s innovative Living Ticket model, tumblr-blogging for your show, working in a non-traditional space, putting audience submissions into your set, and what we save.

“…really, it’s this love-letter to New York that Gus has written…and I love being in it.”

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August Schulenburg, Kelly O’Donnell, Will Lowry, & the cast of “Jane the Plain”

Flux Theatre Ensemble presents "Jane the Plain"The great folks of Flux Theatre Ensemble are no strangers to the podcast (see their three past episodes for more great stuff), with each unique production linked by the ensemble’s players and production team, and the high quality that marks a Flux show.

That said, I was a bit surprised when I heard the company’s latest offering would be set in high school, and feature characters with names like “Scotty the Hotty” and “Betty the Pretty” — but, of course, this isn’t your typical high school dramedy. It’s like John Hughes meets…well, you should listen to the interview. Gus tells that joke way better than I could.

Listen in as director Kelly O’Donnell, scenic designer Will Lowry, playwright August Schulenburg, and the cast discuss tightening your aesthetic vocabulary, transformation, and getting in touch with your teenage emotions, where moments of magnitude are ever-present.

“We didn’t quite know what the genre was completely, but in the rehearsal room we really worked as a team to develop it together, really devising a lot of the movement and a lot of the rules and the vocabulary of the stage…”

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