Steven Carl McCasland and Mallory Berlin, of “A Doll’s Life”

Nora in Rep, by The Beautiful Soup Theater CollectiveWe all know the story of Nora & Torvald from Ibsen’s classic A Doll’s House (wasn’t it the first thing every directing student worked on in class?). But have you ever wondered what happened to Nora after she shut the door?

Betty Comden & Adolph Green, who wrote the book & lyrics to the musical (yes — musical) A Doll’s Life, wondered just that — and the result was one of the better-known Broadway flops of the 20th Century, running for only 5 performances.

Steven Carl McCasland, Artistic Director of The Beautiful Soup Theatre Collective, has brought the musical back to NYC with a production at The New Ohio Theatre, running it in rep with the original Ibsen. In this episode of Go See a Show!, I interview McCasland along with Mallory Berlin, who portrays Nora in A Doll’s Life.

Producer’s Note: Very sorry for the lateness of this episode! Had some uploading difficulty; hope everyone can catch one of the remaining two performances!


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The Beautiful Soup Theater Collective presents
Nora in Rep
thru February 5, 2012
The New Ohio Theatre
154 Christopher Street, New York, NY
Wednesday January 25th – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Thursday 26th – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S LIFE
Friday 27th – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Saturday 28th – 2:00pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Saturday 28th – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S LIFE
Sunday 29th – 2:00pm – A DOLL’S LIFE
Sunday 29th – 7:00pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Wednesday, February 1st – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S LIFE

Thursday, 2nd – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Friday, 3rd – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S LIFE
Saturday, 4th – 2:00pm – A DOLL’S LIFE
Saturday, 4th – 7:30pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Sunday, 5th – 2:00pm – A DOLL’S HOUSE
Sunday, 5th – 7:00pm – A DOLL’S LIFE

“Into the Woods,” a fundraiser for The Sylvia Center

Into the WoodsThis episode of Go See a Show! may not be about a technically “off-off-Broadway” show, but the impulse behind this production is very much in the vein of my favorite kinds of OOB shows — a bunch of people getting together, on their own terms, for the sake of making something beautiful.

And it’s for a good cause, which makes this all the more awesome.

Director Kevin Horne and actor Joshua David Bishop (“Jack”) are two of the folks behind a special charity performance of Sondheim’s Into the Woods. Along with their fellow employees at catering company Great Performances, Kevin and Joshua are putting on this classic musical for two performances as a fundraiser for The Sylvia Center, a not-for-profit that teaches young people about food and nutrition from the farm to the kitchen. Good stuff.

Take a listen to the interview, then go help these cats out with a buck or twenty at their Kickstarter page; and follow their progress on Facebook.


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Into the Woods actors

Martin Dockery, and his new show “The Holy Land Experience”

Martin Dockery's "The Holy Land Experience"Playwright & performer Martin Dockery is one of those guys who seems, to me, to have the most interesting life — his stories are always full of wild adventures and profoundly meaningful interactions with fascinating people, all true, all from his life.

I interviewed Dockery after a performance of his new show The Holy Land Experience at The Kraine Theater, and he answers the question of “just why is your life so awesome and mine so mundane?” beautifully. That, and more, in this episode of Go See a Show!


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There’s sadly just one more chance to see this run of The Holy Land Experience — Monday, December 19, 8PM at The Kraine. Check it out if you can; watch one of his appearances at The Moth to get a sense for the kind of storytelling you’re in for, like this one below:

The Cast & Creators of “3 Ghosts” from Pipe Dream Theatre

Pipe Dream Theatre's "3 Ghosts"In this episode, Go See a Show! talks with the (very large) cast of a production of a perennial classic, Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, re-imagined steampunk style as 3 Ghosts by Pipe Dream Theatre‘s Liz Muller & Collin Simon.

This was one of the most fun interviews yet for the podcast — congrats to all involved with the show!

3 Ghosts is up at Theatre Row’s Beckett Theatre until December 23; tickets are available through TeleCharge.


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…and I wasn’t kidding; this cast is huge. Here’s a photo of the actors I was onstage with for the interview; this is a little under half the full cast, I think.

Cast Members from Pipe Dream Theatre's "3 Ghosts"

Amy Overman and Justin Plowman of Dysfunctional Theatre Co., presenting “Brew of the Dead II: Oktoberflesh”

Halloween has passed, but if you didn’t get your fill of blood, gore, and zombies, you’re in luck — Dysfunctional Theatre Company puts all that and more onstage for the next two weekends with Brew of the Dead II: Oktoberflesh. And there will be beer. Oh yes. There will be beer.

This week, Go See a Show! talks to Amy Overman, DTC’s Artistic Director and star of Oktoberflesh, and Justin Plowman, director of the show and DTC’s Director of Development. Listen in for a discussion about drunken zombies, drunken F. Scott Fitzgerald, drinking in the show, sequels requiring more blood & gore, zombies getting high, and the freedom of self-producing. Y’know — downtown theatre.

And braaaaaaaains. </obligatoryterriblezombiejoke> Continue reading

Sylvia Milo, actress of “Mozart’s Sister”

Sylvia Milo in "Mozart's Sister"Today, Go See a Show! is proud to present an interview with the fabulous actress Sylvia Milo. Her new solo show Mozart’s Sister can be seen this Saturday, October 29 at the United Solo Festival, 2PM at Theatre Row’s Studio Theater.

This is the U.S. premiere of the work, and features Sylvia in an incredible, massive, entire-stage-filling dress (seen in the photo above!), as well as music from composers Nathan Davis and Phyllis Chen.

Mozart’s Sister comes highly recommended; and as of now, this is the only scheduled performance, so check it out if you can! Tickets are available at the United Solo Festival’s website. Continue reading

Robert A. K. Gonyo, Nneoma Nkuku, and Ryan Victor Pierce of “Muzungu”

MuzunguIn this special episode of Go See a Show!, guest-host Ashley Marinaccio interviews actors Nneoma Nkuku and Ryan Victor Pierce, the stars of Muzungu, along with the director, GSAS!’s regular host Robert A. K. Gonyo.

Catch Muzungu at The 4th Street Theater now thru October 30, produced by Co-Op Theatre East and Mixed Phoenix Theatre Group. Continue reading

Brett Epstein, playwright and star of “I Loved Sam Stone”

I Loved Sam StoneOn today’s episode of Go See a Show!, an interview with playwright Brett Epstein, author of I Loved Sam Stone; Brett is currently playing the role of “Ben” in the run of his award-winning show at The Tank.

You’ve still got two chances to catch I Loved Sam Stone:

Saturday, October 22 @ 9:30PM
Sunday, Octoberg 23 @ 7PM
The Tank
151 W 46th Street, 8th Floor
Tickets


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And below, take a look at their YouTube trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXBUPrLEL6Q&feature=related

John Hudson & Alexandra Cohen-Spiegler of The Dark Lady Players

Romeo and Juliet Nurse's Scene, Annunciation to MaryThis week’s podcast features an interview with members of The Dark Lady Players—Artistic Director John Hudson, and ensemble member Alexandra Cohen-Spiegler (that’s her in the red, at left, as Lady Capulet).

Dark Lady is presenting Shakespeare’s Gospel Parodies, and the performance is FREE; go check it out (after you listen to the podcast)! Continue reading

Megan Lee & Kevin Paul Smith of “Perchance to Dream Theatre”

After two weeks of conversations with (fabulous) playwrights, his week’s episode of Go See a Show! features two (wonderful) actors — Megan Lee & Kevin Paul Smith, company members of Perchance to Dream Theatre.

It’s also the first episode to be done via Skype, so please forgive the sub-par audio quality!

In addition to treading the boards, Megan & Kevin are producing an event for Perchance to Dream: This Isn’t Bloody Shakespeare, at The Delancey in Manhattan on September 18, 2011.

Listen in to the podcast to hear more about what Perchance to Dream is all about, and about what promises to be a great event on the 18th! Continue reading