Lucie Pohl & Kenneth Ferrone of “Hi, Hitler”

Posted on July 26, 2017 by robby

Listen in as writer and performer Lucie Pohl and director Kenneth Ferrone of Lucie’s auto-biographical solo show Hi, Hitler, currently playing at The Cherry Lane Theatre, discuss post-show snacks, David Hasselhoff, inhabiting dozens of characters, what is (and what isn’t) very German about the show, the ease with which you can kill your darlings, why you won’t find props in this show, and how to trust the moments.

“…it’s a ‘fish-out-of-water story,’ it’s about finding your identity, and it’s about trying to fit in…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Chris Harcum & Aimee Todoroff of “Martin Denton, Martin Denton”

Posted on July 18, 2017 by robby

Listen in as the Elephant Run District team of Chris Harcum, playwright & performer, and Aimee Todoroff, director, of the company’s new show Martin Denton, Martin Denton, discuss finding safety and meaning in a community, “love,” the validity of our work, the ways in which our productions can live forever, how and why we do this thing called “indie theatre,” and more about this love letter to the scene.

“…what we’re doing is creating life, and then giving life back. And for me, one of the people who was there, and kind of charted what I was doing—and for whom I felt this very deep connection, and this person who, if he didn’t see my show, it felt like it did not happen—needed his story told.”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

David Carl & Michole Biancosino of “Trump Lear”

Posted on July 12, 2017 by robby

Listen in as the co-creators of Trump Lear, writer/performer David Carl & director Michole Biancosino, discuss their collaboration to put this piece together, playing Trump (and finding a way around the fact that Trump is inherently not funny), complicity, how to avoid preachy political theatre, tearing yourself down in your own piece, the importance of an excellent technician at the board, and the benefit of doing solo shows.

“…yeah, Trump and Shakespeare don’t really go together, usually…”
“Well, it works really well, in this instance…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Jeff Wise, David Kenner, and Michael Schantz of “An Enemy of the People”

Posted on June 21, 2017 by robby

Listen in as Wheelhouse Theater Company founders Jeff Wise, who also directs the show, and actors David Kenner and Michael Schantz, discuss the company’s production of Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, rebuttal plays, parallels to today (the phrase “drain the swamp” is in the text—seriously), reactions to overtly political plays that aren’t political screeds, the toxicity of forced conformity, and letting the audience draw their own conclusions.

“…the thing that really motivated me to do this play, the theme that I think stands out the most, is this idea of what it takes to step outside the collective, and have a new idea. And that is something that I think Ibsen was directly pointing at…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Stacy A. Donovan, Tali Custer, Julia Hansen, & Ellen Jenders of “That Which Remains”

Posted on June 21, 2017 by robby

Listen in as Improbable Stage Artistic Director Stacy A. Donovan, who also directs the company’s current production of That Which Remains (adapted from Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus), joined by performers Tali Custer, Julia Hansen, and Ellen Jenders, discuss the company’s unique approach to casting, meeting your new collaborators through free workshops, finding contemporary music for your mid-show dances, being open to changes, and how to get bloody without actually getting bloody (hint: the answer to everything is “collaboration”).

“…I was like, ‘how can I get my hands on Tarantino?’ And I thought, the best way would be Shakespeare’s bloodiest: Titus…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Ashley J. Jacobson, Elizabeth Sarkady, Faith Sandberg, Jenna D’Angelo, & Brandon Ferraro of “How to Be Safe”

Posted on June 14, 2017 by robby

Listen in as The Dirty Blondes, Elizabeth Sarkady and Ashley J. Jacobson (whom you’ll remember from past podcasts on The Miracle Play and The Tunnel Play), along with the full cast—Faith Sandberg, Jenna D’Angelo, and Brandon Ferraro—discuss the company’s new play How to Be Safe, finding relevance in the present moment, the “low hum of anxiety,” the draw of terrible true crime shows, the incredible experience of having a theatrical home-base, being a sponge (then wringing yourself out), and finding safety & solace in the theater.

“…the election happened, and that made me question what I was going to be putting out into the world. It needed to be relevant, it needed to speak to something. And so I figured, ‘let me just create the most honest, emotional show that I could, because that felt like my own personal safety, and that felt like my own personal contribution, to talk about how afraid I feel, and how afraid I think other people feel…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Richard C. Aven, James L. Menzies, & Christopher Halladay of “Go Get the Axe”

Posted on June 13, 2017 by robby

Listen in as playwright James L. Menzies and director Richard C. Aven of Go Get the Axe, along with co-producer/actor Christopher Halladay, discuss the process that brought two short Shotz pieces by Jamie into the full-length FIG Productions is currently presenting, fever-dreams from a bathroom floor, the benefits of a desk day-job, collaborator love, killing your darlings, and how to give good pod.

“…people have been so imaginative, and so creative, and everybody’s had input. And that makes me really really proud, because it’s been phenomenal, the individual pride and energy that’s gone into this…and I get to sit and watch it, and people make me look good.”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Kim Weild, Matthew Imhoff, J.W. Guido, and Geraldine Leer of “soot and spit”

Posted on June 7, 2017 by robby

Our Voices Theater presents SOOT AND SPIT, written by Charles Mee and directed by Kim Weild Listen in as soot and spit director Kim Weild, scenic designer Matthew Imhoff, and performers J.W. Guido and Geraldine Leer, discuss play as poetry, interpreting unique scripts, creating an historical character with limited biographical resources, performing with boxes on your head and feet, when your fellow actors play your art, and making art about an artist using a different art-form.

“I think of this piece as a poem…it’s not a biography…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Jeremy Pickard & Lanxing Fu of “PLUTO (no longer a play)”

Posted on May 19, 2017 by robby

Listen in as the directors/writers of PLUTO (no longer a play), Jeremy Pickard and Lanxing Fu, discuss allegory, mass extinction, the definition of “eco-theatre,” community outreach, the benefits of imposed limitations, and how to work with the fact that “it’s a different world now.”

“…it is devastating, in a kind of strange, like, ‘oh, I lost something that I took for granted, that I really thought was there, and it’s kind of a simple thing that I didn’t really think about, but it matters somehow’…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

James Scruggs of “3/Fifths”

Posted on May 17, 2017 by robby

Listen in as playwright James Scruggs, creator of the sprawling, detailed, provocative, disturbing, and vital show 3/Fifths, discusses where the idea for SupremacyLand came from, why it took a space like 3LD to make it work, the magic and opportunity of having an artistic director asking you to “dream bigger,” what happens when you invite audiences to participate in a carnival of atrocities, the incredible bravery of the actors in this piece (and how they take care of themselves performing such heavy material), and why we have to talk about this terrible history so it never happens again.

“…it’s still happening, there are these loops. So what I’m really interested in doing is talking about it, showing it, in visceral detail, with the hope of ending the loops…”

Continue reading →

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Go See a Show!

The off-off-Broadway podcast

Lucie Pohl & Kenneth Ferrone of “Hi, Hitler”

Chris Harcum & Aimee Todoroff of “Martin Denton, Martin Denton”

David Carl & Michole Biancosino of “Trump Lear”

Jeff Wise, David Kenner, and Michael Schantz of “An Enemy of the People”

Stacy A. Donovan, Tali Custer, Julia Hansen, & Ellen Jenders of “That Which Remains”

Ashley J. Jacobson, Elizabeth Sarkady, Faith Sandberg, Jenna D’Angelo, & Brandon Ferraro of “How to Be Safe”

Richard C. Aven, James L. Menzies, & Christopher Halladay of “Go Get the Axe”

Kim Weild, Matthew Imhoff, J.W. Guido, and Geraldine Leer of “soot and spit”

Jeremy Pickard & Lanxing Fu of “PLUTO (no longer a play)”

James Scruggs of “3/Fifths”