Paul Pinto & Kristin Marting of “Mano a Mano”

Listen in as Mano a Mano creator/composer/performer Paul Pinto, along with director Kristin Marting, discuss getting over live performance doomerism, celebrating/questioning/undressing/redressing/exposing masculinity, giving the audience access to the performer, theatrical collaboration, the work of the body in creating vocal sound, a work of art’s relevance in time and space, and giving the audience a good time.

“…I like to see theatre that impresses me…that makes me feel like, when I sit down there, not only can I not believe what’s going on onstage, but I want to jump onstage and take part…”

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Ed Schmidt of “Edward”

Listen in as Ed Schmidt, creator and performer of Edward, discusses melodramatic origins to fictionalized short stories, a “theatrical epistolary novel,” doing what you can do and not what other playwrights do, cutting out the middle men, object—>story vs. story—>object, and finding the sustainable model that works for you.

“…somebody else’s life started to emerge from this, and at a certain point I realized, ‘this is a play, told this way.’ […] And I thought, ‘how could I do this thing, which is really kinda anti-dramatic…and make that theatrical in some way’…”

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Joe Therrien, Ali Dineen, Darkin Brown, Tom Cunningham, Sam Wilson, & Jason Hicks of “Dimension Zero”

DIMENSION ZERO by Boxcutter Collective, presented at HERE Arts CenterListen in as Dimension Zero co-creators, performers, and Boxcutter Collective members Joe Therrien, Ali Dineen, Darkin Brown, Tom CunninghamSam Wilson, & Jason Hicks discuss consensus not compromise, salad bars, writing and shaping earworms, grant-writing as production impetus, outside eyes, reality catching up to dark comedy, “following the giggle,” and how a collective comes together to create an anti-capitalist musical puppet show.

“…one of the reasons we made this show, is to not go insane…art allows you to take that thing you can’t deal with, and it allows you to put it into your hands to mess with. For us, with this show, it’s taking this planetary moment of terror…it allows us to at least put it in front of us, and put it in front of the audience, in a way we can feel empowered, and hopeful…”

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Eliza Palter, Vena Howard, & Kat Quiñones of “The Goo”

New Relic Theatre presents THE GOO, written by K. Rose Dallimore, directed by Eliza Palter, at The Chain TheatreListen in as The Goo director Eliza Palter, along with performers Vena Howard & Kat Quiñones, discuss unintended distance from your friends, efficient vibes, the built-up pressure of your 20s, creating compelling stage pictures on a picnic blanket, activating ideas & notions, sitcom framing, being real & having the hard conversations, and what a modern examination of the themes of The Importance of Being Earnest could look like.

“…it’s an ensemble piece, it’s funny, it’s about a bunch of people sitting around and talking about nothing, getting nowhere…and while this play isn’t a one-to-one adaptation…you have this sense that there’s something burbling under the surface that we’re not quite getting at. It’s a meditation on authenticity, on performance…”

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Mark Lonergan, Ryan Shinji, & Book Kennison of “I’ll Take It”

Parallel Exit presents I'LL TAKE IT at 3AM Theatre, created and conceived by Joel Jeske, directed by Mark Lonergan, photo by Maike SchulzListen in as I’ll Take It performer Ryan Shinji & composer Book Kennison, along with director Mark Lonergan, discuss success by proximity, coexisting in small spaces, conceptualization and minimizing, bodies and boxes in space, object manipulation, possible futures, dancing around each other, and what’s going on with this wild ride of a show in a box.

“The concept is three friends who are living together in a very tiny apartment, and over the course of the show they drift apart, they come back together…it’s a very classic New York story, and experience, and it’s told through the mediums of circus & physical theatre. So it’s not just people standing and having a relationship…it’s people doing spectacular, extraordinary things with their bodies…”

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Ned Du, Sissi Chen, Didi Won, Boyu Chen, Tien-Li Wu, John Jiang, Josh Lau, & Hannah Limbrick of “Not Our Home, Not Our Home”

NOT OUR HOME, NOT OUR HOME, preview performance at The Flea Theater as part of The Rogue Theater Festival, written by Ned Du, directed by Sissi ChenListen in as Not Our Home, Not Our Home playwright Ned Du, director Sissi Chen, performers Didi Won, Boyu Chen, Tien-Li Wu, John Jiang, & Josh Lau, and composer Hannah Limbrick, discuss the meaning of family, lost cats, enough or too much, freedom, enmeshment, what twists us apart, “love and responsibility,” mirrors of ourselves, and the purpose of guilt.

“…this show is really about the concept of guilt. How does guilt move us, how does guilt animate us to do very, very silly things. Also, it’s about the question of immigration; who do we leave behind, how does it change us, and more importantly, how do we maintain ourselves as a family despite, for example, straddling the Pacific…”

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Steve Burns & Matthew Freeman of “Steve Burns ALIVE”

Listen in as the co-writers of Steve Burns ALIVESteve Burns, performer, and Matthew Freeman, director—discuss the performer-audience relationship, going through some weird experiences, holding hands, asking for help, hermit crabs out of their shells, humans & humanity on the internet, having a conversation with an old friend, ancient technological testaments, the “inherent unsatisfactory nature of being alive,” and the kind of show that can only come from a place of deep friendship and creative respect.

“…it’s built to be a story for the audience, not just a confessional; it’s thematic, about the nature of the authenticity of our relationships through screens, and our relationships to each other…it’s an exploration of communication…”
“…in modern terms, it is really kind of an exploration of what a para-social relationship is, mediated by technology…”

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David Carl, Katie Hartman, & Michole Biancosino of “David and Katie Get Re-Married”

David and Katie Get Re-Married, written and performed by David Carl and Katie Hartman, directed by Michole Biancosino, music directed by Jody SheltonListen in as writers/performers David Carl & Katie Hartman of David and Katie Get Re-Married, along with director Michole Biancosino, discuss litigation possibilities, drama school in the ’70s, heading to Edinburgh, psychopathy, wrangling, 9 a.m. dramatic improv (without a director), writing for yourself, confusing your audience, improvising into weird emotional places, and working with your friends and idols.

“…this man wears boat shoes, and quotes ‘The Zoo Story’…”
“And now I wear crocs!”

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Christopher Lee, David Carl, & Philip Cruise of “Fat Cat Killers”

SparkPlug Productions in association with Thin Duke Productions and The Gene Frankel Theatre present FAT CAT KILLERS, written by Adam Szymkowicz, directed by Andrew BlockListen in as the cast of this timely production of Fat Cat KillersChristopher Lee (co-producer), David Carl, & Philip Cruise (co-producer)—discuss bumbling buddies, coincidental Caribbean encounters, the brilliance & great works of playwright Adam Szymkowicz, finding “more murdery” stuff, status shifts, continuous character discovery, and just how two lonely cogs in the corporate wheel could get in way over their heads.

“…as soon as we read the play, we were like, ‘we have to do it.’ […] And we don’t promote Luigi, and I don’t think the play does—but I think the play really addresses American exceptionalism…”

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Nick Thomas, Adam Belvo, & Azumi Tsutsui of “Anonymous”

Spit & Vigor presents ANONYMOUS by Nick Thomas at Tiny Baby BlackboxListen in as Anonymous playwright & director Nick Thomas, along with performers Adam Belvo (Michael) and Azumi Tsutsui (Diana), discuss sharing a character, letting the story pour out, the relief of the audience, “embedded” theatre, “rehearsal with a bunch of strangers,” going “full Australian business-bro,” finding a character that’s far from you, taking us back to the (awesome) 1990s, and the potential of anonymity.

“…it has a different feeling of freshness. Like, I can feel the people sitting beside me, and they don’t know what’s going on, but hearing the story for the first time…I can feel, people are feeling it…”

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