Jonathan Draxton, playwright & performer, and Kevin O’Rourke, director, of “Soldier”

Posted on December 21, 2012 by robby

Soldier by Jonathan Draxton The theatre is “a place for seeing;” a place where we can ask the big difficult questions about what it means to be a human being in the world we’ve collectively made.

Soldier, written & performed by Jonathan Draxton and directed by Kevin O’Rourke, isn’t afraid to ask one of those very difficult questions: can we understand, and possibly forgive, someone who participated in some of the most appalling crimes in recorded human history? The play unfolds as a Nazi SS officer, waiting on the banks of the river Styx, recounts stories from his family & military life, all the while asking members of the audience for coins to pay for passage across the river for his men & himself.

Listen in as Jonathan, Kevin & I talk about provoking & inviting the audience into the performance, attempting to get at the humanity of a soldier, and “going through the fire.”

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The Plowmen present
Soldier

Directed by Kevin O’Rourke
Written, performed and produced by Jonathan Draxton

December 11–22, 2012
HERE Arts Center
145 Sixth Avenue
Tickets available from the HERE website

Soldier by Jonathan Draxton, photo by Kenna Draxton

Kelly O’Donnell, Gus Schulenburg, and Adam Szymkowicz of Flux Theatre Ensemble’s “Hearts Like Fists”

Posted on December 11, 2012 by robby

…is this thing on?

Apologies that Go See a Show! has been out of commission for the past couple of months. But never fear — we’re back!

And speaking of “never fear,” the podcast makes its triumphant return with an episode about a comic-book-superhero-noir-thriller presented by Flux Theatre Ensemble: Hearts Like Fists.

Listen in as Flux founders Kelly O’Donnell (director), Gus Schulenburg (actor, “Dr. X”), and Adam Szymkowicz (playwright) talk about development of the play with Flux, writing & “getting there” with difficult scripts, and roles that know what they want.

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Flux Theatre Ensemble presents

Hearts Like Fists
by Adam Szymkowicz
directed by Kelly O’Donnell
Nov 30 – Dec 15, 2012

The Secret Theatre
44-02 23rd Street
Long Island City, NY 11101

tickets available via OvationTix

Andrew Goffman, playwright & performer, and director Charles Messina of “The Accidental Pervert”

Posted on July 9, 2012 by robby

It might seem surprising to hear that an off-off-Broadway show has been running for three years, to consistently packed houses. Then again, when that show is a frank, honest, laugh-filled discussion of a young man’s coming-of-age story via his Dad’s porn collection and his own subsequent addiction to said porn…well, you know there’s going to be a little something in there for everyone.

In this episode of Go See a Show!, we’ve got an interview with playwright & actor Andrew Goffman, the self-described title character of The Accidental Pervert. His autobiographical one-man show is part theatre, part stand-up, (almost) entirely true, and all heart.

Listen in as Andrew and director Charles Messina discuss the broad appeal of a show about a kid’s connection to his father through porn, the porn-addicts in trenchcoats who are disappointed by the show, becoming an electrician by necessity, and how to keep a show that’s been running for over three years fresh.

Oh, and stick through to the end to hear Andrew’s “sexy voice.”

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“…if you ever forget your lines, just start moving. Start cleaning up the stage. And a lot of these off-Broadway theaters need cleaning anyway…”

The Accidental Pervert
Fridays & Saturdays @ 7pm
The 13th Street Repertory Company
50 West 13th Street – between 5th & 6th Aves

All Seats $30
Tickets available via OvationTix, or call 212-352-3101
or, visit the 13th Street Repertory Box Office

The Cast & Director of Playhouse Creatures’ “Love Song”

Posted on June 19, 2012 by robby

If you’ve never been to the Access Theater, it might seem a little out of place; it’s four flights up in a nondescript building just south of Canal Street, and if not for the sandwich board out in front, you could easily miss it.

But you shouldn’t miss what’s going on in one of the theaters that lives up those four flights: a lovely revival of John Kolvenbach’s Love Song, presented by Playhouse Creatures.

Listen in to this episode of Go See a Show! as the cast — Eric Doss, Sarah Koestner, Patricia Duran, and Joseph W. Rodriguez — and director, Kenny Wade Marshall, discuss finding your character in yourself, sentimentality vs. being present, and the benefits of working together as an ensemble for years.

Take the stairs.

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Playhouse Creatures presents

Love Song
by John Kolvenbach

June 9-24th
Wednesday – Saturday @ 8PM
Sundays @ 3PM
*Special added Performance Tuesday June 19th @ 8PM!

Tickets: $18, available via SmartTix

Access Theatre
380 Broadway @ White Street

photos by Justin Dodd

Brett Epstein, Brittany Taylor Visser, and Sean Kleier of “Based On Your True Story”

Posted on May 15, 2012 by robby

What do you get when you put a playwright/director, an actress/singer, a comedian/actor, and a podcaster around a chess table in Washington Square Park late on a Sunday night?

This episode of Go See a Show!, obviously.

Listen in as I speak with Brett Epstein, Brittany Taylor Visser, and Sean Kleier about Brett’s new show, inspired by 30 interviews with friends, acquaintances, and random strangers. It’s called Based On Your True Story, it’ll premiere this week at The Tank, and you can get a sneak peek here on the podcast: tales of klonopin, awkward interviews, arrests in 3D, $7 sandwiches, interrupted interviews, and Sean not playing Hawkeye await.

“Hulk smash.”

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Based On Your True Story
Six short plays PLUS a documentary short film
The Tank
151 W. 46th Street, 8th Floor
New York, NY
Wednesday, 05/16/2012 – 7:00pm
Saturday, 05/19/2012 – 9:30pm
Tickets: $7, available via Brown Paper Tickets

Geoffrey Decas O’Donnell, playwright & actor, from “The Deepest Play Ever: The Catharsis of Pathos”

Posted on March 22, 2012 by robby

Go See a Show! was back at The New Ohio last weekend for some deep, epic thoughts, provided by The Deepest Play Ever: The Catharsis of Pathos.

Playwright & actor Geoffrey Decas O’Donnell joined me for an interview on his dinner break between shows — that’s him in the first photo below, red-eyed & blue-mouthed, with his arm outstretched next to the puppet & puppeteer of Mephistopheles.

Listen in as Geo discusses acting in a show he’s still revising, loving & lampooning Brecht, and what’s next for the company he co-founded & leads, Collaboration Town — and I curse Jad Abumrad (not seriously, of course).

Obligatory Shakespeare reference this time? The Winter’s Tale. It never fails to come back to the Bard!

(…sorry for the background noise — it seems Collaboration Town has a big population!…)

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The Deepest Play Ever: The Catharsis of Pathos
by Geoffrey Decas O’Donnell
music by Michael Wells
lyrics by Geoffrey Decas O’Donnell, Jordan Seavey and Michael Wells
directed by Lee Sunday Evans and Jordan Seavey

The New Ohio Theatre
154 Christopher Street, 1E
Tickets available via SmartTix

Wednesday, March 14th @ 7:30 – Opening Night!
Thursday, March 15th @ 7:30
Friday, March 16th @ 7:30
Saturday, March 17th @ 5:00
Saturday, March 17th @ 9:00 (WEAR GREEN AND PAY WHAT YOU CAN!)
Sunday, March 18th @ 7:30
Monday, March 19th @ 7:30
Wednesday, March 21st @ 7:30
Thursday, March 22nd @ 7:30
Friday, March 23rd @ 7:30
Saturday, March 24th @ 5:00 & 9:00

photos by Colin D. Young

Catherine Mueller of “Mary Poppins: A Show About Mary Poppins”

Posted on February 21, 2012 by robby

Last weekend, I interviewed my friend Catherine Mueller over afternoon tea (how adroit) as we discussed her new show Mary Poppins: A Show About Mary Poppins (yes, that’s the full title).

Listen in as Cat explains how her work in clowning influenced the creation of her one-woman show (featuring two people), and I learn that I’ve been pronouncing my friend’s name incorrectly for the past year.

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Mary Poppins: A Show About Mary Poppins
Performed by Catherine Mueller & Ben Vigus

Created by Catherine Mueller, in collaboration with Ben Vigus
with special assistance from Mikhaela Mahony & Alex Correia

Thursday, February 23, 2012
7:30 PM
Dixon Place
131A Chrystie Street
approx. 70 minutes

Tickets $10 students, $12 advance/$15 at the door
Available at OvationTix

For more information on this show, head over to the show’s website: ashowaboutmarypoppins.tumblr.com/

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

Posted on January 3, 2012 by robby

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

Posted on December 19, 2011 by robby

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

Posted on December 16, 2011 by robby

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.

Go See a Show!

The off-off-Broadway podcast

Tag Archives: Actors

Jonathan Draxton, playwright & performer, and Kevin O’Rourke, director, of “Soldier”

Kelly O’Donnell, Gus Schulenburg, and Adam Szymkowicz of Flux Theatre Ensemble’s “Hearts Like Fists”

Andrew Goffman, playwright & performer, and director Charles Messina of “The Accidental Pervert”

The Cast & Director of Playhouse Creatures’ “Love Song”

Brett Epstein, Brittany Taylor Visser, and Sean Kleier of “Based On Your True Story”

Geoffrey Decas O’Donnell, playwright & actor, from “The Deepest Play Ever: The Catharsis of Pathos”

Catherine Mueller of “Mary Poppins: A Show About Mary Poppins”

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

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

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