There has only been one problem that I have been thinking about since immediately after the performance of LoveSick, and that was; “how do I possibly describe this production?” Put quite simply, I can not.

You’ll just have to go see it.

LoveSick is:

- dark and twisted

-innovative and creative

- beautiful and well crafted

-relatable and emotionally stirring

-and impossible to describe in a way that will do it justice.

Even these pictures, each worth a thousand words, don’t quite sum up what a treat you are in for:   Click to view slideshow.

I am going to imagine that you have not yet been to The Loft Ensemble, and that needs to change. When you walk into this space, you can tell that these are artists doing what they love to do any way that they can. It is apparent that every person there cares about what they are creating, and it is like walking into a breath of fresh air. The friendly and open company members give you a welcoming energy, and everyone is appreciative that you came to see their work. They bust their asses on, and off, stage every time. True passion without an ego in sight. It’s a rarity, and this company has it. This company is continually doing what I strive to be able to see and experience, new and creative theatre. Few companies are able to pull this off in such profound ways as LoveSick.  I have only had the pleasure of attending a show at The Loft Ensemble one other time prior to this, and that was to see their Halloween production of What Happened In Mayville? 3, which was also amazing and tried many new theatrical devices. In both of these shows they were able to use their limited tech equipment very creatively to make the needed effects that you dont think were possible with the amount of equipment they had at their disposal. Along those same lines, all of the technical elements were clean and crisp during the performance, which is a a testament to the designers and to the stage manager for their execution. Larissa Wise (Sophia) and Adam Chambers (Benjamin) are able to play off each other in such intricate and interesting ways, and the entire cast is connected throughout the entire piece. You can tell that they are all on the same page and in the same world. I wish I could say the same for every play I’ve ever seen. Along with being a great script and having a charismatic and creative cast, this new work incorporates classical theatrical elements in innovative and contemporary ways and utilizes movement and other various forms of story telling to effectively share their tale with you, the audience. 

The cast of LoveSick will feature (in alphabetical order) Deborah Baker Jr., Noah Benjamin, Jessica Botello, Adam Chambers, Sean Durrie, Marissa Galloway, Jason Ryan Lovett, John Sperry Sisk, Vanessa Vaughn, and Larissa Wise. Production design is by Marissa Galloway, Jason Ryan Lovett, and Larissa Wise, and the stage manager is Ashley Snyder.

You know its a good play when you succumb to the story so easily and get lost in the moment to such an extent that you are not sure if you remembered to breathe. This is one of those shows that later, after you’ve procrastinated on seeing it, you go, “damn, I wish I had seen that.”  So… don’t do that. I’m giving you fair warning, now go see it.

I don’t care what your excuse to not go is, it is irrelevant.

Go see this show.

Buy the ticket now.

Do it. There is a bar.

Have you done it yet?

Why are you still reading?

Click here, buy your ticket, and go.

Right now.

Do it.

Done?

Good.

Enjoy.

LoveSick = [Blowing Away] The Audience

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Loft Ensemble - Website Facebook Twitter

929 East Second Street (at Vignes) #105

Downtown LA’s Arts District 90012

Runs Jan 19 – Feb 24

Sat 8 pm, Sun 7 pm

Tickets: $20.www.Loftensemble.com or  213-680-0392.

Gabrielle McClinton (Whatserame) and Van Hughes (Johnny) in AMERICAN IDIOT
Photo credit: Doug Hamilton

Part of any theatrical project includes the major challenge of sending a message to the audience and having the audience experience an emotional reaction.  This challenge for many can be complicated due to the multitude of cultures and generations seeing live theater today.  For many, they have to choose which culture/generation they are going to attempt to reach.  American idiot does what few productions are able to do.  They successfully send different messages to the audience based upon their own personal life experiences, in such a way that everyone, no matter the culture/generation finds a way to relate to, and take something away from, the production.

Different generations of theatergoers walk away from the play experiencing different reactions from personal direct similarities to the three main story lines, to having friends that experienced those things, to having children or parents that went through those trials.  Whether or not we are about to experience, are currently experiencing, have experienced, or have simply viewed other people experiencing things similar to the plot lines, the emotional reactions caused by American Idiot are substantial.  They tend to linger to the extent that, as time passes and the audience member dwells on the experience, the love and understanding for this great production grows.  Whether or not you are a green day fan or not, this show has something for everyone.  There is only one person I have met that didn’t ‘get it,’ and ironically it is a theatre person that is trying to relate to the ‘young people’ today, something we talked about before here.

Some people I’ve spoken with that have yet to see American Idiot tend to think the show is just a tribute to Green Day.  It is not.  The show takes the music from Green Day’s ‘American Idiot’ album, which already has a kind of story, fills in the holes, and presents a musical with full and rich plot lines onto the stage.  In this way, whether or not you are a fan of Green Day, you will still be able to enjoy this musical.  American Idiot is truly a great theatrical experience in every aspect.  If you have not gone yet, see the national tour of American Idiot at The Ahmanson Theatre, or where ever you can.

For the normal person audience member:

If money is tight, you have a few options, we went there at about 5:30pm and signed up for the lottery, you fill out a form, and at 6pm they announce the winners.  The winners get $30 tickets for the first and second rows of the theatre.  If you go on a slower day, like a Tuesday like we did, everyone that signed up for the lottery won.  If you for some reason don’t win you can ask the box office to purchase Hot Tix.  Hot Tix are $20 last minute tickets, generally seated in the balcony.  Not great seats, but who’s complaining since they were $20.  The $30 lottery is definitely the way to experience this show so you can see the plethora of details that make this production the success that it is.  (You could also attempt to get goldstar tickets ahead of time here.) I know I know, you are thinking, “but if we go out to see a show at Center Theater Group there is no place for cheap food or drinks anywhere near there!”

Let me just say, oh ye of little faith, would we ever do that to you?

We have finally found an amazing solution to this.  The restaurant is McCormick & Schmick’s and they have happy hour Mon-Fri from 3pm-10pm.  What does this mean for you?  $3.95 ½ lb cheeseburgers.  Which was one of the best cheeseburgers I’ve had in some time, and I’m from the Midwest!  That, along with $3.50 14 oz. draft beers, a good selection I might add, makes this the perfect pre-show drinking hole.  Here is their happy hour menu.

We had just enough time to win the lottery, run to McCormick and Schmicks, order and eat a 4-buck awesome cheeseburger and fries, down a Sam Adams and a whiskey and head back to the theater just in time to sit down and enjoy an amazing show!  No more overpriced theater drinks for you, now you know the secret… shhhhhh…. Don’t tell too many people, or everyone might actually enjoy himself or herself without breaking the bank.

One more thing I want to mention, American Idiot is also participating in “Broadway Cares” Which is a charity that awards grants to AIDS service organizations nationwide.  As a man who has ridden in AIDS Lifecycle,  (which is still looking for more riders this year, BTW) I am all about the cause. PLUS if you donate $40, you get a window card (some refer to them as posters) signed by the whole cast!  A normal, unsigned, window card generally goes for around $20 bucks.  So if you shell out $40 clams, then you get to help an amazing organization fight AIDS, as well as walk home with a great souvenir.  It’s a win win!

I know that we generally write about the Los Angeles Theater community, however the City of Chicago is scheduled to lay off the entire staff of the DCA Storefront Theater (Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events) on June 30th.  Storefront theater can be compared to 99-seat theater’s here in LA.  The space is funded by the city, yes, but in that way it is able to provide those companies with a free venue, front of house staff, and marketing.  It is a place for artists to do art without having to worry about the funding.  If only such a place existed here in LA.  Smaller companies who don’t pay their actors much (ahem, 99-seat theater) get to produce work that otherwise would not be able to be produced.  This is a space that provides artist a place to do art.  It’s not about making a profit, it’s all about the art, and they are making that road a bumpy ride by getting rid of a competent staff that loves their work, and I’m sure the DCA staff isn’t getting rich off of working there either. I’m sure we can all relate to the staff there as well as the companies and artists producing work in that venue.

When I asked my good friend Mikey Laird, Artistic Director of Nothing Special Productions in Chicago, IL what he knew about this issue he said, “Basically, due to the city dissolving/merging departments that concern art and culture, a city funded theatre, called the DCA (Department of Cultural Affairs, which was merged last year) Storefront Theater is being laid off because of governmental policies on hiring.  Essentially, the programs have to have their staff cleared out in order to prevent any sort of nepotism or favoritism.  Which makes sense, but honestly, this is just some horseshit. the staff of the theater had no say in the decision to merge these departments, and when you have a dedicated staff for a theater, you don’t just dump them and start from scratch. It’s extremely difficult to find a balanced staff that can do their jobs well, and I’ve only ever heard good things about their staff and had positive interactions with that theater. It’s silly to me: not only are you disrupting these people’s lives by laying them off, but you’re bound to disrupt the work that’s contracted to go up at the theater. There won’t be a staff there to support them, and the folks in charge will be tied up hiring and familiarizing new staff.”  Well put Mikey.

I then told him that I loved interviewing him because I only had to ask him one question and he replied with, “Hey man, I’ll talk about theatre endlessly any time.”  My kind of folk. I think he is your kind of folk too, so you should probably sign the petition.

This is important, not just to the City of Chicago, but to the nations theater scene as a whole.  Chicago has an amazing theater community, that does great work out of sheer passion.  They do some of the best work in the country, and nurture up and coming plays, theater companies, and theater artists.  It is vital to all of us to allow this theater community to continue to thrive and function.  Chicago based playwright, Jeff Helgeson, on the Change.org petition comments section said, “Chicago’s “Off Loop”/storefront theatre movement beginning in the early 1970′s has vitalized the Chicago community and created such institutations as The Steppenwolf, Organic, and Victory Gardens theatres. The acknowledgement and support for this significant, grass roots movement that is demonstrated by the downtown Storefront Theatre is something which the city, in its efforts to vitalize the arts community in Chicago, should actively seek to sustain.” Allison Amidei, Artistic Director of WildClaw Theatre posted in the Time Out Chicago article (where you can find more information on this issue) in the comments section, “My theatre, Wildclaw, is slated to produce in the fall and we are just sick thinking about making our show happen without the wonderful DCA Staff…Jim and Nate especially…who were so wonderful when we did Carmilla in January 2011. This program has been crucial to the growth and success of small theatre companies like mine and these wonderful people are a BIG part of why the DCA Storefront is an integral part of the Chicago cultural scene.”

There are many more comments on the Change.org petition that are relatable to any theater practitioner in any part of the country, check them out and support your fellow theater artists!

Now is the time to come together, sign the petition here to help save the Chicago Storefront Theater!

Message of the 50th Anniversary of World Theatre Day:

“I’m honored to have been asked by the International Theatre Institute ITI at UNESCO to give this greeting commemorating the 50th anniversary of World Theatre Day. I will address my brief remarks to my fellow theatre workers, peers and comrades.

May your work be compelling and original. May it be profound, touching, contemplative, and unique. May it help us to reflect on the question of what it means to be human, and may that reflection be blessed with heart, sincerity, candor, and grace. May you overcome adversity, censorship, poverty and nihilism, as many of you will most certainly be obliged to do. May you be blessed with the talent and rigor to teach us about the beating of the human heart in all its complexity, and the humility and curiosity to make it your life’s work. And may the best of you – for it will only be the best of you, and even then only in the rarest and briefest moments – succeed in framing that most basic of questions, “how do we live?” Godspeed.”

- John Malkovich   

We couldn’t resist…

And we’ll have video coverage, too! Be prepared. Be very prepared.

[Blank]ing is a time honored theatrical tradition.  Here are some memorable quotes from plays through the ages… including a hell of a lot of Shakespeare… he’s [Blank]ing dirty!

[Blank] in:

Williams Shakespeare’s As you like It

• “That her [Blank]s may henceforth be bestowed equally.”
• “Hereafter, in a better world than this, I shall desire more [Blank] and [Blank] of you.”
• “My pride fell with my [Blank].”
• “O, how full of [Blank] is this working-day world!”
• “[Blank] on, you fat and greasy citizens.”
• “I can suck [Blank] out of a [Blank] as a weasel sucks eggs.”
• “Blow, blow, thou [Blank]er [Blank]! Thou art not so unkind As man’s [Blank].”
• “[Blank] me in one word.”
• “I do desire we may be better [Blank]ers.”
• “I am not a slut, though I thank the gods I am [Blank].”

Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia

• “It’s the wanting to [Blank] that makes us matter.”

William Shakespeare’s All’s Well That End’s Well

• “Oft [Blank] fails, and most oft there Where most it promises.”
• “It is like a [Blank]er’s [Blank] that fits all buttocks.”
• “They say miracles are [Blank].”
• “A young man married is a man that’s [Blank].”
• “Make the coming [Blank] o’erflow with joy, And pleasure drown the brim.”

William Shakespeare’s, Antony and Cleopatra

• “I love long [Blank] better than figs.”
• “The nature of bad [Blank] infects the [Blank].”
• “There’s a great [Blank] gone!”
• “[Blank] was in our lips and yes, Bliss in our [Blank] bent.”
• “Give me to drink [Blank] That I might sleep this out this great gap of [Blank]…”
• “Where ‘s my serpent of old [Blank]?”
• “I do not much dislike the [Blank], but The manner of his [Blank].”
• “I [Blank]ed him out of patience; and that night I [Blank]ed him into patience; and next morn, Ere the ninth hour, I drunk him to his bed.”
• “It is shaped, sir, like itself; and it is as broad as it hath breadth: it is just so high as it is, and moves with its own organs: it lives by that which nourisheth it; and the elements once out of it, it transmigrates.” – This quote didn’t need any [Blank]!
• “O! my [Blank]s have Corrupted honest men.”

Tennessee Williams’ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

• “Just staying on it, I [Blank], as long as she can…”
• “Silence about a [Blank] just magnifies it.”
• “You can be young without [Blank], but you can’t be old without it.”
• “[Blank] is important. There’s nothing else to hold on onto.”
• “[Blank] just outran me, Big Daddy, got there first…”

Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard

• “My mistress has come home; at last I’ve seen her. Now I’m ready to [Blank].”
• “My love is like a [Blank] tied round my neck; it’s dragging me down to the [Blank]; I love my [Blank]. I can’t live without it.”

Edmond Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac

• “He’s famous for his long–[Blank].”
• “My [Blank] is Gargantuan! You little Pig-[Blank], you tiny Monkey-[Blank], you virtually invisible Pekinese-[Blank], don’t you realize that a [Blank] like mine is both scepter and orb, a monument to me superiority? A great [Blank] is the banner of a great man, a generous heart, a towering spirit, an expansive soul.”
• “My [Blank] is more polished than your mustache”
• “You’re a genuinely good [Blank]. There aren’t many of you left.”
• “Yes, it is perfect. Your white [Blank]…”
• “God’s whiskers! Your [Blank] is hideous as the demon’s in my storybook!”

Just to end on an overused phrase:

William Shakespeare’s, Hamlet

• “To [Blank] or not to [Blank], that is the question.”

Fill In The Blank

In the future, we are going to post some quotes from plays we review, formatted like these quotes, and whoever can come up with some of the most creative responses will win some cool stuff!  Keep a look out at a [Blank] near you!

If you feel inspired from any of our quotes, feel free to send us your creative responses.

I hope you all [Blank]ed!

-Shaunessy

Neither did he expect to write and publicly post about his experience.  Although Falcon Theater did apologize to his post on their Facebook page wall, in his open letter, Narasaki stresses the impact of the reaction and opinion of the individual audience member versus the masses. But we cannot help but think, where is the line drawn? In 2012, how are racial epithets allowed to slide by on the stages of a city as culturally and ethnically diverse as Los Angeles?

Read on and tell us what you think. Or if you’ve ever been in a similar situation on either side of the fence, we’d like to hear from you.

I walked out of DISSONANCE last night because of the main character’s “comic” use of the phrase “squinty-eyed bastards” and “Japs”. I have been involved with theater as an actor, writer, director, literary manager and a story analyst for the past 35 years, so I do understand that theater should not be constrained by “political correctness” and I do understand that the character was supposed to be a jerk, and I do understand that you should not be censors because there are things in most interesting plays that could potentially offend any number of people.

I just want to ask you this: Would you have presented the play as is if the character had said “black bastards” and “niggers”? How about “Jew bastards” and “kikes” in the context of a cheap laugh line?

I’m fairly certain that you would not, and I’m fairly certain your audience wouldn’t have laughed as they did last night.

Context is everything and I believe no words should be “taken off the table” because sometimes racial epithets can make important points in illustrating attitudes and illuminating characters. In this case, I saw absolutely no need for these words and believe it is only because the writer and the artistic personnel involved in the production simply discounted how disgusting these words would be to any of your Asian American audiences. Indeed, not every Asian would feel the same sort of horror that I did, but I feel it is important to let you know that it was a surreal experience to sit in what appeared to me to be an all-white audience, to hear those epithets, and to hear the audience LAUGHING. I felt like I’d been tossed back in time to the 1960s when I used to hear words like that on the schoolyard by racist bullies and ignorant classmates who found things like that hilarious. I had to leave because, honestly, I was emotionally sickened by the experience and flabbergasted that it was used so lightly and with so little reason or purpose; it was ugly to me, and a little shocking to realize that my fellow audience members apparently found such racist speech “naughty” or “daring” enough to laugh.

I would also suggest to you that ignoring the impact these kinds of words have on the few minority members in your audience probably have an effect you may not notice: A lot of audience members may wince, but stick it out and in the end, wouldn’t be angry enough to write you a letter, but on the other hand, may never return – in other words, you may be driving away audiences not angry enough to let you know because, after all, it’s not THAT big a deal; on the other hand, they know that your theater is not for them, so you’ve lost them without ever knowing why.

I hope you’ll give this some serious thought and discuss this because I seriously doubt that I will ever return to the Falcon.

Sincerely,

Ken Narasaki

Reposted with permission from Ken Narasaki.

Did you stumble upon one of these?

Did it make you smile?

We hope it did.

Welcome to [Blank] The Audience.

We’re glad we were able to make your day a little bit brighter and able to feel a pleasant emotion, please allow us to continue to do so.

Whether you picked up the smile because you were having a bad day, or a good day, because you’re lonely, or surrounded by friends, or because you were hungry and wanted to eat the piece of paper, we are glad that you did and that you made your way to our site.

We review plays. I know I know, you’re not ‘a theater person.’ That’s where we come in, and why we are here!

Allow us to tell you why you should go see a play:

1-We go to the plays and tell you if they are worth seeing so you don’t have to take the risk of seeing one of the bad ones.

2-We bet you will experience more emotions, similar to the emotion you had when you found the smile.

3-You may just interact with people, in a live setting, crazy and rare… we know…

4-If you are lonely, you might make a new friend, if you are surrounded by friends, you will have something to talk about.

5-If you are hungry, we will tell you what close by is good to eat.

6-If you are having a good or bad day, we can recommend plays that will either enhance or contradict those feelings.

7- We will even tell you where the good seats are AND if they serve ALCOHOL! WIN!

(In addition, here are 10 Reasons to See a Play in LA)

What’s not to love?

With any luck, someone else will see your smiling face at the play and they will say this:

We hope you come back and visit us often and share your smiles with us if you see us in person, we’d be glad to return the favor. Whether or not you go see a play, we hope you will keep smiling, because you never know who will see it. After all, smiles are contageous.

Feel free to leave a Comment Here with anything that will make us smile or if you know of a place that would like some smiles.

-Shaunessy and LL
[Blank] the Audience

Ways to follow:

Subscribe to our RSS feed at blanktheaudience.com

Follow us on facebook at facebook.com/blanktheaudience

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It may not be theater, but we’d still [blank] that!

Playwrights’ Arena’s Flash Theater L.A. launched it’s first of 20 plays in 2012 by Los Angeles-based playwrights in 2012 with Leon Martell’s OCCUPY directed by Jon Lawrence Rivera. Around 100 waiting audience members and unexpected passerby gathered Sunday, January 22 at the corner of Sunset and Vine in Hollywood by the fountain at Chase Bank.

Click to view slideshow.

Video! What!?