rmrees
Big Kid Stuff
So, you want to be an artist? Great! You’ve gone bout the appropriate steps: applied to theatre school, put some time (and money) in an institution learning the basics of acting, voice work, reading the classics (and hopefully the contemporary too), cultivating your general awareness of the world, have worked on some plays, and hey. Now you’re finally, […]
Women, War, and Theatre
One of the most successful things theatre can do is respond thoughtfully to events happening in the world. Recently I’ve been reading and studying different playwrights, directors, and theatre makers doing just this, and the overarching theme is: War. These artists are asking the necessary questions: What are the lasting affects of war? How do we acknowledge/ignore it? What […]
Keyword: Collaboration
I’m currently in the throes of devising a new play. It’s really hard. I’m doing this with three other classmates of mine at Boston University, all just a few weeks away from receiving our long awaited BFA’s. With three weeks left until we open, we’ve established and (finally) finalized a concept, a basic structure of […]
Antarctica: A Blank Space for Possibility
“We will appear very soon,” reads the sign hanging above an empty stage. At least, the stage is void of people. It is however, covered with instruments—a drum set taking center stage, keyboards and pianos strewn left and right, microphones all over, guitars to the left, other various instruments, and large mysterious domes hanging out […]
A Spectrum of Experience: The Amish Project
Resilience. Compassion. Love. Confusion. Hatred. Despair. Empathy. The realities of these words live within us all, often simultaneously. This is the human condition. How can one both fully hate and love? How do we find compassion in the midst of despair? And how do we walk through life with heads held high in the midst […]
Spectacle-Based Drama
Jay Ruby, founder of The Carpetbag Brigade, recently wrote a blog post on HowlRound as the first part of a series were he will address the “basic tenants of spectacle-based drama” through the lens of his theatre company. This first blog of the series lays out the basics: What differentiates spectacle from drama? How do the […]
Spoiler Alert: All of the Children Die
This Sunday I had the pleasure of seeing Company One’s production of SHOCKHEADED PETER, presented in part with Suffolk University at the Modern Theatre. SHOCKHEADED PETER originated in 1998 through collaboration between Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch of London’s Improbable Theatre, and a British “Brechtian Punk Cabaret” band called The Tiger Lillies. They sought to […]
Stories Worth Telling
I recently read a blog post by my classmate, Ally, in response to Scott Slavin’s post about solo performance on HowlRound. In Ally’s post, she concludes that the main purpose of solo performance is telling a story worth knowing. I agree, and further ask, what constitutes a story worth knowing? Both Scott and Ally remark […]
Keep Your Biases Out of My Textbook
“Keep your biases out of my textbook…” This is literally a note I wrote while doing some homework recently. I am currently taking a class on Theatre Management. We’re learning the ins and outs of what it takes to run a theatre company, which is perfect because this is partly what I’ll end up doing […]
Survival and Money
I was recently watching a conversation between Anne Bogart and Leon Ingulsrud of the SITI Company, and Stacy Klein, Carlos Uriona, and Matthew Glassman of Double Edge Theatre on the HowlRound TV archives. Towards the end of the conversation, an audience member asked a question about how to excite and engage others to create a […]
“It feels like it happened…”
Suzan-Lori Parks is awesome. Well, duh. I mean, have you seen her hair? But in all seriousness, if you’re not already familiar with this brilliant, clever, down to earth playwright, you should be. Yesterday, I went with three other women in my Contemporary Drama class at BU to see Father Comes Home from the Wars […]
Currency of Exchange
Over the course of the past four years, my understanding of theatre as a young adult has shifted and morphed countless times, namely, my idea of how I wish to practice theatre. At Boston University, I’ve had the privilege of taking many exciting movement, voice, acting, and other related classes, yet the university form has […]
A Solution (maybe) for Non-Profits: A Sense of Place
A sense of place—this is an idea Carlos Uriona of Double Edge Theatre talked about recently in a Tedx Talk. I think this is particularly important for artists. In his talk, Carlos tells of his journey from Argentina all the way to Ashfield, MA, USA to Double Edge Theatre. Carlos was an artist and theatre […]
(Don’t) ☺ Put on a Smile ☺
Happiness. What is that? I don’t have a definition, nor am I anxious to find one. What I do know is that today in our society, happiness is often equated with a basic human gesture–a smile. From the iconic smiley face, to grinning employees in retail stores, to highway billboards depicting smiling people enjoying a […]
Internet vs Reality
I recently deleted my Facebook account. Well, “deactivated” it. In other words, I can still gain access to it if I so choose. I made this decision in an attempt to begin living a more authentic life. To me, that means interacting with the world in a genuine, and real way. I don’t hate the […]
Je vous presente: The Multifaceted Artists of CocoRosie, Bianca and Sierra Casady (watch the videos)
Early in October, I spontaneously went to a CocoRosie concert at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston. With only a hunch that I’d like their music, I frantically called my musical genius brother, Ryan, to get his advice and he said I should absolutely go. So, I went. And thank the gods I did. CocoRosie […]
Changing the “dramaturgy of the land”
“When you’re marching down the levee, something amazing happens: the dramaturgy of the land changes” – Nick Slie (Mondo Bizarro, New Orleans, LA) While the human race is capable of such magnificent acts of creation, we are equally as capable of devastating destruction. In making life more convenient for ourselves, we have begun to systematically […]
Taking Root
This semester, I’m taking a class on French culture. This week in class, my professor asked us what we thought some defining factors of American culture are. Answers from my classmates were: the American dream, freedom and equality for all, instant gratification, independence of the individual, and a mix of different cultures. As I’ve learned […]
They need it more than we do.
Hey fellow theatre students: Why do we spend so much time and effort into making theatre that nobody will see? At least, nobody other than our classmates, fellow artists, who always see it… How do we engage with new audiences? Ones whose first impulse would not be to spend their Friday night going to the […]
I’m a Woman. Now What?
I’ve never considered myself a “feminist” in the stereotypical sense, yet I’m beginning to wonder why. I am a woman, after all, and fundamentally believe in universal equality. However, I’m staring to realize that the level of prejudice of every nature still exists in the world, in greater amounts than I’d like to admit. I’m […]
Drama Lit Blog 2.0: BU School of Theatre 