Planet Houston Podcast - Episode 302: It Happened Again

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So yeah. This show. Totally happening again. And it's just as horribly formatted as it ever was. But hey, there should still be fun to be had by all. So enjoy this decidedly more rambley, definitely less interviewy, episode of Planet Houston Podcast.

Surviving the Big 2-4: Taking the Stage

Okay, let's face it.  When it's all said and done, you're the ones being put in the line of fire.  You're the ones that the audience will see, and inevitably the success or failure of the writing and direction of the show falls squarely on your shoulders.

And you wouldn't have it any other way.

But still, let's not kid ourselves here.  You've got an uphill climb, and here's a few of the reasons why:

Flying Blind

You have no idea what you're getting yourself into.  Literally, that is.  Your first chance to see a script will be the morning that you show up to work on it.  Unlike a normal audition, you're pretty much getting placed into a show blind.  They'll be no extra time to read the show early.  No opportunity to Wiki a synopsis of the show.  It's you and whoever else gets picked for ten minutes.

But on the bright side, it's just ten minutes.  It feels a lot longer than it acutally will be.  And ibefore you know it, it will be all over.  But until then...

Manage Your Stress

One could argue that the ticking clock will impact the actors the most.  Yes, your director will feel for you, but in the end you'll be the one feeling the pressure of being off book by the 8PM deadline.

The easiest way to wreck your fun and ruin your day is to get into a panic over time.  Try to find moments to relax and unwind.  Take a break from your script and just hang out.  Not for hours on end, mind you.  But take breaks to keep your head screwed on straight.  Your brain will be better prepared to memorize and function if you do.

Get the Gist of It

The end goal is to have a perfectly learned and executed script.  Believe me when I say that the goal is rarely met, and even then roughly so.  The ultimate survival tactic is one of last resort.  If you can't hack all of the lines word for word, then try your best to keep the spirit of them intact.  Work with your fellow actors to prevent the one thing that will derail any stage performance: getting lost in the woods.

So long as one person on stage has an idea of what's going on, all is not lost.  No matter how badly you think that things might turn out, there's always someone that thinks that things will be worse.

Manage Your Nerves

Last summer, everyone was on edge.  Every single performer.  Not one person was calm, and if they say they were, then they're a liar.  I'm usually as cool as a cucumber, and I was edgy.  It's probably the most on edge I've ever been before taking a stage, and (God willing) I will never be that on edge again.

But the entire cast and crew are pulling for you.  Not just from your show, but from every single show going on.  Every single person in every single show, every single writer, every single director, every single techie and stage manager, and (most importantly) every single audience member. 

They're a forgiving group that will respect you giving your best effort and appreciate the work that you put into it.  So worry less about your performance being perfect and focus on doing your best to get the show at its best.  Everything else will work itself out.

So that's it.  Everything is about to live in a few hours.  I'll be no doubt stressing over it in short order, and the rest of the group will be under the gun soon enough.  Godspeed and broken legs to everyone participating, and please remember to come out and support the effort by seeing the performances Saturday, Feb. 4th at 8PM.

Surviving the Big 2-4: Finding Direction

Direction is a sometimes thankless job.  But anyone that says that directing is easy has never either never tried it or did it poorly.  A director is the bridge between what the writer creates and what the people see.  They carry the vision forward, and then add their own touch while still retaining the core of the writer's vision.  They lead the actors in the direction of this overall vision into a performance that will enlighten and entertain.

So, yeah.  That's easy, all right.  And good luck with doing it in twelve hours.

Directors during the play festival will have all of the normal challenges of directing with the added burden of being on the clock.  Because of that, there are some special items they should consider.  I openly admit that directing is the one aspect of theater that I have the least experience with, but I also admit that, having worked with different directors over time, I should have some sort of insight on how this works.

Keep It Simple, (Not So) Stupid - Setting the Stage

It goes without saying that no one expects a miracle out of you.  If you get the show on, you've pretty much done your job.  Your best bet for doing this is making the goals you set for yourself be believable ones.

Every director that I've ever worked with starts with a vision of what they ideally want.  Then slowly over the course of time, they pare that vision down into what is possible.   To survive the play fest, you should embrace the "what is possible" phase as soon as possible, if not immediately.

You're going to have limited resources.  Basically, all you have on tap is what may be at the theater itself and what you can grab or pin down within the course of a few hours.  It's not all bad, though.  The modern age provides you with access to the internet, and through it any of a number of music and audio clips to make use of.

Although again, I would say to keep it simple.  The fewer sound and light cues you have, the easier everything will manage to be. 

The same principle will work with regards to set pieces.  Again, less is probably more.  Your best bet is to rely on the basics of tables, chairs, small props and assorted coverings.  If you're lucky, your writer(s) will have given you enough slack to make this stress -free.  If they haven't, then you're going to have to make the call on how much of a hoop you plan to jump through for them.  Again, my personal opinion is that less is more.  Let you actors help you paint the scene.  Speaking of which...

Keep It Simple, (Not So) Stupid - Managing Your Peeps

I'm not going to say that you should be hands off with your actors.  There should be enough time to manage blocking and giving some motivation/direction notes if need be.  but I will say that you do need to be aware that they too are under the gun.  If your actors get their lines remotely down and can manage to add anything beyond that, then more power to them.

Do not make the mistake of trying to micro-manage your performers.  Know when to wrangle them in, and then know when to give them space to work on their own.  And believe me when I say that you'll have plenty of other things that you can focus on in the meantime.

Planet Houston Podcast - Episode 301: ...Mehhhh...

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For anyone that's noticing, the show is back now... sort of. As you will see, it's still a little rough around the edges, but the good stuff is still there. Today's installment isn't particularly segment heavy, but you don't want to miss out. Highlighting the show is an interview (... yes, I said interview) with Upstart Theater Company's Timothy Reynolds. You might know him from other stuff. Join us as we talk about the upcoming event Winter's Tales. So strap in, plug up, and brace yourselves. I'm apparently just bored enough to start the crazy train again. And you're welcome.

Surviving the Big 2-4: Writing in Short Order

So you want to write a play, do you?  How long do you want to take?  A year?  Few months?

Oh.  A day.  You’re insane.

Oh, not a day.  Half that time?  You’re even more insane.  But you are perfect material for a 24-hour play festival like Winter’s Tales.  But before you get your laptop cracking and begin a steady infusion of caffeine, let me give you a few pointers to get you going.

Your real reward will be seeing your work take life at the end of the cycle.  Your best chance for reaping that benefit is to make sure that you build the proper framework for the rest of the participants to work with.

Know Your Limitations – Time! Part 1

There are two time constraints to keep in mind.  The first is a real time barrier of roughly eight hours.  That’s how long you’ll have to plot, write, edit, and submit your script.  But also keep in mind that that given time frame is overnight during the first day of the festival.  So unless you’re a natural night owl (or you just have an out of whack  metabolism), consider that you will have slightly less time than that as your body begins to slow down over the course of the morning.

What this means is that your best bet for success is to come up with all of your major ideas and plotting as early as possible.  I’m not big on outlining, but if you need it, then go ahead and do it early.  I’ll go a further step and suggest that you script several possible ideas/outlines in the first hour or so.  Because if an idea goes south on you, you don’t want to be sitting around at 1AM in the morning with no idea of what to go to next.

Know Your Limitations – Time! Part 2

Your second time constraint is a writing barrier.  The desired length for your written show is 10 minutes.  That translates to about 10 pages of scripted text.  I would strongly suggest that you use a piece of formatting software to write your script.  That will help put the pieces into proper perspective, make them easier to read for others, and help give the proper spacing/format to actually pan out to ten minutes.  There are several free options available if you ever want to make use of them (I’m somewhat fond of Celtx, myself).

Find Your Comfort Zone

Every writer will occasionally feel the need to challenge themselves creatively.  I will suggest that you pick another time to do  so.  Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not saying that your piece cannot be thoughtful, inventive, or even abstract.  But if that’s not your wheelhouse, this is probably the wrong time to indulge that whim.

I know the feeling well.  I thought, foolishly so, that it would be a good idea to go with an abstract concept for my writing last summer.  How did it go?  How many times have I mentioned dumping my first concept, again…?

Just keep in mind that with only hours to work and several other constraints to consider, choosing to right outside of the box is just giving yourself one more handicap.  And speaking of other constraints…

Consider Your Directors – Setting the Stage

Naturally, your  script should not detail things that will be difficult or impossible for someone to create in under a day.  That doesn’t mean that you can’t use certain settings; it just means that you need to consider the environment.

Directors will have access to limited space and resources.  Yes, this is their problem to sort out (which I will get into later…), but it can only help them when you don’t start digging them a larger hole to work out of.

It is a simple matter to set the stage without setting the stage, so to speak.  You want a scene in a laundromat?  That’s fine.  But if you want the scene to include an actual washer or drier, you better check and make sure that there’s one available.  Yes, there are cheats that can be used, but it’s simpler if you try to keep the workspace in mind.  Which brings me to my next point…

Consider Your Directors – Making the Moves

My favorite part of any script is the dialogue.  It’s probably the thing that most clearly reflects itself in my head as I think up ideas.  But even with that, I recognize that a script does need some stage directions.  This is less a play-by-play of each and every action a character will make and is, again, a framework for the director and actors to work with.

When considering what actions to include and exclude, I tend to ask myself the question: “Is this action important to the scene or my vision?”  If the answer is yes, then that action goes in with as much detail as necessary.  If not, then I tend to leave it open.  The trick is in balancing making a clear picture with tying a director’s hand with lofty descriptions.

Consider Your Actors – Casting Call

If history is any indicator, there will be limited resources with regards to performers.  Even if there is a wide berth of performers to choose from (and here’s hoping that pans out…), you still need to keep in mind that directors will be making the casting choices.  So don’t go too crazy trying to pen a part that you feel would be suited for one particular person.  That person may not be available, and on top of that it’s not your job to make a choice like that.

Now that isn’t to say that you should feel limited in your ability to create characters.  People play above and below their age ranges, do accents, etc. all of the time.  Feel free to create any characters you want in whatever standing you see fit.  It will, however, smooth things over if you give your characters a little bit of leeway.  Speaking of which…

Consider Your Actors

This one is kind of a no brainer, but it bears saying.  Don’t go crazy when it comes to what characters say or do or how they interact.  My main, major general rule of thumb (and a solid suggestion) is to steer clear of heavy romantic interactions.  Hugs are pretty safe, but anything beyond that should be left up in the air (or just left out).  Seriously, no one is signing up for this expecting a love scene, and those types of actions take weeks (or longer) for actors to develop a comfort level in.  Try not to make the performers have to do anything that’s going to leave them with emotional scars.

To Make A Long Story Short (Too Late)…

I would never want anyone to feel limited in their ability to tell a story, paint a picture, or express themselves.  But in this particular endeavor and in this environment, it is important that the writer realizes their role.  You are making the blueprint  for what everyone else is working with for the next half of the festival.  And to a certain degree, how well you do that will eventually affect how hard or how easy that task will be.

(Next time, my (most likely much shorter) advice for directors.  Yes, I’m going to tell you how to do that job that I never actually do.  I’m like Dr. Spock that way…)