Phantasmaphile

"Why We Left Brooklyn" Opens Tonight!

I am so thrilled that the perpetually brilliant Matthew Freeman has a new play opening TONIGHT.  "Why We Left Brooklyn" starts its three nights of previews, and tickets for those are only $12 (as opposed to the standard $25).  I got the chance to get a sneak peek at dress rehearsal, and I was totally blown away by the actors, the set, and of course the way the sharp, bittersweet lines sounded being spoken out loud.  I can't wait to see the whole show, and I hope between tonight and September 21st, you'll do the same.  Time Out New York selected it for its "Good Odds" column in their theatre section, and there's a great interview with Matt and his director, Kyle Ancowitz, already up on The Mantle.  Buzz is building, and it feels exciting.  Get your tickets now. 

New York, New York — Theater Accident, in association with Blue Coyote Theater Group, are thrilled to present the world premiere of WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN, written by Matthew Freeman and directed by Kyle Ancowitz. WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN begins performances on Thursday, August 29 for a limited engagement through Saturday, September 21.  The performance schedule is Tuesday - Saturday at 7:30 PM, with added performances on Sunday, September 8 at 7:30 PM and Sunday, September 15 at 2 PM. Performances are at the Fourth Street Theater (83 East 4th Street, between Bowery & Second Avenue). Tickets are $25. To purchase tickets, call SmartTix on 212-868-4444 or visit www.smarttix.com. For more information, visit www.theateraccident.com.

Everything is changing. Jason is finally ready to give up acting - and New York City - for a solid teaching job in Columbus, Ohio. His wife, Michelle, would join him, if not for the budding book deal. On the eve of Jason's departure, their closest friends have gathered among packed boxes and uncertain prospects to mark the occasion with a farewell dinner party. On a blisteringly comic battleground littered with crushed hopes and artisanal flatbreads, ten strivers reckon their successes and wonder how much longer they can hold out.

Playwright Matthew Freeman (When is a Clock, The Most Wonderful Love) and director Kyle Ancowitz re-team for this a darkly comic snapshot of ambitious, aging, evangelically ethical, and heartbroken group who are navigating their own marriages, livelihoods, and sputtering dreams.

WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN features Rebecca Gray Davis (Mass at The Brick Theater), David DelGrosso (Glee Club, When Is a Clock, The Most Wonderful Love with Blue Coyote), Jay Leibowitz (Orson Welle's Moby Dick Rehearsed for The Acting Company), Sarah K. Lippmann (Billboard at 59E59), Susan Louise O'Connor (Blythe Spirit on Broadway), Andrew Schwartz (Classic Stage Company, Aquila Theatre Company), Imran Sheikh (The Sonnet Project), Marguerite Stimpson (Butley on Broadway, Williamstown Theater Festival), Moira Stone (The Public, The Brick, 3LD), and Matthew Trumbull (The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children, Glee Club, Effie Jean In Tahiti).

The creative team features lighting design by Nicholas Houfek (The Play About My Dad) and costume design by Caroline Berti (Flyovers).

Join the Community on Facebook.

Tickets are available now here.

Mike Daisey's "All the Faces of the Moon"

While I'm on a theatre kick, I simply must mention Mike Daisey's "All the Faces of the Moon," which will be opening at Joe's Pub on September 5th.  Each night, Daisey will do an entirely different monologue based upon the magic of NYC.  He's starting on the new moon, and doing 29 nights of monologues, so the show maps onto one whole lunar cycle.  And each monologue is titled after a different tarot card, to boot.  Additionally, he will be accompanied on stage each night by a new painting by Larissa Tokmakova - a different painting for every evening.  It's almost too much for me to bear.  The best part?  They're going to be podcasting the whole series, so you can listen to it in its entirety, if you can't make it to any or all of them in person.  Here are all the details:

World Premiere
ALL THE FACES OF THE MOON
Created and Performed by Mike Daisey
Directed by Jean-Michele Gregory

September 5 - October 3, 2013

Mike Daisey returns to The Public with a breathtakingly epic theatrical event: a story told over the course of a lunar month, a new monologue every night, in 29 unique consecutive performances. Each evening stands alone as a single episode, but together they create a living theatrical novel set against the secret history of New York City – a city that is loved and loathed and larger than life. From Pentecostal church services held in IKEA showrooms to Nikola Tesla's laboratories in the Lower East Side, from the infamous Mole People's convocations deep beneath the subway lines to the hidden and terrifying plans of Robert Moses, Daisey weaves a story of ordinary magic in a most extraordinary city. Night after night he will strive like Scheherazade to tell the largest story ever attempted in the American theater.

For a full schedule and titles of the 29 monologues in ALL THE FACES OF THE MOON, click here.

Each night Daisey will be joined onstage by one of 29 oil paintings commissioned and created for this show by the Russian artist Larissa Tokmakova, illustrating and illuminating the story he's telling. Audiences can experience these performances live, and also follow online by listening to the free podcast as the story unfolds.

29 MONOLOGUES OVER 29 NIGHTS
Special gifts when you see 3 or More!
See 3: Limited edition poster featuring images of all 29 paintings onstage in each of the 29 monologues.
See 7: Limited edition print of your choice of 1 of the 29 paintings onstage in each of the 29 monologues, plus all gifts for lower levels.
See 10: Framed, limited edition poster featuring images of all 29 paintings, signed by Mike Daisey and Larissa Tokmakova, plus individual prints of all 29 pieces, plus all gifts for lower levels.
See 15: Special printed book containing images of all 29 paintings with a description of each piece, plus selected scans of the notes Mike Daisey used to create All the Faces of the Moon, plus all gifts for lower levels.
See 22: Special invitation to the closing night cocktail party, plus a special cameo appearance consisting of a delightful and brief interview with Mike Daisey onstage during one of his monologues, plus all gifts for lower levels.
See 29: Special private/group dinner with Mike Daisey, Jean-Michele Gregory, and Larissa Tokmakova in The Library at The Public, plus all gifts for lower levels.
Except for the closing night invite and the "cameo appearance," all other gifts will be distributed after October 3, 2013.

"The master storyteller...what distinguishes him from most solo performers is how elegantly he blends personal stories, historical digressions and philosophical ruminations. He has the curiosity of a highly literate dilettante and a preoccupation with alternative histories, secrets large and small, and the fuzzy line where truth and fiction blur."
– The New York Times

The only challenge is figuring out which night(s) to attend!  I'm leaning toward the September 8th "She's the High Priestess to You, Jack" monologue, and/or the Sept 29th "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" one.  Here's the full list:

ALL THE FACES OF THE MOON Monologue Titles

Sept 5 - Playing the Hand You’re Dealt

Sept 6 - The Fool Who Walks Through Walls

Sept 7 - The Magician and the Fish

Sept 8 - She’s the High Priestess to You, Jack

Sept 9 - Mercury Is a Messenger Who Will Not Wait

Sept 10 - The Empress Holds Her Cards Close

Sept 11 - The Naked Emperor Is Still Laughing

Sept 12 - Venus Is a Star Who Gets What She Wants 

Sept 13 - The Hierophant Plays It Loose 

Sept 14 - The Lovers Struggle To Take What They Want 

Sept 15 - Your Chariot Awaits, My Sweet 

Sept 16 - Mars Is a Soldier Whose Hands Are Red 

Sept 17 - That Hideous Strength 

Sept 18 - The Hermit Stands at the Turn of the River 

Sept 19 - This Is How We Make Our Fortune 

Sept 20 - Our Justice Runs on a Tilted Table 

Sept 21 - Jupiter Is a King Who Never Came Back 

Sept 22 - A Hanged Man Knows How To Bluff 

Sept 23 - The Untitled 

Sept 24 - Temperance Under the Gun 

Sept 25 - The Devil Always Plays to a Draw 

Sept 26 - Paying the Rent in the Tower of Song 

Sept 27 - Saturn Is a Father Devouring His Children 

Sept 28 - If You Wish Upon a Star You Will Regret It

Sept 29 - The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress 

Sept 30 - The Sun Is a Blind and Burning Thing 

Oct 1 - A Flaw in Your Judgment 

Oct 2 - The World Is More Than We Will Ever Know 

Oct 3 - Last Call

Click here to return to ticketing and general information for ALL THE FACES OF THE MOON

Decisions, decisions!!

"Why We Left Brooklyn" Action Items!

My husband's play, "Why We Left Brooklyn," is opening at the Fourth Street Theater here in Manhattan on Thursday, August 29th, and will be up through Saturday, September 21st.  Tickets are now available online, so please do grab some before they evaporate.  The show is about 30-something artists grappling with their aspirations, successes, and failures.  (Hrmmmmm.)  It is also wickedly funny, sharp, bittersweet, and thoroughly entertaining.  You definitely DO NOT want to miss this one.

Additionally, we're throwing a fundraiser party this Saturday 8/17 for his theater company, Theater Accident, and we would LOVE to see you there.  It's sponsored by Sixpoint Brewery, there will be live music courtesy of Ellia Bisker (of Sweet Soubrette and Charming Disaster), and we have some truly tremendous raffle prizes, including this unbelievable original art piece by Susan Jamison:

Susan Jamison "White Sensory", kid leather glove, embroidery, horsehair, 5"x 25", 2013

Full info:

THEATER ACCIDENT is having a summer bash to raise monies for their upcoming razor-sharp and sparkling new play, WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN. The play was written by MATTHEW FREEMAN, directed by KYLE ANCOWITZ, and stars 10 of the best actors in NYC, nay, on PLANET EARTH.

The party will be in a glamorous - get this - house in Brooklyn with roof decks and catwalks and a courtyard and lots of fine-feathered folks like YOU.

THERE WILL BE EATS AND DRINKS AND A RAFFLE AND LIVE MUSICS COURTESY OF ELLIA BISKER (of Sweet Soubrette & Charming Disaster) & SPECIAL GUESTS!

***THERE WILL BE BEER COURTESY OF OUR SPONSOR, SIXPOINT BREWERY!!!!!***

You should attend...

The Fundraiser for Why We Left Brooklyn
Saturday August 17, 2013
8pm
***ADDRESS very close to Metropolitan/Lorimer stop will be provided to attendees who RSVP HERE***
(L train to Lorimer; G Train to Metropolitan)
$20 admission gets you all-you-can-drink-and-nosh

There will be music. There will be raffles. There will be spirits. THERE WILL BE CHEESE.

RAFFLE PRIZES INCLUDE:

*Pair of tix to the Off-Broadway Revival of Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead starring Ian Gould!

*Artwork by Michael Robinson (Creative Director of Reality Sandwich), Susan Jamison, Carrie Ann Baade, & Page Turner!

* 3-hour Interior Design Consultation with UrbanFutures Design!

* 4 tickets to a 2013-14 Season performance of your choice at The Schneider Concerts at The New School!

* 3 hours of coaching or 2-hour Meyers-Briggs analysis (your choice) with Kate Sandberg!

* 1 hour Voice-over coaching and evaluation session at Shut-Up & Talk!

* Abraxas Journal Double-pack!

* Autographed copy of Rest in Pieces: The Curious Fates of Famous Corpses by Bess Lovejoy!

* A group aerial class for you and a friend at Kiepboli's Aerial!

* 2-hour Witch Consultation and Spellcrafting Session with Pam Grossman!

* Private Movement/Dance Lesson with Patrice Miller!

* 2 Private Life Coaching Sessions with Emily Grossman!

* 1/2 Hour Tarot Reading with Cathy Towle!

* Sweet Soubrette vinyl LP + T-shirt Pack!

* Charming Disaster sneak preview CD + hand-printed lyrics booklet package!

* Juliet Strong "Whiskey and Jellybeans" CD!

* Pair of tickets to see Kotorino at Joe's Pub!

* Free Horary Astrology Session with Licorice Root!

* AND MORE!!!

RSVP HERE to join the party and get the address!

 

In sum: 

- BUY TICKETS FOR WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN HERE.

- JOIN US FOR OUR FUNDRAISER BY RSVPING HERE.

Thank you so much for supporting new, original art in NYC.  This play is going to be tremendous indeed.  Looking forward to seeing you at the show, the party, or both!

Desert Sin's "Cloud Cuckooland"

I've apparently posted about the phantasmagorical, theatrical dance troupe, Desert Sin, no less than 1, 2, 3, 4 times on here already.  And some of you may know I invited them to perform their crystalline "Snow Queen" dance at my 30th birthday party a few years back.  This is all to say that I adore them, and that anything they do you can bet I'm buying tickets for.  I've been a fan of theirs for 5 years and counting, and always wait with bated breath to see what creations they'll concoct next.

So you can imagine the joy I feel in announcing that their upcoming extravaganza, "Cloud Cuckooland" will be in collaboration with none other than Matthew Freeman, playwright/Jedi/husband.  It's the stuff dreams are made of, that's for sure.  There will be avian dancers!  Puppets!  Lavish costumes!  Music to swoon to!  And a story that will rivet you to your seat, no doubt.  Here are some more details, including information about their fundraising efforts.  Please consider donating if you can:

Coming soon to New York and beyond:

Slated for Spring 2014, a new HAUNTINGLY BEAUTIFUL production,

“CLOUD CUCKOOLAND”

a love story (and possible tragedy) about escapism, and its inevitable collision with reality.

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!  It is only through the continued support of our friends, family, and fans that we can make these wonderful shows for you!  As you know, there is an awful lot of prep that goes into these larger productions. 

We need to raise $5000 to cover the cost for the next several months of rehearsal studio rental, as well as the initial designer, composer, and dancers’ fees.

“Cloud Cuckooland” is an internationally collaborative production rooted in dance with experimental use of digital projections, puppetry, and an entirely original score.   Artists on board currently include Los Angeles’ very own Puppet Master Jesse Kingsley of Mystery Bird Puppets, and Emmy award-winning Sound Designer Daniel Colman, New York’s award-winning Playwright Matthew Freeman, Costume Designer Kristin Costa, composers David Kammerer, Damon Ketron, and Australian composer Joe Savage.

A donation of any amount can make a difference.  And what’s this?  Djahari Clark (Artistic Director of Desert Sin) is a Sponsored Artist with The Field, a not-for-profit organization serving the New York City performing arts community so all donations are tax-deductible. *

All funds raised will go towards the further development and production of “Cloud Cuckooland”.  Help us bring another heartbreaking, gorgeous collaboration to life!  We know that it is through your gracious support that we thrive.  We thank you!

To donate click here:      

DONATE  Or copy and paste this link: https://www.thefield.org/Profile.aspx?SAID=2843

 

And much more info to come soon, naturally.

PLEASE HELP: Matthew Freeman's "Why We Left Brooklyn"

I interrupt your regularly scheduled esoterica to bring you news of my glorious husband Matthew Freeman's new play, "Why We Left Brooklyn."  It will be up at Manhattan's 4th Street Theater this August and September, and seriously, folks, you're not going to want to miss it.  The play is brilliant and funny and moving and wry, and the cast is a veritable dream team of NYC actors.  Here's a synopsis:

WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN!

The Theater Accident is back with WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN (or The Dinner Party Play) by Matthew Freeman. After our popular productions of two solo performances (Confess Your Bubble and The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children); we're thrilled to bring this full length dramatic comedy to the New York stage.

Everything is changing. Jason is finally ready to give up acting - and New York City - for a solid teaching job in Columbus, Ohio. His wife, Michelle, would join him, if not for the budding book deal that's always been her dream. On the eve of departure, their closest friends have gathered among packed boxes and uncertain prospects to mark the occasion with a farewell dinner party. On a blisteringly comic battleground littered with crushed hopes and artisanal flatbreads, ten strivers reckon their successes and wonder how much longer they can hold out.

WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN is a darkly comic snapshot of the recession-era bourgeoisie: ambitious, aging, evangelically ethical, and heartbroken. These are the children of the divorce explosion and the Reagan revolution, now navigating their own marriages, livelihoods, and sputtering dreams.

WHY WE LEFT BROOKLYN is directed by Kyle Ancowitz and features a stellar cast, including Rebecca Davis, David DelGrosso, Amanda Jones, Jay Leibowitz, Sarah K. Lippmann, Susan Louise O'Connor, Andrew Schwartz, Moira Stone, and Matthew Trumbull.

These guys are going all out on a big, beautiful production, and Matt, Kyle, and the entire cast and crew are working their tails off to make this show a juggernaut. 

That said:  they could *really* use your support.  They just launched their online fundraising campaign, and they have a big goal to hit.  Would you please PLEASE consider donating?  There are some fantastic prizes, including an exclusive talkback with the cast and creators, and a gourmet pie baked just for you by the award-winning pastry chef of The Dutch, Kierin Baldwin.  (Kierin is, quite literally, one of the best pastry chefs in the world, and her pie makes me see trails it's so good.) 

Anything you can give would be most appreciated.  It will go towards helping to pay for things like rehearsal space, sets and costumes, theater rental, actor salaries, and marketing & PR to help spread the word about the show far and wide.  It's really difficult to launch original work in NYC these days (see: Legally Blonde: The Musical et al.), but so worthwhile.  Thank you in advance for helping to fund new art!  Donate here now if you please.

The Testament of Mary

Being married to a playwright means I get to see lots of theatre: some of it good, some of it great, some of it very, very bad.  But every once in a while, we see something so incredible, we're struck mute by it, literally dumbfounded by its impact and beauty.  I have an extremely short list of theatrical experiences I've had which have made me feel this way: totally spellbound and electrified and transformed and so, so lucky to have gotten to bear witness to them.  As of last night, the searing star that is The Testament of Mary has been added to my personal firmament.

Based on Colm Tóibín's novel of the same name, it's a one-woman retelling of Jesus' story from his mother's perspective.  To say more would give too much away, as so much of the power of this play hinges upon the audience's discovery - and re-discovery - that I think it only right that one goes without knowing too much about the evening.  But I will say that the art direction has yielded some of the most gorgeous pictures I have ever seen, on stage, wall, screen, or otherwise.

Long-time collaborators Fiona Shaw and Deborah Warner have that rare Lennon-McCartney dynamic that creates masterpieces, and this show is a shining example.  Shaw's acting is...well, she's FIONA SHAW.  She is tremendous, complicated, and enthralling throughout, telling her tale while attempting to wrestle it to the ground.  Warner's direction is nothing short of divine.  Weaving symbols - some subtle, some far less so, but all earned - throughout, she leaves a taut thread for the audience to follow, leading us through a labyrinth of myth and fierce reality, worship and wanting, catharsis and splendor.  It's gut-wrenching and transcendent at once.

The play also managed to close a pretty astounding synchronicity loop for me, retroactively making our recent trip to Ephesus all the more meaningful.  You'll see why in more detail when you read the writer's note in the program, and also when you see three small figurines stage right.

The show is in previews now, and will be up through June 16th (though I would not be surprised if they extend).  Do not miss this.

News You Can Use

I hope you're all feeling recharged from the blue moon and long holiday weekend.  We're now entering the big art season, so there's lots of notices to share.  I thought I'd collate some highlights here:

First up is Observatory/Morbid Anatomy maven Joanna Ebenstein's art show and month-long curatorial residency at Viktor Wynd Fine Art and Last Tuesday Society in London:

"Ecstatic Raptures and Immaculate Corpses: Visions of Death Made Beautiful in Italy" Exhibition Opening Party, This Thursday, September 6

This Thursday, if you are in London or environs, please join Morbid Anatomy and The Last Tuesday Society for a free and gin-drenched opening party for my new exhibition "Ecstatic Raptures and Immaculate Corpses: Visions of Death Made Beautiful in Italy"! Full details follow. Hope very much to see you there!

"Ecstatic Raptures and Immaculate Corpses: Visions of Death Made Beautiful in Italy" Exhibition Opening Party
Date: Thursday September 6
Time: 6:00-8:00 PM
Location: The Last Tuesday Society
Address: ***Offsite at 11 Mare Street, London, E8 4RP
Admission: FREE
Produced by Morbid Anatomy
Click here to download Invitation

This Thursday, September 6, if you find yourself in London town, please join us for an opening party for an exhibition of photographs by Joanna Ebenstein of the Morbid Anatomy Blog, The Morbid Anatomy Library and Observatory with waxworks by Eleanor Crook and Sigrid Sarda.

In her many projects, ranging from photography to curation to writing, New York based Joanna Ebenstein utilizes a combination of art and scholarship to tease out the ways in which the pre-rational roots of modernity are sublimated into ostensibly "purely rational" cultural activities such as science and medicine.Much of her work uses this approach to investigate historical moments or artifacts where art and science, death and beauty, spectacle and edification, faith and empiricism meet in ways that trouble contemporary categorical expectations.In the exhibition "Ecstatic Raptures and Immaculate Corpses" Ebenstein turns this approach to an examination of the uncanny and powerfully resonant representations of the dead, martyred, and anatomized body in Italy, monuments to humankind's quest to eternally preserve the corporeal body and defeat death in arenas sacred and profane.The artifacts she finds in both the churches, charnel houeses and anatomical museums of Italy complicate our ideas of the proper roles of--and divisions between--science and religion, death and beauty; art and science; eros and thanatos; sacred and profane; body and soul.

In this exhibition, you will be introduced to tantalizing visions of death made beautiful, uncanny monuments to the human dream of life eternal. You will meet "Blessed Ismelda Lambertini," an adolescent who fell into a fatal swoon of overwhelming joy at the moment of her first communion with Jesus Christ, now commemorated in a chillingly beautiful wax effigy in a Bolognese church; The Slashed Beauty, swooning with a grace at once spiritual and worldly as she makes a solemn offering of her immaculate viscera; Saint Vittoria, with slashed neck and golden ringlets, her waxen form reliquary to her own powerful bones; and the magnificent and troubling Anatomical Venuses, rapturously ecstatic life-sized wax women reclining voluptuously on silk and velvet cushions, asleep in their crystal coffins, awaiting animation by inquisitive hands eager to dissect them into their dozens of demountable, exactingly anatomically correct, wax parts.

You can find out more about the show here, and view more images by clicking here.

And here is information about all of the other lectures and events she has planned.  Lucky Londoners!

Next up is the extension of the award-winning, critically acclaimed The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children, a one-man show by Matthew Trumbull, and directed by gorgeous genuis Matthew Freeman.  They had the honor of being selected to be part of the Fringe Festival's Encore series, which spotlights the very creme de la creme of the entire festival.  They're in a different location this time around, at SoHo Playhouse.  Definitely see it if you haven't already, and see it again if you have!  Here are the details, as grabbed off of Freeman's blog:

The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children is a part of the Encore Series starting 9/8

Thanks to all who came out (at odd times and in full force) to see The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children. The play received tremendous reviews, played to sold out houses, and received an Award for Overall Excellence in Solo Performance. As the director and co-producer, I couldn't be more happy with the results thus far. As a friend of Matt Trumbull's, I'm just thrilled that so many are coming to appreciate this versatile, charming, warm and utterly unique performer and writer.

There's more good news. The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children's run continues. We're a part of the Encore Series, which runs at the Soho Playhouse during the month of September. We're in the Huron Club, downstairs, which features a bar. If you've seen the show, you'll know easy access to a drink afterwards might appeal.

There are five performances

Saturday 9/8 at 8PM
Sunday 9/16 at 3PM
Sunday 9/23 at 5PM
Wednedsay 9/26 at 8PM
Saturday 9/29 at 8PM

As we sold out our final show at 4:15 in the afternoon, I fully expect 8pm shows and matinees will be full. So getting tickets early? A great idea. 

Thirdly, comics wunderkind Theo Ellsworth is coming to Brooklyn's phenomenal Bergen Street Comics for the book release party of his new book, The Understanding Monster (Book One), published by Secret Acres!  September 13th, 8pm:

We are thrilled to invite you to join us as we celebrate the latest release from the insanely talented Theo Ellsworth, “The Understanding Monster.”  - the first hardcover, full color, over–sized book brought to you by Secret Acres.

The Understanding Monster

Release Party & Signing

Bergen Street Comics

470 Bergen Street

BKLN, NY

Between Flatbush & 5th Avenues

Theo will signing. The gentlemen from Secret Acres will be on hand. And bubbles will be served.

HURRAH!

The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children

The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children is a one-man show opening this week as part of the NYC Fringe Festival, written and performed by my dear friend, the very gifted Matthew Trumbull, and directed by my dear husband, the ever-brilliant Matthew Freeman.  The show is about Trumbull's attempt at reconciling his artistic, shambolic life with that of his critically ill father's seemingly more practical attitude.  It is incredibly touching, funny, and altogether remarkable, and you won't want to miss it.  Details here:

Matthew Trumbull's first solo performance and first produced play, after more than 10 years as a prolific and well-loved actor in the New York Theater "Indie" scene.

The Zebra Shirt of Lonely Children, written by Matthew Trumbull, takes the audience on a journey through the strange bonding days between Trumbull's cancer-stricken 55-year-old father, an unassuming Minnesota engineer who takes his belief in usefulness above and beyond; and Trumbull, a New York City actor with a slew of day jobs both brief and bizarre. Cadaver donation, eulogy inspiration in chain restaurants, and final conversations 30 years before father or son is ready--ZEBRA SHIRT explores the absurdity and pain of a simple life at an unfathomable end.

Part of the 2012 NY International Fringe Festival!

Tickets ON SALE! Click on the performance date and time you want--http://www.fringenyc.org/basic_page.php?ltr=Z

or call 866.468.7619!

DATES:
Saturday, Aug. 11th, 7:00 PM
Sunday, Aug. 12th, 6:00 PM
Friday, Aug. 17th, 6:45 PM
Sunday, Aug. 19th, 12:00 PM
Wednesday, Aug 22nd, 5:00 PM
Friday, Aug. 24th, 4:15 PM

Run time: 1 hour

Venue: The Steve and Marie Sgouros Theatre studio at The Players Theatre.

ADDRESS: 115 MacDougal St
(between West 3rd Street & Minetta)

SUBWAY:
A,B,C,D,E,F, M to West 4th Street

Directed by Matthew Freeman and produced by The Theater Accident, in association with Blue Coyote Theater Group.

I'll be seeing it myself this Sunday, should you care to come along. 

Confess Your Bubble opening tonight!

Tonight, I am seeing Matthew Freeman's new play, Confess Your Bubble.  You probably are not, because it is SOLD OUT.  However, there are still 5 other opportunities to see it, so you should snag some tix ASAP:

Confess Your Bubble

The Theater Accident, in association with Blue Coyote Theater Group

June 21 – 30, 2012

Written by Matthew Freeman, directed by Kyle Ancowitz, starring Steve Burns

Due to a plea bargain, Senator Carl Corpuscle, a Democratic Senator from the Great State of Washington (not D.C.) is delivering a speech about his life and views on the government to students at a local high school. Attendance is not mandatory, and only students over 17 may attend. Senator Corpuscle talks about his role in the Democratic Administration, delivers a civics lesson, and offers dire warnings—with slides to illustrate his points.

60 minutes

Thu 6/21 @ 8pm - SOLD OUT, Fri 6/22 @ 7pm, Sat 6/23 @ 5pm, Sun 6/24 @ 8pm, Tue 6/26 @ 8pm, & Sat 6/30 @ 8pm

$15

Confess Your Bubble by Matthew Freeman

I interrupt your regularly scheduled esoterica to bring word of Confess Your Bubble, a wicked and hilarious new play by the very tall and very handsome, Matthew Freeman, which will be performed at the Brick Theatre's Democracy Festival.  It's a one-man show starring Steve Burns as Senator Corpuscle, a man with terrible ideas and a podium to bellow them from.  It is directed by Kyle Ancowitz, thus completing this trifecta of talent and unsound judgement.  The play was also just called out by Time Out New York in their list of best summer plays to look forward to.  You'd best be buying your tickets early, in other words:

Confess Your Bubble

The Theater Accident, in association with Blue Coyote Theater Group

June 21 – 30, 2012

Written by Matthew Freeman, directed by Kyle Ancowitz, starring Steve Burns

Due to a plea bargain, Senator Carl Corpuscle, a Democratic Senator from the Great State of Washington (not D.C.) is delivering a speech about his life and views on the government to students at a local high school. Attendance is not mandatory, and only students over 17 may attend. Senator Corpuscle talks about his role in the Democratic Administration, delivers a civics lesson, and offers dire warnings—with slides to illustrate his points.

60 minutes

Thu 6/21 @ 8pm, Fri 6/22 @ 7pm, Sat 6/23 @ 5pm, Sun 6/24 @ 8pm, Tue 6/26 @ 8pm, & Sat 6/30 @ 8pm

$15

 

I also highly encourage you all to visit Confess Your Bubble's digital moodboard of sorts here.  Shock.  Awe. 

Various and Sundry

Lots of tasty news to share with you, so apologies for the Phantasmaphilic potpourri:

First off, my darling husband, Matthew Freeman, has a workshop of his new theatre piece, in the great expanse of space there is nothing to see but More, More, More, which will be opening next week.  He has written and directed it, and it's a sort of avant garde language piece, very poetic and harrowing.  I keep referring to it as his Thom Yorke play.  Performances are Thurs Sept 29th, Fri Sept 30th, and Sat Oct 1st, all at 8pm for $10 admission, at the Brick Theater in Williamsburg:

 

Secondly, the newest episode of The Midnight Archive is up, and it features my frequent collaborator and friend, Mitch Horowitz, giving a brief sampling of the Occult New York Walking Tour we do here in NYC:

We are indeed planning more tours, and I'll keep you posted about them here.  In the meantime, you can check out Mitch in person at Observatory on Friday, October 21st, giving an illustrated lecture on the brilliant esotericist, Manly P. Hall:

Manly P. Hall and The Secret Teachings of All Ages

 

A Talk and Visual Presentation by Mitch Horowitz
Date: Friday, October 21st
Time: 8pm
Admission: $8
Presented by: Phantasmaphile

It is one of the strangest and most beguiling books of the twentieth century: The Secret Teachings of All Ages. Privately printed in 1928 by a 27-year-old occult scholar named Manly P. Hall, the table-top sized volume – brimming with arcane diagrams, otherworldly illustrations, and detailed entries on everything from Pythagorean mathematics and Egyptian geometry to the origins of the Tarot and the secret authorship of the Shakespearean plays – became one of the most successful underground books ever published. Passing through many printings and versions, including a compact “reader’s edition” in the twenty-first century, it reigns as the Encyclopedia Arcana of the modern age – a must-read for every acolyte of mythical traditions, esoterica, and the occult.

Who was the young and preternaturally gifted author of this massive and impactful work? And what were the circumstances behind the early genius of Hall, a man with little conventional schooling who went on to become the most influential occult voice of the last century? In this vibrant and intellectually lively evening, author Mitch Horowitz (Occult America) – who has written widely about Hall’s life and published the recent “reader’s edition” of The Secret Teachings of All Ages – explores the remarkable persona behind this mysterious tome.

Horowitz dissects the unusual career of Hall and explores his legendary status on the West Coast occult scene for most of the twentieth century. From Hall’s art-deco headquarters in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park neighborhood, the arcane scholar not only helped reignite the academic study of esoterica but made an impact on figures as diffuse as Bela Lugosi and Ronald Reagan (who actually quoted from Hall in his speeches). Horowitz also explores the circumstances surrounding Hall’s 1990 death, which is marked by persistent rumors of foul play. Finally, Horowitz considers the wide-ranging influence of The Secret Teachings of All Ages, including the book’s strengths and weaknesses, enduring mysteries, and seismically powerful, yet underappreciated, impact.

***Books will be available for purchase and signing

Mitch Horowitz is the editor-in-chief of Tarcher/Penguin and the author of Occult America (Bantam), which The Washington Post Book World called: “Fascinating…a serious, wide-ranging study of all the magical, mystical, and spiritual movements that have arisen and influenced American history in often-surprising ways.” Horowitz has written on alternative spiritual topics for The Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, CNBC.com, Boing Boing, and The Washington Post, where he recently explored the relationship between Manly P. Hall and Ronald Reagan. In 2003, Horowitz published the “reader’s edition” of The Secret Teachings of All Ages. He leads Observatory’s popular Occult New York Walking Tours and has discussed alternative spirituality on CBS Sunday Morning, Dateline NBC, and All Things Considered. Horowitz is currently writing a history of the positive-thinking movement, to be published by Crown. Visit him online at: www.MitchHorowitz.com.

 

Magic is in the air...!

Séance on a Wet Afternoon

On Friday night, I was given the delicious opportunity to see New York City Opera's current show, Séance on a Wet Afternoon.  The piece was written by musical theater deity Steven Schwartz, prodigy behind Pippin, Godspell, and Wicked.  This is Schwartz's first foray into opera, and he has adapted the 1964 film of the same name (originally a novel by Mark McShane), into a dramatic and elegant spectacle.

The plot: Myra, a local medium, and her obsequious husband, Billy, decide to stage the kidnapping of a little girl.  Myra's interest is not in the ransom money however (she plans not to keep it), but rather in the fame and adulation she will assuredly gain when she "solves" the case using her visionary gift.  The plan gets complicated, however, as the veil between the psychological and spiritual worlds begins to tear.

To say anything more would give too much away, but I will say the story is a lean and intriguing mystery, which turns many corners and asks many questions: about love, morality, reality, and the uncharted realms of the mind.

The production design, devised by Schwartz's son, Scott, is beautiful to behold.  An entire Victorian style house is the main set piece, and made gorgeously ghostly with its translucent walls and silvery sheen.  Curtains of chain shimmer and glint, reminding one of San Francisco rain or ethereal plasma.  The actors are dressed in stylish period garb, and the masterful lighting design illuminates key moments with an otherworldly glow.  These stage pictures were by far my favorite parts of the evening.

As to its success as an opera, I'll leave to more seasoned connoisseurs to debate in great detail.  To my mind, Schwartz has attempted to make a piece that's accessible and modern.  It's in English (and supertitled nonetheless), the language is clear (at times, perhaps more than necessary), the story is very easy to follow, but consistenly interesting, and the music is very pretty.  I will say, the emotionality was a bit uneven for my taste - some high key moments fell a bit flat for me, while at other times I audibly gasped with surprise or reverie.  I'm not sure if this was due to the fluctuating energy of the performers, or due to directorial or musical decisions that need to be tweaked.  I will also say, that as visually stunning as the show is, the lack of any sort of change in the 2nd act made the enchantment wear a little thin.  I would have loved to have seen a new set piece introduced, or even just a change of lighting or color or other sort new visual development as the story progressed.

That said, I feel very fortunate to have gotten to see this opera, and recommend others do the same.  It's a lovely and eerie evening on the whole, with lots to dissect afterwards.  One of the songs has been playing in my head ever since, like a phantom lullaby, and it still gives me the chills.

Remaining Dates at Lincoln Center:

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 at 7:30pm
Thursday, April 28, 2011 at 8pm
Friday, April 29, 2011 at 8pm
Saturday, April 30, 2011 at 8pm
Sunday, May 1, 2011 1:30pm

(And many thanks to the NYC Opera for my tickets!)

Shameless Spousal Promotion

Many of you know by now that my husband, Matthew Freeman, is a (brilliant) playwright.  He's doing something really cool at the moment as a bit of an experiment, which is making an older play of his, The Americans, available as a Kindle e-book for the can't-be-beat price of $1.99.  This is a wonderful play that reads very lyrically, so perfect for the page...errr screen.  It's about a man who writes a poem so beautiful that it causes a mass explosion.  It also has special significance to me, because it's the first play of his I ever saw back in 2004, when we first started dating.  As the lights went down I thought to myself, "Dear God, I like this guy a lot, so please don't let his play suck."  It didn't.  In fact it made me like him even more, and the rest, as they say, is history. 

Anyhow, you can download the play for your Kindle here, and you can read his thoughts about why he decided to try self-publishing in this format here. 

If paper books are more your thing, you can order his more formally published plays as well:

The Death of King Arthur (Playscripts, Inc.)

When Is A Clock (Samuel French)  

Glee Club  (Playscripts, Inc.)

And he's got loads of short plays and monologues available in many other books, which can best be viewed here, under LINKS on the left.

Anyhow, go head and give The Americans a download.  And let him know what you think of the format, wouldja?  Is reading a play on the Kindle a good experience?  Should he put some other older works up in this fashion?

And isn't he grand?  (Rhetorical, but feel free to tell him so if you like.)

Winter in the Woods performances!

I have raved about theatrical dance troupe Desert Sin before, and always rejoice when any of their company members have a new performance to unveil.  As luck would have it, Desert Sin mastermind, Djahari Clark, has put together a beautiful show which is opening later this month.  It's called "Winter in the Woods" and will be up at The Bushwick Starr for two nights only: Friday, March 18th and Saturday, March 19th.  The show is a pageant of fairy tales and woodland creatures represented though dance (including one of my favorite pieces, "The Snow Queen" with the ethereal Cassandra Rosebeetle), puppetry, and music:

Producer and Director, Djahari Clark, brings an original, dark, and whimsical collaborative project to the stage for one weekend only this March. Inspired by death in 2010, and the desire to turn a looming harsh winter into a positive experience, Djahari approached several of the most inspiring and creative artists in New York asking them to dwell on the theme “winter in the woods”. What came back was an astonishingly beautiful and haunting fairytale world in a thriving winter landscape!

The woods often represent our inner fears: things that are hidden, forbidden, and terrifying. Our group of artists went searching in the frosty forest this winter, and for one weekend only, at the state of the art Bushwick Starr in the thriving community of Bushwick, these artists will show you their magical, disturbing, and playful discoveries through music, song, dance, puppetry, beautiful monsters, and more!

Cunning, disturbing, and always entertaining Desert Sin features Baba Yaga as the host for the evening of “Winter in the Woods”. Fresh off the heels of her new fashion line, “Monstrous”, Kristin Costa breathes life into the winter set and fills the forest with her woodland monsters. Cassandra Rosebeetle, producer of “Sex and Taboo”, gives you a glimpse of one of the wood’s more formidable romantic characters in Desert Sin’s “Snow Queen”. Once again collaborating with Djahari is Jesse Kingsley, founder of LA-based Mystery Bird Puppets, whose puppet mastery and childlike yet eerie aesthetics fill our hearts with fear and wonder. Musician Buffie Roseanne brings a haunting story of Persephone and Demeter, while Cor Leonis, “the Courtney Love of theremin”, tantalizes us with mythical sounds of winter. Brian Ballard’s strong and rousing baritone floats out of the woods to give us hope, and several other artists aid in bringing these stories to the stage!

Djahari Clark, Founder of Desert Sin Dance Theater, has been creating new and emotionally riveting
productions for over a decade with such companies as Desert Sin, The Hidden Room Theater, and Burning Galileo Productions, traveling all over the world to share her ‘strong, disturbing, gorgeous, and distinctly feminine’ characters and stories. Through Desert Sin, and a love of collaboration with other artists, she shares a magical view of the world with people. Djahari has created and produced several full-length productions in Los Angeles and New York including "Musée des Femmes", “Sita’s Fire”, and “Twitchers” at such venues as Hollywood’s Ivar Theater, The Zipper Factory Theater, Galapagos Art Space, Theater for the New City, and The House of Yes. She is delighted to be working with The Bushwick Starr, and invites you to enter “Winter in the Woods”!

Public performances
are March 18th and 19th at 8pm at The Bushwick Starr, 207 Starr Street Brooklyn, NY 11237.

Tickets on sale here.

I will most certainly be there, and you should be, too.

Brandywine Distillery Fire!

Yes, friends.  My schweetheart Matt Freeman's play, Brandywine Distillery Fire, opened last night, and it is utterly brilliant, bizarre, and unmissable.  Tix are usually $18, but tonight's performance is only $10 if you buy online and use discount code "dogfighting" - such a bargain I tell you!  I'll be there myself, you should come.  If you can't make it tonight, no worries, as it's up until September 18th.  Read the deliciously ambiguous synopsis below, buy your tickets, and prepare yourself for an extremely unique and exceptional evening of experimental theatre:

Brandywine Distillery Fire began as an attempt to destroy storytelling.
Or an attempt to tell story in the way that Jackson Pollack paints landscapes. Playmakers Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman conjectured that to develop a theater work in the “wrongest” way possible might be a liberating experience for artists and audiences alike. They proceeded with a series of workshops. In the workshops, they led a process of improvising a play from scratch. And failing. Deliberately. And writing it down. And failing further.

 

Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman

present

Brandywine Distillery Fire

Witness the birth of New Naturalism.
A performance style that will change the way you hear. 
Words.

From the creators of When Is a Clock and Notes from Underground.

Starring Kina Bermudez, Steve Burns, Maggie Cino, Ivanna Cullinan*, Sarah Malinda Engelke*, Alexis Sottile and Moira Stone*

Written by Matthew Freeman

Directed by Michael Gardner

Sept. 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17 & 18 at 8pm
at Incubator Arts Project
www.incubatorarts.org
located in the St. Mark's Church
131 E. 10th Street, New York, NY

Tickets:
General $18.00
Student $14.00

Brandywine Distillery Fire - Please Help & Please Come See It!

Yes, folks, my brilliant and prolific playwright of a fiance, Mr. Matthew Freeman, has a play opening soon at the legendary St. Mark's Church (formerly the artistic home of Richard Foreman).  The play is called Brandywine Distillery Fire, and it is sure to be one of the most unusual and beguiling pieces of theatre you have seen in a very long time:

Brandywine Distillery Fire began as an attempt to destroy storytelling.
Or an attempt to tell story in the way that Jackson Pollack paints landscapes. Playmakers Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman conjectured that to develop a theater work in the “wrongest” way possible might be a liberating experience for artists and audiences alike. They proceeded with a series of workshops. In the workshops, they led a process of improvising a play from scratch. And failing. Deliberately. And writing it down. And failing further.

 

Michael Gardner and Matthew Freeman

present

Brandywine Distillery Fire

Witness the birth of New Naturalism.
A performance style that will change the way you hear. 
Words.

From the creators of When Is a Clock and Notes from Underground.

Starring Kina Bermudez, Steve Burns, Maggie Cino, Ivanna Cullinan*, Sarah Malinda Engelke*, Alexis Sottile and Moira Stone*

Written by Matthew Freeman

Directed by Michael Gardner

Sept. 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17 & 18 at 8pm
at Incubator Arts Project
www.incubatorarts.org
located in the St. Mark's Church
131 E. 10th Street, New York, NY

Tickets:
General $18.00
Student $14.00

Now here's the thing my friends.  To have this show be selected for the Incubator Festival is a great honor and wonderful opportunity for my fellow.  In addition to coming to a performance of it (or in lieu of, for you non-NYCers), would you kindly consider helping support the production?  They are in the midst of fundraising for it, and you can rest assured that every cent you send along will be used toward creating this innovative work of art.  Even if it's only $1, truly every little bit helps, so would you please donate here, if you can?

Thanks so much, and see you at the show!

Twitchers

Last night at East Williamsburg's diamond in the rough space House of Yes, I saw an absolutely enthralling and fanciful performance by my favorite theatrical dance company, Desert Sin.  They have joined forces with Lady Circus and The Mystery Bird Puppet Show to create "Twitchers," a stunning evening of performances about birds and flying, and I truly cannot recommend it highly enough.  Each piece is incredibly inventive, the performers have grace and skill in spades, and the costumes are an exquisite riot of glitter, lace, and - of course - feathers.  It is awe inspiring to see the imagination and talent that has gone into the show, especially in light of the fact that they are all relatively young troupes with presumably limited resources.  I sat there the entire time breathless, my jaw agape, and feeling that pure childlike wonder that is too often a rarity these days.  It's difficult for me to choose my favorite part, as there was so much variety and beauty throughout the night, but I will say I was entirely unprepared to feel not only delighted but totally moved by one piece in particular about a deer and a vulture - and that's all I'll say about that.  Anyway, get yourself tickets NOW, this is not to be missed.  And here are more details:

Twitchers…

A tour of birds, dreams, and women who take flight…

A theatrical immersion of dance, puppetry, aerial, live music, spectacle, and pure emotion.

The Desert Sin Dance Company, known internationally for their edgy and sensational fusion of dance is one of the most experimental, cutting-edge theatrical dance companies in North America.

Desert Sin will be teaming up with Mystery Bird Puppet Theater, Lady Circus, and The House of Yes Theater to create a Brooklyn bird-watching experience of a lifetime!

October 1,2,3 and 8,9,10

Doors open at 8pm, the show starts at 9pm:

Tickets:

$15 presale @ www.desertsin.com
$20 at the door

You will be in for a unique and totally unforgettable evening.  Trust me on this one.

Martha Clarke's Garden of Earthly Delights

Last night I had one of the most memorable, awe-striking theatre experiences of my life.  Martha Clarke's Garden of Earthly Delights is a dance/aerial piece based on Hieronymus Bosch's legendary triptych.  I don't even want to say too much about it, because the visuals, choreography, and live music are so surprising and inventive, and frankly, a bit difficult to put into words.  I will say it is a living phantasmagoria that is NOT TO BE MISSED.  It is minimalist and decadent at once, intense and sublime, with undulating shapes and mesmerising stage pictures that sink deep into the psyche.  (Also, it could be a great Valentine's date, provided you and your beloved like your sensuality accented with a bit of the grotesque.)  It's up at the Minetta Lane Theater through March 1st.  I truly cannot recommend this enough, GO SEE IT.

Desert Sin show!

I have written about the dark and beauteous burlesque troupe, Desert Sin, before.  Their show, Musée des Femmes: Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque, has been brought back by popular demand to the Zipper Factory.  Information is as follows:

Desert Sin Dance Company presents:
"Musée des Femmes - Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque"
Thursdays, November 20th and December 18th at 8pm at the Zipper Factory Theater and Tavern
336 W. 37th St. NY, NY 10018
Tickets $20:  (212) 352-3101 or available at www.thezipperfactory.com
Produced by Djahari Clark and Cassandra Siegler, in association with The Zipper Factory Theater
Directed by Djahari Clark

Desert Sin Dance Company, known internationally for their edgy and erotic fusion of dance and theater, now comes to New York with their acclaimed production, "Musée des Femmes - Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque".  This sideshow-stylized psychological spectacle is an imaginative journey through sight-and-sound and is guaranteed to mesmerize the audience!  The unique story line lends an emotional and
human twist to stories of some of the boldest and most intriguing women throughout time, both fictional and historical, including legendary film starlet Mata Hari, The Hindu Goddess Kali, The Snow Queen, and Joan of Arc.

Do go see it - it is gorgeous, disturbing, and really sexy.

Desert Sin

So.  You're interested in the exploding burlesque and belly dancing scene, but you're not sure which act to catch.  Might I recommend the fantastical alternative troupe, Desert Sin?  They interpret myths, fairy tales, and powerful female archetypes through sexy dances and elaborate, shimmering costumes.  I was introduced to them via their enchanting Mermaid Dance, which they performed at the Dances of Vice Festival this past winter.  New Yorkers can see them at the next incarnation of the festival (more on that soon), or by getting tickets to their full-length show, Musée des Femmes: Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque at The Zipper Factory on July 8th or August 12th.

When Is a Clock

"When Is a Clock" is a new play by the very brilliant trailblazer (and keeper of my heart), Matthew Freeman.  It is being billed as "a surrealistic detective story," but I would add that it has moments of outlandish humor, as well as incredible poignance.  Freeman's script is lyrical and bursting with strange beauty, director Kyle Ancowitz is a true visionary, and the actors are some of the finest you will see in New York.  I don't want to give anything else away, so you simply must come and see it yourself.  The show is up at Blue Coyote's Access Theater through May 10th.  Tickets are $18, though preview performances (April 15th-17th) are discounted to $12.  Get em while they're hot (and still available).

Blue Coyote Theater Group presents

When Is A Clock
Tuesday, April 15, 2008 through Saturday, May 10, 2008
8:00pm

A surrealistic detective story from Matthew Freeman.

Length: 1 hr 45 mins
Intermission: None
Seating: General Admission

When Gordon's wife vanishes, the only clue to her whereabouts is a dog-eared copy of an odd book. Pursued by the police as a potential homicide suspect and perpetually nagged by his smart-ass teenage son, Gordon takes off to a strange Pennsylvania town to search for his missing wife. At turns both scathingly funny and disturbingly compelling, When Is A Clock features Freeman's celebrated deconstruction of American culture - which has been called "nonviolent, though as savage as any slasher film" by the NY Times.

Access Theater
380 Broadway
New York, NY 10013
(Corner of B'Way/White Street)
   

Hotel Cassiopeia

We just got tickets to Charles Mee's Hotel Cassiopeia at BAM's Next Wave Festival.  The play is about the illustrious Joseph Cornell, and, as you can see above, the sets look as though they are refracted versions of his famous box assemblages.  The NY Times called the piece, "...a haunting theatrical dreamscape."  Sounds as if it will be right up my alley.