Q: This question is really for Brook (the playwright). This started as a story for your children. How old were they when told this story for the first time?
A: Yes, this is a question for Brook. And I asked him this. He told me that his youngest daughter was about 8 years old at the time. The story at that time was about a little girl who got lost in a mall and whose parents go crazy looking for her. They get the police involved and the entire mall is in an uproar. What nobody realizes is that the little girl is right in front of their noses because she ends up dancing in the mall's ballet parade. (Can you see how this was a story for a little girl? who likes ballet?) Brook also said that for about 15 years he's had the urge to write a musical about a "fractured" family in a mall, where the children end up somehow getting the family back together again. Thus the baseline story of Nibblers was born.
Q: Is there any significance behind "Front Porch" as a name for your company?
A: You know--you are the FIRST person to ask me that! I'm so glad you did! Yes, it does have significance. I think of a front porch as being a place where strangers make their first acquaintance with the owner of the house. They linger on the front porch and have light conversation. Then, if the person is wanting to know the owner a little more deeply, they'll come inside the house, instead of just lingering on the porch. Inside, the owner and stranger can get to know each other in a deeper way, asking questions more thought-provoking than those of the front porch chit-chat. I like this as metaphor for theatre. It's my hope that my audience will step onto the "front porch" (by attending a show), and then, move from the simple sheer enjoyment of the show, "into the house"--the inside--and discover deeper meanings/thought/feelings that the show may have revealed to them. Another, perhaps less philosophical take on it would be: get the audience's butts-in-seats (i.e. get 'em on the front porch); then provide them with something that will draw them in, further, to either... a) the universal meaning of the play; or...b) the significance the play had to/for them; or last but not least...c) theatre in general. I've played with a sort of byline that says, "Front Porch Theatre....come on over to the house!" I'm sure you get the double meaning.
Q: Are there any unique challenges working with your spouse?
A: Yes. The challenge of childcare!
Q: You have kids in your show... do you allow their parents to attend rehearsals?
A: I am all for having parents attend rehearsals, if they want to, and of course--if their child wants them to! So far in Nibblers, the parents haven't stuck around too much for rehearsals.
Q: This is your 4th Fringe show in as many years, what makes this voyage down Fringe Lane different?
A: Ah--BIG difference: this show is absolutely, completely, BRAND-NEW! It's still being written! I haven't had the experience of directing a show that's changing daily, until now. But it's an absolute kick! I told my actors at the first rehearsal that the exciting thing about being a part of this production is that the writers (Mike and Brook) now have each of them in mind as they write, and therefore can use what they know of each actor's strengths and/or idiosyncracies. In fact, prior to auditions, the show had been written to have 4 male shark characters. But after callbacks we realized the show would be better with a woman shark as the sort of "queen bee" to the others. Like Gladys Knight to the Pips. And then, by realizing that, it gave a whole new dimension to the shark's style--both musically and visually. So, it's been a fascinating, winding, creative voyage this year! Brook and Mike are planning to extend the running time of the show, after the Fringe is over, in order to make it a full-scale production. The Fringe will be a good test audience in terms of Nibblers success and longevity elsewhere.
Q: I have a 6-year old daughter who loves Underwater Adventures at the mega mall. How would you explain the small child's fascination with Sharks?
A: Good question. I think I said something about this in the press release, that there's mystery and danger about them--but yet they seem sort of fragile. I took a trip last week to Underwater Adventures, sans my kids, and spent quite awhile petting a stingray. It blew me away that the creature was unbelievably soft. Imagine--a creature called a STINGray (sting? doesn't that hurt??) could be one of the softest things you've ever felt! My childish instincts of just wanting to pick it up and squeeze it quickly came out! That's the best explanation I can give. I'll ask my 7 year old and see what she says.
Q: What is the next thing that you have to do to get ready for the Fringe, in the immediate future (rewrite, print postcards, write promotional blurb, buy costume, etc.)?
A: Just today I finalized the re-design of my website (www.frontporchtheatre.com). AND I approved the final design on my postcards. AND I sent in my accident waivers to the Fringe office. AND I worked on set and props lists. AND I researched Motown dancing.
This week I will get my pre-blocking notebook done for our rehearsals on stage next week, and I will get my costume sew-ers to begin sewing. I'm also waiting for Brook and Mike to re-write a song from the middle of the show!
Q: You've had some pretty big names/Equity actors/Small-Theatre-Mafia regulars in your shows in the past, but I don't personally recognize any of the names this time around, can you tell me about some of your actors?
A: I'm very happy to be working with some wonderful child actors this time around. Emilee Hassanzadeh is a delightful, gutsy-voiced actress who has appeared at the Chanhassen, CTC, and Stages over the past couple of years. Emilee is 9 years old and has the lead role of Greta in Nibblers. Also, Michael Mayer, a 12 year old from the MN Boychoir and the History Theatre, is playing the lead role of "Hans" and is simply a treat to listen to and to watch. Now I just have to teach him Dance Dance Revolution...I'm also happy to be working with Suz Adamson again. Suz played "Mrs. Mayor of Whoville" last year in my Fringe production of Seussical. This time around she plays "Shania," the great white shark from Underwater Adventures who wants to make a name for herself by being the first shark in captivity to eat a small child. Oops--did I give something away?
Q: Do you think people might accidentally go to Jaws: The Musical instead of your show, or vice versa?
A: Our show is rated G. Okay, maybe PG.
And in the words of Shania Shark:
"Flipper was a trip
Johnny Depp--a dear
Steven Spielberg--very close--I gave him his career."
Q: What are you reading this summer?
A: Now THERE's a question! I've been ever so slowwwwwwwwwly reading Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry. But I can't wait to get to my brand new Anne Lamott book.
-- So, there's a bit of insight into the world of Nibblers. Incidentally, a little chunk of one of the songs can be heard on the July 1st edition of the Fringe Podcast.
And now for something surprisingly expected, considering it's supposed to be random!...
- I woke up at 10 a.m. this morning... That's the first time that's happened in years! Normally I get up around 6:50, and that's sleeping in by the standards that used to affect me. You see, my daughter has never been into sleeping in, in fact, 5:30 in the morning has been her norm in the waking department since she first slept through the night back during that infancy period. Recently I've managed to get her to watch TV for an hour or so while I continue sleeping. That was a huge victory in and of itself. After all, who wants to have a small child yell at you from close range that it's time to wake-up? Anyway... the fact that I was tired from my trip, and that the alarm on my cell phone wasn't apparently loud enough to raise me from slumber means that I enjoyed sleeping in. I honestly don't remember the last time I did that.
- I'm hungry. I slept through breakfast!
- My blog is not going to be residing here much longer. It's being added back into the mix at www.fringefestival.org. It's taken a little while, but one has to tak ingot account that sometimes things take longer then we'd like, especially since Fringe Webmaster Matthew Foster has so much to do about this time of year. He's a very busy boy, and he's doing a bang-up job with the website on the whole... if you haven't checked out the Fringe website got to www.fringefestival.org. It's the best it's been so far.
- Look what I found at www.hookedonfacts.com: "Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people. " -- First, I'd like to say "I'm sorry" to all you lefties out there. Second, what does this mean for those who are ambidextrous? Are they expected to live the average length of the other two?
- Today's Spanish Word/Term that I've just discovered out of necessity is: Cinta Adhesiva Invisible = Scotch Tape
- "I see the moon. The moon sees me. Over the mountains and over the sea." -- Lyrics from the children's song "I See the Moon."
- When I typs in www.google.com over here it instantly takes me to www.google.es, whether or not I want to go there. I need to figure out how to get to the English version of it, because I'm not able to read the Spanish one with any sort of proficiency yet.
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