The pandemic continues but I'm finally directing an actual live show again, more than a year since the last one. It's JOHN McGIVERN, UP CLOSE (BUT NOT TOO CLOSE) at the gorgeous, historic Pabst Theatre in Milwaukee. John is a multiple Emmy Award-winning public TV host and storyteller/comedian. He and I have worked together off and on for years. We were originally scheduled for a holiday show, then rescheduled for the late February,
and now finally we'll open April 23. It's a 1200 seat theatre but they'll only sell 250 seats for each performance to keep the audience socially distanced. The show is a mix of stories from several of John's past shows and also some wonderful new material relating to the pandemic and John's life in the last year. The Pabst is a beautiful space and it's been years since I worked in there. The last time was when I directed my co-adaptation of A CHRISTMAS CAROL for Milwaukee Rep. So this will be a kind of homecoming. And it's exciting just to be part of something live again. I imagine the audience will also be very appreciative. We're all so hungry for normal lives again.
In other news, after 3 readings, a contest win and placing as a semi-finalist in 3 other contests, my play SO YOU CAN LOOK AHEAD will finally get a production in the fall. I'll be directing the premiere at Lamar University in Texas. I didn't direct any of the readings and none had much rehearsal, so I'm really looking forward to having a rehearsal process with the play and seeing it fully realized at last.
Also, in 2019 I served as an acting coach for the lead actress and also a script doctor for the screenplay of 15 HORAS, a Spanish film set in the Dominican Republic and directed by the accomplished Spanish director Judith Colell. The film premieres at the Festival de Cine de Malaga in June 2021, and they're in conversation with other festivals for future showings. I wasn't able to be present for the shooting but I've seen a trailer, (though it hasn't been released yet) and it's exciting. Can't wait to finally see the film.
Also, back in 2019 I co-wrote a short play with Naseem Badie based on a tale from Welsh mythology called WRITTEN IN THE STARS. It had a staged reading at the San Francisco Olympians Festival in November, 2019, and last week it was given an online radio performance by the Poltergeist Theatre Project, also in San Francisco. They did a nice job with it.
Finally, I've begun a series of short videos with Dr. Raquelina Luna, whose book I translated, where I interview her about aspects of her work as an integrative physician and psychotherapist. We're calling it VITAL SPACE. We've posted the first two segments on Dr. Luna's YouTube page and on Facebook. We taped five episodes to begin with; the rest will be released over the next two months or so. It's really interesting stuff and I quite enjoy playing the interviewer.
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