tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.comments2024-01-16T00:39:58.340-05:00The Wicked StageRob Weinert-Kendthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04015688507553252146noreply@blogger.comBlogger941125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-61752930812055686272016-08-16T15:32:56.355-04:002016-08-16T15:32:56.355-04:00I can see this interview was given many years ago ...I can see this interview was given many years ago but thanks both to Rob and Charles for the insight. I too am a composer who studied under Maury Yeston at the BMI workshop around that time. I have on my shelf a full length musical entitled, SO BIG, with music, lyrics and libretto written by me and Will Holt. Will, who has now passed was neighbor to and good friend to Charles. A matter of fact, Charles came to our first reading in Mount Kisco, NY. He was very complimentary of the score which made me very happy. I'm presently music directing Bye Bye Birdie for a community theatre and every time I 'revisit the score, I'm in awe of Charles' craft.- Michael V. FicocelliMichael V. Ficocellinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-58682126560018117522016-06-08T12:45:59.384-04:002016-06-08T12:45:59.384-04:00How do I like this shit?How do I like this shit?Luciferushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03713206391521280301noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-9412161932758744492015-07-02T15:12:53.014-04:002015-07-02T15:12:53.014-04:00I'm a graduate student in math and I always us...I'm a graduate student in math and I always used your website for choosing which play to go and watch. I also recommended it to all my friends who like theatre. What a loss! The "Did he like it?" sucks so much compared to stage grade, not to mention it sounds sexist too. I'm a little mad and very sad. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-23495164090091138432015-03-26T23:27:16.920-04:002015-03-26T23:27:16.920-04:00I am bummed. I loved the website, Rob. I am bummed. I loved the website, Rob. Chrishttp://www.ccantwell.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-67182938988361336842015-03-03T18:15:45.846-05:002015-03-03T18:15:45.846-05:00To one of Bill's points: There are a handful ...To one of Bill's points: There are a handful of tireless pro-AEA posters about whom I think, every time I see another post: "You're never going to do another play." Some of us have a couple years (membership companies), but (if the proposed changes go through unaltered) most of us will either stop doing plays, go non-union, or leave Los Angeles.Jacob Sidneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06908744807267373817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-46674795530601613852015-03-03T17:59:36.489-05:002015-03-03T17:59:36.489-05:00To one of Bill's points: There are a handful ...To one of Bill's points: There are a handful of tireless pro-AEA posters about whom I think, every time I see another post: "You're never going to do another play." Some of us have a couple years (membership companies), but (if the proposed changes go through unaltered) most of us will either stop doing plays, go non-union, or leave Los Angeles.Jacob Sidneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06908744807267373817noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-11846538665523961912015-03-02T22:16:02.388-05:002015-03-02T22:16:02.388-05:00Thanks, Rob. We are torn up, and refuse to give up...Thanks, Rob. We are torn up, and refuse to give up the fight, but it is definitely fucked up on more levels that I can even grasp. I learned how to do theater by going and practicing in the 80's and of course beyond. I cannot comprehend our fair city not being a place to incubate, experiment and experience and I usually do tried and true musicals! I can only hope that in the end we can hammer out a compromise.JMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08388251926522465066noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-25685009271660657812015-03-02T15:46:21.168-05:002015-03-02T15:46:21.168-05:00Ouch, that's fucking bleak! I hope it doesn...Ouch, that's fucking bleak! I hope it doesn't come to that. Honestly.Rob Weinert-Kendthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015688507553252146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-49051583380889586532015-03-02T15:43:35.071-05:002015-03-02T15:43:35.071-05:00You're too kind. I didn't mean it like tha...You're too kind. I didn't mean it like that. I'm not ashamed of my obscurity.<br />I meant that Equity wants to do for LA what it did for Seattle, where I lived and acted for a decade. The same 20 people got the tiny handful of large-contract roles in that town each year, while the rest of us had to skirt our own union just to practice our craft. And here in LA, that problem is exasperated by the fact that the large venues like to hire celebrities. <br />It's just hard to accept that, unless I do as I'm being told I should by some pro-change folks and get out of "their" union, I may have done some of my last theater. My one, sad consolation is the knowledge that a lot of those same people will be sitting at home right along with me, whether they realize it now or not.bsalyershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09217841943304986612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-88251818739797389452015-03-02T15:27:16.767-05:002015-03-02T15:27:16.767-05:00Bill, I loved your work onstage in L.A. Please don...Bill, I loved your work onstage in L.A. Please don't mistake that list of name actors--many of whom I saw onstage before they were in any way famous or flush--for in any way a complete one. As with the list of playwrights I cited, I was using name-recognition shorthand to make legible to the larger, uncomprehending world outside L.A. how amazing the work I saw onstage was. I hope and pray you and hundreds of other of my favorite actors who are less widely known can find a way to keep being amazing in any medium that will have you, but especially onstage, where you've made such a difference, and not only to me.Rob Weinert-Kendthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015688507553252146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-48562950743052632982015-03-02T15:22:57.277-05:002015-03-02T15:22:57.277-05:00Man, Rob. This situation sucks. If Equity's pr...Man, Rob. This situation <i>sucks</i>. If Equity's proposals pass, I guess I'll have to become a TV star, so I can get on stage here in LA.bsalyershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09217841943304986612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-20413264258054211772015-03-02T15:21:09.671-05:002015-03-02T15:21:09.671-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.bsalyershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09217841943304986612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-69786130824027571522014-12-20T19:51:17.963-05:002014-12-20T19:51:17.963-05:00I have never missed a site more. What a travesty.I have never missed a site more. What a travesty.lawladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16608535933493916914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-20386318167225301912014-12-02T14:46:10.780-05:002014-12-02T14:46:10.780-05:00Same here. Oftentimes just as entertaining as the ...Same here. Oftentimes just as entertaining as the shows being reviewed.George Hunkahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06579255517402620982noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-29964115981637570262014-12-01T17:19:36.960-05:002014-12-01T17:19:36.960-05:00I loved Stage Grade and miss it dearly.I loved Stage Grade and miss it dearly.David Gibbs/DARR Publicityhttp://www.darrpublicity.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-10521150064337693452014-11-29T15:50:41.872-05:002014-11-29T15:50:41.872-05:00So sorry to hear. I used stagegrade.com many times...So sorry to hear. I used stagegrade.com many times and miss it immensely.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-68338684791879013732014-11-29T00:05:15.627-05:002014-11-29T00:05:15.627-05:00Oh, no... my heart is breaking too. What can any o...Oh, no... my heart is breaking too. What can any of us do to help?!Ann Sachshttp://www.theatricalintelligence.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-46177563857791714032014-08-12T22:15:43.091-04:002014-08-12T22:15:43.091-04:00Thanks so much, Rob. Broken hearts coast to coast...Thanks so much, Rob. Broken hearts coast to coast.Cathy Carltonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-73374701143216651532014-08-12T12:12:44.395-04:002014-08-12T12:12:44.395-04:00Thanks so much for this, Rob.Thanks so much for this, Rob.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09430406975114421691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-67784761134341876182014-07-01T12:28:32.675-04:002014-07-01T12:28:32.675-04:00I only wish I could, Rob! Your write-up makes me s...I only wish I could, Rob! Your write-up makes me sorry I'll miss it -- I'm still holding out hope for somebody to have a stab at Van Dyke Parks's "Jump!" though.George Hunkahttp://www.georgehunka.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-48980373587117171102014-01-31T19:45:03.886-05:002014-01-31T19:45:03.886-05:00Sorry for only belatedly seeing this post, but I&#...Sorry for only belatedly seeing this post, but I'm glad that you've taken note of the fact that McNulty -- after eight years on the job -- has barely glanced at LA's own Shakespearean resources. Don Shirleynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-27217451601131256462014-01-07T01:03:08.450-05:002014-01-07T01:03:08.450-05:00Meaghan, like Macbeth, I think Banquo was seduced ...Meaghan, like Macbeth, I think Banquo was seduced by the witches' prophesies, so he doesn't say anything about what he suspects Macbeth did, since according to the prophesies, it won't benefit Macbeth in the long- term anyway while Banquo will beget a line of kings. Banquo is expecting good fortune, totally unaware that his time is running out.Wayne Myersnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-66905806869586145792014-01-06T01:12:05.849-05:002014-01-06T01:12:05.849-05:00As far as I can tell, no one was around to record ...As far as I can tell, no one was around to record the original performances of these plays, or even take decent pictures, so anyone who believes that original practices or conditions are truly original are just kidding themselves. That said, I don't think many people *are*. "Inspired by original staging conditions" is a more accurate, although perhaps less marketable phrase. <br /><br />When you start looking at some of the more grandiose stage directions left in print playbooks, you can't help but notice that many so-called original practices or conditions companies tend to NOT perform the original conditions that would prove the most expensive. I am most familiar with the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, VA, which boasts the world's only re-creation of the Blackfriars Playhouse, and while their time honored slogan "We Do It With the Lights On" makes for a charming bumper sticker, it also cuts off possibilities in terms of early modern lighting effects. If that makes their performances any less entertaining, however, the casual play-goer is unlikely to notice. Tony Tambascohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11834541469560452051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-49051799027120872262014-01-02T14:39:28.610-05:002014-01-02T14:39:28.610-05:00Wayne, good point. I didn't know about the &qu...Wayne, good point. I didn't know about the "Macbeth" plan. I was largely disappointed with her "Midsummer": http://americamagazine.org/issue/state-shakespeareRob Weinert-Kendthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015688507553252146noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8829734.post-5575998038368520072014-01-02T14:24:18.588-05:002014-01-02T14:24:18.588-05:00Julie Taymor's "A Midsummer Night's D...Julie Taymor's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" for Theatre for a New Audience was a safe choice that played to her strengths as a designer. I read that she had considered staging "Macbeth," and that would have been the bold move she really needed to make. What I would really like to see from her on stage is something without puppets and masks.Wayne Myersnoreply@blogger.com