Archive for category Productions
Video: “The Liberal Arts Pirates” at Gone in 60 Seconds Festival in U.K.
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on May 15, 2013
My short script “The Liberal Arts Pirates” was produced in June 2012 at the U.K. branch of the Gone in 60 Seconds Festival of one-minute plays.
The video took longer to get up, but here ’tis.
This script was also done this year as a radio play at Falcon Radio Theatre in Seattle.
It began its life as a staged reading at No Shame Theatre in Roanoke, Va.
New York theatre to hold staged reading of “The Ballad of Alejandro Lopez”
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized on May 10, 2013
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I’m thrilled to announce that the Barefoot Theatre Company in New York to hold a staged reading of my full-length script “The Ballad of Alejandro Lopez” on June 17.
The particular details: It’s at 7 p.m. at The Loft near Broadway and East 3rd, specifically 682 Broadway, #5W.
UPDATE: The venue has changed. The reading will now be at the Cherry Lane Theatre, 38 Commerce Street. To get on the list, you need to email barefootrsvp@aol.com.
For those of you not familiar with Barefoot, it’s been described as a “scrappy, young Off-Off Broadway company” whose past productions have included the first stage adaptation of Sidney Lumet’s “Dog Day Afternoon” in 2008, and a revival of Lanford Wilson’s “Balm in Gilead” in 2005.
The Boston Globe has called it “a company to notice in New York.”
I’ve had one-minute pieces performed in New York in the Gone in 60 Seconds Festival, and some New York City high schools have produced some of my one-acts. But this is the first longer piece of mine to break into The Big Apple.
As for the script itself, it’s superficially about baseball, but really about immigration. Here’s my official synopsis:
THE BALLAD OF ALEJANDRO LOPEZ
A play about baseball – and immigration. The immigrant-hating and baseball-loving sheriff of a rural Texas county faces a dilemma when he discovers a Hispanic boy who can throw a 90-mile-per-hour fastball. Cast: Ten – four female, six male, but three of those males have small parts.
I’m indebted to Rose Bonczek for helping make this reading happen.
Video: “The Secret Lives of Goldfish”
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Video on May 4, 2013
Here’s “The Secret Lives of Goldfish,” the short film that Hank Ebert and I made as an entry in the annual Bike Shorts film festival in Roanoke, Va. (which, in turn, is part of a national competition.)
I adapted one of my stage scripts, “The Secret Lives of Goldfish, vol. 6” and Hank supplied the video magic.
Alas, we didn’t win. But we had fun, and hope you do, too, as you watch it.
Earlier, I posted some still photos from the making of this little epic.
I decided to wear the goldfish costume to the festival. Apparently, all one has to do to get attention in downtown Roanoke is to wear a fish costume on the street. Who knew? On the five block walk to the festival location, I had four people stop and take my picture, not counting this one that co-worker Erica Myatt took before I left work.
A French tourist at an art gallery came out onto the sidewalk to stop me; I couldn’t understand a word she said but I sure got the idea when she pointed to her camera. Later, when I walked by the Awful Arthur’s seafood restaurant, a man hailed me, brought me in and took me around the bar, where some (but certainly not all) patrons wanted a picture. And one little girl riding in a car shouted out “there’s Nemo!”
To get a glimpse of what she saw, see below: Read the rest of this entry »
Still photos from my short film, “The Secret Lives of Goldfish”
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Photos, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on May 1, 2013
Chad stars as the goldfish in “The Secret Lives of Goldfish.”
I recently collaborated with Salem filmmaker Hank Ebert to create a short film for the annual “Bike Shorts” film competition. The main rule is, it has to feature a bicycle. I adapted my short script “The Secret Lives of Goldfish” (actually this is episode 6 in the series of short stage plays) for the project.
The main thing you need to know about “The Secret Lives of Goldfish” is that it involves a goldfish riding a bicycle — our riff on the line about “a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.”
I wrote the script; Hank Ebert was the director and videographer. Chad [last name withheld] and Kevin McAlexander are the two goldfish (although only Chad appears on camera; Kevin is there in a voiceover.) Hank’s wife, Marianne, made the goldfish suit; my wife, Trina, made the headpiece. We did the outdoor filming in March in Green Hill Park in Roanoke County, then finished up with voiceovers in the studio in April.
I’ve worked with Hank on two other short films — “My Kid Could Paint That” and a Sweded version of “Back to the Future” in a local competition. Both Chad and Kevin had key roles in that project, as well.
The films will be screened, and judged, on May 3, with the winner advancing on to national competition. I’ve held off posting still photos now, until after the entry deadline has passed, so here goes. Read the rest of this entry »
Two scripts to be produced in Canadian festival (and other news)
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized on April 26, 2013
I have more productions to report.
I learned this week that two of my short scripts (five minutes or less) will be produced in June as part of the Asphalt Jungle Shorts festival in Kitchener, Ontario.
This is a unique festival, staged by Flush Ink Productions, in which all the productions are site-specific. I gather that patrons buy a ticket and then are escorted on a walking tour of downtown Kitchener, where they encounter pieces happening . . . on sidewalks . . . on park benches . . . in coffee shops . . .or in bars.
My two pieces in this festival (which happens June 6-15) are “Pandora and Schrodinger: What’s in The Box?” and “Requiem for a Buzzard.” I’m guessing the first one is a park bench piece and the other might be a sidewalk piece. (Descriptions are below.)
I love the idea for this festival; I only wish I could be there to see in action! I previously had a piece (“A Nice, Relaxing Cup of Tea”) in the 2009 installment.
Falcon Radio Theatre airs Tuesday nights at 6 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on kspu.org
Meanwhile, Falcon Radio Theatre at KSPU in Seattle continues to produce some of my work as radio plays.
On April 16, the station (affiliated with Seattle Pacific University) produced “Damsel Not in Distress” and “The Viking Funeral of Harold Olalfson.”
On April 23, it was “The Last Day of School.”
Here’s a description of each show, with a notation about previous productions (if any): Read the rest of this entry »
Nine scripts produced in six states (plus Singapore) so far this spring
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized on April 13, 2013
“Hit the Books” is published by Eldridge Plays and Musicals.
Falcon Radio Theatre now airs Tuesdays at 6 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on kspu.org; note new time.
It’s the spring play season at high schools around the country. Between them — and Falcon Radio Theatre in Seattle getting back on the air after a brief absence — I can tally up the following:
So far this spring, I’ve had nine scripts produced in five states — and Singapore! — with another script scheduled to be produced in a sixth state later this spring.
(If you’re scoring at home, those six states are Maryland, Montana, Oregon, Wasington, Wisconsin and Virginia.)
Keep in mind that some play publishers alert me ahead of time to productions; others don’t until they have to pay royalties later in the year, so it’s quite possible that some scripts are getting done this spring that I won’t know about until later.
Here’s a run-down of what I know so far:
* “Big Time College Chemistry,” a five-minute comedy about how a college chemistry department would look like if it operated like a big-time college football program, was produced by Falcon Radio Theatre on April 9, 2013. It previously was done as a staged reading at No Shame Theatre in Roanoke, Va. (I’m hoping to have a link to audio of this and the other scripts done by Falcon soon.)
* “Cat and Dog,” a five-minute comedy about, well, a cat and a dog, was produced on Falcon Radio Theatre on April 2, 2013. This was the fourth time this script has either been produced outright, or had a staged reading. (It’s also the first in a series of “Cat and Dog” pieces.
* “Catch of the Day,” a one-act comedy about the exotic poisonous fish fugu (look it up!), was produced by Falcon Radio Theatre on April 9, 2013. It’s still unpublished, so remains one of the scripts that is available royalty-free. (I explain how and why here.)
* “The Circus Man,” a dark five-minute script, was produced by the Star City Creators Society as part of the Marginal Arts Festival in Roanoke, Va., on March 29, 2013. Brian O’Sullivan, who played Klaus in my Christmas show, and directed last year’s “57 Hours in the House of Culture,” was The Man here.
* “Hit the Books,” a one-act comedy at a student who hits herself in the head with a book and suddenly acquires all its knowledge, was produced by the Owens-Withee School District in Owen, Wisconsin on April 1, by Walkersville High School in Walkersville, Maryland on April 12 and is scheduled to be produced by Triangle Lake High School in Blachly, Oregon on May 2. It’s published by Eldridge Parks and Musicals; the Triangle Lake show will be the 11th production.
* “Mac and Beth,” a one-act in which a failed bank robbery plays out much like Shakespeare’s Scottish play, was produced by a youth group in Singapore on April 1. It’s published by Brooklyn Publishers; this was the second production of the script. Pre-publication, there was a staged reading at what is now the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Va.
* “Macbeth Goes Hollywood,” an hour-long one-act in which Shakespeare meets Hollywood, is scheduled to be produced by the Malta Junior-Senior High School in Malta, Montana on April 25, 2013. That will be the 25h production of that script, which is published by Eldridge Plays and Musicals.
* “The Monkey Rodeo,” a five-minute comedy about a monkey act at a minor league baseball game that goes wrong, oh so very wrong, was produced by Falcon Radio Theatre on April 9, 2013.
* “The Weird Sisters on Holiday,” a one-act in which the Weird Sisters of Macbeth fame take a trip, was produced by Medicine Lake School in Montana on March 28, 2013. That script, published by Brooklyn Publishing, has now been produced twice. Before publication, it also had a staged reading at what is now the American Shakespeare Center.
Video: “Buzzard Angst” at the Liminal artspace
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized, Video on April 10, 2013
Ashley Meador and Will Griswold, students at Community High School, perform a staged reading of my short script “Buzzard Angst” at the monthly reading series at the Liminal alternative artspace in Roanoke, Va.
This was at the March 21, 2013 reading, which dealt with “the natural world.”
Mine fits, if you consider talking buzzards natural.
This is one in a series of short pieces I have about buzzards; and I have a full-length script, still in the editing staged, called “The Talking Buzzard.”
Seattle radio station produces more of my scripts as radio plays
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Radio plays, Uncategorized on February 19, 2013
Falcon Radio Theatre airs Thursday nights at 7 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on kspu.org
Falcon Radio Theatre on KSPU.org — affiliated with Seattle Pacific University — has been producing, well, a bunch of my scripts as radio plays.
Here are some that the group did before I started listening in.
* On January 17, 2013, Falcon produced my one-act “The Angel of Brooklyn”.
The script deals with a Brooklyn Dodgers fan who swore never again pay attention to baseball until his team was back home. Now, in his old age, an angel shows up to release him from that vow.
This was the third performance. The production history:
* Produced by Hovey Players, Summer Arts Festival, Waltham, Mass., July 2005. The Boston Globe called the show “hilarious and sweet.”
* Staged reading at Studio Roanoke, Roanoke, Va., April 2009 (the first piece ever performed in that theatre).
* Produced as radio play by Falcon Radio Theatre, KSPU, Seattle Pacific University, January 17, 2013.
* On January 24, 2013, Falcon produced my ten-minute script “God and the Devil Meet for a Business Lunch”.
This was the third time the script has been performed; the fifth if you count a five-minute cutting.
Here’s the production history:
* Five-minute version done as staged reading at No Shame Theatre, Roanoke, Va., August 2004
* Five-minute version done as staged reading at No Shame Theatre, Roanoke, Va., October 2004 as part of The Best of No Shame.
* Ten-minute version produced as video by Homespun Productions, broadcast on Channel 18, Sacramento, California, October 2005. (You can see that video here.)
* Ten-minute version performed as classroom presentation, Averett College, Danville, Va., Dec. 3, 2007.
* Produced as radio play by Falcon Radio Theatre, KSPU, Seattle Pacific University, January 24, 2013.
I have several “God and the Devil” pieces, mostly in the 5-to-10 minute range. Here’s video of “God and the Devil Debate the Issues.”
I previously posted what Falcon Radio Theatre produced of mine on January 31 (the one-act “Occupations” and a short piece) and on February 7 (the one-act “Lucy” and some shorter pieces.)
Now we’re all caught up!
One-acts scheduled for productions in Maryland and Singapore
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Uncategorized on February 9, 2013
The spring high school play season is soon here, and I have at least two scripts scheduled for production:
* “Hit the Books,” by Walkersville High School, in Walkersville, Maryland, in April.
” Mac and Beth,” by inwardBOUND, in Singapore, also in April.
“Hit the Books” is published by Eldridge Plays and Musicals. This will be the 10th production. It’s about a high school girl who tries to study by hitting herself in the head with a book. More or less.
“Mac and Beth” is a riff on “Macbeth,” this time with two ne’er-do-well bank robbers. It’s published by Brooklyn Publishers; this will be the second full production; there was a previous staged reading at the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Va.
Seattle radio station produces four more of my scripts as radio plays
Posted by Dwayne Yancey in News, Productions, Radio plays, Uncategorized on February 9, 2013
Falcon Radio Theatre airs Thursday nights at 7 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on kspu.org
A Seattle Internet radio station — KSPU, affiliated with Seattle Pacific University — has produced four more of my scripts as radio plays.
This is the second week in a row that Falcon Radio Theatre has done some of my work, and this time I got the whole hour.
I’m big in Seattle!
The scripts that were done Feb. 7 were:
* “Lucy,” a one-act about the devil, that’s been previously produced in Virginia and Maine.
* “Somewhere Tonight, the Last Washington Senators’ Game Plays On,” a ten-minute play about baseball that was produced for the first time.
* “The Liberal Arts Pirates,” a five-minute piece about career counseling that was a favorite when it was first done at No Shame Theatre in Roanoke, Virginia.
* “The Secret Lives of Goldfish: Pirates!,” a five-minute piece in my series of goldfish shorts.
Here’s what Falcon Radio Theatre did last week.
You can tune in (can you still say tune in if it’s Internet radio?) on Thursday at 7 p.m. Pacific time — 10 p.m. for us East Coasters — at kspu.org.
dwayneyancey 