http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/ Sun, 12 Jul 2009 05:08:03 +0000 Joomla! 1.5 - Open Source Content Management en-gb TheHalcyonBloghttp://feedburner.google.com http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/busy-weekend http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/busy-weekend Astrid is in town from Copenhagen and Ellen was in town from LA to see their shows. It was really nice to meet them in person after talking online for a while and putting up their work.

On the homefront, my sister and her husband came in for the weekend with their two kids. There were four kids under the age of three at the house. It was fun. Loud, but fun. We went down to the fireworks on the 3rd, but just made it in time for the finale. Tony Jr. was happy, wanted to see more. "More fireworks pleeassessss." Had a potluck on Saturday, and went to zoo on Sunday. It was nice to get a little time with the family amidst all the hullabaloo.

I took yesterday off (mostly). It's been a while. I cleaned our house. Finally finished putting everything away in our bedroom, the last holdout from the move. Today, I'm thinking I should have taken a nap while I had the chance. . .

There's two weeks left in the festival; though two of the shows have their last performance this weekend.

Not a lot of rest on the horizion though, submissions are flowing in. Still trying to keep up on those. Seems a bit quizotic sometimes.

Shroud had it's first readthrough last night and Green Dress has it's first read tonight. Because we're itinerant we had to take the space when is was available, so they're going up about a month after the festival closes.

Then November Charley turns one, and maybe some rest.


]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Tonys Blog Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:44:23 +0000 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/question-for-yall-6-30-09 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/question-for-yall-6-30-09
Let me know in the comments.

(ps. comments are now moderated due to the sheer amount of spam comments we've been getting, but if you're areal person it will go through.)

]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Tonys Blog Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:56:54 +0000 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/notes-on-the-festival http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/notes-on-the-festival Below are the "From the Artistic Director" notes for the Alcyone Festival Program. (You'll get a copy when you swing by and catch the shows.) I figured I'd re-post them here:

If the statistics hold true, 60% of you reading this are female. Around 20% of productions every year are penned by women. We set out to get working on changing that and in the process have begun something that no one I know of is doing. I think even this year’s playwrights are a little surprised. One asked three times to make sure we were talking about doing actual productions and not readings.

This crazily ambitious festival was a year in the making. Early on it was pretty tough going. I was having a hard time finding good plays by women that fit into our pretty broad theme. Most plays are only published after a New York run, and because so few female writers are produced, there is a dearth of published scripts available. So I began asking for help. And help poured in from across the globe. Critics, dramaturgs, writers, publishers—you name it. Suggestions for reading, people to contact, and even free copies to read.

Each year I probably read 3-400 new plays. There is no lack of phenomenal women writers. Six are featured this year, with enough time and money I could have easily programmed sixty. There is a lack of knowledge of the vast number of great scripts out there. We’ve been fortunate in the amount of help we’ve had in finding a sliver of them. If you read the 20% statistic and want to try to change that, do it. There’s four steps that would change that 20% stat overnight: Reading more great plays by women, Producing more great plays by women, Watching more great plays by women, and because not everyone can do all four like I can, the fourth step is the simplest—Telling others about the new writer you just came across and loved.

I know, I know. When I start talking about this festival, I sound like a harebrained cross between a mad-scientist and a jive-assed preacher. It’s a long-winded way of saying thank you for coming tonight. Without you, the final leg of the journey could not be completed. We know you have many options for your time and money, and we are grateful you are here to share a few hours with us. So sit back, have a great time, and when the show is over feel free to hang out and let us know what you thought.

Tony Adams,  Artistic Director]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Tonys Blog Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:20:17 +0000 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/a-balancing-act http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/a-balancing-act
I still work hard, but now it seems the pendulum of sorts has swung the exact opposite direction and I seem to be buried in a hunt for balance:  Work vs. family. Getting everything done that needs to be done vs. seeing my kids while they are actually awake.

Part of me wants to smack any twenty-three year old single person without kids I hear complain about how they don't have enough time to do something. But then part of me feels bad for anyone who thinks they have to quit making art because they have kids.

When I was growing up there seemed to be two types of parents. Those who quit following their dreams and those who ignored everything outside of their thing.

Those who quit what they loved, tended to work most of the time, never really seeing their kids grow up. They either missed every single game, tried to relive their dreams vicariously through their children, or worse began to resent their children.

Those who ignored their families, well . . . They either missed every single game,  tried to relive their dreams vicariously through their children, began to resent their children--or worse, they ended up no longer having a family.

It’s a difficult tightrope to try and balance on. I don’t work anywhere near as much as I used to. I don’t go out anywhere near as much as I used to. I don’t write anywhere near as much as I used to. For a while that was really hard. I’d want to go do something and I couldn’t. I’d get offered an incredible gig, and would have to turn it down.

The thing is though I’m doing far fewer shows and going out less I’ve never been happier. There’s nothing like a child’s laughter to make you forget a rough day on the job. When the kids are on my lap and Jenn’s sitting next to me, I don’t miss whatever cool thing is going on that night.

Though I’m doing far fewer shows, I’m far prouder of the work we’ve been doing. Because we have less time to do what ever we want, it needs to count. I haven’t yet figured out the magic formula to balance work and kids. I don’t know if anyone has. But there has to be a balance between being an artist and being a parent. Ignoring, avoiding and quitting part of your life only works out if that part of you was negative. Making art isn’t being a junkie.

Raising kids is hard. No matter what you do for a living--so to say one can’t make art and raise kids is a false dichotomy.  Sometimes I wonder which is more of a bummer--talented people thinking they can’t have a family and a life in theatre, or going through the motions using “art” as a shield to avoid life. Both seem to be easier choices.
 
In between those two is the thin thread of a tightrope we’re balancing on. It’s not easy, but easy doesn’t usually make anyone happy in the long-run. I've been thinking about this a lot lately. One of our company members just lost a parent. One of my cast members just lost a family member and had another go into hospice. 

There are points in all of our lives where what one does (hopefully) takes a backseat to who one is.  But what happens if we never find out who we are outside of what we do? How does one balance a home life worth living with following your passion? Do you try?


 ]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Tonys Blog Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:59:59 +0000 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/info/fight-jam-2 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/info/fight-jam-2
From Greg:

Fight Jam 2 is all set to go for tonight, Wednesday June 17th from 7-9 at the Galaxie! It is supposed to rain/possibly thunderstorm so be safe traveling to the space.

Here is the schedule:
7:00 - 7:15 Warm up
7:15 - 8:10 Aikido
8:10 - 8:15 Break
8:15 - 9:00 Wrastlin'

The first Fight Jam went wonderfully, thanks to all who showed up and thanks again to John McFarland, Anne Sears, and Carisa Barreca for sharing their wonderful talents and knowledge!

Round Two will be Wednesday June 17th from 7-9 at the Galaxie, 2603 W. Barry (corner of Barry and Rockwell). Parking is free anywhere around the building. For this session we will be exploring Aikido and American Folkstyle wrestling. Both emerged in the early to mid 1900's, focus on control of the opponent and are a product of techniques and disciplines that preceded them. They differ, however, in core principles, use, some technique, ideology and places of origin. We will look at real-life use and how to apply the disciplines to the stage. All with 45 minutes each!

Dwight Sora will be presenting the Aikido portion with other members of the Chicago Aikido Club. Dwight recently was the choreographer and Japanese consultant for Porchlight's production of Pacific Overtures. (First production with an all Asian cast!) He also holds a 2nd degree black belt and started his Aikido training in Japan in 1993. Plenty of knowledge to share!

I will taking up the folkstyle wrestling portion. And yes, sometimes you do use it on stage, PINs is an entire play based around high school wrestlers, needing scenes from wrestling matches and a blend of street fighting and wrestling for fights in school. Its gonna be a blast!

This is open to all skill levels, from beginner to "done it so much you fight in your sleep."

It will also again be FREE! All you need to bring is yourself, clothes to move in, and water. (Although donations are definitely welcome! The money is applied to paying for the rental of the space.)

Please let me know if you can and are planning on attending or if you have any questions. You can e-mail me at gregpoljacik AT yahoo DOT com.

Thanks, see you June 17th!


P.S. Please forward this on to whomever you think would be interested!]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Info Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:43:43 +0000 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/fortnight-be-crazy http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/fortnight-be-crazy
Opened five shows in four days over the weekend. Overall they went pretty well. One show had an actor go up on her lines, but it sounds like most people didn't notice. A door broke during Heads, so I spent about 45 minutes holding it shut with my pinky in the hole where the knob goes. (I get to be stagehand for that one.) My hand was pretty sore afterwards.

For the most part things went smoothly. We could have used more help building. etc., but that's always the case. There were a couple of rough patches leading up to the openings. Most of which I saw coming.

When to step in or not is something I struggle with. In hindsight, there were two times I should have stepped in early and overridden the director, but I chose not to. I didn’t want to interfere more than necessary. So when the problems did surface, I really only had myself to blame for not correcting the issues far earlier.

One I didn’t see coming was the lumber coming in way later than I had thought it would on one of my build days. (On top of everything else, I also get to act as the resident TD.) I thought it would be there around noon and it got there around 6:30. It was okay, I thought, I’ve got another day so I’ll just work faster and make it up.

The next day I could get into build, the other thing I didn't see coming happened. The lady who tried to beat me up while I was loading in some lumber. Could have done without that one.

I parked the U-Haul van filled with lumber across the street from the church the theatre is in, and was downstairs putting some more wood away when I heard a lady screaming to "move your van."

I went up and she was circling the van, screaming. Her two kids were watching. She was furious that part of the sidewalk had been blocked. So after going around the van, she stopped to go off her rocker. After being screamed at for a bit, I decided I would not move the van and tried to ignore her. She threatened to call the cops on me, and wasn't pleased when I started to hand my phone to her, saying "call them. I'll move the van when they get here."

She was screaming about her kids' safety and how I had endangered them because part of the sidewalk was blocked. Yes, I did block some of the sidewalk, but they had gone around the parked van just fine with the five feet of clearance to get around. "Your kids got around just fine." I said, "In fact if you hadn’t stopped you'd probably be at Montrose by now. Is this really the example you want to set for your kids?"

I walked away and grabbed a couple of sticks of lumber and started carrying them in, figuring she would leave once I left. But I was wrong; she followed me into the church and tried to push me down the stairs while holding 2X4's. Luckily, I'm a pretty sturdy guy so I didn't go tumbling. . .

Once I got down and set the boards down, I looked and she was gone. "Whew" . . .

No, she wasn't gone; she had hopped into the cab of the van and was trying to drive it away. I had the keys, so when I came back out, she got out and took a swing at me. I dodged that, while her kids cheered her on. She then grabbed my glasses and threw them down the street. I went to open the door and she kicked me in the side. I turned towards her and she ran to the side of the van, grabbed the passenger side mirror, jumped up and held on to it until it broke off.

At that point I called the cops, holding her off with one hand while talking to 911 on the phone with the other. Once the cops were called she started to leave. I tried to keep there there until the cops arrived to fill out a police report--I wasn't about to pay for the mirror she broke--so rather than touching her, I grabbed her bicycle wheel to keep her from leaving. She started kicking again. I stood there holding a bicycle tire in one hand and looking the other direction while she kicked. After the third or fourth kick to the upper ribs, I felt my other hand start to make a fist. I let go of the tire as I knew in another kick or so I would probably hit back.

“I hope someday your kids will have an adult around to see how to act." I said as she screamed her way down the street.

Then I had to wait for the cops to show up to get a police report. Simple Battery was what they called it. I couldn't give an accurate description of her as it was all kind of a blur, and my glasses were thrown down the street for most of it. My ribs were sore for a day or so but I was okay.

It's an odd sort of helplessness. I wasn't powerless. Far from it, but I knew the consequences of fighting back would probably have ended up with her in the hospital and me in the back of a cop car. All I could do really is keep on getting kicked and punched until the cops got there. I mean, really, who wants to beat up a crazy lady in front of her kids.

Once she followed me into a church to attack me, I was pretty certain she wasn't going to be talked down. For the most part, I'm a complete believer in gender equality, but while she was kicking away I kinda wished she were a man. I couldn't bring myself to hit a woman. It it had been a dude I would have quickly ended the altercation and considered it self-defense.

Once the police officer arrived, I began telling her the story of what had happened. She had an odd look on her face, a look of someone who has seen everything, and is still surprised by what she's hearing. She asked if there were any witnesses and I pointed down the street to some city workers who had been there all day and may have seen it. I looked up and they were reenacting it for laughs.

It probably was funny to an onlooker, probably looked like an ant trying to move a rubber tree plant. “That woman is crazy” said the officer, “She did all that in front of her kids?”

So after finishing up there, I had to take the van back and explain why the mirror was broken off. They had to double check whether the insurance covered mirrors. Thankfully it did. The lady at the counter at U-Haul summed it up pretty well, “Bitch be crazy!” One of the actors pointed out to me the irony of a woman trying to beat me up while loading in for a women playwright’s festival.

So I lost pretty much an entire day of building, which led to things not getting done in the timeframe folks wanted.  Which lead to adults stomping around like a two-year old throwing a tantrum--something I'm intimately familiar with at this point.

All in all it was a pretty typical tech process, just multiplied by six. Lots of stress, not enough time, people freaking out, things breaking, etc. It was a rough couple of weeks. But after a handful of openings and a couple of days being able to see my kids again, it's all good. I'm really proud of the shows I've seen so far. (I watched the kids for some, so Jenn could run the ship.) One more opening on Thursday and the entire fest is up and running.

Lack of money, no-TD, logistical nightmares--not even a crazy trying to beat me up couldn't stop me from bringing these great plays to you. Check it out if you can.]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Tonys Blog Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:51:07 +0000 http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/ice-cream-social http://www.halcyontheatre.org/blog/tonysblog/ice-cream-social
It's supposed to be back in the 70's and sunny on Thursday (thankfully), and really who doesn't want some good ice cream?

From "All Lovin No Oven" to "That's How I Roll"  – nobody serves up the ultimate indulgence like Cold Stone.

Come in to the Coldstone Creamery's at either 613 West Diversey Pkwy., 1924 W. North Ave., or 1533 N Wells Street this Thursday, June 4 from 6-9 with a flyer, get yourself some tasty ice cream and Halcyon will received 25% of all sales to help bring the Alcyone Festival 2009 to life.

Click here for a printable flyer.

There's a bonus!  You MAY just see some what of your favorite Halcyon Company Members favorite ice cream is! :)]]> website@halcyontheatre.org (Tony Adams) Tonys Blog Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:42:01 +0000