Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Beckett’s Babies
| Titre | Date | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 173. Season 6 Finale??? Already??? + Updates | 24 Oct 2024 | 00:30:40 | |
THAT'S A WRAP FOR SEASON 6! Thank you all so much for tuning in and hearing us chat about all things playwriting. Thank you again for another incredible season. Wishing everyone a happy and safe holiday season... See you next year! ____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 172. PLAY: English by Sanaz Toossi | 06 Oct 2024 | 00:40:35 | |
In this episode, we pick a play to discuss, and for this week's episode, we read "English" by Sanaz Toossi. We discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. SPOILER ALERT: There are going to be some spoiler alerts! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode! ____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends or follow us on Instagram @beckettsbabies! And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 163. Season 6 Premiere! (We Hope People Will Finally Take Us Seriously) | 01 Apr 2024 | 00:42:00 | |
Hello Listeners! Happy April 1st to those that celebrate. On this episode... you won't believe the incredible conversation we had. We hope you enjoy this very serious episode on very very serious theatre things. Enjoy! ____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends or follow us on Instagram @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 73. PLAYWRIGHT: Paula Vogel | 24 Aug 2020 | 01:14:41 | |
We return to our Playwright Series where we look at a single playwright and their large body of work. We discuss plays from their early, mid-career, and the latest or most recent play of their career. In this episode, we discuss the life and work of Paula Vogel. We read the three plays: And Baby Makes Seven (1984), How I Learned to Drive (1997), and Indecent (2017) to share our thoughts on Paula Vogel's craft in playwriting. We hope you will check these plays out and listen in to our conversation!
PAULA VOGEL’S PLAYS:
1. And Baby Makes Seven (1984)
2. How I Learned to Drive (1997)
3. Indecent (2017)
GLISTENS:
Sarah's: California Wildfires
Sam's: Wired's Five Levels series
_____________________________________________
Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies
And as always, we would love to hear from you!
Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode.
Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com
For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com
---
Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 72. TOPIC: Understanding Writing Prompts | 17 Aug 2020 | 00:45:38 | |
In this episode, we discuss some of the ideas behind writing prompt and playwriting exercises, our own personal experience with prompts, and share a few of our favorites. What do we look for in a prompt that makes for an effective, productive, creative writing exercises? Give this episode a listen and be sure to let us know what you think! GLISTENS: LINKS: Additional writing prompts: ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 71. PLAY: Power Plays by Elaine May & Alan Arkin | 10 Aug 2020 | 00:35:02 | |
As part of our monthly play series, we pick a play to discuss and this month’s play is a collection of 3 one-act comedy plays called “Power Plays” by Elaine May and Alan Arkin. Instead of looking at the plays individually, we attempt to look at all 3 one-act plays together as it was intended to be performed in a single evening of theater. We are going to discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. Note: There are some spoiler alerts! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode! About POWER PLAYS: Power Plays consists of 3 one-act plays called “The Way of All Fish”, “Virtual Reality” and “In and Out of the Light”. These are three short plays about the collision of wills and power that premiered Off-Broadway. Elaine May is an American comedian, film director, screenwriter, and actress. She made her initial impact in the 1950s from her improvisational comedy routines with Mike Nichols, performing as Nichols and May. Alan Arkin is an Academy Award-winning American actor who is also an acclaimed director, producer, author, singer, and composer. RELATED LINKS: “THEATER; 'Power Plays,' Something More Than a Family Affair” By Vincent Canby (May 31, 1998) Arkin Tries Out His `Power Plays' by Janet I-Chin Tu (Mar 1, 1998) Seattle Times Theater Critic In Brief: ‘Power Plays’vBy John Simon (JUNE 8, 1998) GLISTENS: Sarah - Black Girls Run, a nonprofit organization dedicated to health & fitness for young black women to get together and run in groups. https://blackgirlsrun.com/ ____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies | |||
| 70. INTERVIEW: Marjorie Muller | 03 Aug 2020 | 00:57:07 | |
Hello listeners! We are so excited for you to listen to this new episode of Beckett's Babies! We had an amazing conversation discussing all-things playwriting with playwright, actor, producer MARJORIE MULLER! In this episode, Marjorie shares how she got into playwriting, her tips and tricks, and we also do a little deep dive in the social media (uh oh!). We hope you enjoy this episode! Marjorie Muller is a Chicago-based playwright, actor, and producer, whose work has been featured at Urbanite Theater, the Women's Theatre Festival, Impostors Theatre Company, and more. She is currently developing an adaptation of Dracula for young adults called "Lucy Westenra Is Definitely Not (And Will Never Be) a Vampire" that will be performed this Fall at the Latin School of Chicago. She is also producing a live audio drama with Theatre in the Dark based on War of the Worlds which will be happening this upcoming Fall. GLISTENS: To learn more about Marjorie and her work, be sure to check out the following websites: Also! Marjorie shared with us her favorite playwriting exercise. Go to our website www.beckettsbabies.com to learn more! Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 69. PLAY: Sweat By Lynn Nottage | 27 Jul 2020 | 00:58:18 | |
As part of our new monthly play series, we pick a play to discuss and this month’s play is “Sweat" by Lynn Nottage. In this episode, we discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. Note: There are some spoilers! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode!
SWEAT tells the story of a group of friends who have spent their lives sharing drinks, secrets, and laughs while working together on the factory floor. But when layoffs and picket lines begin to chip away at their trust, the friends find themselves pitted against each other in a heart-wrenching fight to stay afloat. (summary from Dramatist Play Service) SWEAT won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The play premiered at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in 2015; it was produced Off-Broadway in 2016 and on Broadway in 2017. Lynn Nottage is an American playwright whose work often deals with the lives of marginalized people. She is a professor of Playwriting at Columbia University. She was the first woman to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice; the first in 2009 for Ruined, and the second in 2017 for Sweat. See Lynn Nottage in this interview explaining the origins of SWEAT from Public Theater:
____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies | |||
| 68. TOPIC: Researching for a New Play | 20 Jul 2020 | 00:49:59 | |
How do you think about research when beginning a new play? When do you begin the research process? How do you know when to start writing? In this episode we discuss our own experiences on which plays of ours have required research; how did we do this research; and how do we feel about research. We ask ourselves how do we incorporate research without making the play overly expositional or boring and what are some best practices in organizing all this research? Let us know what you think! We'd love to hear from you. GLISTENS:
"On the Fine Art of Researching For Fiction" by Jake Wolff “Inspiration from artifacts: writing plays for the future inspired by the past” by Katie Bender On dramaturgy _______________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies | |||
| 67. INTERVIEW: Reginald Edmund | 13 Jul 2020 | 00:46:04 | |
Hi listeners! In this episode, we chat with the one and only Playwright, Co-Founder and Managing Curating Producer of Black Lives Black Words International Project Reginald Edmund. Black Lives Black Words International Project launched an online play season celebrating the diversity of the African-American and African experience in today’s world called ‘Plays for the People’. The season features new works from seven cutting-edge black playwrights: Reginald Edmund, Chisa Hutchinson, Anya Pearson, Dominic Taylor, Idris Goodwin, Katrina D. RiChard, and Wole Oguntokun. The season opened on July 8th and will continue to run through November 8th, 2020. Learn more about Black Lives Black Words and be sure to catch a show this season at www.blacklivesblackwords.org/get-tickets To learn more about Reginald's plays, check out his New Play Exchange here: GLISTENS Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 66. PLAYWRIGHT STUDY: August Wilson | 06 Jul 2020 | 01:04:16 | |
We are excited for an all-new series where we look at the work of a single playwright and from their large body of work, we look at the first play they’ve ever written, a play from their mid-career, and the latest or the most recent play of their career. In this first of what we hope to be many series, we discuss the life and work of August Wilson. We read the three plays Jitney, The Piano Lesson, and Radio Golf to discuss our thoughts and August Wilson's craft of playwriting. We hope you will check these plays out and join us! AUGUST WILSON PLAYS: 1. Jitney GLISTENS: Sarah's: I hate fireworks. _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies | |||
| 65. TOPIC: Writing Artistic Statements | 29 Jun 2020 | 00:45:55 | |
Have you ever written an artistic statement? Every playwright, at some point in their career, has to write an artistic statement, or what others might call a “Manifesto”. Whether it be for a playwriting opportunity, or for your website, it might be good to have one in your arsenal ready to go. In this episode, we want to discuss what it is, what’s the purpose, why it may or may not be important, how you could approach to writing one, and questions to help you get started in thinking about what your artistic statement. GLISTENS: HELPFUL LINKS: Tips for Writing Your Artistic Statement from the Playwrights Corner. “The Artist Statement - From Playwrights to Artistic Directors, This is What They Said…” from Theaterspeak "What's Your Brand? Not Having One Is Hurting You" Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 64. INTERVIEW: Tanuja Jagernauth Returns! | 22 Jun 2020 | 01:15:15 | |
Based in Chicago, Tanuja Jagernauth is an Indo-Caribbean playwright, dramaturg, and ceramic artist who believes in the necessity of creation during times of destruction. We talked with Tanuja a few months ago about her theatrical work, and we have her back on to discuss her work organizing the response of Chicago theaters to the Black Lives Matter movement, the coronavirus pandemic, and this moment in time. She will be working on a musical adaptation of FAUST with Prop Thtr with Olivia Lilley as the director. They start a workshop in July and the production will be in the spring of 2021. Be sure to be on the lookout! GLISTENS: Tanuja's Recommendations, References & Uplifts: WASTED by Free Street Theater "Victory Gardens Boards Windows Against Black Lives, Arts Community Protests Leadership" by Regina Victor TransformHarm "It takes more than #OpenYourLobby to address racism in American theater" by Miranda Gonzalez Brave Space Alliance Chicago Freedom School Let Us Breathe Collective ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 162. SEASON FINALE: We graduated kindergarten. Hooray! | 23 Dec 2023 | 00:37:45 | |
THAT'S A WRAP FOR SEASON 5! Thank you all so much for tuning in every week and hear us chat about all things playwriting. NOTE: Towards the second half of the episode, Sarah's mic went off and had some audio issues. We apologize for the quality! A real cherry on top to the year Sarah had... we hope you enjoy nonetheless. Thank you again for another incredible season. Wishing everyone a happy and safe holiday season... See you next year! ____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 63. Theaters Response to Black Lives Matter | 08 Jun 2020 | 00:53:04 | |
Hello, listeners. We hope you are well and staying safe. We are still processing what's happening in the country and the world. In this episode, we discuss some ways theaters are responding to the Black Lives Matter movement. One of which is #openyourlobby. The following theaters have opened their doors in response to the movement. This is not the complete list as more theatres may be opening their doors. Below is what we know so far. We would love to hear what you've experienced and noticing what other theaters are doing. NEW YORK MANHATTAN BROOKLYN CALIFORNIA The Flight Deck (Oakland) WASHINGTON, DC Studio Theatre PENNSYLVANIA PHILADELPHIA PITTSBURGH
CHICAGO AUSTIN Vortex Repertory Company HELPFUL LINKS/INFORMATION/RESOURCES/PLACES TO DONATE: blacklivesmatter.com/ GLISTENS Sarah: Adopt-A-America ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 62. INTERVIEW: Sean David DeMers | 01 Jun 2020 | 00:59:18 | |
Hello listeners! We want to thank you all so much for your support so far this year. We are truly thankful to you all. We also want to acknowledge the pain and suffering that is happening in our communities. We hear, we understand, and we support everyone that has either donated and protested in support of #blacklivesmatter. Thanks for tuning in and we hope you will enjoy this episode. Listeners! Boy, are you in for a treat. We discuss all-things playwriting with a fellow graduate of the Iowa Playwrights Workshop... Sean David DeMers! In this episode, we get into the ideas of memory. Sean shares with us memories of his childhood, how he first got into playwriting, and the importance of memory in his work. We even share some fond memories of the Workshop. We hope you will enjoy this very 'memory' themed show. Thank you! Sean David DeMers is a playwright with New England and New York City roots. Plays include FACULTY PORTRAIT, produced at IRT Theatre in New York City, the musical JULES VERNE'S FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON with FringeNYC, LITTLE BLUE PILL read at the Last Frontier Conference in 2019, and ENCAPSULATED produced by The Navigators as part of their one-act sci-fi play festival. Sean has two short plays published by Samuel French/Concord Theatricals, OFF TACKLE GLIDE and FOUR MOVEMENTS. Sean is a graduate of the Iowa MFA Playwright's Workshop and recently picked up a project started there with the play FAYE by translating and adapting the existing Ancient Greek plays, starting with the most obscure. GLISTENS: To learn more about Sean and his work, be sure to check out his website: seandemers3.wixsite.com/seandaviddemers Also! Sean shared with us his favorite playwriting exercise. Go to our website www.beckettsbabies.com to learn more! Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 61. INTERVIEW: Art Borreca (Special Episode!) | 25 May 2020 | 01:48:58 | |
Hello, listeners! Boy, do we have a treat for you! This is an in-depth special episode where we had the greatest pleasure of chatting with one of our favorite people from Iowa... ART BORRECA! He is the Co-Head of the Playwriting Program and Head of the Dramaturgy Program at the University of Iowa (aka where Sam and I met and became friends!). Art talks about his journey into theater and dramaturgy, what he loves about new plays, and shares with us the Iowa Playwrights Workshop program. We are so excited for you to listen to this one. So please, grab your favorite drink, kick your feet up, and listen to this very special episode. Art Borreca is associate professor of dramaturgy, dramatic literature, and theatre history, co-head of the playwriting program, and head of the dramaturgy program. He has worked as a dramaturg with a number of leading theatre artists, including Athol Fugard, Wole Soyinka, Theodora Skipitares, David Gothard, and Naomi Wallace in such venues as the Yale Repertory Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, LaMama ETC, Oxford Stage Company in the U.K., and T.P.T (Theatre Project Tokyo) in Japan. His research interests include contemporary British and American theatre, new play dramaturgy, and political dramaturgy. His articles and reviews have appeared in TDR (The Drama Review), Modern Drama, and Theatre Journal; as well as in several books, including Dramaturgy in American Theatre, What is Dramaturgy? and Approaching the Millennium: Essays on Angels in America. Professor Borreca is a contributing editor of the two-volume Norton Anthology of Drama. GLISTENS: ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 60. PLAY: The King Of Hell's Palace by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig | 18 May 2020 | 00:39:51 | |
As part of our new monthly play series, we pick a play to discuss and this month’s play is “The King of Hell's Palace" by Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig. In this episode, we discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. This play was also recommended to us by one of our listeners and we are so glad! Thank you, Mickey! Note: There are some spoiler alerts! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode! SHORT SUMMARY: June's Play of the Month: "Power Plays" by Elaine May & Alan Arkin GLISTENS: ___________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 59. TOPIC: Writing Radio Plays | 11 May 2020 | 00:40:54 | |
In this episode, Sam and Sarah discuss writing plays for the radio. We bring on a special guest, Nik Frank-Lehrer, to help us kick off the episode by sharing his experience on writing ad copy for radio. We also look at ways in how radio plays have been written and produced. Check out the links below and we'd love to hear your thoughts on writing radio plays. If you have a page or two that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to send our way. Check this episode out! GLISTENS: Sam: How Should A Person Be? By Sheila Heti
BBC’s Radio 4 Drama Spotify Playlist “Vintage Radio Dramas” The Renaissance of the Humble Radio Drama by ANGELICA CABRAL LA Theatre Works’s Catalog of Over 500 plays on Audio Sam Beckett Radio Plays on Openculture Sam Beckett Radio Plays on Irish Times "The Strange Survival of Radio Drama" by Professor David Hendy (BBC) Playing On Air - Podcast ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 58. INTERVIEW: Shaun Leisher | 04 May 2020 | 00:55:28 | |
Hello, listeners! In this episode, we chat with dramaturg, new play doula, and an incredible supporter of Beckett's Babies-- SHAUN LEISHER! He shares his journey into dramaturgy, what he loves about new plays, and how we can best support new work. It was an incredible joy to speak with Shaun. We could all learn a thing or two from his passion to support and advocate for new work. Check it out! Shaun Leisher (pronouns: he/him/his) is a dramaturg and new play doula based in the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. As a dramaturg, he has worked on productions at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA and a workshop production of RAW PASTA by Maya Macdonald at the 2019 Ice Factory Festival at the New Ohio in NYC. In his local theatre community, Shaun is a co-founder and the Literary Manager of Emerge Theatre Company, co-created the Allentown Public Theatre's play reading series, Theatre Cafe, and has produced various readings and new play festivals throughout the region. He is also proud to be a reader/nominator r for a number of organizations dedicated to the advocacy and development of new work including: The Kilroys, Normal Ave, 50 Playwrights Project, and Play Penn. His dream is to one day run a theatre dedicated to bold new plays somewhere remote like Montana. To follow what Shaun's up to, be sure to follow him on instagram: www.instagram.com/shaunaturgy/ To read Shan's incredible play recommendations, be sure to check out his New Play Exchange: newplayexchange.org/users/1297/shaun-leisher GLISTENS: ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 57. INTERVIEW: Paul Michael Thomson | 27 Apr 2020 | 01:02:25 | |
Hey listeners! We had the amazing opportunity to chat with the one and only Paul Michael Thomson. He is an actor, playwright, and co-artistic director of The Story Theatre. He had so much to say about playwriting, theater, and what it means to be an artist. We also got a chance to talk about his hilarious and page-turning play "The G.O.A.T., or Who Is Ximone?". Be sure to look out for it on New Play Exchange! Paul Michael Thomson is an actor, playwright, and co-artistic director of The Story Theatre in Chicago, IL. As an actor, he has worked with Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare, and Windy City Playhouse, among others. His plays have been produced by Avalanche Theatre, The Impostors Theatre Company, Other Theatre, Arc Theatre, and The Story Theatre, of which he is a founding ensemble member. He holds a BFA in Acting and a BA in Africana Studies from The University of Arizona and is passionate about new work, intersectional feminism, and rereading the same books over and over and over again. To learn more about Paul Michael Thomson, be sure to visit his website www.paulmichaelthomson.com To learn about the amazing work The Story Theatre is doing, check out the website www.thestorytheatre.org Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 56. INTERVIEW: Olivia Lilley | 20 Apr 2020 | 00:52:18 | |
In this episode, Sam and Sarah get the opportunity to chat with playwright, director, deviser and artistic director of Prop Theater -- Olivia Lilley! Olivia Lilley is a playwright, director, and deviser who came up in Chicago's DIY scene. She uses a devised process to create and develop her plays that she's been honing since 2013. Olivia's work often ransacks classic literature or nonfiction with a collective and builds a new story for the current moment. Part Mary Zimmerman, Part John Cassavettes, Olivia's work is actor centric while also boldly multidisciplinary. She often collaborates with choreographer Kelly Anderson. Olivia is Artistic Director of Prop Thtr. She was the founding Artistic Director of The Runaways Lab Theatre and currently sits on their advisory board. She's an Artistic Associate at Pivot Arts, and she's curated at The Museum of Contemporary Art. Olivia attended Carnegie Mellon School of Drama for Directing, and Interlochen Arts Academy for Music Composition. To learn more about Olivia Lilley and her work, check her New Play Exchange at newplayexchange.org/users/10813/olivia-lilley To learn more about Prop Theater, visit the website at www.propthtr.org/ ------------------------------------------ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 55. PLAY: Cost of Living by Martyna Majok | 13 Apr 2020 | 00:36:05 | |
As part of our new monthly series, we pick a play to discuss and this month’s play is “Cost of Living" by Martyna Majok. It is the winner of 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Drama as well as two Lucille Lortel Awards, including Outstanding Play. In this episode, we discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. Note: There are some spoiler alerts! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode! SHORT SUMMARY: “Cost of Living deftly challenges the typical perceptions of those living with disabilities and delves deep into the ways class, race, nationality, and wealth can create gulfs between people, even as they long for the ability to connect. Eddie, an unemployed truck driver, and his estranged ex-wife, Ani, find themselves unexpectedly reunited after a terrible accident leaves her quadriplegic. John, a brilliant PhD student with cerebral palsy, hires Jess, a first-generation recent graduate who has fallen on desperate times, as his new aide..” GLISTENS: Sarah's Glisten: Originals by Adam Grant Sam's Glisten: Two Hong Kong Pandas https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/07/world/asia/panda-mating-hong-kong.html ___________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 54. TOPIC: Writing Character Descriptions | 06 Apr 2020 | 00:39:12 | |
In this episode, Sam and Sarah discuss writing character descriptions. We share examples of character descriptions from different plays and look at how we can be inspired to write for our own work. Check this episode out and share us your thoughts on how you approach to writing descriptions for your characters! GLISTENS: Sam's Glisten: Little Prince Movie _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 161. INTERVIEW: Sarah Johnson | 05 Dec 2023 | 00:53:43 | |
Hello listeners! On this episode, we are so excited to bring on a fellow colleague from our days at Iowa, SARAH JOHNSON! Sarah Johnson is Assistant Professor of Dramaturgy and Head of the M.F.A. Dramaturgy program at Indiana University Bloomington. She researches and writes about intercultural theatre, new play development, and dramaturgy for applied theatre. In her creative work, she works professionally as a dramaturg with theatre companies across the country. Sarah Johnson is Assistant Professor of Dramaturgy and Head of the M.F.A. Dramaturgy program at Indiana University Bloomington. Her research focuses on intercultural theatre, new play development, and dramaturgical methodologies. Her writing has been featured in Asian Theatre Journal, Theatre Topics, and multiple edited volumes. She works professionally as a dramaturg with theatre companies across the country. She was a casebook writer for Broadway's Allegiance. In regional theatre, she has provided dramaturgical support for productions with Outpost Repertory Theatre (as Resident Dramaturg), Timeline Theatre, Portland Stage, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Athena Arts Project, National Women’s Theatre Festival, and several playwriting clients. She serves as the Performance Review Editor for PARtake: The Journal for Performance as Research. Before her time at Indiana University Bloomington, she was the Assistant Professor of Dramaturgy and Head of Playwriting at Texas Tech University and Executive Director and Resident Dramaturg of the WildWind Performance Lab. https://theatre.indiana.edu/about/faculty/johnson-sarah.html GLISTEN Cho - Zebra Gel Pen .07mm Sam - Standard Time Sarah - Coach Bob Knights’ passing and Chair sale in his honor ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends, or follow us on Instagram or Threads: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting, and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 53. INTERVIEW: Beth Hyland | 30 Mar 2020 | 00:47:09 | |
In this episode, Sam and Sarah get the opportunity to chat with fellow BB listener, playwright, and songwriter -- Beth Hyland! In this episode she shares her experience in self-producing her own work, staying creative, balancing creative and work life, and her new play ALL-ONE! THE DR. BRONNER'S PLAY which will be getting a "Zoom" staged reading at the end of April. Check it out! Beth Hyland is a playwright and songwriter based in Chicago. Her plays and musicals have been produced and developed regionally in the UK at the Stephen Joseph Theatre and Octagon Theatre, and around the US at Steppenwolf LookOut, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Hearth, First Floor, The Passage, Broken Nose, The Sound, and others. She is the playwright-in-residence and co-founder of The Sound. To learn more about Beth, be sure to visit her website at www.bethhyland.com GLISTENS: Sarah's: Practice joke writing Beth's: If you have the means, donate to your local theaters and restaurants no matter how small the donation may be. _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 52. PLAY: Ching Chong Chinaman by Lauren Yee | 23 Mar 2020 | 00:42:19 | |
As part of our new monthly series, we pick a play to discuss and this month’s play is “Ching Chong Chinaman" by Lauren Yee! In this episode, we discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. Note: There are some spoiler alerts! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode! SHORT SUMMARY: GLISTENS: NEXT MONTH'S PLAY: _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 51. TOPIC: Plagues and Pandemics in Plays | 16 Mar 2020 | 00:48:56 | |
Hi, Listeners. We're all going through a crisis and this pandemic has been on all our minds. Initially, we wanted to talk about Lauren Yee's play "Ching Chong Chinaman" but instead, we decided to talk about plagues, pandemics, and outbreaks that exist in plays and popular culture. We hope everyone is hanging in there. We are all thinking about you, listeners. Please take care of yourselves and each other. RELATED LINKS: "Broadway Is Closed. Write Poems Instead." by Sarah Ruhl GLISTENS: _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 50. The Comedy Club: "Let's Talk Comedies" Part I | 09 Mar 2020 | 00:40:53 | |
An ongoing series about understanding comedies, welcome to "The Comedy Club". In this first part of "possibly many part" series, Sarah dives into what she thinks about comedy and her love/hate relationship with it. In this episode, we introduce the series by asking ourselves why we laugh, what is happening on stage or on the text that is making our audience laugh. Why is laughter so infectious? Why do we NEED to laugh? What makes something funny? GLISTENS: Sarah's Glisten: Sarah quits coffee and sleeps really Sam's Glisten: Oscar Nominated Shorts - Live-Action Listen to the episode and come at us! _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 49. INTERVIEW: Ryan Oliveira | 02 Mar 2020 | 01:08:56 | |
Playwright, Songwriter, Solo Performer, and Theatrical Jack-of-All-Trades Ryan Oliveira returns to Beckett's Babies! Hear what he has to say about theater, dramaturgy, and presenting new work to an audience as he updates us on what he's been up to since we last interviewed him. GLISTENS: _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 48. TOPIC: Creating Play Titles | 24 Feb 2020 | 00:44:13 | |
In this episode, Sam and Sarah discuss creating titles for our plays. We share some of our favorite titles and discuss why we like certain play titles and why we do not like others. We look to how we create titles for our own work and be inspired by others. Check this episode out and share us your thoughts on creating play titles! GLISTENS: _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 47. PLAY: Dance Nation by Clare Barron | 17 Feb 2020 | 00:57:48 | |
Every month, we pick a play to discuss. This month’s play is “Dance Nation" by Clare Barron. It is one of the winners of 2015 relentless award, a finalist for a Pulitzer, and winner of Susan Smith Blackburn prize. In this episode we discuss what we noticed, what we liked, and questions that came up while reading the play. Note: There are some spoiler alerts! We highly recommend you read the play before listening to this episode! SHORT SUMMARY: “Somewhere in America, a revolution is coming, an army of pre-teen competitive dancers plot to take over the world one routine at a time. In Clare Barron’s raucous pageant of ambition and ferocity, these young dancers have more than choreography on their minds, because every plié and jeté is a step toward finding themselves, and a fight to unleash their power.” GLISTENS: Sarah's Glisten: Crime Junkie Podcast https://crimejunkiepodcast.com/ Sam's Glisten: Goodness: Altruism and the Literary Imagination https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJmVpYZnKTU _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 46. INTERVIEW: Tiana Randall-Quant | 10 Feb 2020 | 00:46:33 | |
What is "devised theater"? How can one start devising new work? In this week's episode, a fellow Beckett's Babies listener, Tiana Randall-Quant, reached out to us to share her experiences creating new work with The Wallis Studio Ensemble Their show "Lucid" opens on February 20th and we can't wait for you to hear what she has to say about the process. Listen to this episode to learn about Tiana's trajectory into theater, devising and creating new work, and how she feels about when someone says that LA is not a theater town. Be sure to grab your tickets to Lucid here! GLISTENS: Sarah's Glisten - American inventor Mary Kenner ABOUT TIANA RANDALL-QUANT Tiana Randall-Quant is a Los Angeles based theatre artist working to change the narrative that LA is “not a theatre town”. She is a graduate of UC Berkeley, where she studied under theatre makers like Rhodessa Jones of the Medea Project and playwright Philip Kan Gotanda, and geared her education towards making art that centers marginalized communities and community healing. She is working now on her debut performance with the Wallis Studio Ensemble, which opens February 20th at the Hudson Theatres, and is preparing to remount Project Nongenue’s What You Will (or Twelfth Night) as the character Olivia. She is also in the process of becoming a certified teaching artist, and is building a curriculum around Augusta Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed. To learn more about Tiana Randall-Quant, be sure to follow her on instagram: www.instagram.com/t_quant/ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 45. New Year! New Season! Same Babies! | 03 Feb 2020 | 00:32:58 | |
Hello, Listeners! WE ARE BACK! In this episode, we check-in, share our own personal goals and resolutions (and how we've failed already), and other exciting plans we have on the horizon for Beckett's Babies. We want to extend special thanks to our listeners for tuning in every week. We appreciate your support!!! THANK YOU!!! GLISTENS: Sarah's Glistens - Essential Oils, Air Purifier, and Kobe Bryant. Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it on our next episode. _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 44. We'll See You in 2020! | 02 Dec 2019 | 00:30:27 | |
Hello, listeners! It's been an incredible year of discussing all things playwriting and interviewing theater guests from all walks of life on Beckett's Babies. In this episode, we share some of our favorite interviews and highlights from the year. We even share some of our dream goals for guests on our future episodes... Dream Goal Guests. DGG! SEASON 1 HIGHLIGHTS - Episodes You Should Check Out If You Haven't! 1. Alison Ruth's Interview But really, you should check out all the episodes! :)
Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it on our next episode. _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies SEE YOU IN 2020! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 160. INTERVIEW: Sherry Kramer | 20 Nov 2023 | 01:07:25 | |
Hello listeners! On this episode of BB, we have the one and only SHERRY KRAMER on the show! Sherry Kramer is a playwright and professor who has been writing plays for 50 years and teaching playwriting for 40. Her book about meaning making in timebound art, Writing for Stage and Screen: Creating a Perception Shift in the Audience, was published this summer by Methuen Publishing. In this episode, Sherry shares her knowledge on writing and we know you will want to save this episode to revisit for your playwriting journey! We can't wait for you to listen!
Sherry Kramer’s plays have been produced here and abroad and include David’s RedHaired Death, When Something Wonderful Ends, The Wall of Water, and Three Quarter Inches of Sky. Her work is centered in the personal as political, and often speaks to the power of class and money and philanthropy: The Bay of Fundy, How Water Behaves; the power of a conservative press to distort and sway a people and a country: The Ruling Passion; the power of the beauty myth: A Thing of Beauty; and the power of anti-Semitism: Ivanhoe, MO. Her awards include the Weissberger, a National McKnight, The Jane Chambers Award, an NEA, and a NYFA. She taught regularly in the MFA programs of The Michener Center for Writers, UT Austin, the Iowa Playwrights’ Workshop, where she has served as head of the workshop, and currently teaches playwriting at Bennington College. She was the first national member of New Dramatists. Her book Writing for Stage and Screen: Creating a Perception Shift in the Audience was published by Bloomsbury in July, 2023.
To learn more about Sherry's work, be sure to check out her website at sherrykramer.net
GLISTEN
Cho - My baby is teething! Help!
Sam - Haunted cornfield
Sherry - Israel / Gaza conflict
________________________
Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends, or follow us on Instagram and Twitter: @beckettsbabies
And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting, and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com
For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com
Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA)
---
Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 43. INTERVIEW: Megan Gogerty | 25 Nov 2019 | 00:48:13 | |
"Process is all." "The difference between an entrepreneur and artist is that the entrepreneur is focused on product, the artist is focused on process." "Every play teaches me what I need to make a new play." "Creativity and productivity are yin and yang." "We’re party planners, playwrights. We’re planning experiences. Experiences can not be captured and can not be recreated easily. They’re unique “you had to be there” experiences." MEGAN GOGERTY is not only laugh-out-loud hilarious but truly inspirational. Megan is a playwright, comedian, and delightful person. She just closed a run of her one-person show FEAST. at Riverside Theatre in Iowa City. Her other plays include Lady Macbeth and Her Pal Megan, Bad Panda, Hillary Clinton Got Me Pregnant, and Save Me, Dolly Parton. Her musical tribute album to the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer is widely available online. Megan was a Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellow, is a WordBRIDGE alum, and earned her MFA in Playwriting from the University of Texas at Austin. She currently teaches playwriting at the University of Iowa and is a regularly returning visiting faculty for the Playwright's Lab at Hollins University. Listen to this episode to hear Megan's hot take on creativity and productivity. It's freakin' wonderful. GLISTENS: Sam's Glisten - Hot Water ABOUT MEGAN GOGERTY Megan Gogerty is a playwright and comedian. Her solo show Lady Macbeth and Her Pal, Megan played the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and won the Audience Pick of the Fringe at the Cincinnati Fringe Festival. Her play Bad Panda (Theatre Without Borders, Beijing; Iron Crow Theatre Co.; WordBRIDGE Boomerang Playwright honoree) is published by Original Works Publishing and was translated into Spanish for a five-month run at Del Teatro Milan in Mexico City. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution listed her solo show Hillary Clinton Got Me Pregnant in their yearly Top Ten Best Plays. Megan’s musical drama Love Jerry was produced in the New York Musical Theatre Festival where it won three Talkin’ Broadway Citations and four NYMF Excellence Awards including Excellence in Writing (Book). Her ten-minute play Rumple Schmumple (Dramatic Pub.) was a Kennedy Center/National ACTF honoree. Other plays include: Housebroken (Riverside Theatre, Hollins University); Save Me, Dolly Parton (Riverside Theatre, Synchronicity Theatre; named among Best Plays in Atlanta by Creative Loafing). Her musical tribute album to the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer is widely available online. Megan was a Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellow, a WordBRIDGE alum, and she earned her MFA in Playwriting from the University of Texas at Austin. She currently teaches playwriting at the University of Iowa and is a regularly returning visiting faculty for the Playwright's Lab at Hollins University. To learn more about Megan Gogerty and her work, check out her website at www.megangogerty.com Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 42. TOPIC: Writing Non-Human Characters | 18 Nov 2019 | 00:40:06 | |
Writing non-human characters...Why do some playwrights bring non-human characters to life? What’s the draw? What do we achieve when we place human ideas, thoughts, and emotions into a non-human character? Is there a place for it in a serious adult drama? Find out in this episode as we attempt to figure it out! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 41. INTERVIEW: Marisela Treviño Orta | 11 Nov 2019 | 00:45:22 | |
"I really want theater to reach in and grab my heart and squeeze. I want to feel something when I’m sitting there." We love to interview playwrights! We love to hear how they discovered playwriting and how they found themselves on this journey into the world of playwriting. We had the immense pleasure to talk to Marisela Treviño Orta and we know you will enjoy this episode, listeners. Marisela is an accidental playwright. She got her MFA in poetry from the University of San Francisco. Graduate of Iowa playwrights workshop, core writer at the playwrights center, and is currently working on a commission for Audible! Her play "Somewhere", which was commissioned by Temple University, will open Feb 1st. GLISTENS: Sam's Glisten - Joy Harjo "Book of poems" ABOUT MARISELA TREVIÑO ORTA Marisela Treviño Orta is an accidental playwright. Originally from Lockhart, Texas, she found her way to the genre while completing an MFA in Writing at the University of San Francisco (USF) where she studied poetry exclusively. While a student at USF, Marisela became the Resident Poet of El Teatro Jornalero!, a social justice theatre company comprised of Latinx immigrants. Marisela’s first play BRAIDED SORROW (2008 Su Teatro world premiere) won the 2006 Chicano/Latino Literary Prize in Drama and the 2009 Pen Center USA Literary Award in Drama. Her other plays include: AMERICAN TRIAGE (2012 Repertorio Español Nuestras Voces Finalist); GHOST LIMB (2017 Brava Theatre world premiere); HEART SHAPED NEBULA (2015 Shotgun Players world premiere); SHOE (2019 Kendeda Finalist); RETURN TO SENDER (2019 Nashville Children’s Theatre world premiere); and WOMAN ON FIRE (2016 Camino Real Productions world premiere). In 2011, she began writing her cycle of grim Latinx fairy tales—fairy tales for adults inspired by Latinx mythology and folklore which include: THE RIVER BRIDE (2013 National Latino Playwriting Award Co-Winner, 2016 Oregon Shakespeare Festival world premiere); WOLF AT THE DOOR (2016 Kilroys List, 2018/2019 National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere); and ALCIRA. Marisela is an alum of the Iowa Playwrights Workshop, the Playwrights Foundation’s Resident Playwright Initiative, a founding member of the Bay Area Latino Theatre Artists Network, and a member of the Latinx Theatre Commons’ national Steering Committee. Last year she was selected as a Core Writer at The Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis. Marisela is also a member of the Goodman Theatre's 2018/2019 Playwrights Unit. Currently, Marisela is working on a new cycle of worst-case scenario plays—sci-fi thriller plays which include WMB (pronounced “womb”) and NIGHTFALL which she has been commissioned by Audible to adapt for their platform. She is also adapting Charles Dickens’ Little Dorrit into a five-hour epic piece of theatre. Make sure to follow Marisela to learn more about her work and stay updated: twitter.com/mariselatorta Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 40. INTERVIEW: Terri Weagant | 04 Nov 2019 | 00:51:26 | |
“Give yourself the gift of working hard and doing the best that you can do in any given moment but taking away comparisons to other people and their work." We had such a great and fun conversation with actor, producer, solo performer, and arts educator Terri Weagant! Based out of Brooklyn, NY, she shared her experiences on performing and how she approaches new work. She will be performing the solo play Bo-Nita by Elizabeth Heffron at the United Solo Theatre Festival in New York City on November 6th and 9th, so make sure to check it out! Terri Weagant is an award winning actor, writer, director, producer and dialect coach based in Brooklyn, NY. As an actor she has performed in the US, Canada, Australia and the Czech Republic. Regionally, she worked with such companies as Asolo Repertory Theatre, Urbanite Theatre, Seattle Shakespeare Company, Wooden O, Annex Theatre, ACT Theatre, Book-It Repertory Theatre, Theater Schmeater, CHAC, Empty Space, Balagan Theatre, Centerstage, Hypnagogia and Consolidated Works. To learn more about Terri and her work, visit her website www.terriweagant.com/ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 39. TOPIC: Writing Monologues | 28 Oct 2019 | 00:35:19 | |
What the heck are monologues? Don't get it confused with the "kissing disease". In this episode, we discuss the different kinds of monologues in plays, what are they for, what makes a good monologue for a play vs. a standalone monologue, how to write one and when do we use them in our plays. What do you think? Do you have any tips or tricks on writing monologues? If so, send us your thoughts (or questions)and we might discuss it on our upcoming episode! Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 38. INTERVIEW: Gwydion Suilebhan | 21 Oct 2019 | 00:46:55 | |
“We are all healthier when we live in a culturally diverse world. When there are more stories that are accessible to us when every voice is part of every cultural conversation. It’s not about excluding traditional voices. It’s about expanding the range of what people know is there.” If you are a playwright or someone who is just starting to write plays, then you must know the New Play Exchange. We had the pleasure of interviewing writer, innovator, and arts advocate, Gwydion Suilebhan. He serves as both the Executive Director of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation and the chief architect and evangelist of the New Play Exchange for the National New Play Network. He is also a co-founder of The Welders, award-winning playwrights collective in Washington DC. He’s the author of several plays, and he has a Master of Arts in poetry from the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University. His forthcoming series All Souls is currently in post-production. To learn more about Gwydion and his work, you can visit the following links RELATED LINKS: Gwydion’s New Series “For All Souls” Tanuja Jagernauth’s “Public Newsroom 124: Creating A World Beyond Racism and Fascism" on Nov 7th at City Bureau in Chicago. _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! | |||
| 37. TOPIC: Writing Playwright Bios | 14 Oct 2019 | 00:41:09 | |
At some point, playwrights will have to write their biographies. Whether it be for a personal website or to submit themselves to a development opportunity, or even when writing a program for a produced play-- We discuss why we have to write bios, why do we write them the way we do, and can we make them better. We attempt to break this code, let us know if we succeeded or not! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it on our next episode. Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 36. INTERVIEW: Dawson Moore | 07 Oct 2019 | 00:41:29 | |
“We’re an artistic weed. We crop up anywhere there’s a room and a couple of people to tell a story. We’re never going to go away." We had the pleasure of interviewing playwright and coordinator of the Last Frontier Theatre Conference, Dawson Moore. He shared incredible stories from his life and how it's lead him to where he is today. He provides us some insight into how he curates the play lab for this week-long theater conference. He’s also an actor, director, and internationally produced playwright and we know you're going to enjoy this episode, folks! Check it out! Dawson Moore lives in Valdez, Alaska, where he works for Prince William Sound College as the Coordinator of the Valdez Last Frontier Theatre Conference (www.theatreconference.org). His plays have been produced across the country, as well as internationally in Australia, Canada, Italy, and Namibia. His play Six Dead Bodies Duct-Taped to a Merry-Go-Round, co-written with Lindsay Mariana Walker, is published in Applause Books' Best American Short Plays 2010-2011. Since 2002, he's produced the play-in-a-day Alaska Overnighters 2-3 times yearly in Anchorage, Alaska, in collaboration with TBA Theatre. He is a member of the Dramatist Guild of America and the National Theatre Conference (obviously). For more about the Overnighters and his other work, visit www.dawsonmoore.com _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 35. TOPIC: Submission Fees | 30 Sep 2019 | 00:35:44 | |
A hot topic issue for so many playwrights. We look at the fees to different development opportunities and weigh the pros and cons. HELPFUL LINKS: "TO PAY FEES OR NOT TO PAY FEES… HERE IS MY ANSWER " by Donna Hoke Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it on our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.comFor more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 34. INTERVIEW: Amy Berryman | 23 Sep 2019 | 00:44:01 | |
“From your own community, you can create opportunities for yourself.“ New York-based writer and actor Amy Berryman joins us on this episode to share her experience with playwriting and creating new work. It was such a pleasure to have her on the show! Amy shares how she started writing and provides wonderful advice to aspiring playwrights. We hope you'll enjoy this conversation! Amy Berryman is a writer and actor originally from Seattle. She was recently seen off-Broadway in The Convent by Jessica Dickey, directed by Daniel Talbott. Her full length plays include Walden (Premiere Play Festival Runner Up 2019, Title Wave Theatre Festival at Bay Street, Great Plains Theatre Conference), The New Galileos (O'Neill Finalist 2019, Playwrights Realm Fellowship Finalist 2018) Three Year Summer, and The Whole of You (commissioned by Rising Phoenix Rep for Cino Nights). Her work has been developed with Portland Stage, Premiere Stages, Nomad Theatricals, Caltech, Prop Thtr, and Last Frontier Theatre Conference. Her short film "You Are Everywhere" won "Best Short Drama" in the LA Short Film Festival 2018. To learn more about Amy and her work, visit her website amy-berryman.com _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 159. INTERVIEW: Rebecca Wear | 06 Nov 2023 | 01:03:34 | |
Hello listeners! This week on the show, we have the one and only director REBECCA WEAR! Rebecca is a freelance director and dramaturg with a focus on new play development, as well as an assistant professor in performance, play, and design. To learn more about Rebecca, be sure to check out her website at https://www.rebeccawear.com/ GLISTEN Cho - Amazon Prime TV show "Invincible" Sam - Movie "Swimmers" on Netflix Rebecca - Pear Tree ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends, or follow us on Instagram and Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting, and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) ________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode with your friends, or follow us on Instagram and Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting, and we might discuss it in our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com Theme Music: "Live Like the Kids" by Samuel Johnson, Laura Robertson, Luke O'Dea (APRA) --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 33. TOPIC: How Do We Teach Playwriting? | 16 Sep 2019 | 00:34:13 | |
How do we teach playwriting? How do we teach writing in general? In this episode, we discuss what we think are best practices, writing exercises, approaches to workshopping students' new plays, and how do we grade creative work. If teaching playwriting is something you're passionate about or interested in discussing, we'd love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it on our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||
| 32. INTERVIEW: Theater is Life-Shifting with Tanuja Jagernauth | 09 Sep 2019 | 01:09:22 | |
Playwright, Dramaturg, Ceramic Artist and former Acupuncturist Tanuja Jagernauth join us on this episode to share her truth on theater and supporting communities through the arts. She also explores the ideas from her current research on fascism to write anti-fascist plays. What an important conversation we all had in this episode. She's incredibly thoughtful, generous, and open to sharing her life with us. We enjoyed having her on the show! We know you'll enjoy this episode too! Tanuja Jagernauth is an Indo-Caribbean playwright, dramaturg, and ceramic artist who believes in the necessity of creation during times of destruction. A former acupuncturist, Tanuja aspires to practice four specific frameworks for collective liberation and wellness through theatre: self/community care, harm reduction, trauma-informed practice, and body positivity. To learn more about Tanuja and her work, follow on Instagram @tanuja_devi Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it in our next episode. | |||
| 31. TOPIC: When is Self-Promotion Too Much? | 02 Sep 2019 | 00:33:12 | |
As playwrights and writers, we must be able to talk about ourselves and our work. In this episode, we get into the idea of self-promotion... the good, the bad, and the ugly. _____________________________________________ Please support Beckett's Babies by reviewing, sharing an episode to your friends, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @beckettsbabies And as always, we would love to hear from you! Send us your questions or thoughts on playwriting and we might discuss it on our next episode. Email: contact@beckettsbabies.com For more info, visit our website: www.beckettsbabies.com --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/beckettsbabies/support | |||