This Can't Be Broccoli

In my ongoing conversations about giving up theater, I've heard one thing come up over and over again--the frustration from lack of support from fellow artists. The friend I'm talking to in this interview had some really insightful thoughts on it, so I decided that should be the main focus of our talk. Here's the Interview: ME:  So how long were you doing theater before you gave it up? THEM:  A long time.  I did it when I was young so it was about fifteen years of it and then no more. ME:  You and I have talked about the big reason you left being a lack of support. THEM:  Yeah. ME:  Can you talk a little about that? THEM:  Well there was a, uh, moment--I think, the funny thing is, we sort of hit that moment at the same time, you and I-- ME:  Right.  I was doing "You Might Not Be Crazy" which was sort of my first big monologue show.  I had done one at Christin's bookstore, which was great, and then Vanessa gave me a chanc...

Before you read this, just remember that Bohemian Rhapsody and Green Book are trash and if you like them, you have awful taste and/or are not capable of analytical thinking. Okay, carry on. Best Picture: “Black Panther” “BlacKkKlansman” “Bohemian Rhapsody” “The Favourite” “Green Book” “Roma” “A Star Is Born” “Vice” Will Win:   Roma Should Win:   The Favourite I’m hoping for “Roma” because I doubt “The Favourite” is going to win, and there’s some sneaky momentum for “Green Book” that makes me very nervous.   “Roma” is a great achievement that really needed to be seen on the big screen, but “The Favourite” had everything I want in a movie and I have no idea how it lost momentum so quickly. Lead Actor: Christian Bale, “Vice” Bradley Cooper, “A Star Is Born” Willem Dafoe, “At Eternity’s Gate” Rami Malek, “Bohemian Rhapsody” Viggo Mortensen, “Green Book” Will Win:   Christian Bale Should Win:   Christian Bale *...

I wanted to make this one of my expletive-ridden rants, but in the interest of getting through to the mainstream, I’m going to watch my language. Here we go. I am--kind of stupefied at how willing liberals are to participate in narratives given to them by Conservatives. By the time Senator Sanders entered the Presidential race, the Republicans were already geared up to mock Democrats for having so many people running for President. This is based entirely on them assuming that we have no memory of 2015/2016 when they ran an entire clown car of candidates and then elected the Head Clown. In comparison, our list isn’t even all that big yet.  It looks like by the time we get to the primaries and a few people drop out, we’ll be able to have one halfway crowded debate as opposed to two overstuffed debates where a bunch of white men scream at each other over who hates immigrants the most. There is nothing wrong with having a lot of people in the primaries.  That is...

If you've been following my series of conversations with people who have decided to step away from the arts--mainly theater--then I should tell you this one is a little...different. You'll see why when you read ahead. For this conversation, Them is someone I worked with on a production quite a few years ago.  It was not a good experience for anyone involved.  They stopped doing theater shortly after that production, and when they contacted me asking if we could talk, I was a little surprised, because we haven't really conversed since, partly because I was fairly sure they blamed me for most of what transpired. I was hesitant to have a conversation like this as part of this series, but it does touch upon a lot of why people do walk away, and it does ask the question "What's my part in making theater a place where people feel frustrated and ultimately take a step back?" Here's what followed: ME:  So let's dive.  Do you hate me? THEM:  (Laugh...

After my first post about struggling with continuing to do theater and my subsequent conversation with an anonymous friend about why they walked away from theater entirely, I got a ton of responses from people who also wanted to talk with me, and many of them were willing to go on record about their experiences in an effort to help other people feel like they're not alone in the fight. I'm not sure how many of these I'm going to do, but I'm not going to put a cap on it either. Hope you can get something out of it. ME: So I should start by telling the people reading this that you haven't done theater in--? THEM: It's been about three years now. ME: And before that you were doing it pretty regularly. THEM: I had been doing it since I was twelve. It was always something I wanted to do. ME: So what made you stop? THEM: This is way more formal than that last conversation? ME: I know, I feel like I'm Diane Sawyer all of a sudden. THEM:...