This Can't Be Broccoli

Here is a list of things, not ranked, that I never want to see in a play again. (Confession:  I have definitely written, directed, acted in, and produced plays that included some or all of the following.) Sometimes things will be in caps, sometimes not, sometimes all caps, but probably not. I might update this from time-to-time, but I doubt it. I'm not saying plays with these elements in them are bad or have always been bad, I'm just saying, I think we could take a break from them for awhile. THE LIST - Narrators - Exposition in an opening scene - Rich white people at a lake house - Liberal plays written for liberal audiences - Plays about theater - Plays where characters seemingly have no jobs but aren't stressed about it and don't seem to have any financial troubles - Plays with short choppy scenes indicating that the playwright would really like to just jump ahead to when they can adapt the script into a screenplay -...

I stopped listening to Pod Save America because I’d heard it all before. Okay, that’s the hook. And it’s not a great hook.  It ends with the word “before” and that’s bothering me, but I also like the turn of phrase-- “I’d Heard It All Before” That would make a good title for something, but not this. No, this is called “Insight and Information” which isn’t exciting or catchy at all, but very rarely these days is any piece of writing about two very clear things, and this is--or should be--so I’m going with the more direct title. Insight and Information. Now back to the hook-- I’m only being halfway facetious when I say I stopped listening to Pod Save America because I was starting to feel like they had nothing new to say to me. Before you get angry--which is a common response to reading something somebody’s written--let me assure you that I still enjoyed listening to it for the most part, but-- OH MY GOODNESS IS THERE A LOT TO LISTEN TO And when it come...

This week, I’m doing something a little different. The person I’m talking to is still involved in theater, and we’re going to use anonymity to discuss three topics in theater this week so my interviewee can say whatever they like without fear of getting ripped apart in the comments section. (They’ll probably still get ripped apart, but at least you won’t be able to find their house.) So here’s what we’re tackling-- The High School “Alien” Production  ( https://deadline.com/2019/03/elaborate-alien-high-school-production-gets-hollywoods-attention-1202582603/ ) Actors Having Their Script with Them Onstage ( https://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/theater/ct-ott-doubt-thebus-jones-0322-story.html ) The Music Man ( https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sutton-foster-star-opposite-hugh-jackman-music-man-1194655 ) Let’s dive in: Me:  So, for the record, you didn’t actually care if you were anonymous or not. Them:  I didn’t...