OliverHey. I know I'm a smartass. I'd say I'm sorry, but I think those words should be reserved for bigger things, don't you? And I'd say I'm working on it, but the Buddhists say self-correction and self-improvement are acts of aggression and that we should just observe, be awake, et cetera. Whatever, I know I'm intolerable. But what're ya supposed to do when you just don't think people are very observant, when you don't think most people are even capable of looking outside their own box and they're scared because it's dark in there, sitting in their own stink, breathing in their own stale thoughts, worrying so much that they're dead that they just keep telling themselves, But I'm alive, I'm alive, I'm alive to the exclusion of any other sophisticated observation. Anyway. What'd you really do all night?
GenePrayed.
OliverFor?
GenePurpose.
OliverSounds like we're both hard to shop for.
- Flooded With Light by Stan Richardson (The Representatives)
Hello, my blog family!
I've got an exciting gift to share with you!!!!
This past year has been an amazing process, working on this CA family
play with The Representatives. The play Stan wrote inspired by interviews with my family, Flooded With Light, was a huge success when we produced it in New York in December 2013.
Audiences were so receptive to the work. I was fortunate enough to attend almost every performance. I loved sitting and watching the actors bring life to the characters every night. The energy of the room was so different every night.
Audiences were so receptive to the work. I was fortunate enough to attend almost every performance. I loved sitting and watching the actors bring life to the characters every night. The energy of the room was so different every night.
It was fascinating to experience the audience's responses in our nightly post-show wine parties. Some people loved it and said that it was the best thing they'd ever seen The Representatives produce. One audience member left in the middle of the play, whispering to her friend, "This play is too intense for me, I've gotta go." Isn't that amazing? It affected her so deeply that she had to LEAVE! Amazing!
I embrace both the positive and negative responses equally. They are both fantastic! I truly believe good art should illicit a strong gut reaction, so I am delighted that people either loved it or hated it.
Apathy is death to art.
Since I knew that very few of my blog followers were going able to see the show, I wanted to create something I could send out to you that'd give you the chance to share the experience with us, to give you a taste of what the whole process was like. Soooooooo I commissioned a short documentary film about the "making-of" Flooded With Light. I am super excited to hear what you think!
(Big huge shout-out THANK YOU to the filmmaker Joshua Paul Johnson, without his heartfelt commitment to this project this video never would have been possible.)
Enjoy!
Flooded with Light: an apartment play from Joshua Paul Johnson on Vimeo.
Flooded with
Light: an apartment play
is the culmination of a year-long project to create a "theatrical
portrait" of the family life of Virginia Wilcox (resident of Astoria, NY)
in collaboration with playwright Stan Richardson (NY, NY) and actor Matt
Steiner (NY, NY) of The Representatives.
Stan, Matt and Virginia took an immersive research trip to meet Virginia's
family in Northern California. The experiences they came away with, as well as
current political and social issues, have inspired this biting new play about
zealotry, illicit love, and the costs of self-reinvention. Flooded
with Light was first presented on Manhattan's Upper West Side in December
2013 as part of The Representatives' Collected Apartment Plays series.
Filmmaker Joshua Paul Johnson documents the making of this theatrical portrait,
a process of creating intimate, personal theatre with global themes for
audiences inside and outside the arts.
For more about…
The
Representatives go to www.TheRepresentatives.org
The filmmaker
go to www.JoshuaPaulJohnson.com
Love,
Virginia
P.S. It’s been a while since I’ve posted. Thanks for being patient with me. And thanks to all of you that have reached out during this period of radio-silence to say, “Hey! How are things going? Send us an update.” That’s made me feel really special, knowing that you care!
P.P.S. Interested in getting a copy of the play? Please direct all inquiries for Flooded With Light to stan at the representatives dot org.
