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Dear 2010, Don't Let The Door Hit You On The Way Out

December 12th, 2010 by wiseone

Okay. I'm exaggerating. It weren't that bad. I swears.

2010 just started crappy, with my dad dying in January. Mind you, the old coot lived way longer than he should have. It's just, you know: He was my dad. Sure, he wasn't up for the "World's Greatest Dad" award. It's just, you know: He was my dad.

And then there's the fact that I was writing a play about my dad in his cooterage. A comedy. His dying went and put a damper on the play. The bastard. Can you believe he did that to me? Went and died while I was making his life make people laugh? (Please note: I am fully aware that I am sealing my own special place in hell by writing these words and those words.) In 2010, I've written all of one scene of that damned play. Okay, maybe two. But not much more. Since 2002, I've finished a play every other year. Until now. Because instead of writing, this year I've opted to watch the telly and play on the puter. 2010, the year of doing too much and doing nothing at all. (And whose fault is that, missy? You can't blame everything on the old coot. Did he put that remote in your hand? Make you obsessively update FaceBook? I don't think so. (Oh great. Now my mom is in my head. And I can't believe my mom called him the old coot! ))

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Very First Famous Last Words

November 28th, 2010 by wiseone

designed by my loverly hubby, Lucas Luke Gattuso

I moved to Los Angeles at the end of 2005. Since then, I've taken improv classes all over Los Angeles, but it wasn't until I found a home at Impro Theatre and only after studying there for a couple of years that I got back on stage. And now you can't stop me…

My first foray onto the LA stage and back to long-form and was Jane Austen. And next I'm performing long-form and genre-free. We — Famous Last Words — will be performing a diptych at The Lab at The Hollywood Improv.

Perhaps it's cuz I'm an improv whore. Or, more correctly, an improv john, for I pay for it often. Maybe I'm an improv junkie. Always needing a fix. I don't know what you'd call me, but I know I can't get enough.

But I digress….

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From Too Many Larrys to So Many Janes

November 26th, 2010 by wiseone

Long form scared the poop out of me. But the loverly folk at Impro Theatre are breaking me of that.

In San Francisco I mostly performed BarProv with Too Many Larrys. With occasional RadioProv on Liberation Radio. And very occasional long-form with The Escape Artists.

If memory serves, The Escape Artists started strong at the very firstĀ San Francisco Theater Festival. We asked for a suggestion of a playwright and received "Tennessee Williams." Then we asked for a location where this playwright would NOT have placed a play, and we received "Internet Cafe." I don't remember much from that performance, except a love affair with the inimitable Fred Wickham. That's the last positive experience I remember with long-form, until my show with Tuesday night class performing a 50 minute play in the style of Jane Austen.

I liked performing Jane way more than I thought I would. I was chock full of dread. I never thought I'd be able to pull off the girlishness and the story line. And yet I (really "we" — me and my amazing class) did it much to my astonishment.