Strange Tree group presents their work-in-progress

Posted by DCA Theater on October 1, 2010 in July-December 2010 Season, INCUBATOR Series: Strange Tree Group

The Strange Tree Group entertained a crowd of about 60 people on Monday in the DCA Studio Theater with excerpts from their script in development, The Spirit Play.

The event was presented as a part of INCUBATOR, a series designed to support the creation of new work by emerging Chicago theater companies. Utilizing Chicago DCA Theater space and resources, participants explore new projects, develop and refine styles, and share their process with the public during a special showcase event.

Don’t miss the next INCUBATOR series showcase performance for Sideshow Theatre Company on Monday, October 25 at 7:30pm!

Emily’s final blog

Posted by DCA Theater on September 29, 2010 in July-December 2010 Season, INCUBATOR Series: Strange Tree Group

by Emily Schwartz, Artistic Director and Resident Playwright for Strange Tree Group

This is it, dear readers the final blog covering Strange Tree’s DCA Incubator experience.  Monday night we presented three scenes from The Spirit Play to a delightful crowd of onlookers who not only got a sneak peak as to how we craft a new script but also got to discuss the historical research we’ve done as a team and participate actively in some amazing magic tricks performed by our friend and cohort Brett Schneider.

It’s wonderful to see an audience as actively involved in what you present as they were on Monday night.  With this play, it was difficult to produce all of the simple effects of a spirit cabinet simply due to the fact that this was a reading and we needed the lights on so that actors could see their scripts.  This is why having Brett there to perform some slight of hand and mentalism was important to me as a playwright, due to the fact that it created a feeling in the audience which mirrored what I’d like the final full-length play to achieve.  A feeling of wonder.  A feeling of surprise.  A feeling that pokes you and says ‘You thought you knew what you believed…but perhaps you were wrong.’

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Blog #11

Posted by DCA Theater on September 27, 2010 in July-December 2010 Season, INCUBATOR Series: Strange Tree Group

by Emily Schwartz, Artistic Director and Resident Playwright for Strange Tree Group

And here I am, your friendly playwright, back on the blog for our performance day.  These past few weeks spent in the Studio Theater have been enlightening, challenging and fun, and tonight we present the fruit of our labors.  Some say it tastes of pomegranate but I myself would liken it to a tart boysenberry but either way it’s a definite sneak peek behind the scenes of strange tree as a whole.  Usually the work-shopping happens in my little living room upon various types of mismatched (and slightly uncomfortable) antique chairs and the only chance the audience gets to see the script is when it’s in finished form, costumed and propped up on stage.

This experience has been really fulfilling for myself especially because it’s allowed me to work as a team with the strange tree ensemble and a few invited guests and actually let them live the scenes that are finished (or sometimes half-finished as it were) up on their feet.  Because, as all playwrights know, sometimes things on paper can change when you thrust them in live action.  Questions arise. For instance, “Did he just walk through a table? There is a table in front of him isn’t there?” and “When does the ghostly string instrument come in? When do they hear it? What does it play?” Since this is a workshop props and costumes are limited to what we have in the room or what we can find on the street.  Like say for instance you need a feather and there are a ton of dirty pigeons outside on Randolph… We washed it with soap and no one puts it in their mouth.  We promise.

At any rate, some pictures follow of the group in rehearsal.  You can see that we’ve set up our spirit table and our medium’s cabinet.  (Thanks to the DCA for providing such appropriate and luxurious movable curtains)  Now we just add lights, sounds, a little bit of historical information and some magical slight of hand from our friend and workshop partner Brett Schneider and we are ready to rock your socks off 19th century style!  This will be the best, unfinished, dark comedy about spirit mediums you see this September.  Come and check it out early so you can say you saw it when!

Rehearsal in action:  Stuart Ritter, Kate Nawrocki, Cory Aiello, Michael Downey, Jenifer Henry, Carol Enoch and Patrick Cannon respond to accusations of fraud at the table.

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Blog #10

Posted by DCA Theater on September 27, 2010 in July-December 2010 Season, INCUBATOR Series: Strange Tree Group

by Delia Baseman, Associate Artistic Director of Strange Tree Group

September 26th 2010

Greetings Friends!  I can’t believe it.  Our Showcase is tomorrow.  We have just completed a very successful tech and run through with our lovely tech person Kim.  The DCA space looks very different with all the risers and chairs set up.  It seems like a completely different place then the one in which we have been rehearsing for the past three weeks.  We began the day by doing a cue to cue with lights and then added magic effects and sound.  During our lunch break Brett and I got together and discussed our duo mentalist act.  After talking with the group we decided to cut it because of length.  Very sad but unavoidable.  After lunch we did a run though with everything and then broke for the day.  We all enjoyed watching Kim’s reactions to the jokes and magic tricks as she is the only audience we have yet had.  After rehearsal Emily, Bob (who has been on the directing end), and I met to figure out how to gussie up our informational in between bits.  They were so dry that I was falling asleep (and I wrote some of them).  We believe that a solution has been reached which will add a lot more humor to the proceedings and give our Master of Ceremonies, Weston Davis, a little more to work with.  Here is my to do list for tomorrow during the day in Prep for the Incubator showcase,

1. Go to fabric store, buy two foot long feather.

2. Go to STG’s storage space and get the following
- As many top hats as I can find
- All long black skirts in costume storage
- Any victorian looking ties or cravats
- Any black jackets or blouses
- all pairs of fake glasses
- White drapery
- Black fabric for table cloth

3. Practice throwing a glass of water on Kate Nawrocki

4. Make extra script copies

5. Drink a big cup of coffee

See you all tomorrow!
Delia

P.S.  Thanks so much to the DCA and Nate Brandt for this wonderful opportunity!  We feel so lucky to be a part of this marvelous program and to have been able to work on this piece of material. Thank you, thank you.

Blog #9

Posted by DCA Theater on September 27, 2010 in July-December 2010 Season, INCUBATOR Series: Strange Tree Group

by Delia Baseman, Associate Artistic Director of Strange Tree Group

September 23rd 2010

Hello there!  Delia here.  Writing from the rehearsal room for STG’s Spirit Play.  Wow!  We have finally read the complete three scenes that we will be reading at our Incubator Showcase on Monday the 27th.  They are awesome.  We have come such a long way since day one.  Our Resident Magician Brett has put together some wonderful tricks and he and I might be doing a due mentalist act.  It will be based on the vaudeville tradition of reading the audiences mind through increasingly stupid means.  Our evening is taking shape.  We now need to focus on the informational bits between the scenes and make sure that we are getting the right information across in a fun way.  Lots of work still to do!  I will write next after our tech rehearsal on Sunday.

Delia