Happy Developments

Greetings! Just writing a quick note to keep you abreast of what is going on in my travels today. I bit the bullet and finally forked over my information so that I could enroll in the mask seminar with Bruce Marr in Blue Lake, CA through Dell'Arte! Hopefully I've applied early enough that that a spot still remains for me. Keeping my fingers crossed on that note.

Other exciting news, Georgeanna Smith - one time artistic director of the NoExit Theater Company here in Indy informed me today that at their annual budget meeting yesterday, a few whispers about AMSDT were heard...and that Michael Bachman sounded particularly interested. Insanely exciting news! - I'm very glad she gave me that little gem before our first show today. Infact, I do believe my shows today were better for it. ;) Could be something, could be nothing, but the idea that the script definitely got some attention is a glorious feeling.

Soon to come will be newly-sketched puppetry workings for Humbaba -- I've thought a great deal lately about how his legs and head will be fashioned together and have some new ideas. (The "Spider King" in our Sleeping Beauty has gotten me thinking alot about puppetry mechanics and about the possible use of blacklight to make limited resources and rougher-patches look pristine...) Stay tuned.

Sipping Coke Zero and jammin' to Journey,

~Joanna~

"Doubt is a pain too lonely to know that faith is his twin brother. "
Kahlil Gibran

Long Time No See, Dreamers and True Believers!

Long time no see, ladies and gents! Who can believe a miraculous -9 months- have passed since we last crossed paths? Not I. Allow me to update you on the most recent theatrical events in my time away:

-Gilgamesh was sadly put on hold for lack of a venue to submit to.
-I ended a relationship with a dear colleague because of irreconcilable differences. (Not fun - avoid such if you can.)
-I was cast in NoExit's premier performance of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar and had the rare fortune to be cast as "Portia": Brutus' wife.
-Shortly thereafter I was cast as "Female Kory" in The Sapphire Theater Company's debut company production of Aristophanes' Lysistrata. (Extraordinary cast! - you can visit their website for audition info and upcoming events at Sapphiretheatre.com)
-Worked a rewarding and "educational" 6 months for the Indiana Repertory Theater as a box office customer service representative. (I managed to stay just long enough for the construction to finish, haha. Aren't I lucky?)
-Unfortunately had my plans to go to Bali thwarted by some no-goodnicks bombing their way across the countryside over there, but recouped with plans to attend Dell'Arte this summer for some courses.
-Was cast and am presently in the process of filming a feature-length film entitled "Science, Sex, and the Ladies" with AnC movies out of Greenfield. (See their work at ancmovies.com)
-And last but certainly not least, I've enjoyed a comfortable 3 months working for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis as a contract actor for their production of Sleeping Beauty as directed by Ty Stover. We're in the very last week for this production and I must say I've never enjoyed a group of women so much as I have my ladies from our show. I will truly miss you all, Erin, Kimberly, Sarah, George, and Lisa! (The guys were pretty cool too, lol ;) )

Current theatrical pursuits of mine include further sketching of the maskwork to be mocked-up for Gilgamesh, continued meetings with the kind Frank Felice for more talks on things music and esoterical, auditioning in Indy and Chicago respectively, submission of my resume & headshots whenever/wherever possible, and the beginning submissions of A Man Sees Death in Things to venues for consideration.

A note on the submission of AMSDT: I had held off initially in my submitting of the adapted script because I worried about the perception of the females in the script. Granted, the story itself does not given womenkind a very wide spotlight to flit about within, but such is the reason I've come to the decision that I want to leave the script as is. It will be up to a director to give these women strength, identity, and clear voices that can hang with the likes of Humbaba and Enkidu in the grand scheme of the play. I remembered my screenwriting class when Zina Camblin came to speak to us before her directoral/acting debut at the Phoenix Theater in And Her Hair Went With Her in the fall of '07. Zina said that she as the writer had the power to choose just -who- brought her characters to life, and if she felt her work was being treated too commercially, she'd pull the plug on a project and on those who made her gems distasteful. Such is what I've realized about AMSDT: it isn't necessarily my job to make a script fit my audience NOR is it my duty to make the characters leap off the page. They are who they are and assumptions & judgements about them will be made by the audience at their own discretion. Also, should I feel my work is no longer "my work" in the hands of a director, I have the power to end it should I wish to. Therefore, I don't need to pussy-foot around submitting it because I know it is of quality -- how else would it have survived so long in the first place?! :) So!- my vigor is revived, my path is filled with open doors, and I have a story that needs telling. With any luck, others will soon believe so, too.

With that, ladies and germs, I conclude my long awaited return and shall do my best to keep you posted on all things Gilga-related and actor-friendly. Should you wish to see Sleeping Beauty, we show this weekend at 1PM & 3PM respectively and keep an eye out for Science, Sex, & the Ladies this summer in Indy. Be good to each other.

Sincerely,

~Joanna Eve~

"Always tell the truth - it's the easiest thing to remember."
-David Mamet-