September 28th, 2009
Jon Putnam’s last blog reminds me how very contemporary Jeff Hatcher’s play Murderers is. As Baby Boomers grey, and as we find ourselves taking care of our elderly parents (who are living much longer than their parents), a lot of us are becoming deeply concerned about the issue of aging in this country.
Jeffrey Hatcher
The setting of Jeff’s play is the fictional Riddle Key Retirement Community in Florida. He says he got the idea for the play from elderly friends of his mother-in-law, who wintered in Florida and reported back on all the “Peyton Place” goings-on of the seniors in Naples (younger readers can substitute “Beverly Hills 90210″ for “Peyton Place”).
Talkinbroadway.com puts it well: “Hatcher has a lot of fun mocking the American Way of Waiting for Death, and his three protagonists (only one of whom is retired) play with the stereotypes of the elderly in unexpected ways. The citizens of Riddle Key may move a little slowly, but they haven’t lost step mentally –and woe to the youngsters who try to pull a fast one on them.”
Murderers is laugh-out-loud funny, but it’s also a play that you’ll think about after you leave the theatre.
–Geoffrey Nelson, Artistic Director
Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
September 21st, 2009
We’re about halfway through our rehearsal process for Murderers by Jeffrey Hatcher. It’s a monologue show with three, thirty minute comic monologues. Often, actors are intimidated by the heft of memorizing lines without cues to help them, but this cast has been all over it. As a result, we’ve been able to get a lot of good work done.
Each year, I do a monologue show (David Sedaris’ The Santaland Diaries) and I’ve noticed a curious thing: as I get older, memorization has become easier. Everything in my life gets harder as I get older, but for some reason memorizing has become easier. What’s that about?
Jonathan Putnam
Director of CATCO’s Murderers
Posted in Behind the Scenes | 3 Comments »
September 9th, 2009
Last Sunday Columbus Monthly writer Jackie Mantey volunteered as line prompter for a rehearsal of CATCO’s Murderers and she has posted a blog about her experience on Columbus Monthly.com (registration required). Line prompters join us in rehearsal to feed lines to the actors as needed to help them learn the playwright’s exact words and maintain the continuity of the rehearsal. Murderers requires three actors to memorize an extensive amount of lines, and line prompters have been a critical part of our rehearsal process.
Check out Jackie’s inside take on the play and the personalities, direct from the rehearsal room: This Sunday, I listened to three people share the stories of murders they had committed. And I couldn’t stop laughing.
Kerry Shanklin, Matthew Moore, and Jill Taylor in CATCO's Murderers
Thanks to Jackie for volunteering and for sharing her experience with us!
Posted in Behind the Scenes | 1 Comment »
September 3rd, 2009
Where do we find the plays we produce?
Sometimes its simple: plays like Conor McPherson’s Seafarer (coming in November) are major London/Broadway hits — critically-acclaimed, prize-winning scripts that are reported on by the national media.
Sometimes we get an inside tip: we got an early draft of Carter W. Lewis’ Evie’s Waltz because we’ve worked with the playwright — a Columbus native — on other productions.
Sometimes it comes from prospecting. Our staff and play reading groups consider well over a hundred scripts a year hoping to discover little gems like Almost, Maine.
And some plays are suggested by people like you. CATCO fans travel and often see plays in other cities, which they then recommend to us. Jonathan Putnam and I then try to track down the script (which can be a convoluted process). Last season’s Blackbird was suggested by someone who saw it in New York (eventually, it was recommended by a half dozen people).
Anna Paniccia & Jonathan Putnam in CATCO's "Blackbird"
If you’ve seen any plays that you’ve really liked let me know. Just post the title on the blog, or e-mail me at gnelson@catco.org. Or, best yet, mail me the program. Maybe you’ll be responsible for one of the big hits of the season!
Geoffrey Nelson, Artistic Director
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
