The Reaction to The Action

The show is up and running. The audiences are coming. What's the reaction?

On the Critics Front:
Los Angeles Times - Critic's Choice! "Excellent!" "Throat is an anxious and twisted parable for our time."
LA Weekly - Pick of the Week! Go! "a harrowing game of cat-and-mouse"
Pasadena Star News - "Extraordinary!" "Intense!"
Tolucan Times - "A Must See!"

Good stuff.

On the Audience Front:
We're receiving much feedback and many strong reactions to the play from the audience. That's what you want. There is a lot of post-show convesation happening around the Furious Bar, which we like. In general all is good. Below is a photo from the talkback with the playwright Yussef El Guindi Sunday night last weekend. It was an insightful Q & A and the reaction from those attending was positive. In the photo you can see guest moderator Shirley Jahad of NPR, Anthony Di Novi (Bartlett in the play), Yussef El Guindi, Director Damaso Rodriguez, Vonessa Martin (Shelly/Beth/Jean), Ammar Mahmood (Khaled), Aly Mawji (Asfoor) and Doug Newell (Carl).















We had a talkback and reaction of a different kind on opening night. About 3 minutes into the play one woman began to quietly mumble (angrily) in her second row seat. She looked as though she were trying to communicate with the actors onstage. It became more obvious that she was really quite bothered by what she was watching and couldn't stand not getting any response from the actors and also couldn't stay quiet any longer, so she and her companion (they claimed he was her son - not possible) got up and left. Somewhat making a disruption as they left. Once we escorted them outside it became apparent that the disruption had less to do with being upset with the play and much more to do with being ripped on their drug of choice. They were seriously out-of-their-mind high. We decided to refund their money and kindly ask them to leave, despite their request to stay and eat at the reception (understandably so, they had the munchies).

Reactions are good. Come have one. Be Furious.

IT'S OPENING NIGHT!!!

So it's finally opening night for Back of the Throat, and let me say that I couldn't be more proud of this production and this theatre. As the late Joel Hirschhorn said in Variety of director Dámaso Rodriguez's production of The Shape of Things, once again "every detail is firmly in place." Kudos to Dámaso for putting together another stellar production.

Ensemble member Shawn Lee has done an incredible job on the set. First timers to Furious, Dan Jenkins and Cricket Myers, have really highlighted the phenomenal acting and intensified the theatricality of the show with their light and sound designs respectively. As I mentioned, the acting in this production is top knotch. Ensemble members Vonessa Martin and Doug Newell knock it out of the park and make me proud to call myself a Furious ensemble member. Doug's younger agent Carl, is equally thorough, eager and scary, and he delivers his hilarious interjections with impeccable timing. Vonessa masters three separate female roles and goes from a nerdy librarian to a bitchy ex-girlfriend then into an ultra-sexy yet hilariously obnoxious stripper with ease. Our guest artists also deliver. Anthony Di Novi brings such depth, experience and humor to Bartlett. He makes me want to clean my apartment for fear that he may drop by to investigate my shelves. Ammar Mahmood is perfect as Khaled. His dry wit and cordial manner make Khaled sympathetic and humorous, yet he holds an ambiguity that allows the question of Khaled's guilt or innocence to gnaw at the audience. And Aly Mawji is powerful and chilling as the terrorist mastermind Asfoor. Also, I can't forget how perfectly Rachel Canning's costumes wrap these actors in their characters.

The support crew is also outstanding. Thanks to our master stage manager, Christie Wright, our on-top-of-it production manager, Nick Cernoch, the best production intern you could hope for, Jennie Inglis and master-of-the-soundboard Katie Davies. Thanks also to my fellow producers Sara Hennessy and Brad Price for all their incredible work. This production has been an absolute pleasure to work on.

Playwright Yussef El Guindi has given us a brilliant script and this cast and crew has truly delivered a production worthy of its words. I invite you all out to enjoy a funny, gripping and powerful night of theatre.

Be Brave. Be Different. Be Furious.

-Eric Pargac

Interview with Playwright Yussef El Guindi

It is always exciting to have direct contact with a playwright during the rehearsal process, and we were lucky enough to be able to bring Back of the Throat playwright Yussef El Guindi out to LA for dress rehearsals through opening weekend. Yussef got into town Saturday night and has been at all our rehearsals and previews, giving feedback and helping to sharpen the play. It's been a pleasure to work with him. We were also able to have journalist Ina Rometsch interview Yussef about Back of the Throat prior to his coming to LA. Here is an excerpt from that interview. Enjoy!

Ina: Yussef, what triggered your writing of Back of the Throat?

Yussef: I started work on this play a couple of months after 9/11. The mood in the country was full of anxiety and fear, and it became slightly surreal at times. There was this story around, I don’t even remember where I read it, about a man whose wife was having a heart attack. He called the paramedics, and they saw his books and found them suspicious. So they called the police, and they came and arrested him. And I remember thinking: "This is like the thought police! You could get arrested for the books you read!"

Ina: That gave you the idea for the play?

Yussef: It started out as a thought game. What would happen if agents paid a visit to my house and looked around? What can you say about a person from what he owns? Ina: What would they find on your bookshelves? Yussef: I have the Koran, I have books on Islam, I have a book on assassins. And I almost bought a book on guns just in case I needed a reference book for a play or story I might write.

Ina: Were there moments of paranoia after 9/11 that you remember particularly well?

Yussef: I had to fly to San Francisco from Seattle. It was a big deal. Even the person who took me in the airport shuttle was commenting on it. And after take-off I was sitting there wanting to get up and go to the restroom. And I thought: I better not. I had better not go to the restroom, because people might get a little nervous. I remember sitting there and thinking: "This is insane. I want to go to the restroom, but I’m not getting up because I’m worried that I might unsettle my fellow passengers." Generally, after 9/11, I began to feel a bit outside the pale, a bit alienated, because my ethnic group was being scrutinized. It was like a spotlight being turned on one for all the wrong reasons. People were just very suspicious.

Hell Week: Come and Gone

This past week was the big push to get the set, lights, sound, costumes, and just about everything else associated with the Los Angeles Premiere of Back of the Throat ready. Everything went incredibly well and the show is looking and sounding great. A few got less sleep than others this past week, but for the most part there was very little "hellacious" anxiety or stress. Always a plus.

Last night we had designers and crew only in the space, giving the actors a night off while the show's technical elements had a chance to come together. Tonight, the actors are back and will be on the completed set for the first time. So, "Hell Week" has come and gone and we hardly even noticed it. Now... on to Opening Week.

We start dress rehearsals this weekend and Yussef arrives in town tomorrow. Previews in 5 days... Opening in 8.

Be Furious.

Dark Topics and Humor

We're in the 5th week of rehearsals for "Back of the Throat." My character "Carl" is coming along. I've been "off-book" for a couple of weeks, but I still miss the occasional line, and hopefully after Saturday's "table read" I'll rid myself of these mental lapses. It's nice to have everyone moving off-book and it allows the cast to begin really playing the moments and feeding off of each other. The cast has been great to work with and the crew is, as always, on top of it. I feel like I'm growing tremendously as an actor. So much of my acting has been formed by my improv background. Playing to large and often drunk audiences meant I usually had to go big and broad. That experience helped in a show like "Fair Maid of the West" where I could play a drunk sailor, lisping Spaniard and horny Frenchman. But in this show I have to work much more subtly and the director Damaso's notes to "do less" make quite a bit of sense.

This play while topical and intense, is also really funny. I'd describe it as a dark comedy. There's an old saying along the lines of "comedy is harder to pull off than drama." While I think both present their own challenges, I think a dark comedy may present one of the greatest challenges in entertainment. People like to be able to put their entertainment in a labeled box. Tonight they want a "comedy" or a "chick-flic" or "Steven Segal." They need to know if they'll be laughing (comedy), crying (chick-flic), or both (Steven Segal). This show, and most dark comedies don't give you the clear cut signs that laughing is appropriate here and you should be emotionally affected here. Because of that I think a lot of people write these shows off as either "not funny enough" or "shallow." I reacted both ways to a "comedy" I saw on recently so I'll try not to judge too harshly.

I'm looking forward to seeing how an audience will react to this show and the topics it brings up. Specifically is it too early for 9/11 humor? Hollywood felt it wasn't too early to play on people's emotions here or here. That being said I think we're successfully navigating the balance between humor and drama for this show.

Camera Phone Out Takes II

Here are some more pics from my camera phone over the past week.

Khaled and Asfoor (Ammar and Aly)

Ammar taking a much needed break

Khaled and Asfoor (Ammar and Aly)

Aly awaiting his entrance

Anthony watching scene intently
(one of the few he's not in)

Shawn (our talented Set Designer)
working out the closet gags

Ammar, Vonessa, Anthony, and Doug
(and Damaso in mirror background)

Brad taking a break from build

Damaso's biggest fan

Shawn working hard

Nick taking pics of the set
CLICK HERE TO SEE THEM

Jennie trying to stay cool over the
VERY HOT weekend

Getting the walls up

Shawn making sure the closet works

Work in Progress: Spuderitos and Pabst

You can click HERE to see updated pics from this weekend’s build. I’ve included some that give a little insight on the eating and drinking habits of the build crew. We'd like to thank Rick's Drive-In and Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer for keeping us healthy during these tough weeks before we open.

We’ve completed our first full weekend of set construction. After 5 days of building, Khaled’s apartment is coming together. The closet doors proved difficult, but not impossible…they now glide impeccably on their tracks.


Check back next week when more pics come as we begin painting and detailing the set.

Until then…BE FURIOUS.

Work in Progress: Set Construction

Set construction began earlier this week for Back of the Throat. We were challenged with getting the walls up and ready for a run-through of the play on June 1^st. This meant we had 2 nights to build and erect 7 flats and 2 doors; just enough to give the actors and director an idea of what their space on stage would be like. Our construction crew consists of Shawn Lee (Set Designer/Technical Director), Brad Price (Producer/Carpenter) and myself (Nick Cernoch/Production Manager/Carpenter)…we are all ensemble members of the company.

The wide open playing area from our previous show (The Fair Maid of the West, Parts I and II) is being cut almost in half as we create the character Khaled’s cramped apartment. It was very exciting seeing the run-through in this more confined space, and I’m sure the actors enjoyed the sneak peek they got since they won’t be rehearsing on the stage again until we go into Tech Rehearsals. Many times actors never even set foot on the set until Tech and Dress Rehearsals, but we always try to have set construction benchmarks earlier in the rehearsal process so they can have at least a rehearsal or two in the actual space.

You can click HERE to see a slideshow of some early set pictures. Be sure to check back as I’ll try and keep the site updated with more pics as our process continues…we have painting, floor treatments, rear wall installation and tons of set detailing to come. Gotta go now…as usual we have a set to build.

NEW YORK CITY: 5 DAYS 4 PLAYS

I love New York City (or is it I heart New York City?) and when I found myself visiting an old friend this past Memorial Day weekend I jumped at the chance to see some theatre...4 plays to be exact, not bad for 5 days.

My last visit to the city was over 5 years ago, the city was different and at that point I was living in Texas as an undergrad as opposed to working in Los Angeles theatre, so I didn’t understand the small theatre scene in either city. I thought New York was all about Broadway and edgier Off-Broadway Shows…Off-Off Broadway and 99 Seat Theatre were unfamiliar terms to me at that time.

I now know much more about the many smaller theatres on both coasts and I realize their importance to the development of new plays and playwrights. Smaller theatres in LA and New York also provide stages for work that sometimes just won’t be done at larger venues…work that might be deemed too risky. Armed with this information, I chose to purchase tickets to shows at mostly smaller theatres on my trip to New York this time around.

First up was the Flea Theatre’s production of Back of the Throat by Yussef El Guindi (sound familiar?). I was of course not going to miss a chance to see another company’s production of a play that we are producing in LA.; it’s only ever been possible with one of our previous 10 productions (The God Botherers). The show was in the Flea’s smaller downstairs theatre, a very wide, shallow space where I saw a production very different from what ours will be. It’s quite amazing to see a different group of artists start from the same script and come to somewhat different conclusions about casting, costumes, staging, etc…it was a unique and educational experience.

My next stop was Sheila Callahan’s Dead City, produced by New Georges. This modern adaptation of James Joyce’s Ulysses was done at 3LD Art & Technology Center, a very new venue that has a large art gallery feel to its performance space. Although this was a first preview, I thought the performances were very good. I was also impressed with the show's set, lighting and sound designs. Large rolling walls were moved by the actors while a massive backdrop had scenes from the city rear-projected onto it. Visually the show was like a modern art exhibit, I was happy to see compelling storytelling and acting as well.

UPDATE: Click here to read what the New York Times had to say about Dead City.

Sunday I had a double feature of 2 very hot productions: the Tony-nominated revival of Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd and Adam Rapp’s Red Light Winter. The minimalist Broadway production of Sweeney Todd featured the actors as orchestra with a fantastic performance by Michael Cerveris as the vengeful Todd. Unfortunately Patti Lupone (who I hear is amazing in this show) did not go on as Mrs. Lovett, I may have been wowed otherwise. Red Light Winter was great, gut-wrenching theatre…something I’m drawn to. I think I was able to enjoy this show the most as a “theatre goer” since I hadn’t read the play and I wasn’t over-analyzing it technically or otherwise (which one may tend to do when one works in the theatre).

Overall my trip was amazing and enlightening, I saw a play our company is working on here, a Broadway understudy, a first preview, a hot show produced by Steppenwolf in New York…I even got to sit in on a tech rehearsal for a play being produced by 13p. After this theatre buffet, I found what Damaso said in his previous blog about LA theatre to be very true…there is great work and not so great work being done in every “theatre” town…the myth about one city having some sort of monopoly on great theatre is just that, a myth.

OK, as always its time to get back to work…we have a set to build.