Howdy Strangers

Busy or negligent, take your pick. It’s been a while, regardless.

It’s been a crazy Spring. Besides wrapping up my courses at William & Mary, VCU, and CNU (all of which have invited me back) I’ve had on-campus interviews for great positions at great schools (UNC Charlotte and University of Michigan) – unsuccessful, mind you, but it’s good to be in the finalist position, and bodes well for potential future prospects. I’ve taught at multiple regional SAFD workshops (VA Beach Bash and the LA Tech “Crawfish Broil”) and gone to another specialty one to earn my teacher endorsement for the new SAFD Theatrical Firearms Safety curriculum, making me one of 15 such recognized teachers in the society. I’ve written the vast majority of a book, about 350 pages in current draft form, currently under review by a publisher. I’ve taught guest units at several local schools, choreographed/coached fights for a play, coordinated fights for a 35mm short, taken more classes and lessons, seen some good shows, and set up more plans for the future.

Yes, it’s been a very busy three months or so since I last wrote, and I hope there will be more news to share soon. That hope has been a constant this Spring, sometimes realized sometimes not, but always with more coming down the pipe – that fact has kept me from posting almost as much as the fact of my schedule has. Mostly it’s that any free time has gone in to writing for the book instead of the blog (or one of my papers for ATHE, which are still in the works).

Suffice to say that unless any last-minute interim position comes through I’ll likely be in Richmond for another year, so I’ve started hatching schemes with the newly joining Richmond Shakespeare and Henley Street Theatres, as well as lining up with with the local universities, and I am pursuing further training in the LeCoq mask work as well  – I’ll be up in DC next week for a Neutral Mask intensive with Dody DiSanto, and hope to do more of that in the coming year. I’ve learned much, I have much yet to learn, and the path to a sustainable living doing what I love still lies ahead of me… perhaps uphill and a bit craggy at times, but clearly visible and constantly tantalizing.

 

Here’s to another three months where I’m too busy to blog!

Theatre that gets you wet

DC’s seeing a flood of aquatic entertainment this month, with two of the big names in the area both exploring water stages right now.

First, and perhaps more thematically appropriate to this blog, is Synetic Theatre‘s production of The Tempest. This little behind the scenes video includes some interview footage with the fight choreographer, speaking about working with water stages in fight scenes, something I’d love to try some day:

Synetic’s work is not everyone’s cup of tea, often favoring visuals and atmosphere over idea or writing, but they do fill a dynamic niche. While I haven’t gotten to see this production, I was fortunate enough to catch Metamorphoses (click for review) at Arena Stage earlier this month:

It’s more a series of scenes from Greek mythology than any single story, and it comes with what you’d expect of the source myths: seafaring, transformations, lots of unhappy endings, and some taboo sexual romps. Not appropriate for most kids.

 

I think it succeeds best when the water becomes a part of the theatrical transformation – just as actors and some sets or props can become different things through theatrical magic, so too can the water, becoming food being shoveled in to a man’s mouth, or an ethereal cosmos for gods to float in. It certainly adds visual flair and energy, as well as a raw elemental presence that compliments the mythical themes of the show.

Film is in general much more likely to be able to take advantage of this kind of atmospheric kinetics to add energy, especially to fight scenes. It’s logistically easier on screen than in person, and you don’t have to juggle the issues of audience splash-zones, as there were some in the audience at Arena stage who were obviously unhappy to get wet, or who were giggling at being splashed when the dramatic action on stage was nothing to laugh at.

For an example of elemental atmospherics adding to a screen fight scene, here’s the best that comes to mind for me:

Incidentally, if I can reference an earlier post, this is exactly the kind of thing I’d LOVE to see in Peter Jackson’s high frame rate 3D.

 

Plenty more I should be blogging about, but not time… but if and when there is, expect more about some new props, visits to other departments, more shows seen, and upcoming workshops!

 

Danse Les Apaches

Thanks go to the mailing listserve of the Bartitsu Society for reminding me of yet another part of our traditions…

Tony Wolf’s early classes in Bartitsu (back before he’d published either compendium, the first time he presented this at a Paddy Crean, and when almost nobody knew what it was – it’s come a long way since then!) made mention of Les Apaches, the street gangs of montmarte infamous for certain tricks of theft & violence.

Most of their tricks centered around petty theft and similar crimes, but some were downright nasty. Witness the “apache revolver”, for example, a wicked swiss army knife of street violence:

Folded up and ready to pocket for a night on the town… click for more info

What I hadn’t remembered, although it was vaguely familiar when mentioned, was the Apache Dance. Apparently this was quite the rage -in several meanings- back in the day. A fairly even mix of dance and violence and sexuality, this was apparently the Parisian thug’s answer to the tango. Here’s a few good period examples. The first ends badly for almost everyone, and yes, these are pretty misogynist:

Where does the dance end and the fight begin? Not sure, and I think that’s partly the point. That stuntwoman did some amazing falls, and wasn’t even credited by the camera – notice it doesn’t follow her big stair fall at the end (starting on the guy’s shoulder!) but tracks the guy when he falls instead. More modern music theatre enthusiasts might see predecessors of Chicago‘s Cell block Tango here. I believe it was SAFD Certified Teacher Jenny Male who’s done that as a stage combat workshop on occasion, building a fight full of throw-downs, chokes, etc.

Here’s a more light-hearted take where the woman gets the upper hand:

So… historical relic? Ancient curio of gender politics past? Not quite.

Here’s Pink’s recent video for Try, both the live version and official video. Scantily clad humans, so probably NWS (assuming men beating women from before was):

Pink has said that her video was directly inspired by the Apache dance. Only real change I see is that the clothing has mostly disappeared, and the music’s a bit different.

 

Stage combat is often viewed metaphorically as a dance that looks violent, but rarely is it so literal. The liberal arts teacher in me wants to pick apart the social message here, and isn’t entirely sure it’s a healthy one (domestic violence anyone?), but the stage combat/stunt side is mostly just impressed. The vaudeville era performers did some amazing pratfall acts, which seems to have included some of these dancers.

 

 

State of the Industries

Weather permitting, Fight Designer LLC will be tabelling at tomorrow evening’s Virginia Production Alliance State of the Industry mingler in Richmond. I’ll bring some toys for show & tell, and see if I can’t drum up a little more local business.

WHEN AND WHERE
Richmond 
Thursday, January 17, 2013    6 pm – 9 pm
Metro Productions,
8570 Magellan Pkwy, Suite 400,
Richmond, VA 23227
www.metro-productions.com

In less chipper news, the previously mentioned mess at Firehouse Theatre is just getting worse. For a decent summary of what’s happening, check this week’s cover story in Style Weekly, Burning Down the House. If you’re logged in, you’ll also see the pages of comments, including many respected theatre artists here making public their intention to boycott. There’s a Facebook Group which is also getting information out with an aim towards bringing back Carol Piersol to her post as founding Artistic Director.

I had the pleasure of attending a protest performance of Zhe [Noun] Undefined, the most recent show at Firehouse. It was a co-production with University of Richmond, and the artists and show came in from the UK at Carol’s invitation, so there has been no ill will against them personally. Still,  many who would normally attend Firehouse shows were unwilling to support it in that venue, so the director and cast managed to secure a last-minute alternate venue for a special showing for the Firehouse family-in-exile -after having one alternate venue cancel following interference from Firehouse’s board. Did I mention what a mess this was becoming? There were respectful, silent vigils outside the showings at Firehouse but this time it was in the Speakeasy at the Hippodrome – not ideal, with kitchen noise and no real stage, but it felt right. The show itself was wonderful, and of great interest to my wife and I (on a VERY rare date night to catch this), followed by a talk-back about the show and its issues (gender identity, sexuality, etc. for two UK based actors of African descent), followed by a discussion about Firehouse.

The board has found a new interim artistic director whom I don’t know personally (a young local director – one former board member at this meeting said the existing board had commented that Artistic Directors are a dime a dozen, and they’re trying to prove it) despite sharing some connection with both VCU and William & Mary. The theatre recently sent out a casting call for the upcoming two shows (including the one I was going to be in) -but with no directors listed. I have to hope that the local theatrical community matters here, and can make a difference, but despite being a member now of multiple unions (SAG-AFTRA and the Stage Directors & Choreographer’s Society) my personal experience of this kind of dispute is very limited. For what it’s worth, here’s the statement I have made on the matter:

I won’t be acting or teaching with Firehouse as things currently stand, despite having been scheduled to do both in the coming months. I respect the opinions of my peers in the local theatre community too much, including Carol Piersol. I believe that theatrical management exists to support theatrical art, not the other way around, and if management and art don’t agree, then what’s needed is new management… not to drive away all the artists. Even if this means lack of growth, constant state of crisis (I’ve never known a theatre, film, or other arts organization that wasn’t in a near constant state of crisis for much of its existence), or ultimately even the company’s demise. We learn early in acting to make strong choices and not be afraid of failure if you want to make anything worthwhile.I do hope some equitable answer can still be achieved allowing Firehouse to survive and continue the artistic vision that’s carried it this far, but pending that, I have to add my list to the ranks of respected actors, directors, patrons, board members, donors, and others who have severed ties with the current leadership of Firehouse Theatre. I’m sad it’s come to this, as I was really looking forward to acting in Time Stands Still and teaching stage combat certificate classes, and my family could certainly have used the additional income (Not to be flip, but the staff sometimes has to pick up a second job? That sucks for them – and let me tell you about my five adjunct classes at four Universities/Colleges, theatre and film work, and running my own small business that still don’t together pay a living wage this Semester). I’ll continue to follow developments closely, but at present I cannot support the current efforts of Firehouse, be it the re-casting of shows, the doubling-down on artistic decisions made by management, or the disrespectful manner in which this has all gone down.

Sincerely,

]<evin Inouye
http://www.kevininouye.com
http://www.fightdesigner.com

To be clear: My statement on management and art is targeted to this kind of theatre. I do believe there is a viable place for completely commercialized theatre, no matter how lowest common denominator it may end up becoming to appeal to donors or demographics. I would hate for that to be the only theatre left, however, and any healthy metropolis (I’d say that wants a theatre scene, but I believe that goes along with being a healthy metropolis) needs a more artistically driven fringe, semi-pro, or professional theatre that’s willing to take artistic risks, to push boundaries, and to say the art IS the bottom line, not the product to support one. I don’t think that’s antithetical to an artistic community that can support full time theatre artists – in fact, I think it’s a requirement for one, and Richmond needs that, whether in Firehouse or someone else. It’s been great to see the support of other theatres, ostensibly competitors but also friends and members of the same ecosystem – groups like Henley Street Theatre (Jackie made this point quite well at the post-Zhe discussion), or Richmond Shakespeare or SPARC (there were staff members from both there, and Jan has at least given online moral support).

My hope is that the board will respond to pressure (financial pressure and the active rejection of their main talent pool) and reconcile or step down, but only time -and the actions of people, which I can’t presume to predict- will tell.

So in the meantime, I think I’ll go see if I can drum up a bit more film work tomorrow.

In unrelated news, classes are now in full swing for me at Christopher Newport, William & Mary, and VCU, with my John Tyler classes not starting until later (and still pending sufficient enrollment). My schedule feels plenty full, but there’s definite vacancies in my finances and in my artistic well, so I’ll continue to try to fill those as I can. The work from the recent Chekhov workshop with the NMCA is proving helpful in my teaching already, and is something I will definitely continue, probably next Summer at their next intensive.

The spring time vacated by the cancelled Firehouse show is rapidly filling with workshops, etc – getting my Theatrical Firearms instructor certificate from the SAFD (a separate endorsement than their Certified Teacher rank, which I already hold), hopefully heading back to the Virginia Beach Bash at Regent University, and more.

Firehouse or no, rest assured I still know how to burn the candle at both ends.

Preparing to leave 2012

A look back, a look forward, a look around – all of these are generally prompted by changes in the calendar date. That and the occasional curse when writing a check, followed by some ripping and another check coming out.

Looking back it’s been an eventful year. Don’t worry, I don’t have the time for much navel-gazing, and will get to the more general interest stuff shortly, but I think it’s worth acknowledging: an MFA, Teacher Certification in stage combat with the SAFD, adjunct work at the College of William & Mary, teaching for several theatres and schools, some screen acting, some stage acting, some live theatre fight choreography, some stunt coordination, winning the RTCC Artsie, a successful stage audition, teaching my daughter archery, running my first Skills Proficiency Renewals for SAFD certification, another article published… it’s been quite the year in Fight Designer land. A number of props have come and gone, including my first UPS insurance claim… and my second. I got a dealer account with Cas Hanwei, which I’ve yet to do much with. I got a new and better video-capable camera (Canon 60D) which I still hope to do more with some time.

It’s also been a year of some frustration, some of which brings us to the present. A long hiatus from any serious stage acting was to be broken by being one of the leads in Time Stands Still at Firehouse Theatre – this may or may not still happen. Several attempts to work with local theatre companies on SAFD certificate stage combat classes fell through, until things finally came together with Firehouse Theater – this also may or may not still happen. Both hinge primarily on the outcome of a current political mess there, which has resulted in what amounts to a professional boycott/strike of Firehouse, pending the return of their recently (and forcibly, and clumsily) dismissed (founding) Artistic Director. More here. Or here. If Firehouse falls through on the stage combat I may look in to trying to do classes on my own, renting space and getting my own insurance, publicity, etc… I’ve looked at it before, but would much rather let an established theatre be the host – both because that’s not the work I enjoy, and because I’d love to see this become a local expectation that can outlast me if I leave.

I also continue to work towards a full time faculty position – the market seems to be improving some over last year, but there’s still a huge backlog/field of competition. Until then, I’ve got five adjunct classes lined up next Semester, at four different schools, plus other work (like the possible Firehouse gigs).

 

Now to more on the field, and where IT stands.

I’m still not sure what to make of 3D in the long term, if it will grow, die out, or just continue to be a niche. I just came back from seeing the Hobbit, in all its High Frame Rate 3D form, and I think that has very interesting potential- but like regular modern 3D, I’m not sure how popular it will become. I love how it almost eliminated the jerkiness of quick pans or motion, and it did make things feel much more real – like a window in to a stage show, or an IMAX documentary the first time you see one, that sort of almost tangible reality of it. Because of that, a high fantasy piece may not have been the best choice for a grand experiment in high frame rate though, as at times the medium and the genre were at odds. I think this is something filmmakers could learn to work with, but Peter Jackson may not have mastered it on his first try. I see the objections by some that the art is in what’s hidden, or in the very theatricality of the image (yes, even for cinema), and this did at times look more mundane, or more ordinary, making the potential absurdity of the high fantasy costumes, props, and CG stand out more. Likewise I felt a bit of a clash between the More Epic than Epic portrayal of some characters (Thorin and the main bad guy, mostly) and the very grounded, ordinary style of others (Freeman’s Bilbo especially), and the slightly over the top comic antics of others (some of the dwarves, Radagast the Brown, etc). Some of that is in Tolkein’s writing, some in Jackson’s attempt to make the movie more in line with Lord of the Rings, even though the book of the Hobbit is more in line with Narnia in terms of age it caters to.

Still – an enjoyable journey. I doubt the high frame rate will stand out as much on the home TV screen as it does in theatres, since we’re used to video’s higher frame rate on the small screen. What I’d love to see done in this sort of high frame rate modern 3D is something like a Tony Jaa movie, or Jackie Chan back in his prime… something that shows off the speed and virtuosity and realness of their stunt work. It’s one thing to cinematically look real, but they’ve also got to look impressive. I’ve read a few people complaining about the fights in the Hobbit. I found them to make sense in the world of the story, and easy to follow, but not really capitalizing on the new format. Granted many people will be seeing the Hobbit in traditional formats still, but to really make the most of the high frame rate I think you’d need to use motion a bit better. That ease of following translates to some people as ‘slow’… although granted some of that is in the timing of the edits as well. SPOILER ALERT EXAMPLE:  in a face-off with the Goblin King, Gandalf responds to a “what are you going to do now, wizard?” type challenge with a quick poke in the eye and a follow-up with his sword. On a simple storybook (slightly cheesy) level that works… but just having him cut off that line of dialogue halfway through the last word would have made it much more believable, less cheesy, and more funny. “What are you going to do now, wiz-AUUUGH!!!  See?

Which brings me to one of the things it took me a while to figure out when stunt coordinating, and which I hadn’t actually said out loud until working on the GAM3RS: Hands of Fate set in Seattle last month: sometimes it’s not about whether you have all the right moments in the can to sell all the hits and action, but about just making sure you have the coverage/b-roll/reversals/etc to be able to adjust the rhythm of the fight in post-production. A stuntman or actor just has to think about the shot they’re doing right now (and consistency with the last shot, perhaps), but a coordinator has to think about what the editor needs to tell the story, and rhythm is such a huge part of a fight you can’t forget abut how the editor plays their percussion instrument in this band.
So looking forward: I will not be going to the Paddy Crean workshop in a couple days. This marks the first time in 14 years that I have missed one, apart from an experimental one they ran in Australia a while back. Sad to be missing my Paddy Family, and the great stage combat workshop there (and the beautiful Banff Centre), but my focus is currently on what will help me grow the most as an acting teacher in the next year or two – and another stage combat workshop was not what my CV really needs either. Instead, I leave in a few days to begin a Certified Teacher process with the National Michael Chekhov Association, with a week long workshop (the first of two or three it requires) in Florida, and begin teaching almost immediately upon my return (first class is at Christopher Newport University). 2013 holds so many great and potential life-determining events for me, and my family, and my business; it’s going to be another exciting year.

I missed any holiday greetings apart from those on the Fight Designer facebook page, as it’s been hard to find time to keep updating the blog. Still, wishing you all the best of New Years. May it hold great lessons, great progress, great performances, and no injuries… unless you’re really dying for a cool looking scar, in which case I certainly hope you learn from it in the process.

 

Busy Season

This does seem to be a busy time of year for most in the theatrical profession… it’s been a while since I updated too so this post is a bit long and full of shares.
On my list at the moment:

• Choreography: The high school show of Tough! I did fights for won several awards at the Virginia Theatre Association conference, and is headed to SETC next. Sadly I’ll miss SETC this year, as it happens on tech week for a show I’m in. The high school Moon Over Buffalo I did opens next week, and has been a blast. I was amused to find that the male actor I’m working with on the sword fight and stair fall is not just a budding sword enthusiast but knew about Subotai and was thrilled to meet someone involved.

• Performances: I had a fun little comedy show last weekend as a part of a joint venture between Henley St. Theatre and Latin Ballet. We were doing a translation of a Cervantes short, very Commedia based, with my character being the Capitano. It’s a stretch, I know…

• I can now focus on learning lines for my role (James) in Time Stands Still at Firehouse, in theory – that’s the first theatrical lead I’ve had in a while, so I want to really get going on that, but:

• I also need to learn a classical monologue and some scenes from a designated script for the upcoming NMCA Teacher Training workshop I’m doing in January, and have other homework assignments for that already.

• Classes are in the home stretch at William & Mary.

• This coming weekend I’ll be up in DC for the Tooth & Claw Combat Arts SAFD workshop Bond Vs Bourne hosted by my friends Casey Kaleba and Matt Wilson.
• The week after that I’m doing a workshop for Henley Street Theatre at Centerstage (Intro to stage combat). Still waiting to hear about the schedule for the cert classes at VA Repertory, but they are still saying they want to follow through.

• Showcase performances to wrap up my teaching at Christian Youth Theatre this session. Due to other conflicts and priorities, I won’t be working with them at least for the next couple sessions, so this wraps up my time with them for a bit. I adapted two children’s books for one of Tuesday’s classes, and wrote a skit for tonight’s, which was good- I haven’t done any script writing in a while. Tuesday we had four hours (two back-to-back sessions, like I taught) of showcase from all the Tuesday night Youth Theatre classes, and tonight marks the stunts & combat class showcase. There is a live sketch as well, but here’s a short video segment we’ll be screening as well:

• Following the showcase, I get to go to a special preview screening of the new Lincoln movie that’s happening for locals who were extras, etc.

While I was union cavalry, I’m not in the column that appears in the trailer.

• Incidentally, I also found this clip yesterday, of another project I worked on this last year, where I appear briefly as a slave-seller (separating a family that includes one of my daughter’s friends from school) and mob member:

Watch The Abolitionists Extended Preview on PBS. See more from American Experience.

            While I wasn’t personally involved in any stunt work, I did get to meet in person (we’d met online before) and chat for a bit with the stunt coordinator Jeff Wilhelm, who also appears as the abusive slave driver in the trailer.

• In other movie news, I’m gearing up -and down- literally for another movie that will be flying me out to Seattle at the end of the month. Included selling them some props of mine they used in the first feature they did:

As well as getting some new props and distressing them… like this:

I’ll be stunt coordinating and acting, and I’m greatly looking forward to seeing and working with my Seattle friends again.

While there I’m also going to run my first two SAFD Skills Proficiency Renewals tests with the fine friends at Performer’s Forge.

• Lots of props rentals, relatively speaking (I’m a small business), including now filing a UPS insurance claim for a broken Marushin pfc cap firing Uzi, sadly. Didn’t survive a trip to Seattle.
• I now have a wholesale account with Cas Iberia, pending an initial minimum order I’d like to do. If anyone wants to get in on that, I’ll sell at my cost for now. They’ve got great deals currently on the Tinker Line blunt viking sword and the gambesons…

I’m sure there’s more I’m forgetting, apart from the constant stream of job applications, getting ready for classes next semester at William & Mary, Christopher Newport University, and John Tyler Community College, planning for family birthdays, seeing all the shows that my schools and students are involved in (looking forward to both Pippin and Avenue Q this next week!), etc.

On with the show!

The Artsies

Richmond theatre was on fine display last night, and it was good to see so many familiar faces – I suppose I am finally starting to become a part of the local scene now.

It marked my first time at an awards gala. The tux was brought out of the closet – a set I bought at a going-out-of-business formalwear place for about $25 some 15 years ago, and the shirt studs from high school choir tuxedos, none of which have seen much use since. Granted, I’ve gotten much more used to dressing nicer thanks to my work as a professor, and this seemed like a good excuse to teach myself to tie a bow tie.

A majority of shows nominated I could claim at least some second-degree association with, either from having worked with VCU students who were in them, being cast in a show with the same director, been videographer in one case, being an actor in another (Lord of the Flies), and of course Richmond Shakespeare’s Macbeth was up for five other awards besides the special recognition of the fights. Theatre VCU was very well represented as well, in terms of graduates and current students, despite the scope of the RTCC recognition not applying to academic theatre productions. A full list of the awards can be found here.

The timing of the event meshes well in my mind with a recent discussion on the Richmond Area Theatre facebook group about what makes a theatre, or a production, or a theatre community professional. Strongly-held opinions ran the gamut from quality, to any monetary compensation, to Equity or LORT recognition, to behavior. From some of the very strong performances last night I’d say Richmond at least possesses the requisite talent to be recognized as a professional theatre scene by that criterion. Unfortunately that’s not a criterion that travels well – saying ‘I thought they were great’ doesn’t carry much weight if you send your resume elsewhere. It’s a small enough scene here that everyone knows everyone else, and while many people seem to work almost exclusively with the same theatre over and over again, it’s still a bit of a closed system.
Likely connected to that is the fact that you almost never see anything negative in any reviews here. Maybe that’s a Southern thing, as my wife suggested, but I admit it’s harder to take seriously as professional a theatre scene that won’t call anything bad. It’s like that friend who may be incredibly talented and is also incredibly nice, but you won’t trust his opinion on people because he’s just too nice to see or repeat anyone’s mistakes or shortcomings. That can be deadly for art – I think we need people to tell us when we’re off course sometimes. We may or may not agree, but that questioning has value. Monetary value, even, as someone who just forked over two years of out-of-state tuition plus moving and living expenses so he could go back to school and be told (amongst other things) when he’s being an idiot. I will always trust David Leong and Dr. Aaron Anderson to do that, when needed. Not to say that being negative is all you need, just a call for balance.

My award was for fight choreography, although I believe the program listed me as fight director. It’s a distinction that I don’t think many people really understand, so let me soapbox a bit about that here, even if that’s largely preaching to the choir:

A stage fight is a physical dialogue. While a fight choreographer may get to write those lines and give them to the cast, perhaps coaching a bit in diction or projection, a fight director gets to go so much deeper; not just the lines, but the subtext, the relationships. It’s the difference between helping someone run lines and directing a show, even though we act on behalf of and in conjunction with an existing director. We can help make sure the fight itself is justified by what came before, sets up what comes after, and shows us something about the characters that we would not have known had the violence happened offstage, or in a blackout. It doesn’t have to be just spectacle – it can be character and plot and music and idea and all Aristotle’s poetics bound up in a glorious third or fifth act.

And all too often, it gets skipped.

I can understand why. It takes precious rehearsal time. It takes precious money to hire someone who has made this a focus of theirs, beyond the requisite technique and safety to include everything from combat psychology to physiology to hoplology. It takes motivation – you have to care enough about the fight scenes that you aren’t satisfied by “we’ll just fake it”, or “my buddy took a class once”.

I’m excited to see this area being recognized by the RTCC. I’m excited that thanks to Virginia Rep being willing to work with me on this, Richmond area actors will have a chance to take stage combat classes and test for certification with the Society of American Fight Directors starting next month. I’m excited that people like Jan Powell were willing to make the effort to work with a fight director. I’m excited to know that I’m not the only one in town fighting for this, or qualified to take it on.

Yet I still get hired more by grade schools, out of concern for legal liability and safety, than I do by professional theatres (self-identified) out of aesthetic drive or professional artistic standards, and this saddens me. I have friends who are also fully qualified to do this work, and have been unable to find work in town.

So I guess my challenge to the Richmond theatre community is to strive for professionalism in at least this one area: treat fight scenes with the respect they deserve, treat your actors in fight scenes with the support that would be mandated if they were unionized, and treat your audiences to something more. Make my job, and the jobs of my peers, harder, but holding us to a higher standard and by knowing the difference.

…and lest I seem like I’m here returning the favor of an award with criticism or complaining – I’m thankful. Very. And heartfelt congratulations to all those who won- and those who didn’t. But I want things like this little glass hockey-puck of glory to mean as much as they can, and that means not just being happy with the status quo when I know we can do better!

An Honest Puck

Kickin’ Starters

I’d like to think I’ve become a good luck charm for Kickstarters, but I’ve probably just gotten better at picking my projects. So far I’m 3 for 3 this year: CLANG!, Broken Continent, and now Gamers 3 has broken Kickstarter’s record for fundraising for a film.

Over $400K, and with an original $320K goal! Awesome work by the ZOE and DG folks, and I’m looking forward to working with them on this project (assuming plans haven’t changed – they’ve been a bit busy of late so we haven’t talked in a couple months).

In the meantime, some of my armour has gone up to MD to be worn in Broken Continent. Sadly I won’t be able to join them as in their reduced schedule (only made their first level goal) there was just one shoot that might include me, and it’s when I’m teaching.

In props news, I’m sad to say that Glock has once again proved to be a Grinch… they’ve completely put a stop on imports of the Zoraki front venting blank gun that at least sorta resembled a Glock 17 with rail. Granted, it wasn’t an exact replica – closer to an XD in some ways, including the grip safety – and the importer offered to engrave “NOT A GLOCK” in the side of all of them, but they still clamped down. Sad – been meaning to pick one of those up, and never got the chance. I recall something similar happening a decade back with some drop-in G17 replacement barrels that were to adapt it for blank fire. Does Glock really not want movies featuring their guns? That seems unwise, a sort of “we’ll pay legal fees and bad PR to ensure a lack of product placement”, so all indie and some major movies will be more inclined to have their cops carrying Beretta 92, 1911s, or other more readily available blank models.

Not a Glock. Glockblocked none the less.

I’ve been busy with the first week of classes at CYT (younger kids acting, teens acting, and a stunts class) and second week with William & Mary. Supposedly things are moving forward on an unarmed SAFD class with VA Rep, but they’re pretty swamped so things move forward slowly. It’s par for the course; Richmond Shakes eventually (to their credit) just said they wouldn’t have time and resources to put in to getting it going this Fall so they deferred for now, and another one of the major local theatres that also does education regularly took a month to email me back after what was not my first email. It’s not news that those of us who choose to go in to the arts are generally not the best at business practices or organization, it’s just sad that the field isn’t lucrative enough to hire the admin help it needs. Many theatres are in a constant state of crisis, one bad season away from bankruptcy… but I guess that’s not too different from many individuals these days, especially individuals in the arts. Things like Kickstarter success offer hope for new possible business models, like ZOE/DG have been pursuing this past couple years – it’s something live theatre has mostly not tapped in to yet, and I’m not sure that exact model would work for live theatre anyway, but I have to believe that the answers are out there, somewhere, if we can change and adapt and tap in to the right things…

Everybody’s a Critic… but not all are in the Richmond Theatre Critics Circle

Kicked off this morning with a nice email in my in-box, sent to me and Jan Powell, interim artistic director of Richmond Shakespeare and then-guest-director of Macbeth last February:

Hi Jan and Kevin,

I know you are both relatively new to Richmond but you may have heard about the Richmond Theatre Critics Circle (RTCC) and the awards thing we do every fall. It’s like our own little Tony awards, it’s also a fundraiser for a local charity – the Theatre Artist’s Fund – and it’s usually a raucous good time. It generally works like your typical awards show: we critics choose 5 nominees for each award category and then one person or production receives the award on the night of the event. But also, sometimes we single out individuals for special recognition.

This year, the RTCC has singled out Kevin Inouye for Outstanding Achievement in Fight Choreography for his work on Macbeth. Congrats, Kevin! We all concurred that the fight scenes in Macbeth were among the best we’d seen in town.

The awards gala this year will be held on October 14^th at the November Theatre downtown, starting at 7pm. Kevin, I hope you can attend the event to accept your award. (Jan, I’m pretty sure there’ll be other reasons you’ll want to attend…)

If you want details about previous year’s shows, you can check out our website at www.rtccva.org. If you have any other questions, please let me know.

Thanks,

Dave

David Timberline

Theatre Critic, Style Weekly magazine (www.styleweekly.com)

Chair, Richmond Theatre Critics Circle awards (www.rtccva.org)

Don’t you love how me being relatively new to Richmond allows for the in-character exposition there? I thought it was a nice touch, especially for the out-of-towners. You’re welcome.

Always nice to have the recognition, the positive reviews that also came with MacB, and also the chance to hobnob; that’s a career skill I need to further hone. Hopefully this will help me drum up more work around town. I’m supposedly meeting some time next week with the Artistic Director from VA Rep (who I did Legacy of Light‘s fights for two years ago when he was directing it at Barkesdale Willow Lawn) about offering SAFD certification courses in stage combat, which might also open other doors. Hopefully, this is another momentum-generating nudge in the right direction.

Anyone want to help teach me how to tie a bow tie? I think the schedule will avoid either of the two film gigs I’m in negotiations about, but we’ll see.

Now award winning!

 

Thanks again to Ryan Bechard and Andrew Mitikades for giving me such able physical actors to play with!

Classes start next week at both William & Mary and Christian Youth Theatre. My class at John Tyler Community College is a three week intensive, so that’s not until later, but it’d good to have some syllabi done, Blackboard sites up, orientations mostly finished, IDs and parking permits dealt with, and otherwise beginning to feel ready to enter professorial life outside of grad school.

ATME/ATHE

Back now from the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) annual conference, plus the Association for Theatre Movement Educators (ATME) pre-conference (which only happens every two years). All in all, it was a great experience. I found many kindred spirits and what I can only think of as wise elders of my tribe at the ATME pre-conference, all of whom were very welcoming and encouraging. ATME is also very experiential, both in their workshops and their participatory group structure. ATHE was subject to some of the usual academic conference paper-reading, which can be great if it’s a good paper, a good reader, and an interesting discussion to follow… or can be less so if any one of those three conditions isn’t met.

I presented as a part of an ATME-sponsored panel on physical dramaturgy, which was very well received. I enjoyed discussions, new script readings, workshops and panels in everything from Biomechanics to thanotourism. I also paid a bit extra for the master class by Irina and Paata of Synetic Theatre.

From Synetic’s “King Arthur”

Their workshop was fascinating on a meta-level; both have amazing physical control and skills, but apart from trying to make my body isolate in ways it hasn’t ever been asked to do, what I found most fascinating was just thinking about them as a last generation of artists from a vanished paradigm. Both are products of the former Soviet training programs, and had been drilled in these skills since they could count their age on their hands and still have fingers left to salute with. Much like the Chinese Opera training systems that folks like Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung grew up in, these systems were abusive by modern western sensibilities, but they certainly produced impressive results, whether in terms of Olympic athletes, martial arts performers, or ballerinas.

Now, how much of this translates in to creative work (as differentiated from virtuosity) is up for debate, as both that and the more self-motivated inspiration + commercial funding paradigm of America have produced their fair share of creative leaders, but the States do seem to be the more desirable destination; Irina and Paata dreamed of coming here and starting up their own company, and they’re now living that dream – far from the Soviet Georgia in which they met. But I doubt that many people (if anyone) training for their own intrinsic motivation will ever work as hard as someone whose government is forcing them to work as hard as they possibly can. As one of my graduate instructors is proud of pointing out, the stick is a perfectly valid motivator of learning – just not legal in our current system. Granted, he also points out that grad students don’t even need a carrot or stick from the teacher – they’re plenty self-motivated by the need to find work, and will generally learn from, or even in spite of, the teacher.
It was also interesting to see the difference in students presenting who came across as… well, studently, for lack of a better term- and those who presented in a more professorial manner, either through earning the title or being better at pretending. I’m glad to feel like I’m now feeling at home amongst the latter, and to have that reaffirmed by others. One of the others on my panel was a professor I had for my first two years of undergraduate theatre back at Earlham College – she’s been at San Diego for the ensuing sixteen years, and I hadn’t seen her since.

So in keeping of the rhythm of jo-ha-kyu, we have the MFA, two years + in the making, the SAFD Teacher Cert (longer in the making but) three weeks in the realization, the conference of one week… but instead of an ending, now a beginning: a Fall semester including teaching as an adjunct at the College of William & Mary and John Tyler Community College, teaching at local theatres, at least three very likely video gigs, and more.