2019: Year in Review

JANUARY
I started the year in Miami Beach with Yilong. I was here doing research for Louis Armstrong and a reading/pre-production for CONFESSIONS OF A COCAINE COWBOY. Yilong was stressed out because of rewrites for JUNE IS THE FIRST FALL and had a skin outbreak. I was rewriting CCC and prepping an outline for the Armstrong musical. Rehearsals for FIRE SEASON were also starting in Seattle. It was a very massive kick-off to the year.

We spent one afternoon walking around on the beach. Otherwise, we wrote by the hotel pool or in the room.

CCC was already going through a rough patch. Well, the rough patch started artistic differences on the creative team.

I’m back in the room on THE GOOD FIGHT as a co-producer. Upon returning to Brooklyn, I go to the Mothership Meditation session organized by David. I bring Yilong with me, who isn’t really feeling it. But I run into Akin Salawu for the first time...in person. He talks about how THE DIAMOND CUTTER helped him. I’m glad I could recommend it.

By the end of the month I was in pre-production meetings for my episode of THE GOOD FIGHT. Brooke Kennedy was directing it. Little did I know that it would be listed by EW as one of the top episodes of the season for all of TV!

I saw NASSIM again because colleague and friend Jonathan Tollins was in it this time.

The writers group started off again. The amount of people showing up is starting to overwhelm the Signature Theatre lobby. We need to change so I start looking around for other places.

FEBRUARY

Geshe Michael Roach came to NYC and brought with him new teachings on Master Kamalashila commentary on THE DIAMOND CUTTER. Truly inspiring and brilliant. I also saw THE SKITTLES PLAY on Broadway. Funniest thing ever. Will Eno is a genius.

I traveled to Seattle to see the world premiere of FIRE SEASON. It rained that weekend...surprise surprise. And Yilong was sick...surprise surprise. But the premiere went really well. Standing ovation. I wish more people could see the show. But it got a fitting introduction to the world thanks to the Emerald Prize and SPT investing in a new play.

MARCH
World premiere of CONFESSIONS OF A COCAINE COWBOY. It was an arduous, torturous journey. It felt like I burned off some heavy black seeds during the process that often saw me in between collaborators who hated each other. The play was a success, but we were mostly miserable. It was one of the most joyless creation processes I've been through in my life...but I was happy about the work we put out there.

After COCAINE COWBOYS got up on its feet, I was focused on the Armstrong musical. Tentatively and terribly titled LOUIS AND THE LADIES, I spent my free time writing out pages of outlines and plot points at the Gaythering and having meetings with Andrew and Christopher.

I met up with Arthur Spector again and he pitched an idea based on a former inmate who becomes a Yale lawyer and has to fight to get his bar license. I’m intrigued. I’m also waiting on a long-time lingering development deal from MRC.

On the same day of meeting Arthur, I was traveling to Medgar Evars College to be on a panel at the National Black Writers’ Conference.  Amina Henry and Keith Josef Adkins were also on the panel for a very lively and entertaining hour of conversation.

I also start to look for an apartment. Yilong and I are going to take a leap of faith. This is my first time living with someone.

On the dharma front, I arranged a LHI talk at The Juilliard School. It goes okay, but it feels like something is off. Not as thrilling or compelling as I hoped it would be. But that comes from my own seeds.

APRIL
Wrap party for season 3 of THE GOOD FIGHT. At the same time, Yilong has his play JUNE IS THE FIRST FALL opening in between our birthdays. I met up with Armstrong colalboratos Michael O. Mitchell when Christopher is in town. We both go see him at The Apollo Amateur night, where a soulful violinist wins the evening and the prize.

In mid April, the WGA orders its members to fire their agent. We comply. It’s a mad world, but I’m assured that I’ll be back on THE GOOD FIGHT. And then I’m asked if I want to be on a new show that’s in the pilot pipeline: EVIL. I say ‘yes’ and wait to see if something is going to happen.

By the end of the month, we have secured a Williamsburg apartment through some finagling.

The un-official writers' group moves into the Dramatists Guild, thanks to Tina Fallon.

MAY
EVIL is going to happen. I sign on to be a producer and CBS offers a new type of 12-month deal so that I can work on THE GOOD FIGHT and EVIL. I’ll be paid a minimum. At the same time, the MRC deal falls apart. I’m out $100,000. Not happy. I’m not going to lie, I was very upset with Paradigm and Zack...but time passes. Very upset that the one development deal is something that I set up and that they can’t even close on it. What’s the point of having an agent? Well, oops, we don’t anymore. I fired mine along with 6,000 other writers. And maybe the CBS deal weighs out against this failing.

I go to South Carolina to begin research on a Gullah/Geechie play. I meet the people behind Lean Ensemble, and spend a week on Hilton Head Island. I’m starting to get a sense of the voices and how this play can be done. I don’t want to let down the ancestors and the white board members of Lean. On the last day, we take a boat to the Dafuskie Islands. The history and the place are so rich. I wish I could have spent an entire day of Dafukskie. I take some of the voodoo books from the gift shop near the dock.

I fly back to NYC, change my suitcase and then fly out to LA for a week. It’s more a courtesy visit for me now that I’m locked into a CBS deal, but I do want to see a lot of old friends and colleagues.

I start doing research for a Harry Belafonte musical. I interviewed him twice, read his book, watch his doc. And I’m pitching on a movie for Maven Pics. When I’m in LA I meet with the married director/producer team. We hit it off. They like my pitch. I pitch this again in NYC and then they want to know...can it be a tv show? I told them I can’t do tv, but they said they would keep me in mind.

JUNE
We start EVIL. This is a new situation. A bit unsettling and a bit surprising. There is a brief workshop of the Armstrong musical, A WONDERFUL WORLD. I see BAD FAITH, a new Mike Daisey play and it’s riveting. Yilong has a play in the NQT reading/workshop series...JOKER. I support him. I have another workshop coming up and things are going to be hectic.

JULY
The long workshop for A WONDERFUL WORLD begins. At the same time I’ve agreed to a museum project research on domestic violence for a piece in San Francisco. And I have a reading of my WILLIAM DALE play at Theatreworks in Hartford, CT. Leif comes in while Yilong is in China. He stays with me for that week working on the Armstrong play, going with me to CT, and also helping out with the museum project.

A lot of things are happening this month. It’s overwhelming I never want to be this busy. It’s not enjoyable but exhausting. Every day is filled with something. It’s a struggle to keep my head above the surfeit of commitments.


AUGUST
The musical workshop ends at the start of August with a public reading. The actors are amazing. The crowd loves them and the story. Success and now time to rewrite.

I participate in the Harlem 48 Hr Festival and get to write RAINBOW for 3 funny black actresses. I finish my first episode of EVIL by the end of the month.

SEPTEMBER
Start of THE GOOD FIGHT and I’ll still be on EVIL until the end of the season while popping in upstairs to TGF. The first episode of EVIL comes out on TV. Trump impeachment inquiry is announced and approved. I decided to try the ridiculously expensive ASKA restaurant in Brooklyn.

OCTOBER
EVIL and TGF writers go apple picking upstate. Yilong is away during this time. It feels weird sleeping without him in the bed, even though we’ve only been living together for a few months. I get a second episode of EVIL. SCORE!! I’m excited about getting this done before the Thanksgiving break. I turn in a draft by the end of the month. This is the the start of the two-shows at the same time period.

EVIL gets picked up for a second season but also our first season is shortened to 13 episodes...two less than planned. I think the Kings wanted it so they could avoid losing their mind with YOUR HONOR being filmed and THE GOOD FIGHT consuming so much time.

I turn in the first act of the Belafonte musical amidst all this and a new outline for the South Carolina project.

NOVEMBER
I’m in preproduction for my second episode of EVIL and our room ends early. We were ahead of schedule the entire season and finished a month ahead of the calendar. That means I’m able to switch over to THE GOOD FIGHT quicker. But I’m still on EVIL for some stuff and on-set for another episode. It’s a bit exhilarating to go back and forth between two highly intelligent shows and great writers’ rooms.


DECEMBER
We do another polish on A WONDERFUL WORLD, secure an amazing team of designers and choreographer. At the same time I’m writing outline material for OJ play at Miami New Drama and start writing Gullah Geechie play.

The Dramatists Guild Writers is now at over 100 members, and about 20-30 ppl attending each meeting. We gave over $1000 in donations to other orgs this year. We are moving forward.

Decade Rewind: 2011 (Year of the Beach)

Before going into silent three-year meditation retreat in the desert, my teacher (Ven. Lobsang Chunzom) put me in charge of fundraising. Why? Because I was low on money, so she said I needed to create the causes for it...by helping other people get money. So I started a small fundraiser that scrambled together a few hundred dollars. And then I started another one, among my friends who were as broke as me. I also wanted to do a silent meditation retreat of my own but had no idea how that was going to happen. And then I started up a volunteer program in which I was...the first and only participant.

I was working MEALS ON WHEELS in Hells Kitchen on a rainy Saturday morning. I got an email invitation to an event. I went and collected $28,000. Just like that. It was a sudden ripening from all the seeds I had been planting the past several months.

I used $28k to pay off some of my debts, give to the charity, pay my rent for several months, and go back to Miami so I could take care of my Dad while my mom was having surgery. While I was sitting out on a Miami beach one day, I was wondering about the retreat...when I got a call from Sunshine Ross, who wanted me to come down to Nicaragua and use her house as a retreat space.

I went to Nicaragua with David and we did our first lerung meditation retreat. After I finished I hung out with Sunshine at a resort in the woods. I did yoga every day, ate incredibly healthy, and thought 'how the FREAK did this happen?!? A few months ago I was struggling to pay the rent, and now everything is taken care of, I did a meditation retreat, and now I'm at a luxury beach resort doing yoga at sunrise.

At the resort, I met someone who introduced me to A COURSE IN MIRACLES. I started reading that book and loved its message, which has a lot of Buddhist undertones.

When David and I returned to NYC, we had to do an extra ceremony to close out our lerung. So we rented a place in the Poconos for a fire puja. There were a lot of bears and nothing on the tv except old school sitcoms from the 1960s. We completed the fire offering and headed back home.

On the afternoon we arrived back in NYC, the city had its first tremor/earthquake in decades. I was sitting with a friend in a coffee shop in midtown when I felt a subway car rumbling beneath my seat...but we weren't near a subway line. it wasn't until we got out of the shop that we read the news about the very low tremor that rumbled through NYC.

I continue raising money and doing fundraisers, as more people joined in. I remember being on an upstate bus to go work at VISIONS camp (for the visually impaired), talking about Buddhism, and enjoying life when Rihanna's YOU DA ONE came on the radio for the first time. I ended the year back on the beach.

Decade Rewind: 2010. Buddha Begins

I picked up the violin again, continued studying Buddhism, and jumped between Miami and NYC. For work, I was a mystery shopping at different movie theatres, and temping at both Bard College and New School for Jazz...some times on the same day. On those doubleheader days, I would have to run from the Bard admissions office to the 1 train, cross my fingers, and hope to get downtown to my second job in time.

I got into a serious car accident that wrecked my mom's car. Fortunately, no one was hurt, it was 100% the other guy's fault, I was driving way below the speed limit (highly unusual), and chilling out while listening to James Taylor on a cool Miami evening when...WHAM!!! A car tried to cross Biscayne Boulevard right in front of me. I slammed on the brakes, but it was too late. The cop looked at the crime scene for 5 seconds, said it was 'the other driver's fault' and then wandered down the road to a second car accident that had just happened.

I returned to NYC and started temping. I was working in the Bard office when my phone rang. A Miami lawyer called to see if I wanted to sue the other driver. I declined. They insisted that I might have some 'unexplored, injuries...late on-set.' Hmmm...I briefly considered the chance to cash in on $10,000. But I couldn't do it. Another lawyer called as I was rushing to the 1 train to get downtown to my second job. And this continued for a few weeks. Ambulance chasers who read the police report and thought I could sue the other guy, get the insurance company to pay me $20,000 and they would take 30% or half.

After a few weeks of this, when an unknown caller showed up on my phone I assumed it was another lawyer...but it was a former producer for Michael Jackson. He was looking for a writer to adapt something. I was told the truth: I was a back-up choice to a few more successful writers. I appreciated his honesty, and we started a back-and-forth conversation about different songs. He sounded excited. Great great...and then I never heard from him again. Oh well, maybe one of the other writers took the job. I went back to temping.

By the end of the year, I was doing a cross-country road trip to deliver supplies to Arizona and help build houses for the start of a 3-year-retreat for my teacher and several others. We were told the 3 yrs would fly by...2011-2013. We should continue studying, do our own meditation retreats, and try to stay together.

A Review of CATS: Not the Worst Thing Ever Produced By Humans

CATS!
I just saw CATS. I've been through the war, only walked out once to compose myself. I felt low-level nausea, discomfort, early on-set ‘no Idris!’ Eventually this led to giggles, tears, more nausea, uncanny valley horror, gas, and ennui. The full range of seasickness symptoms.

CATS!!
CATS is not the worst movie I've ever seen. It's not even close to the worst. But it is the most baffling. You have a hit Broadway play, celebrity casting, and there are actually good songs to be sung. It's about freaking cats! Cat owners are everywhere. And it's sexual. Yes, the original Broadway show is much ridiculed and maligned, but it also started the furrier movement because of the sexy dancers purring and rubbing on people. Deep down inside, you know that CATS is about that creepy sexy energy that is rarely...um, scratched. And yet...
- from the moment the picture begins, there was this deep unsettling dread. My stomach started rumbling and I squirmed in my chair. Halfway through the movie is when the giggling started, pockets of conversation popping up, people audibly sighed. Phones were checked frequently, close-ups triggered laughter and revulsion.
- these are not cats. These are furry digital zombies. They don't act like cats, they don't feel like cats, they don't move like cats.
-When you catch sight of your favorite star covered in gross fur, you want to rescue them, ask them how did this happen; you certainly don't want to see them sing a song. Every moment I was reminded 'that's Rebel Wilson showing her furry digital zombie asshole, that's Idris Elba mean mugging in mangy fur, and Jennifer Hudson...lawd, that's JHud telegraphing 'I'm so pitiful' with every weepy, snot-nosed, over-acted, shaky-voiced note in such hacky broad-acting that you can see it from space. 'Mem-mem-mem-meeeeeeeeemorieeeeesss'

CA-CA-CCCATS!!!!
- the CGI effect of mixing cat zombies with human faces gave me the infamous 'uncanny valley' effect where something is so close to having human details, that the digital rendering makes us feel both disturbed/disgusted and unable to look away.
- the CGI cats movements were also uncanny valley: neither too human or too cat. The spastic slightly unnatural digital rendering creates an unintentional effect of a computer zombie movie.
- the shaky-camera is nausea-inducing. Seriously. The movements are herky-jerky, tilted, and spinning around...for no reason at all. There is nothing being told by these exaggerated camera angles. It's almost as if the editors re-directed the movie and gave everything the subplot of a mysterious cameraman who needs medical attention.
- wet close-ups. Apparently furry digital zombies are on the verge of tears when they're hungry, sad, horny, winking their asshole, angry, and filled with mem-mem-meeeeemories. I've never seen so many wet, snotty faces. The lead offender of the snotty, wet close-ups is Hudson. The overwrought wetness had me wishing for an establishing shot...across the street.
- - overwrought, gasping, breathy vocals. Imagine a 5-year-old asthmatic child on the verge of tears trying to tell you a story...for 2 hrs. That's the singing technique here.

CATS!!!!
- CATS should either be A) an animated cartoon that would have taken it out of the realm of creepy human faces and made it purely artificial or B) stay forever a stage show where the costuming is still primitive enough to seem unreal. When human acrobats rub their fur-covered genitals on aroused Wall Street stockbrokers, we should still feel a bit intrigued... instead of repulsed.

Playwrights in TV

Yes, playwrights are diving into tv b/c of money, healthcare, stability, getting seen by millions of people, and being able to go from idea conception to an actual series in a year (as opposed to most plays which take several yrs to develop). But nobody goes into the theatre expecting money or stability. So what gives? The larger reason for the sudden love of tv is respect: of our voices, of our time, of our development, of our place in the world. There's more of that in the TV industry than theatre.

At Juilliard, they asked us -if all things were equal and you didn't have to worry about money- would you prefer to work in TV/film or theatre? 6 out of 8 playwrights immediately said 'theatre.' No hesitation, dead certainty. We didn't get into this wildly unprofitable and fickle field expecting to get rich. It wasn't the money that was the deciding factor, it was the ability to be seen and heard, diversity of voices, and working with a team of equal creatives who are dedicated to actually figuring out a way to produce the thing...rather than a board of elders who are more likely to tell you why your work isn't ready.

BUT! BUT!!! BUT... theatre isn't a monolith and I don't want to be just negative. There are exciting institutions focused on the development of artists and/or producing new work in a timely fashion. Here are a few of my favorites....

1. National Black Theatre "I AM SOUL" residency
- it's 18 months and they do a very high-quality workshop production of your play
- they pour as many resources as possible into getting the play seen.
- with limited resources, NBT has changed theatre by putting the artists first and the board second.

2. Brooklyn Arts Exchange
- this is a development platform but it takes place over 2 yrs and involves different workshop/production levels.
- they are supportive while requiring certain benchmarks to be met. You have to actually put up sections of the work while you're developing it. And this is actually a great thing b/c you are forced to see your work come alive as you're creating it.

3. Seattle Public Theatre
- created a new prize with the sole purpose of creating new work by POC and women... and then putting it up.
- no non-sense, let's get it done attitude
- the creation-to-production pipeline was 18 months. I won the Emerald Prize in the spring of 2017 for FIRE SEASON. It got its world premiere in January 2019.

4. Miami New Drama
- 'Here's a commission. Let's put your production in the calendar...for next season.' And guess what? You experience panic, pressure, deadlines. These are the things TV writers work with all the time, multiple times a year. And -for the most part- you are forced into being a sharper writer, less precious, more no-nonsense. A lot of times that pressure creates innovation.
- CONFESSIONS OF A COCAINE COWBOY got greenlit on Dec 2017. It was produced in 2019. In the calendar.
- A WONDERFUL WORLD got greenlit in Dec 2018. It's going up in March 2020.

These are just some of the theatres that have helped me out so much. Please include your own list of innovative theatres that are cranking out new work and fostering new voices.

(BTW, I'm not including many excellent development labs like the O'Neill, Sundance, Ucross, Ojai. These institutions are huge but I wanted to focus on theatre companies producing work.)

Rebranding Plan for CATS

Be honest: it's so bad you want to see it. It's like that Anne Rice vampire musical on broadway or your middle-aged boss inviting you to his African dance recital. Like porn and horror, revulsion and titillation live in the same part of the brain. And how often does a movie offer the chance to feel both true visceral revulsion and arousal? Don't look away. Let the warm, dark, horror envelope you like a hot tub rash. Your eyes are like that mesh underwear inside a bathing suit...a flimsy, pointless barrier that will not protect you from the infection of...CATS!!

Impeachment Detractors and Pessimists

Donald Trump was impeached last night for abuse of power and obstruction of justice. In truth he has committed much greater crimes during his occupancy of the White House. In private, most Republican lawmakers detest him but continue to publically coordinate a blatant campaign to obfuscate Trump's obvious high crimes. Meanwhile, some online Dems didn't even wait for the vote to go into pessimistic mode: what difference does this make? Trump is going to be acquitted by the Senate, so it would have been better to do nothing, to ignore whistleblowers, ambassadors, and countless government workers sounded the alarms. It would have been better to let Trump try to rig the 2020 elections, use foreign countries to smear his opponents, coordinate with Russian intelligence to put the blame on the Ukraine (which is already happening). What difference does it make to follow the law under lawless leadership?

To the Trump impeachment pessimists and detractors: you do the right thing so you can look your kids in the eye. You do the right thing to maintain some integrity. You do the right thing to uphold a standard. When someone lies, cheats, steals, breaks laws...guess what? You still do the right thing. Even if the other side is stronger and wronger. Even if they acquit, even if the killer walks free, even if they laugh at you as being foolish or powerless. Black ppl have been forged in the fire of righteous action: hundreds of years doing 'the right thing' against more powerful and villainous forces. You don't sit at home and think 'oh well. Might as well do nothing' because you can't see the end of the road. You never know what so-called 'futile right action' leads to in the future. But guess what: you don't have control over the future. You only have control over the present moment...and here and now...you impeach a president who has bribed, cheated, abused power, obstructed justice, laughed with our enemies, insulted our allies, betrayed our Kurdish friends, put kids in cages, enriched himself while in office, corrupted every branch of government with criminals and con artists. You do the right thing against terrifying immorality. Do not hang your head or give in to self-pity. You take joy in doing the right thing because your kids are watching, friends and family are watching. And maybe they will see you and do the right thing when they are faced with the same moral dilemma. 

The Decline and Fall of an American Democracy

Russia hacked our elections. All US intelligence agencies confirm that. But the success of the hack has more to do with the moral rot of our own institutions than the savviness of Russian programmers. We have a 2-party system and neither party has any real commitment to solving society's ailments, and so people have no real commitment to the integrity of our politics.

On one side you have the Republicans who have decided that the political passions of its base are steeped in covert racial bias and discrimination. In order to maintain power, they have committed to the propaganda of outright lies and misstatements. They knowingly promote policies which put kids in cages, deport people back to their country to be murdered, disenfranchise black voters, incentivize polluters/mucrackers/con artist evangelicals, and the worst players in our culture. Once you have a party that has decided to systemically lie about facts to its citizens, there is very little difference between taking its own lies or adopting those of Russian intelligence. A lie is a lie...and any lie will do if it serves the purpose of continuing to trigger fear/terror and mistrust in an aging white population.

On the other side, you have the Dems who are mostly own by corporate America (as opposed to Republicans who are entirely owned). With the exception of Bernie Sanders, all the Dem presidential frontrunners are backed by billionaires who are committed to maintaining inequality and suffering. Our healthcare system is THE worst in the Western World. The worst. Full stop. It criminalizes sickness, punishes weakness, leads to tens of thousands of preventable deaths every year. Dems know this, corporations know this, insurance companies know this. They either are unwilling to change or don't care about Americans dying. The explosion in student loans is robbing future generations and -once again- everyone knows that these things are very bad and 100% preventable. But there is no willingness to do anything. There is almost an enraging impotence of leadership on the left.

This is how societies die from internal corruption. On one side you have the crooks, and the other side you have the people who should know better...but don't have the energy to do anything substantial. At a certain point, the people stop believing in the community principles, and the gates to the city are open so the invaders can rush in to plunder everything. The political process becomes an entertaining empty spectacle. Presidents dance for votes, sing for likes, seriousness is seen as a flaw because there is no belief that anything substantial can be accomplished by the serious men of policy. We live in the age of clowns, tap dancers, and karaoke singers. 

The Republican party has opened the gates while the Democrats sit around fretting about how to 'manage the looting.' Even if Trump is kicked out, the gates are still open and the people believe the locks of protection are broken. 

LA LA LAND and MARRIAGE STORY

I really really like "Marriage Story.' Admittedly, I have a weird neurotic spot in my heart for all things Noah Baumbach. Scarjo and Driver were amazing, so many-layered moments, great acting from Wallace Shawn and so many others. But...I also found myself laughing at all the LA LA LAND-ism in the movie, such as:

- this is what good experimental theatre looks like to film ppl: hop on my back and I'll carry you around stage while looking constipated. LOL!!!
- - hey, I'm poor and came from nothing. But I started up a successful director-based theatre company in NYC without a trust fund, or an insanely rich celebrity friend. I did with my vision. Btw, I don't live in a shoebox and I have an actual human child who, apparently, has healthcare. I can also afford to see a therapist. Did I mention I run a theatre company in 21st century NYC and I'm not rich?
- 'Guess what? I just won the MacArthur Grant. Yeah, it is really random. But you don't love me so I'm sad.' Um... as someone who has been awarded one big-money theatre prize in my entire life, I can tell you that you could have run over my dog and then shot him and -in that moment- I would have nodded like 'okokok, things happen. Hey, I won something!' And if I won the biggest prize in the arts- the MacArthur Grant- you could waterboard me a few times and I would still be like 'wow, that was kind of refreshing! We drinking tonight? Champagne on me!!'
- my experimental ELECTRA play is going to Broadway. Gosh, I hope it does well.
- my experimental ELECTRA play on Broadway did not go well but only b/c I wasn't there to guide the process (yeah, that's the reason) 😂😂😂
- new tv actor makes one observation and is told 'would you like to be in the writers' room? They would love you being there.' Ummm...would we?
- hey, you brand new actor...would you also like to direct TV? Well, you watched your ex-husband direct stageplays so...it's almost like you could figure out this medium.
- hey, remember the unrealistic sci-fi tv show we set up? Not only is it a hit, but our lead actor just got nominated...for directing. She has a directorial vision now! Call her Miss Bossy Pants! She's in charge! But how did this happen? Well...feelings!!
- both our leads can't really sing or dance, so let's have them sing Sondheim to the camera. It will be really brave and vulnerable to watch to them on the struggle bus (like LA LA LAND). No, don't cutaway. Let's watch them sing out of tune for a few minutes. It serves no narrative purpose to go on this long but they're so brave to be that imperfect.
- hey, we're both the WILDLY successful .00001% now. I have a fucking MacArthur grant, a hot off-broadway theatre company, and a play that was on Broadway. Now let me take this job at.... UCLA so I can be closer to my ex-wife and sleepy-ass son who can't poop without encouragement. Yes, I am going to direct in Los Angeles...at a college...which is like going from directing in the West End of London to doing summer stock theatre in Peoria. I'm an insanely ambitious egotist to get this far in life, but I'm also going to light my entire career on fire b/c -awww shucks- I'm a dad first. Love ya bae! Now tie my shoes!!

Get What You Want: December 2019

1. MANY VOICES FELLOWSHIP
Deadline: December 5th
Website: https://pwcenter.org/

The Many Voices Fellowship is intended to support early-career playwrights of color and Indigenous playwrights who demonstrate artistic potential and a commitment to a year-long residency in Minnesota (July 1, 2020-June 30, 2021). The fellowship is additionally supported by a professional theater artist mentor. Previous mentors include Christina Ham, Mark Valdez, and Daniel Alexander Jones. Fellowships provide an $18,000 stipend and $2,500 in play development funds. Fellows spend a year-long residency in Minnesota, working in an individualized and hands-on way with the Playwrights’ Center artistic staff—some of the most experienced and connected theater professionals in the country. Beyond the financial stipend, the value of fellowships is more than doubled with the year-long support the Playwrights’ Center adds through workshops with professional directors, dramaturgs, and actors and through the connections the Center makes between playwrights and producers of new work. This holistic and customized combination of financial support, access to talent, and professional connections is career-changing for most playwrights. Applicants may not have had more than one play fully produced by professional theaters at the time of the application. Fellows commit to spending the 12-month fellowship period in Minnesota and actively participating in the Center's programs. Housing and travel are not provided.


2. MCKNIGHT NATIONAL RESIDENCY
Deadline: Dec. 12th
Website: https://pwcenter.org/programs/mcknight-national-residency-and-commission

The intent of the McKnight National Residency and Commission is to support an established playwright from outside of Minnesota who demonstrates a sustained level of accomplishment, commitment, and artistic excellence. Recipients of the Residency and Commission will spend the year creating a new play script over the course of several residencies in Minnesota, including opportunities to engage with the Twin Cities and Playwrights' Center community. Benefits include:

A $15,000 commission
At least two U.S. round-trip airline tickets
Housing during the residency period
Up to $5,750 in workshop funds to support the development of the play
A public reading of the commissioned play
Past recipients include: Kia Corthron, Erik Ehn, Idris Goodwin, Karen Hartman, Daniel Alexander Jones, Sibyl Kempson, Craig Lucas, Taylor Mac, Dan O’Brien, Betty Shamieh, Mfoniso Udofia, and Mac Wellman.

Applicants must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States. Applicants must be nationally recognized playwrights who have had at least two different plays fully produced by professional theaters at the time of application. Minnesota-based playwrights are not eligible for this fellowship. Recipients of 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19 McKnight Artist Fellowships in any discipline are not eligible. Full-time students are not eligible. Staff and board members of the McKnight Foundation and the Playwrights' Center or their immediate families are not eligible. Recipients may not receive any other Playwrights' Center fellowships, grants, or Core Writer benefits during the grant year. If a recipient is a Core Writer, their Core term will be extended by one year. Applicants may only apply for one McKnight Artist Fellowship each year in any discipline. Recipients commit to spending up to four weeks in residency in the Twin Cities (not necessarily consecutively). Recipients must create a new play according to the terms set forth in the contract.


3. KERNODLE NEW PLAY AWARD
Deadline: December 16th
Website: https://fulbright.uark.edu/departments/theatre/callboard/kernodle-new-play-award.php

The University of Arkansas Department of Theatre administers the Kernodle New Play Award, a national playwriting competition named for George R. Kernodle, beloved U of A theatre professor and author of "Invitation to the Theatre". The award recognizes full-length plays that invite the audience’s imagination and are inherently theatrical.  Visit our website to Learn More about the Kernodle New Play Award.

2019-20 Kernodle Submission Information

All playwrights must fill out our Online Submission Form below during our submission window, November 1 through December 16, 2018. Plays submitted before November 1, 2019 will not be considered.

Additionally, please understand, due to staffing levels (and a desire to keep unsolicited submissions free), we can only accept the first 100 unsolicited submissions received in 2019-2020. We will post on our website when we have hit our limit.*  We will review our unsolicited submission policy again after this year.                           

*Playwrights whose work has been directly solicited, agent submissions, and playwrights who currently reside in, or are originally from, Arkansas are welcome to apply until the Dec. 16, 2019 deadline.


4. SAMUEL FRENCH OOB SHORT PLAY FESTIVAL
Deadline: December 16th
Website: https://oobfestival.com/

Short plays and musicals can be no longer than 15 pages and have a max run time of 15 minutes (ideal run times are between 8-13 minutes). If submitting a musical the page limit should reflect the libretto.

Writers may submit only 1 play, including plays they have co-authored. Producers (writer’s groups, theatre companies, universities, etc.) may submit up to 15 plays accredited to their organization, but can only submit one play by an individual playwright.

Script submissions will be accepted in digital format only, via Submittable.

Each nomination must submit a separate application form. Conglomerate entries on one application are not acceptable.

Plays must be written in English (non-English words or phrases within the context of the play are allowed).

Plays must be typed, and in no less that 10-point type, in conjunction with formatting listed in the Submission Formatting Guidelines. Note that cover pages or additional cast size pages are not required and will not be counted against the 15 page limit.

Playwrights previously published by any Concord Theatricals company, including Concord Theatricals, Samuel French, Inc., Tams-Witmark, Rodgers & Hammerstein, or The Musical Company, are not eligible for submission into the Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival. This includes winners of previous Samuel French Festivals.

If a play was submitted to the Festival in a previous year but was not chosen for production, it may be resubmitted for the 2020 Festival.

Poetry and short story readings will not be accepted.

Festival submissions will be open from Monday, December 2 to Monday, December 16. No submissions will be accepted after 11:59pm EST on December 16, 2019.

Concord Theatricals in its sole and absolute discretion, shall select plays for participation in the 2020 OOB Festival from among all entries, and its decisions are final. Concord Theatricals reserves the right to remove any selected play from participation if the play, its producers, and/or its authors are not in compliance with the Application and/or the Competition Guidelines, and/or if the additional documents are not timely signed and returned. Production of selected plays shall be at the sole cost and expense of the Producer, and no royalties or other payments are or will be owed by Concord Theatricals.


5. NEUKON LITERARY PRIZE
Deadline: December 31st
Website: https://sites.dartmouth.edu/neukominstitutelitawards/

The Neukom Institute for Computational Science at Dartmouth College is accepting book and play submissions for the 2020 Neukom Institute Literary Arts Awards.

The Neukom Awards, now in its third year, offers prizes in three categories of speculative fiction. Each category will receive an honorarium of $5,000 at a Dartmouth-sponsored event related to speculative fiction.

The speculative fiction awards are offered for playwriting, established author and first-time author.

The deadline for all submissions is December 31, 2019. The awards will be announced in the spring of 2020.

The award in the playwriting category is a partnership between the Neukom Institute, the Department of Theater at Dartmouth College and Northern Stage based in White River Junction, Vermont.

Plays should be written in response to the prompt: “What does it mean to be a human in a computerized world?” The award is reserved for plays that have not received a full production.

Additional information on play and book submissions as well as previous winners may be found on the Neukom Institute website at: https://sites.dartmouth.edu/neukominstitutelitawards/


6. LA MAISON BALDWIN RESIDENCY
Deadline: December 31st
website: https://www.lamaisonbaldwin.fr/

Shortly before James Baldwin passed away, he told close friends in Saint-Paul de Vence that he dreamed of seeing his beloved house made into a writers' colony. This medieval village, with its uncommon light, its majestic mountaintop placement and surrounding countryside, has for centuries attracted artists, architects, alchemists and thinkers, great minds intent on changing the world. Here is where Baldwin wrote some of his most enduring books, including If Beale Street Could Talk, Just Above my Head, and his sole book of poetry, Jimmy's Blues.

Writers in residence are offered a room in the village center to pursue their current creative project. While in residence, they will contribute to the literary culture of Saint Paul de Vence by offering a community event or creative public program.

They are hosted at La Maison Baldwin Residence for Writers, a house in the historic center of St. Paul de Vence located directly across the street from the village church. The home features a 3rd-floor bedroom suite with a sunny terrace overlooking the tiled roofs of the village and the valley beyond.

Residents also stay in a charming artist cottage made available to the program through a partnership with the city of St. Paul de Vence.

Lunch every day is offered to the resident writers through partnerships with local restaurants and host families. The fellowship includes a $700 travel stipend.

Eligibility and How to Apply

This fellowship is open to emerging writers working in the spirit of James Baldwin. Eligible to apply are poets, playwrights, essayists and fiction writers with no more than one published book or staged production.

The review committee will select ten fellows for residencies of 2 to 4 weeks in fall 2020 (Sept 15 to Oct. 31) or spring 2021 (April 1 to May 15).

To apply, send a cover letter, a brief bio and writing sample of ten pages to residency@lamaisonbaldwin.fr with the subject line "residency application." The deadline is December 31, 2019. Please indicate your preferred residency duration and period.


7. PULITZER PRIZE FOR DRAMA *hey, why not?!?*
Deadline: December 31st
website: https://www.pulitzer.org/page/drama-submission-guidelines-and-requirements

Plays written by U.S. citizens and produced in the United States during 2018 are eligible. After submitting information and payment online, send six (6) copies of play scripts and one video recording (if available) to the address below. Packages must be postmarked by December 31, 2018.

Columbia University, on the recommendation of The Pulitzer Prize Board, annually awards a Pulitzer Prize in drama of $15,000 "for a distinguished play by an American author, preferably original in its source and dealing with American life."

ENTRIES FOR THE AWARD
Productions opening in the United States between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019 are eligible. Submit playscripts of productions to the Pulitzer Office for forwarding to the Drama Jury.  Entries should be made in advance of the December 31, 2019 deadline.

Please follow these entry procedures:

Complete the online entry form and pay non-refundable $75 entry fee by credit card.

Send 6 copies of the playscript and video recording (if available) to:

The Pulitzer Prize Office

Columbia University

709 Pulitzer Hall

2950 Broadway

New York, NY 10027

Scripts must be postmarked by December 31, 2019.

A video recording of the production is strongly urged but is not required. If a video is submitted, it will be used only to assist the judging process and will be returned on request after the awards are announced.

Please note that a dramatic work need not be formally submitted in order to be considered by the Drama Jury. However, it must be produced and receive a press opening within the deadline dates.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE AWARD
Columbia University awards the Pulitzer Prize in Drama annually on the recommendation of The Pulitzer Prize Board, which acts on the nominations of a distinguished committee of Pulitzer Drama Jurors. The award is announced during the Spring.


8. YADDO
Deadline: January 5th
Website: https://www.yaddo.org/apply/guidelines/

Artists who qualify for Yaddo residencies are working at the professional level in their fields. An abiding principle at Yaddo is that applications for residency are judged on the quality of the artist’s work and professional promise. There are no publication, exhibition, or performance requirements for application.

Artists in all disciplines who are enrolled in graduate or undergraduate programs, or are engaged in completing work toward an academic degree at the time of application, are not eligible to apply to Yaddo.
Artists may apply once every other calendar year. For example, if you applied in 2017 (January or August), you will be eligible to apply again in either January or August of 2019.
Yaddo encourages artists of all backgrounds to apply for admission. Yaddo does not discriminate in its programs and activities against anyone on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, marital status, ancestry, disability, HIV status, or veteran status.

Artistic Disciplines
Five admissions panels consider applications to Yaddo in the following disciplines:

-Literature, including fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, translation, librettos, and graphic novels.
-Visual Art, including painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, photography, mixed media, and installation art
-Music Composition, including instrumental forms, vocal forms, electronic music, music for film, and sound art
-Performance, including choreography, performance art, multi-media and/or collaborative works incorporating live performance
-Film & Video, including narrative, documentary and experimental films, animation, and screenplays


9. SESAME STREET WORKSHOP
Deadline: January 10th
Website: https://sesamewritersroom.org/

Sesame Workshop Writers’ Room is a writing fellowship from the creators of Sesame Street. And we’re looking for YOU! Fresh new writing talent from underrepresented racial backgrounds. Emerging storytellers who are selected to join the Writers’ Room will receive hands-on writing experience guided by Sesame Street veterans and other media industry leaders. Each participant will develop and write a pilot script for their own original kids concept. Past fellows have gone on to develop their own original content with Sesame Workshop, as well as write for Sesame Street and various programs at Nickelodeon, Disney, DreamWorks, and more!
-Up to 8 writers from underrepresented racial backgrounds will be selected

-Weekly sessions will take place at the Sesame Workshop NYC offices in Summer 2020 (early May through mid-July)

-Includes eight, three-hour sessions on creating original children's content

-Learn from industry writers, producers, agents and executives

-Complete at least one original script during the program

-Up to two participants will have the opportunity to receive creative development deals and further mentorship

Eligibility Check List
-Participants must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
-Participants must be 21+ years old
-Must come from an underrepresented racial group
-No extensive media writing experience, such as having written more than six episodes for a network or cable scripted/narrative series
-Participants must be able to attend all eight weekly sessions in NYC, which will be held from early May to mid-July. Travel and lodging expenses are the participant's sole responsibility.


10. HELEN WURLITZER FOUNDATION RESIDENCY (TAOS, NM)
Deadline: January 18th
Website: https://wurlitzerfoundation.org/apply

To apply for an artist residency, submit an application form (below) along with the application fee and required work samples.

The annual deadline for applications is January 18th to be considered for a residence grant the following calendar year. Online applications must be received, and mailed applications must be postmarked, by January 18th. Grantees will be notified of their fellowship awards in June. For more info read the FAQs online.

Online applications received between now and 11:59PM MST, Jan. 18 2020 will be considered for residency grants in 2021. Supplemental work samples sent via mail must be postmarked by January 21st!


11. DRAMA LEAGUE: DIRECTING FELLOWSHIP IN TV & FILM
Deadline: February 3rd
Website: https://dramaleague.submittable.com/submit

For many decades, emerging directors felt they had to choose between working on the stage, or working in film and television.  The skills sets overlap to some degree, but not in totality…which made the acquisition of experience difficult.  Recently, however, the field of directing has begun to widen.  The notion of a director successfully transitioning back and forth between these overlapping industries is now not only possible, but in some cases, encouraged.  Their imaginations are vital to the future of both mediums.

The Fellowship for Directing in Television is a career development initiative for stage directors to observe the craft of film/TV direction.  Through network building with industry professionals and shadowing successful film/television directors, the Fellow will gain essential skills and contacts to begin working in both mediums.

COMPONENTS

1) SHADOW DIRECTING ASSIGNMENT

Those selected to participate become part of the Drama League Directing Talent Pool. Drama League staff, entertainment executives, executive producers and/or producing episodic directors select individuals to shadow on an episode of produced television. Shadowing assignments are not guaranteed; however, if an assignment is secured, the Fellow will shadow production and shooting. Observing post-production is solely at the discretion of producers. Drama assignments typically run three or more weeks, and comedy assignments usually run one to two weeks. The duration of an individual's participation is at the discretion of the Drama League staff, executive producers and/or episodic directors.

2) STIPEND

Directors on shadowing assignments will receive a paid stipend when actively shadowing on a production, the amount of which will be disclosed prior to acceptance. In the 2019 cycle, the Stipend was $2,000, but could be less or more depending upon the length and location of the assignment.  Taxes will be deducted from the stipend in accordance with federal, state and local law.

3) TRANSPORTATION

Fellows will be provided with travel to the city of the shooting location.  In-city travel is not included.

4) HOUSING

Fellows will be provided with housing in the city of the shooting location.

My Local Food Truck: A Performance in Masculinity

*Me waiting for falafel. A woman walks by.... Two old men waiting for food look at the woman...and then look each other*

Old Man #1: I gotta look
Old Man #2: Of course, you gotta look. You're not dead.
Old Man #1: the things I could do to her.
Old Man #2: I'm married but...for her I'd be willing.
Old Man #1: They say 'if it smells like fish, eat all that you wish. But if it smells like cologne leave it alone.'
Old Man #2: Never heard of that. (to Falafel guy) You heard of that?
*Falafel guy shakes his head*

Old Man#2: I've heard 'lick it before you stick it.'
Old Man #1: Yeah, but he can't do that (re: Falafel guy). He's not allowed to do that. Yeah, if it smells like fish means if it's a woman-
Me: Yep.
Old Man #1: but if it smells like cologne it's a dude. So you gotta leave it alone.
Me: Yeah...that's the way it goes.
Old Man #2: These days you can't say no if it's a dude. Because it's a hate crime. They'll throw you in jail. You gotta be real polite when you turn them down like  'no thank you sir...I would prefer not to.'

*Slow fade as Old Men continue to talk about 'fish' and 'cologne' and all those 'tricky dudes' who try to sexually entrap these old guys (*wink wink*) b/c that's a real threat. That's their reality. I eat my sandwich in the cold.

BLACKOUT