The telling of 7 Stories
This entry is long overdue. Just like most of my entries I guess, but I'm determined to put this up.
It's amazing how something like 7 Stories can exist when I'm feeling aimless and lacking in something to pump me up. Fly By Night Theatre came along right at a time when I needed to get jazzed about something that isn't related to UTM politics. It's all so cyclical because UTM politics came along when I needed to get jazzed about something that wasn't theatre (or Casey, but that can be left out of the discussion). I was jobless then (Sears had just laid my sorry ass off) and looking ahead to plenty of free time with parents hours away on top of that. Running into Berkha and Moneeza that night at Islington was quite fateful as it led me down a 3 1/2 year path I would never trade.
And there we were again. UTMSU had been lost to thieves and weak willed, heartless types with delusions of grandeur and I was sailing into retirement. The idea (originally Mrs. Chan's apparently) was out there by my dearest Gordon Chan and I leaped aboard. Even when rejected from TDS at UTM, theatre never turned its back on me. So we were off to the races with an idea, and a possible show was tossed around.
Somehow, we were going to co-direct. I'm not sure how that actually came into be being, but it was an almost natural fit, something that became a theme of our directing style. When I first read 7 Stories, I was on a bus for most of it. It was the same when I first read The Play's the Thing, Tra La! in 1999. I laughed at its outrageousness and began to envision what it would look like. Those of you still living in the Toronto area have seen it (with the exception of Tori, of COURSE), so you know what I'm saying. And what we had onstage was pretty close to initial mental images of the set.
I've directed only once before and it wasn't the most artistically expressive thing I've ever done. But there was a great cast and crew, and I firmly believe the show itself was moving. It needed a lot more than different direction. Still, it left me nervous about my ability, especially working with Gordon, who admirably directed me to what I feel was my best work as an actor, as Will in Death was my Best Friend.
We struggled and fought just to get to the point where we were auditioning actors. Not with each other, with the City of Mississauga, an incredibly expensive place for a startup theatre company to find space that doesn't look like it was created to be a theatre by Stevie Wonder with side help from Helen Keller. On top of that, I was co-chair of New U right before we did auditions. That was sort of my farewell to student politics at U of T, and I can honestly say it was the best of 3 New U conferences that I attended at least in terms of organisation and structure.
And all of a sudden, we were setting up in a junior high school gym with those old metal folding chairs, and a table for Maggie and Michele outside. I had no idea what the hell I was doing, which Ang Lee always says is how he likes to start a movie, so I guess I was in good shape. In walked our first set of people. We cast Tori Elliott from that first group. Next came a very rude and a very charming girl. The charming one (Melanie Liatsis) went on to be our sound operator. That was followed by Stephen McLarty and Marisa Ship. I know Marisa from UTM. We'd both had shows in Erindale Fringe in 2005 (mine was Paper Trails, hers was One Good Marriage). Steve and Marisa were both cast. I don't remember who came next, but on June 4 in the evening, we were at the Can Dance Academy which we ultimately booked as our rehearsal space (seriously, we were one step ahead of disaster with space more than once during this production). The rest of our cast came together on day two and turned out to be excellent choices on all scores.
Now what, we actually had to direct them? Wait, WHAT? When the hell did THAT happen? We were calling them together and we were responsible for guiding them to the performances they would be giving on August 24/25? I was quite sure I did NOT know what I was talking about and they would know that VERY soon given that most of them were professionally trained in SOME form of performance. Who was I? Some reject from a prestigious theatre school who was an OK actor and stage manager in high school (and once in university)? Turns out they were all BAD ACTORS. And THIS IS A TERRIBLE PLAY!!!!! (*Throws his script across the room*) That was an inside joke, you had to be there. My job was easier since these were committed actors and Gordon and I had agreed to try each other's ideas before giving strong opinions in the negative.
I can honestly say this was one of, if not THE, most artistically enhanching experience of my life. The cast was prepared, but we still had to ease them forward. My co-director was and always will be brilliant, but I proved, mostly to myself, that I was his equal. I can point to one scene and feel it was mine alone, and that the performance became wistful and three-dimensional after I gave certain direction to the actor. Very importantly, almost the entire show was accidentally perfectly synchronised between the two of us. Gordon and I almost never disagreed, and they were all over minor issues. There were probably 75-100 times each when one of us would say something and the other would cross it out of their notes because it was EXACTLY what we had been thinking. It was a near-perfect experience.
There were so many wonderful events and inside jokes to 7 Stories, too. The mouth breathing stalker stuff, Sabrina being accident prone, "It's probably because you're Asian", the popsicles, the pre-rehearsal music, awkward hugging, my relationship with Marisa, "What do you guys want, you're the directors" "Oh wait, that's us", the idea that Gordon doesn't swear (I have NO idea where people are always getting this impression from, seriously, spend 5 minutes with the guy. . .), overselling opening night, the champagne, the lemon juice (a Woodlands Drama tradition continued), the standing ovation on closing night, and on and on.
My personal take away, however, is being able to say that I'm a director and feel good about it. How totally life-altering. How completely right. How lucky am I?
It's amazing how something like 7 Stories can exist when I'm feeling aimless and lacking in something to pump me up. Fly By Night Theatre came along right at a time when I needed to get jazzed about something that isn't related to UTM politics. It's all so cyclical because UTM politics came along when I needed to get jazzed about something that wasn't theatre (or Casey, but that can be left out of the discussion). I was jobless then (Sears had just laid my sorry ass off) and looking ahead to plenty of free time with parents hours away on top of that. Running into Berkha and Moneeza that night at Islington was quite fateful as it led me down a 3 1/2 year path I would never trade.
And there we were again. UTMSU had been lost to thieves and weak willed, heartless types with delusions of grandeur and I was sailing into retirement. The idea (originally Mrs. Chan's apparently) was out there by my dearest Gordon Chan and I leaped aboard. Even when rejected from TDS at UTM, theatre never turned its back on me. So we were off to the races with an idea, and a possible show was tossed around.
Somehow, we were going to co-direct. I'm not sure how that actually came into be being, but it was an almost natural fit, something that became a theme of our directing style. When I first read 7 Stories, I was on a bus for most of it. It was the same when I first read The Play's the Thing, Tra La! in 1999. I laughed at its outrageousness and began to envision what it would look like. Those of you still living in the Toronto area have seen it (with the exception of Tori, of COURSE), so you know what I'm saying. And what we had onstage was pretty close to initial mental images of the set.
I've directed only once before and it wasn't the most artistically expressive thing I've ever done. But there was a great cast and crew, and I firmly believe the show itself was moving. It needed a lot more than different direction. Still, it left me nervous about my ability, especially working with Gordon, who admirably directed me to what I feel was my best work as an actor, as Will in Death was my Best Friend.
We struggled and fought just to get to the point where we were auditioning actors. Not with each other, with the City of Mississauga, an incredibly expensive place for a startup theatre company to find space that doesn't look like it was created to be a theatre by Stevie Wonder with side help from Helen Keller. On top of that, I was co-chair of New U right before we did auditions. That was sort of my farewell to student politics at U of T, and I can honestly say it was the best of 3 New U conferences that I attended at least in terms of organisation and structure.
And all of a sudden, we were setting up in a junior high school gym with those old metal folding chairs, and a table for Maggie and Michele outside. I had no idea what the hell I was doing, which Ang Lee always says is how he likes to start a movie, so I guess I was in good shape. In walked our first set of people. We cast Tori Elliott from that first group. Next came a very rude and a very charming girl. The charming one (Melanie Liatsis) went on to be our sound operator. That was followed by Stephen McLarty and Marisa Ship. I know Marisa from UTM. We'd both had shows in Erindale Fringe in 2005 (mine was Paper Trails, hers was One Good Marriage). Steve and Marisa were both cast. I don't remember who came next, but on June 4 in the evening, we were at the Can Dance Academy which we ultimately booked as our rehearsal space (seriously, we were one step ahead of disaster with space more than once during this production). The rest of our cast came together on day two and turned out to be excellent choices on all scores.
Now what, we actually had to direct them? Wait, WHAT? When the hell did THAT happen? We were calling them together and we were responsible for guiding them to the performances they would be giving on August 24/25? I was quite sure I did NOT know what I was talking about and they would know that VERY soon given that most of them were professionally trained in SOME form of performance. Who was I? Some reject from a prestigious theatre school who was an OK actor and stage manager in high school (and once in university)? Turns out they were all BAD ACTORS. And THIS IS A TERRIBLE PLAY!!!!! (*Throws his script across the room*) That was an inside joke, you had to be there. My job was easier since these were committed actors and Gordon and I had agreed to try each other's ideas before giving strong opinions in the negative.
I can honestly say this was one of, if not THE, most artistically enhanching experience of my life. The cast was prepared, but we still had to ease them forward. My co-director was and always will be brilliant, but I proved, mostly to myself, that I was his equal. I can point to one scene and feel it was mine alone, and that the performance became wistful and three-dimensional after I gave certain direction to the actor. Very importantly, almost the entire show was accidentally perfectly synchronised between the two of us. Gordon and I almost never disagreed, and they were all over minor issues. There were probably 75-100 times each when one of us would say something and the other would cross it out of their notes because it was EXACTLY what we had been thinking. It was a near-perfect experience.
There were so many wonderful events and inside jokes to 7 Stories, too. The mouth breathing stalker stuff, Sabrina being accident prone, "It's probably because you're Asian", the popsicles, the pre-rehearsal music, awkward hugging, my relationship with Marisa, "What do you guys want, you're the directors" "Oh wait, that's us", the idea that Gordon doesn't swear (I have NO idea where people are always getting this impression from, seriously, spend 5 minutes with the guy. . .), overselling opening night, the champagne, the lemon juice (a Woodlands Drama tradition continued), the standing ovation on closing night, and on and on.
My personal take away, however, is being able to say that I'm a director and feel good about it. How totally life-altering. How completely right. How lucky am I?