Wednesday, October 29, 2014

meet the cast of #blessed: Davis Fancher

#blessed, the first show of our second season is entering its final week at the Evergreen Theatre. We have a show at 8pm on Saturday, November 1st and a 2 o'clock matinee on Sunday, November 2nd.

   
It's time for our last interview!


Davis Fancher - Miss Loyal


Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Davis Fancher, and I play Miss Loyal.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

Well, I was born in Virginia. I moved around a lot when I was a kid, but I've spent the majority of my life in Memphis, so I consider Memphis to be my hometown.


What first drew you to acting?

Well, I guess you could say it was my brother. He's five years older than I am, and he got into acting when he was in high school, and I would go see his shows. My family always loved watching movies and seeing shows together, so I grew up knowing a lot of actor's names, because that's what my family did. So I saw my brother doing things on stage at his high school, and I just loved it. I thought it looked like so much fun, so when I got into high school, I did the same thing.

When I got to college, I didn't really intend to major in it because I was terrified [laughs], but when I got about half-way through my second semester, I realized it was what I wanted to do... so why not?


Where did you receive your training?

I received my training at the University of Memphis. I got my B.F.A. in theatre performance.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

I kind of want to say every faculty member at the University of Memphis, but I want to say that Jo Lenhart, specifically, has been really inspiring to me and is a wonderful person, and has really helped me a lot in my journey, as you would say. Besides that, honestly, everyone in Memphis who is doing theatre is someone I look up to. Every single person in Memphis who is doing theatre is just an inspiration.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

I'd have to say that my favorite part is once everyone has kind of got their lines and we get into the smoothing process. It's the part for me where most things get discovered. Everyone's get their lines and we're running through, making discoveries and we no longer have the book in our hands, that's my favorite part. I feel like when that happens that there are these magical few rehearsals that occur where everything isn't set in stone yet, but you're able to think outside of "what's my next line?'


What's your least favorite part?

I want to say auditions... I can't think of anything else... It's auditions [laughs].


What are some of your favorite past roles?

Most recently I was in As You Like It at Theatre Memphis, directed by Jo Lenhart. It was just a lovely production of a lovely show. It was one of those productions where you just loved everybody. It was just a really wonderful process. Besides that, I would say that my favorite show was Eurydice at the UofM. Leslie Barker directed that, and when I think of favorite shows it always comes out first in my mind. It as a very wonderful process, and I can't say enough good things about being in that show. I think that show, more than anything solidified my desire to be a theatre major. There was just a lot of love in that show.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

I tend to focus in on the words. I like to try and put myself into the character's shoes as much as possible. I really like to get into the text and mentally draw my character from the words on the page. I'm very in my head about it.


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

I work and I play video games and I read and I hang out with close friends. Though, unfortunately, the main answer is just work [laughs].


How do you like the Threepenny process?

Oh, I love the Threepenny process. It's wonderful. I think it's so interesting, because this is the first time I've worked with company that has this kind of attitude, especially when Matt said "We can't pay you, but we will offer you things that no other company in town offers in terms of in-rehearsal actor training and physical training." It's really just amazing, because I feel like that even though I have a fairly small part in the show, that I'm still involved in the creative process, and I feel like I'm still learning so much. And also with the whole Set-Your-Own-Admission idea, I think that's really new for Memphis, and I think that is really good and really needed.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I do it because I want to. I know that sounds really simple, but that's what it is. It's something that I like to do and it's something I want to do, and it's something I've luckily been given the opportunity to do, so I do it, because why not?

In terms of what I want to accomplish in my life, I feel that acting gives you insights into different ways of thinking, different viewpoints and different ways of living, so I hope to come out of each performance with a different viewpoint on things, and in terms of my art, I hope to better be able to understand the world, which is very confusing at times. To better understand the world and the human condition, I kind of just want to know things, you know? I think acting helps with that. It gives me a chance to see things.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to? Shout outs?

My family because they have always supported me, even when I didn't know how to support myself. My family, my friends, my fiancee: those are the big three. Triple F [laughs].


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

#blessed is a blast and everyone should come see it.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? crisp
What is your least favorite word? gangular
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? humor and laughing
What turns you off? hatefulness
What's one thing you love about Memphis? That no matter where I go, Memphis is part of me
What sound or noise do you love? kittens and puppies being cute
What sound or noise do you hate? shouting
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? piano technician
What profession would you not like to do? plumber.

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

"Not too shabby."


Thank you, Davis!

And thank you all for checking out these interviews! We have our final two shows coming up this Saturday and Sunday. We hope to see you all there. Thank you for supporting Threepenny Theatre Company.

Monday, October 27, 2014

meet the cast of #blessed: Doug Johnson

#blessed, the first show of our second season is entering its final week at the Evergreen Theatre.

  Tonight is a special industry night. We have a show at 8pm, so come check out some local theatre on a Monday! 

Since it's our last week, let's meet two more members of the cast!


Doug Johnson - David

Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Doug Johnson and I am playing David.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

I'm from out west. Utah is where I was born, despite the fact that my parents lived in Nevada, it was just the closest hospital. We moved around in the West for a while, but eventually settled in Savannah, Tennessee. I've I've lived in Memphis now for nine years, and that's the longest I've ever lived in any one place, so Memphis is home.


What first drew you to acting?

Competitiveness. My dad was in a play once in high school, and he talked about it a lot as I was growing up, and one day I saw a poster for the same play, Spoon River Anthology, posted in my high school, so I decided: why not, I'll give it a shot, and I've been acting ever since.


Where did you receive your training?

Most of my training comes from the University of Memphis. I got my bachelor's in fine arts there, and while I was there they were very generous to me and sent me to the Accademia dell'Arte in Arezzo, Italy, where I studied Commedia dell'Arte and philosophy of theatre and art and all sorts of other wonderful things.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

I have a lot of mentors for a lot of different things. In theatre, Susan Chritzberg has always been one of my favorite people: she gave me physical theatre training at the University of Memphis, and is someone who believed in me very much and was instrumental in getting me special training in Italy. She also taught me mask-making which I still do today. I actually sell my masks as part of my living.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

I like the rehearsals very early: where the blocking isn't set and no one knows their lines and we're just making it up as we go until something finally works.


What's your least favorite part?

It has to be tech rehearsals: that first night when lights and sound cues are being run and none of them are going right.


What are some of your favorite past roles?

I played Guildenstern in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, that is one of my favorite roles that I have every played, also Big Stone in Eurydice at the University of Memphis. I've also always loved ensemble work in Commedia dell'Arte roles where no one has a name, you just play your character, and no one get the glory for it.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

Physical theatre training is the biggest part of me. The first thing I always do is try and learn the text, the words, and see if I can relate those words to a character I know from my own life: a person I know speaks like this, and if I can't find that person, I make it up as I go along. I emulate body styles: how does this person walk, where do they hold themselves, what's their center of balance? Eventually that will push me into a more introspective moment of "why am I doing what I'm doing?"


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

I fill my time partially with work at Theatre Memphis. I am a ShoWagon actor: one of their professional touring actors and teachers. I am also currently directing a touring show at Germantown Community Theatre, and I play a lot of Magic: The Gathering and board games and roleplaying games with my nerdier friends when I can.


How do you like the Threepenny process?

It's been really good to me so far. The director, Matt Crewse, has given us a lot of reign to try new things. For example, in the final scene of Act One, we had rehearsed it, quite a lot actually, and we had it down, all the blocking and everything written down in our scripts and Matt says, "We can't really go any further with this, but we have some more time allotted for it, so forget everything you wrote down and just get up and do whatever you want to." And the scene became much better because we were able to try completely new things, and that's one of the best things about directors who are willing to give actors free reign: they usually get much better quality work.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

A large reason I act is that it gives me a social outlet: not just a way to socialize with other people, but a way for me to show some of my values to other people. Acting, and in particular teaching are two things that allow me to bring my ideal world about. I delight in getting to teach children and young adults. It's something I do a lot of, and I even have it at the top of my resume under personal mission:

"To give people a voice, with which they can speak with conviction and truth about the world that they see."


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to? Shout outs?

My dad has been great to me. Once I told him I was going to become an actor, he never said "Yeah, but how are you going to pay the bills?" And that has been absolutely wonderful to me. Also, I have a lot of friends who, after I left Memphis, told me I was welcome to come back and crash on their couch when I didn't have anything, so I'm very grateful to those people as well.


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Come see this show. If you are a fan of farce, you are going to absolutely love it. If you are a fan of French comedy, you will absolutely love it. If you love Memphis, you are absolutely going to love it.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? conviction
What is your least favorite word? procrastination
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? charging head-long into your goals
What turns you off? making excuses
What's one thing you love about Memphis? no other city has this much Soul 
What sound or noise do you love? thunderstorms
What sound or noise do you hate? smoke alarms
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? I thought I'd make a good politician
What profession would you not like to do? I'd hate to campaign as a politician [laughs].

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

"Well done."


Thank you, Doug! Check the blog on Wednesday for another interview! and come see #blessed, open now and running through November 2nd!.

And remember we have an industry performance TONIGHT at 8pm!

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

meet the cast of #blessed: Gregory Alexander

#blessed, the first show of our second season is now open through November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre!  Continue to meet our cast and come see the show! Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!

Gregory Alexander - Vince


Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Gregory Alexander, and I will be playing Vince.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

I am from New York City, and I consider New York to be my home, but I look at Memphis as kind of a second home away from home.


What first drew you to acting?

I was six years old and saw Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark. I would watch it obsessively, even to the point where I got the hat and the whip and would pretend I was in the film when I was watching it in my parents room, jumping around, leaping over the bed, creating fight scenes with people who weren't really there. I guess it might have been early onset signs of schizophrenia or something [laughs], but that's how I first started wanting to perform. Harrison Ford. I started going to P.P.A.S. (Professional Performing Arts School) when I was younger, but then I withdrew and transferred to another school, a prep school, to play basketball, so I stepped away from acting for a while, but then I got pulled back into it when I was 16 years old when the headmaster of the school asked me to play Prince Charming. I don't think I would get to play Prince Charming now [laughs], but I've been performing off and on since I was eight.


Where did you receive your training?

I got my training from the University of Memphis.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

My brother, we're complete opposites: he's a critical thinker, I'm a creative thinker, but I think his work ethic is admirable and that it's something I can learn from and grow from, and it's something to have and utilize in the acting craft as far as discipline is concerned. I can certainly use a little bit more of that. Also my mother. She's been my backbone since I was little. She's been my biggest supporter, and she's been through a lot, and I've watched her persevere and move on from a lot of losses. She's a very strong woman, and I've learned a lot from her.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

The beginning. I think we all have these anticipations of what our character is going to look like when we get the script, and we have all these creative ideas in our mind, and it never turns out to be what we think it might be. It's always something different, and I like the table-work process of it, and then going from there.


What's your least favorite part?

Strike... unless Jeff Posson's there [laugh].


What are some of your favorite past roles?

Matt Friedman in Talley's Folly. Ned Weeks in The Normal Heart. I would love to play those roles again, just because I know things now that I didn't know back then.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

Oh, I'm a total method actor... I'm just playing [laughs]. I like to try different things, you know? I'll try anything once if it doesn't put anyone else or my psychological state at risk. I like breaking down the practicalities of the character that I'm going to play: how he moves, how he sits, how he responds impulsively and physically, but then sometimes I like to have an intellectual side. I guess it depends on the type of play. If there is a research side, I'll do the research. You know, if I'm playing a scientist, I will study physics, because I think it would be a good idea for me to know what it is I'm talking about: quantum theory or whatever it is.

Editor's Note: You can catch Gregory as Quantum physicist Werner Heisenberg in Michael Frayn's Copenhagen this February at Theatre Memphis


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

Work [laughs]. I got to pay the bills. You know how it is, being a starving artist. It's kind of hard for me to think about it. I'm in medical sales, which isn't something I thought I would ever do. I've never seen myself as a salesman, but if I want to continue to pursue acting I need to have some sort of financial stability, so if I decide to go to L.A. or New York for a period of months, I have something to fall back on and sustain me. So yeah, it's non-stop. That's why this is so great: getting to rehearse and do a show, it's what I live for. I think it's what a lot of us live for, you know. There's never a break. There's no rest for the wicked... that was corny [laughs].


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I love it. I think Matt's brilliant. I think he's a bright dude. He's way beyond his years. I like what he is trying to do. I respect it. He has a vision and it shows. I remember from the first production of  Midsummer (Editor: Midsummer Night's Dream in June of 2013 was 3PT's first show) that he did at UofM, how exponentially the company he's started has grown, and the people that are involved are awesome: you, him, Chris Tracy, and the people who are regulars in the company's productions. They're all hard-working, dedicated actors, and the work shows. Threepenny's awesome.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I do it because I don't know what else to do. I don't know where else I would fit in this society. I don't think I would fit anywhere else. It's all that I know.

I've always rooted for the underdog, you know? Growing up I was the underdog: having to go through bullying and being around people who weren't so kind, but when I entered into the artistic realm of acting I saw people who were just like me: who have so much emotion inside them. We usually keep it concealed, but when that wall is broken, and we can share the common bond that we share, beautiful things can happen, not only on the stage but inter-personally. The people I've become friends with are some of the coolest and most kind-hearted people I ever met, and together, what I think I'd like to do, and I have an assumption that they would like the same is that that we allow our voices to be heard, for lack of a better term, so that the people who do not do what we do but struggle the same way we have continue to do so and know that they are not alone, and that they have the same opportunity to live their lives any way they want to. Because I know when I was a kid I was greatly discouraged from doing the things I love and being the person that I am, so I do what I do hoping that the underdogs can come out and know that they're not alone.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to? Shout outs?

Stephen Garrett, Chris Tracy, Jeff Posson, Matt Crewse, Jacob Wingfield, my brother, my sister, Emily Childers, Jon Castro, Jay Kim and my mother.


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Go check it out, it's going to be fun. Threepenny is always doing cool stuff, so you know it'll be interesting and you'll most likely have a good time.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? pococurante
What is your least favorite word? nice
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? talent
What turns you off? rude people
What's one thing you love about Memphis? fried chicken
What sound or noise do you love? flat sounds
What sound or noise do you hate? the train
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? none
What profession would you not like to do? physician

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"We've been waiting for you..."


Thank you, Greg! Check the blog on Monday for another interview! and come see #blessed, open now and running through November 2nd!. And remember we have an industry performance this coming Monday, October 22nd at 8pm!

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Video interview: Meghann and Dylan talk about #blessed

You've read their bios, now listen to their sweet melodic voices as Meghann Oglesby and Dylan Atkins talk about their characters in #blessed!

#blessed - Meghann and Dylan

Monday, October 20, 2014

Meet the cast of #blessed: Emily Childers

 #blessed, the first show of our second season is now open through November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre!  Continue to meet our cast and come see the show! Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!

Emily Childers - Mary


Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Emily Childers and I am playing Mary.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

Memphis, Tennessee.


What first drew you to acting?

My dad put me into some theatre camps as a child. I liked being the center of attention and I needed to let off some excess energy, so dad signed me up.


Where did you receive your training?

I have a B.F.A. in Theatre from the University of Memphis. I have improv training from the Second City Acting Conservatory in Chicago, and I did post-graduate work at the Accademia dell'Arte in Arezzo, Italy where my main concentration was physical theatre.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

Bob Hetherington: he's only directed me in one show and taught me in two classes, but that man speaks my language when it come to theatre and direction. Also Claudia Schnuerer from Accademia dell'Arte, she was our movement teacher and she taught me how to really embody my body and how to move as an actor.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

The choices that we make.


What's your least favorite part?

Getting off book [laughs].


What are some of your favorite past roles?

Alice in Closer at The University of Memphis. Cecily Cardew in The Importance of Being Earnest at Theatre Memphis.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

The physical. I start with how they move and how they talk; what part of the body they would lead with. I like to start on the outside of the character and work my way in.


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

Well, I bar-tend at Houston's Restaurant, so come and grab a tasty martini from me at any time. I see a lot of theatre around town. I live in a house with three boys who are constantly keeping me busy, entertained and on my toes. There's never a dull moment in my house.


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I absolutely love it. Matt knows what he is doing. He is very well educated in the script he is directing, and he meets the actor where they are. He lets us make choices, but also lets us know what works, what doesn't work. He's very loving and non-judgmental, and I'm so, so happy to be part of all the shows that Threepenny has put on since its inception as a founding company member.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I say it all the time to myself and to other people: I don't do theatre because I want to, I do it because I have to. It fills a certain part of me that nothing else does. Performing is never work and it's never a bad time. The more theatre training I get, the smaller my dreams and goals seem to become when it comes to theatre, but I think it's because I am realizing that Broadway, for me, isn't the Nth degree, having a huge fan base isn't the Nth degree. Being able to keep theatre in my life: whether it is to see theatre, or to teach theatre or to continue my actor training and be involved in a theatre community: there are many different ways of keeping theatre in your life, and I'm realizing that, and I'm coming to terms with that, and it's taking pressure off of me. And I know that through it all, I will always do theatre. I think that part of it is that when I'm not chasing theatre, theatre seems to chase me.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to? Shout outs?

SHOUT OUT! Shout out to my cast members. Shout out to my mom, my dad and my step-mom, and a shout out to all the Memphis actors.


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Come and see our show. You'll be blessed and highly favored [laughs].


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? rhymes with Puck? [laughs]
What is your least favorite word? beverage
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? intelligence
What turns you off? the phrase "I know."
What's one thing you love about Memphis? The hospitality and food.
What sound or noise do you love? laughter
What sound or noise do you hate? my neighbor's dog [laughs]
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? Teaching at a collegiate or conservatory level
What profession would you not like to do? I don't want to be a server/bartender all my life.

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"It was always okay."


Thank you, Emily! Check the blog on Wednesday for another interview! and come see #blessed, open now and running through November 2nd!.

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Meet the cast of #blessed: John Dylan Atkins

As we move in toward #blessed, the first show of our second season (opening this Friday October 17th and running through November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre), we thought it might be fun for everyone to meet the cast. Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!




Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

John Dylan Atkins, and I am playing Richard.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

I am from Lewis County, specifically Hohenwald, Tennessee. I consider that to be my hometown, since I was born there and raised there for twenty-one years


What first drew you to acting?

People wanting me to act [laughs].


Where did you receive your training?

The University of Memphis.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

A broad mentor is Albert Finney. Watching him perform before even beginning acting inspired me to want to be a performer.

More actively, Sarah Brown at the UofM mentored me from an acting standpoint. She really took me under her wing and shaped me from just a ball of raw talent into talent with direction. Jo Lenhart really taught me how to use my voice and body in ways that I didn't know how to. Because I still spoke really Southern whenever I came to Memphis and she fixed me [laughs].


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

Probably the relationships that you get from it and the growth of friendships that probably wouldn't happen otherwise because you wouldn't run into these people. You just get to meet so many great, unique people: professional artists and people who are doing it just to do it, because they love it.


What's your least favorite part?

Not being able to get out of my own head [laughs]. I'm really hard on myself, so until I get comfortable enough to where I'm not always in my own head it's usually fairly stressful.


What are some of your favorite past roles?

George W. Bush in Stuff Happens. Edmund in King Lear. Macduff in Macbeth. I liked playing Sandy Tyrell in Hay Fever, that was really fun. And then the Sheriff in Bat Boy: The Musical, that's just the most ridiculous show ever, it's awesome [laughs].


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

I focus a lot on being as natural as I can. That's what I get whenever I watch Albert Finney. It's what I strive to be: as real as I can be. And especially since I play villains a lot, I try to make them likable because, in real life, villains are normally likable people. You don't know that they're villains until they show you. So that's just really being natural: finding something that's likable. Even if they're the most unsettling person imaginable, I like to try to find something that the people are going to connect with so they understand where the character is coming from.


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

Work, paying bills. That's it [laughs]. I like film acting, whenever it comes up. I spend a lot of time writing screenplays, writing music. I try to write a song a day, most of them really bad [laughs] but something to keep the creative juices going.


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I love it. Mostly because... art is a really touchy thing. Most people are really sensitive. But when I'm in the room with Matt directing me, he's never sensitive, and I'm not sensitive. He gives direction in a way that it's not overly forceful. It's like we're sharing ideas, and if an idea doesn't work, I feel comfortable enough to say "this works" or "this doesn't work", where in other processes I haven't always felt that comfortable. I didn't know that my voice had as much worth in other processes, but I feel really comfortable, and maybe it's because I knew Matt before all of this, but it doesn't feel like the director is any more important than anyone else in this process and I think that is really cool and unique.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I continue to do it because it's the only thing that makes me happy. I am probably not the most stable person with my emotions and theatre helps stabilize my emotions, so if, let's say, I'm feeling rage, I have an outlet for my rage or if I'm feeling heartbroken, I have an outlet for my heartbreak. I continually have an outlet, and I've been blessed in that way, so I have to keep doing it. It's not so much a want as it is a necessity for me, and, as cliche as it sounds, the only thing I really want is to reach people. I just want to make a difference. So if on one day I do one thing on stage that really strikes someone, and they carry that with them for the rest of their career or life, I mean, that's not what I do this for, but that makes it even better because I think that's how you transcend yourself, by your art being carried by other people, and I guess that's what I want: for my art to be carried by the people I share it with.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to?

I want to send some love to my mom and my little brother. I'd like to send some love to all my teachers who got me here, over at the UofM. Special shout out to Bob Hetherington for mentoring without mentoring me. The same for Copeland Woodruff. Love to all of my actor friends in this city because they're basically the only friends that I have [laugh]. They're my family.


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

It's a really, really fun show. It's over the top. It's got moments when there's real heart. It's a classic story; a re-telling of a classic story, and... wow, this question is really hard [laughs]. I mean, I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't think it was great. I have a lot of fun doing it and I know the whole cast does. We have really good chemistry with each other, so I think that it's going to be hilarious and everyone is really going to enjoy it, so everybody needs to come and see it immediately, because I don't think there are going to be any seats the later weekends.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? Love
What is your least favorite word? Nose
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Commitment
What turns you off? Dishonesty
What's one thing you love about Memphis? The Art
What sound or noise do you love? Music
What sound or noise do you hate? Fingernails screeching on a chalkboard
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? None [laughs]
What profession would you not like to do? Doctor

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
I don't think I have to worry about that [laughs].


Thank you, Dylan. Check the blog tomorrow for a video interview with Meghann and Dylan.

#blessed open this Friday at the Evergreen Theatre! Show starts at 8pm and every performance is Set Your Own Admission price!

Check the blog on Monday for a new interview!

Monday, October 13, 2014

Meet the cast of #blessed: Meghann Oglesby

As we move in toward #blessed, the first show of our second season (running October 17th - November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre), we thought it might be fun for everyone to meet the cast. Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!

Meghann Oglesby - Ellen


Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Meghann Oglesby and I play Ellen.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

That's a good question. I'm from Minneapolis by way of Chicago, Illinois. I consider Chicago to be my hometown.


What first drew you to acting?

Well, I just always liked performing of any kind, and my mother is an actor. That's all she does, so when I was younger I spent quite a bit of time doing homework in the audience during her rehearsals [laughs]. So my mom kind of got me and my younger brother into it when we were younger. She had an agent, so she got us an agent, and we did some things as kids.


Where did you receive your training?

I've never had any formal training, but in terms of experience I've always been working. I did theatre camps in the summer. I did plays in high school, and then I went to college and did shows there, and I've done quite a bit of community theatre in Memphis.


Where did you go to college? What did you study?

I went to Rust College in Holly Springs, Mississippi, which is now where I work and reside. I teach mass communications there. I got my bachelor's degree in mass communications in 2009.


So, you drive from Holly Springs every day to come to rehearsal?

Yes, I do. The things you do for love [laughs].


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

My parents. They are just amazing people. They're hard-working people who keep God at the center of their lives, in whatever they do. Anytime I have a problem or need something, I can call one of them. They are my greatest inspiration and biggest role-models. There are other people that I look up to and admire: famous people, people who taught me in school, but I just can't think of anyone who inspires me more than my parents.

I do have a singer, my favorite singer, who is really inspiring to me. Her name is Ledisi. I discovered her in 2007, and she is a huge inspiration to me through her career and her spirit and her personality. She's persevered through people telling her she didn't have the right look to be successful: that she was too dark-skinned or that she wasn't pretty enough or that she had dreadlocks and just wasn't the right kind of package, but she's proven them all wrong now. She shares this story all the time about she was inspired and given the confidence to move forward by a conversation she had with her own mother who told her that everything was going to be alright. So she's a big inspiration to me in my life towards working hard and pursuing an acting career and believing that everything is going to be alright if that is what I really want to do. If my heart is really there, if my love is really there, if I put my mind to it and I pray about it and keep things in perspective, I can do what I want to do.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

My favorite part of the theatrical process is the end part [laughs]. The end result. Just being up there on the stage giving all that I got for the people who came to see what it is I have to give. Being able to share my talent, share what God gave me, share that kind of expression with other people in that kind of way is my absolute favorite thing about it.


What's your least favorite part?

Learning the lines. It comes pretty easy to me to learn lines. It doesn't take me a long time to learn lines, thank God I have a good memory, but that part is annoying. Because when you're rehearsing, until you have those things down pat, rehearsal is always very, very annoying. I mean for me, anyway. I can't speak for anyone else [laughs]. But that's the worse part, because you can't really do what you want to do until you have that down.


What are some of your favorite past roles?

Recently, I did two different shows at Hattiloo Theatre. I just recently got done with a musical where I played Andrea in Once on This Island, and that was definitely one of my favorites because it was the first time, really, that I had on opportunity to do a musical and to play a character where I had to sing and sing solo, and I just loved that, I enjoyed it so much, it was just so much fun and definitely a defining moment for me, in my journey as an actor, because it was a first. Right before that I did an August Wilson play before that where I played Vera in Seven Guitars, and that is definitely one of my favorite roles that I've played: very meaty character and content in that show and I got to show my range of emotions and we got nominated for an Ostrander award for best ensemble, so that was pretty cool.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

What I like to focus on is how it feels to to me. I like to ask "what would I, Meghann, be doing if this was my real-life situation?" That's what works best for me, asking "if this is what happened to me" or "if this is what someone said to me" how I would be dealing with it. I ask how it makes me feel, and I bring that emotion out.


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

I fill my time with cupcakes. I am trying to get rid of that little addiction. It's not the most healthful way to live... but it is pretty fun [laughs].

I teach. I'm a full time instructor. I teach college students broadcasting: radio and television, so that takes up a lot of my time because even though I only have classes at a particular time, my job is  really never ending: helping students, advising student organizations, going to meetings, going to conferences. It's a never-ending schedule. Keeps me very busy when I'm not doing this. Which is why I need this, for my sanity [laughs].


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I love the Threepenny rehearsal process. I love the consideration taken in the scheduling, so I don't have to be here when I don't have a scene. I don't have to sit here for a few hours just to say a few lines. Especially since I live so far away. I'd be very angry if had to burn that much gas [laughs] and not have much time to work, so I really appreciate that. I also love that, to me, Threepenny seems really invested in each actor: to the individual development of every actor in the production. I appreciate that, and I know that I'm personally growing as an actor through this experience. Thanks Threepenny!


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I continue to do what I do on the stage because I absolutely love it. It's my favorite place to be, on the stage, that's my favorite thing: being on the stage, in front of people. I had a college instructor, who is actually one of my colleagues now at Rust College, say to me one day, and I'm never going to forget this, he asked "Meghann, are you ever offstage?" and I was like "NO!" [laughs]. Because I guess I'm not. I never thought about it that kind of way.

When it's all said and done, I'd like to know that I made people feel something, and I hope to have given performances that allow people to connect with me, personally. I'd like to be the type of actor that inspires others to want to pursue their dreams and be confident and feel free to un-apologetically pursue their dreams and be themselves.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to?

I'd love to send some love to my parents, because they're the bomb-diggity. I'd love to send some love out to my sorors. I'm a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. I'd love to send some love to Rust College because that's where I work and that's my home and I love those people. I wouldn't be here without Rust College. And I'd love to send some love out to Hattiloo!


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Come see it!


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? Boo
What is your least favorite word? Moist
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Honesty
What turns you off? Dishonesty [laughs]
What's one thing you love about Memphis? Midtown
What sound or noise do you love? Drums
What sound or noise do you hate? Moaning or groaning or lip-sipping in my classroom
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? Singer
What profession would you not like to do? Janitor

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"Well done."


Thank you, Meghann! Check the blog on Wednesday for another interview! and come see #blessed, opening this Friday at the Evergreen Theatre. All shows are set your own admission price!

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Video interview: Jillian and Jerry talk about #blessed

You've read their bios, now listen to their sweet melodic voices as Jillian Barron and Jerry Kimble talk about their characters in #blessed!

#blessed - Jillian and Jerry

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Meet the cast of #blessed: Jerry Kimble

As we move in toward #blessed, the first show of our second season (running October 17th - November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre), we thought it might be fun for everyone to meet the cast. Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!



Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Jerry Kimble, Junior, and the role I'm playing is Clarence.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

I'm from Memphis, TN, born and raised. Been here the majority of my life. Moved out a couple times, but I've been back here for about two years.


What first drew you to acting?

Well there are two different parts. One, when I was young, I used to be in pageants and stuff, where I used to sing and do stand-up comedy. This was like at six years old [laugh], and I would always do little monologues from things I had learned in church or from a funny movie. I kind of pushed that to the back-burner because I majored in music for a long time. I was deep into music: band and choir and stuff, and then in high school, my senior year, my band director said "Hey, I'm doing a play this summer. I'll be directing the orchestra at the Orpheum, you should come and audition." I was like "...naw." [laughs].  I was always the guy that would imitate everybody. I was always the clown, wouldn't say "class clown", but I would always do stupid stuff without getting in trouble for it [laughs] because I was smart. Anyway, he got me to audition and I got the role and got paid to act. One of my very first professional gigs, and I was only sixteen. So, I was like "man, I kinda like that." I've been doing it ever since then.


Where did you receive your training?

I received my training from the University of Memphis. I actually went two different places. I first went to Tennessee State University in Nashville, and I was there for about two-and-a-half, three years, where I was majoring in music education, and then I was like "You know what, let me try out for a play" and the first play I did was Julius Caesar, played the role of Brutus, so, at that point I wanted to change my major. I changed it to Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Music and Theatre. I was trying to build my own musical theatre degree since I already had that musical background and they didn't have musical theatre degrees offered there. I transferred after taking a few years off, getting acting gigs in films around Memphis, especially when we had that boom of big films coming into the city. Then I finally went back to school and got my degree from the University of Memphis. I have a B.F.A. in Theatre Performance.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

On-stage is hard. I look up to James Earl Jones. I always liked the roles he played in theatre. I just thought his theatre was kind of magical because he had this big, booming deep voice, where he could captivate a crowd just by talking, and he was great at storytelling.

I guess my mentor would be my mother. She was an English professor, taught in both college and in high school, so she would force us to read all these stories in the summertime when other kids were outside playing [laughs]. I mean, I still got to play, but I had to read so many books in the summertime. I had to set aside an hour to read something like The Great Gatsby and then something else the next week. So I always take my mother as my inspiration, because she had me read all these stories, and I always had this wild, vivid imagination because of that, and I think it kind of helped me with acting.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

Believe it or not, because it's probably the opposite of what everyone else says, but my favorite part of the theatrical process is auditioning. I feel like I'm actually great at auditioning because I'm great at adjusting, at playing different characters and I usually sit there and put everything out there at once and say "I can do this, I can do that", so it shows my versatility. So I actually like auditioning, which a lot of people hate.


What's your least favorite part?

Lately, it has actually been opening night, and the reason is sometimes I get such an adrenaline rush that I start hiccuping. I get these wild hiccups and my arms kind of start shaking, and it's only on opening night that this happens. I get this uncontrollable energy that I can't hold down sometimes and it's almost a little bit too much: my body can't take it, so I start hiccuping and I even feel like I might throw up, because the adrenaline is so overwhelming. Once I get settled into the play, a good ten or fifteen minutes in, it goes away, but probably starting an hour before go and running right up til fifteen minutes in, it is wild.


What are some of your favorite past roles?

One would be Troy Maxson, who I played in Fences at the UofM. Another would be Brutus in Julius Caesar that I played at Tennessee State. I really liked playing Banquo. I tend to like playing a lot of Shakespeare, I've noticed. I played Banquo in... ahhh

In "that one"? 

Yeah, in "that one" [laughs]. I'm not superstitious, so I don't mind saying it, but we're around other theatre people, and I don't want to spook them. So I won't say it. The Scottish Play [laughs].


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

My style is kind of weird, because I always tend to get the characters who are storytellers, which goes back to what I was saying about James Earl Jones. I always felt he was a great storyteller, and I think I kind of modeled him a little bit, so it seems like every role I get, I get these characters who have these long monologues, and I'm always looking at everyone else thinking "Why don't they have long monologues. I always have these long, long monologues." [laughs]. So I always try and go after these monologues first, which sort of shows in my rehearsal process. The monologues I'll have down quick. It's the dialogue, the talking back and forth that is the last thing that I get because I try and get the big stuff out of the way and the short stuff I save till later. That stuff is important, but it's the way I work. I'm actually kind of more comfortable at times with the monologue because I can rely on myself, because it's all me [laughs].


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

I'm on the board of a film company called Cellardoor Cinema, and we hold a film fest every year. It's called Unreal Film Fest and we just had our fourth annual festival this past week, Sunday through Wednesday. We concentrate on fantasy movies, sci-fi movies and horror movies. This year they decided "Hey, since Jerry speaks so well, how about you be host", so that was even more I had on my table. I also still do alot of film around the city. So last Saturday, for example, I ended up filming an action movie here in the city, which was fun and interesting. After that, I had to go straight to work [laugh] and then straight from work I had to go home and try and run lines for #blessed, so I'm always busy doing something it seems. I never really have a chance to slow down. Which I am kind of used to. I'm used to having multiple jobs. Like right now, I have three jobs, on top of everything else. It's kind of the reason I don't do a whole lot of live theatre. I'd rather respect the process and the other actors and not lag behind. But with this role, I realized I had the time and I could really do it well, so I said sure.


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I like it, it's different. Because we're not just going "Let's beat this into you. Let's beat this into you." Most theatres will have you just keep running the play and running the play and running the play. Lot's of times I've done shows and they will table-read once or twice and then do a scene once and then just run. Here, we do scene work, individual scene work repeatedly. We don't just run the play over and over. It's more like film in that way. You'll do an individual scene multiple times in rehearsal.

The process can be difficult. I've been doing a lot of film for the last seven years, and I usually try and not do film and live theatre at the same time. Because you'll be doing film and someone will say "you're being too big, bring it in, bring it in" or I'll be doing theatre and the director will say "You're being quiet, we need you a bit brighter", so it's kind of funny how it goes back and forth like that. So I try to not to mix the two... but right now I'm mixing the two and it's working well [laughs].


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I really like what I do, because when I was young I realized, like I said, I like performing. I'm not really one of those people who likes attention in real life. I'm still kind of shy. It's weird, theatre has gotten me out of that shyness, but I still have that shyness in me, so I guess you could say it's a way for me to express myself. Because growing up I was always very quiet. I didn't make friends unless you came up to me first. Not that I was stuck up or anything, I was just too shy to go talk to someone. With theatre, the part of me that is not shy, the other part, comes out, so you actually get to see more of my personality in theatre than if we actually sat down and talked [laughs].

As far as my craft, I honestly don't have to be rich or anything like that. I just want to be a steady working actor that can actually pay his bills [laughs] and not have to work in corporate America to make ends meet. I would rather do film or theatre for the rest of my life and actually do it well enough that people will say "Hey, you know that Jerry guy? He's actually pretty good. We should hire him." From there, it would be nice for people to then say "Let's invite him to this school to let him talk about his life", because I've got so many stories about auditions and people I've met and traveling [laughs]. It's a unique process that a lot of people don't go through. Our job is to put joy and laughter and thought in front of other people. Lots of people don't have that. In business, they are always trying to sell you something. They don't care that you're happy, they just want to get that sale across. We actually care that you get it. So I actually like having that control over emotion: being able to make people feel good or really care about something, especially something socially. If there is a play that is topical and makes you think, it's great. Because if you can change just one life, then you've done your job. If you can change one thing about the way a person thinks and open up their mind, I think that's incredible.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to?

Mom and Dad, I'll always love them. The people I'm working with in this cast. And anyone who reads this and wants to act. Don't be scared, just go and do your best, and it should be enough.


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Very well written. Also, it's one of those things that is eye-opening. Because I believe some of the people in the crowd will see themselves in this play. Some of them will, some of them won't, some of them will be blind to the fact, maybe on purpose. But I think it's going to be an incredible play and people are going to enjoy it and are really going to be shocked by the great acting that we have in it.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? Love
What is your least favorite word? Funky
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Anything that gives me inspiration
What turns you off? Close-minded people and stupidity
What's one thing you love about Memphis? The open-hearted love you can find in this city.
What sound or noise do you love? A crowd cheering
What sound or noise do you hate? A crowd booing
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? Computer science
What profession would you not like to do? Cardio-respiratory therapy

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"My son, you fought through all your trials and tribulation, and now you got to spend eternity with Me."


Thank you, Jerry. Check the blog tomorrow for a video interview with Jillian and Jerry. and check the blog on Monday for a new interview!

Monday, October 6, 2014

Meet the Cast of #blessed: Jillian Barron

As we move in toward #blessed, the first show of our second season (running October 17th - November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre), we thought it might be fun for everyone to meet the cast. Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!

Jillian Barron - Dana


Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Jillian Barron and I'm playing the role of Dana.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

I'm from Illinois, and I consider my hometown to be Herrin even though I've moved throughout the state.


What first drew you to acting?

My mom wanted my brothers and I to do some sort of summer camp my eighth grade year. There was a theatre one going on, so I said "That one, let's do it." and now I'm doing plays all the time [laughs]!


Where did you receive your training?

I got my bachelor's degree in theatre performance from Union University.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

For theatre and acting, I look up to Kevin Anderton. He was a professor of mine at Union, and I also did several shows under his direction. He expanded my approach to acting in ways that I had never even considered. Other than acting, my parents are huge influences on me when it comes to working hard and doing the best at whatever it is I'm doing.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

I love rehearsal [laughs]. I love being able to just dig in and find all the little details in every aspect of whatever show is going on and just getting to explore and try all kinds of things, whether they work or not. I mean I love performing, but once you are performing it's set in stone and I love that part when you're just discovering what is going on.


What's your least favorite part?

Memorizing lines [laughs]. Followed closely by tech rehearsal.


What are some of your favorite past roles?

Catherine in Proof is a definite favorite. Gertrude McFuzz in Seussical, the musical was so much fun. And my role in The Visit, I was The Professor, and it was a very challenging role, so it helped me grow a lot.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

I don't think at this point I have a definite approach. I start by just going through the lines and approaching it like I would if it was just me, like if I was just saying that, and from there I try to discover "Who is this person?" because they aren't me. They might be similar to me, but they're not me. So from there I start finding all the different shades and colors to who they are as a person... or an animal... or whatever it is I'm playing [laughs].


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

Work... and yoga... and canning food... and that's it [laughs].


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I love it. It's very different from anything I've done here. It reminds me a lot actually of a troupe I was in under Kevin Anderton, in that it was actors doing their own plays for themselves: artists doing art because they love it, not for the sake of "well, we need to get this many people in the seats" or "we need to be sure to make this much money" or "we need to make sure we win these awards and are recognized for this." We're just doing it because we love to do it, and I think it's very freeing in that sense, and you get a lot of great talent that you can work with and just work off of each other and just grow stronger. I love it.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

For me, on maybe the most basic of levels, it's a great emotional release because in so many aspects of our life you have to be a certain "face". You have to be "pleasant". You have to be "happy". You can't really show everything else that is going on inside of you because that's not "OK" or "PC". Someone saying "You are the face of this business, or this school, or this company." By doing theatre I get to explore all sorts of emotional aspects of myself and also of the human nature that I otherwise wouldn't get to fully experience.

Big picture, throughout my career I would love to have been able to give enough for other people to take what I have given artistically and keep going with it. Whether that's in direct contact in a play, like just being able to give a fellow actor something to keep playing with and to remember and use with somebody else. Indirectly, for someone who sees something I was in, I want to give them something to take with them: to give them a little grain of something that makes them think.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to?

Shout out to mom and dad, I love you. Colt Dixon, you keep me grounded. Heather Nicholas, you keep me alive for theatre. Mike and Davis, you help feed me [laughs]. And anyone else who takes the time to say "hello" [laughs].


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

It is a really fun, modern interpretation of a timeless classic.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? Knickerbocker
What is your least favorite word? Decision
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Hans Zimmer
What turns you off? P.C. bologna
What's one thing you love about Memphis? Overton Square
What sound or noise do you love? a wooden bat hitting a baseball
What sound or noise do you hate? ice cubes rubbing together
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? Yoga instructor
What profession would you not like to do? Tax accounting

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"Good job" [laughs]


Thank you, Jillian. Check the blog on Wednesday for another interview!

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Video Interview: Dani and Jared talk about #blessed

You've read their bios, now listen to their sweet melodic voices as Jared Graham and Danielle Carr talk about their characters in #blessed!




Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Meet the cast of #blessed: Danielle Carr

As we move in toward #blessed, the first show of our second season (running October 17th - November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre), we thought it might be fun for everyone to meet the cast. Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!

Danielle Carr - Mother Parnelle


Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Danielle Carr and I am playing Mother Parnelle.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

Well I was born in Dallas, TX, but I was raised in Memphis from the time I was a year old, so I would definitely consider Memphis, TN to be my hometown.


What first drew you to acting?

I was always a performer as a kid. I sang in choirs and I loved getting on stage for school plays, so it was always a natural progression. There was a community production of The Princess Bride at Ewing Children's Theatre, so I auditioned for that, since it was my favorite movie when I was eleven, and I got cast as Vizzini in that, so I got to be the little Italian man [laughs]. After that, I just never really stopped. I think what drew me to it is that as a kid I wanted to be everything. I never really wanted  to, you know how some kids are like "I wanted to be a veterinarian my whole life" or "I wanted to be an astronaut my whole"?  I wanted to be absolutely everything, and acting seemed like the way that I could do that. That I could live every single thing that I ever wanted to do.


Where did you receive your training?

My training I received from the University of Memphis. I have my B.F.A. in Theatre Performance from the UofM. I graduated magna cum laude.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

Definitely my parents, and specifically with my acting mentors I look up to Anita Jo Lenhart and Sarah Brown. They were my teachers in college and have continued to inspire me throughout the years. Personal life mentor is definitely Angela Massengale.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

I love the moments when you finally get it. Where you're trying to figure out a character and you can't crack them yet. It's always an organic process and with a director like Matt, he really helps you into a situation where you can explore and explore and try, and fail, and it's fine, and then there's finally that moment when you get it and you're like, "This is what they're doing, this is why they did it. It's not about what I think it has been about. It's something completely different." It's those moment of clarity within a character. That's the best part for me.


What's your least favorite part?

Memorizing lines [laughs]. Definitely memorizing lines.


What are some of your favorite past roles?

Most assuredly Titania and Hippolyta from A Midsummer Night's Dream. I loved doing that show. I also really loved Juror #4 in 12 Angry Jurors. I got to do that show in college and it was definitely a favorite.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

I would define it... I don't know if there is really a word, but I definitely like to focus on back-story because it's the choices that you make leading to the moment that you step on stage that define who you are there in that present moment. So back-story is always very important to me. It doesn't even matter the role, I like to know where they are coming from. Every single time I step on the stage I like to know where they've been and what they've been doing.


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

I work at Germantown Community Theatre. I love it there! I also read a lot, and I love to sing.


How do you like the Threepenny process?

I love it. I love the Threepenny process. Like I said earlier, Matt is really able to guide you on the path to where you feel comfortable enough to explore. You don't ever feel like you're going to be judged for trying something different, and it's that comfortableness and it's that level of being able to be creative that is so enticing and so freeing.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

I continue to do what I do because I love it. I don't want to do anything else. I want to be an actress. I want to perform, and I can't see myself not performing. I do other things in my spare time, but it's always about this. It's always about performing. That's why I keep doing it. With this show and with acting in general: I've always wanted to make people think. I've always wanted to entertain people to where they don't just leave a show having had a good time, but also leave a show with something really in their minds. Something that they really enjoyed, that really stood out to them, and so I want my own acting to be really thought-provoking, to open people's eyes.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to?

My parents and my family. My friends Elaine and Angela, both Angelas, Drew and Chris. Everybody in Threepenny and everybody at Germantown Community Theatre. I love everyone [laughs].


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Come see it! It's going to be a great time. It's going to be so funny. You're not going to know what hit you.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? Fish.
What is your least favorite word? Moist
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Discovery
What turns you off? Close-mindedness
What sound or noise do you love? City-scapes, the sound of the city at night.
What sound or noise do you hate? Tapping, people who tap their fingers on things
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? Publishing or editing
What profession would you not like to do? Anything to do with government.

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"You did a good job. You did the best you could."


Thank you, Danielle. Check the blog tomorrow for a video interview with Danielle and Jared. and check the blog on Monday for a new interview!

Monday, September 29, 2014

Meet the cast of #blessed: Jared Graham

As we move in toward #blessed, the first show of our second season (running October 17th - November 2nd at the Evergreen Theatre), we thought it might be fun for everyone to meet the cast. Check out the blog every Monday and Wednesday for Q and A's to help you get to know our company a little bit better!

Jared Graham - Orson
Hello! What's your name, and what's the role you are playing in #blessed? 

My name is Jared Graham. I'm playing Orson Parnelle.


Where are you from ? What do you consider to be your hometown?

I grew up in middle Tennessee in a town called Tullahoma. I lived there for 18 years, and now my folks reside in a town about 15 miles from there called Manchester, where they hold Bonnaroo every summer, so that's where I go home to visit now.


What first drew you to acting?

The attention [laughs]. I did a school play when I was in the third grade and got to play an evil mayor type and just loved the reaction of the audience, so I just kept at if from age seven on.


Where did you receive your training?

A few places. I graduated from the University of Memphis with a B.F.A. in 2008. Before that I had actually studied a year at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky. I spent a year at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York doing conservatory training there and I also got to spend a semester at the Accademia Dell'Arte in Arezzo, Italy before I graduated with my B.F.A. Post-graduate, I went back to the Accademia Dell'Arte and earned my M.F.A. in physical theatre.


Who were your mentors? Who do you admire and look up to, either on-stage or in all aspects of your life?

Real or imaginary [laughs]? I had a lot of really great instructors in Italy that have really kind of changed the way I think and feel about art in general. Scott McGehee was really one of the first people who challenged me to think about what "making art" means in a social and a political context, so ever since taking his courses I've had a deeper appreciation for the role of art and what part the things I can create play in that larger role. Michele Bottini was my acting teacher. He taught us Commedia dell'Arte and really expanded our minds on what it means to be a physical actor or any kind of actor and the kind of awareness and training that goes along with it: the fine tuning of the body that goes into a well rounded actor. Susan Chrietzberg at the U of M was one of my early influences and I really loved all the classes she provided. I took mask-making with her. That was my first experience making masks, which I still do. Movement classes, stage combat: she was a very influential person in the University's program at the time that I was there and she wrote my letter of recommendation when I was applying for grad school, so I've always been very appreciative of her.


What's your favorite part of the theatrical process?

The rehearsal room. Trying new things and seeing if they stick.


What's your least favorite part?

Auditions [laughs].


What are some of your favorite past roles?

One of my earliest, actually my first Shakespeare role was Mercutio (from Romeo and Juliet)  and I'd love the opportunity to play him again. Ensign Pulver from Mister Roberts was a real favorite. Peter Quince (from A Midsummer Night's Dream) is a lot of fun. Benedick from Much Ado About Nothing is also a really fun one.


How would you define your style. What do you like to focus on as you prepare a character?

Well, having a master's in physical theatre, I like to approach my character from a physical standpoint first: how he stands, holds his shoulders, if he's got good posture or bad posture, his age, the weight of the character. I really concentrate on making those decisions first, so I can feel the character in my body and let everything else kind of stem from that.


When you're not working with Threepenny Theatre, how do you spend your time?

Well, I work my make-money job from 8-5, so that takes up a lot of time, but what I love to do in my free time, which I don't have much of, is comic books, video games, art, I draw when I have the opportunity and I watch a lot of TV series [laughs].


How do you like the Threepenny process?

This is my first experience with the Threepenny process and so far I really enjoy it. I think spending a good amount of time with the text before getting on our feet informs a lot of decisions that happen in the rehearsal room. So far the training we've been doing has been beneficial, I think, for myself and for the other members of the cast. I've been privileged to be able to teach the Elemental Body Alignment System (EBAS) to this cast, and I think incorporating large amounts of training into the process is going to be really beneficial for the company as a whole.


The "Big" Question: why do you continue to do what you do onstage, and once you are all said and done, what would you like to have accomplished with your art, not just in this show, but in your life?

When it's all said and done, I want to have inspired and taught others. I want to share the knowledge and technique that I have acquired and continue to expand it throughout my life and hope that I've been able to share my ideas with others who inspire me and, hopefully, have taken some inspiration from me.


Anyone you'd like to send some love out to?

My folks: Tony and Debi Graham, they have supported me every step of the process, probably more than I deserved, and I couldn't be a luckier boy to have them for parents.


Always be closing. Any final words to people about #blessed?

Just come see it. It's going to be a lot of fun.


 And to wrap up, some quick-fire "Inside the Actor's Studio" questions!

What is your favorite word? Onomatopoeic
What is your least favorite word? Moist
What turns you on: creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Seeing others dive into their work and take risks.
What turns you off? People who think they have all the answers.
What sound or noise do you love? Nature, the sounds of the forest
What sound or noise do you hate? Yappy dogs.
What profession, other than your own, would you like to attempt? Comic book artist
What profession would you not like to do? Sales of any kind.

Finally, if Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
"We've got an open mic night starting up in an hour... and we need a M.C."


Thank you, Jared. Check the blog on Wednesday for another interview!

Monday, June 23, 2014

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Gods

Two weeks ago, we discussed some of the classical heroes present in the world of A Midsummer Night's Dream. This week we are going to take a look at some of the classical gods referenced in Midsummer, beginning with a pair of deities whose portfolios fully encompass the world of Shakespeare's Athens: the twins Apollo and Diana.

Apollo and Diana were twin brother and sister, the children of Jupiter (the king of the gods) and the Titan daughter Latona. When Latona became pregnant with the twins, Jupiter's jealous wife Juno sent a great monster called Python (hence the snake species) to chase Latona all over the world. Juno (as the goddess of childbirth) also forbade all the fixed lands of the Earth from receiving Latona's children. A loophole was found when Latona arrived at the isle of Delos, which, until that point, was a floating island drifting in the Aegean Sea. When the twins were born the island became rooted in the place.



Diana was the firstborn. She became the goddess of the moon. She was associated with nighttime, as her brother Apollo was associated with the daylight hours. On a more abstract level, Diana is associated with the wilderness and wild places. She was the patron of all hunters and the goddess of nature. Much like nature itself, she could be kind and nurturing or brutal and cruel depending on the circumstances. She was a virgin goddess (indeed she was the virgin goddess of classical mythology in that she actively choose to abstain from sexual interaction, whereas Minerva, having sprung from the brain of Jupiter, was a goddess of pure rationality with no baseline sex drive) When the young lover Hermia (played in our production by Emily Anne Childers) refuses to marry Demetrius, she faces a choice between being executed and spending the rest of her life as a virgin priestess. Indeed, there are little references to Hermia's reverence to Diana throughout the play: her insistence that Lysander not sleep with her in the woods (Diana's territory), her stubborn refusal to acquiesce to her father's demands for common social practices and, of course, her fiery temper when wronged.

Apollo was born second and became god of the sun. In opposition to his sister, Apollo is associated with civilization and culture. He was the patron of the fine arts and the god of the city. While his sister was a virgin, Apollo had many affairs and fell in love easily and often (symbolic of civilization's mutability in the face of nature's constancy).



In act 2, scene 1 of Midsummer, the young lover Helena (played in our show by Miranda Fisher), while in pursuit of her love Demetrius, exclaims, "Run when you will, the story shall be changed / Apollo flies and Daphne holds the chase." Daphne was a nymph daughter of a river god. One day Apollo saw her and immediately fell in love with her and pursued her. Realizing she could not escape the god, Daphne called to her father for aid. The river god turned Daphne into a laurel tree. Apollo broke off some branches from the tree and created a wreath which he wore forever after (the laurel was a symbol of achievement in Ancient Greece, presented to winners at the Olympics, hence the phrase "rest on your laurels").

Between the two of them, the children of Latona encompass the entirety of human existence with Apollo representing the structured, controlled elements of civilization and order and Diana representing wild chaotic  impulses and natural desires. The young lovers are at odd with the rules of the city and must flee into the wilderness in order to eventually find balance.


From a pair of siblings we move to a mother and son: Venus and Cupid.



Venus was the Roman goddess of passionate love and beauty. She was the most beautiful of the gods and reveled in bringing together people in love. Cupid was  traditionally considered to be her son and is often depicted as a young child with wings on his back and a bow and arrow. Anyone struck with Cupid's arrow would be instantly and permanently smitten with the first person he or she looked upon.



Shakespeare uses a variation of this trick in Midsummer when the fairy king Oberon uses a flower that had been struck with one of Cupid's arrows to enchant Titania and the young lovers. Cupid is usually portrayed as a trickster, using his arrows to stir up chaos. This is certainly apparent in A Midsummer Night's Dream when Cupid's power is used for hilarious effect. But there is a bit more depth to the Cupid figure than is commonly thought, especially if you consider one of the earlier creation myths of the ancient Greeks. Cupid was known as Eros to the Greeks (hence the word "erotic"), and he was a more serious figure. Several creation myths actually claim that he was the one of the first gods to ever come into existence.

In the beginning there was chaos, a great whirling nothingness. One day, inexorably a great egg rose from the  depths of the darkness. For a time the egg lay there, until one day it hatched and from it came Eros the god of love, and from him sprang all things.

I've always been fond of this myth. It's nice to believe that all things in this world ultimately spring from love. Love is the driving force in A Midsummer Night's Dream and certainly in our production, specifically. Every one of the characters in our play is driven by love in one way or another, be it romantic love, love of power, love of self, love of a child or love of mischief. Love is the great engine that drives the world, and it is what defines us as a people in our best moments. One ancient myth claims that humanity are the children of Love and Chaos. I can think of no more appropriate parents for us all. When you come to see the play (we have one last weekend June 26th - June 29th) we hope you will take a moment to consider the power of love, and how it affects every aspect of our lives. It is a wonderful thing.


Learning Never Ends.