Beer Flight Theatre Cast: David Galloway

Hello All,

Threepenny Theatre's one weekend run of one act plays will feature the works of three of the greatest modern playwrights (Edward Albee, Harold Pinter and Tennessee Williams). Today we will meet another of our actors. Today we bring you some international flair with David Galloway. Originally from Scotland, David has been designing and performing in the Memphis area for many years now. He's appeared in previous Threepenny productions such as Macbeth and Dido, Queen of Carthage. When he isn't performing theatre, he is performing with local punk band Shamefinger. 

David Galloway - Lionel

Welcome to the blog. What is your name and what show are you performing in?

I am David Galloway, and I'm playing the character of Lionel in Harold Pinter's "New World Order."

How did you start performing in theatre?

 I got started with theatre proper in undergrad. There were auditions for a show that some of my friends were doing called On the Verge, and I thought "well what the heck, I'll audition for it" and I got in and by the end of that process I was like "this is something I think I should do." So I declared my theatre major and started doing shows.

How did you first encounter Threepenny?

That was Macbeth, I'm pretty sure. Auditioned for Macbeth, played Banquo and I loved it. Had a great, great time.

How do you go about preparing for a role? 

A lot of it is research. I look into the history of the play and the specifics around my character. I'll think of other characters from other plays or mediums that are similar to my character, and research them as well, see if I can't find anything to pull in to help define who I'm playing. But mostly for me, it's all about the reading and research.

Now, you are Scottish. What are your thoughts on Harold Pinter and this play, particularly? Especially how it might relate to politics in the United Kingdom?

Ah, you see, what's weird is that during this process we haven't talked too much about UK politics, but we have talked a lot about US politics with this, given our current political climate. Pinter is an English playwright, who writes a lot about freedom of the press and freedom of speech, and I think this play, at least in his initial interpretation, is very much a tongue-in-cheek poke at that. You know, with all this PC, political correctness, this is what Pinter thought could happen: intent could overcome ethics. But at the same time, I don't think his original intent is what the play means for us today. With the crap that's going on with our current elections in this country or with the language that was used surrounding the Brexit campaign in the UK, I think we're seeing something different. We are seeing a breakdown of Truth via language. Where our newscasters can say whatever they want to say because it gets ratings up. And I think this play can sort of speak to that a little bit, and ask what defines what it true and what is right. But even more than that, I think this play deals with the moral dilemma of dehumanization and torture. What justifies getting getting to that point where you can dehumanize a person so much that it's okay to inflict excruciating pain on someone? Where is that line for you? And I think that's relevant at the moment as well, because it's in the news. Is torture alright for enemies and should we use it? I don't think so. I think it's disgusting and anyone who does it should be condemned.

How does it feel to be performing a short 10 minute piece as opposed to a long-form play.  Is it more or less pressure?

In many ways I think there is more pressure, because with a full length play you have two hours to work out all the stuff. We've got about ten minutes. It's really about 6 minutes of dialogue and about 4 minutes of other stuff. But we have to establish these characters in such a small window of time, make them relateable to the audience, make the situation explainable and relateable to the audience with a heck of a lot less than you would have in a full length play. So I think the challenge is definitely greater.

Any last words to the audience about the play or the beer or anything else?

Memphis Made is pretty damn fine.

Any other plugs?

Come see Hamlet [presented by New Moon Theatre Company, February 3rd-19th at TheatreWorks] when that comes out. Come see Shamefinger. We are playing at Murphy's this Thursday at 8pm and this Saturday at 9pm. It should be a blast.

Thank you David. Check back later this week to meet another performer! And be sure to come check out Threepenny and Memphis Made Brewing Company's Beer Flight Theatre Night, opening August 26th at Evergreen Theatre. One Weekend Only!

Beer Flight Theatre Cast: Steven Brown

Hello All,

Threepenny Theatre's one weekend run of one act plays will feature the works of three of the greatest modern playwrights (Edward Albee, Harold Pinter and Tennessee Williams). Today we will meet another of our actors. Steven Brown has been performing at multiple theatres in the Memphis area for almost two decades. His last appearance with Threepenny was in our production of William Shakespeare's Macbeth. We are delighted he will be joining us once again for Beer Flight Theatre Night.

Steven Brown - Des

Welcome to the blog. What is your name and what show are you performing in?

My name is Steven Brown, and I'm playing Des in "New World Order" by Harold Pinter

How did you start performing in theatre?

 I first got started in theatre in high school. I was one of those kids who could never decide what they wanted to be on career day, so I decided to give the acting thing a try. I took a theatre class my Freshman year, got into my first show sophomore year and just kept going after that, all the way through college and beyond.

How did you first encounter Threepenny?

The first show I did with Threepenny was A Midsummer Night's Dream. I had already been around Matt a little bit. We'd worked on a few shows together and seen each other around the community. He approached me about Midsummer, and I liked the idea and the concept of the theatre: pay-what-you-can and a focus on classics like Shakespeare and contemporary works in a sort of stripped down setting. So I did that show, and after that I told him if there were any others I would be here.

How do you go about preparing for a role? 

Well first thing I do is just read the script quite a few times, just trying to get a sense of where everyone is coming from and seeing how my character relates to everyone around them. No matter what kind of role I'm playing, I need to find that relation with the other characters. After that, I think it's all in the words. I work the lines until I have them word-perfect in my head, so no matter what rehearsal calls for, I have them down in my mind and can be adaptable with them. Because, to me, the character lies in the words. Thought gets you to where you need to be, but words are how you express that to the audience, and when you can perfectly connect the words to the thoughts behind them, that's when you have a good performance.  But in order to do that, you have to have the words. They're your constant.

What are your thoughts on Harold Pinter and this play, particularly?

I've not had an extensive background with Harold Pinter before this. I've seen a few of his plays before around, mostly in college. I'm aware of his trademarks: the "Pinter Pause" and everything. I am glad we're not sticking hard and fast to those directions and being a bit more free-form. But I really do enjoy it. I think "New World Order" has a really great economy of story. He packs a lot into a little bit, hiding things in the subtext. The words you see are the tip of this huge iceberg. There is so much subtext to be found or created. There's a freedom to that as an actor because you can find your character and your own motivations to get where you need to go.

* editor's note: Harold Pinter routinely worked moments of silence into his scripts, usually with the simple stage notes of "pause" or "silence," hence the "Pinter Pause." Actors, directors, critics and theatre scholars have long debated the artistic and technical intent behind these stage directions. Pinter himself (in later years) said they could be cut if they didn't make sense.

How does it feel to be performing a short 10 minute piece as opposed to a long-form play.  Is it more or less pressure?

Actually, no, it seems like a chance to really play. Not indulge or anything, but normally in a play it's about responding in a way to keep the action going. It's about responding on the line, there's not a lot of acting in between. But with this, with Pinter and because it is so short, there is almost a responsibility to find those moments in the character and in the story that are expressed through silence or in waiting for a response or trying to form a response and letting the audience see all that forming. So because it is so short and there is so much subtext to be packed into that small amount of time, it's almost more fun than a full-length show. So I don't feel more pressure.

Any last words to the audience about the play or the beer or anything else?

Hopefully the beer and the show and everything will be great. I think these three shows really go together in a very interesting way. They all sort of come from two people in conflict and I think that's really interesting.

Thank you Steven. Check back later this week to meet another performer! And be sure to come check out Threepenny and Memphis Made Brewing Company's Beer Flight Theatre Night, opening August 26th at Evergreen Theatre. One Weekend Only!

Beer Flight Theatre Cast: Michael Ewing

Hello All,

Threepenny Theatre's one weekend run of one act plays will feature the works of three of the greatest modern playwrights (Edward Albee, Harold Pinter and Tennessee Williams). Today we will meet another of our actors. He recently appeared in Hattiloo and Threepenny theatre's collaborative production of Free Man of Color. His appearance at Beer Flight Theatre Night will be his last performance in the Memphis area for a while, and while we are sad to see him go, we are glad to have Michael Ewing performing with us one more time.

Michael Ewing- Man

Welcome to the blog. What is your name and what show are you performing in?

My name is Michael J. Ewing and I will be playing Man in "Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen" by Tennessee Williams.

How did you start performing in theatre?

The first thing I did was in 8th grade. I got to play Scrooge in an abbreviated version of A Christmas Carol for kids. So I got to play a lead, and I say that because it sort of kindled something there. But because I was an athlete, running track and cross country through college, theatre sort of went on the back burner. So, to shorten the complicated story, I auditioned for a play my last semester in college, and I didn't get it, but it triggered something. So, after college I moved to this little ski town in Colorado for a year and did four shows back to back to back to back, and it was great and I loved it. I moved to New York City and just got completely overwhelmed and intimidated so I went and got a "real" job for about two and half years. But eventually, after traveling a bit, I sort of had a... I guess you could call it a crisis of purpose, and I said "f*** it I'm gonna give it a shot". I was in the Philadelphia area, and I just started looking for things and I've been scrambling and scrabbling it together ever since.

How did you first encounter Threepenny?

Through you *laughs*. I first heard about it last year when I was doing The Seagull (at Playhouse on the Square). So I came over and saw Long Day's Journey into Night, and I was just blown away.

How do you go about preparing for a role? Be it a short 10 minute play or a larger one like Free Man of Color or The Seagull

For me, it's an amalgamation of approaches. To begin with, I read the play, or read it again if I'm already familiar with the work. Then I quickly try to get a sense what the director's vision is, and, from there, I try to bring my myriad of experiences and technique to the table. I did a lot of improv early on, and while I feel I'm not a great straight improvisor, what I did get from those experience is this willingness to not be afraid to fail, because failing at improv is the scariest thing in the world. Also, it created this sense of "yes, and..." when I work, that has served me really well as a regular actor because it keeps me open to what my fellow actors come up with,  and what the designers and directors decide to do. So, initially, I try and be a sponge for everything and then as the rehearsal process continues, you start to narrow things down and make clearer, more concrete choices.

What are your thoughts on Tennessee Williams and this play, particularly?

Well, I've talked to few people about this play and I think for some it's really cool and others it's a little scary because this play is kind of a tone poem. And that's a real challenge as an actor, because there is this really fine line between it being too precious and it being almost ridiculously melodramatic. In a way it's sort of a nugget of Tennessee Williams himself. I think you could make that case for almost all his works have that pull between "is it too precious/is it too strident" That's the big challenge, I think.

How does it feel to be performing a short 10 minute piece as opposed to a long-form play. Especially considering how Williams puts so much emphasis on creating a mood. Is it more or less pressure?

This is what sort of comes back to my improv "yes, and..." training. I really don't worry too much about that sort of thing, anymore, that pressure. Plus, I've already worked with Matt on Free Man of Color, and now, on this second go-around I have even more faith in putting myself in his hands and going where he wants to go. I've been doing this long enough that I don't worry. Some people will think this is really cool and for some people it won't be their cup of tea, and I have little control over that personal preference. I can just do the best I can when the performance comes.

Any last words to the audience about the play or the beer or anything else?

Be an improvisor. Be a "yes, and..." open audience member, cause it's a nice little variety of shows, and I think there is a conversation among the three pieces that is something to look for.

Thank you Michael. Check back later this week to meet another performer! And be sure to come check out Threepenny and Memphis Made Brewing Company's Beer Flight Theatre Night, opening August 26th at Evergreen Theatre. One Weekend Only!

Beer Flight Theatre Cast: Jaclyn Suffel

Hello All,

Threepenny Theatre's one weekend run of one act plays will feature the works of three of the greatest modern playwrights (Edward Albee, Harold Pinter and Tennessee Williams). Today we will meet the first of our actors. This is her second time performing for Threepenny (she previously appeared as Juno, queen of the gods in Threepenny's Dido, Queen of Carthage collaboration with the Opera Memphis's Midtown Opera Festival). She has been a member of the Memphis theatre community since relocating here from Houston, Texas in 2007. Meet Jaclyn Suffel.

Jaclyn Suffel - Woman

Welcome to the blog. What is your name and what show are you performing in?

My name is Jaclyn Suffel. I play Woman in "Talk to Me Like the Rain and Let Me Listen" by Tennessee Williams

How did you first get started performing in theatre?

In elementary school, we did these really strange, almost like canned musicals. They were musicals that were written specifically to be performed by elementary school kids. So I started with those. I played Spots the Leopard and a character just called "The Boss" in a Christmas show, which was my first taste of being a villain. I loved it, and I've never looked back *laughs*.

Where did you get your more formal training?

In Texas, there is a UIL one-act competition, which is this competitive form of theatre that we do. It's a heightened form of high school theatre that requires theatre production on a very rigorous level. So that started my training and then I went on to Southwestern University on a theatre performance scholarship and majored in theatre there.

How did you first encounter Threepenny?

All my besties are in it *laughs*. All of my good friends helped found it. The first Threepenny show I saw was A Midsummer Night's Dream and it was a phenomenal production that was done on a low budget and I was really impressed with it. What this company does is amazing.

How do you go about preparing for a role?

I spend a lot of time with my script. I believe in deep script and character analysis. I take a lot of notes and mark my script up. I really like to think characters through, practicing deliveries on my own, reading the script multiple, multiple times aloud before the rehearsal process begins. Then, when rehearsals begin, which is my favorite part of any production, I quickly want to create a relationship with the director where I can ask questions and we can go back and forth. I can learn their vision and expand mine.

What are your thoughts on Tennessee Williams and this play, particularly?

I love Tennessee Williams. I think he's one of the most amazing playwrights in existence. I think most theatre folks would say the same. Even his stage directions are poetry. The way even the most minute of his details holds weight  and has importance. And I think his ability to write about the weakness and vulnerability of humans is accessible in a way that not many playwrights can touch, probably because it so truthfully came from his own vulnerability. With this play in particular, it's a really intense and heartbreaking little one act that explores codependency and two people's codependency on one another.You just get sort of a glimpse, a snapshot of what that looks like on a daily basis and how heartbreaking it really is.

How does it feel to be performing a short 10 minute piece as opposed to a long-form play. Especially considering how Williams puts so much emphasis on creating a mood. Is it more or less pressure?

I feel a lot of pressure, but I think it mostly has to do with the arch of the story being so condensed. You have this very tiny moment to make this massive emotional journey. It means you have to be incredibly precise about everything that you do and there is no room for error and there is no room to make an unclear choice.

Any last words to the audience about the play or the beer or anything else?

I mean, plays are always awesome and plays plus beer only makes life better. In general, I think it's really important to support local theatre. This theatre was started by some local people who just had a passion for doing traditional good, solid written work. Not everyone does the kind of theatre Threepenny does, and we need them to continue producing, so for those of you who come support this and grab a beer... we appreciate you.

Thank you Jaclyn. Check back later this week to meet another performer! And be sure to come check out Threepenny and Memphis Made Brewing Company's Beer Flight Theatre Night, opening August 26th at Evergreen Theatre. One Weekend Only!

Threepenny Returns... with Beer!

Poster Design by Ronnie Lewis

Threepenny Theatre was founded with a simple goal: we wanted to create great works of theatre at low production costs. The reasons behind this were two fold.

1) We didn't have a lot of money (no point in lying about it)

and, more importantly

2) We wanted to show that great theatre did not necessarily need extravagant bells and whistles to be intensely engaging and incredibly moving. 

Make no mistake, there is nothing wrong with the amazing production values of larger theatres (Memphis is blessed to have some of the finest theatre designers you could ever hope to encounter and the work they do it always stellar), but, at the end of the day, it is this most basic of needs - the desire for human connection - that drives the art form. 

People, coming together, to feel something created by other people. That is the heart of the theatre: to unite people in a shared experience. It is a communal ritual, and one that we enjoy sharing with anyone who is interested. That is why all of Threepenny's shows have always been, and will always be, set-your-own admission. Anyone who wants to see one of our productions will be able to, regardless of how much they have or who they know. You show up, you're in.

In that spirit of community, we have come up with an idea. Earlier this season we were lucky enough to collaborate with Hattiloo Theatre on a wonderful production of "Free Man of Color." So, for our final show, we thought it might be fun to collaborate with another local Memphis institution. 

So, in the spirit of community, Threepenny Theatre will be partnering with Memphis Made Brewing Company to present a weekend of three very strange, very engaging, one act plays (from three of the greatest modern playwrights) paired with local beer after each play. 

Over the next couple of weeks we will be introducing you to the various actors who will be performing in our shows. We hope to see all of you soon, share a beer, and thank you for all your support.

Shows will be at the Evergreen Theatre:

Friday August 26th at 8pm

Saturday August 27th at 8pm

Sunday, August 28th at 2pm

and

MONDAY, August 29th at 8pm 

And, as always, every show is Set-Your-Own-Admission (suggested donation of $15). 

YOU MUST HAVE YOUR I.D. TO DRINK THE BEER. NO EXCEPTIONS. NO EXCUSES.

We look forward to seeing you!

Meet the cast of Brilliant Traces: Meghan Lisi

If I must be wrung through the paradox, - - - broken into wholeness, wring me around the moon; pelt me with particles from the dark side. Fling me into space; hide me in a black hole. Let me dance with devils on dead stars. Let my scars leave brilliant traces, for my highborn soul seeks its hell - - - in high places.

Individuation by Avah Pevlor Johnson

Hello everyone, Threepenny is opening a new show this Friday when we present Brilliant Traces by Cindy Lou Johnson, running June 19-June 28th at TheatreWorks, 8:00pm start time for Fridays and Saturdays, 2:00pm on Sundays, and a performance on Monday night, June 22nd at 8:00pm.

Brilliant Traces is an short two-person show with a very strange premise. Henry Harry is a reclusive man living alone in the Alaskan wilderness. His isolation is interrupted during a snow storm by the arrival of a woman clad only in a wedding dress and flimsy satin shoes. What follows is an intimate look at the power of trauma and the difficulty in finding real human connection in this world. Let's meet the actors.

Meghan Lisi - Rosannah DeLuce

Welcome to the blog! What's your name and who are you playing?

My name is Meghan Lisi and I am playing Rosannah DeLuce


Meghan, you're fairly well known to Threepenny audiences. What's your association with the company?

I started working with the company during Macbeth, when I played Lady Macbeth. Then I was Dido, in Dido, Queen of Carthage. I also handle marketing for the company now, so a lot of times when you see posts up on the Threepenny Facebook page, they may or may not be from me.


What drew you to the company?

I saw Threepenny's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream that happened at the University of Memphis two summers ago (editor's note: and was brought back by popular demand last summer). I saw the Monday night show, which was very, very exciting because I was in a show at that time and wouldn't have been able to see it otherwise, and I was really blown away. Not just because the actors were awesome, but from start to finish I could see the director's hand in everything. I could see what he had done. I could see the choices that he had made, and I could see the actors not only making those choices but having a great time doing it, and I just thought "I want to work with this company." So I did.


How did you get into acting in general?

I am one of those creepy people who have been acting all of their lives. My very first role was the Little Chick in Old MacDonald's Barnyard when I was in Pre-K, so I've kind of been doing it ever since. It's just always been part of my life. I went to undergrad at Florida State and got my B.A. in theatre, and then after going out into the big scary world of Los Angeles for a while, I went back and got a M.F.A. in acting from the University of Alabama through the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.


What do you do when you're not performing?

When I'm not performing I spend my time fundraising for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Memphis is really cool like that. I get to make a huge impact on the world, and still get to do my art, so that's pretty awesome.


Brilliant Traces: what are your thoughts on this play?

My thoughts on this play are that it is a very difficult play from an actor's perspective. This was something I hadn't realized, because I'd never done a two person play before. When you're doing a monologue or soliloquy, you are in charge of you, and you get through it. When you're doing an ensemble piece with a lot of actors, you're in charge of you and being were you need to be, and you get through. When you are doing a show with just you and another actor, you are in charge of everything. Because if you mess up, even a single word or emotional cue, if you get lost, then there is only one other person there to save you, and when you screw up you are doing a disservice to everything. So it's a very meticulous process, but the play itself has been, shockingly, a joy to work on. I wasn't so sure at the first read. I was thinking "Wow, this is a really strangely written play." The language is very heightened, but once you start getting into it, you realize Cindy Lou Johnson's language feeds into the incredible awkwardness of two people being trapped in house with about 900 tons of emotional baggage. It's amazing how well she captured this feeling of "Well, this is awkward."


This play, when I read it, it just strikes me that it is all about trauma and the nature of what causes trauma. How do you think a play like this is beneficial to Memphis audiences?

Memphis has been through a lot of trauma itself, you know. It's interesting, Michael made a comment in his interview about his character being a walking scar and my character being an open wound. That made a lot of sense to me, but it also makes a lot of sense in relation to Memphis. This town has scars, but we wear them proudly. And I think that part of the process of this play is these two people learning to deal with wounds that they have. And it's a thing that all people have to deal with. And it's Cindy Lou Johnson's ability to capture that idea that, I think, makes her such an excellent writer. She finds a way for two people on stage to strip away their need to hide and just deal with the hand that life has dealt them. And that's something everyone has to deal with in their life: interacting with people while dealing with our own baggage. This is just a highly theatrical version of that common situation.


Any last words to audiences coming to see Brilliant Traces?

I want to say like "Get excited, Memphis. WOOOO," but really this is something Memphis audiences don't get to see every day.  Just two people, and Michael's brilliant and Matt's direction has been amazing. Every person who has touched this show has just really put their heart into it. There just aren't too many opportunities to watch two people open up, take a slice of life, and just reflect it on stage. Anyone who's lived though even half-a-minute of life will understand, in some way, what these two are going through, and because of that, maybe understand themselves a little better.


Thank you Meghan! We hope to see you all at Brilliant Traces, opening tomorrow at TheatreWorks. First show is at 8pm, then again on Saturday at 8, Sunday at 2, and Monday at 8. Every show is Set-Your-Own-Admission!

Meet the cast of Brilliant Traces: Michael Khanlarian

If I must be wrung through the paradox, - - - broken into wholeness, wring me around the moon; pelt me with particles from the dark side. Fling me into space; hide me in a black hole. Let me dance with devils on dead stars. Let my scars leave brilliant traces, for my highborn soul seeks its hell - - - in high places.

Individuation by Avah Pevlor Johnson

Hello everyone, Threepenny is opening a new show this Friday when we present Brilliant Traces by Cindy Lou Johnson, running June 19-June 28th at TheatreWorks, 8:00pm start time for Fridays and Saturdays, 2:00pm on Sundays, and a performance on Monday night, June 22nd at 8:00pm.

Brilliant Traces is an short two-person show with a very strange premise. Henry Harry is a reclusive man living alone in the Alaskan wilderness. His isolation is interrupted during a snow storm by the arrival of a woman clad only in a wedding dress and flimsy satin shoes. What follows is an intimate look at the power of trauma and the difficulty in finding real human connection in this world. Let's meet the actors.

Michael Khanlarian - Henry Harry

Welcome to the blog! What's your name and who are you playing?

I am Michael Khanlarian, and I'm playing Henry Harry.


Michael, this is your first show with Threepenny Theatre. How did you find the company?

Well, I have been working with Matt Crewse, the artistic director of Threepenny for a very long time now. We met in college and we worked together at Tennessee Shakespeare Company, and we've done several independent projects around town, so I have a very good working relationship with Matt. The only Threepenny show I've been able to see so far was Long Day's Journey Into Night, which I was very impressed by (editor's note: Michael recently returned to Memphis after living in Los Angeles).


How did you get into acting in general?

I actually had no intention of acting when I was a kid or even in high school or in college. In fact, the only reason I got into acting at all was that I was in college, and I was just kind of swimming. I didn't really know what I was going to do, because I was just told to go, you know? I was told I was supposed to go to college, so I was just kind of hanging out, trying to figure out what I was supposed to do, and I was walking by the theatre building one day... and I saw a girl. She went into an audition... and then I followed her into the audition, and that's pretty much how it started and I've just sort of rolled on from there. I forgot about her and fell in love with acting.


That's almost kind of romantic, man.

It is kinda romantic! *laughs*


How do you like to prepare for a role? Do you have a particular way you like to perform?

It's different every time. I mean, I'm used to doing Shakespeare, especially the last couple of years, or narrative theatre. So with that, I start with the language and the text. But with every role, especially one like this, it's different. It's always different. I don't have a set way of doing things. I just try and connect things to me in some way.


Brilliant Traces is an interesting show. It's only two actors, you and Meghan Lisi, so what's it like doing a show where there aren't a multitude of characters to engage with?

It's difficult. I've never had such a hard time with lines before, and I don't think it's because we have so many lines, it's more that both of our characters lie a lot. We lie about a lot of the same things. We both have these specific traumas that we lie about, and we lie about it in different ways, so it makes it difficult to keep things straight. But working with someone like Meghan, once you have the lines down, it's really easy. I enjoy it. I brought this play to Matt's attention, so I knew this play was right for me.


It's interesting you used the word "trauma," because I wanted to ask about that. This play, when I read it, it just strikes me that it is all about trauma and the nature of what causes trauma. How do you think a play like this is beneficial to Memphis audiences?

Well, I think the cool thing about this play and what really draws me towards it is that it is about two people who are... how do I put this... weak is not the word... they are vulnerable. Vulnerable people, as we all are. And you get to see these people be real with each other. It takes a while, but they are trapped in this space together and they have to deal with each other. And it's a man and a woman, and I don't think that's an accident. It's that dynamic, and Cindy Lou Johnson does a really good job capturing that tension between a man and a woman when they HAVE to deal with each other when all pretense is gone. It starts of with them having to try to deal and be polite, but then the gloves come off. These two people have trauma in their lives, and the title, Brilliant Traces, is a reference to a poem written by Cindy Lou's mother. "Brilliant Traces" are the scars that we carry in our lives because of the traumas we endure. And Henry Harry, the character I play, he's a walking scar, and his counterpart, Rosannah DeLuce, is an open wound, and she comes into his house and he has to deal with these wounds. So I think Memphis audiences can find something emotionally moving in watching these two people be vulnerable with each other. You get to see a man and a woman being open and generous with each other, and with Meghan, who is so open and generous with her performance, you get to see two actors at the top of their game.


Any last words to audiences coming to see Brilliant Traces?

I think this play is not to be missed. If you want to see two actors at the top of their games being open an present with each other, and being vulnerable, you can't get better than this.


Thank you Michael! Be sure to check out the blog Thursday, when we sit down with the other half of this show. And we hope to see you all at Brilliant Traces, opening this Friday at TheatreWorks. Every show is Set-Your-Own-Admission!