The Inside Scoop: May 2013

Why an Interview,,,

Over the years we have been able to meet and talk with some very interesting people. They have shared with us their knowledge and have provided us with a great deal of insight as to how and why festivals and events work and why they are so important to our communities and to the Province of Ontario. With this in mind, we decided that we wanted you to meet and hear from some of the wonderful people who work so hard to provide us all with such wonderful Ontario Festivals and Events! We are pleased and proud to present "THE INSIDE SCOOP"!

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival ~ Maid for a Musket ~ Diverse Personalities

www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival

Lucia Frangione, International Award Winning Playwright

“THE INSIDE SCOOP” is excited continue with the “SCOOP” from the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, Prescott, Ontario about their upcoming performance “MAID for a MUSKET”, a brand new comedy by Lucia Frangione, Original music by Melissa Morris. Ian Farthing, Artistic Director of the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival has kindly introduced us to Ms. Lucia Frangione, internationally produced award winning playwright and actor, we continue …

DIVERSE PERSONALITIES ….

Dealing with actors and their diverse personalities, I asked Lucia to talk about how she might overcome some of the challenges that this may present. Telling us Ian Farthing might be best suited for this question, she did say …. “I think generally though, theatre attracts a very humble hardworking disciplined sort of personality with great communication skills. The divas go into other industries that make money. I mean, let’s face it. These are people who do it for love. That makes for a good sort of human”.

Ian Farthing continues by saying … “Because Lucia was able to join us last summer in Prescott, she was able to meet some of the actors who were subsequently cast in Maid for a Musket. Knowing them and their strengths can sometimes aid and enhance the writing process, as characters can develop with a particular actor in mind.

Part of the skill of directing is being able to discern how best to communicate with each actor to create a homogenous ensemble, where every actor is on board with the same vision for the play.”

As a watercolour artist, I am usually apprehensive how my works will be received. As a Playwright, I wondered if there were expectations Ms. Frangione had from the “actors” that make her apprehensive or nervous during a performance that you has written. She shares with us …“We have a great bunch. Prescott has a terrific pool of talent to choose from. I’m not apprehensive in the least. I simply look forward to all the new ideas they’ll bring to the table.”

PLANNING, PLANNING, PLANNING …

THE INSIDE SCOOP I asked Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival …During a Production such as “Maid for a Musket”, it would seem you and your staff, volunteers and performers would need to maintain professionalize and composure. I wondered if you have a system to help you stay organized and could you share some of your “technique & systems” with us! Mr. Farthing shares with us …“The key is planning, planning, planning. Leaving things to the last minute causes unnecessary stress! Of course, in theatre, there are always variables that mean some things will be thrown at you unexpectedly, but if the things that are in your control are running smoothly, there's room to deal with those issues without pushing you over the edge.”

Ontario Visited asked Mr. Farthing has any “problem solving techniques” used during a special event, or organizational techniques, problems solving techniques with respect to coordinating the Performers and other key participants during Production such as “Maid for a Musket”. Ian says …“Having a good Stage Manager is key. He/she will liaise with the directors, design team and marketing team to schedule rehearsals, costume fittings, media interviews etc. Any good Stage Manager will tell you that lists are the number one tool!”

Stay tuned for more exciting “SCOOP” from Lucia Frangione and Ian Farthing, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival! Check out their website for the details (www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca), plan on a fun, and great, memorable time!

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival ~ Maid for a Musket

www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival

Lucia Frangione

Auditions, Planning, Concept, MUSICAL Collaboration … MAID for a MUSKET …

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, shares with us that nearly 1000 submissions from actors across the country wanted to audition for the season, which includes Hamlet. I was able to ask Ms. Frangione, how long did it take to come up with the concept and then create and write “Maid for a Musket”? I was surprised by her answer … “I didn’t have a lot of time, actually. A year and a half. I usually like to have two years at least. I had a lot of history to wade through too, but it was all very interesting and fun work.” Ian Farthing goes on to tell us … “As Lucia mentioned, we've done the whole new play creation process in just over 18 months, but in terms of planning the mainstage season, things are usually mapped out 2 years ahead”.

Ontario Visited wondered what Ms Frangione duties/roles are prior to and during a production for “Maid for a Musket?” She tells us …“I really hand over the reigns to the director but I’m around to make any edits and changes to the script that they inevitably discover in rehearsals. In this case, I am around for the first week of rehearsals and the last week right up to opening night.”

Maid for a Musket, at this year’s St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival features Original Music by Melissa Morris. We have had the privilege of watching Melissa Morris over the course of the past 4 years at the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival and enjoyed her roles and performances. Melissa is a drama and music graduate of Queen's University. She is also an actor and singer, music director and composer. I asked Ms. Frangione if she could tell us a little about her experience and collaborations with Melissa pertaining to “Maid for a Musket” creation. Lucia replies … “Our collaboration was long distance so we didn’t get to talk much. She was quick accommodating and super talented. It was easy because she’s utterly capable.”

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival ~ Maid for a Musket ~ Forget the History Lesson

www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival

Lucia Frangione, International Award Winning Playwright

Forget the History Lesson …

Merging Historical Characters into a Fiction Story …without it being just another “HISTORY LESSON”

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, is also an accomplished Director/Actor/Singer/Performer. He is also “witty” “cleaver”, kind, generous and thoughtful! I was fortunate to have Ian’s input with the next question for Lucia Frangione. Ian asks Ms. Frangione … “How does one tell a story clearly without it becoming a “history lesson?”

Lucia replies …“This is always the danger. I love history and it’s easy to get engrossed in details I find utterly fascinating but they don’t move the plot forward. For instance, the whole history of the Glengarry Light Infantry and the Macdonells…a whole trilogy of plays right there. The trick is to touch on it enough to pay tribute without getting too histrionic. Same with the historical characters. I am writing a fiction, an outrageous fiction, based very loosely on some historic events and people. I want to include the names of people who were around in order to honor them and to give the audience a little historical tidbit of interest. But if I get too precious with them and turn them into saints, that’s a strange sort of disrespect in and of itself. And let’s face it, perfect people are boring. I don’t know the dark side of Red George and Bishop Macdonell. History books don’t like to share that. So, I have lovingly and respectfully rendered them but I’ve invented a little rivalry all in good fun. This way they are human.”

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival ~ Maid for a Musket

www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival

Lucia Frangione, International Award Winning Playwright

A TOUGH ACT TO FOLLOW... MAID for a MUSKET … Expectations …

Ontario Visited had the privilege of seeing “Trouble on Dibble Street” in 2010 at the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival. The audience “loved it”. It might be a tough “act to follow”. I wondered if Lucia Frangione had obtained any inspiration from this production and; if she was concerned of “living up to such high expectations” from Patrons of the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival?

Frangione shares … “I am a big fan of John Lazarus as a writer and as a person. I have not read his script yet because I don’t want to worry about any parallels. I’ll read it later. I’m so glad the audience loved Dibble Street: hooray for new Canadian plays and to Ian for commissioning them! The Prescott audience is intelligent: they’re theatre-goers and many of them know their history and know their Shakespeare. So, I do hope I’ve dotted all my i (s) and crossed all my t (s). Obviously these are patrons who love language and also love a good night out along the water with a glass of wine and a bunch of friends. It’s a great audience to write for: super smart but unpretentious and up for good quality fun. I have felt nothing but freedom here. I can throw this audience complex thought and wit and poetic language and they’ll soak it up with ease. I can throw them some naughty jokes and silly physical humor too and the husbands will chuckle and the wives will swat them, or vice versa, heck! They’re a good bunch. It’s a party. I’ve had the privilege of sitting in the audience several times, of meeting the community one on one and doing a public reading of a first draft of this script. Prescott really does have something special here. That’s why Ian Farthing and so many others have worked so hard to keep it going.”

St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival ~ Maid for a Musket ~ Inspiration & In the Action

www.stlawrenceshakespeare.ca

Ian Farthing, Artistic Director, St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival

Lucia Frangione, International Award Winning Playwright

Inspiration!!! & “In the Action”!

Fragione shares with us …“When I was a young writer I grappled with some of my own questions about identity: what is it to be a Canadian, what is it to be the daughter of an Italian father and an English mother. What is it to be a feminist Christian: what is prayer, pilgrimage and ritual to me in this modern world? Now that I’m older and a parent my scope has widened, my spirituality has broadened and my questions are not so self-centred. I am looking rather closely at community responsibility right now: how we work collectively as citizens, what amazing feats can be accomplished and how and why some victims fall through the cracks. I think I’m also moving into a phase of having some silly good fun too. Sure Maid for a Musket is about the war of 1812 and love and family. But it is also very physical, bright, lively and utterly ridiculous. I had so much fun writing this.

I like a good challenge. Sometimes a theatre will call me and offer me a commission to write whatever I want and sometimes they will call with very specific guidelines. In this case I had to write a play about the war of 1812, it had to be comedy with some music and allude to Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost. I had to share a cast with Hamlet, write for the outdoors, set the play in Prescott and I had to wrap up my storyline before the sun goes down the mosquitoes come out!”

I thought you might like to know about Lucia’s interests that may have had some input in her career and life. I asked Ms. Fragione what her favorite production was and why? Who was her favorite performer and why? And, finally, did she prefer to be “behind the scenes” or “in the action performing”

She tells us … “I have many favorites but here are some: The Overcoat: a wildly beautiful play with no words, one of the Vancouver Playhouse’s finest achievements. SEEDS by Montreal’s Annabel Soutar, directed by Chris Abraham from Crows Theatre in Toronto: important docu-drama. My favorite production I’ve ever been in was Streetcar Named Desire as Stella. A terrific cast, directed by my dear friend, a true Southern gentleman who has now left us for the other side, Jeremy Tow.”

Frangione’s favorite performer … “Anita Wittenberg is one of my favorite performers. She’s actually at Thousand Islands Playhouse this summer in Boeing Boeing. She’s gracious, honest, brave. One minute plain, the next minute she’s the most beautiful woman on earth. My favorite fellow is still Tom McCamus. He seems to carry with him a loyalty, a commitment to the moment, the story and his scene partners. It’s always a generous, unpredictable performance.”

Lucia states … she prefers to be “in the action, I often write myself into my own plays”