2 Weeks Out!!!

We are almost 2 weeks out from opening night, ladies and gentlemen. Who's ready?

It's a scary time for a theatre group, to be 2 weeks away from opening. Kevin King (our technical director) and I were talking last night, and he said "I feel like we're behind, but if you think about it, in the old theatre we wouldn't have even been in the space yet, so I guess we're actually ahead!"

It's true. When 2nd Flight was just 2nd Flight, and we performed at the Cramer Center in Manassas, we wouldn't even move into the space until 2 weeks before the show went up (which would be this coming weekend). We'd build stuff ahead of time, but we wouldn't be able to really put it together until we were in the space.

And I have to say, this set is going to kick butt. Right now it's not painted or anything, it's just the skeleton, but it's awesome. Mad props to Kevin and Rick Wilson (our other technical director) and all the others who helped work on it so far (Theresa Bender, Brittany Washington, Asher Miller, Michael Schaaff, Kevin's dad Mike, and I'm sure there are others but these are the people I have actually seen working on it).

On another tech-related note, if you ever need cheap fabic, go to Wal*Mart. Their dollar-a-yard racks have costumed more shows for me than I can count. Go in with an open mind regarding color and weight of the fabric, and you're bound to find something that will work really well. Don't go in planning to be picky; you'll never find exactly what you want. Looking for something specific in the dollar-a-yard rack is like looking for a vintage Versace evening gown at the Sterling Goodwill. Not gonna happen.

That's about all I've got for today, but I have it on good authority that I may have some fodder for a Thursday update coming my way. I won't make promises, since it's not within my control whether or not the photos I've been told of appear in my inbox, but if they do, there will be an exciting story about the making of a certain special prop.

In the meantime, here are a couple more rehearsal photos, courtesy of Traci J. Brooks.

I actually watched this in rehearsal, and in person, it was even funnier than this picture. Poor Tara and Dan were trying to sing lovingly to each other, paper in hand, while Dan grabs Tara's butt to keep her from falling. Without the paper, she'll be able to hold on better, so he won't have to grip so hard, so it won't look as funny. But in rehearsal, it made me laugh.

This is one of two classic Ryan onstage poses. The other pose looks like Superman posing on top of a building with his cape billowing in the wind (though usually there's no billowing cape, for Ryan). When I go to see Ryan onstage, I always look for these poses -- I don't think it's on purpose that he does them, it's just that the roles I've seen him in lend themselves well to these "I'm singing very passionately out ot the audience" types of poses. I'm not making fun of you, Ryan. You know I love you.


A rare tender moment between Ivy and Nadia. I'm not entirely sure if this is actually Ivy and Nadia, or Juliet and the Nurse, but regardless, it's one of the few times Brittany's character isn't calling Tara's character a ho-face.

And finally, we have a not-so-tender moment between Ivy and Jason. Ivy looks like she's about to stab him in the face, then laugh about it. I'm not 100% sure what's actually going on here, but I can tell you that Ivy does not actually stab Jason in the face. Unless Debbie took some interesting directorial liberties that I'm not aware of. Which I don't think she did.

That's all for this particular update Tuesday! Come back on thursday and see if Asher sent me what he was supposed to (and if he didn't, you'll know it's his fault you don't have a story, not mine!).

Meet the Cast of "bare": Part 4!

Hello once again, loyal readers (and newbies who stumbled on this blog because they were looking for posts tagged with "Sterling, VA", "Improperly Acquired Street Signs," "Awesome," etc.)!

I'm trying to get better about updating this thing. My goal originally was to update every Monday. Well, Mondays are rough days, cuz I'm usually not awake or functional till after lunch, and by then I'm already logged into my personal gmail account, which means to log into blogger on this account I have to log out of gmail, then into blogger, then out of blogger and back into gmail, which is just too much for my brain to handle on a Monday. So I've decided that Tuesdays will be Update Tuesdays, and I will do the update first thing in the morning (unless my bosses have something else for me to do!) before I log into gmail. It's a win-win for everyone (except maybe my bosses).

We're getting closer to the end of the cast list. I think there's only 3 actors left. And whether or not you get to meet them is dependant on whether or not they decide to send me their interviews! Lucky for you, I know two of them quite well, and feel confidant that I could create answers for them and no one would know the difference. The third I don't know as well, but he reminds me a lot of my brother, so I may just have my brother answer the interview on his behalf. Cory, Carla, and Asher, y'all might want to get your questionnaires in ... you don't really want to know what kinds of bizarre answers the Anderson family could come up with for you!

Today, meet Cathy, Felicity, and Michael! (I had originally typed "And now, on with the show!" but that sounded really cheesy, and besides, it's Show Biz Radio's tagline -- I don't want to be a tagline thief unless it's a really, really good tagline. I can't even think of one I'd want to steal right now. Perhaps Tuesday mornings aren't ideal update times either ... )

Name: Cathy Arnold
Role: Claire

What are some of your favorite past roles? Last summer, I played Grizabella in CATS … what an awesome role to play! It was my first time back into theatre since HIGH SCHOOL!

If you could play any role you haven’t yet played, what would it be? ????? (Erin says: I assume this means Cathy has played all the roles she's ever wanted to play. Well, after playing Grizabella, that makes sense.)

What do you do when you’re not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? During the school year, I teach pre-kindergarten at a preschool; I have been singing with a Jazz Combo since 1987; I love water volleyball; I am raising my beautiful 13 year old daughter and 6 year old Shih Tzu.

Anything else we should know about you? I am an M&M freak, I love to watch CSI and Ghost Hunters, and I love to enjoy the outdoors in the summer (as long as it is not camping). (Erin says: Cathy and I might be the same person, except for the part where she can sing and loves the water ... so, not really the same person. But I, too, like M&Ms and CSI, and hate camping!)

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you (can’t be something you’ve said already; make it good – “I’m allergic to cats” is lame, but “I once worked as a dancer in a vampire theme bar” is awesome!)? I played on a dodge ball team last winter!! It was a serious sport! Also, speaking of serious, I am a ruthless Scrabble player.

Name: Felicity Ann Brown
Role: Kyra

What are some of your favorite past roles? Topsy in The King and I, Professor Willard in Our Town, Granny in the party scene of The Nutcracker. I loved being an ensemble member in American University's production of Kiss Me, Kate, because the dance routines were incredible. Oh, and chorus member of The Mikado with Washington Savoyards, because that's how I met Guillaume. (Erin says: According to Facebook, Guillaume is Felicity's boyfriend. Probably you could figure that out, but since I had hard proof, I figured I'd pass along that little nugget.)

If you could play any role you haven't yet played, what would it be? Kate in Kiss Me, Kate.

What do you do when you're not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? I'm the Acquisitions Coordinator for American University's Library. I'm starting library school in the September. I try to squeeze in ballet classes here and there, but I'm also on the Board of the Victorian Lyric Opera Company (shameless plug: http://www.vloc.org/) so I don't get away from theatre much.
Anything else we should know about you? I like alternative and punk rock … and I like it loud.

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you? Nerdiest high school moment: I once soldered together a circuit board for my F.I.R.S.T Robotics team while wearing a nun's habit (it was during my dinner break for The Sound of Music dress rehearsal). (Erin says: If there are pictures, I would like to see them. That sounds even nerdier than MY nerdiest high school moment!)

Name: Michael Ehrlich
Role: Priest, and I’m serving as the vocal director

What are some of your favorite past roles? Ali Hakim in Oklahoma and Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof.

If you could play any role you haven’t yet played, what would it be? Leo in The Producers. If I were MUCH younger, I would love to play Matt in The Fantasticks. I'd like to play the Wizard of Oz in Wicked. Hmmm …There are so many fun roles, it’s hard not to write a huge list.

What do you do when you’re not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? I’m the choral director at W. T. Woodson HS in Fairfax. I just finished my 20th year. I’m also the president of the Virginia Music Educators Association. I love to travel, love to cook, bake, read, go to the movies, theatre. Spend as much time as possible with Roger and also with my 1 year old golden retriever Max!

(Erin says: Michael has received all sorts of awards and recognition for his teaching and directing. Too many to list here, but he is quite an accomplished man! Be impressed.)

Anything else we should know about you? I’m not sure … let’s see … I’m a tap dancer. I told color guard for quite a few marching bands for over 22 years. Does that count for something interesting?

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you? I’ll never tell!! :) (Erin says; Oh, now that's just mean!)

That's all, folks! (See, THERE'S a tagline worth stealing! I knew one would come to me eventually.)

Meet the Cast, Part 2!

So my original plan was to just run on down the cast list as it's listed in the script, but I'm going to deviate from that slightly today. I had a special request for more of my witty writing from my favorite (and possibly only) loyal reader, Michael Schaaff ... who also happens to be in the cast! So he's getting bumped up a little bit, and is in fact today's very first cast member to be interviewed!

(Right now Michael's my favorite because he's the only loyal reader I know of, and because his picture is pretty freaking awesome. And, you know, he seems to be a pretty cool guy. But if YOU want to be the next Michael Schaff, tell me! I like mail, I like comments, and mostly, I like embarrassing pictures from people who will let me post them on the internet! Maybe I can make this a weekly contest ... )

(I just got an email from Michael that Brittany is also a loyal reader, but since she was supposed to be posted today anyway, I figured I'd give her a special shout-out right here. Holla! ... Yeah, I really just typed that. *hangs head in shame*)

Enough about me. Let's hear about Michael and Brittany and Brian!

Name: Michael Schaaff
Role: Alan

What are some of your favorite past roles? Ken de la Maize – The Musical Comedy Murders of the 1940s

If you could play any role you haven’t yet played, what would it be? Princeton/Rod – Avenue Q (pipe dream, I know, but I’d love to do it)

What do you do when you’re not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? I’m a Quality Assurance Engineer for Honeywell. I like to go to the movies, play video games, board games, sleeping (that’s my favorite), dining out, and causing shenanigans when with my friends.

Anything else we should know about you? I like long walks on the beach (bet you get that a lot ... Erin says: You know, I do, actually, everyone wants me to walk on the beach with them), cooking outdoors, dodging traffic, being sarcastic, making a scene in public, and I’ll do just about anything for a laugh (I’ve ordered diet water at a restaurant and they came back to say “I’m sorry sir, we don’t offer that here”).

(Erin says: Those waiters are stupid. Really, really stupid. All water is diet, duh!)

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you (can’t be something you’ve said already; make it good – “I’m allergic to cats” is lame, but “I once worked as a dancer in a vampire theme bar” is awesome!)? I’ve dressed up as Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Superman (full spandex) …not necessarily for Halloween, and looked damn good I might add. (Erin says: Heck yeah, you did! I have the Superman picture somewhere, but for whatever reason, gmail won't find it for me. If it decides to give it back to me, I'll post that one here too ... the world needs more men in spandex.)

(Michael was kind enough to resend!)

Name: Brittany Washington (headshot credit: Traci J. Brooks)

Role: Nadia

What are some of your favorite past roles? I've only just hopped back into theatre this year for the first time since I was in middle school, so I don't really have anything to choose from!

If you could play any role you haven't yet played, what would it be? Cathy (The Last Five Years), Helen (Fat Pig), Olive Ostrovsky (Putnam County Spelling Bee), the list goes on but I'll spare you.

What do you do when you're not doing theatre? I'm a receptionist for a company where the phone rings about twenty times an hour max, so I basically get paid for not falling asleep at my desk. It's a pretty sweet gig. (Erin says: You have no idea how jealous I am. No idea. Seriously, her gchat message just said she's watching "Juno" ... at work. I hope her boss isn't reading this.)

Anything else we should know about you? I am pathetically reliant on my TiVo, enjoy singing in the shower, overuse my flat iron, and am a terrible cook unless the only thing you like to eat is toast -- in which case, I can totally hook you up.

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you? When I was six, I desperately wanted to become one of the Barney kids -- I knew the words to all of the songs and had my own purple stuffed dinosaur and everything. Obviously it never quite worked out... not that I'm totally bitter or anything.

The other, less-awesome Britney. This was the placeholder headshot until we got a real one, but Brittany and I decided that it still needed to be in here, since when it comes down to it, she and Brit-Brit are essentially the same person.

Name: Brian M. Garrison
Role: Matt

What are some of your favorite past roles? ‘Puck’ in William Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream is my all-time favorite … so far. There’s nothing better than playing a mischievous fairy decked out in glitter and bells. (Erin says: It's so true. And again, I'm so jealous. I don't have nearly enough opportunities to wear glitter and bells in my life.) Portraying the ‘Dauphin’ (Prince of France) in Henry V was another awesome experience. I love any role that allows me to speak French and partake in a brutal sword fight. Outside of Shakespeare, ‘Linus’ in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown was a ton of fun and my friend made me a blanket for the show. I stopped carrying it to work, but I still sleep with it sometimes. And ‘John Landis’ in Fifth of July was probably the toughest dramatic role I’ve taken on to date. John was a very complex individual with very complex circumstances. He’s the antithesis of me in almost every way, but the experience was priceless.

If you could play any role you haven’t yet played, what would it be? I definitely have a list going: ‘Henry Jekyll’ in Jekyll & Hyde. ‘Mark’ in Rent. ‘Matthew’ ‘Mark’ or ‘Luke’ in Altar Boyz. ‘Adam’ in The Shape of Things. ‘Irwin’, ‘Dakin’ or ‘Scripps’ in The History Boys. I also want a part in any future M. Night Shyamalan film.

What do you do when you’re not doing theatre? Acting is my passion and I would prefer to put it first in my life. (Insert shameless plug here: If anyone wants to subsidize my acting career please feel free to contact me!) I’m a project analyst (accountant) for a telecommunications integrator during the sun-filled hours of the day. It pays the bills and I like my co-workers a lot, but it’s not the love of my life. I also like to hang out with my friends, travel, eat at great restaurants, write the never ending screenplay, party-party-party in DC & NYC, shop, play video games, see a lot of live theatre and spend quality time at home with Netflix.

Anything else we should know about you? I’m in an improv troop called ‘Mission Impromptu’. I’m a ‘totally fierce’ cook and avid wine drinker. I’m also ‘Godfather’ (Erin says: Godfather like Marlon Brando? Cool!) to my best friend’s son, Alex, who just turned 1 in May. In the very near future, I plan to move to New York City to further pursue my acting career.

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you? I dated a dancer in a vampire theme bar … Wait, no, um … When I have the time, I still read comic books and collect action figures.

Meet the cast of "bare" (Part 1)

Over the next couple of weeks, I'm going to be posting some interviews with the cast of "bare". Some of the cast members took the interview more seriously than others (for example, I happen to know that Ryan Khatcheressian's favorite role ever was as my body double in BatBoy, although he failed to list this in his interview ... I am offended.)

This may take a few weeks (or days, depends how often I feel like updating) ... I have to spread things out, create some anticipation ... that, and I can't put the whole cast all in one post. This blog doesn't hold that much awesome.

Name: Ryan Khatcheressian
Role: Peter

What are some of your favorite past roles? The West Springfield HS ensembles of The Sound of Music, South Pacific, and Oliver!

If you could play any role you haven’t yet played, what would it be? Tiny Tim in A Christmas Carol

What do you do when you’re not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? Sorting socks and catching butterflies.

Anything else we should know about you? I like funnel cake and tennis.

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you (can’t be something you’ve said already; make it good – “I’m allergic to cats” is lame, but “I once worked as a dancer in a vampire theme bar” is awesome!)? In July of 1991, I threw up on the Tilt-A-Whirl at Ocean City and cried.

Name: Tara Leigh Moore (real picture coming soon, promise!)

Role: Ivy

What are some of your favorite past roles? Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors, Columbia in The Rocky Horror Picture show, Echo in Eleemosynary, Alice in Closer, Shelly in Batboy: the Musical, and Little Red in Into the Woods

If you could play any role you haven’t yet played, what would it be? Eponine in Les Miserables (realistic) and Mimi in Rent (unrealistic since last time I checked I wasn’t the appropriate ethnicity) oh and Daisy in SideShow which will never happen since nobody is my size :)

What do you do when you’re not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? I’m a speech and language pathologist. I work with children who have communication disorders including articulation, receptive and expressive language impairments, reading and writing delays, etc. ... love what I do.

Anything else we should know about you? I love sushi and lobster. Not together. And chocolate – milk chocolate or with caramel is a plus. Favorite TV shows: Lost, Heros and Buffy the Vampire Slayer

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you? I’m a pole dance instructor for DivaFit in Ashburn!!! I’ve been pole dancing for two years. It’s the first hobby in my life that’s rivaled theatre for my attention. And yeah, you could guess it on the days that I have bruises up my legs from too many pole classes but it’s worth it!

(Erin says: Tara is my pole dance instructor and she's awesome. If you've ever considered taking pole dance, you should really check out DivaFit. Super fun. And now, back to your regularly scheduled interviews.)

Name: Dan Plehal (Erin says: Dan said I should have made his shirt green, but that other than that it's a pretty good likeness ... so apparently, Dan looks like Charlie Brown mated with a Weeble. Watch out, ladies. This one's a hottie.)
Role: Jason

What are some of your favorite past roles? Pish-Tush (Mikado), Willard (Footloose), Pharaoh (Joseph…Dreamcoat), Papa Ge (Once on this Island), Bobby Child (Crazy for You)

If you could play any role you haven't yet played, what would it be? Leaf Coneybear! (25th Annual…Spelling Bee) and (admittedly) Mark in Rent. If I had the range I would love to play Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar, but alas, I do not.

What do you do when you're not doing theatre (day job, hobbies, etc.)? Going to School (senior at William & Mary, studying theatre), doing lighting design and direction, singing with my a cappella group (DoubleTake), taking headshots

Anything else we should know about you? I'm a big fan of food, and Lost, bowling, mediocre pizza at 2am, Wii, mint chocolate chip, and that performing thing :) Shameless plug: if anyone needs new headshots, let me know!

And finally, what is one thing that people would not guess about you upon first meeting/seeing you? I may or may not have a relatively extensive collection of improperly acquired street signs. And a traffic light.

(Erin says: Dan just may be my new hero. Sorry, Ryan. He's got an improperly acquired traffic light. That's pretty rad.)

Dan's REAL head shot (credit Traci J. Brooks) ... not nearly as Charlie Brown-esque.

Oh and also, apparently the traffic light works. Dan wired it himself and it is controlled by a normal 3x lightswitch box.

I am impressed.

Final Call for Jason

We are holding our final auditions for the role of "Jason" this Thursday, June 5th at 7:30 p.m. Auditions will be held in the black box (room 106) at Chantilly High School.

4201 Stringfellow Road

Chantilly, Va. 20151

Auditions will consist of sides and songs from the show.

Please pass along to anyone you know who may fit the bill.

Actor must appear at LEAST in EARLY TWENTIES if not younger on stage, have a wide vocal range, and be a strong performer.

For additional details visit www.2ndflightproductions.com or call 703-927-5438.

Auditions, Part Deux!

Well, auditions went very well last week, and we have most of the roles cast with extremely talented, wonderful people. However, there are a few male roles we still need to fill, so if you wanted to audition but couldn't, or didn't know about it, come on out!

We are holding a second round of callbacks for the roles of Jason, Matt and Lucas.

They will be held this Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 7:30 p.m. at Chantilly H.S. in room 106.

If you're not a man, but know a man who can act, sing, and dance, send him out!

We're almost there ...

It's almost that time, folks -- Audition Time!

Next Monday and Tuesday. Bring your acting, singing, and dancing hats.

I'll post back next week to let you all know how things went, who got cast, and so forth. All that interesting stuff!

AUDITIONS for "bare" (a pop opera)

http://www.2ndflightproductions.com/
or
www.nvcc.edu/CCT
for more information, directions, etc.

When 2 Become 1 ...

Well, this has been a long time coming. I was supposed to begin this blog a while back, but there's been so much going on with CCT and 2nd Flight that I've been putting it off till everything was a little more settled -- which it is!

First of all, welcome! If you're here, it's probably because you are a fan of theatre, an actor, a techie, or looking to learn more about this fabulous theatre company. Which fabulous theatre company, you ask? Well, that's a tricky question.

You see, really, we're two theatre companies -- recently two became one (do you hear that Spice Girls song playing? Because I do. And if I had any idea how to attach a song to blog posts, you'd be hearing it too, so be glad I'm not as compu-literate as I pretend to be!). CCT, the College Community Theatre of Northern Virginia Community College, Sterling Campus, has decided to join forces with 2nd Flight Theatre Company (formerly 2nd Flight Productions, but too many people though we made movies so we changed it) to form THE GREATEST THEATRE COMPANY KNOWN TO MAN.

Actually, here's how it happened. This past winter, Shannon Khatcheressian of 2nd Flight approached Natalie Safley of CCT and said "Hey, the last time we worked on a show together" (this would be Noises Off, January 2006, which Shannon produced and Natalie starred in) "it was awesome, let's do another one. How about Closer by Patrick Marber?"

The show opened in February 2008, and was pretty darn successful, given that it's a really racy show and this was 2nd Flight's first time performing outside of Fairfax County (and only their second show not in Manassas), so no one had ever heard of them in the Sterling area.

After the sucess of Closer, Shannon and Natalie decided that since CCT has a great space, 2nd Flight was losing their space (the Cramer Center was up for sale), and the show had really gone very well, why not try merging the companies?

So here we are -- CCT with 2nd Flight Theatre Company.