Writer/Director, American Machine
Starry Night Productions and The Flynn Center present Jim Lantz's newest play, American Machine, in FlynnSpace September 25 through October 7.
Lantz is keeping friends updated about the play's progress through a series of e-newsletters, portions of which he has graciously allowed the FlynnBlog to reprint.The following excerpts are from Lantz's August 29 e-newsletter. For even more information, visit American Machine's website.
Where are we now?
Four weeks to go to Opening Night and lots of stuff is happening...
Off-book Rehearsals ... Tonight is our first rehearsal where actors are "off-book," meaning that all the actors have memorized their lines and we can start rehearsing with details like props, set pieces, and blocking (where an actor moves within the set). The show is coming together really well. I'm biased to say this, but our actors are so talented. I'm quite proud of our cast. Seth Jarvis portrays "Ipsy," a man with a disability and a cleft palette. Seth has put a lot of hours into researching this role and it really shows. Everybody else is researching their characters, too ... reading books, talking to people similar to their characters. We have plans to tour a factory in a couple of weeks.
Sets... Sam Rudy has finished sculpting the sets and now Isaac Wasuck has begun painting them and, boy, do they look nice! Both of these guys are phenomenal artists—the old brick wall looks so true to form that you have to touch it to realize that it's really carved stryofoam.
Beer for Cola ... So we bought an old coke machine on eBay that will be a key set piece. The man we bought it from kept it in his garage to keep beer cold (his wife made him sell it). When we told him that we were probably going to gut it and rewire it, he got this sad look in his eye and said, "Hell, I thought you were going to use it for beer, too." (In order to get a beer, you have to pay 35 cents.) ... After the show, if anybody wants a beer cooler that could make money too, let us know.
Our Ads ... Advertising for American Machine starts just after Labor Day. Check out SevenDays, Front Porch Forum, and your local kiosk. Each of our posters contains a statistic or fact about the vanishing American dream.
Sets... Sam Rudy has finished sculpting the sets and now Isaac Wasuck has begun painting them and, boy, do they look nice! Both of these guys are phenomenal artists—the old brick wall looks so true to form that you have to touch it to realize that it's really carved stryofoam.
Beer for Cola ... So we bought an old coke machine on eBay that will be a key set piece. The man we bought it from kept it in his garage to keep beer cold (his wife made him sell it). When we told him that we were probably going to gut it and rewire it, he got this sad look in his eye and said, "Hell, I thought you were going to use it for beer, too." (In order to get a beer, you have to pay 35 cents.) ... After the show, if anybody wants a beer cooler that could make money too, let us know.
Our Ads ... Advertising for American Machine starts just after Labor Day. Check out SevenDays, Front Porch Forum, and your local kiosk. Each of our posters contains a statistic or fact about the vanishing American dream.
Be a Sponsor—Have Fun!
Egads! We're still $5,000 shy of our fundraising goal. With only four weeks to go and a big hole in our budget, to be honest, we're getting a little nervous about American Machine. We're making calls and hoping that we can still reach our goal. Did you know that for as little as $75 you can be an individual sponsor? For as little as $95 you can advertise in our program. Get great seats to the show with your complimentary tickets, advertise in the program, and see a really cool play about an important subject. Interested? E-back. If you're already a sponsor, THANK YOU! We're going to recognize you at the show in four short weeks. Of course, our play wouldn't be possible without you!
Blogger's Night
The Thursday, September 27, show of American Machine we're calling Bloggers' Night. This is how we hope it'll work. ... In addition to our paying audience and sponsors, we're going to invite about 20 of Burlington's bloggers to this show gratis. The only thing that we ask in return is that our bloggers do what they do best: blog about what they saw. What they say is up to them. What they see on Thursday, September 27, will be up to us. So if you regularly read any bloggers in Burlington, let us know who they are and we'll be sure to invite them!
Got an Old Home Movie Projector?
You remember those old home movie projectors from the '70s? 8mm clickety-click things that your mom or dad used to show scratchy films of trips to the beach, weddings and new babies with? Well, we're looking to borrow or buy one for our production. If you have one, or know where we can get one, let us know! We'd sure love to talk to you about it!
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