Ask My Friends - Producing at Fringe

We keep the tradition of “Ask My Friends” and next up is Jamie Gahlon who I worked with at Arena Stage. She is a smart young artist and business person. I am sure we will see the words JAMIE GAHLON PRESENTS very soon. She would love for you all to buy tickets or even look up more info about their show. I asked Jamie to tell us what it is like to produce a show for the Capital Fringe Festival.

“Skywriter: Power-Madness! Subject-Verb Agreement!

From the moment I saw my first Fringe show, I knew it was something I wanted to be a part of; it was just a matter of finding the right people and project. I had produced a couple of shows in college and gained some experience line-producing readings and workshops in my current job at Arena Stage, but the control freak and adventurer in me was missing the fun and chaos endemic to producing, of creating something from scratch and getting to be involved in all aspects of the process from conception to death. So when my friend/colleague/playwright extraordinaire Seamus Sullivan asked if I would consider producing a show he wanted to write for Fringe this summer, I was totally on board. Seamus, a number of other Georgetown grads, and I got together, and The Angry Young Theatre Company was born.

My initial excitement wavered only slightly as I came to terms with what lie ahead; I would be producing for the "real world," we had no budget save my trusty Wells Fargo Visa, and the most exciting/terrifying part was the fact that Skywriter was a new play, an entirely different beast from a script arriving pre-packaged and prepped for distribution.

As soon as we were officially accepted into Fringe in March, we set up auditions and put word out about the show:

"As an English teacher at a troubled DC public school, Frank Fletcher deals with a host of problems; crumbling infrastructure, violence in the halls, controversial reforms, and students who aren't always inclined to sit and learn. Thanks to a traumatic accident, he also believes himself to be a superhero named Skywriter who spends his nights patrolling neighborhood rooftops. When a new student teacher uncovers his secret identity, Fletcher must reflect on whether his heroic alter ego is a dangerous delusion or a much needed force for good in the city."

We were incredibly pleased with the response to auditions and ended up with four fabulous actors, Ricardo Frederick Evans, Christopher Michael Todd, Genevieve James, and Lynn Bandoria.

I spent the next couple of weeks madly crafting contracts, navigating Equity waters to obtain the necessary waivers, searching for rehearsal space, and getting as precise a production calendar as possible given the info that was steadily arriving from Fringe. In many respects, the blessing and curse of Fringe is the pre-ordained structure. Pro: You get a venue, name recognition, and a built-in promotional network. Con: We will have a two-hour tech and must limit the show to an hour. Thankfully, Seamus and our director, Hunter Styles, have both been aware of such constraints and have done an awesome job preserving the magnitude and substance of the show without allowing the scope to careen out of control.

By the time we were cast, Seamus had a rough first draft, but it was clear that in order to do the show justice, we would need to get a development process in place. We partnered with the Artists' Bloc as a part of their Modern Scribes program and set up three readings during April, May and June. We used our cast when they were available, and after each reading, Artists' Bloc staff helped to facilitate a non-critical feedback session based on questions generated by Seamus. It was truly incredible to experience the evolution of the script, sweeping changes and minute adjustments alike.

Seamus set the script in early June as we finalized our press pitches and listings and sent our marketing materials to print, albeit later than we had hoped (isn't that always the way?). We began rehearsals just over three weeks ago, and though it's hard to believe, we head into tech this week, and Fringe is fast upon us. Today, we had a preview performance at Big Monkey Comics on 14th Street, and though the space was unconventional, it was incredible to see a sampling of what's to come, and it was great for our cast to get some practice in front of an audience before the real deal begins THIS Saturday!

As I type, I have just sent the agenda for our last Production meeting, finished finalizing our strange tech week schedule (which includes practicing our 15 minute load in and load outs, God help us), and am trying to understand the minutiae and costs of the wondrous world of ZipCar. Do you know exactly how big the back end of a pick-up truck is or how to secure a rolling chain link fence in said pick-up? Neither do I, but I will by the time this is through.

Outside of the thrill of creation itself and the fun of working with a team of artists I deeply respect, the most rewarding part of the process thus far has been to be a part of something I believe has potential as a tool to affect positive social change in our city, to incite reflection on the state of DC Public schools, and, ideally, to serve as a catalyst for action that moves beyond the theater lobby. Skywriter begs us all to examine who we as a society choose to make superhuman and to seek out and recognize the superheroes who walk among us every day."