Tales Told by a HIDiot: July 2013

Mortal Coil? Never heard of 'im.

We meet again! Virtually anyway. A lot has happened since the last post; where have you been?? We have been busy, busy bees and have lots on which to update you. First and foremost, we are becoming more and more a "real business" every day. In that vein, here is Hamlet Isn't Dead's official mission statement which we're publicly releasing to.... well, this blog, I suppose, and the world for the first time ever!

"Hamlet Isn't Dead is dedicated to the proposition that the works of William Shakespeare have stood the test of time not solely for their technical craftsmanship but also for their emotional universality. We believe that Shakespeare can be appreciated, understood, and enjoyed not only by the intellectual elite, but by everyone, regardless of education, class, or background. Therefore we, Hamlet Isn't Dead, will take a fresh look at the growth and development of William Shakespeare as an author in order to present his texts as if we, and the audience, are experiencing his words for the first time."

Sexy, right? It took some hammering out, but we're happy with it. It was tempting to use a bit more vernacular and just say:

"Hamlet Isn't Dead thinks Shakespeare is good. Don't try to fix it, dummies."

But that's probably wouldn't reflect well on us in the "professional community". So.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next things next! Please give a big round of applause that they won't be able to hear but do it anyway to Hamlet Isn't Dead's first ever cast and crew, the players of The Two Gentlemen of Verona!!

Robin Rightmyer - Proteus

You've definitely seen this guy's face before (and if not, you've got some catching up to do). You might think it would be difficult for Robin to switch from Executive Director to Leading Man at the drop of a hat, but that's his secret. "If you ever don't know what to do in a scene, just drop your hat. Right there. Hamlet? Mercutio? Drop it. Don't have a hat? Get a hat. I guarantee results." -Robin (probably)

Nicholas Stauffer - Valentine

Let's make one thing clear about Nicholas Stauffer: It's "Stauffer" like "off", not "Stouffer's" like the pizza. As in, "stop" calling me "Stouffer", it's "Stauffer" or I'll "stomp" on your head . I give him extra shit because he constantly reminds me that I look like Theon Greyjoy from Game of Thrones. Which...to be fair, I do a bit. Jerk.

Olivia Luna - Julia

We asked Olivia at her audition if she had a third monologue to show us. She said that she did and would perform Rosalind from As You Like It. She clarified that this was Rosalind "a.k.a. Lil Ro". The next two minutes consisted of Robin giggling like a pre-pubescent girl, Marrick weeing himself, and David's eyebrows leaping off of his face in amazement. Take a note, people.

Sarah Vogt - Silvia

What can be said about Sarah Vogt that hasn't been said already? Probably some things in Swedish; she doesn't seem like she has many Nordic connections. But we could be wrong. In fact, any Swedish -speaking fans of ours, say something about Sarah in the comments section. That'll just make everyone's day.

Aaron Lynn - Speed/Panthino

Aaron wins the award for "Longest Distance Traveled to Make It to Rehearsal". Since we're rehearsing in East Harlem and he lives in Brooklyn, Aaron must brave two subway transfers, eight uphill climbs, three flights of stairs, eighteen stray bullets, four fruitcart dodges, and one very friendly homeless man who refers to Aaron as "Your Highness, King of the Stars". And that's just to make it to Manhattan! The things we do for art....

Travis Klemm - Lance/Thurio/Eglamour

Travis Klemm, believe it or not, is actually playing 76 roles in this upcoming performance of Two Gents. We only listed the first three for convenience sake. Over the course of the evening, Travis will be portraying knights, strippers, astronauts, evil scientists, and dozens more! See if you can spot them all.

Emily C. A. Snyder - Lucetta/Host

Emily C.A. Snyder is just...too kind. Which is great for her roles as the loving and supportive Lucetta/Host! But in real life it makes us all look bad. And she's so excited to be working on this show. Jeez, between her politeness and her enthusiasm, she's gonna put us out of a job.

Brian Morabito - Antonio/Duke

You know how when you go to Sea World, they have a splash zone? Well, we have something similar in this show, but it's called the Brian Zone. Be warned, if you sit in the first three rows, you may end up with Brian in your lap. Heck, you may end up with Brian in your lap if you sit in the back three rows. Take that as you will.

David Andrew Laws - Director

What's next for David? Well, after this show he hopes to expand his directing career into the film world. Upcoming projects include Timon and Pumbaa of Athens, Not Much Ado About Anything At All, and The Neverending Story XVI.

Liz Colwell - Stage Manager

Liz Colwell hasn't even had time to send me a picture. That's not her fault though; we literally brought her onto the project last night. Time is money though, and we have too little of either, so I just picked a photo off of Facebook and hoped she wouldn't get mad. If she doesn't approve...we may be looking for a stage manager again soon. (We kid, Liz, and we owe you many, many thanks already)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We also have loads of people we have to thank at this point (aside from the Facebook Likes Series, of which it's almost time for a third!!). So we want to give a quick shoutout to

-Anna Fearheily, Allison Stock, and Emily Jackson for joining us in the audition room!

-Allison Stock and Emily Lambert for their artistic involvement!

-The makers of Beer for getting David through rehearsals

-And really all of you for your continued love and support.

We're almost a week into rehearsal now and things are going swimmingly. The blog will be updated on a much more regular basis to bring you insights and intrigue on our process. For now let's just say it's a sexy old play with a sexy young cast.