Thursday, March 29, 2007

The world's greatest job!


I have the absolute best job in the world! I am a theatrical director, I get to pretend for a living!

Think about it, if someone told you that when you grew up you would spend your days: making up stories, wearing cool costumes (remember the four year old you begging to wear your cape and cowboy boots to the grocery store with Mom?) building the coolest stuff imaginable, painting pictures, then selling tickets to people to come and watch you pretend with your best friends and stand around telling you how great it was! Way cool!

It seems to me that many people tend to forget that. They get wrapped up in “pushing the envelope” or “stretching boundaries of perception”! They forget that the most important people in this equation we call theatre, the audience, likes what we do! They want to enjoy it! Now, don’t get me wrong, ideas are important too! But face it if you never get anyone to hear your ideas you might as well spend your time in the privacy of your own home ranting and raving, it’s free!

There is a basic premise of human psychology that reveals a startling truth, nobody cares what you think! They don’t, they’re all too busy worrying about their own lives to give up valuable time to come to our theatres and be treated as if they were idiots! They’re not. Many of them are highly educated and still don’t “get it”. Maybe that’s because “it” has stopped making sense.

For example, many of us theatrical types point back to classical eras as being the “golden age” of our art. We all lament how many important ideas were being bandied about by the Greek dramatists or Shakespeare. We fail to realize that they were, many times, the sitcom of their day! This was philosophy for the masses. Ideas for Dummies! They created real characters that the average man could relate to, in real situations that made people laugh and cry. Then, and only then, they made their commentary on politics, religion, society, and it stuck! It stuck so well that their work many times is better remembered than the centuries of drama that lay between us and them!

I believe that if the theatre of our day is to regain its place in shaping ideas it needs to appeal to the masses. Does that mean going for the cheap laugh? Maybe, but then, while they are laughing, while their guard is down…slip in an idea or two. Not in a slap in the face abrupt, gotcha, kind of style, but with subtlety, with craft. Allow them the opportunity to be faced with new ideas in a way that appeals to them.

But never, never, even amongst yourselves demean and put them down, and then in the next breath bemoan the fact that they don’t support your lazy butt, oh sorry your “work”! They aren’t stupid, people can smell it when you hate them, and nobody likes being put down and patronized. I have the best job in the world, Pretending on Purpose! And sometimes somebody actually “gets” what I do!

Sunday, March 25, 2007

You can't succeed unless you try!


We've all heard the old adages, "If it at first you don't succeed, try, try again!", "When you fall off the horse, you have to get back on again!" These are true but many people never even get that far when it comes to theatrical endeavours. Many of us prefer to just stand in the wings and comment on other people's attempts at greatness.

We sit on our sofas and easy chairs telling all of our friends, in glowing theatrical terminology, what's wrong with the latest Hollywood blockbuster, or Emmy award winning TV show! The problem with that is, they are getting paid, while we sit and complain about how much better we could do it! Not only that, but their ideas are out there, effecting the world!

Now most of us will never reach that level, but one thing is sure, you will not get 100% of the parts you don't audition for! No one will ever see any of the plays, screenplays, or novels you don't write! No one will ever hear the concert you don't perform! Many of us are great at giving lip service to the concept of being creative, but we sit waiting for someone to give us permission, waiting to be "discovered"!

So, what can you do today to make a contribution to the creative melting pot? How can you express an idea that is important to you? What are you willing to give up or suffer to make yourself heard? Get up, get out and try!
So we at Dramorama.com are here to help! Be sure to check out our departments (upper left) and send us any questions, or ideas to Markrmorris2@sbcglobal.net, and be sure to leave comments on our articles! It's all free and mostly learned the hard way, so it works! Be sure to come back often and invite your friends, feel free to link to our site and mostly have fun!

Tuesday, March 6, 2007

  • Serving up Drama Nirvana 24/7/365

    Dramorama.com will be THE destination for actors, directors, playwrights, designers and general theatre types on the web.
    With hundreds of articles on dozens of topics it will provide answers to the most pressing questions facing: drama teachers, young acting students, church drama directors, community theatre volunteers, and just about anybody who has ever had a question about theatre, in short it‘ll take SWEET to a whole nubba level!

    We will answer such questions as:


    How do you hold an audition?

    How do you select a script?

    How do you cast a show?

    How can I do costumes on a budget?

    How can I fund a theatre production?