Flux Theatre Ensemble

When we choose seasons, we pay special attention to the ways the plays speak to each other. But when choosing scenes for Have Another, we focus more on who the playwrights are, and which Flux Sunday scenes struck the strongest chords.

But while hosting the rehearsals for Have Another #5 this weekend, I noticed an interesting shared theme about adolescence and consequences. Growing up is above all taking responsibility for the consequences of your actions; of realizing things don't often work out exactly the way you expected; of making plans that prepare for the uncertain world; of owning the messes you make.

Under this definition, I feel our country has regressed again towards a kind of adolescence: putting off passing necessary environmental legislation; pretending it's possible to spend more, cut taxes, and somehow reduce the deficit; entering into wars without exit plans; and then acting with a childish denial of responsibility when obvious consequences come home to roost. I say this knowing my own actions still sometimes follow this adolescent pattern, despite my best intentions.

All three plays for this Have Another explore this theme in fascinating ways. In Kristen Palmer's Sacrifice, teenage Emmie looks around at a town where family farms have been devoured and manufacturing jobs have dried up; where the adults of her life have betrayed her or let her down; where she feels she has to take the responsibility the adults have abandoned and change things in dramatic fashion.

In Katherine Burger's Ever Ever, Peter Pan and Lost Boys have left NeverLand for an apartment in Manhattan but still haven't grown up. Now in their sixties, the boys and Wendy have their suspended adolescence upended by the "agent of change" Crocker Dial, a reptilian figure of mystery who one by one, brings the consequences of time and age to these defiantly childish adults. Ever Ever indulges in the pleasures of being a child while at the same time reckoning with it's limits.

In my play Denny and Lila, we meet that most bewitching form of American adolescent, the con artist. We've all met that charmer with the childlike vitality that admits no limits, who believes the night has no end. These charmers and con artists are almost irresistible, but they always leave someone else to clean up their mess. In some ways, contemporary America is the ultimate con artist, peddling a dream that everyone can have everything they want in a world of scarcity and loss.

As you might expect, none of these plays end well for the characters, though they have a great deal of fun as they fiddle and burn. Hopefully you'll see what I mean tomorrow night! Read the full story

It's back! Our next installment of Have Another is this Monday the 17th from 7PM-9PM. We'll be returning to the friendly confines of Jimmy's #43, located downstairs at 43 East 7th Street between 2nd and 3rd Ave. There is no cover, just some of our favorite scenes from Flux Sunday shared over drinks with friends.



2011 comes in with a roar - check out this must-see Monday line-up:

(What is Flux Sunday?)

Playwrights: Katherine Burger (Ever, Ever), Brian Pracht (Wendell Wants), August Schulenburg (The Temptation Show)

Actors: Jane Taylor, Jason Howard, Ken Glickfeld, Gretchen Poulos, Alisha Spielmann, Kimberly Klein, Nora Hummel, Isaiah Tanenabum, Ryan Andes, Travis York, Matthew Archambault, Heather Nicolson

Our first Flux Sunday of 2011! And, pending how rehearsals/production of Dog Act goes, potentially our last for a little while, though we'll be trying to sneak in some in January, if we can.

Highlights included:
-Ever wonder what the definition of "crackling" look like in action? Well, if you had seen Jason Howard as Dial and Richard Watson as Hook read Ever Ever, you would wonder no more.
-Jane Taylor's moving read as the spurned Wendy in the very same Ever Ever (it was a good day for our flash forward Peter Pan)
-Wendell Wants breezing speedily through 30 pages as Brian turns the screws on our likable, but increasingly morally dubious, hero; memorably embodied by three (count 'em!) Wendell's, Travis York, Matthew Archambault, and Isaiah Tanenbaum

It was a socko day for our first 2011 Sunday...here's to many more, hopefully sooner than later.

(What is Flux Sunday?)

Playwrights: Katherine Burger (Ever, Ever), Aja Houston (Superwomen?), Brian Pracht (Wendell Wants), August Schulenburg (The Temptation Show)

Directors: Tiffany Clementi, Katherine, Isaiah, Kelly O'Donnell

Actors: Ken Glickfeld, Matthew Archambault, Carissa Cordes, Leila Okafur, Kathleen Wise, Matthew Murumba, Lynn Kenny, David Crommett, Damon Kinard, Alex Marshall-Brown, Tiffany, Chudney Sykes, Isaiah, Aja, Gus, Jaime Robert Carrillo

Yup, it was a jam-packed Flux Sunday for our last Sunday of 2010, and there was all sorts of good work going on.

Highlights:
-A hot Flux Sunday for Tiffany Clementi, with a turn as the foul-mouthed gorgeous Sadie in Wendell Wants, calculating therapist in Superwomen?, and then bringing a playful directorial focus to the 2nd scene of Aja's pageant play.
-The trifecta for Isaiah Tanenbaum, with funny turns as an actor (Wendell), director (1st scene in Viva Fidel) and as a playwright, the comic highlight of the day in the 2nd scene of Fidel, where Matthew Archambault played the (literally) puppet dictator in a ludicrously staged scene by Kelly O'Donnell.
-But the scene that stuck with me the most was Chudney Sykes monologue in the first scene of Superwomen?. Aja crafted a subtly troubling monologue for Cleopatra about dreams and body image that Chudney handled beautifully.
-Personally, any day that I can act in a Katherine Burger play with both David Crommett and Ken Glickfeld is a good day. And so it was, in Ever Ever (if not for ever ever).
-Matthew Murumba easily fitting into a role I may just be writing for him in mind (The Temptation Show).

If you were there, what do you remember (other, than of course, Archambault's brilliantly flailing limbs?) Read the full story

Ken Glickfeld to the rescue!

With our usual Flux Sunday spaces occupied, Ken rode to our rescue, allowing our theatre-making momentum to continue. I had thought we'd only be able to read scripts, but he was willing for us to stage scenes, and though that shift led to a time miscalculation on my part, some lovely work happened.

Playwrights: Katherine Burger (Ever Ever), Fengar Gael (Devil Dog Six), Brian Pracht (Unplugged In), August Schulenburg (The Hand That Moves)

Directors: Heather Cohn, Katherine, Brian, August

Actors: Jane Taylor, Kimberly Klein, David Crommett, Ken Glickfeld, Lynn Kenny, Alisha Spielmann, Ryan Andes, Kathleen Wise, Chudney Sykes, Damon Kinard, Candice Holdorf, Leila Okafur

Highlights:
-Um, holy crap, Lynn Kenny. Evidently, she had a big bowlful of Acting for breakfast. Not only did she ably navigate Lois' tricky future-vision scene in The Hand That Moves, but her performance as Leah in Unplugged In was high strung as Christmas lights on the top of the tree. Yeah, that metaphor may have failed, but how would you describe that awesomeness?
-The many hats of the day award went to impressive newcomer Chudney Sykes, who rocked out a lovestruck do-gooder, a Jamaican nurse, and outraged slacker dude, respectively.
-Strong direction from both Heather and Brian sharing the end of Unplugged In, with Lynn's scene above matched by go-for-broke turns in the blinding scene from Candice as Zero and Leila Okafur as Leah.
-Ryan Andes's playing of Jean-Pierre in Devil Dog Six - he was as French as a baguette made out of berets (metaphor failure again?).
-Kathleen Wise and Alisha "Paint It Black" Spielmann making some invisible/banana children feel all too real.

If you were there, what did you remember before the Feud benefit made you forget? Read the full story

I think we're going to like it here.

Our fourth Flux Sunday at Judson was a moving recovery from our haunted Halloween Sunday. really strong, heartfelt work marked all 3 scenes.

Playwrights: Katherine Burger (Ever Ever), Fengar Gael (Devil Dog Six), August Schulenburg (The Hand That Moves)

Directors: Tiffany Clementi, Katherine, August

Actors: Alisha Spielmann, Kari Riely, Mariam Habib, Gretchen Poulos, Nora Hummel, Jason Howard, Carissa Cordes, Isaiah Tanenbaum, Ken Glickfeld, Becky Kelly, Marnie Schulenburg, Jane Taylor

-Marnie and Mariam making the ex-lover reunion scene between Lois and Aaseya in The Hand That Moves (formerly The Baby Play), especially Marnie's handling of the rush of fear over Aaseya's safety.
-Tiffany directing the living daylights out of Devil Dog Six! Jane leaning cool against the wall, Carissa skipping fiercely between the horses, all of it flowing from one strong stage picture to the next.
-Jason Howard's crocodilian Dial in Ever Ever was as close to a tour de force as one can get in a hastily staged scene: strutting, leering, carelessly picking the lost boy from his teeth.
-Kari's handling of Paula's confession - full of simple feeling in a difficult monologue.
-Nancy's moving read as the dreaming lost boy terrorized by Dial. I won't ever forget that scene that left my cheeks wet.

If you were there, what do you remember? Read the full story

Our 3rd Flux Sunday at Judson Memorial Church had the ill-fated luck of falling on Halloween, and a haunted Flux Sunday it was indeed, with mysteriously disappearing accents, bedeviled containers of chocolate, and a small turnout. But, like the valiant ghostbusters we are, we persevered to get some good work done.

Playwrights: Katherine Burger (Ever Ever), Fengar Gael (Devil Dog Six), August Schulenburg (Untitled)

Actors: Ken Glickfeld, Carissa Cordes, Gretchen Poulos, David Crommett, Tiffany Clementi, Matthew Archamabult, Damon Kinard

Director: Katherine, Heather Cohn

Highlights Included:
- The debut of Damon Kinard, who gave a strong read as the charming tyrant husband in The Baby Play
-The tag-team comic duo of Ken Glickfeld and Matthew Archamabult as adult Lost Boys Tiggy and Weasel in Katherine's Ever Ever. I admit, I nearly broke.
-Fengar bringing pages from Devil Dog Six, a play we've long admired but not yet played with - excited for more!

If you were there, and weren't devoured by zombies on your way home, what were your highlights? Read the full story

Our second Sunday at Judson Memorial Church was also our first with audience members from their congregation - exciting! And they were certainly treated to a wide variety of um, entertainments, shall we say?

Playwrights: Katherine Burger (Ever Ever), Fengar Gael (The Spell Caster), Kristen Palmer (Untitled), Brian Pracht (Wendell Wants), August Schulenburg (Presents, Denny and Lila), Daren Taylor (Porn Makes Jesus Cry)

Directors: Ryan Andes, Matthew Archambault, Katherine Burger, Heather Cohn

Actors: Elise Link, Alisha Spielmann, Antoinette Broderick, Gretchen Poulos, Susan Ferrara, David Crommett, Mariam Habib, Amy Staats, Ken Glickfeld, Brent Rose, Jane Taylor

Highlights included:
-Susan gracefully making the tempo gear shift in her cold read of the sad end of my monologue Presents ( lovely to hear 5 different actresses take a crack at Keely), not to mention her chill/shiver inducing turn as Janet in Kristen's play dealing with a violent act long planned and suddenly done
-Elise's lovely moment as Lila reaching out to child Denny as Jabber remembers walking behind them when they were young, and hand in hand (and is it weird that watching Gatz I thought that Denny and Lila bore a strange resemblance to The Great Gatsby?)
-Brian Pracht is a merrier (so far) mood in his Wilderesque comedy of growing up, Wendell Wants
-Alisha rocking another one of Kristen's ladies as Emily in a funny/tense scene with Isaiah
-Jane as a love-struck middle-aged Wendy still in awe of Peter in Katherine's Ever Ever
-Matt Archambault's high stakes staging of Daren's Porn Makes Jesus Cry
-Heather's transformation into soul-sucking snake in The Spell Caster!

This was a Flux Sunday where we finished two plays, Denny and Lila and The Spell Caster; and began several new ones, and so it goes for as long as we can keep going.

What were your favorite highlights? Read the full story

Flux Sunday has gone through several significant evolutions, and on October 17th, we took the next good-sized step forward. It was our first Flux Sunday hosted by Judson Memorial Church, and it was an auspicious beginning to that hopefully long-lived partnership.

It was our first day back on our feet staging things since leaving NYR Studios, and it was good to be moving again. The difference between a cold read and an audience engaging with an hour's worth of staging is all the difference in the world.

It was our first day with an audience member for the last hour - Jonny Goodman and Joe Powell joined us, and we hope to have more Judsonites engage with the work in the future.

It was the first day for the amazing Amy Staats of Hearts Like Fists fame, and one of the first days someone took advantage of our new guest policy (thank you, Mr. Szymkowicz; welcome, Mr. Rose).

AND...it was the first time we ever had a baby in the Flux Sunday house! Kira and Joe's beautiful daughter Dylan was exposed to some high levels of theatre, and we soaked in the cute. On a day when Flux took a big step forward in our mission to building a creative home, Dylan's presence seemed right.

Oh, and we worked plays, too. Here are the peeps and the highlights:

Playwright: Kira Blaskovich (Untitled), Katherine Burger (Legends of Batvia, Ever Ever), Zack Calhoon (Untitled), Brian Pracht (Unplugged In), August Schulenburg (Denny and Lila)

Actors: Ryan Andes, Amy Staats, Gretchen Poulos, Mariam Habib, Kari Swenson Riely, David Crommett, Anthony Wills Jr, Alisha Spielmann, Ken Glickfeld, Marnie Schulenburg, Tiffany Clementi, Brent Rose, Isaiah Tanenbaum, Nora Hummel

Directors: Kira, Katherine, Ken, Tiffany

Highlights included:
- Kira's debut as a playwright AND director with Flux (we've known her primarily as an actor); with her nuanced, deeply felt scene between two old lovers, feeling each other out; and a vital staging of the madcap tragic climax of Denny and Lila (we made it to the cliff, and are about to jump)
-Marnie and Tiffany playing a pair of bad news rich girls in Zack's new play; so hung over they can barely text, they still made the scene snap with laughs and a textured friendship - who knew the line "you're not fat" could have so many comic layers?
-Alisha's LEAH in Unplugged In was somehow both terrifyingly manic and movingly vulnerable; though after two straight shout outs for the actors playing LEAH, I'm beginning to suspect Brian's rewrite of her may have something to do with it, too
-Katherine's new play Ever Ever, about Peter, Wendy and the Lost Boys some 40 years later, still trapped in their boyish Never Land. Its whimsical surface hides a white knuckled anxiety that was a joy to play.

If you were there for Flux and Judson's big Sunday...what did you walk away with? Read the full story

(What is Flux Sunday?)

So close to catching up with the Flux Sunday report! Due to the J.B. rights issue scramble, we had to cancel Flux Sunday on the 21st and 28th because I was writing (and then rewriting) Jacob's House.

But we returned with a bit of a good bang on the March 7th!

Playwrights: Rob Ackerman (Throwing Gumballs), Johnna Adams (The Anguisher), Katherine Burger (The Guest), Fengar Gael (The Gallerist), August Schulenburg (Denny and Lila)

Directors: N/A (all table reads)

Actors: David Crommett, Brian Pracht, Ryan Andes, Ingrid Nordstrom, Ken Glickfeld, Carissa Cordes, Matt Archambault, Kari Riely, Anthony Wills Jr., Jennifer Stuckert, Alisha Spielmann, Isaiah Tanenbaum, Jane Taylor, Kelly O'Donnell

Highlights included:
- Brian entering into the "Who Can Play Rob" arena with a great read in Throwing Gumballs
- A scene of compassion from Johnna's The Anguisher, with moving performances from Jane and Ken. The diner waitress doing her best to be a good Christian to the enigmatic and horribly scarred drifter is a very promising start to this play...
- Johnna then put on her acting cap for a virtuoso turn as Jabber, the conniving and linguistically gifted con artist side kick of Denny and Lila. I know whose voice I'll be hearing as I continue writing this play!
- But the major highlight of the day was Katherine Burger's The Guest. Because we were reading instead of staging, we were able to tackle the entire second act of this delirious menage a trois of friendship, regret, and desire. Actors took turns playing the three roles: the solid provider Dennis, his allegedly traditional wife Joan, and the object of their mutual desire, the charismatic disaster Amelia. My favorite scene featured Kelly as Joan, David as Dennis, and first timer Kari Riely as Amelia, in the dinner table reveal of just who is sleeping with who. The verbal energy of this scene verges on farce, but the emotional cost of the fall out is never diminished, and the unusual but inevitable denouement was very satisfying.

Only one more Flux Sunday to enter into the annals of history...thanks to everyone who made this one special. Any highlights I missed? Read the full story

(What is Flux Sunday?)

Still trying to play catch up on the Flux Sunday reports, and a rainy day does indeed help. So, cast your minds back to the far gone day of February 14th, where a last minute change of venue has us scrambling to a location where we can only read the plays, and not stage them.

And yet...as you might have hoped...some good work happened. Armenian verse dramas, girls possessed by monkeys, agribusiness, pirate love, and unexpected house guests all paid a visit to this Sunday's Flux.

Playwrights: Johnna Adams (Hripsime), Katherine Burger (The Guest), Fengar Gael (The Gallerist), Kristen Palmer (Sacrifice), Adam Szymkowicz (My Base and Scurvy Heart)

Actors: Paula Roman, Alisha Spielmann, Mariam Habib, Ingrid Nordstrom, Brian Pracht, Nancy Franklin, Michael Davis, David Crommett, Carissa Cordes, Ken Glickfeld, Anthony Wills Jr, Matthew Archambault

Highlights included:

- Mariam and Anthony's powerful showdown as Hripsime and the lusty king Tiridates in Hrispime. Stichomythia fans, it doesn't get better than this.
- Mary's exciting twist in The Gallerist that made Laura's attempt to exorcise the monkey possessing her friend a wee bit more complex.
- Alisha Spielmann's continued channeling of the precocious and mercurial Emmie in Sacrifice.
- David Crommett's perfect capture of Dennis' over-confidence and loneliness in The Guest.
- Johnna's heartbreakingly funny pirate-in-love in My Base And Scurvey Heart. Read the full story

(What is Flux Sunday?)

Playwrights: Rob Ackerman (Throwing Gumballs), Johnna Adams (Tumblewings), Katherine Burger (Legends of Batvia), Isaiah Tanenbaum (The Transcendental Etudes), Anthony Wills Jr (Eddie Falls)

Directors: Michael Davis, Kelly O'Donnell, August Schulenburg, Christina Shipp, Isaiah Tanenbaum, Anthony Wills Jr

Actors: Gretchen Poulos, IT, JA, RA, Nora Hummel, David Crommett, AW, Brian Pracht, Ken Glickfeld, KB, Cotton Wright, Richard Watson, CS, Ryan Andes, Katie Hartke, Jason Paradine

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was our first Flux Sunday of 2010.

Highlights included:
-Kelly O'Donnell's brilliantly funny direction of the newly revised final scene of Legends of Batvia, which included a hilarious mountain climbing montage
-David Crommett's moving performance as a the big hearted patriarch of Tumblewings, fighting and then affirming a move to a senior center (though as this a Johnna play, I kept expecting the natural rhythm of three generations hunting to be sabotaged through an invading angel or demon).
-The ensembles of Throwing Gumballs and Eddie Falls, who fearlessly navigated two plays of wild physical invention - Flux Sunday was never such a workout

But the day ended without time for us to share the work being done on Isaiah's The Transcendental Etudes, the first time in recent memory we've been forced to end a Flux Sunday without seeing all plays present. It was heartbreaking, and I'm determined to be better disciplined about the balance between reading and staging scenes.

Artists who attended, did I miss any highlights? Read the full story

(What is Flux Sunday?)

Playwrights: Throwing Gumballs (Rob Ackerman), Red Horses (Johnna Adams), Going Out Dancing (Katherine Burger), McTeague (James Comtois), Moving Statues (Corey Ann Haydu), Untitled Russian Project (David Ian Lee), Dark Matter (August Schulenburg), The Sleeping World (Crystal Skillman)

Directors: Angela Astle, Rob Ackerman, Katherine Burger, Crystal Skillman

Actors: Ryn Andes, Matthew Archambault, Carissa Cordes, David Crommett, Nancy Franklin, Candice Holdorf, Ingrid Nordstrom, Gretchen Poulos, Jane Taylor, Isaiah Tanenbaum, Richard Watson, Cotton Wright

Sometimes, I plan things out just right...and then there was this Sunday. We went way over time, though for good reason - we had a ton of great material, and actors and directors who wanted to dig deeper.

Highlights included:

-Isaiah Tanenbaum playing Luke Wilson, a Bengali physicist, an elderly shut-in, a miser, and a friendly barkeep all in one day
-Carissa Cordes as a fierce Bright Wing in Johnna's prequel (!) to Angel Eaters
-Ryan Andes' lovably simple McTeague facing down Richard Watson's drunkenly embittered Marcus (the fight scene hilariously directed by Rob Ackerman)
-Katherine's direction of David Ian Lee and Jane Taylor in her Going Out Dancing - I'd previously seen this play at a much faster clip, which put the epiphany in the hands of the audience: here, the more deliberate pace gave Jane's Anna the full opportunity to realize what was happening, and to a degree, accept it
-Working with Cotton on Crystal's The Sleeping World, where complex emotionally rich moments must move quickly - a surprisingly challenging script for a seemingly naturalistic play
-Matt Archambault and Candice Holdorf got to let their hair down a little in Corey's Moving Statues, and the result were two relaxed, highly present, and engaging performances

Artists who attended, what were your highs and lows? Read the full story

(What is Flux Sunday?)

Playwrights: Throwing Gumballs (Rob Ackerman), Projects (Erin Browne), Yellow Wallpaper (Katherine Burger), McTeague (James Comtois), Untitled Russian Project (David Ian Lee), Dinkles and Holly (Zack Robidas), Caged (Adam Szymkowicz)

Directors: Angela Astle, Heather Cohn, Nancy Franklin, August Schulenburg

Actors: Matthew Archambault, Jaime Robert Carrillo, Carissa Cordes, David Crommett, Becky Kelly, Ingrid Nordstrom, Gretchen Poulos, Brian Pracht, Jane Taylor, Isaiah Tanenbaum, Drew Valins, Richard Watson, Travis York

We're back! And as you can see from above, we had a full house. Highlights include:

- Zack Robidas' first pages, the Christmas-themed romp Dinkles and Holly (best line: elf-improvment?)
- Travis York's first FS, rocking out the disturbing-funny Man of Adam's Caged and the disturbing-frocked John of Katherine's Yellow Wallpaper.
- Becky Kelly's picnic enthusiasm as Trina in James' McTeague
- James showing the actors how it's done with his hilariously serious turns as Paul and Santa (yup, the Claus)
- Gretchen Polous' third rock star Flux Sunday in a row as the lonely/under pressure Emily in Erin's Projects
- Angela's moody environmental direction of David's Untitled Russian Project, with an all-star cast and lighting cues to boot (I'd pay to see Captain Adam ordering Zack to be funny)
- Rob Ackerman playing himself in Throwing Gumballs. 'Nuff said.

I was also fascinated by the speed of the first scene in Erin's Projects - usually in her work, the pauses are as important as the words, but the rapid pace made for an interesting dynamic. I also had a great time trying Adam's bird scene three different ways with Ingrid Nordstrom - that kind of trial and error is what makes these Sundays so valuable.

Artists who attended, what were your highs and lows? Read the full story

I just finished a read through of Rami Metal's lovely play, Lullabye (thank you Mark, Polly, Matt, Lynn, Marnie and Christina) and was reminded of just how many good plays are out there that need doing here in NYC. The idea that most new plays are bad may be true, but it is more true that there are way too many great new plays that aren't being done in NYC, or at all.

Well, Flux can't do them all. So here is a completely subjective but passionately felt list of plays that your company should be producing now.

Please add to this list in the comments section, and while you're at it, why not send those plays to me at gus@fluxtheatre.org? Here's the kind of plays I like.

So...what plays do you need and want to see in NYC now? Here's me:

Lydia by Octavio Solis: This play has been done at Denver Center Theater Company, The Mark Taper Forum and Yale Rep, was featured in the December 2008 American Theatre magazine, and yet somehow has not graced an NYC stage. The ending of the first act is haunting; the end of the second, corrosively beautiful. I want to live in a city that does this kind of play first, not last; get on it, bigger NYC theatres!

Sans Merci by Johnna Adams: If you've seen the various readings, you know why I'm so crazy about this play. The mother and lover of a political activist meet to sort out the meaning of her violent death. It is sweet and hopeful, brutal and sad - the scene where they decide who gets to keep her last things is unforgettable.

Incendiary by Adam Szymkowicz: This play about a pyromaniac fire chief manages to be both screamingly funny and oddly moving; it combines the humor, speed and style of Hearts Like Fists with some of the awkward longing of Pretty Theft; this is the kind of play that could be a break out hit for any company smart enough produce it.

Ajax In Iraq by Ellen McLaughlin: You've already heard me rave about this play; so what are you waiting for, theatre-company-with-greater-resources?

Narrator One, by Erin Browne: Read all about it here. Erin's play is the kind of romantic comedy that's actually both romantic and funny. It also has a bitter undertow and some sparkling meta-theatrics to make your mind as well as your heart buzz and burn.

This Storm Is What We Call Progress, by Jason Grote: Speaking of making your mind buzz and burn, Jason's dizzying dagger of a play looks at both the need and the cost of power. Read the take on our Food:Soul here, then read about Rorschach Theatre's well-recieved DC production here. Then get producin'.

Lullabye, by Rami Metal: This rhythmic and lyrical play weaves three generations of a haunted family as they attempt to let go of various ghosts. The language of the play is both raw and poetic, and will need a brave and capable company of actors to make its moving heart sing. We just put together a joyous read-through of it, and maybe you should, too.

Miss Lily Gets Boned, by Bekah Brunstetter: A play about elephants, people and how loss and loneliness makes both species run a little mad; try to see it at The Lark, though I think the reading's got a wait list yards long. It is a wild and funny piece of bewildered wanting.

Texas Toast, by Katherine Burger: Oh man I love this play! A loving liberal couple falls apart when the husband brings back a statue of Kali from Thailand along with the guilt of an irreconcilable secret. Their disintegration is hastened by the vitality and hunger of a charismatic and destructive Texan couple that befriends them. There are five beautiful roles in this unsettling and funny play for any company tough enough to take them on.

Blue Beard, by Matthew Freeman: This haunting and spare look at the classic myth of the Red Door has that rare gift some plays have of making an entirely new world seem real; it is a beautiful and brutal nightmare of a play that the right company could knock out of the park.

Of course, I could go on (and will later), but that's a good start for now. Please put in the comments section plays unproduced in NYC that you want to see. Read the full story

ETUDES AND ATTITUDES

Our post trilogy return to Flux Sunday was marked by stabs at virtuosity, some made, some missed. The first attempt was my own hope of staging the EIGHT scenes on our list all in three hours, an attempt that fell utterly short. But many others succeeded in honoring the patron saint of this Flux Sunday, Franz Liszt.

THE TRANSCENDENTAL TANENBAUM
Member Isaiah Tanenbaum brought his work as a playwright to an exciting new place with the first two scenes of his play, The Transcendental Etudes. A play inspired by a fraud surrounding the nearly impossible to play Liszt composition, The Transcendental Etudes is written in a highly formal stylized poetry that makes even the simplest question and answer an opportunity for flights of fancy. Jane Taylor and Cotton Wright were able to root these soaring words in two deeply felt readings.

OUR TALKING IS BURNING
On a different wavelength of virtuosity, Aaron Michael Zook's We are Burning continued it's unique mash-up of grand myth and crumbs on the cafe table; this scene featured a lengthy monologue for lead lost soul Will, which read like a run across a smooth floor covered in marbles without falling. Another, very different, opportunity for verbal virtuosity.

DIVING ASIDES
A comic virtuosity emerged from Rob Ackerman's Volleygirls; as his deeply funny use of asides to the audience even in the midst of a dive for a ball lends this play tremendous staging opportunities for actors and directors. We just read this scene, but even reading these scenes you feel like diving for something.

KINGDOM OF GRAIN
A newly revised first scene from the 60's play aka Ten Black Boxes aka Kingdom of Grain gave director Heather Cohn another opportunity to wrestle with the unique challenges of the simultaneous scenes; and gave David Crommett a chance to mash-up John F Kennedy and Frederico Garcia Lorca.

CLUBBED BY THE CLUB
The second scene from Corey Ann Haydu's Club brought us into the most grueling virtuosity of all, the busy restaurant. Marnie Schulenburg brought a empathetic goodness to new waitress June as she was assaulted on all sides by Cotton Wright as a nasty customer and nastier waitress, with only David Renwanz's bartender (and yay for the return of David!) as a source of dubious help.

We also heard the first scene of Jeremy Basescu's The Syndrome Syndrome, and in a wonderful visit to memory lane, read a newly revised scene from Katherine Burger's Legends of Batvia, one of the first plays we finished workshopping in 2008. Read the full story

Looking for some post-Christmas literary fun? Flux Sunday regular playwright Katherine Burger (Texas Toast, Legends of Batvia, Way Deep) is a contributor to Stray Stories, a night of readings. Check it out here! Read the full story

What is The Imagination Compact?
How can I learn more about Flux's Midsummer?

Katherine Burger

Playwright, The Fairies, April 28th

Previous Flux History: At Flux Sunday, developed plays include Ah, Batvia! and Texas Toast.

1. What is your favorite Shakeapeare play?
Probably Hamlet.

2. What is your favorite line of Shakespeare's?
Hard to choose, but my favorite stage direction is:
Exuent, chased by a bear.

3. Is your writing influenced by Shakespeare's?
I hope so.

4. What do you think of when you hear the word 'Flux'?
FLUX connotes continuous motion and change to me,
so I think of a river,
constantly changing,  always moving forward.