The Art of Acting: A Master Class with Fozzie Bear

Written, Performed, & Produced by Larry Phillips 
Directed by Ben Liebert

Nominations: Outstanding Solo Performance & Outstanding Original Short Script – Larry Phillips

About The Art of Acting: A Master Class with Fozzie Bear
You have been invited to attend a Master Class on Acting taught by the legendary Fozzie Bear.

What first attracted you to The Art of Acting...
Larry: Always wanted to do a solo piece.

What was your favorite part of working on this project?
Larry: It was a small rehearsal room. 3 people; me, the director, and the stage manager.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?
Larry: Being alone.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?
Larry: Anytime someone recognizes your work it's thrilling

 
Larry Phillips has written and appeared in: Koalas are Dicks (Theater 80), The Weekend Will End (Theatre 54), Must Win (14th St. Y), Last Chance for Mama (LaTea), The Rise of Mediocrity (Hudson Guild), The Other Harvey (Theatre 54), Secondary Pitch (The Bridge), Arbuckle Syndrome (Hudson Guild), Fistful of Cake, Pocketful of Miracles (Wild Project), Learning to Skip (The Bridge). The New York Theater Festival has nominated him three times for Best Play (winning once), and a nomination for Best Actor. He has also been nominated at The Planet Connections Theatre Festival for Best Play (Comedy) Best Script (Comedy) and won Best Lead Actor in a Comedy.

The Head Hunter

Produced by One Shot Deal in association with Scott McCord
Written by Mark Borkowski
Directed by David Zayas Jr.

Nomination: Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role – Scott McCord

Scott McCord and Ali Arkane

About The Head Hunter
Casmir, a screenwriter, has sold the exclusive rights of his screenplay to a sleazy Hollywood producer. He confesses what he has done to his cousin Salvatore, a hit man for the mob. The screenplay, a bio-pic, contains truths about Sal’s father that are more than incriminating. Enraged, Salvatore vows to get the screenplay’s rights back to Casmir even if it means eliminating the producer. The two cousins are forced to deal with issues that tore their family apart and drove them to be who they are: one an artist, the other a ruthless killer.

 
What first attracted you to The Head Hunter?
Scott: The writing by Mark Borkowski, and working with Ali Arkane

What was your favorite part of working on this project?
Scott: The character work. Writing was so rich - Mark is an actor and wrote deeply flawed characters who desperately need each other’s love

What was the most challenging part of the experience for you?
Scott: Two act Two hander - lots of lines

What was it like to work with this company of artists?
Scott: Mark, Ali and myself are about always deepening the work. I think we did that with every performance

Did you gain any insight through your work on this project?

Scott: That it’s about deepening the work every time out there.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

Scott: That we did what we needed to do out there. I’m deeply honored and grateful for this recognition of the work.

The Maids

Produced by The Seeing Place Theater
Written by Jean Genet
Directed by Erin Cronican and Brandon Walker

Nominations: Outstanding Revival of a Play; Outstanding Actress in a Lead Role - Gaia Visnar; Outstanding Ensemble: Erin Cronican, Christine Redhead, Gaia Visnar

About the Seeing Place Theater
The name "The Seeing Place" is the literal translation of the Greek word for theater (theatron): ". . . the place where we go to see ourselves." The Seeing Place is an actor-driven company dedicated to exploring the intersection between the actor's voice and the playwright's words, by reinterpreting masterful works live and in the moment to make them relevant, visceral, truthful, and accessible to a modern audience. We live up to our name by engaging our community in a vivid conversation about what makes us human. Connection. Learning. Humanity. That's what theater is all about.

About The Maids
Two sisters, maids to a wealthy society woman, act out fantasies of class, love and revenge while the lady of the house is out on a romantic rendezvous. As their games intensify, the incipient violence escalates as they await Madame's return.

What first attracted you to The Maids?

Erin: When choosing to produce and direct this show, we were struck by the feminist and classist themes that are highly relevant in society today. Plus, it's a show that would heavily promote three talented actors in our theater company - seeing plays with an all-female cast is a rare and exciting treat.

Christine: Good Content.

Gaia: I was always intrigued by the play and wanted to really work on it as it's so bizarre and seems non-sensical.

What was your favorite part of work on this production?
Erin: I loved having conversations with patrons in our lobby after the play who found the play resonant and important. It was also wonderful diving into the play dramaturgically with the cast and creative team.

Christine: Learning how to approach the script in a different way. It changed my perspective.

Gaia: The organic approach of The Seeing Place Theater, really exploring the humanity and drives of the characters.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?
Erin: How deep the play goes! We gave ourselves two months of dramaturgical and rehearsal time and we still felt like it was just skimming the surface of what was possible. That's what's so beautiful about well-written plays.

Gaia: Really diving into the characters and their reality, coming to terms with their suffering and trapped situation - which is the source of the games they play. Also, it is a very heavy show, and the nature of the theater company is to go all in, so we really had to dive into the ugly, painful and uncomfortable as well.



What was the most noteworthy part of this production?

Erin: It was wonderful working with so many fierce females in this production - from our director (me), to the cast, to our stage manager and lighting designer.

Gaia: The process with The Seeing Place is always very much in the hands of the actor - we weren't really directed, just placed into the frame of the show, so we had to figure out what we are doing by ourselves and new reality was created on stage every night.

What was the best part of working with this company of artists?

Erin: Their commitment to the creative process was inspiring.

Gaia: As mentioned before, the nature of their work - really diving into the core of the character's complex psychology and human behaviour, as it comes out, not as we think it should.

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new through this experience?

Erin: I discovered how much resilience I had, and how strong that made me. Many people did not know that I was going through chemo for stage IV cancer while we were in production. To be able to come to the theater each night was a challenge in itself, and I learned that the audience can give back to you as much as you give to them. I count myself very lucky that I had the play to focus on while going through treatment.

Gaia: Yes, I got a much better understanding of the play and the character of Claire. I've learned that all the weird things that seemed absurd and out-of-the-blue for me when I was reading the play are rooted in normal, basic human emotions.

What does it mean to you to receive this nomination?

Erin: It means a lot to know that this production made a difference to our audiences, and to the Indie Theatre community. It inspires us to keep going with this kind of work.

Gaia: I am very honoured and humbled by the very unexpected nomination - as an artist, I am focused on doing my work and never think of a reward other than performing what I've been working on. It is nice to be recognised for something you've invested in so much.

Worse Than Tigers

Produced by The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre
Written by Mark Chrisler
Directed by Jaclyn Biskup

Nominations: Outstanding Set Design - Matthew Carlin; Outstanding Sound Design - AJ Surasky-Ysasi; Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role - Braeson Herold; Outstanding Actress in a Lead Role - Shannon Marie Sullivan; Outstanding Premiere Production of a Play

About The Mill
The Mill makes artistically adventurous, boldly theatrical, and politically aware theatre.

About Worse Than Tigers
Olivia and Humphry have a safe, comfortable, enviable life. Their condo is well-adorned with fancy knick-knacks, their social media presence is meticulously groomed, and they never fight. Or laugh. Or kiss. Or talk very much. Unexpectedly, Olivia’s lover-- id-driven Officer Kirk Patrick --shows up, trailing a man-eating tiger which takes up residence right outside, threatening to devour anyone who opens the door. Tigers may be dangerous, but there might be something worse inside.


What first attracted you to Worse Than Tigers?

Jaclyn: Mark's writing is brilliant. The first act feels like Ionesco and the second like Albee.

Braeson: The complexity of the role brought out a fear in me I hadn't experienced in a while. I felt a personal obligation to explore that.

Shannon: I had worked with Jaclyn Biskup before (director of Worse Than Tigers) and was excited to get back in the room with her. I was particularly interested by the relationship of Olivia and Humphrey: their history, their secrecy, and ultimately the expelling of their deepest truths.

Matthew: I had worked with Jaclyn before and she had reached out about bringing me on board as a designer. After reading the script I really liked the style of the piece and its absurdist nature.

AJ: The whole conceit of the "tiger" in the show was really interesting, knowing that given the constraints we were facing, the sound design was going to play a big role in helping to define that character in the show and how the actors would interact with it.

What was your favorite part of working on this Project?

Jaclyn: Wonderful team!

Braeson: My favorite part would have to be the creative partnership with my co-star, Shannon Marie Sullivan. She never wavered, in rehearsal or performance.

Shannon: My favorite part of this production was getting to play with Braeson Herold. Getting to know him, trust him, and riding the absurd and deeply emotional wave created by Mark alongside him.

Matthew: Our design palette was tight and specific, so it was challenging, but overall it really helped to drive the themes of the piece home to the audience.

AJ: For most of the show, the tiger is just outside of the playing space (just behind one of the doors onstage), so the sound is fairly one-dimensional, and we just get to hear the tiger prowling outside for the most part, but the tiger enters into the house where the main characters live in the middle of Act II. When the tiger comes in, all hell breaks loose, and we're in blackout while we hear these sounds of destruction coming from all sides as we introduce sounds through the surround speakers for the first time in the production. It was a big sequence to build and get everything place spatially in the system, but I think was really effective once we got there.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?

Braeson: The text was the most challenging, because it veered from farce to realism within moments. The play explores the chaos within a failing marriage... and it's a comedy! It was a process to connect the dots, for sure.

Shannon: Worse Than Tigers is a buffet of theatrical genres. It all comes together in the end (when, in fact, everything falls apart) but justifying the moves from one world into the next was a challenge, especially in the beginning. But it was the kind of challenge that thrills and drives an actor.

Matthew: Getting everything done with a tight budget and small staff

AJ: Probably the transitions. I feel like transitions always tend to be tricky since you're trying to provide some of the glue to bring together the different scenes and weave the stories, but with this one we went through a number of iterations of the transitions until we landed on things that worked for us.

What was the funniest thing that happened during this production?

Braeson: The play is called Worse Than Tigers... throughout the show we hear several roars. One night, we had a roar that scared an audience member, she screamed as loud as the tiger!

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new throughout this process?

Braeson: I learned that instincts can get you far, but trust is what truly creates a memorable experience.

What was it like to work with this company of artists?

AJ: There's just a lot of heart between all these folks. What I mean is as we were going through rehearsals, and got into tech, everybody was always game to try things, and we could have conversations between departments where we working through difficult moments in the show. Things weren't always easy, but it felt like there were people in the room you could talk to and have conversations with to try and figure things out when we got stuck, and that was really invaluable through the process.

Jaclyn: They are just an incredible group of talented people!

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?
Jaclyn: We are honored to be included in this amazing group of artists.

Braeson: It means the world, honestly. What I set out to create with Humphrey was so personal to me. Knowing others were able to witness that, in a memorable way, will stay with me for a long time.

Shannon: To be recognized for my work by other performers and theatrical artists is a great honor. This play dug deep in to my bones. We all gave our time and hearts to this production because we love the theatre and I am very proud to have been part of it.

Matthew: This is extremely exciting for me, as it's my first nomination of any kind for my work since graduating from Undergrad!

AJ: It's really exciting to be nominated. You know, there's a lot of shows where you burn the midnight oil, and you stress, you tweak, and you try to get things just right, and so to have that work be recognized in some way is really quite special

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Eight Tales of Pedro

Produced by The Secret Theatre
Written by Mark-Eugene Garcia
Directed by Rodrigo Ernesto Bolaños

Nominated for: Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role - Federico Mallet; Outstanding Original Music - Luis D'Elias

About The Secret Theatre
The Secret Theatre strives to provide New York City and surrounding communities with inexpensive, but high-caliber performances, to expand the horizons of patrons young and old alike who would normally not venture outside of the main borough. As a venue for assorted live entertainment, particularly classical theatre, as well as new works, comedy, and musicals.

Photos by Hunter Peress

About Eight Tales of Pedro
Two sets of storytellers, some now and some in the 17th century, cross a country - risking everything for a new life. As they tell their tales, their lives and plots combine and intertwine into the same conclusion.

What first attracted you about working on Eight Tales of Pedro?

Federico: Working with an all Latino cast telling a story that invites the audience to be empathetic with the Latino experience in the US in contentious times and accomplished it by also finding humor and joy in it.

Luis: The opportunity to develop a score in an unconventional way, plus working on an original Latin American work

What was your favorite part of the production?

Federico: The people. They were incredibly welcoming and that for me is one of the main (if not the main) characteristics of the Latino community.

Luis: The cast and crew. It was like a family, and there was this collaborative spirit where everyone felt invested in the work. Truly amazing group of humans.

What was your biggest challenge of this experience?

Federico: Very quick changes from character to character and switching from very light humor to the heavy stuff. You want to make sure those two land how they’re supposed to.

Luis: Listening. My work was an underscore that adapted to the play. It involved equal parts composing, and improvising to the rhythm of the performances, which involved a lot of listening tp the performer of each piece. The music became an active ingredient, but it could not overshadow the actor. So, it was like scoring a film in real time, which made it really organic.

What part of you did you bring to the production that changed what was presented to the audience?

Federico: I was the only actor in the production whose first language was Spanish, that brought the opportunity to expand the language and jokes of the show.

Luis: The way we let the music interact with the actors, as if it were another performer, felt pretty innovative. Something I think helped us connect was having me, the composer/guitarist, be part of the warm up exercises before each show and rehearsal. It's a level of cohesion that really benefited the presentation of the piece.

What was it like working with this company of artists?

Federico: Their warmth, love and joy for what they do. How welcoming they are. How willing they are to play.

Luis: A production team that feels like a family, especially one that is really trusting, and that allows each artist to bring what they know best to the table, trusting everyone comes from a place of shared respect and dedication towards the play and the subject matter.

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new from this experience?

Federico: I learned a lot of about the immigrant experience in the US (first generation/ second generation), and also a lot about folklore in different parts of Latin America.

Luis: New possibilities regarding composing a score and accompanying a theater play by listening and reacting to the actors and performers.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

Federico: It doesn’t happen often that I decide to do a play just because of my love for it. I loved the script instantly and my gut told me to do it no matter what the outcome. It’s good to know that that can pay off. It’s also special because sometimes I wonder how I fit in within the industry.

Luis: Truly an honor, but also a recognition towards this approach that connects actors and musicians into an organic unit, which I believe has endless potential for new and innovative theater experiences, not only for the audiences, but also for the performers involved.

Make sure to check out The Secret Theatre on Twitter - @secrettheatreny