LOCAL GAY PRESS DIGS MY ACTING IN ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE

From Ambush Mag's Trodding the Boards section:

Certainly we have the actors for such classics. Ron Reeder’s Mayor was a smooth operator, pompous and a bit unctuous but well-knowing what he has to do to protect his community even at the expense of his own brother. As Dr. Stockmann, Donald Lewis was at times a bit overly emphatic but such impulsiveness suits the character. His Stockmann was not so much an innocent as one not aware of the implications of his actions. And if he was slightly pompous himself, it well-showed how he and his brother the mayor were cut from the same cloth.

And

As challenging as it may be to fill all roles with actors of the caliber of Reeder, Lewis and Hooper, if Cripple Creek wants to rise above mere community theater, it owes it to itself to be stricter in its casting criteria if it wants to fulfill the potential that it has shown.

Click here for the full article (it's a PDF document, so you'll have to scroll down to page 4 of 5).

Ya hear that? I've got caliber! That's right. Caliber!

Anyway, that last little bit was a dig at another actor in the show who I think is actually doing some good work, but if my caliber is going to come with with a backhand against a fellow thespian, I'll take it. And really, it's something of an unfair dig at the company, as far as talent goes: Cripple Creek is a low budget non-profit, and we're all working for virtually no pay. It ain't easy to get Brando and Olivier when all you're working for is ideology.

Actually, for me, right now, the ideology is well worth it. The review commends the company for selecting the script, remarking on how utterly timely it is in today's world despite being written over a century ago. It's easy to throw my self into the artistic abyss when I really believe in what I'm doing. And it's great fun hanging with other liberals: in the dressing room after tonight's performance, some of us got into an impromptu debate over the origins of capitalism, whether our founding fathers were capitalists, or simply proto-capitalist merchants.

My bet is that if the company keeps slugging away like it's been doing for two seasons now, it will eventually attract a larger and better casting pool simply because many actors want to do something socially responsible with their work--not too many opportunities for that in the professional theater.

Heh. I've got caliber. I've always done well with the gays.

Anyway, only two more performances left. Come and see what all the hoopla is about--check the above linked Cripple Creek site for details.



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