Entangled Writers’ Upcoming Productions in San Francisco

For those of you who attended the reading of THE ENTANGLED PLAYS, you may be interested to follow up on the work of myself and Megan Cohen in San Francisco this month.

On Thursday, March 3, my play HERMES opens at The Exit Theatre in San Francisco. This is my first full length to receive a full production, and I have been so impressed by the work of the cast, crew, and director. The play is inspired by Goldman Sach’s role in the current Greek financial meltdown, and the response from the community – including the Greek Consulate – has been incredible. More information can be found at http://www.sfolympians.com/

On Sunday, March 6, both Megan and I have plays in the 10th Annual Bay One Acts Festival. Every year, the Bay One Acts Festival (or BOA) features excellent short plays by local artists. Megan’s The Three Little Dumping Adventure and my Pure Baltic Avenue are both featured in Program Two (the latter also includes actor Marie O’Donnell, who performed in the reading). More information about the plays and the festival can be found at http://bayoneacts.org/

I hope you will be able to make either or both events. Please reserve tickets early – both events will sell out.

-Bennett Fisher

 

 

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Plays Entangled

The reading of The Entangled Plays last Friday, February 11th, at the Palo Alto Art Center was extremely well received. An audience of about forty, many of whom had never visited the Art Center, sat in the gallery space as we took our first steps with this project. It was wonderful not only to see how actively the audience responded to the plays themselves, but how they lingered in the gallery space afterwards – looking at the work with a new perspective and deeper interest.

If you missed this first event, don’t worry. More is in the works. If you haven’t seen the exhibit, hurry. It closes at the end of March, and shortly after the center begins its renovation and the art (and Flying Island) goes on the road, out into the community.

-Bennett Fisher

The Entangled Plays Perform Tonight

After quite a bit of press and preparation, we are finally ready to present The Entangled Plays tonight at the Palo Alto Art Center (1313 Newell, Palo Alto). There has been great press, wonderful buzz, and an impressive number of RSVPs for this project. Please join us for as we take this exciting first step!

The Entangled Plays

Written by Megan Cohen and Bennett Fisher

Directed by Kate Jopson and Addie Ulrey

Featuring Maryssa Wanlass, Caitlyn Louchard, Marie O’Donnell, and Jennifer Lucas

Produced by Elana McKernan and Bennett Fisher

Special thanks to Lisa, Karen, Rebecca, Caroline, ABC 7Live, and the staff of the Palo Alto Art Center.

The Entangled Plays in Rehearsal

A week ago, the actors, directors, and writers for The Entangled Plays met for our first group meeting, reading through the scripts, discussing edits, and generally getting our arms around the piece. Though I have been to innumerable staged readings, I was struck by how different this process is from the normal theatrical fare. When writing our pieces, Megan and I were in regular communication, riffing off one another’s ideas and language. With the actors and directors now taking the reins, we are starting to get a sense of what the experience for the audience is going to be like. It’s exciting to hear a metaphor in the script and think that the piece of art that inspired the imagery will be right behind the actors in the gallery. I am aware of how weak the connection between language and meaning sometimes is when Megan appropriates one of my lines and uses in an entirely different context with an opposite tone or intent. Like the best experimental theater, each unconventional aspect of the piece challenges us, both artists and audience, to approach what we might mistakenly label a “given” or “fundamental” in a new way. It’s exciting to be a part of that stretching, and to watch it happen.

We are excited to share these discoveries this Friday during the reading, and we hope you’ll be able to attend. The performance begins at 7pm Friday, February 11 at the Palo Alto Art Center (1313 Newell, Palo Alto), but you may wish to show up early to explore the gallery and get a feel for the artwork before hearing our response.

-Bennett Fisher

Watch the plug for Flying Island on ABC 7Live Online

For those of you who did not catch the show live, see Brian Copeland give a nod to The Entangled Plays, Flying Island, and the Palo Alto Art Center online here. For an added bonus, hear Bennett Fisher and Kate Jopson talk about Bristol Palin. A big thank you to Caroline over at the Palo Alto Art Center for her work getting us on the show.

The Entangled Plays by Bennett Fisher and Megan Cohen will be read at the Palo Alto Art Center (1313 Newell, Palo Alto, CA) on Friday Febuary 11 at 7pm. Admission is free, and a short reception will follow.

-Bennett Fisher

Watch Flying Island on ABC 7Live

Kate Jopson, one of the directors for The Entangled Plays, and I will be featured on ABC 7Live in San Francisco today at 3pm. If you’re not able to get to the television right at 3pm (short notice, I know), you can catch the episode online at the 7Live website here.

-Bennett Fisher

The Island Takes Flight

In Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, the title character’s third voyage takes him to the flying island, Laputa. Laputa is home to the most distinguished artists and intellectuals, all of whom are so deeply immersed in lofty thought that they are quite incapable of simple tasks. In the novel, Swift’s satire of the intelligentsia is both merciless and hilarious, but the idea of the flying island – a magical place entirely devoted to thinking – resonates deeply.

Our flying island is very much in its infancy, with its first project – The Entangled Plays – to be presented on February 11th. With the support of the Palo Alto Art Center and the commitment of other theater artists, however, I hope that it plays a valuable role in the cultivation of new work on the San Francisco Peninsula. Our mission is to create a dialogue between the amazing work presented by the center and local theater artists, to encourage artistic exploration and experimentation by combining the disciplines of theater and visual art, and to foster an appreciation for new work in our community.

I hope you join us.

-Bennett Fisher, Founder and Artistic Director