Arts in a Minute: Parson, bards and ... Lizard Boy?
Earlier this week, the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation announced that Ron OJ Parson was the recipient of its annual Zelda Fichandler Award, named for one of the pioneers of regional theater in the U.S., founding Washington DC’s Arena Stage in 1950.
As for Parson, he’s one of those actors/directors who has helped build Chicago into one of the nation’s most vibrant theater communities.
Parson is also the guy who directed Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati’s long-awaited production of Dominique Morisseau’s “Pipeline.” That was the show that opened March 11, 2020, only to close the following evening, Cincinnati theater’s first notable victim of the COVID pandemic. Fortunately, ETC producing artistic D. Lynn Meyers is a patient person. She left the “Pipeline” set on the stage. And when pandemic numbers diminished, the show completed its run – 18 months after its scheduled engagement.
Another example of Parson’s work will be on the Cincinnati stage early next year. He is scheduled to direct the second show in the Playhouse in the Park’s new mainstage, Moe and Jack’s Place – The Rouse Theatre. The show? August Wilson’s “Seven Guitars,” winner of the 1996 New York Drama Critics’ Award for best play.
Tickets for the show go on sale December 5 at www.cincyplay.com or by calling 513-421-3888.
The Bard Review
Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is constantly coming up with new ways to make its namesake playwright relevant to contemporary audiences. And that's not just limited to buying tickets for the theater’s productions.
This time, it by creating a literary journal called “The Bard Review.” Despite the highfalutin’ title, this is not a publication that is limited to Shakespeare scholars and PhD candidates.
As the CincyShakes web site explains it, “theatre is not possible without the playwrights behind the art we create on stage. We believe in the power of words, the power of storytelling, and the profound impact an artistic experience can have on an individual.”
The short version of all of that is that anyone can enter a work for consideration. But there are a few hoops to jump through. There will only be monologues and sonnets. No plays. No fiction. Just monologues and sonnets.
The most pressing factor, however, is the Nov. 30 deadline. Writers whose works are accepted will be notified early next year, with a pdf version of the publication appearing online sometime after that.
You can find all the rules and the online application at https://bit.ly/3ADuDmX.
Lizard Boy
The Know Theatre prides itself on living outside the mainstream. Far outside, on occasion. I haven’t seen “Lizard Boy” yet, so I can’t tell you precisely where it lives on that spectrum. All I can say is that on paper, it looks fabulous.
The title character of writer/composer Justin Huertas’ musical is a guy named Trevor – played by Jaron Crawford – whose skin turned a scaly green after being drenched with dragon blood when he was a kid. Don’t ask. This is theater. Just go along for the ride. You’re in good hands with director Lindsey Augusta Mercer as your guide.
It seems there is just once a year when Trevor feels safe to enter the “real” world, and that is during MonsterFest. Once he gets there, he hooks up with Cary (Ian Timothy Forsgren) and a blood-thirsty rocker named Siren (Erin McCamley), all accompanied by a multi-instrumentalist named Wesley Carman.
I can’t tell you any more than that, other than that the show runs through Dec. 11. You can see it live – the best way – or stream it online. For more information, go to the Know Theatre’s website, www.knowtheatre.com.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Award-winning directors and outsider musicals | Art in a Minute
