Here's our every-once-in-a-while update on what's going with our show...
CAST ... After months of auditions that have taken us from the far reaches of Vermont to Ellenville, New York (where the TV antennae was invented!) we're proud to announce five or our six cast members. We're glad to welcome back actors Dennis McSorley, Colin Cramer who were part of 'The Bus,' and two very talented actresses - Bridget Butler and Teresa Lorenco. Seth Jarvis, who directed 'The Bus,' is also a talented actor and has joined the cast, too. Over the next two months, we'll introduce you to these talented Vermont theatre artists. (ps. we'll also update you on our search for our last remaining actor.)
SETS ... We've started building our sets which includes part of a working injection molding machine. We plugged it in last night - and it works! Normally an injection molding machine is about the size of a Winnebego and weighs tons, but between a set animator at the Shakespeare Theatre in DC (thank you, St. Mike's grad Mark Prey), a plastics factory in Virginia (thank you Valley Industrial Plastics) and a talented student from Cooper Union (thank you Sam Rudy), our machine will be less imposing as we place it behind an open stage door to fit nicely onstage at FlynnSpace.
REHEARSALS ... It's hard to believe it's only 8 weeks to the opening of our play so rehearsing has already become part of our weekly ritual. We've moved to our permanent rehearsal home at The Soda Plant (thank you Steve Conant!).
FUNDRAISING ... By far the toughest part of putting on a play is raising our budget. We're lucky to live in a community where the arts are so generously supported (for instance, I can't imagine producing 'The Bus' in, say, Lubbock, Texas.) ... As an independent production we're not funded by any theatre or organization, so our budget comes completely from corporate and individual sponsorships. So far we've raised about half of our budget, but we've still got a long ways to go. If you'd like to become a sponsor 'American Machine,' shoot us an e-mail and we'll show you how!
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
First Press Release
James Lantz is proud to announce that he will be back at FlynnSpace in September where he will premiere his new play, ‘American Machine’ with many of the same artists that helped create last year’s play, ‘The Bus,’ including actors Seth Jarvis, Colin Cramer and Dennis McSorley.
‘American Machine' tells the tale of a factory that once made parts for classic American cars. It is the story of a make-shift family of six friends who come together each night to work, and are soon faced with rumors that their employer is being sold. As they begin working on a new order – making buckets and mops for Wal-Mart ¬– the prospect of being split up looms before them, and their dedication to the once-proud factory is put to the test.
“It’s a play about a lot of things that are deeply rooted in the American dream,” Lantz says of his new play. “In this country, we have an incredible heritage of building things, of manufacturing, of industry and work – and to be part of that was to be part of something great. But what happens when that goes away? That’s where our story begins.”
Lantz said that pre-production of his new play had been delayed a couple of weeks as a New York City theatre had expressed some interest in staging ‘The Bus’ after its premiere in Burlington last fall. However, after several meetings with the theatre, working up budgets and making some preliminary plans, to date, nothing has been scheduled.
“Someday it’d be great to take one of my plays to New York,” Lantz said, “but right now I’ve got a big job ahead of me here at home – producing ‘American Machine.’ We’re producing it the same way we produced ‘The Bus’ – a sort of grass-roots theatre effort. I love making a play this way because I get to work with lots of great volunteers who come from all over the community. But it takes a phenomenal amount of energy and effort to do it this way. We don’t have a staff, we don’t have a budget – it’s just us.”
It’s a challeging path for the Vermont playwright. Trying to fit the hundreds of hours it takes to produce a play into a life that also includes kids, jobs and other responsibilities can be difficult. Fundraising is another significant challenge; for ‘American Machine’ Lantz estimates that he’ll have to raise more than $15,000 – most of it, from individual supporters and advertisers.
However the biggest challenge facing Lantz may be building a replica of a twenty-ton plastics injection-molding machine that will become the central set piece on the FlynnSpace stage for ‘American Machine.’ When asked how he and his volunteers were going to do this, Lantz smiled and said, “Wish us luck.”
**
‘American Machine’ will play at Burlington’s FlynnSpace, September 25 - October 7, 2007.
The opening night performance will benefit The Burlington School Food Project. 100% of all proceeds from this show will go to the project to support healthy fruits and vegetables for students at Burlington schools and to support CSA farm shares for food service employees of Burlington school cafeterias.
American Machine will also be featured at this fall’s Burlington Book Festival in September.
‘American Machine' tells the tale of a factory that once made parts for classic American cars. It is the story of a make-shift family of six friends who come together each night to work, and are soon faced with rumors that their employer is being sold. As they begin working on a new order – making buckets and mops for Wal-Mart ¬– the prospect of being split up looms before them, and their dedication to the once-proud factory is put to the test.
“It’s a play about a lot of things that are deeply rooted in the American dream,” Lantz says of his new play. “In this country, we have an incredible heritage of building things, of manufacturing, of industry and work – and to be part of that was to be part of something great. But what happens when that goes away? That’s where our story begins.”
Lantz said that pre-production of his new play had been delayed a couple of weeks as a New York City theatre had expressed some interest in staging ‘The Bus’ after its premiere in Burlington last fall. However, after several meetings with the theatre, working up budgets and making some preliminary plans, to date, nothing has been scheduled.
“Someday it’d be great to take one of my plays to New York,” Lantz said, “but right now I’ve got a big job ahead of me here at home – producing ‘American Machine.’ We’re producing it the same way we produced ‘The Bus’ – a sort of grass-roots theatre effort. I love making a play this way because I get to work with lots of great volunteers who come from all over the community. But it takes a phenomenal amount of energy and effort to do it this way. We don’t have a staff, we don’t have a budget – it’s just us.”
It’s a challeging path for the Vermont playwright. Trying to fit the hundreds of hours it takes to produce a play into a life that also includes kids, jobs and other responsibilities can be difficult. Fundraising is another significant challenge; for ‘American Machine’ Lantz estimates that he’ll have to raise more than $15,000 – most of it, from individual supporters and advertisers.
However the biggest challenge facing Lantz may be building a replica of a twenty-ton plastics injection-molding machine that will become the central set piece on the FlynnSpace stage for ‘American Machine.’ When asked how he and his volunteers were going to do this, Lantz smiled and said, “Wish us luck.”
**
‘American Machine’ will play at Burlington’s FlynnSpace, September 25 - October 7, 2007.
The opening night performance will benefit The Burlington School Food Project. 100% of all proceeds from this show will go to the project to support healthy fruits and vegetables for students at Burlington schools and to support CSA farm shares for food service employees of Burlington school cafeterias.
American Machine will also be featured at this fall’s Burlington Book Festival in September.
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