Art as a Commodity: The CoLab v. Illiterate Corporate Incompetence

I've been thinking about consumerism and the effect it has on the arts. Originally, I had been pondering nuanced thoughts, with a dash of civil intellectual discourse. However, a few days ago, we here at The CoLab recieved an unexpected e-mail message:

Editor's Note: E-mail edited for satirical purposes. I replaced the actual queries with red stuff. As if you needed to know that, but they seem awfully trigger happy with the legal talk...

I've lost interest in civl discourse. These guys are idiots.

For those of you just joining us, last week Mary-Liz posted a less than stellar review of a new Threepenny translation. Nowhere do we ever so much as imply that we produced anything. Moreover, the first line of the post reads:

"Last weekend I went to see The Threepenny Opera at Boston College."

She goes on with phrases such as "Brecht is rolling over." and "Weill is rolling over."

I would have to agree, but on a different topic. Now, clearly this is a misunderstanding. Someone over this large publishing corporation misinterpreted our post and mistakenly believed that we were producing an unauthorized production. That's, fair right? You respond, you let them know the details, they realize their mistake, go on their merry way.

If only it were that simple. For I pose this question: Did anyone actually read our post? Initially, the prospect of legal action was exciting, as Mary-Liz and I put it:

"Holy Crap. I think the Kurt Weill Estate is reading our blog! Awesome!"

But upon further inspection...all you have to do is read the first sentence to realize we weren't producing anything. Moreover, nowhere in that post even suggests that we lifted any fingers beyond typing a critical review (with concern for the wishes of the departed Brecht and Weill, mind you.) This begs the question: Did anyone even bother reading our post before greenlighting that e-mail? Who exactly is running these corporations and what intellectual power do they actuall possess? Don't you have to be literate to hold these positions?

The fact of the matter is, they don't care about us. They don't care about you as an individual and they don't care about the artists. They are looking to protect their investement and secure their monopoly on intellectual property. For all their billions of dollars in revenue, they feel threatened by a small, grassroots theatre company's blog so much that they feel the need to shove legal speak into our faces to get the point across. Don't mess with us. We're bigger than you and have more money than you. And we will not have our profits cut into. But we won't read what you have to say, because we don't even care to use our energy on anything that doesn't make us more money.

A few weeks back, I attended the Quiet Desperation WBCN Rock n'Roll Rumble. This event was organized in commemoration of the now defunct rock and roll institution that was overrun with corruption, legalized payola and corporate control during it's final ten years. Rob Potylo, as well as countless other DJs, witnessed the decline of the once glorious WBCN from the inside:

The people who run BCN beyond the DJs are businessmen. They look
at Nirvana and Pearl Jam no different than they look at oil and gold, they are commodities. They do not know you, they will not be at these shows...

Know that when you’re listening to these f***** stations, there is no such thing as a request. A computer picks it out at the beginning of the day, I’ve seen it. When you call up for a request, if doesn’t f*****' exist. If we happen to be playing Nine Inch Nails, we will play your phone call and
make it look like [we took your request]...

But most of the time, what we are authorized to tell you, because I worked there for three years: “Sure dude, it’s coming up!” So if we f****’ picked up the phone and you were like:

“Hey dude, can I hear a little Darkbuster?”

“Sure dude, it’s coming up!”

But of course, it never did.

So what am I advocating exactly? I'm not entirely sure. I do my part by producing independently, and working with non-profit and start up theatrical ventures. I support my local artists, I go to Broadway to see Broadway, and Boston to see Boston. I try to create new venues for Boston theatrical risk taking.

But that's just me. There's no one path. Go ahead and see Young Frankenstein and other touring Broadway shows. That's your perogative, and I probably will at some point choose to invest my money in those shows. It's all up to you how to make your impact and stand up to these leeches who would take the legacy of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill, and transform them into commodities.

I refuse to look at Kurt Weill with the same eyes as I look at oil.

I leave you with Rob's words:

The problem with this generation is you guys are cynics and they
want you to be cynics . It’s taken over past comedians. They will tell you that it can’t be done!

But the fact of it is, if you want support the bands you see
tonight ,the people you see here then f*****’ do it!

Because we give a s*** about you, we come from the same neck of
the woods, we’re not doing country clubs and cuttin’ up this country a little bit smaller for each other.

Be well,

Kenny

Rob's Speech at the Quiet Desperation Rumble can be found at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRGtLfpzEBQ

A Reality Sitcom for Boston Artists, by Boston Artists

Aaron The King Wizard and Rob Potylo

If you've been keeping up with music or comedy scene in Boston, you might've come across Quiet Desperation (http://quietd.com/), a "Reality Sitcom" that follows the story of Boston area musicians and artists as they struggle to make their mark, with results equally poignant as they are hilarious. The story primarily follows musicians and comedians, but I think artists of all mediums, especially theatre artists, can learn from their example...

The show was originally conceived by musician Rob Potylo and film maker Joe Madaus as a showcase of local Boston talent, quickly becoming a local favorite and evolving into a mockumentary that walks the perfect balance between real and surreal.

I've kept up with Rob's career since 2004, when I first saw him perform a set at the Comedy Studio under the name of "Robby Roadsteamer." Now, notice I didn't say "comedy set". Rob's work over the years has always, in my opinion, defied categorization. I've always enjoyed the comedians at the Comedy Studio, but this particularly performance was like none other I'd ever witnessed. The comedy didn't stem from the "Jokes" or the "Character", but rather from the freedom with which he performed his set. His movement, his speech and most importantly, his ability to react to his audience, gave his performance an improvisational flavor that I feel is lacking in most comedy.

Moreover, it was an improvisational flavor that is lacking in most theatre...see where I'm getting at there?

Ahem.

Moving on.

I've only caught a few shows over the years, but I've been keeping up regularly with his music, videos and web content leading up to this latest project. He has gone through a transformation over the years, focusing less on character and more on spiritual naturalism. His characters are now himself and the community of artists he loves. The laughs are not about jokes or larger than life personalities, but at the absurdity of reality. The musician runs out of money and refuses to sell his cannabis plant, the hip hop duo loses the token Asian member to "2 Live Crew". The all out drug orgies and quirky social circles... These situations are absurd, but nevertheless the cast responds naturally to their reality. Because, in many ways this IS their reality. The whole project is based on truth.

Many internet videos come and go. I'll watch one episode of a series and chuckle, and move on. With Quiet D, I came for the laughs. But I stayed because of how DAMN REAL these episodes feel. Moreover, every episode I've watched makes me feel like I'm part of a greater community, that of the Boston arts scene. Now, as a member of the Boston theatre arts scene, I think that's something we can all be on board with. We're all in this together. We can all learn from each other. And we can certainly all laugh with each other.

Rob and other local favorites will be performing and shooting footage for their next episode at Great Scott in Allston:

Quiet Desperation presents the 32nd Annual WBCN Rumble!!

Join Quiet Desperation as we present the 32nd annual WBCN Rumble Finals at Great Scott Thursday April 29th! We will be paying tribute and doing a little filming for the show. It's a wonderful night of great music!

Performing live are...

HUMANWINE

Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling

Rob Potylo (Full-band)

And the special guest band.... KING HELL!

Hosted by Shawn Sixx and Niki Luparelli

8pm, 8 bucks, 18+!!!

http://www.greatscottboston.com/

Rob Potylo's music can be found here:

http://robpotylo.com/

Episodes of Quiet Desperation:

http://quietd.com/

Wrighter’s Block

How many of you have tried writing before? Raise your hands.

Yes. Yes. I see. Wonderful.

How many of you have tried writing a play before? Sigh a collective groan.

Yes. Yes. There there… I know what you’re talking about.

I am, quite honestly, in a bit of a rut. Late this past summer, I completed at 96 page first draft of Perfect Pitch: A Post-Punk Play with Music. I held a private reading with some local actors this past October and begun rewriting in November. Unfortunately, I’ve found that the most difficult aspect of playwriting isn’t the first draft… It’s the rewrites.

As it stands right now, Perfect Pitch has some strong, positive elements. It tells the story of a young professional and a young musician who befriend each other at a tumultuous time in both their lives. Cole and Shane bond instantly, but as they fall for each other, their ultimate destinies in life pull them apart. Cole quits his job and he struggles with his responsibility to provide for his terminally ill mother, while Shane’s band strikes it big and tours the world non-stop, mentally exhausting the band. It’s a story about falling in love with your best friend, but realizing you met ten years too early. The John Lennon quote comes to mind: “Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.”

Those who’ve read the first draft have reacted positively. I’m working from primarily from the criticism that the play needs greater focus, more developed secondary characters and a revamp into a three-act structure. I know what the play needs…in theory. But the discipline that I need to develop is the discipline to cut and rewrite, cut and rewrite. I sit down at the computer, look at the text and think: “But… it’s done, isn’t it? Do I REALLY have to write this again?”

The play needs work and I know I’ll finish a second draft. I’m in a rut, having barely rewritten ten pages in two months. But I’m determined to retake the initiative. At this rate, I’ve been writing the play for close to a year and a half now.

It took Neil Simon more than two years to finish writing his first play. It took two months to write his second.

Puts things in perspective…

In Which The Starving Artist Lands a New Day Job

Err, this is the only picture I could find where I wear a tie...

"Richard" In Aloha, Say The Pretty Girls
Produced by Holland Productions

Things are looking up good friends! This week, I started my new life as a jack of all trades. I am currently temping a long-term assignment at a law firm in the financial district. Within a week, I escaped a life of chaos and mocha stains and entered the symmetrical world of 9-5 and clean shirts. And I couldn’t be happier.

Now don’t get me wrong: I enjoyed my tenure as a professional coffee slinger. Given my status as a young, early career artist, a day job in the service industry makes a lot of sense. All young artists must pay their dues: being underpaid for a job many of us are overqualified for, and serving a demographic that seems intent on making our lives hell. In my case, tourists and black berry wielding suits… can you see where this is going?

Somehow, I look back at my year and a half as a milk steamer extraordinaire with a great deal of warmth. There’s much to bond over when you serve in the trenches of a coffee shop. I served with an extremely diverse group of people ranging from students to parents, from affluent and working class backgrounds, speaking a multitude of languages and each with their own dreams and goals. No matter how tough the times were out front, I always knew someone would make me laugh in the back room…

Today, I purchased a hundred dollars in new work clothes. As quickly as my new earning power comes, it quickly goes! And as I enter employment working among the people who previously made my life hectic (lawyers, who are much more agreeable than tourists!), I only lament that I can’t take my previous coworkers with me.

Then again…

I’m an artist… it might only be a matter of time before I go back…

K

P.S. As I write this post, I'm watching Predator on AMC. Two of the actors in this movie have become Governors. Governor Jesse Ventura and Governor Arnold...Schwar....The Terminator.

Jean-Claude Van Damme was originally cast as the title creature, but dropped the project...

We came THIS CLOSE... to having a Governor Van Damme... (Shudder...)

Why Kenny Does It

My life could be summed up by a string of key moments in which I received simple but profound words of wisdom. I am often asked why I chose the life I did, the life of an actor/director/playwright/artist. What sane person chooses a life on the edge? Artists of all types find themselves underpaid and overqualified for what they do, and we are sometimes tempted to apologize for the life we live, as if we feel guilt for not fulfilling our “potential for more.”

I am guilty of these things. Why do I do this? I stumbled onto the life of a theatre artist by complete accident. I come from an immigrant household that was constantly on the edge financially and emotionally, leaving me utterly unfamiliar with the concept of stability. For this reason, I sought education as a means to reach stability and become a productive, affluent and respected “contributor” to society.

I auditioned for my first play for the absolute wrong reasons. I attended a single-sex education high school, and at the age of 14 theatre was hands down the easiest way to meet girls. While the thought of trying to “get funky on the dance floor” horrified me (ironic, I’m sure, to those who know me now…), I found that the rehearsals after school were a comfortable and safe venue to show off what I desperately hoped was my “silly charm.” I did theatre all through high school and college under the assumption that my career choice would eventually jump out and whisk me away to an affluent future.

Theatre was a hobby, a hobby I took far too seriously. I studied acting and directing. Between classes and work, I spent all my extra time acting, directing or producing theatre. I found excuses to tie in all my other academic interests into theatre, even writing my final History paper in college on the leadership and artistic differences between Stanislavski and Strasberg. By the end of college, I had a major in History, but a "Super Minor" in Theatre Arts.

I became horrified at the realization that I didn’t have a passion…well, a REAL passion. “This theatre stuff is fun and I love it, but I’m not good enough to make a career out of it! I need a real job!” I knew that I desperately loved the arts, and felt truly alive when I was in the rehearsal room, but to embark on a life on the edge seemed a waste of my education, of my hard work, of my “potential for more.”

By the end of my junior year at Brandeis University where I studied acting, I had thrived as a director but became horrified at the prospect of a future without theatre. Where did I belong in the workforce? In the midst of my worries, I sought advice from professors, friends and family. The moment that changed my life wasn’t explosive or dramatic. The moment was simple, the words even more so: “This is all you do… You already know what makes you happy. Why keep searching when you’ve already found it?”

It’s been three years since, and I finally have an answer to why I do what I do: because I can’t be reasonably happy doing anything else.

While at Brandeis I had the pleasure of experiencing “The Collaborative Process”, both literally and figuratively. Just as I was to leave college and enter the workforce as an aspiring artist, I was given the greatest gift an artist can receive: the embrace of failure. I feared failure, just as we all do and will do for the rest of our lives. In the class that past and present students affectionately refer to as “Collab”, our instructor taught us a simple concept which guides me onward as I live this life on the edge: If you want to get yourself out of the “bulls***” world, you have to take yourself to the “oh s***” world. To paraphrase a common saying: "Courage isn't the absence of fear, but the action taken in the midst of fear."

Erika and I created The CoLab out of a desire to create theatre based on this idea, among many others. We hope to excite the theatrical community as well as reinvigorate the need for theatre in the world around us! Today, the CoLab is a small group of three artistic directors and community of artists, friends and well-wishers. We thank you for taking the time to investigate what is we do, and we hope to see you in our audiences, on the street and in the theatre!

Best,
Kenny