Shameless plug of the day: "10/14," Lamb Lays With Lion

by Matthew A. Everett • 10/12/08 • You now have plans for Tuesday night.

10/14

the night, the play

It. Is. Unbelievable.

Single White Fringe Geek is the blog of Matthew A. Everett. In addition to being one of five bloggers covering the Minnesota Fringe Festival for the Daily Planet, he blogs throughout the year about theater and culture.

This is the latest play from Dan O’Neil, whose Players of Notorious Temerity produced two of my very favorite Fringe Festival shows of recent years – Desolation In America, and Baggage. Both of them were so good I did something I rarely do with theater, went back to see them each twice. “Desolation In America” landed in my pre-Fringe Top 10 that year and I didn’t regret it.

Anybody who reads this blog knows I have very little patience for theater about theater, or writing about writers. Political theater can also be pretty dicey in my opinion. All three things are easy to do badly, or worse, self-indulgently on the part of the artist. On the rare occasions such things are done well, they’re amazing.

Dan O’Neil’s writing in “10/14“, on all three counts, is amazing.

I remember hearing an early draft of this script read around a friend’s kitchen table a year or so back. It was a cold reading, we were all seeing the pages for the first time. Most of us at that table weren’t actors but fellow writers. Even with all that, the reading of the play that night still blew me away.

And he’s been working on it since then. I can only imagine how good “10/14“ is now.

Tuesday night, 10/14, the play “10/14,” 8pm, Cedar Riverside People’s Center (425 20th Avenue South in Minneapolis), suggested donation of $5 to $20 (and worth every penny you want to give them, trust me.)

Dan’s so talented, and makes it look so effortless, I should hate the guy. But his writing’s so great, I just want more. It’s smart, it’s funny, it’s got a really big aching heart. It’s beautiful stuff.

With luck, this is only the beginning for this play. But don’t wait. Get in on the ground floor. This is the kind of thing you want to be able to say you knew about before everybody else caught on.

This thing is not to be missed. But enough from me. Here’s their press release…

ONE NIGHT ONLY!
“10/14”
A World Overturned, A Play Re-Written

Lamb Lays with Lion Theater Company is proud to present a one-night-only staged reading of “10/14,” written by Dan O’Neil and directed by Cameron Brainard, on October 14th, 2008 at 8pm at the People’s Center Theater (425 20th Avenue South in Minneapolis, $5 – $20 suggested donation).

A post-show discussion will be held following the reading for those who wish to participate.

A group of actors in a remote warehouse rehearse & prepare their “groundbreaking” new work, Cap’n Faust, in preparation for their opening night the following evening. Overnight, the world changes. In the midst of a developing nuclear fall-out, the theater opens its doors to receive their audience but instead find refugees from the disaster outside. Having spent many hours preparing a production that one hopes will “change the world,” how is a theater artist to react when the world changes first?

10/14 – It’s safer in the theater.

Featuring members of the Lamb Lays with Lion Company, this staged reading marks the launch of a new-play development initiative for LLwL. These intensive staged readings will provide a template of physical staging and directorial engagement to future playwrights and their works-in-progress as a means to transform the process; from cerebral exercise to the visceral experience of bodies in space. We invite the audience in as a collaborator and a witness to the birth of new plays, raw words, and (until now) unspoken questions.

Lamb Lays with Lion is an Original and Experimental company dedicated to the exploration of unique and radical new forms, virtual and spectral expressions, and the thrust into a new age of art; one in which expectations are checked at the door, to be replaced by ear plugs and open minds.

Quick Reference

Production
10/14

Producer and Director
Cameron Brainard and the LLwL Company

Ensemble
Jeremey Catterton (Alfred)
Jacob Mullis (Sam)
Melissa Friedmann (Maggie)
Carl Atiya Swanson (Duncan)
Jake Lindgren (Connors)
Jayne Deis (Old Woman)
Ashley Smith (Amy)
Katie Rose McLaughlin (Eve)

Design Team
Dan O’Neil, playwright

Dates
One Night Only
Tuesday, October 14th, 8 pm

Tickets
$5-20 suggested donation at door

Synopsis
In the midst of a developing nuclear fall-out, the theater opens its doors to receive their audience but instead find refugees from the disaster outside. Having spent many hours preparing a production that one hopes will “change the world,” how is a theater artist to react when the world changes first?

Theatre Location
People’s Center Theater
425 20th Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55454

See. This. Play.

You can find information on the play and Lamb Lays With Lion at www.myspace.com/lamblayswithlion

Matthew A. Everett is a local playwright and three-time recipient of grant support from the Minnesota State Arts Board. Information on Matthew and his plays can be found at matthewaeverett.com.