I’m just going to keep posting these to get the momentum going.
Kevin, here are my responses to your comments and thank you! We love you too- and we also have a white, middle class guy in our company who we love! I agree with everything you say- except for one thing:
I don’t really understand why people keep saying that we’re trying to reach inner city kids through our show and then blasting us for being in Williamsburg. Where did that come from? Is it because we said that WE are poor and that theater isn’t just for rich people aka rich actors, writers and directors? Poor theater makers should have a voice too!!! Why is that so weird? Besides, our show is not appropriate for children. I repeat: DO NOT BRING YOUR KIDS TO THIS SHOW NO MATTER WHAT DEMOGRAPHIC! It has curse words and blood and sex! Just because we are advocating for our rights as poor artists and standing up for our work and message does not mean we do shows for poor children. Children should not see this show. It is rated R!!!!
On the contrary, I actually think Flying Snakes is a good show for rich people to go see- because it’s a show made by poor people. A lot of NYU students actually came to our last show and they were laughing at themselves. Particularly at this monologue which is delivered by Tricia Cramer- who went to NYU. Because you know- the theater community ( a lot of theater makers) are comprised of rich white people (and rich to me also constitutes upper middle class and even middle class to some extent) and trying to do it when you’re poor is often hilarious and sad… and we’re just are trying to tell our story because we don’t see it in the American theater often amidst stories about divorce problems and kitchen sink dramas. Why does it freak people out that we’re saying we’re poor artists? Why do you automatically assume we are being righteous and saying we want to reach underprivileged communities? We stated that some of us in ETG are FROM underprivileged communities. We grew up poor, we still make theater, and we’re not going away. I don’t understand why that creates such a stir, honestly. And also- lets not make assumptions about where poor people hang out. Like..really? Why CAN’T poor people hang out in Williamsburg? Sure it has a lot of hipsters and probably a lot of them are rich- but I know that Joshua Conkel, a fellow playwright who comes from no money lives there. And also- lets not make assumptions about what poor people read!!! I lived/ my high school was in the middle of the projects and I still read NY magazines! Theater is what got me through hard times growing up! That’s why I still do it!
And re: The Brick Theatre
IT is hands down THE BEST DEAL IN TOWN in terms of producing plays. And that place is awesome. We love it.
Also Kevin- thanks for calling us out about Butler. You’re right- at least one of us went to Butler-Chase did and I did (though I may or may not have finished…long story).I was there on a Grant for minorities plus student loans and even though Chase is a white guy- he believes in our message- just like you ( even though our message is not showing kids our show- it’s that poor theater makers exist- and even if it’s killing us- we’re still going to make it)I am in complete agreement with you regarding the petty critic thing, but I think it’s okay to defend our work and we regret nothing. And weirdly enough…it did do us really good in terms of ticket sales today.
Anyways, keep the comments rolling. We love you Kevin!
From Kevin Lind
I find myself so interested in all this drama and back and forth over the semi-negative review of your show, and your subsequent responses to it. I would like to offer a few comments of my own, as I find myself torn between both sides of the argument.
1. I think the mission of your company, and the message of your show are important ones. There is certainly and undeniably a huge percentage of the population of New York City that cannot afford or properly gain access to theatre of any level. That would certainly include $200 Broadway performances of Book of Mormon (Not gonna see many inner city kids in that theatre on a nightly basis) but would also include practically any show right down to the $18 off-off performances. However, I think you ignore an issue that is far bigger than the cost. I think the real issue here is that there is a perception among many many people, even those who have money to burn, that the theatre no longer offers a good return for your entertainment dollar. You can’t possibly deny that at least 75% of shows that are put up in this city (even on Broadway) are pretty much garbage. Either they are pure vanity projects (Ugh, another 50 year old Hamlet) misguided attempts at socio-political commentary (Glengarry Glenn Ross with an all female cast!) or just poorly and nepotistically cast (Broadway is particularly guilty of this.) People who are looking for a night out see the movies as a better bet. Yeah, a lot of movies are bad too, but even a bad movie like Transformers offers people high entertainment value. It undersells even the cheapest play by 4 bucks a ticket, and at it’s worst offers good production values, audible dialogue, a clear story, sexy actors, and themes young people can identify with. I would say that most theatrical productions I have seen (hundreds) offer two or less of these five things.
If we want to get young, “underprivileged,” and non-traditional audiences into the theatre, we need to provide them with stories they want to see, told in ways they want to see them. We cannot see the theatre as the dumping ground for all things too “arty” for the cinema, and we cannot give ourselves a pass as “theatre actors” to be shlubby, out of shape, nerds. This is not an argument against character actors, but an argument for theatre actors holding themselves to the same high standards as movie stars. (Stay in shape, eat right, be flexible and limber, keep stylish) You ever see Steve Buchemi do an interview in cargo shorts and a t-shirt? No, he always looks classy and put together, even as a pretty “ugly” man. We have to accept that if we want to go on stage and have people look at us for three hours, they need to have something dynamic to look at. Obviously, theatre cannot provide the level of effects or production values of movies, but we can tell stories that are just as young and exciting, and we can fill them with sexy, fit actors with strong voices and minds. We can do stories about sports, sex, and zombies. We can do wild comedies like the films of Judd Apatow. We can do romantic comedies and why couldn’t a script like Bridesmaids be a theatrical production. Yes we have to do stories we are passionate about, but you still gotta “give-em-what-they-want” so to speak. Lets not let ourselves off the hook by saying people just can’t afford it. I think that is a pretty small part of it.
2. I think it pretty unfair to criticize the reviewer of your show for the cost of his education, especially as at least one of you went to Butler University where tuition is currently $15,555 a semester, not including room and board. Sure, the cost of education in this country is a problem, but I don’t think that a person’s education expenses correlate directly to their views on art. I mean, look, your school was expensive, but you care about inclusive theatre. I never got the sense in his review that he was elitist or that his perspective was particularly upper-class. He just didn’t much like the show, and that’s his right and also his obligation as a reviewer; to provide his honest response. He is not supposed to review your “reasons” for doing the show, only if he found it enjoyable, thought-provoking, and entertaining. The real problem is not that only rich college educated kids are writing about and for the theatre, but our State and Local governments don’t care about theatre, so it is the first thing to get cut from middle school and high school budgets. If you want to flip the script on theatre’s upper class white bias, get your show out of The Brick (located smack in the middle of white upper middle class Williamsburg,) and get it into some high schools and community centers in the Bronx where you stand a chance of affecting some real change. In other words, if your gonna bitch about the crisp white linnens of the white man, you better have some mud on your clothes. (And not artfully arranged, hipster Williamsburg mud either. I know you guys are giving out freebies, props, but not many 17 year old black kids from the inner city Bronx are coming out there to the Lorimer stop on a Friday night, get real.)
3. Keep up the good work. I love that you guys are so vocal and contrary, and I love that you don’t take shit lying down. No doubt there are a lot of dumb-ass critics out there ( once a guy reviewed a play I was in, and he left at intermission. In his review, he said my monologue was great. The only problem…it was in act two after he left) I would just caution that you don’t let your antipathy towards the critical reaction to your work inflate your sense of self-righteousness. Keep yourselves focused on the real problems and on finding solutions to them and don’t get bogged down in petty bickering about reviews and the morons who mostly write them. Believe me, those “under-represented” audiences you are trying to reach, they don’t read NY Theater reviews, so don’t sweat the small stuff. Turn that energy into action, and push harder. That’s my two cents, hope you know I love you guys, even though I am white, male, upper middle class (thanks to my day job) and went to an expensive school (Yeah, it was Butler.)
