CHRONOLOGY OF PLAYS
CONTENTS
To skip to a particular play, click on the asterisk (*)
GANG OF SEVEN, 2008 *
LA VIE NOIR, 2007 *
ALONE TOGETHER, 2005 *
TARGET AUDIENCE: The Code of the Western, 2003-04 *
KISS SHOT, 2002 *
AEROBIA (with choreographer Douglas Dunn), 2001 *
THE BIG LIP AND OTHER BACKTALK, 2000 *
UNDERCURRENT INCORPORATED, 1999 *
MONDO BEYONDO, 1997 *
THE FLOATONES, 1995 *
DARK POCKET, 1994 *
THE WRONG MISTAKE,1993 *
LIVE WITNESS, 1992 *
SITUATION ROOM 1992 *
AN EVENING WITH JESSE JAMES, 1988 *
DUET FOR SPIES (The Whole Story), 1985 *
GANG OF SEVEN, 2008
La MaMa E.T.C.
The play cunningly anticipates what will happen when ordinary gatherings for market research get infected with the human potential movement
Mike: everything
I’ve ever done has been right on the cutting edge of
legitimate
Frank: the Amermican Dream!
Mike: find a niche nobody saw before and carve your initials in it
Sandy: praise the lord!
Mike: the reality bowl is poised to make noise
Sh’rell: what’s our next move?
Mike: we create demand
Ray: how do we do that?
Mike: we rumorize
.
LA VIE NOIR, 2007
La MaMa, NYC
A small cross-section of America gathers in a high-rise nightclub during the worst storm of the year. When lightning strikes, their friendly film noir threatens to turn into a disaster movie.
Cody
does this seem like it’s actually happening to you?
Cora
what’s another possibility?
Cody
for me, we have a cinematic quality
Cora
are we in it or at it?
Cody
the eternal question
ALONE TOGETHER, 2005
Dixon Place, NYC
Three plays about eccentric strangers having oddly eloquent encounters.
Susan
is this station one of your favorites?
Mary
well, it has a couple of attractions
the mosaic signs from the late-60s have been very well-maintained
and two lines stop here, so people think I’m waiting for the other one
Susan
how long do you do this?
Mary
how long is a mood?
it’s never quite the same
tonight I knew right where I was going
other times I just pick a direction and see what’s out there
Susan
subway pleasure trips
Mary
traditional entertainment was ruining
my life
it’s wonderful what they can do now, but excruciating
the graphic breakthroughs were beyond anything I ever thought I’d have to see
I was accumulating memories I didn’t deserve
I needed to rethink my leisure options
I always enjoyed travel
and I didn’t feel like waiting for my vacation
TARGET AUDIENCE: The Code of the Western, 2003-04
La MaMa, NYC; TSL Warehouse, Hudson, NY; Legion Arts, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Neu plays a Doctor of Situology (the study of the interface of fact and fiction) following parallel trails — out where the end of the West meets the end of the Western.
Dr. Thorne
Good evening, and howdy
I’m real pleased to be part of you tonight
this – the Saddleholster Film Festival – is authentic infraculture
its continuing existence is a tribute to the combined efforts of the Sons of the Cowboys Club and the Daughters of the Damsels Auxiliary
to which I’d like to add my personal thanks for their willingness to take a chance on something a little bit different
now I know there’s been a lot of confusion about what Situology is, and I’d like to clear that up
Situology is the study of the interface between the factual and the fictional
those spectacular times when the course of history and the thrust of mythification flow as one
creating islands of enriched reality, forever affecting the current of events to come
KISS SHOT, 2002
La MaMa, NYC
KISS SHOT is a comedy with music, set in the near future. In Los Angeles, film noir has evolved into the dominant lifestyle. Events unfold cinematically. Lips Greene, an acoustic musician feeling the pinch of synthesization, meets Monte Blane, a grizzled veteran of the Hollywood fringe. They join forces to track down some legendary forbidden film footage, uncovering more than they bargained for. In this version of the future, everyone carries a Personal Musical Moment Enhancer, enabling them to break into song without warning.
Belle
I’m Belle, Belle Russe, and am I ever your friend
get ready to start wondering where I’ve been all your life
people like you Lips, I’ve talked to them
even Jack, a guy whose idea of a warm impulse is to only break one of your legs
it’s a tribute to you, a real compliment
but you can’t eat affection
I don’t know when you were planning to get serious, but Lips, you’re getting to the age when too long suddenly turns into too late
I’m not saying this to make you feel bad
I’m saying this to give you a clear picture of the pit you’ve dug yourself into
Lips
I’m not wondering where you’ve been all my life yet
Belle
that’s because you can’t see over the
rim
Lips, the future you plan for is the future you get
you barely know what you’re doing tomorrow
you’re a pool player, right?
you can’t play one shot at a time
it’s about position — making the cue ball end up in the right place for the next shot
if you played like you live, you’d never win
AEROBIA (with choreographer Douglas Dunn), 2001
PS 122, NYC
AEROBIA is the fitness center of the future. Members meet, work out and socialize in an environment that meets needs they didn’t know they had.
Chris
I can do it
I can do it
I know I can do it
other people do it
sometimes, when they do it, they don’t remind me of me
there’s a lot of confidence out there
when it’s time to do something, sometimes I’m underconnected
it’s not the same as not knowing what I’m doing
but sometimes it feels like I know it later
I wonder what that looks like
I wonder if wondering what it looks like makes it look like it more
THE BIG LIP AND OTHER BACKTALK, 2000
Dixon Place, NYC
Noir lives in an evening of shadowy dialogue and music with attitude. Two actors talk their way through a series of dangerous situations, accompanied by Harry Mann on reeds and keyboards. Their encounters include THE BIG LIP, a one-act update of nick and Nora Charles, and a few songs with lyrics that seem to mean more than they say.
Joe
all right, all right
we know each other in Vienna
Simone
this is Zurich
Joe
we’re not the same people in Zurich
Simone
why not?
Joe
why not?
Simone
why can’t we just be the same people
what were our names again?
Joe
we can’t be the same people
they didn’t go to Zurich
Simone
so we’re both other people
let’s be strangers
Joe
I’m not sure that wouldn’t violate
previous behavior in Zurich
Simone
I know what anybody watching would
think we are
Joe
what?
Simone
spies
UNDERCURRENT INCORPORATED, 1999
La MaMa, NYC; Exodus Festival, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Explores the plight of downsized spies in the market economy. Facing the future with nothing in their resumes but duplicity and double-dealing, the ex-spies infiltrate the fields of pop fashion and televangelism. Their success surprises even them, but old habits die hard and their urge for intrigue finally can’t be denied.
Bob
you can’t argue with the tide of
history
as spies, the future we didn’t have in Asia was exceeded only by the lack of our prospects in Africa
Joe
washed up by the tide of history
Simone
(entering) impaled on a rocky outcrop
of muck encrusted sub-culture
Joe
ah Simone, the spin is never quite
right until you get here
Simone
I hope you had enough sense to not talk about anything important
Joe
we were sharing our feelings
Simone
that couldn’t have taken much time
MONDO BEYONDO, 1997
La MaMa, NYC
Right when Ted Promost, a motivational teleguru, is about to make a career leap to the big time, a figure from his past, Effie Twelvetrees, reappears to threaten his future. She plans to go public with details of his very unenlightened early behavior unless he can find a way to make it up to her. Also involved are Vanesica Caswell, Ted’s patron and chief disciple, whose faith in him is stronger than facts, and Riff Dixon, a wryly truculent freelance detective hired by Effie to even the score.
Vanesica
people are watching a wider range of anything all the time
the accumulated viewing of overlapping generations is exciting a historic hunger for something to look at
but I’m telling you, right?
Ted
don’t be modest
the rate of your ability as a developing driver is growing in a direct ratio to the depth of your experience as an enthusiastic passenger
Vanesica
if somebody was smart in the woods but nobody
heard it, did it really happen?
Ted
the scope of the smoke has everything to do with the
size of the fire
Vanesica
the forest are the trees
Ted
a dent is only another kind of
impression
Vanesica
your random babble makes more sense than other
people’s coherency
THE FLOATONES, 1995
La MaMa, NYC
Four rather strange characters meet at their encounter group and decide the best way to get better is through show business. They form a vocal quartet on the cutting edge of a new fusion between entertainment and self-help. Their night club act shares their group insights in speech and song, interweaving their individual stories, creating a post-Chorus Line.
Mary/Bill/Jim/Keith
we’ve talked among each other
to find a way to convey
if there’s anything you need to hear
it won’t be anything we say
Mary
you’ve already got plenty to know
Bill
and more than enough to face
Jim
if you’re looking for knowing more
Keith
look for another place
Mary/Bill/Jim/Keith
we’re past reason
we’re post plot
we’re connection-free
we’re content-not
Jim
we’re getting over our meaning dependency
and sharing it with you
DARK POCKET, 1994
La MaMa; Dallas Theater Center, Texas; Rosemary Branch Theater, London
Two strangers who meet and immediately sense something mysterious about each other. They are both right. While one imagines himself a classic film noir detective, the other believes people have been looking for him for years. As they leap into the wordplay, neither wants to give away too much before learning it all. Never straying too far from reality, but not attaining it either, songs break out – little revelations. As they explore the compatibility of their respective conspiracy theories, they wonder if their meeting was such an accident after all.
Bill
we could be anybody
Jim
we seem like we could be anybody
to me
Bill
it makes me feel like a regular
person just to think of it
Jim
what did you feel like before?
Bill
like I was mind-surfing at the
high end of the infospectrum
Jim
it’s good to keep busy
Bill
you don’t seem surprised
Jim
I don’t surprise easy
Bill
what does it take?
Jim
what have you got?
THE WRONG MISTAKE,1993
La MaMa, NYC
Bill, an average guy, steps into a bar for a drink, only to find he has entered a hotbed of surrealism. Intrigue, songs and a plot that seems to be about him makes Bill wish he’d stayed home.
Riff
do we know each other already,
or is it just the way I feel?
Jim
do you ever wonder if you’re interrupting
something?
Riff
who’s your friend?
Bill
we’re talking, but we never met
Jim
you broke our flow
Riff
are you always this linear, man?
Bill
I don’t know if I felt "our
flow"
Jim
we were about to get to what you
needed to hear
Riff
sounds like you were flowing alone,
man
LIVE WITNESS, 1992
Portland Stage Co., Maine
Dixon Place,
NY
Two TV co-anchors try to perform their show, despite some very seamy and public rumors about one of them.
1
people wonder if we see each other
socially
2
do they?
1
is it so hard to imagine?
2
I never tried
1
me either
2
I wouldn’t want to jeopardize the quality of our professional
rapport
1
I wouldn’t want to compromise the integrity of our
mutual objectivity
2
in a way we’re a good example of what’s
going on here
we have the same relationship to each other that the audience has to us
we’re here simultaneously, but we’re not really together
1
sometimes I feel closer to the audience
than I do to you
even as I talk to you, I’m really talking to somebody else
SITUATION ROOM, 1992
Soho Rep, NYC
Worlds collide when a couple of market researchers target a group of actors to investigate leisure behavior.
Harry
well, you’re probably wondering how
to think of me
Mary
I don’t mind saying what’s going on
isn’t completely clear in my mind yet
Terry
I explained it
Mary
I know
Harry
it’s simple, yet subtle
Mary
sometimes you can’t tell if it’s the
situation or the words somebody is putting it into
Harry
I’m sure we can make it work
we intend to begin marketing reality-based product endorsements starring you two as the people you actually are
and to know how other people will see you, we need to know how you are ourselves
but the last thing we want to do is intrude
just think of it as opening a window on your life and inviting us in
see, we really want to know what would be happening if we weren’t here
for us, the experience is entirely yours
AN EVENING WITH JESSE JAMES, 1988
PS 122, Miranda Theater Co., NYC
A micro and macro view of America’s most enduring outlaw. Scenes of the James family at home alternate with a narrator describing the ups and downs of Jesse’s public career.
Zerelda M
….I’m not as easy around other
people any more
is that love?
Zerelda S
I think you two were made for
each other
Zerelda M
heavy praise Mother James
I’m sure you don’t say that lightly
Zerelda S
he needs the kind of woman who understands the kind of man
who lives the kind of life a man like him lives
Zerelda M
he has a serious feeling for
who a man like him is
Zerelda S
blessed is him who can sit back and cast his eyes upon
what he hath wrought
my boys hath wrought plenty
DUET FOR SPIES (The Whole Story), 1985
London International Festival of Theater, UK, BACA, PS 122, Chain Lighting Theater Co. NYC, University of Wisconsin
A spy being interrogated by a superior can only guess at the mission, priorities and agenda behind the encounter.
Spy 1
mark my words
if people knew what we think, they’d know enough to be glad we’re on their side
but don’t hold your breath
it’s up to a guy like us to find our own gratification
I get a little . . . . physical sometimes walking around in a group of other people
I think about what the guy next to me doesn’t know about the guy next to him
I think about how much more I’ve got for him to not know about than he could possibly have for me to not know about.
look — you’ve got to be able to love the life!