Klecksography 2010 VideoBlog - Come Together, Right Now, Over Meat from Dream Live Studios on Vimeo.

A video for your blogging pleasure

It is never to late to have a Happy Klecksakah!

Seamus here, author of No, Batsheba, reporting from rehearsals. Quick personal note: I've known Natsu, our director, for years, since she's a professor at my alma mater, but we've never worked together as writer and director on anything. When we kicked off the project last week, I couldn't help but wonder if we were up to the challenge of turning Grace Overbeke's story into an entertaining ten-minute tale of anti-Semitic Santas and Christmas Eve grudge matches.

After the first half-hour of sitting in on last night's rehearsal, my face hurt from grinning so much, and after another half hour of watching slow-motion fisticuffs and hearing Soneyet's TERRIFYING Batman voice, my entire upper body hurt from doubling up laughing (and from eating more than my share of the delicious cookies that Karin, our host and Evil Santa extraordinaire, made for us).

Here are some reflections from the cast to tide you over until we shower you with cartoony splendor this weekend!

Soneyet: Wrapping rehearsal for the night, when your director tells you to go home and come back with an even sillier face...you love your life!

Karin: Did you know that Santa Klaus is antisemitic, a martial arts champ and has certain food allergies?

More secrets to be revealed in No, Bathseba!

My dad is way cooler than your dad & our Christmas adventure kicks your Christmas adventure’s face in.– Love, Batsheba O’Malley-Hirschberger

Klecksing all the way!

My parents created so many lasting traditions in my family. I will never forget the Christmas routine, a routine that I still follow to this day, every time I am home for the holiday. I know that on Christmas Eve I will go to church with my parents (the only day out of the year that I attend church services) and that the church will be packed with families. My parents and I still attend the children’s service full of children and complete with a live nativity. I know that no matter how old I get, I will still laugh every time the camel pees on the altar. I know that when we arrive home, we will sit together and eat and drink coffee. This ends in the unwrapping of one gift. I know it will be pajamas, always pajamas to wear for the night. When I wake I will eat breakfast and gift opening will begin shortly after. After gifts are open and bellies are full, we get ready to go to my grandparent’s house where another set of rituals and traditions will take place. There is comfort in tradition. Comfort in the knowing of what will happen next. I don’t know what will happen to these traditions after my parents are gone. Will my brother and sisters continue the traditions that our parents create for us or will we create traditions with our new families? Slowly growing apart as our traditions break down.

As I sit and think about our play for Klecksography, I cannot help, but to be reminded of family during the holiday seasons. No matter what your faith is, it seems that holidays are filled with families, the ones we are born into and the ones we create. During rehearsal, many conversations came up about family traditions around the holidays. No matter how old we get, it seems that when we are at home for the holidays, we fall back into the same patterns and customs as when were children. Siblings bicker and fight and arguments are to be had. Memories from holidays past are brought up and reminisced on. This falling back to an older time is what can make bringing a guest to a family holiday all the more awkward. Having to constantly catch up someone who is not used to your family or not aware of certain “family rules” can often feel out of place or placed into the position of “outsider” not matter how hard people try to make them feel welcome.

Our play centers on this idea of connection. How do we connect, both literally and metaphorically? How do we integrate an outsider into long held holiday traditions? And more importantly, how do we connect to our family after the loss of a loved on?

This will be the 2^nd holiday that I have worked on a Rorschach Holiday show and it is always fun to rehearse and share in the holiday joy with fellow artists. Here are some photos of us in rehearsal. Enjoy.

-Matt

Grady's Klesksography challenge

Hey kids,

So rehearsal has begun for Full Disclosure, the pop'n, hip, socially over-aware quasi-comedy from Rorschach Company member Jason Linkins. As to keep it's subject a secret there will be little disclosed here, but I will reveal that the piece has gone through 4 drafts, two table reads, and has been blocked despite not having it's central character for the first rehearsal.

The name Klecksography continues to be impossible for me to pronounce. This is disconcerting for me as I have not only 3 years of German, but 4 years of Latin, so a simple combination word like Klecksography should be a no-brainer for me. Lets just say, I'm glad you didn't have to pronounce the words in the SAT vocab section.

I will be working on this pronunciation though the week, I have even typed into a spell and speak, but this does not seem solve the issue. I'd say keep up with my progress on facebook – but I don't acknowledge facebook as a legitimate vehicle for social interaction, so you'll just have to find me and ASK. (and in case your wondering, yes that means i am not on facebook, thank you.)

Grady Weatherford

Director, Full Disclosure

Merry Klecksing

Hello interneters,

Gearing up for the weekend? I know it is only Tuesday. But there is snow on the ground and the temp is 25. Clo enough to think about your next day off.

Here are some seasonal thoughts from Misty Demory. More blogging later, but for now, snuggle up, keep warm and get your tickets for Klecksography.

Best,

Catherine

Since the 1930's children have left cookies and milk out on a table for Santa on Christmas Eve. It is thought that the idea to leave them out may have sprung from parents wanting to encourage their children to give/share during the great depression. The Oreo is the most popular cookie left out for Santa Claus. No matter what the reason, or why it started, cookies made, eaten, shared, or thrown at people on Christmas Eve are one tradition I hope never goes away.

I ‘klecks, do you?

I try not to make bold statements in public, because I usually end up looking like a jackass. I’ve learned from experience. I like to hang back and then
make snarky comments about others’ ideas. But I am going to go out on a limb on this one, that’s how much I believe in it. It’s time to ‘klecks.’ What is
klecks, you ask? Klecks is a new slang term for the new millennium.  It will replace all those other tired slang terms like “phat,” “sweet,” and “groovy.” Not
that anyone still says groovy.  It’s a noun, verb, and adjective all stuffed into one enigmatic package. Now, I’ve learned from my German friends that
‘klecks’ is an actual word in their native language that means, blob, blot, dab, smudge, blotch or stain in mine. But words are slippery, they change their
meanings all the time. Take ‘culture,’ for example: a hundred years or so ago culture meant to plant seeds. So, with your help, we can culture klecks in
our culture. Are we klecks?

James Hesla, Playwright

 Klecksography: Home for the Holidays, coming December 18th & 19th @ Mead Theatre Lab at Flashpoint.  Tickets are on sale now.