Monday, December 26, 2011
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Beowulf on a Budget
A cover for a play by Eddie McPherson
The synopsis goes something like this:
Beowulf, the classic hero, kills the ferocious monster Grendel — but in a funny slapstick comedy? This adaptation becomes a farce when someone steals all the costumes and props the night before the show. But the show must go on! It gets even more hilarious every moment. Imagine Beowulf using a plastic bucket for his helmet, a mop for his sword, and his armor is a suit of mail (letters and postcards). The Director, acting as the narrator, helps the actors agonize through the preposterous adventure. The characters, dressed in appropriate costumes using impossible props, bravely accomplish their mission. Every student will want to read the true Beowulf story after this delightful fiasco.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Shoestring Theatre
A cover for a play by Eddie McPherson. The synopsis goes something like this:
Sanders is very upset. The budget for his opening show of the new theatre season is being cut by eighty percent. This particular play is to be an epic retelling of the timeless classic, "Cinderella," an expensive show that includes grand costumes, elaborate sets, and high-priced special effects. But how is he expected to pull off such a spectacle with practically no money? To add insult to injury, Sanders learns that the reason his budget is cut is because Mrs. Brakes, the executive director of the theatre, and her pal Bonnie, the president of the board of directors, have embezzled the "Cinderella" money to fund a nice long cruise in the Caribbean. Sanders is outraged and decides to take matters into his own hands. "If it's a low-budget show they want, it's a low-budget show they'll get," he tells a friend. He rounds up some local yokels with no acting experience and casts them in the show. He uses cardboard boxes for the set, paper confetti and flashlights for special effects, and a child's wagon for the royal carriage in which Cinderella rides to the ball. Cinderella's "beautiful" gown is even worse. But revenge turns from sweet to bitter when Sanders learns that the trip planned was a surprise for him and his wife. Too late, the show has already opened. What a disaster ... that is until the reviews come in and the show is the hit of the season!
Sanders is very upset. The budget for his opening show of the new theatre season is being cut by eighty percent. This particular play is to be an epic retelling of the timeless classic, "Cinderella," an expensive show that includes grand costumes, elaborate sets, and high-priced special effects. But how is he expected to pull off such a spectacle with practically no money? To add insult to injury, Sanders learns that the reason his budget is cut is because Mrs. Brakes, the executive director of the theatre, and her pal Bonnie, the president of the board of directors, have embezzled the "Cinderella" money to fund a nice long cruise in the Caribbean. Sanders is outraged and decides to take matters into his own hands. "If it's a low-budget show they want, it's a low-budget show they'll get," he tells a friend. He rounds up some local yokels with no acting experience and casts them in the show. He uses cardboard boxes for the set, paper confetti and flashlights for special effects, and a child's wagon for the royal carriage in which Cinderella rides to the ball. Cinderella's "beautiful" gown is even worse. But revenge turns from sweet to bitter when Sanders learns that the trip planned was a surprise for him and his wife. Too late, the show has already opened. What a disaster ... that is until the reviews come in and the show is the hit of the season!
Monday, December 5, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Christmas in Cricket County
A cover commission for a play written by Eddie McPherson.
The synopsis goes something like this:
Hillbilly hilarity abounds in this down-home drama with broadly played characters. It's a clash of cultures when the well-heeled preppie city cousins take a limo to their country cousins' home for the reading of their Uncle Zeke's will on Christmas Eve. When they discover that they are to receive only one hundred thousand dollars apiece, they throw a tantrum over such a "small" amount of money -- but the country cousins are thankful for their fifty dollars to buy new coats and shoes. In their tradition, the country cousins perform a simple Nativity reenactment for the city kids. Only then do the preppie cousins understand what it means to give without reservation or condition. A surprise twist at the end gives the country kids an unexpected bonus.
The synopsis goes something like this:
Hillbilly hilarity abounds in this down-home drama with broadly played characters. It's a clash of cultures when the well-heeled preppie city cousins take a limo to their country cousins' home for the reading of their Uncle Zeke's will on Christmas Eve. When they discover that they are to receive only one hundred thousand dollars apiece, they throw a tantrum over such a "small" amount of money -- but the country cousins are thankful for their fifty dollars to buy new coats and shoes. In their tradition, the country cousins perform a simple Nativity reenactment for the city kids. Only then do the preppie cousins understand what it means to give without reservation or condition. A surprise twist at the end gives the country kids an unexpected bonus.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
I Was A Teenage Chameleon
A cover commission for a play by Eddie McPherson.
The synopsis goes something like this:
Average Joe and Jane Doe are ordinary teenagers who want to fit in. Their dreams of becoming popular overshadow everything else in their lives. Joe’s ultimate goal is to make the school’s paddleball team (playing paddleball is the ultimate in coolness at Typical High). Meanwhile Jane will sacrifice her lifelong friendship with her nerdy BFF, Eunice, in order to be accepted by the most popular girls in school.
The Symbolic Ladder of Popularity stands on stage throughout the play reminding the protagonists (as well as the audience) of their ultimate goal. They MUST reach the top of that ladder – no matter what the cost.
The synopsis goes something like this:
Average Joe and Jane Doe are ordinary teenagers who want to fit in. Their dreams of becoming popular overshadow everything else in their lives. Joe’s ultimate goal is to make the school’s paddleball team (playing paddleball is the ultimate in coolness at Typical High). Meanwhile Jane will sacrifice her lifelong friendship with her nerdy BFF, Eunice, in order to be accepted by the most popular girls in school.
The Symbolic Ladder of Popularity stands on stage throughout the play reminding the protagonists (as well as the audience) of their ultimate goal. They MUST reach the top of that ladder – no matter what the cost.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
A Friend
Monday, November 7, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
The Cow Tippers
A play cover commission written by Eddie McPherson. The synopsis goes something like this:
Mrs. Brown has moved to Hoke's Bluff to study rural school life. She's used to schools equipped with state-of-the-art computer labs and up-to-date technology. At Hoke's Bluff, however, high tech is an intercom system consisting of an aluminum can with a piece of string attached. On the first day of school, the sheriff shows up looking for leads to cow-tipping pranks. Her study of "these people" may be more than she bargained for. But as relationships are built, Mrs. Brown not only teaches her students a few lessons, but she learns a few of her own. And when Clyde, the school janitor, has eyes for her, she also discovers that there's more on these people's minds than just cow tipping.
Mrs. Brown has moved to Hoke's Bluff to study rural school life. She's used to schools equipped with state-of-the-art computer labs and up-to-date technology. At Hoke's Bluff, however, high tech is an intercom system consisting of an aluminum can with a piece of string attached. On the first day of school, the sheriff shows up looking for leads to cow-tipping pranks. Her study of "these people" may be more than she bargained for. But as relationships are built, Mrs. Brown not only teaches her students a few lessons, but she learns a few of her own. And when Clyde, the school janitor, has eyes for her, she also discovers that there's more on these people's minds than just cow tipping.
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