October 2007 Archives

Just got word -- so now we're sold out for Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Which means 5 out of the 6 shows (all but last Sunday's matinee) will be packed to the rafters.

Crazy! Thanks to everyone who's coming out. We really appreciate it and hope ya have a great time.

And look: no link/plug to buy! Unbelievable!
-Cecil

The pasta that I had tonight at Pastino's in Oakland
was the worst pasta I have had in my entire life.

I am an old man. I have lived 300 years.
In all my years, I've never had pasta this bad.
And make no mistake -- I've had bad pasta.

For about 60 years I lived in Bangladesh,
I was a reporter at a local newspaper
and -- I kid you not -- my "beat" was bad pasta places
and the pasta they made.
Most of which wasn't
very good.

It was a difficult time.

As it turns out, those thin, flappy, granular strands of my discontent
were just the first course in an extended meal
at the heavy center of which, I now discover, sat
tonight's fettucini bolognese.

I'm about to go to sleep. And all I can think about
is the fact that some small part of this pasta will probably become
my toe skin, or a ligament. My hip. A crumbly eyelash.

I have been cheapened by this pasta. I do not recommend you go to
Pastino's.

So first Saturday, and now Friday are sold out in advance for our much plugged post-apocalyptic workplace situation comedy: Mankind's Last Hope. That leaves one last show open -- if you're looking to go and don't have tix, be sure to reserve your seats for the Sunday matinee asap....

This is our collective happening and it freaks us out.
-Cecil

Hi,
Happy to report, we're sold out in advance for Saturday night. We've got seats still available for Friday (with actors/director/writers) and the Sunday matinee, so come on down. If you're driving over from out of town, be sure to reserve your seats.

Also, here's that "hilarious romp" review. If you ever run into this writer on the street, please make way. Great man coming through.

So, last night was the big opening. And it was a swell time indeed. A hilarious romp even. Fantastic audience (full house!) with Bob Lundy-Paine as our MC. And the whole cast and crew were just completely on their game. Blew me away.

To see the look in my daughter's eyes (she's grown up with these characters).... Happy happy happy.

And tonight, we do it all over again. (8 pm -- all the details here.)

A few photos to mark the event, courtesy of ace producer Tracey Rhys:

Volcanic Burt (Tony Jonick)

Alex, the feral monkey (Chloe Bronzan)

Dimwitted Hank in an emotional moment (Kenneth Sears)

Tonight's the big night -- opening night for Mankind's Last Hope out here in Alameda-land. We got our first review yesterday. And I'm not kidding you or making this up when I say that the Alameda Sun called us "A Hilarious Romp."

Oh, how I love the Alameda Sun. They say it's written by the hand of God but I don't believe that. I just think it's divinely inspired.

Wish us luck as we launch.
-Cecil

If you've visited this site over the last few weeks, you may have gathered that we're putting on a show (starts this Friday, 10/26, tickets available now).

This experience -- seeing a script me and my pal Jeff Green co-wrote turned into an actual production due to the work of something like 30 people, with cast, makeup, sets, designs, props, music, lighting.... it's been full of fun surprises.

The latest treat came yesterday, when several members of the cast released a video showing each of their characters during the actual alien invasion. Jeff and I had nothing to do with these videos. They're grim and they're quirky. More Blair Witch Project than Laverne and Shirley. And we love 'em.

How neat is it to see characters you've created come to live and start sprouting original youtube content all their own? A couple of the characters/actors even gave themselves last names. Last names? We had no last names. And now here I am, really enjoying the fact that suddenly a few of our characters have last names.

In case you find yourself in the Island City on November 3rd, be sure to drop by Alameda Literati where I'll be speaking on not one, not three, but two panels -- one on (yes) blogging at 10 am, and the other on scriptwriting at 11 am, which will give me a chance to plug that night's performance of Mankind's Last Hope.

(And yes, that was a meta-plug, in which I just used mention of a plug to plug again!)

-Meta Cecil

Perhaps I've already mentioned that my pal Jeff Green and I co-wrote a post-apocalyptic workplace comedy called Mankind's Last Hope that's being staged and filmed in the SF East Bay (by Virago Theatre Group) starting a week from Friday -- October 26 (with tickets available now)?

When Jeff and I handed the script over, I told the director (Robert Lundy-Paine) that I was hoping to try and stay out of his/their way -- I wanted to let them take it from there.

(1) I'd recently started a new job and knew I wouldn't have much time to help, much less meddle, (2) I really trust the director and Virago, and (3) as a bunch of us saw with the Monkey Vortex experience, there's just something really really really fun and interesting about giving people the freedom to take something you started and make it their own.

Everything about the process so far has really proven that point out. As previously blogged, the director got sometimes Stryper keyboardist Brent Jeffers to produce a beautiful theme song for us. He brought in a choreographer and they collectively reworked a smallish song in the second act into a potentially show-stopping musical number. A great graphic artist pulled together a beautiful poster (see below). Every cast member has added something lovely to their character that I hadn't anticipated. One of them even created a rockin' mini-movie providing a suspenseful slice of backstory for the oft-befuddled "Hank." (also also see below) And there's so much I haven't even seen yet -- the sound/lighting set up, the set, the costumes and makeup, the way they're going film the show with 3 (three!) cameras.

And that's why I'm here to say: I heart creative collaboration.

Something like 30 people have been working away, and I'm really excited to see the results. So let me exhort you to come on out. There -- I exhort you!

(As an added bonus, if you know me well enough for us to engage in financial transactions, drop me an email so I can tell you how I can get you 2 (two!) bucks off the already low regular ticket price of $17....)

-Cecil

The beautiful poster:

A suspenseful backstory movie for (and by) the oft-befuddled Hank:

I don't mean to brag, but best I can tell I'm a popular result in Vietnam for "sexy man." Not everyone can say that. But I'm saying it. I'm saying it right now. And here's the proof.

Ivan sez: "So sorry, Mr. George Clooney. You are #2 this day!"

I liked SCB's suggestion in the comments that I get an HBO special entitled "Uncorked." I'm thinking I could carve out a niche as "the guy who complains about his small town with specifics no one outside of that town can understand."

"What is the deal with all those 'no left turn' signs on Park? Anybody else find themselves driving in circles trying to get over to C'era Una Volta for some of their delicious housemade Pasta alla Boscaiola? Come on now!"

"I'm thinking the ice cream at Tucker's is like crystal meth, if crystal meth came in Rocky Road and Orange Sherbert. Am I right? Am I right? Am I right? Am I right? I'm right about that, aren't I?"

"Boy, all those stacks of books over at Kevin Patricks Books on Encinal are wild, don't you think? Who would stack books like that in an earthquake zone? It's an unusual choice, I say. Good books though, at reasonable prices."

I flipped someone the bird today. I haven't done that for a lot of years. It didn't feel that great, but now that I've done it, I can't seem to stop.

We live in a pretty small town. Slowing down to look for a parking spot, I put my left hand out the window and waved this guy in a VW around me. And the cranky son of a gun honked at me.

Now I hate honking in a small town. I just hate it. Save your honking noises for the big city, I always say, with its fancy ways and complex speech patterns, and its honking. Around here, no honking. Please.

So he honks at me and I can't help it -- I give him the finger. It's like my finger lifted itself, smooth and swift, like a helium balloon. My hand was already out the window, right? And my middle finger just uncorked. And he honks again! Short, snippy. And I honk back! Then I park my car and go get a small pot of darjeeling. Deeeelicious.

And there it is. Some 10, or 11, or possibly even 12 years of no-bird-flipping. Gone. Just whisked away. Like a burp in a sandstorm.

I gave three or four more people the finger on the way home. I flipped off a poodle. I was out of control. And then when my seven-year-old forgot to say "please" when he asked me for a pony, you guessed it. The bird.

He said, "Pop -- what's that? What's that strange gesture mean? Does it hurt?" And then, "Hey, I'm doing it too!" And I started to cry in a way that looked like I was laughing at something really really sad.

I can't live this way. I'm going to try to cork it again tomorrow. I hope it doesn't hurt.

I'm borderline religious about To Do Lists. For example, when I go to bed, I often remind myself that while it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to get into heaven, it's easier for a rich man to get into heaven than it is for most individuals to complete three projects with overlapping deadlines on time, unless they have a To Do List to help them prioritize.

So I got to thinking about To Do Lists, and religions, and how some Mormons used to baptize people after they'd passed on. And I thought I could perform a similar service by creating To Do Lists for the dead.

Here's what I have so far:

Richard Burton

• Use EVP to star as lovable robot king in upcoming Pixar film.
  
• Possess body of small dog and make it sing songs from Camelot.
  
• Stop haunting Elizabeth Taylor's underwear.
  

Richard Nixon

• Get Facebook account.
  
• Fill Teddy Kennedy's shoes with ectoplasm.
  
• Stop haunting Henry Kissinger's underwear.
  

Got any you'd like to add?

update: a pal just pointed out that Dr. Katz had the exact same idea 7 years ago. Dang you Dr. Katz! Why are you always 7 years ahead of me with everything?!

I flew into Chicago on Sunday. When I got off the plane I was greeted by a sign that said, "We're happy you're here." Just like that -- in quotes. And I'll admit it, the quote marks stung. I thought boy, I hope it's not some kind of dig. As in, "oh, we're soooo happy you're here."

I'm tired. I've come a long way. I don't need the grief.

A few minutes later I saw another sign that said We're happy you're here -- no quote marks this time. And I thought great! It's just a slogan! And I was happy to be there too.

Then, as my cab pulled away from the airport, I saw a sign that read "We're happy you're here" -- it's more than a slogan.

And I thought what the hell? Does that mean it's both a slogan and a dig?

Are they happy I'm here or not?!