I have officially started rehearsals for the first fully staged production of “The Standard Upgrade” by Angie Montgomery and Howard Leader. Appropriately the piece will be premiering as part of the Dream Up Festival at the Theatre for a New City in the East Village. The festival will feature 23 world Premieres and  2 American Premieres. Tickets available now.

 

I say “Appropriately” as this piece of work came into my life at a turbulent time; I had just moved to a new city on little more than impulse and saw a breakdown for the first reading on Backstage.com.  My gut told me to stick with this play, and I am happy I did.  What started as a small table reading in Chelsea turned into a semi staged reading in New Haven, to  placing 6th in the Berkshire Playwrights Lab. If we had placed top five I would be doing the production in England RIGHT NOW but I digress….

We have been rehearsing at Simple Studios in Midtown, not far from The ACE Hotel.  (Check it out above- I love going here to work, sip coffee and people watch. It’s easy to let the hours slip by thanks to the open decor, great tunes, and easy vibe).

In New York there are so many hidden work spaces like Simple Studios .  You assume it won’t be crowded, but as soon as you  enter you are met by the rumble of hungry actors rehearsing, taking class, getting to know each other, generating positive energy. It’s encouraging and daunting. One is forced to think “Wow, there are so many people here that want what I want.”

We started blocking yesterday and are in a great state of play. I can’t wait to tell you more as the rehearsal process unfolds.

W