Drum Roll Please

Finally- I have a stolen second to talk about my little project...

I have decided to work on Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. The process of choosing a project to work on is as important as the process involved in creating the project itself. Here are my reasons for choosing this piece.

1. This text has survived over 15 years of bookshelf purges. It is time I figured out how and why it has survived.
2. This play has a 'kitchen sink' evolution that I favor in theater pieces. The setting is simple, the circumstances complex.
3. The circumstances are complex.
4. Martha is 20 years my senior as a character, which I could look at as a bad choice but I prefer to think of it as a challenge to my belief in the power of empathy for an actor. That, in and of itself, could prove or disprove some of my acting theories.
5. Martha is full of anger and resentment. In my experience I have found it beneficial to explore issues through character that I have difficulty expressing in my personal life. It may help me break through some personal barriers.
6. There is a great possibility that I could fail in my execution of this process. This will not be an easy text for me to tackle and I need to exercise my right to fail- knowing that it is the difficult task that is most worth the effort.
7. The characters spend the entire play in various stages of drunkenness. This provides me with an opportunity to do some sensory work.
8. Martha has a very confident sexuality, something I feel I've lost over the years.
9. The struggle for love in this play is weighted down in the circumstances. It is always a challenge to discover a relationship to joy in such a murky atmosphere, but that is what makes a compelling piece of theatre. It will be hard to keep my Martha from wallowing (something I find myself doing far too often) but her fight, and the feistiness of the other characters in the play, will be a sharp jab every time I venture into self-pity.
10. Its a good play.

So. There. I've made my decision. My next post will be an overview of themes and motivations in the play. I expect to be able to put that together sometime during or directly after the holiday.

Wish me... wish me something fun.