Karen Zacarias saved by Arena Stage Playwriting Program

There was a moment not long ago when Karen Zacarias became sure that her blossoming playwriting career would be lost among sippy cups, baby dolls and field trip forms. Arena Stage made the difference.


Can you have it all? Playwright Karen Zacarias certainly seems to have found the secret. With three young children at home and a blinking computer awaiting, the 2009 Playwright in Residence for Washington, D.C.'s Arena stage is a prolific writer. She finished five plays the year her youngest was born, and the ideas just keep on coming. She has had four of her plays staged in the past year or so. Legacy of Light is one that Arena Stage produced. But the double duties of mother and writer takes its toll. "I haven't slept in years," she says. Thanks to Arena's program, she has found a way to live two lives.

Today news came that the path that Zacarias has blazed will soon be joined by two additional women playwrights Lisa Kron and Amy Freed, who will each start their three-year residencies in July 2010, and then Katori Hall and Charles Randolph-Wright, who will begin in January 2011. It's all part of The American Voices New Play Institute. The Institute—integral to Arena’s mission as a leading center for the production, presentation, development and study of American theater—isdesigned as a center for research and development of effective practices, programs and processes for new play development in the American Theater.

In addition to the first round of Resident Playwrights, the Institute will also host Project Residents Lynn Nottage and David Henry Hwang, who will be commissioned through the Institute to write a play that Arena Stage will produce.

In addition to the residencies, the American Voices New Play Institute operates with a suite of interrelated programs, including the New Play Producing Fellowships, Theater 101 Audience Enrichment Seminar, administration of Round One of the NEA New Play Development Program and major convenings of American artists and arts administrators around issues facing the new play sector.

Under the leadership of Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith, the Institute is guided by Arena Stage Associate Artistic Director David Dower and works in partnership with Georgetown University’s Theater Department, led by Dr. Derek Goldman. The American Voices New Play Institute is made possible through the keystone gift of $1.1 million in support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

"With the launching of the residencies for the American Voices New Play Institute under the visionary funding of the Mellon Foundation, we at Arena Stage are eager to support and help transform play development around the country,“ said Smith. “These writers are so different; my mouth is literally watering at the thought of what each may write. From major dramas to musicals, comedies, one-person plays and interview-based stories, the range is exhilarating. Now the writers will have the time, support and finances to be able to do their best work. Each writer is splendid and has the talent and insight to surprise us all.”

The primary purpose of the residency is to write plays and to advance professional outcomes for the participating writers, as well as to help Arena Stage test and develop best practices for such residencies in theaters around the country. The playwrights will determine their individual involvement in the life of the theater company. Ultimately, Arena Stage hopes the Institute will make the case for the power, practicality and impact of resident playwrights in regional theaters nationwide.

"This first cohort of playwrights is going to really advance the inquiry here at Arena Stage,” shared Dower. “They come at it from so many different perspectives on form, process and story, and they have all grabbed hold of the opportunity to help develop the role of the playwright in the institutions of the regional theater. So I expect we'll not only see work they write popping up on stages around the country, but I hope through their leadership we'll see increased opportunities for playwrights' residencies around the field."

This is one of the most exciting initiatives by any American theatre company. The nurturing of playwrights is essential for the theatre's future.

For more information regarding all of the American Voices New Play Institute programs please visit www.arenastage.org/institute.

Marketing a Show Via Twitter - Next to Normal

Beating out Coca Cola, Star Trek, HBO and Sprint, the musical Next to Normal which began at Arena Stage in Washington, DC and moved on to Broadway, won an OMMA award for its Twitter campaign. The Online Media, Marketing and Advertising Awards are for internet creativity. The promotion was recognized by the MediaPost Group which sponsors the awards.

They used tweets to retell the show's plot by having the various characters advance the plot via short 140 character messages. They were taken from the book written by the show's author, Brian Yorkey. The responses by others has brought about the creation of a new song about tweeting, to be debuted at a future date.

During the campaign, the number of people following the show's messages topped out at 750,000 or so.

The Twitter campaign for "Next to Normal," much buzzed-about due to its unusually large number of followers for a Broadway show, has picked up an OMMA (Online Media, Marketing and Advertising) Award for online marketing.


It didn't hurt that the show's campaign was promoted extensively by Twitter itself to keep new participants involved. The drop out rate at Twitter is very high, at least half, and 30% of its users - according to a recent poll - don't expect it to still be around in a few years. It is all a crap shoot. And as the story below this one indicates, it doesn't stop people from claiming that Twitter is worth a billion dollars. The owners must be tweeting a happy tune.

But I wonder how many tickets this ad campaign sold, and how much the effort actually cost compared to traditional marketing methods.

The Wrestling Patient: A New Generation Revisits the Holocaust

The Wrestling Patient is a new play which receives its world premiere this weekend. It promises to be an important work since it revisits the Holocaust through the words of Etty Hillesum, much as the Diary of Anne Frank did on Broadway half a century ago. (In that famous production Susan Strasberg played Anne Frank.)

That a whole new generation of artists are returning to this subject is important. Sadly this genocidal event is but a footnote to history for most people. But we must never forget. Most Americans were born after the horrors of the Nazi Holocaust took place. Indeed the depth of the atrocities didn't become widely known until after WWII was over and the newsreel footage revealed their demented "final solution" to the "problem" of the Jews.
Will Lyman and Anne Gottlieb in a scene from THE WRESTLING PATIENT, running March 27 thru April 11 at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts. Photo: Stratton McCrady. Tix/Info: 617-933-8600
Etty's story lends itself to dramatization. As WWII engulfs her native Amsterdam, Etty is confronted with a remarkable choice: to hold onto a kind of integrity, or to save her own life. With the help of a charismatic teacher, she enters into the emerging science of psychology and wrestles to answer the demons of her time by looking within herself. The Wrestling Patient brings to light Etty’s secret history of musical evenings, therapeutic wrestling matches, black-market strawberries, and midnight prayers. Her story is one of an amazing transformation during one of the darkest hours in history. You can learn more about The Wrestling Patient at www.wrestlingpatient.org.

The presentation has been gestating for some time. Three talented theatre artists came together to
create this remarkable tale. It was Anne Gottlieb who first secured the rights to tell Etty’s story, and who,
in 2005 brought on playwright Kirk Lynn. Lynn is the founder and co-artistic director of the Rude Mechanicals theater collective in Austin, TX, where he has had 16 of his plays produced. Mr. Lynn has also had success in New York with productions of his plays Lipstick Traces and Major Bang. In 2006, director Katie Pearl joined the project, which received a staged reading last March sponsored by SpeakEasy Stage.
Anne Gottlieb takes a moment out from rehearsing THE WRESTLING PATIENT, a new play inspired by the life and writings of Dutch Jewish author Etty Hillesum. Photo: Stratton McCrady
The Wrestling Patient was selected as a finalist in the Outstanding New American Play competition administered by Arena Stage and sponsored by the NEA. The title role is played by Anne Gottlieb and also features Daniel Berger-Jones, Joel Colodner, Tom Gottlieb, Marya Lowry, Will Lyman and Will McGarrahan. Co-creator Katie Pearl directs.
Etty's Writings Dramatized.
The Wrestling Patient will be performed in the Nancy and Edward Roberts Studio Theatre in the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street in Boston’s South End. Further information and tickets can be had by calling 617-933-8600 or visit www.wrestlingpatient.org.

Matthew Goade in, Chad Allen out of Arena's "Looped"

Jay Goede replaces Chad Allen in Looped.
Sad news today from Arena Stage. As playwright Matthew Lombardo continues to develop the upcoming production of Looped starring four-time Emmy Award-winning Valerie Harper (Rhoda on The Mary Tyler Moore Show) as Tallulah Bankhead, another casting change has taken place. Jay Goede, known for his work on Broadway in Angels in America, A Year with Frog and Toad and Sex and Longing, as well here in the Berkshires at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, will now play opposite Harper in the pre-Broadway staging, directed by Rob Ruggiero at Arena Stage at the Lincoln Theatre May 29 through June 28, 2009.

“As the play has evolved, I found it necessary to reconstruct the character of Danny Miller,” Lombardo remarks. “And although the previously announced Chad Allen is a fine talent, the demands of the play now require a different actor in the role. And I am extremely excited to have the remarkably gifted Broadway veteran Jay Goede joining our production.”

"Next to Normal" Arriving on Broadway - We Have Earlybird Discounts

Next to Normal. Photo: Joan Marcus
Do we have a deal on the hot new musical Next to Normal for you! More on that later, but first you need to know why you should go. This contemporary musical explores how one suburban household copes with crisis. Through drama and music, it shows the length parents will go to in order to preserve the illusion of "normalcy." Of course, under the veneer of suburban conformity often lie unpleasant truths. Without them there would be no theatre, no soap operas, only boredom.

Next to Normal is the second of two productions that have made it from Molly Smith's Arena Stage to the Big Apple this year. 33 Variations starring Jane Fonda has already opened , while Next to Normal doesn't begin previews until March 27, and the show opens officially April 15.

Arena Stage’s production of Next to Normal went through four weeks of rehearsals and three weeks of previews before opening on December 10, 2008. For Arena’s production, five new songs were written and two new actors joined the ensemble: J. Robert Spencer as Dan and Louis Hobson as Dr. Madden/Dr. Fine.
Aaron Tveit, J. Robert Spencer, Alice Ripley, Jennifer Damiano, Adam Chanler-Berat and Louis Hobson. Photo: Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.

Producer David Stone states, “Anyone who has been involved with the creation of an original musical knows that much of the work happens in the rewriting. From the day after Next to Normal opened Off-Broadway through opening night at Arena Stage, Tom Kitt, Brian Yorkey and Michael Greif were committed to improving and rewriting this show with a level of dedication and focus I have seldom seen from a creative team.”

Arts America ran a photo report on Next to Normal earlier this year during its run in Washington, D.C. The news of its transfer to Braodway has been welcomed, the show deserves wider attention. One of the changes made is that the venue has changed from the Longacre to the Booth Theatre which is smack in the middle of all the action, on 45th Street, right at the corner of Shubert Alley.
Alice Ripley. Photo: Joan Marcus
The D.C. cast is superb and continues intact, from the dynamic Alice Ripley to the heart-throb Aaron Tveit whose Berkshire appearances at Barrington Stage were notable for the crowds of admirers who greeted him after each performance of Calvin Berger in William Finn's Musical Workshop. Perhaps the time is drawing near for one of our in-depth interviews with this rapidly rising young actor, as well as the incredible Alice Ripley who continues to stir audiences to their feet.
Aaron Tveit is on the rise.
In his review of the Arena Stage production, Peter Marks of The Washington Post, wrote, "Next to Normal is a moving, blisteringly honest, and inordinately powerful new musical, sung with a wallop by a six-member cast that includes the astonishing Alice Ripley, and dexterously directed by Michael Greif. Writers Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey have stocked the musical with beautiful songs that get to the heart of the story- and simply get to the heart."

The discount deal we found for tickets to Next to Normal is simplicity itself: regularly $110-115 tickets in the orchestra and front mezzanine are $60.00 each if you use the code NNYT0316 and is good for all performances through May 10, 2009. Performances are Tuesdays at 7:00, Wednesday through Saturdays at 8:00 and SUnday at 7:30. The Matinees are Saturday at 2:00 and Sunday at 3:00.

You can call 212-947-8844 to order (remember to use the code) or go to BroadwayOffers.com and use the same code, NNYT0316. Offer expires May 10, but may be withdrawn at any time. Telephone and internet sales are subject to the usual service fees.

Louis Hobson, Adam Chanler-Berat, Jennifer Damiano,
J. Robert Spencer, Alice Ripley and Aaron Tveit gather for the original cast recording
Photo by Bruce Glikas

The original cast album is in the works. The cast has just finished recording it for Ghostlight Records. Exact date for the release of the Original Broadway Cast recording is not yet known.
Aaron Tveit flashes his charming smile moments before singing as Gabe, son of Diana and Dan.
Photo by Bruce Glikas

Finally, here is a full ten minute preview of the show I found on YouTube. You can also find some fascinating clips of Alice Ripley and Aaron Tveit in other shows, performances and club engagements.

It's Hats Off to a Brand New Crowns at Arena Stage

The completely restaged, redesigned hit musical Crowns features Zurin Villanueva (center), a local Howard student, in her professional debut at the Lincoln Theatre March 27-April 26. Photo by Scott Suchman.

Crowns is back in town, and with it the incarnation of a new star - Howard University student Zurin Villanueva who was discovered in Arena’s January “Finding Yolanda” one-day casting search. This production marks her debut professional performance.

"Crowns is a pageant, in the great African-American tradition of pageants,” remarked Director and Choreographer Kenneth Lee Roberson. “This show teaches audiences about the values, style and grace of the African-American church community. Crowns demonstrates the handing down of culture from one generation to the next and celebrates the refuge, equality and healing that occurs in this place of spirituality.”

With musical direction by Grammy nominee e’Marcus Harper, this soulful musical will be bigger than ever in the Lincoln Theatre. In addition to Villanueva, Arena favorites Marva Hicks (The Women of Brewster Place) and E. Faye Butler (Dinah Was, Ain’t Misbehavin’) are joined by NaTasha Yvette Williams (Broadway’s The Color Purple), as well as Mary Millben, Kara Tameika Watkins and Phillip Boykin.

"The beauty of Crowns is in the stories and the relationship between the women,” notes Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith. “It's a show about community, and it beautifully articulates the ties that bind us all. We are particularly excited to stage this show at the Lincoln Theatre, the historical home of so many great African-American performers like Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday.”
Another view of the Hat Queens.

Written by Regina Taylor and adapted from the acclaimed book by photographer Michael Cunningham and journalist Craig Marberry, Crowns takes an intimate look at six women whose storied lives are woven into the hats that adorn their heads. This gospel-infused musical presents an oral history of the African-American women affectionately known as “hat queens,” as seen through the eyes of Yolanda, a Brooklyn teenager sent to live with her South Carolinian grandmother. Crowns features soulful, joyful music that celebrates family and faith.

This season’s production marks the fourth (and likely most spectacular) staging of Crowns at Arena. The musical made its Arena debut during the 2003/04 season–winning four Helen Hayes Awards, including Best Resident Musical–and returned for a limited engagement that summer. Due to popular demand, Arena produced it again in the summer of 2005.

Tickets may be purchased online, by phone at (202) 488-3300 or at the Arena Stage Sales Office at 1800 S. Bell Street, Arlington, VA 22202. A limited number of $10 tickets for patrons ages 30 and under go on sale beginning each Monday for performances that week. (All patrons must present valid ID.) Check out HOTTIX, where a limited number of half-price, day-of-performance tickets, are available 90 to 30 minutes before curtain of every performance.

(L-R)  E. Faye Butler as Mother Shaw, Zurin Villanueva as Yolanda, Marva Hicks as Velma in Crowns at Arena Stage at the Lincoln Theatre, March 27 — April 26, 2009. Photo Scott Suchman.

In addition, there are three special nights during the run:

The Salon – Monday, March 30, 2009 at 7:00 p.m.
In the spirit of artistic and literary salons of the past, The Salon features artistic leaders from Arena Stage in a series of lively, in-depth conversations with the playwrights, actors, directors, designers, dramaturgs and audiences that make Arena Stage unique. Reservations must be made through the Arena Stage Sales Office at (202) 488-3300.

Southwest Night – Friday, April 3, 2009 at 8:00 p.m.
An invitation is extended to our Southwest D.C. neighbors to buy $20 tickets, plus applicable fees, for one designated Friday evening performance of each production. Proof of Southwest D.C. residency or employment for each audience member of each party must be presented at the time of purchase. Tickets are limited to four per person and are based on availability. To purchase tickets, call (202) 488-3300 or stop by the Arena Stage Sales Office.

Out at Arena – Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.
For gay and lesbian audiences on selected Wednesday evenings, a post-show discussion with cast members and a reception following the performance are offered. This could be quite interesting as most churches that serve African Americans are notoriously homophobic and in denial about the number of gay people of color. Indeed, young black men who are gay - and find little support in the community - have alarming rates of suicide. Check with the Arena Stage Sales Office at (202) 488-3300 for further details.

Mureen McGovern premieres A Long and Winding Road at D.C.'s Arena Stage

Maureen McGovern

Cabaret singers are extraordinary artists who bring a depth of interpretation and emotion to love songs, Broadway show tunes and "personal" songs, those intimate tunes that break our heart or bring us to the edge of tears. Maureen McGovern is among that rarified group of artists, though her choice of music is unabashedly American. Washington's Arena Stage has collaborated with Boston's Huntington Theatre Company on this production, the latter having recently sponsored a workshop of this show last month. This evening promises to be something quite original - an evening with the other American songbook.

A Long and Winding Road is an entertaining and introspective look at the songs that inspired Maureen McGovern before her Academy Award-winning hit song “The Morning After.” A nostalgic tribute to Maureen’s roots as a folk singer, this theatrically infused concert celebrates her love affair with the early works of James Taylor, Jimmy Webb, Carole King, Bob Dylan, Randy Newman and other groundbreaking singer-songwriters from her youth. The repertoire includes an eclectic selection of iconoclastic singer-songwriter material including "The Circle Game," "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" "The Moon's a Harsh Mistress," "Imagine," "Fire and Rain" and many others.

Co-conceived and written by McGovern and director Philip Himberg, with musical direction by Jeffrey D. Harris and production design by Clifton Taylor, A Long and Winding Road runs March 27–April 12, 2009 at Arena Stage in Crystal City.

“At this time in my life, looking back, what interested me most were those introspective singer/songwriters who influenced my musical coming of age on the way to ‘The Morning After,’” says McGovern. “I started out as a folk singer in the late ‘60s, so it was an emotional journey for me to go back and explore this particular section of my musical influences. The concert takes us on a vivid journey back to a time when everything was possible and people set out to change the world."

Arena's Artistic Director Molly Smith observes, “Maureen McGovern has the kind of voice you never forget. In this intimate show, she shares her personal perspective on her years growing up and into her talent. These songs and stories take us back to a time many will remember dearly, and it’s a true pleasure to share an evening with her.”

Tickets may be purchased online, by phone at (202) 488-3300 or at the Arena Stage Sales Office at 1800 S. Bell Street, Arlington, VA 22202.

Chad Allen's "On the Other Hand, Death" a breakthrough film

The Chad Allen Interview

Actor Chad Allen's career has been on the ascent recently, and we intruded into some of his rare time off to catch up with his activities. Having just arrived home in California after months away, he was in great spirits, playing with his dog and finally getting to enjoy his new house.

"It is so wonderful to be home again, I can't tell you how much I missed my partner and being able to just fix a snack." Chad, who is openly gay, is in the fourth year of a very happy relationship, and excused himself for a moment to see if his mate (who had received a notice earlier) would actually have to serve on a jury. "Sorry but I was worried. I have a lot of catching up to do. Now that I'm back I don't want to have to share him with twelve strangers," he joked.

Chad Allen hanging out at home.

Chad and his partner, also an actor, live basic, uncomplicated lives, and for all the attention he gets, he far prefers his bicycle and open air to a limousine and the red carpet. Their idea of fun is a hike in the Santa Monica Mountains. "There are some amazing trails up there, and my dog - partly Korean Jindo and partly Akita - just loves it. We both get to release a huge amount of pent up energy."

Of course it is amazing that he has any energy left. Chad is a triple threat actor - meaning he does acting in all its forms - stage, film and tv. On the Other Hand Death, the latest in his series of Donald Strachey Mystery films is due out on DVD February 24. It is the third in a six-part series he is committed to. Allen plays a gay private investigator and the movie co-stars screen legend Margot Kidder (Superman). Directed by Emmy® award nominated Ron Oliver (“Degrassi: The Next Generation,” “Queer as Folk”) On the Other Hand, Death delves into gay hate crimes and the difficulties faced by the LGBT community. So far, four episodes have been filmed in Vancouver, with two more still due. The fourth installment in the franchise is titled Ice Blues is scheduled for release in the fall and co-stars Sherry Miller who was also in Queer as Folk.

Chad Allen stars as detective Donald Stachey in "On the Other Hand Death"

Asked to give a plot synopsis, he said: "It begins with Dorothy (Kidder) and Edith (Gabrielle Rose) sleeping in each other’s arms on the second floor of their long-time farmhouse. Downstairs, a shadowy figure breaks through the glass door. When Edith goes to investigate the noise, she discovers graffiti sprawled across the walls. The hateful message reads “DYKES GO HOME.”

As with all the Strachey films, On the Other Hand, Death premiered on gay cable network here! TV July 25, 2008.

I mentioned that the first two Strachey films seemed more made for tv than his latest, that his character of Donald seems to have evolved and deepened. "When we first started the series, we had a limited amount of time to shoot, and not a lot of time for development. So I am glad you think that my character is becoming more complex." I noted that he has an on-screen lover, too. "I love the relationship between the character Tim played by Sebastian Spence and myself in the series. That too has deepened as the series has matured." The film also has a film noir style, with some shaken, not stirred, James Bond references. It is fun to see the mini-tributes to adventure films scattered throughout the story.

Dorothy (Margot Kidder) and Edith (Gabrielle Rose) are victims of hate crimes in "On the Other Hand Death"

One of the delightful pairings in the film is Strachey's sidekick, Kenny Kwon - played hilariously by Nelson Wong - who finally gets a chance to do some real detective footwork. "You know, that's funny, because his part was deliberately added in to the third film since his role worked so well the last time." Will we see more of him in the future?" I wondered. "Well, episodes five and six have not yet been written, so who knows. I'd love to see him as a recurring character." Me too. The two played off each other very nicely.

Det. Donald Strachey (Chad Allen) gets rough with Larry (Shawn Roberts) in "A Shock to the System"

We talked about the setting for the film, Albany, New York, and whether there had been any discussion about shooting the series there rather than simply using some static "establishing shots" as fill-in. "I would love to see it filmed on location," he enthused, "and we came close once, when the Canadian-US dollar ratio was more favorable." I suggested that with the Berkshires so close, he would be within striking distance of some great hiking and scenery, plus four resident professional theatre companies.

Chad Allen seen with Jeremy Jordan (r) in The Little Dog Laughed at TheatreWorks in Hartford, CT. Photo by Lanny Nagler Photography

"The closest I have ever gotten is TheatreWorks in Hartford where I was performing The Little Dog Laughed early last year. But to tell the truth, I love going to Vancouver, too."

Chad Allen's current project is the stage play about Tallulah Bankhead, "Looped" which stars Valerie Harper.

The conversation turned to his current stage work in the play Looped in which he co-stars with Valerie Harper as the legendary Tallulah Bankhead. It kept him in Palm Beach during early 2009, and will continue in Washington, DC at Arena Stage in May and June. Arena Stage currently has two of its productions going to Broadway (Next to Normal and 33 variations) , and there is talk of Looped heading to Broadway as well. Chad and I hope to talk about that in a few months when we meet up in DC.

Berkshire note: Looped is directed by Rob Ruggiero (Make Me a Song: The Music of William Finn and The Dog Who Talked at TheatreWorks).  Rob is well known here in the Berkshires having worked frequently with Julie Boyd's Barrington Stage Company. Chad clued me in: "I just love working with Rob, he is just a fantastic director. More than that, he's a wonderful person, one who I have come to appreciate as an artist and a friend." Ruggiero often directs at TheatreWorks in Hartford, and we are thinking of adding that innovative company to our regular beat for Berkshire Fine Arts. Ruggiero also has a revival of the musical Camelot in the works, slated for late summer at The Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut.

Chad Allen is a triple threat performer.

Chad Allen has had several careers already, and seems about to make yet another breakthrough. His earliest work on television was when he was 11 on Webster, Our House, My Two Dads and St. Elsewhere. (1985-1990) He stopped acting and went to a real high school, facing plenty of slings and arrows along the way, and surviving. It was perhaps because of this break that he never became consigned to that dreaded lot in life of being a teen idol. His Tiger Beat exposure was all when he was a pre-pubescent star.

Returning to tv, he became well known on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman, which kept him busy for six seasons from 1993-97.

In 2001 he appeared in Corpus Christi, Terrence McCNally's story of a gay Texas boy considered by many critics to be a stand-in for Jesus. Chad produced and starred in the Los Angeles premiere of this controversial show.

And so, in the October 9, 2001 issue of The Advocate, Chad came out as a gay man. He also acknowledged past problems with drugs and alcohol.  One of the most impressive things about him is that he has dealt with each issue simply and honestly. This quality also comes through in his acting, there is a Nicholson quality to it. His acting is so honest that his role of Donald Strachey does not come through as an actor's creation, but simply as another extension of an already diverse and interesting career. Chad is Donald and Donald is Chad. The role and the actor have melded into one organic whole. Only the best actors can do that.

Chad Allen in Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman

Since that announcement,  his personal development has accelerated,  his acting career blossomed, and his home life greatly enriched with a loving relationship. He is not only known for being out and gay, but also for being Christian and gay. Indeed, he has taken principled stands as part of Soulforce, taking part in a demonstration outside the Focus on the Family headquarters in Colorado Springs. One of his most deeply held hopes is a reconciliation between Christians and gays, that the two are not mutually exclusive. To this end, he produced and starred in another film, Save Me, about the ex-gay movement which I wrote about last month. It is a tough film for the two polarized sides of the God-Gay continuum to see, but it attempts to build a bridge of understanding between the two camps. As such, it is a breakthrough film.

Clearly, Chad Allen is no simple actor, but a complicated guy just trying to find and keep his voice, Hollywood machinery be damned. Early in his career some well meaning studio types tried to remake him: "There was a time when it was actually said to me, “You know, we can get you a girlfriend. We can make that happen.” But that's not in me. I can't live a lie."

I commented that he seemed to have survived the transition from the closet to a fully out actor. "It's no big deal," he said, "you just keep doing the same things you always did, only they pay you less for it."

Chad Allen on "Save Me" DVD and in Person in "Looped"

The versatile Chad has been acting since he was five.

Chad Allen's film "Save Me" was released on DVD yesterday, while Washington, DC's Arena Theatre has confirmed that he will co-star with Valerie Harper in Looped. On its way to Broadway, Looped is the story of Tallulah Bankhead, the original celebrity bad girl, which begins as she enters a studio to re-record (or "loop") one line of dialogue for her final film. What ensues is a showdown between an uptight sound editor and the outrageous legend.

Valerie Harper and Chad Allen in Looped.

Four time Emmy winner Valerie Harper plays Talllulah, to Chad Allen's soundman in Matthew Lombardo's riveting new play. It is slated for May 29 through June 28, 2009 at Arena Stage's Lincoln Theatre. We will write more about this production closer to the opening.

Save Me comes to DVD at last.

Meanwhile, Allen's "Save Me" which had its premiere at Sundance in 2007 has finally made it to DVD. Save Me is a deft exploration of the controversial ex-gay movement. The story follows Mark (Chad Allen), a drug-addicted young man who overdoses and finds himself at the mercy of his disapproving family.

Their solution to Mark's problems is to check him into a Christian run ministry overseen by Gayle (Judith Light), who believes she can help cure young men of their 'gay affliction' through spiritual guidance. At first, Mark resists the efforts of Gayle and her husband Ted (Stephen Lang), but soon finds solace and brotherhood with several of the members, including Scott (Robert Gant), who is battling family demons of his own.

Chad Allen and Robert Gant in Save Me.

When Mark and Scott begin to find their friendship developing into an unexpected romance, both are forced to confront the new attitudes they're beginning to accept, and Gayle finds the values she holds as an absolute truth to be threatened.

Directed by Robert Cary, from a screenplay by Robert Desiderio, Save Me is a love story that offers a complex and timely examination of one of the most polarizing religious and sexual debates in America, while intricately showing the way love (for oneself, most importantly) can heal in all its various forms.

I just checked, and it is now available at Netflix.

Next to Normal at Arena Stage. Washington, D.C.

(top)  Aaron Tveit as Gabe, (second row - behind the scrim - L-R) Alice Ripley as Diana, Louis Hobson as Dr. Madden, (front row, L-R) J. Robert Spencer as Dan, Jennifer Damiano as Natalie and Adam Chanler-Berat as Henry. Photo by Joan Marcus

Around the beltway, even the pols are talking about the big musical hit at Arena Stage in Washington, DC, but there are only two more weeks in which to see it. Pre-inauguration visitors are gobbling the tickets up, so get your ducats asap. The show, if you haven't heard by now, is Next to Normal which arrived at Arena Stage shortly after its premiere production at Second Stage Theatre in New York City.

“This is a musical that gets under your skin,” comments Arena's Artistic Director Molly Smith.

Next to Normal is a contemporary musical that explores how one suburban household copes with crisis. With provocative lyrics and an electrifying score of more than 30 original songs, Next to Normal shows how far two parents will go to keep themselves sane and their family’s world intact.

(L-R) Aaron Tveit as Gabe, Alice Ripley as Diana and J. Robert Spencer as Dan at Arena Stage in Crystal City through January 18, 2009. Photo by Joan Marcus

The music is by Tom Kitt, book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and direction by two-time Tony nominee Michael Greif (Broadway’s Rent, Grey Gardens), The cast includes Alice Ripley (Side Show), Aaron Tveit (Wicked, Hairspray), Adam Chanler-Berat and Jennifer Damiano (Spring Awakening) reprise their roles from the Second Stage production and are joined by J. Robert Spencer (Jersey Boys) and Louis Hobson.

Aaron Tveit (R) will be familiar to Berkshire audiences who saw him at Barrington Stage as Matt in Calvin Berger, seen here with David Perlman (L) as Calvin. Kevin Sprague Photo.

For those who haven't been to DC in a while, the company is currently rebuilding its 47-year-old Southwest DC theater campus which includes the Fichandler Stage and the Kreeger Theatre. Its reopening is slated for the 2010/2011 season. It currently operates out of Arena Stage in Crystal City and the historic Lincoln Theatre.

Visit their website for excerpts of Next to Normal and news of their next production, Irving Berlin's I Love A Piano, to run January 29 to February 15 at the Lincoln Theatre.

Aaron Tveit as Gabe, J. Robert Spencer as Dan, Alice Ripley as Diana, Jennifer Damiano as Natalie, Adam Chanler-Berat as Henry and Louis Hobson as Dr. Madden at Arena Stage in Crystal City through January 18, 2009. Photo by Joan Marcus. Photo by Joan Marcus.

Innovation is not only on the stage

Arena Stage is well known for its theatrical creativity, but this company goes the extra step. Its Board and administration have undertaken some pretty remarkable initiatives.

For example, when the investment banks failed and Washington was consumed with the economic rescue, Arena held a "Bail Out" ticket sale. Knowing that uncertain economic times creates uncertain ticket sales, they offered a one-day only "bail out" ticket sale. During these 24 hours, all tickets were $25 each for the first week of performances to all remaining seven shows at Arena Stage. This represented a savings of up to 60% off regular ticket prices for more than 25,000 tickets. According to Laura Bloom, Arena's media relations associate, the total number of tickets sold during this sale was 6,661 for an income of nearly $200,000. Pretty incredible, folks.

(L-R) J. Robert Spencer as Dan and Alice Ripley as Diana in Next to Normal at Arena Stage in Crystal City through January 18, 2009. Photo by Joan Marcus

The other program I find impressive is called "Send a young person to the theater" and it is both an educational and audience development initiative. These programs are largely sponsored by contributions both from individuals and grant givers. Arena Stage gives thousands of free and heavily discounted tickets to local students, forfeiting over $100,000 of revenue in the process, but insuring the growth of future audiences for theatre. Thank you!