DANIEL JOHN KELLEY

So…the latest episode of Monster Literature, “Robin Hood: Prince of…MONSTERS!” closed this past weekend, and it went fantastic-goric. It was a huge step for whole the gang- in terms of production, performance and especially audience! With most of our 8 shows sold out over the 2 weekends, nearly 400 Park Slope kids and parents got a chance to see this episode of Monster Literature, and from all accounts, had a great time doing so.

Additionally, we got some fantastic press- including rave reviews from Nytheatre.com and Show Business Weekly.

Below are some pictures from the production, for those of you who didn’t quite make it out but are curious what this thing is all about:

The full cast!

The Monsters!

The heroes!

The next Monster Literature show is coming in April- and the story we’ll be monsterizing will be announced tre tre soon! Watch this space to find out…

Tonight is the premiere of Verdi’s Attila at the Metropolitan opera, conducted by Riccardo Muti, with costumes by Prada. And this is not just the premiere this season, mind you. This is the first time this work has ever been heard at the Met. EVER. Since it was written. In 1846!

I will not be there tonight, but before the reviews come in- I would like to take a moment to clarify something I feel about Verdi’s Attila, as an opera, by itself:

It is very awesome.

Now it is not awesome like Rigoletto or La Traviata or Otello are awesome (which they are). Those are “Ah, yes, what these are beautiful works of mature and masterful artist that explores the depths of human emotion” awesome.

Attila falls into the same category of awesome as well-put together action movies and well-paced video games. It is loud, makes little demand on you emotionally, and is full of people blowing stuff up. Only, as this is the world of opera, the weapon of choice is THE HUMAN VOICE.

Okay, now for some choice examples of why this is so:

- In the very first scene, the lead soprano- Odabella- impresses Attila with her bravery and he’s all “You are  excellent, and despite the fact that I have conquered your people, I will give you a present. What do you want?”

And what does she ask for? A letter? A glass harp? Tuberculosis?

NO! She wants a sword! A big ass sword! To avenge her father! And then she’s going to sing about it. AWESOME.

- The lower male voices triumph! For once! I mean, not in terms of the plot (that never happens), but musically- most definitely! Throughout Attila there is an abundance of rumbling lower voices that stand, in some armor, and are excellent. Attila is Verdi’s only opera with a bass in the title role, and it also features an excellent role for a Baritone. It also has some of the most uninteresting music for a tenor in the Verdi canon (not even Carlo Bergonzi could make it awesome), and this contrast highlights how awesome the lower male in this opera are. AWESOME.

- In addition to a central bass as Attila, it also features ANOTHER bass in a small role as an ominous spectral vision of THE POPE. Got it? There is a big basso-profundo face off scene in this opera between Attila the Hun and THE POPE. What else is needed? Nothing. AWESOME.

- Finally, it features perhaps the most awesome aria that Verdi wrote for a Baritone. I do not mean “good” or “musically interesting”- I simply mean “awesome”. To behold the majesty that is “E gettata la mia sorte”- I present you with a video, and the excellent text. Ahem:

EZIO:

My lot is cast, and I am ready to fight every war!

If I fall, it will be as a hero, and my name will live on!

I will not see my beloved land fall into ruin and decay!

All Italy will mourn the last of the Romans!

The aria begins at 5:28. Enjoy.

As reported yesterday on Vanishing New York, the Village Paper Store- IMHO the best place to buy ridiculous old-school comedy props in NYC- has burnt down.

Let me just say I loved this store. Back when I was doing sketch comedy,  it was the first place I’d turn whenever I needed a ludicrous and hilarious object. Their staff was made up mostly of gruff men with a thorough knowledge of exactly the kind of ridiculous comedic object that you wanted.

The thing that made this store so special was that it was not your typical Halloween costume shop, or novelty store. It looked and felt exactly like your typical corner bodega where you get a sandwich or run to get milk in the middle of the night.

Except instead of milk and sandwiches, they had novelties. Glorious, glorious novelties.

About 2 years ago, I remember going in their and asking (certain in the knowledge that it was a ludicrous question and I would certainly be rebuffed) “Do you have…um…something like an inflatable sledgehammer?” The two men turned to each other, and one man nodded and went silently down one aisle of the store and retrieved a square green package- my very own plastic, inflatable sledgehammer. I knew this was a place I had to return to.

About 6 months later, I went in and asked (certain that they’d have it this time) “Do you have something like a stuffed giraffe?” This time the men turned to each other, spoke briefly and turned back to me. “No.” they said. “But we do have a giraffe mask. Do you want a giraffe mask? We have two sizes.” Obviously, I wanted a giraffe mask. Both sizes.

The last time I went in there, it was about a year ago. I went in to buy a Pinata for a party my girlfriend was throwing. The thing was, we didn’t really want a donkey Pinata. I forget exactly why we didn’t, but the objective was most definitely to buy a non-donkey Pinata. And so I went in to the Village Paper Store, and spent a little time looking.

And what did I find?
Nothing.
It didn’t seem as though they had a single pinata!

I started to panic- the party was coming up soon- where else would I get a pinata on such short notice? This had been my place to go to get such things!

And so I turned to the men at the desk, in my wild frenzy, and I said, “Do you guys have pinatas?”
And the men at the counter looked at each other. And one looked to me, and said “Come with  me.” He grabbed a long pole, proceeded down the first aisle to the end, and pointed up.

Hanging from the ceiling of the Village Paper Store was a veritable International Summit of Pinatas. Pinatas of all stripes and nations! Dragons and Bears and Donkeys, of course! And then, from afar, I saw it. The most perfect Pinata for our party.

A butterfly Pinata. The Village Paper store had done it again.

The donkey, the beast of burden, who really wants to hit that? Have they not suffered enough?

But the god damn cocky Butterfly, with its flying free and its being beautiful and its not doing a god damn thing for anyone? Oh man, you just want to fill that SOB up with candy and hit it with a bat!

OR AN INFLATABLE SLEDGEHAMMER. ALSO AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE!

My heart goes out to the family that owns and runs the Village Paper Store. It provided hours of joy for myself- and from what I’ve been reading- many, many others. My best wishes to them to recover from this.

This weekend, the next installment of “Monster Literature” opens- “Robin Hood: Prince of…MONSTERS!” and I have to say I’m very excited for this show. I was trying to think of clever ways to describe the show- I keep saying it’s like Wishbone meets the Terminator- or I talk about how it’s like an 80s cartoon for the stage, from a time when we were all young and full of dreams and enjoyed watching bad animation. But that didn’t feel quite adequate.

A big part of why I write the things I do comes out of a desire to celebrate the things that I love. Things that have and do move me, and that I want to share with people. What I did for this show was take the things that I love: 80s action cartoons, great classic works of literature, tremendous schtick and through them, wrote about what I earnestly feel like it means to be a good person in the world.

Basically, it’s a little something like this:

Hamlet: Monster of Denmark

V.O: Oh no! The Evil Wizard Zorlan Morlan has transformed Shakespeare’s famous character Hamlet into a MONSTER! And just in time for his most famous speech!

(Monster Hamlet Enters)

MONSTER HAMLET: To be or Not to be! Dat be the questionz!

(A Magic portal appears. Benjy Bleeglehorn, the chosen one and Bravo Kirkwood, the rebel hero leap through it, and into the scene.)

BRAVO: To be, Monster Hamlet! That…is the answer!

MONSTER HAMLET: Benjy and Bravo!

BRAVO & BENJY: That’s us!

MONSTER HAMLET: But…but…if me choose not to be, me get rid of all da problems of me life! Like Monster Bullies! And me parent’s MONSTER DIVORCE!

BENJY: Maybe. But if you choose not to be…you get NO ICE CREAM!

MONSTER HAMLET: NO ICE CREAM!

BRAVO: EVER!

MONSTER HAMLET: NOOOO!

BENJY: That’s right. Part of living means taking the good with the bad. And sure, sometimes it’ll be rough. But more times than not, you’ll find life is full of happy surprises.

MONSTER HAMLET: Like Ice Cream?

(Bravo reach his coat and takes three pints of ice cream and three spoons.)

BRAVO: LIKE ICE CREAM! OH YEAH!

(Bravo, Benjy and Monster Hamlet sit down on the ground and eat ice cream)

MONSTER HAMLET: Me see now! Me see dere be no absolutes in dis life! NOPE NOPE NOPE! Only ups and downs! From now on, me take the good with da bad! Tankz Benjy and Bravo!

BENJY: You’re welcome, Monster Hamlet!

(FIN)

Yes, this is ridiculous. And yes, this particular play/series of plays is mostly for kids.

But I love doing it.

And I’d love to share it with you.

And if you can’t make it, that’s okay too. I’m going to continue to do this- for all ages- for a very long time.

But if can make it, come on! We’re only getting started!

Before the turn of 2010, myself and fellow playwright Maya Macdonald assembled a rag tag group of playwrights to meet weekly and share and talk about the kind of work we’re all doing. We’re currently one month in, and going strong!

One of the many things I’m enjoying (besides the fact that everyone is hilarious) is the different kinds of work folks are bringing in. For instance, this past week:

1. Maya brought in a part of her play about young girls in NYC trying to find a Sex and the City kind of life, but only finding heartbreak, anguish and terrible friends.

2. My buddy Ross Wade brought in a children’s play he’s writing for a class he’s teaching. The play is called Butterflies Forever (best title ever, yes?) and is about a pirate ship full of little girls learning about the true meaning of the friendship. Plus there’s a zombie ninja. Can’t go wrong there.

3. My new favorite person Meghan Deans brought in a selection from her new play about fan fiction, and we all leaped headlong into a brand new world (and vocabulary). Meghan is doing some awesome theatrical things with these characters, and the realities they create in their head versus the realities they are faced with in life, and I’m excited to see where this goes.

4. And little old me brought in the climactic end of Act I scene in my play Furniture Living- where the jilted wife confronts the mistress- the dryer, Spin Drying Marvel Master Model 866, and all hell/lint breaks loose.

I’m very excited to keep meeting with this super-talented bunch of theatre-making-folk, and hoping there’s some sort of showcase for us all on the horizon. But for now- we will keep meeting and bring in random things we made up in our minds. Onwards!

My review of the Gotham Chamber Opera’s “Il Mondo Della Luna” is up on nytheatre.com.

You can read it here.

If you can swing a ticket, I highly recommend it. Opera in the planetarium! Who could ask for anything more?

Following the success of the previous installment, the Brooklyn Lyceum and Mainspring Collective have kindly asked me to pen a second installment of my children’s theatre series Monster Literature. Huzzah!

Episode 2 is called Robin Hood: Prince of…MONSTERS!, and a draft of it is already finished and ready to be worked upon.

Here’ s a little description of the show:

There’s something funny happening in Sherwood Forest. The evil Zorlan Morlan has used his magic to turn Robin Hood into a big old scaredy cat, and transform his band of Merry Men into a band of Merry…MONSTERS! It’s up to 12-year- old Benjy Bleeglehorn, and her dashing sidekick Bravo, to enter the story and turn Robin Hood back into his old self again- by teaching him what it means to be a hero!

As a small boy Robin Hood was neck and neck with King Arthur as the legendary English hero that I wanted to be when I grew up, so being able to put together a show about Robin is real treat, and gives me some special warm tingly feelings.

I’ll be posting more about this show, as well as some of the other stuff I’m working as I strive to update this site more regularly in the new year.

For the meantime, you can get your tickets hereabouts.

Earlier this month, my good friend Annie Levy’s directing class at PACE University did a one-act festival (See what I did there with the title? See that? Eh? Ehhhh).

Two one-acts of mine were featured as part of it: Dizzy Dizzy Dingo Breath’s Bad Day and Gibbins. Having seen these performed before, and having been a part of the rehearsal process during those productions, it was fun to go in and see these pieces completely fresh. And they did a great job too! Congrats to directors Alionka Polanco and Kristen Vaphides, and their awesome casts.

Below are some pictures from Gibbins (Photos by Kristen Vaphides):

A thing I kind of sentimentally nerded out about was the fact that the production of Gibbins had in it an epic angel statue- which is awesome, first of all. Second of all I found out this epic angel statue was recycled from the theatre department’s recent production of Tennessee Williams’ Summer and Smoke. This happens to be the first play I was ever a part of in High School (I played the awkward suitor Roger Doremus), which started me on the path towards the career I’ve chosen. So in addition to looking bad ass, the angel statue made me think about where I started, how far I’ve come, and how much farther I have (and want to) go.

So…my children’s play “Twas the Night Before…Monsters!”- the first part of my serialized short play series for kids “Monster Literature”- is going up next weekend at the Brooklyn Lyceum. And it’s going to be friggin awesome.

The series is all about how this evil wizard attempts to destroy the spirit of humanity by sending his army of monsters into various works of literature, and how a little girl and her big doofy sidekick battle the odds to save literature (and humanity) from destruction.

Think Wishbone meets He-Man live on stage. Yup. It’s basically everything I loved as a child into one epic educational 30 minute adventure.

To get you further enticed, we have a theme song! It’s true. My composer collaborator Nick Moore and I created the theme song for the series, and it turned out great. Take a listen:

And then, go buy your tickets here.

My first blog entry on the massively awesome opera blog Parterre Box has posted.

It’s a review of a DVD of Walter Felsenstein’s film of Verdi’s Otello.

You can read it here.

Here’s hoping I get to do more in the future…