House of Dreams

Little Nemo & the Princess.

Cleveland theater community (or at least the cool kids) are all bug-a-boo about this year's PANDEMONIUM! Actors, directors, playwrights, dancers, designers, devised-work-mediators all conspire for a feverish couple of weeks to bring together new works, works-in-progress, or the same crap they always to to entertain the masses and attain a golden ticket to the funkiest high-stakes fundraiser in Cleveland.

I am happy they keep asking me back to do stuff. This is my fourth contribution, dating back to the first Pandemonium in 2003. Last year I wrote a brief history of the event and my place in it, and the opportunity to stage one scene from the Cleveland history play (title TBA) which will debut at Big Box this March.

I was not planning on participating this year, things being so off-the-hook busy at work and at home, but what can I say? A personal invitation from Beth Wood is difficult to refuse. This year the theme is House of Dreams, which I found serendipitous as I have been preoccupied with Little Nemo in Slumberland. 

I wrote a brief piece, asked a few performers from Henry VIII to join me. My daughter asked if she could be the Princess, and roped a friend of hers from school to play Nemo. Then I connived his parents into playing the role of chaperone ... and then actual roles for the performance.

We had our forty-five minute tech rehearsal this evening (thank you, Rachael!) and will present this eight-minute-version of what I am calling Winsor McCay's Slumberland at 7:45, 8:20 and 8:55 in the Parish Hall.

Pandemonium is Saturday, September 8.