Blog Stage - Acting in Film, TV, Theatre - Backstage

Thoughts on a Catwoman

I only saw the late Eartha Kitt perform in person twice: in the Broadway production of The Wild Party and then at the Drama Desk Awards later the same season. She was nominated for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical and did one of her two show-stopping numbers for the ceremony. She perfomed "When It Ends" with a combination of sultry sexiness and defiant anger. When she finished she glowered at the audience as if daring them not to give her a standing ovation--which we did! It was an electrifying moment and an example of sheer star power.

Winfrey's Weight, the Least of Her Worries

Let's just imagine.  You are Oprah Winfrey (we all wish) and you blabber on about your extra pounds this and how could you let it happen again that.  You are Oprah Winfrey, one of the most powerful women in the world.  So I have two questions.  Question One: Why can't you just get home meals delivered?  Problem solved, you are fat no more.  Question two: How is it that twice now you have managed to have book club books on your list that claim to be memoirs and were bold-faced,  BS, 100% horse turd? 

Scriptapalooza is Accepting Submissions

Scriptapalooza is accepting script submissions right now.   Aspiring screenwriters: the early deadline for this competition is January 5th. 
What do you get if you win?  Hold onto your mouse pad because this could be a very lucrative move for the winner.  The Grand Prize is $10,000. 

Comeback Kids

Do you think Saturday Night Live is actually funny again for good -- or was that just Tina Fey passing through on her way to more awesomeness? The sketch-comedy show had been suffering in the ratings when the writers went back to what SNL does best: political satire. Thus the AP has designated SNL as one of the comeback stories of the year.

There were some serious comebacks for actors too, namely Robert Downey, Jr. and Mickey Rourke. The first proved to us all over again that he's super funny and warm; in Iron Man he had some of his best scenes playing against a robot. And he was willing to make a fool of himself and the trappings of his profession in Tropic Thunder. And Rourke! He may not want us to talk about him as a "comeback," but his performance in The Wrestler has put him back on the acting A-list. Good job fellas!

--Anna Bengel

Awful Movies from 2008 You Gotta See

Sometimes there's nothing better than a really bad movie. So before we get all starstruck and doe-eyed over all the award contenders and Oscar season craziness (Golden Globes in two weeks people!), let's take a moment to pause and make some much deserved time for those flicks that are so terrible you just have to love 'em. (Or not?)

Dave White, a film critic and contributor over at MSNBC, has the annual task of rounding up the best worst movies of the year, and this year his list includes the Al Pacino stinker 88 Minutes (made that much cooler by the fact that it runs in real time) and The Love Guru ("Which ice floe does funny pick to go die on?)

Any flicks you'd put up for honorable mention?

--Anna Bengel

What'll be Hot in 2009?

The theatre scene that supposedly doesn't exist in L.A.--at least according to uninformed theatre snobs-- seems pretty spry at the moment. The roster of interesting-sounding shows opening in 2009 is abundant with tantalizing fare, among the finest array in recent memory. Following are some highlights.

Let's start with the world premieres. Pulitzer-winning playwright Donald Margulies (Dinner With Friends, Collected Stories) joins forces with Tony-winning director Daniel Sullivan (Proof), in Margulies' new drama, Time Stands Still, starring Anna Gunn, Alicia Silverstone (pictured),  David Harbour, and Robin Thomas. This play, charting the difficult adjustment a team of journalist/lovers must make after returnng to the U.S. following an extended stay in the war-torn Middle East, opens February 11.

Two musical blockbusters make their debuts. Minsky's (Ahmanson Theatre, opening February 6), is a brassy 1920s-era musical set in the world of American burlesque, featuring music by Charles Strouse (Annie, Bye Bye Birdie, Applause)--who also composed songs for the 1968 William Friedkin film The Night They Raided Minsky's, lyrics by Susan Birkenhead (Triumph of Love), and a welcome reunion of The Drowsy Chaperone's creative gurus--librettist Bob Martin and director-choreographer Casey Nicolaw.

Promote Your Flick on IMDb

IMDb wants to help you publicize and promote your movie! Just make a submission by year's end to a Withoutabox festival and you'll be invited by email to create a Title Page on IMDb, the Internet Movie Database. Certain submissions are not eligible, but the vast majority are. Invitations are sent once the festival receives your submission -- thousands in just the last few weeks! You've still got time before 2009, so go to the Withoutabox info site right away.

--Anna Bengel

Be An Apprentice at VSA Arts

For the fourth year, VSA arts will partner with the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Williamstown, Mass., for the VSA arts Apprenticeship, a program that provides special insight into the world of a professional theatre for undergraduate and graduate students with disabilities, ages 19–24.

'Happy' Alternatives During the Holidays

Peace and joy, Happy Hanukah and Ho, ho ho (a bottle of rum included) to all you Christmas doers.  But for those of you who may be slightly challenged this time of year -- maybe you don't believe in Santa or the Nativity or even Hanukkah (or Chanukah) -- I never do get that right.   Or  perhaps you just feel a little less than gifty this season.  It's really very cool.  You're a leader, not a follower.  You aspire to be Juno one day--well not the unwed and pregnant part. 

Let's Toast: To Good Abs and a New Pres

What a difference a year makes?  Last year at this time we were bombarded with endless speeches filled with sounds like nu-cular and dropped g's and now we're bombarded with sensational photos of a buff-looking Prez-Elect. Indeed, Father Tme is kind isn't he?  Isn't there an old cliche, all in due time?  Wow we were sure due!  What a difference a year makes?  From grey brillo hair and a Texas drawl to bronze skin, educated verbiage and a big toothy grin.