Episode 275. Actor Dennis Parlato

Published by austin on

LIVE! From the windblown roof terrace of the Kennedy Center, veteran actor Dennis Parlato talks about how he followed his artistic dreams, caught them, and wrestled them to the ground. Featuring tales of auditioning for Bob Fosse, what dancing with “renegades” can lead to, the value of ballet training for sword-fighting, how to win the role in the room, and the advantages for actors of not knowing any better. Also: a reduced tribute to and valuable sports betting tips from Peter Bergman of the Firesign Theatre, who passed away last week. “The Chump has left the building…” (Pictured: Dennis Parlato (right) and co-star Grainne Cassidy with director Austin Tichenor from the 1991 American Stage Festival production of Educating Rita by Willy Russell.) (Length 24:52)

Podcast: Download (11.5MB)

Subscribe: RSS | More

Categories: Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast
Tags:

0 Comments

Leave a Reply

Avatar placeholder

Related Posts

Summertime Shakespeare Rom-Com

“To go for it, or not to go for it?” That is the appealing question that drives For the Love of the Bard, the debut novel from author Jessica Martin, which is being published just in time to go to the top of your summer reading list, especially if you’re a Shakespeare nerd. The story involves our heroine Miranda Barnes returning to her hometown of Bard’s Rest, New Hampshire, and helping to run the theater festival run by her parents. But once there, Miranda struggles with her feelings for Adam, the hunky veterinarian who spurned her in high school but also looks great with his shirt off. Martin discusses an early pumpkin-related success led to her passion for writing; how writing gets easier only by doing it; how the book’s fantasy works on so many levels; the surprisingly tricky aspects of writing urban fantasy; how she started writing, how she came to Shakespeare, and how she came to write about Shakespeare; shout-outs to both Robertson Davies's Tempest-Tost and the Hogarth series of Shakespearean novels; and how people who don't like Shakespeare puns are sad and to be pitied. (Length 17:32)

The Understudy Bookstore

Chicago will soon get its own Drama Book Shop in the form of The Understudy Bookstore, and founding owners Adam Crawford and Danny Fender talk about their ultimate pandemic pivot and how it's already become a project the entire Chicago theater community is enthusiastically supporting; how Chicago is like one big college theater campus; how difficult it is (and how privileged they are) to be able to realize this beautiful dream; how it’s possible to have a theatrical career in Chicago; how they learned lessons from fellow small business owners; give a shout-out to Scenes, Chicago’s previous theater bookstore; and The Understudy's fantastic motto: “Good Books, Fresh Beans, & All The Drama.” (Length 20:47)

Harlem’s Classical Theatre

Ty Jones, the producing artistic director of the Classical Theatre of Harlem, talks about how CTH has survived the pandemic; continues to provide theatrical productions and theatre-based educational and literary programs for free or at little cost to Harlem residents, businesses, schools, community-based organizations and all who seek Harlem as a cultural destination from around the world; and is trying to create a permanent home for not only itself, but all of Harlem’s classical institutions. FEATURING: how we define classics; unintended consequences of the last two years; the difficulty of keeping the drama on the stage; the possibility of transforming lives, especially for children; creating a sustainable organization; the importance right now of doubling down on support for theater; how costs have skyrocketed post-pandemic; connections to Steve Harris and The Practice; getting the tools, and then sharpening them; the challenge of creating a home for the arts while also bringing the arts to where the people are; adhering to the motto of "go big and get a home!"; and a hugely important push-back on the idea that a parent has failed if their child goes into the arts! (Length 21:00)