Bill Irwin & Co. Get 5 Barrymore Nominations

Bill Irwin's show THE HAPPINESS LECTURE just received 5 Barrymore nominations. The Barrymore Awards for Excellence in Theatre are the Greater Philadelphia region's only comprehensive theatre awards program, recognizing artists for excellence and innovation while serving to increase awareness of the richness of the local theatre community. Each year, over 100 productions produced by the region's professional theatres are reviewed by the Barrymore nominating committee. At the annual awards presentation each Fall, the Barrymore Awards are presented to honor excellence in acting, design, choreography, music, education, community service and lifetime achievement. The 5 nominations: Ensemble - Bill Irwin, Aaron Cromie, Jennifer Childs, Ephrat Asherie, Melanie Cotton, Makoto Hirano, Nichole Canuso, Cori Olinghouse and Lee Ann Etzold New Play - Bill Irwin Choreography - Bill Irwin Supporting Actress - Lee Ann Etzold Sound Design - Jorge Cousineau This year the award ceremonies are Monday, October 6, 2008 6:30PM at the Crystal Team Room Wannamaker Building, 9th Floor 100 Penn Square East, Philadelphia Tickets go on sale Thursday, August 7! MORE INFO: http://www.theatrealliance.org/barrymores/

Last week for Bill Irwin in Philadelphia

Bill Irwin's show The Happiness Lecture has been extended for one week in Philadelphia. If you have the opportunity, you should see it! I drove down from NY on Saturday to see it. Overall it was great (Hey, it's Bill Irwin!) And a company of 9 very talented Philadelphia area artists. (including a friend from Dell'arte, puppeteer and performer Aaron Cromie. He actually won't be in the extended week (he had other commitments) Instead, another Dell'arte friend Dawn Falato will take over as the swing.) I have some thoughts about the show, if you care to read them.... Like most of Bill's original shows, the play is a meditation on his work in the theatre, and a dialogue between tricks, fear of failure (and success), and the utility of worry. If people over time begin to resemble their dogs, it's even more true with their shows, direct reflections of what they are thinking about as artists. It's very true with this show-- in some ways it is a direct continuation, extension of Regard of Flight. Regard was newer to me of course, and Bill was even more agile then than he is now (which seems hard to believe), and there are a lot of similar elements to this show, but there are also lots of twists that will have Bill Irwin watchers riveted. I'm not as fond of the writing and directing of the show as I am of the performance of the show, which (especially for Bill) borders on the virtuosic. His use of his body is fantastic, whether it's a remote control podium gone awry, creation of two cavemen (well, let's not call them that-- let's call them early men) that illustrate a sort of Darwinian Happiness Theory, or performing a beautiful Mr. Noodle piece, Bill is always as precise as a Swiss watch. It's a pleasure to watch him work, although work is the wrong word. He glides fluidly from routine to routine, and that's his genius. An amazing piece of theatrical genius is in the staging. The use of puppets of Bill Irwin and the creation of multiple focused prosceniums of different sizes and scales borders on the fantastic. The stage shifts several times in scale, and each time does so with precision and ease- it reminded me that the most effective techniques are often the simplest. And it brings home the constant argument that Bill's shows seems to always have- I've got the clown thing going, but what does it all mean? I'm not 100% sure that there's an answer to that question-- there is a kind of constant narrative about narrative throughout the piece, and a use of theatrical conventions (the pre-show speech, the usher, the audience member placed in peril) that is always pleasant to watch but is not really linear or conducive to the "well-made play." At the end of the show, I heard a grandmother asking her two teenaged grand-children what they thought of the show. GRANDMOTHER: Wasn't that marvelous and fun? What did you think? GRAND-DAUGHTER: I liked it, but it was a little weird. I didn't quite get it. GRAND-SON: Yeah, it was cool, but I didn't really get it. It was weird. It wasn't their typical play, but they liked it. If you'd like to see the show, visit the Philadelphia Theatre Company's Website listed below: http://www.philadelphiatheatrecompany.org/2008/lecture.html On a related topic-- Cirque du Soleil was just ending a run of Kooza (directed by Irwin collaborator David Shiner) down the block from the theatre. If I had known, I would have tried to have gotten tickets for both. Kooza's next stop is Chicago, then Boston, then Washington DC.

Bill Irwin/ Aaron Cromie podcast

Fascinating hour of conversation about clowning and clowns with Bill Irwin and Aaron Cromie regarding the Happiness Lectures. http://www.whyy.org/podcast/052208_110630.mp3 Definitely listen to it!

The Sprockets Circus

Great article on NPR's website about the Sprockets, a family circus of three that tours the world in a 1962 Bristol double decker bus with a top speed of 33 miles per hour. The show features Scott Harrison, his wife Issabelle Feraud, and their 11 year old son Theo, who have been touring continuously since 1997. They ship their bus between continents, and have performed in 48 countries, and 6 continents. They are currently in the states, and are starting the process of writing a book about their journey. Their shows are full of magic, juggling, acrobatics, daredevil unicycling and lots of slapstick humor. Scott was a juggling entrepreneur for a while in England, and then became a performer. Find out more about the Sprockets on the websites listed below: SPROCKETS WEBSITE: http://www.thesprockets.com NPR Article/story: Circus Family Is Ready for a Safety Net SPROCKETS FLICKR site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/thesprockets/

Bill Irwin in Philadelphia

Thanks to Aaron Cromie for the tip! (He's in the show too!) THE HAPPINESS LECTURE WORLD PREMIERE By Bill Irwin May 16 - June 15, 2008 Bill Irwin – a two-time Tony Award-winner, film/television star, physical comedian, playwright, director and choreographer – leads a brilliant ensemble on an adventure in the pursuit of happiness. Irwin has created a unique and imaginative evening of delightful vignettes and physical comedy. This world premiere is a wild and entertaining ride that spoofs theatrical pretensions while exploring the sheer joy of laughter. Featuring some of Philadelphia's finest actors and dancers including: Nichole Canuso, Jennifer Childs, Melanie Cotton, Aaron Cromie, Lee Ann Etzold, and Makoto Hirano, along with New York-based Ephrat "Bounce" Asherie and Cori Olinghouse. http://www.philadelphiatheatrecompany.org There are ticket deals and discounts if you contact the box office, especially for the previews.

Steve Russell-- In Capable Hands

A good article recently appeared in the Dunn County News about Clown College Graduate Steve Russell, and how he got a job with the NY City Opera through clown-networking. I'm a member of that network, and saw the whole thing happen! Steve and his wife Kobi Shaw form a juggling duo called In Capable Hands. Both are graduates of Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Clown College, and Steve has trained over 100 Ringling Bros. clowns in juggling and clowning. Their talents have taken them all over the country, as well as all over the world. Between the two of them, Steve and Kobi have appeared at Disney World, Disneyland, London's Covent Garden, and renaissance festivals from Florida to Texas. Their skills have been seen on national television for Good Morning America, Nickelodeon T.V., and the Tonight Show. They have juggled on more than 15 cruise ships, traveling throughout Europe, Hawaii, Alaska, South America and the Caribbean. Regionally, they entertain audiences at numerous fairs and festivals, including the Minnesota, Iowa, Montana, Ohio, and Northern Wisconsin State Fairs. In addition, they do a corporate presentation entitled The Art of Ooomph. Russell and Shaw are married and have been a juggling duo since 1996. Their two sons, Tate and Quinn, were born in January, 2001 and November, 2002, respectively. They spend their time trying to avoid being juggled.. You can find out more about In Capable Hands by visiting their website (listed below) http://www.incapablehands.com/ I've also included a portion of that article, but to read the rest, read the article on the original website Specialty act - Talent with fire lands Russell with Big Apple opera gig By LeAnn R. Ralph, Reporter When you have a specialized skill and no one else applies, you're bound to get the job. And that's exactly how Colfax resident Steve Russell, of the comedy juggling duo In Capable Hands, ended up as the understudy to the fire-breathing juggling clown in the production of "Pagliacci" at the New York City Opera. "Pagliacci" is scheduled to be performed at Lincoln Center from Sept. 28 to Oct. 27. Russell began rehearsals Sept 13, after learning only five days earlier that he had gotten the job. "I'm a graduate of Ringling Brothers Clown College, and I'm on an e-mail list of about 400 other people who graduated from clown school and clown college," Russell said. People on the e-mail list exchange information about jobs that are available. Russell's wife and show business partner (and Dunn County News correspondent), Kobi Shaw, had seen the listing asking for a juggler/fire eater to be an understudy for Pagliacci the day before Russell called about the job. "Kobi said, 'this is something you should do,' " Russell recalled. By the time he was able to make a telephone call on Friday afternoon, he was certain that the New York City Opera would have already found someone else. "I gave them a call mid-afternoon on Friday. Within five minutes, he was talking as if I already had the job," Russell said. "It turns out that it's hard to find a fire-breathing juggler who could make the dates of the show. I wish all my jobs were this easy and this glamorous." READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE