Last week I received some e-mail from Marc in Boston. He finds himself obsessed with completing a new play and had a number of questions which I began to answer in last week's article. What follows is the rest of my response.
On 4/1/98 11:11 PM you wrote:
>How shall I ever sell this play? What must
I do to see it on stage?
>To have it read?
The best way to sell a play is to have it seen. A common belief, actually, is that there are few producers capable of recognizing a good script from the page. They've got to at least see it read - that is, if a reading is enough for them. Many producers need to see a full scale production, hear the actors perform the lines and songs, and see the audience response, before they're willing to do anything with a new project.
We've been lucky in always having some kind of connection with people interested in reading new works. If you don't work in the theatre or have ties to people who do, your best bet is to keep your eyes open, research, and track down the theatres, producers and (yes) competitions that solicit new works for readings. Failing that, it's possible to even do a legitimate (i.e., Actors Equity Association-authorized) public reading for as little as a few thousand dollars - of course depending on the size of the cast. So save your pennies.
> How did you finish your first work - did
you just pound it out? Or did it
> take years?
We try to make sure we always have another project lined up to work on so it's hard to tell when one ends and another begins. Plus there's the fact that every time you pick up a project again, before it's received a production, you've absolutely got to make some changes and fixes. And whenever you get a director and/or producer involved they'll inevitably have some suggestions for "improvement."
I don't remember having any trouble finishing my first project, although it never received a production; the potential producers - the faculty of the elementary school I was currently attending - found the piece too violent and morbid. In addition to their unwillingness to bear the expense of the ice cream slinging scene....
I sincerely wish you the best in your attempt.
Yours truly,
C U @ the Theatre!
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