A Stage Manager's Blog: Journey to the 1st Rehearsal

My alarm clock rattles on the nightstand, waking me before the sun, and I jump out of bed.  There's nothing quite like that “getting an early start on the road trip” feeling; the sense that miles of adventure eagerly await you.  And my destination beckons...Rehearsal!  While Jack (Kerouac), my traveling companion, is out getting gas, I strap on my backpack, fling two duffle bags over my shoulder, and head downstairs.  Jack pulls up, yanks open the rusty trunk of the VW van and we ceremoniously toss the luggage in.

Cooler- check.

Bag of snacks- check.

Water bottles for the cast- check.

Sunscreen- check.

Script and score- check.

Maps- check.

I take a moment to admire the myriad of bumper stickers on the fender and wonder if my next destination, Transport Group's “See Rock City”, will have one to add to the collection.  Jack gives the hood a smack for safe travels, I pop “Road Trip Mix Tape #1” into the cassette player and we're off! 

Mile after mile, we're living free!  We ride the Cyclone at Coney Island, attempt to roll the largest ball of twine, check out the 6-legged cow in Prairie Dog Town and get splashed from both the American and Canadian sides of the Falls.  After lunch at a diner somewhere in the Carolinas, we get a flat tire, but John Steinbeck and Charley pull up with a spare.  We stop at the Alamo so I can buy some huge souvenir pencils for my stage management kit, pick up a hitchhiker in Saginaw and listen to our calls of “Standby!” and “Take Ten!” echo off Lover's Leap.  I start to prepare the production reports as we cruise along the never-ending highways, though my penmanship is terrible thanks to the bouncing of the van.  Jack scans the corn fields for crop circles and eventually hops out somewhere in New Mexico with a compass and binoculars. 

Now alone, I wave my arm out the window while singing an old a cappella song from my childhood.  I celebrate the crossing of each state line, buy too many postcards the gasway and stretch my legs at every vista I come upon.  Suddenly, I realize I'm running late...it's time to put the pedal to the metal!  I rev the engine and speed by barn after barn advertising the New 42^nd Street Studios. 

At long last, I turn off 8^th Avenue, my end in sight!  After ten minutes of parallel parking, my road trip is complete!  And the destination is everything I expected and more!  I feel I've found home.

-Theresa Flanagan, PSM

Stanley Bahorek playing Evan

 

Credit: This video was filmed at New 42nd Street Studios.

Rockin' at the Cocktail Party

Tony Award-winning producer ("Memphis"), Barbara Freitag, and our Executive Director, Lori Fineman, hosted an event in celebration of our upcoming new musical, "See Rock City & Other Destinations." It was a night filled with cocktails, hors d'oeuvres, and great company shared amongst all. Members of the Board of Directors and the TG family joined in the excitement we have for this new pop/rock musical.

Sally Wilfert performing "All There is to Say" 

Photo taken by Adam Mathias

Transport Group provided a sneak peek at what "See Rock City..." has to offer with performances given by some members of the cast. Special guest Jeremy Jordan (currently seen as Tony in the revival of "West Side Story") gave us a blazing performance of the title song, "See Rock City." Just when it couldn't get any better, out came Sally Wilfert and she did NOT leave a dry eye after belting "All There is to Say." This was followed by a heartfelt and exciting duet, "Mile after Mile," performed by the talented Mamie Parris and the unforgettable Stanley Bahorek. How this solid group provided the poignant essence of what "See Rock City" is in such a brief amount of time was incredible to witness. Transport Group is so proud to honor and nourish new musicals such as "See Rock City" and especially when seeing the smiles on Adam Mathias and Brad Alexander's faces as their work came to life before them.

Mamie Parris and Stanley Bahorek performing "Mile after Mile" 

Photo taken by Adam Mathias

Catering was provided by Ryan Corvaia and the company, DISH Food & Events. If you ever want a delicious selection of good eats for your parties, Ryan's your guy! The night ended successfully as guests were encouraged to take home a piece of "See Rock City" with them through our demo CD's.

Composer Brad Alexander on the incarnation of "See Rock City & Other Destinations"

Adam and I met at Raw Impressions back in 2005, where we had 10 days to create a 10-minute musical.  We met on a Friday night, had to deliver the first draft by Sunday, and opened on Thursday.  The theme was "a dangerous choice".  We all wrote stories for 10 minutes about a dangerous choice - fictional or true, or a little of both.  Everyone threw their stories in a hat and we picked one about Angel's Landing at Zion National Park and one about a terrified bride.  From those stories, Adam created the libretto for “Greetings From Niagara Falls,” which is now the final piece in SEE ROCK CITY & OTHER DESTINATIONS.

I knew right away that Adam was a master architect, having an uber-keen sense of how a story should ebb and flow and resolve, and a true gift for dialogue.  His writing was clean and contemporary, and we felt like a good match.  We had a great time, the piece was well-received and I figured that was the end of that.

Several months went by when Adam called me to say, "How about a whole evening of shorts at a whole bunch of American tourist destinations?"

I said, “Let me think about it,” but I thought, “No.”

When I next saw Adam at BMI, I tried to avoid him.  I just wasn’t sure how I felt about doing a collection of short pieces versus one long story.  He cornered me after class and didn’t say a word, just handed me a script like he was delivering a subpoena.  It turned out to be the libretto for “Rock City”.  When I read it, the choice was made.

4 readings, 2 workshops, 3 productions, 2 (3?) temper tantrums and 100 rewrites later, we're thrilled to be working with Jack Cummings and Transport Group for our NYC premiere.  And we're so grateful to friends, family and colleagues for their incredibly smart feedback, constructive criticism and generous support of all kinds, which helped us arrive at a show that finally feels almost – but never really – finished.

- Brad

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Transport Group Theatre Company proudly presents "See Rock City & Other Destinations"

Winner of the 2008 Richard Rodgers Award and the 2007 Jerry Bock Award, See Rock City & Other Destinations, with music by Brad Alexander and book and lyrics by Adam Mathias, received a development workshop with Transport Group in 2009; the 2010 production will be this show’s official New York City premiere. Director Jack Cummings III (2010 Drama Desk Award nominee - The Boys in the Band) stages the production in an unconventional format, where the audience has the unique experience of enjoying the journey in the midst of the action. Get your tickets now: See Rock City & Other Destinations is one summer road trip you won’t want to miss!

Visit www.transportgroup.org for tickets and more information.