Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, and a wonderful New Year!
And enjoy whatever else you'll celebrate these coming days.
A heartfelt thank you to all those named and un-named who again helped me this year to keep this site the way it is.
Oh - and special thanks to Michael T. Weiss!

FADE, an Anthony Stagliano film, invites you to join us for our San Diego premiere screenings on December 14 & 15 at 7:00 PM.
Limbo Fine Arts, 1432 University Ave, Hillcrest 92103
Mr. Stagliano will be in attendance for a Q&A session both days.
Admission is $5 at the door.
Fade features a moving final performance from David Connolly (Thirteen Conversations about One Thing) who tragically passed away in the fall of 2006. Sarah Lassez (Nowhere, The Blackout, Mad Cowgirl) also offers a captivating performance along with appearances by Michael T. Weiss (TV's Pretender, Jeffery, Until the Night), and special guests Anthony Drazan (director of Hurlyburly and Zebrahead, in his debut performance), and Devon Odessa (TV's My So Called Life).
Fade also features music from improvisational legends AMM, Art Bears, Ginnungagap, and original music by Cameron Presley (Upsilon Acrux) and Hollis Lee (Midnight Sun).
www.myspace.com/fadefilm
www.fadefilm.com
www.limboarts.com

Really old news from February, but I just stumbled across this Disney's childrens show "Higglytown Heroes" where in two episodes in March 2006 and February 2007, Michael T. Weiss voiced two different animated characters:
'Wayne's Day Out'
Episode Number: 32 ; Season Num: 2/4 ; First Aired: Saturday March 18, 2006
A police officer tracks down Wayne after he gets separated from his friends at a crowded fair.
Katey Sagal (Policewoman Hero), Mathew St. Patrick (Policeman Hero), Gayla Goehl (Great Aunt Shirley), Michael T. Weiss (Mountain Rescue Hero)
'Higglies on Horseback'
Episode Number: 56 ; Season Num: 3/6 ; First Aired: Monday February 19, 2007
Grandpa Crink's horse gives birth.
Guest Stars: Jeff Bennett (Auctioneer Hero), Michael T. Weiss (Veterinarian Hero), Bill Farmer (Janitor Jay), Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Ms. Fern)
=> This eipsode (together with 'The Big Pink Elephant Sale') will re-air on Monday Dec. 17 at 7:30am E/P on the Disney Channel!!

12:00 AM, 03-December-07
Pretender To Pretend Again?
Steven Long Mitchell and Craig Van Sickle, who created the 1990s NBC SF series The Pretender, told SCI FI Wire that they want to resurrect the show in a new digital medium.
"We created the show The Pretender, and we're working on bringing that back in a whole new form, in a digital form and in a digital platform," Mitchell said in an interview while promoting his SCI FI Channel miniseries Tin Man, which he and Van Sickle co-wrote and co-executive-produced.
Van Sickle hinted that the new Pretender could also feature original star Michael T. Weiss, who played Jarod, a man whose ability to assume other people's identities allowed him to assist those in need. The Pretender aired from 1996-2000 and also spawned two 2001 telemovies.
"We had breakfast with Michael today," Van Sickle said last week. "He just finished up a play out here in New York. I guess kind of the best thing we can say is that we have a timetable of within, hopefully, the next five or six months that we can have something really unique and different out there."
Van Sickle added: "We'll be certainly reeling things out along that same time period, but there will be things that the fans can tap into and kind of see our progress on that front and other things in the digital world."
Tin Man premiered on Dec. 2 and continues Dec. 9 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. (NBC is owned by NBC Universal, which also owns SCIFI.COM.) -
Ian Spelling

These two blogs refer to this article: Remote Access and TV Squad.
Read also this interview with Steven and Craig from 9-7-07 at Slice of SciFi. The part about The Pretender is towards the end.

Sorry if some of these are old news, but as I had mentioned - I was off-line for a while.

A new Directors Cut of Iowa will be released by Vision Films internationally. They have created a page on their website here, and have also designed a new flyer, 

On November 5th, Iowa was screened at the American Film Market in Santa Monica, CA for more international buyers. They have a gorgeous trailer up on their page for it here. Too bad, that Michael looks great with a gun ... don't forget to turn on your speakers!

The official website has also been updated with a trailer, a different one. And keep your speakers on!

I'll be off-line (due to vacation) for the time being, so no updates on the site for a while.
See you next month and take care!

Gravatt, Jacobs, Weiss, et al. Set for Going After Alice Reading
Photo: Joseph Marzullo/WENN
By: Brian Scott Lipton, Oct 18, 2007
Betsy Aidem, Sonia Feigelson, Lynda Gravatt, Gillian Jacobs, Chris Landis, Matthew Stadelmann, and Michael T. Weiss will star in a free staged reading of Megan Mostyn-Brown's Going After Alice, at 7pm on Monday, October 22 at the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theatre. The reading will be directed by Douglas Mercer. A reception with the playwright and the cast will follow the reading.
The show concerns the Robertson family, whose son Sam has been killed in Iraq. As they struggle to deal with their grief, a mysterious young girl brings hope into their lives.
Reservations are required. RSVP to skatz@squarepegproductions.org.
Weiss, Jacobs, Landis and Stadelmann Set for Free Reading of Going After Alice
By Andrew Gans, 18 Oct 2007
A staged reading of Going After Alice, presented by Square Peg Productions, will be held Oct. 22 at the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater.
Douglas Mercer will direct Megan Mostyn-Brown's new play. The 3 PM*** reading will feature the talents of Betsey Aidem, Sonia Feigelson, Gillian Jacobs, Chris Landis, Matthew Stadelmann and Michael T. Weiss.
"When their son Sam is killed in Iraq," read Going After Alice press notes, "the Robertson family is forced to face reality. As they struggle with their grief, a mysterious young girl brings hope into their lives. A powerful new play about love, loss and the search for oneself."
Playwright Mostyn-Brown has also penned Girl, The Secret Lives of Losers, 4th of July, The Hawk Has no Home, Lizards and The Rest of Your Life.
The Linda Gross Theater is located in Manhattan at 336 W. 20th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues. Reservations can be made by emailing skatz@squarepegproductions.org; seating is limited.
TheaterMania and Playbill list different times, so I checked with the producers:
From Square Peg Productions: Yes the reading is in fact at 7pm
***On Oct. 22, Playbill released the announcement again, now with the correct time of 7PM.

On Oct 16, 2007 Michael T. Weiss attended the after party for the premiere of the Affleck brothers movie "Gone Baby Gone", hosted by The Cinema Society & Details, held at the Soho Grand Penthouse in New York.
Photo of Lloyd Grove, Felicia Taylor and Michael T. Weiss from the evening by Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images.

Today I received an email from the Atlantic Theater Company:
We actually have to close October 21 so that we are able to get our next show up on schedule. So no, it won't be playing longer than that.
Jodi Sheeler
Marketing Director
Atlantic Theater Company

From: Jersey girl off and running in off-Broadway hit
... "It's cool," she says of finding middle ground of being a sixth-grader at Voorhees Middle School, and starring opposite such stellar talents as Kristen Johnston, Michael T. Weiss, Jesse Eisenberg and Miriam Shor some 60 miles from the shoreline up the Jersey Turnpike. ....

Interesting, that so far into the run of a play a new review is published:
Theater Review: 'Scarcity'
A Riveting Human Drama
By Judd Hollander
Special to The Epoch Times, Oct 06, 2007
....
Casting is so important in a work like this, and here it is excellent down the line (Kristen Johnson, Michael T. Weiss and Maggie Kiley are the standouts), as is Jackson Gay's direction, which keeps the action flowing smoothly and doesn't allow a single wasted moment or scene. Walt Spangler's sets expertly capture the "second hand" feel of the family home, and the costumes by Ilona Somogyi are also quite good.
"Scarcity" shows the need to know who and what you are before thinking of what you can be. Well-written, acted, and executed, this one is a triumph for all concerned.
For the full review see the

From the Atlantic Theater Company: Discount on the tickets for Scarcity - $40 tickets (regularly $55)
Its run has been extended through October 21 only!
Performance Schedule: Tue-Fri at 8, Sat at 2 & 8, Sun at 3 (except Sunday, 10/7 - no perf)
How to order your $40 tickets:
1. Online: CLICK HERE and enter code: SCA5
2. By Phone: Call Ticket Central at 212-279-4200 and give code: SCA5
*Offer subject to availability and prior sale and cannot be combined with any other offer or discounts. Regular service charges apply to all phone and Internet orders.
ATLANTIC THEATER COMPANY . 336 WEST 20TH STREET . NYC

Brandon Espinoza Joins Off-Broadway's Scarcity
by Broadway.com Staff, 10/2/2007
Brandon Espinoza will assume the role of Billy in the off-Broadway production of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, beginning October 2. He replaces Jesse Eisenberg, who departs to begin work on director Greg Mottola's feature film Adventureland. Directed by Jackson Gay, Scarcity began previews August 29, opened September 20 and has been extended through October 21 at the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater.
Espinoza has appeared in the Broadway productions of Gypsy, Big, Les Miserables and The Will Rogers Follies. His off-Broadway credits include Not Waving at New York Summer Play Festival, Tea and Sympathy at Keen Company and Captains Courageous at Manhattan Theatre Club.
Scarcity also stars Atlantic Company members Emmy Award winner Kristen Johnston, Maggie Kiley and Todd Weeks; and Meredith Brandt, Miriam Shor and Michael T. Weiss.
For more information visit www.atlantictheater.org.
Read also: Playbill

Working-Class Heroes
by Gillian Reagan | September 25, 2007
This article was published in the October 1, 2007, edition of The New York Observer.
"It's like a messy play, nothing feels concrete," said Jesse Eisenberg, the mop-haired star of 2005's The Squid and the Whale, now appearing in Scarcity, off Broadway, on the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater stage. "The characters are driven by various things, and you're drawn to choose one over the other on a given night, based on what you're feeling personally or what's being given to you by other actors. It seems like every night is exciting but also intimidating, too. Sometimes I'm disappointed in what I did, because it doesn't feel like I can perfect it and then repeat it.&quuot;
But actually Scarcity thrives on its imperfections. Written by Lucy Thurber - no relation to James, we think - the script examines the cavernous class divide in the doldrums of western Massachusetts, where 16-year-old, flannel- and cargo-pant-clad Billy (Eisenberg) is using his smarts and sexuality to influence a naïve teacher and get accepted to private school. His supersmart little sister Rachel, played by Meredith Brandt, is worried about being left behind to take care of her two parents, Martha (Kristen Johnston) and Herb (Michael T. Weiss), who live paycheck to paycheck and stumble from bars to dead-end jobs.
"People tell me they're jealous of these characters, even though they're two drunks who are big messes," said the raspy-voiced Ms. Johnston, stage veteran and former star of the sporadically lamented 3rd Rock from the Sun. "They're just so in love and react to each other honestly."
"They kind of deal with interpersonal relationships in an immediate way, rather than procrastinating or in a neurotic way," added Mr. Eisenberg of the characters.
Neuroses aside, Ms. Johnston says she hopes the play will make audiences think twice about the working class, a segment of the population oft ignored by the Great White Way.
"Did you think about it the next day?" she asked. "Because that's all I really want. I want this play to stay with people."

In early 2006, after returning from Boston and "Les Liaisons Dangereuses", I announced: "If Mr. Weiss ever returns to the stage no matter the play, and circumstances permit it, I'll be back as well."

So now, I made it to New York - I couldn't stand the idea of Michael T. Weiss being back on stage without me witnessing it.
And since seeing a play only once doesn't do it for me, I booked tickets for three performances on the weekend of September 14 - 16, 2007, evenings of Friday and Saturday, and the matinee on Sunday afternoon.
Previews of "Scarcity" began on August 29, and its world premiere took place on September 20 at the Linda Gross Theater. So I caught what was different from the first previews, but looked a lot like the final version.
And I had the good fortune to meet Michael after each of the shows.

Read my full review und report on the events in the Specials section.

Thurber's Scarcity Gets One Week Extension in NYC
By Kenneth Jones, 27 Sep 2007
Off-Broadway's Atlantic Theater Company will extend its world-premiere production of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, directed by Jackson Gay, by one week, to October 21.
Performances of the dark, humor-laced drama about an impoverished family - and the children who seek escape from it - began Aug. 29 at Atlantic's mainstage home, The Linda Gross Theater at 336 W. 20th Street. Official opening was Sept. 20.
The original limited engagement was scheduled through Oct. 14.
Scarcity features Atlantic Company members Kristen Johnston, Maggie Kiley and Todd Weeks as well as Meredith Brandt, Jesse Eisenberg, Miriam Shor and Michael T. Weiss.
Read also: Broadway.com and BroadwayWorld.com

From Neil Farnsworth:
Sorry for the delay in responding. IOWA is about to reach International distribution through a company called Vision. US distribution is still up in the air. We hope to get a distribution contract for US soon.

Photo Call: Scarcity Opening Night
By Greg Kalafatas - 21 Sep 2007
Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, which began performances Aug. 29 at the Linda Gross Theater, opened Sept. 20 in a world premiere by the Atlantic Theater Company. [....]
Without giving too much away, Thurber told Playbill.com, "Scarcity is about the pull between the loyalty you feel for your family and the loyalty you feel towards your own personal dreams."
See Playbill for some photos from the opening-night party that also doubled as Kristen Johnston's birthday party.
"Scarcity"
September 21, 2007
Off-Broadway's Atlantic Theater Company is the troupe that spawned the Broadway hit "Spring Awakening," a musical about troubled teens in 19th century Germany. Thursday the company kicked off its fall season with a new work which also takes a look at teenage angst. NY1’s Roma Torre filed the following review of "Scarcity."
Lucy Thurber's new play "Scarcity" wants to be many things: a character study, a sitcom, a kitchen-sink drama, and even soap opera, yet despite a game effort from its talented company, "Scarcity" is scarcely ready for primetime. It's a play that over reaches and under achieves.
Set in a depressed rural town in western Massachusetts, we meet a highly dysfunctional family consisting of hopeless, irresponsible parents Martha and Herb, and their two gifted children, Billy,16, and his sister Rachel, 11.
The premise is a good one even though the execution falls short. Herb is an out-of-work drunk with more than a passing interest in his daughter's pre-pubescent body. Living off Martha's store clerk wages, their lives seem all but lost in a dead-end cycle of food stamps and foolish choices.
The dynamic is somewhat clichéd as the kids end up parenting their pathetic parents.
Hope comes in the form of a teacher who recognizes Billy's potential and aims to help him get out of his stifling environment. But the parents object, sensing that the teacher's interest in Billy is not entirely selfless.
The problem with the play is the way that playwright Thurber draws each character in bold outlines. Almost cartoony, everything seems to be played in a hyper reality – it's loud and laden with expletives. While it certainly gets your attention, it doesn't ring true to life.
There's a disconnect between who these people are and what they're doing. The conflicts seem contrived and some of the more animated scenes are so incredibly over the top, they become unintentionally funny.
Because the play is equal parts comedy and tragedy, the performances are a jarring variety of styles. Director Jackson Gay seems to be drawing on the works of Albee and Shepherd for inspiration, but to no avail.
Still there are moments. Kristen Johnston, always a pleasure to watch, barrels through the play like a trucker stuck in high gear. Michael T. Weiss is well cast as a loser who hasn't yet lost his charisma. Jesse Eisenberg makes Billy a jittery mass of teen angst and, 11-year-old Meredith Brandt holds her own impressively with the finesse and poise of a star in the making.
"Scarcity" can also be read as Scar City, which applies equally well to the story of a family damaged by ignorance and poverty. Unfortunately, once you get beneath the scars, there's not much else to care about.
- Roma Torre
This review has a little video clip from the play attached, which is certainly worth to check out!
---

Disturbing but vital drama
Expert production of 'Scarcity' reveals a family in crisis
Friday, September 21, 2007
Review - New York Stage
Scarcity
Where: Atlantic Theater Company, 336 W. 20th St., New York
When: Through Oct. 14. 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sundays
How much: $55. Call (212) 279-4200 or visit www.atlantictheater.org.
By Michael Sommers, Star-Ledger Staff
New York -- Ever know any youngsters whose parents -- due to booze, dope or whatever -- were dangerously out of control?
That's the miserable situation for a smart high school junior and his tween sister in "Scarcity," a gripping new play by Lucy Thurber, which opened yesterday at Atlantic Theater Company. Anybody seeking a sizzling hunk of red-blooded American realism should grab this show.
Billy (Jesse Eisenberg) and Rachel (Meredith Brandt) are extremely bright, attractive kids somehow spawned by trashy Martha (Kristen Johnston) and rowdy Herb (Michael T. Weiss), the town drunk.
Although these blue-collar parents are depicted as undeniably good-hearted people, they're hopeless low-lifes existing on food stamps or groceries supplied by Louie (Todd Weeks), Martha's unhappily married cousin who loves her more than a relative should.
The kids are creeped out by this fairly obvious relationship as much as they're weary of trying to keep their shiftless folks functioning.
Promoted into advanced classes, high-strung Billy is ragged to no end by his better-off peers and worries he might explode into violence.
Then Billy attracts the attention of Ellen (Maggie Kiley), a genteel young teacher who may be able to help him swing a scholarship to a swank boarding school.
When the naive Ellen's interest proves more than merely academic, Billy coldly manipulates her affections. Melancholy little Rachel fears that Billy will leave her behind to cope alone with their toxic parents.
Perhaps this story suggests a Jerry Springer-type scenario, but Thurber develops her characters with a compassionate eye and a sense of real-life humor that makes these happenings appear not so much sordid as pitiable.
Designer Walt Spangler's detailed setting for the family's shabby kitchen/living room is perfectly hideous with its grubby brown and yellow colors, mismatched plaids and battered furniture. Overflowing ashtrays, stray beer bottles and scarcely stashed litter reek of their slovenly existence. Composer Jason Mills' wired riffs of rock music and Jason Lyons' flaring lighting design divide the two-hour play's scenes with sharp bursts of energy.
Directing the play with sufficient taste to prevent all this from appearing too nasty, Jackson Gay has assembled a top-notch ensemble who bring the characters to life with effortless authenticity. The acting in general is typical of the Atlantic company's strongly physical approach to performance.
Johnston gives slapdash Martha an easy-breezy cheerfulness belied by a sense of animal cunning shared with Eisenberg's brooding Billy. Like his wife, Weiss' beery Herb -- a small-town hunk gone to pot -- proves not nearly as oblivious as he initially seems. Aside from a tendency to swallow some of her words, tiny, dark-haired Brandt offers a matter-of-fact yet touching presence as fatalistic Rachel.
Kiley's mousy Ellen, Weeks' loser of a Louie and Miriam Shor's cameo as Louie's strident wife are other capable turns.
Troubling though "Scarcity" may be, the expertise of the Atlantic's production and the intra-personal dependencies revealed by Thurber's story make for a thoroughly absorbing experience.
Michael Sommers may be reached at msommers(at)starledger.com or (212) 790-4434.
Lucy Thurber and Kate Fodor on domestic dysfunction.
by Hilton Als - October 1, 2007
In Lucy Thurber's "Scarcity" (an Atlantic Theatre Company production at the Linda Gross), the thirty-something Martha (Kristen Johnston) is a case study in co-dependence. She both fights for her life and hands it over to Herb (Michael T. Weiss), her husband of almost twenty years. Even as he lurches in and out of his crummy La-Z-Boy, swilling whiskey and sputtering obscenities, you can't take too seriously the invective that Martha hurls at him - mostly because she doesn't. Martha is rather thrilled by the fact that her man has retained his bad-boy swagger after all these years. In her eyes, Herb was, and still is, a catch'a Sean Penn type, without the conscience. She'll never tame him; nor does she want to. Part of what makes Herb hot to Martha, despite his alcohol-induced blackouts and his inability to take care of his family, is his physical strength and his verbal cruelty. Herb makes Martha feel both protected and put-upon, like a sexy martyr.
The slovenly king of his castle, Herb keeps all his minions at his beck and call - not only Martha but their prepubescent daughter, Rachel (Meredith Brandt), about whose body he makes leering comments, and their adolescent son, Billy (Jesse Eisenberg). The audience's first thoughts are: Will Martha and Herb's cycle of abuse and self-abuse cause irreparable damage to their children? And how did Martha and Herb devolve from the beauties they once must have been - they're both tall and rangy, with a kind of flickering charm that cuts through their funk - into these semi-adults who recoil from hope, like babies from curdled milk? Gone are the days when Herb and Martha were escapees from a Bruce Springsteen song, filled with possibility. Twenty minutes or so into their bickering, you realize how much the couple seem to enjoy the tune they can't get out of their heads. It goes like this: Despair, destruction, despair. Blessedly, Thurber never explains how Martha and Herb came to this pass. Johnston and Weiss manage to stitch their characters' past into their present behavior, and they act up a storm while doing it; too much expository dialogue would have left them less time to explore. [....]
One cannot say enough about the actors here, particularly Johnston and Weiss. They have voices that were made for radio - sonorous and intimate, then funny and full of life - and they use them to express the inner lives of their rapidly disintegrating characters, who bellow because they need to feel something, because they need to believe that someone in the world can hear them. [....]
Full article at the
Poor family, rich opportunity
Friday, September 21, 2007
By Robert Feldberg, Staff writer
I don't know much about Lucy Thurber, the author of "Scarcity," which opened Thursday night at the Atlantic Theater Company. But I would guess her play is autobiographical. It's too aware of the emotional lives of poor people to be pure fiction.
The setting is a poverty pocket in the green hills of western Massachusetts, where the children in a damaged family yearn to escape.
Mom Martha, played with lively vulgarity by Kristen Johnston ("3rd Rock From the Sun"), works long hours at a mall shop. Dad Herb (Michael T. Weiss) is an alcoholic who doesn't work at all.
Their time together is spent smoking, drinking, swearing and having noisy sex whose sound echoes through their shabby house.
The kids, 16-year-old Billy (Jesse Eisenberg) and 11-year-old Rachel (Meredith Brandt), are super-bright, which is a blessing and a curse for them.
It's their means of getting away, but it will also separate them from their parents, and each other.
Thurber appreciates the push and pull of family life, the complexities that outsiders don't see. Probing beneath the stereotype of poor, uneducated, self-destructive people, she finds recognizable humanity.
In their coarse way, Martha and Herb love their kids, and Martha, in particular, is proud of their achievements.
Herb is an amiable drunk, not a violent one. He doesn't abuse his wife -- if he raised a hand to the strapping Martha, she'd probably knock his block off -- or his kids. They accept him, almost casually, as he is.
In a totally unexpected scene, Martha and Herb share a rare quiet talk amid the hurlyburly. They recall their youth, their wedding day, and how attractive and hopeful they were back then. (Herb is still handsome.)
Realizing this interlude will soon disappear into the messiness of their lives, Herb says, "Soon it will be like we never talked." Martha says, "I miss you more than you will ever know."
It's a lovely, sad, remarkably touching moment.
The children, particularly Billy, don't come into as clear a focus as their parents.
We're constantly reminded how smart Billy is, but we never quite see it. In Jesse Eisenberg's performance, he comes across as a run-of-the-mill sullen, unhappy teenager.
The intelligence, and maturity, of Rachel -- who I would imagine is the author as a girl -- is more persuasive, even as she eerily pursues a hobby of reading tarot cards. She's played winningly by Meredith Brandt, although the young actress doesn't always project her lines clearly.
With the arrival of the character who shakes up the household, the play unfortunately skids off the tracks.
Ellen (Maggie Kiley), an attractive, stylish young teacher, has taken a shine to Billy, and it's not because of his test scores. ("Do you know how rare it is to be sensual and intelligent?" she asks him. "God, you think such beautiful thoughts!")
The character, a rich, fancy, city lady, seems totally foreign to Thurber, who conveys little sense she knows how such a woman would speak or behave. Ellen seems to have been plucked from a titillating tabloid story.
She woos Billy -- who is much more sophisticated sexually than she is -- by helping him transfer, on full scholarship, to an elite prep school, all the while babbling away in stilted language that kept the audience laughing. ("I loved New York ... the city that never sleeps ... I've always wanted to work in education. My father's a law professor at Harvard. I had offers from some really fine prep schools, but I wanted to feel like I was making a difference, you know?")
The playwright obviously despises Ellen, and she might have conceived her as satire, but I don't think so.
Billy's departure means leaving Rachel, with whom he'd made a pact to stick together. That abandonment is emphasized at the end of the evening, but the playwright hasn't defined their relationship strongly enough to give the moment much emotional clout.
"Scarcity," vigorously directed by Jackson Gay, is extremely uneven. It does, however, offer a vital, sympathetic look at lives not often portrayed in the theater.
E-mail: feldberg(at)northjersey.com
Theater Review
No 'Scarcity' of white trash in this play - Joe Dziemianowicz
Friday, September 21st 2007, 4:00 AM
Michael T. Weiss and Kristen Johnston play a couple who love to booze it up & have noisy sex in Lucy Thurber's 'Scarcity.' You're handed a Playbill when you arrive at "Scarcity."
You should get a squirt of Purell when you leave.
The urge to sanitize surges after watching the ugly antics Lucy Thurber has created in her new play, now open at the Atlantic Theater Co.'s Linda Gross Theater.
The story revolves around 16-year-old Billy (Jesse Eisenberg) and his 11-year-old sister, Rachel (Meredith Brandt), a couple of kids with high IQ's and two low-life parents, Martha (Kristen Johnston) and Herb (Michael T. Weiss).
The fight-prone Billy tries to use good grades and his adoring teacher, Ellen (Maggie Kiley), to get into boarding school. But it's a win-lose situation: If he escapes, Rachel's fate gets much bleaker.
Director Jackson Gay's production is brisk and energetic, and he has assembled a solid cast known from such TV shows as "The Pretender" and "3rd Rock From the Sun" and movies like "The Squid and the Whale."
Nonetheless, "Scarcity" is as gritty, insightful and subtle as "The Jerry Springer Show."
That TV freak fest seems to inform many of Thurber's characters, including Ellen, a well-educated rich girl with her own squalid issues.
Martha and Herb are the poster couple for cursing, chain-smoking, boozing white trash.
Martha won't hesitate to have noisy sex with Herb while their kids are within earshot. She's down with flirting with her cousin, Louie (Todd Weeks), so he'll keep paying her bills. Food stamps only go so far.
Herb can't resist informing Louie's wife, Gloria (Miriam Shor), she's got a fat rump, or, more chilling, telling daughter Rachel she has a "nice a- for a kid your age."
It might be gripping if we had a sense of how these people sank so low.
Beyond superficial characterizations, which causes the actors to push too hard, Thurber relies on a hoary device: Rachel reads tarot cards, and announces that she can't see her future. By the final fadeout, it, like everything in the play, is woefully obvious.
Off-Broadway review: Scarcity
By Michael Kuchwara, The Associated Press
September 22, 2007
New York - Forget you can't go home again. Some people have enough trouble just leaving the nest the first time.
Such a dilemma faces 16-year-old Billy, the troubled teen at the center of "Scarcity," Lucy Thurber's rambunctious tale of one poor, blue-collar family's convulsions over their son's quest for a better life.
The play, which opened Thursday at off-Broadway's Atlantic Theater Company, won't please folks of more refined, high-tone dramatic taste. "Scarcity," like most of its characters, is a bit messy, crude and rude. But it also is compulsively watchable.
Credit the outlandish dialogue and the gutsy cast, headed by Kristen Johnston and Michael T. Weiss, who portray the boisterous parents of two very circumspect children. Mom and Dad like to drink (especially Dad), have loud sex and often shout when delivering what should be normal conversation. "The trick, is kid, you've got to learn to ignore us," says Dad - not the kind of advice children should be receiving from their elders.
No wonder the offspring - super-bright Billy and his equally precocious 11-year-old sister, Rachel - seem to have a few quirks. Billy, in particular, suffers from spasms of uncontrollable violence. As played by the amazing, totally believable Jesse Eisenberg, he is an explosion waiting to happen.
When a young, pretty teacher (Maggie Kiley) takes an interest in Billy - too much as it turns out - the family begins to unravel even more. With the help of the teacher, the lad has a chance to attend a fancy prep school but first must get his parents' consent.
Billy's impending departure troubles his little sister (Meredith Brandt), a strange girl who is much more adult than the battling grown-ups around her. Rachel likes to tell fortunes and doesn't see much future in the bleak existence of her combative parents. She, too, longs to escape the confines of her life in a dreary, rural Massachusetts town.
Some of Thurber's melodramatic plot complications may be a little far-fetched, but the conversations ricochet nicely, particularly when the parents are fighting or when a cousin (Todd Weeks) and his sad-sack wife (Miriam Shor) show up to squabble on designer Walt Spangler's depressingly realistic kitchen-living room set.
Director Jackson Gay manages to corral the verbal fisticuffs when the bombast threatens to get out of control but, at the same time, she moves the plot along quite briskly.
Despite the broad strokes of the story, there is some nice shading by several of the actors. Johnston, in particular, portrays a mother who is fun-loving but savvy enough to know what her son needs to get ahead.
Still, she doesn't want anything to do with the upper-class woman who is helping him achieve those goals. Use her and get on with your life, this nonjudgmental mom seems to be saying. Practicality trumps all in the effort to succeed.
Also, if you go to Broadway Stars from Sept. 21, and scroll down to 'Scarcity', you'll find not only the audio slide show From Sketch to Stage - Walt Spangler narrates a look at the set he designed for the play "Scarcity", but also some more reviews, like from Curtain Up.

Theater Review | 'Scarcity' - Down-Home Dysfunction and Backwoods Perversity
by Charles Isherwood, published: September 21, 2007
"Rachel, get your father a beer and come sit on my lap," says the sodden dad to his 11-year-old daughter in Lucy Thurber's "Scarcity," an unconvincing and at times rancid slice of white-trash life that opened last night at the Atlantic Theater Company.

Meredith Brandt plays a girl trying to bring order to a dissolute household, and Michael T. Weiss plays her father, in "Scarcity."
Little Rachel, wise beyond her years and inured to Dad's inappropriate behavior, hands over a beer but declines to fulfill the rest of the request. This doesn't stop Daddy from making an admiring appraisal of Rachel's shapeliness. From the kitchen, Mother brays perfunctory disapproval while her cousin, who happens also to be the cop who brought Dad home in handcuffs, cleans the vomit off his uniform.
Just an average night in this beer-stained, cigarette-butt- ridden household in the hills of western Massachusetts, where Rachel (Meredith Brandt) and her 16-year-old brother, Billy (Jesse Eisenberg), do their best to bring discipline and order to the chaos in the living room, while Mom and Dad carry on like irresponsible teenagers. Martha (Kristen Johnston) actually holds down a job, but Herb (Michael T. Weiss) mostly holds a Jim Beam bottle in one hand and a Rolling Rock in the other. To pass the leisure hours they have noisy sex while the children listen in mournful and/or mortified silence in the living room.
For Billy at least, rescue from this aromatic squalor may be at hand. He has caught the affectionate eye of one of his teachers at the local "progressive" school, the prim-looking Miss Roberts (Maggie Kiley), who urges Billy to keep up the good work, and offers to help him apply for entry to a prestigious boarding school nearby.
But Miss Roberts is not as dainty as she appears, and would seem to have a little quid pro quo in mind. As they sit on the worn plaid couch discussing Billy's academic future, her weird conversation moves from genial cliché (New York is truly "the city that never sleeps," adolescence is "such an exciting time in one's life") to panting insinuations.
"You dream such beautiful dreams," she purrs dreamily, although this is news to the audience, since Billy seems to be a smart but otherwise unexceptional youngster. "You're so connected to your body. Do you know how rare it is to be sensual and intelligent?" Ick.
Ick, in fact, sums up my overall response to Ms. Thurber's academic-feeling foray into the underbrush of American culture. It's not that the workaday struggles and sufferings of the socioeconomic class Ms. Thurber aims to depict are of no intrinsic dramatic interest. Playwrights of various stripes, from Sam Shepard to Martin McDonagh and Tracy Letts, have found the diurnal traumas of the unlucky and insolvent to be fertile territory for both comedy and compassionate drama.
But Ms. Thurber's portrait of a food-stamp family in high dysfunctional mode almost never rings true, despite the careful use of double negatives and the attention paid to the usual earmarks of fictional American poverty, from Mom and Dad's affection for boozing and brawling to the bowling bag discreetly placed behind the vinyl recliner patched with duct tape. (The set design by Walt Spangler has at least a superficial authenticity.)
Tonally, the play veers unevenly from lowbrow insult comedy on the order of "Married ... With Children" - that wimpy cop cousin, Louie (Todd Weeks), and his browbeaten wife, Gloria (Miriam Shor), are the butt of much of the nastier humor - to sincere but forced attempts to engender sympathy for these emotionally endangered children and their benighted parents.
Rachel is preternaturally smart, just like her math-whiz brother. (She's read all of Jane Austen.) She also possesses a talent for prophecy, and is haunted by dreams of annihilation. And yet the character is also exploited for cheap laughs. When not dumbfounding Miss Roberts with her trenchant analysis of "Persuasion," Rachel rolls out expletive-ridden wisecracks and her own series of sour, malignant insults.
The inconsistencies in Ms. Thurber's characterizations are too many to enumerate, and implausibilities also abound. (At one point Billy marvels at the presence of a salad bar at the fancy academy he'll be attending; surely adolescents even in the uncultured wilds of Massachusetts are not so easily impressed.) Taking the prize for sheer inanity is the psychological composition of Miss Roberts, whose depiction as a clueless upper-crust do-gooder-cum-pedophile seems designed to immunize Ms. Thurber from accusations of class condescension.
Unsurprisingly, the director, Jackson Gay, never settles on a persuasive tone. The actors seem to have been left to make sense of their characters as best they can.
Mr. Eisenberg, so charming in the movie "The Squid and the Whale," is a capable and affecting actor, but his high-energy approach here - Billy is so keyed up he spends much of the play virtually on point in his running shoes - is overstated and at times distracting. Mr. Weiss manages to suggest there's a soul somewhere inside the loutish Herb, and Ms. Johnston, a naturally commanding presence and a sly comic actress, is dryly funny when she is not required to be simply shrill.
Best to pass over the game efforts of the unfortunate Ms. Kiley, who deserves the actor's equivalent of combat pay for her ludicrous role. I confidently hope that the gruesome scene in which Miss Roberts is mocked and degraded by both Billy and Rachel will be the most excruciating 10 minutes I spend at the theater this season.
SCARCITY
By Lucy Thurber; directed by Jackson Gay; sets by Walt Spangler; costumes by Ilona Somogyi; lighting by Jason Lyons; sound by Daniel Baker; music by Jason Mills; production stage manager, Marion Friedman; production manager, New Medium; general manager, Jamie Tyrol; associate artistic director, Christian Parker. Presented by the Atlantic Theater Company, Neil Pepe, artistic director; Andrew D. Hamingson, managing director. At the Linda Gross Theater, 336 West 20th Street, Chelsea; (212) 279-4200. Through Oct. 14. Running time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.
With: Meredith Brandt (Rachel), Jesse Eisenberg (Billy), Kristen Johnston (Martha), Maggie Kiley (Ellen Roberts), Miriam Shor (Gloria), Todd Weeks (Louie) and Michael T. Weiss (Herb).
Off Broadway
Scarcity
Kirsten Johnston, and Michael T. Weiss, star in 'Scarcity,' Lucy Thurber's sensitive portrayal of life on the wrong side of the tracks, directed by Jackson Gay.
(Linda Gross Theater; 165 seats; $55 Top)
By Marilyn Stasio
Posted: Thurs., Sep. 20, 2007, 6:00pm PT
New York - An Atlantic Theater Company presentation of a play in two acts by Lucy Thurber. Directed by Jackson Gay.
Rachel - Meredith Brandt
Martha - Kristen Johnston
Louie - Todd Weeks
Herb - Michael T. Weiss
Billy - Jesse Eisenberg
Miss Roberts - Maggie Kiley
Gloria - Miriam Shor
Every savvy theater company in town seems to want a piece of Lucy Thurber, whose painfully funny plays set in gritty Massachusetts factory towns have already made their mark at such venues as Playwrights Horizons and Manhattan Theater Club. The Atlantic Theater Company makes the most of its turn with helmer Jackson Gay's pitch-perfect production of "Scarcity," in which the scribe opens a fresh vein to expand on her signature theme of smart, sensitive young people struggling with the necessity of cutting ties with their low-class roots and loser towns.
Kristen Johnston ("The Lights," "3rd Rock From the Sun") heads up the well-oiled ensemble as Martha, a hard-working woman who survives on sheer grit, cheerfully holding down a slave-wage job at the local mall to keep her family intact and their heads above the poverty line.
As enthusiastic about marital sex (and the brawls that precede it) as she is sloppy about housekeeping, Martha is the sort of woman who shares her cigarettes with her 16-year-old son and tosses a beer to her husband after bailing him out of jail.
In a sitcom, Martha would be written and played for mean laughs. This complex character gets a much fairer shake from Thurber, who perceptively views her as an uneducated but intelligent woman who knows what's best for her family and makes it happen -- no matter the personal cost.
And in Johnston's acutely sympathetic portrayal, this earthy wife and understanding mother acquires a vital physical presence, coming alive as a really great broad with a lot of heart.
Of the comically clueless adults who orbit Martha's light-giving star, no one has an inkling of the good/bad changes that she can sense coming around the bend. Certainly not her quarrelsome cousin, Louie (Todd Weeks), who is forever bursting through the door -- often pursued by his slatternly wife, Gloria (Miriam Shor) -- in the vain hope of jumping her bones.
And surely not Martha's worthless husband, Herb (Michael T. Weiss), a slovenly if still sexy wreck of a man in Weiss' brawny (and subversively brainy) performance, who drinks when he's happy and drinks when he's sad and clings to his wife and kids for confirmation of his essential worth.
Herb may be dumb and dangerously prone to violence, but as Weiss reads his fogged-up mind in flashes of startling insight, he's not stupid or insensitive. Like those inarticulate lower-class characters in Beatles song narratives, the big dope can even be eloquent. "You remember me, don't you?" he asks Martha, in a quiet, beautifully written moment between fights and sex. "I'm counting on you. I might as well be dead, otherwise."
Martha's response -- "I miss you more than you will ever know " -- is every bit as devastating.
Although it's normal to expect any kids of this turbulent union to be carbon copies of their elders, Martha and Herb have produced two preternaturally smart children who are protective of their parents in the way that children who grow up in dysfunctional households tend to be.
These kids are not only smart, they're clever. Sneaking in and out of the house like a thief, Billy (Jesse Eisenberg in a tightly coiled perf) is secretly plotting his escape by seducing Miss Roberts (Maggie Kiley), a young teacher with the connections to get him a scholarship to Deerfield Academy. In Billy's desperation to get away from home, he is abandoning Rachel (Meredith Brandt), his much brainier but defenseless 11-year-old sister.
As young Brandt plays her -- with fierce intelligence behind a facade of little-girl goofiness -- Rachel is way ahead of everyone in the family, but unable to be a proper caretaker for any one, including herself. And with Billy running out on her, her best chance for survival is to make an end run at Miss Roberts herself.
Thurber writes with both humor and pathos about this household, whose family values of love and loyalty are constantly put to the test in an environment of poverty, ignorance and casual violence.
Behind the snappy dialogue and brazenly comic characterizations, she also shows genuine tenderness toward people who rarely get that kind of treatment on the stage. And that's all reason enough to peg this scribe as a keeper.
Sets, Walt Spangler; costumes Ilona Somogyi; lighting, Jason Lyons; sound, Daniel Baker; original music, Jason Mills; production stage manager, Marion Friedman. Opened Sept. 20, 2007. Reviewed Sept. 13. Running time: 1 hour, 50 min. Date in print: Fri., Sep. 21, 2007, Gotham

Growing Up and Breaking Out
by Eric Grode - September 21, 2007
As Stephen once wrote for a youngster growing up under treacherous circumstances, Little Red Ridinghood, "Isn't it nice to know a lot? / And a little bit not."
Earlier in Sondheim's "Into The Woods," Little Red also points out that "nice is different than good." Current case in point: the shambolic yet oddly affectionate family at the center of "Scarcity," Lucy Thurber's engrossing look at ambition and ambivalence on the wrong side of the tracks. Little Red's moral distinction is borne out by each and every of Ms. Thurber's cantankerous family members - including another little girl growing up quicker than she'd prefer.
Herb (Michael T. Weiss) may return to his western Massachusetts home in handcuffs many nights, ushered by his cop cousin-in-law, Louie (Todd Weeks), and the dialogue between him and his wife, Martha (Kristen Johnston, who adds a bruised melancholy to her usual comic persona with remarkable ease), frequently devolves into paint-blistering profanity. But the family members all seem to make an effort, however shortsighted or even perverse, to act in the interests of the others. That includes their two kids, 16-year-old Billy (Jesse Eisenberg) and his precocious younger sister, Rachel (Meredith Brandt), both of whom appear to have a lot more IQ points than they do options. Billy is having a particularly hard time reconciling his rough-hewn background with his newfound options at the Progressive school. This struggle draws him into a dangerously close relationship with Miss Roberts (Maggie Kiley), an attractive young Ivy League graduate looking to study how the other half learns. Ms. Thurber and director Jackson Gay have crafted an uncomfortable yet eminently watchable Northeastern Gothic out of the mutually beneficial but nonetheless treacherous relationship between Miss Roberts, with her toxic strain of "noble savage" condescension, and the volatile Billy, who is exploding with a desire to get into a boarding school and out of that house. Walt Spangler's set and Ilona Somogyi's costumes certainly help make his case. From Louie's vomit-caked uniform (courtesy of Herb) to the duct-taped recliner to the generic can of cola that Billy uses to treat a black eye (Martha forgot to refill the ice tray), the aesthetic is one of benign neglect personified. "You come out to towns like this, and it's as if time stood still," Miss Roberts naivety gushes to Billy, who clearly would have chosen a different hour to stop the clock.
As strong as Ms. Thurber's ear is for the upheavals of family life in close quarters, both before and after the intrusion of this moneyed interloper, the author has a tendency to drown out these gentler, truer chords with metaphors. This holds especially true for Rachel's incessant manipulation of her Tarot cards, an unnecessary extension of the author's fatalism. "Scarcity" has strong, messy, vibrant characters, the sort who could and would make their needs known without resorting to these sorts of devices.
But while their needs are occasionally overstated, their motivations remain pleasingly inscrutable. It's never clear whether Billy's feelings toward Miss Roberts are affectionate or confused or purely mercenary, and this seems somehow appropriate. Adolescence isn't known for its emotional exactitude, and Ms. Thurber and Mr. Gay are wise to back off on the specifics. (They are fortunate enough to have in Mr. Eisenberg a young actor more than capable of juggling these intricate feelings.) Some of the dynamics among Herb, Martha, and the covetous Louie delve into similarly oblique nooks and crannies, and the overall impression is of a messed-up family being true to one another in their fashion.
"The trick is, kid, you've got to learn to ignore us," Herb uselessly counsels Rachel after one blowup. "If you can, just learn to do that; you'll be okay." It is her and Billy's curse, of course, that this is impossible. And while forgetting Herb, Martha, and their raucous brood may be more feasible for the rest of us, I wouldn't recommend it.
Until October 14 (336 W. 20th St., between Eighth and Ninth avenues, 212-239-6200).
Odd Trailer-park Sentiments & Sensitivity
by Frank Scheck
Rating: 2 ** (out of 4)
September 21, 2007 -- An updated spin on "Tobacco Road" as filtered through Sam Shepard, Lucy Thurber's "Scarcity," which opened last night, depicts the desperate lives of a rural family in western Massachusetts.
Married couple Martha (Kristen Johnston) and Herb (Michael T. Weiss) are barely making ends meet, what with his spending more time drinking than seeking employment and her stuck working endless hours in a dead-end job.
Their sensitive children, 11-year-old Rachel (Meredith Brandt) and her older brother, Billy (Jesse Eisenberg, from "The Squid and the Whale"), are clearly intelligent, but their futures, unlike those of the "rich kids on the hill," look dubious.
That is, until Billy's teacher (Maggie Kiley, from upcoming "We Own the Night") takes him under her wing, helping him procure a scholarship to a prestigious prep school. Unfortunately, as was the case with such infamous teachers as Mary Kay Letourneau, she's not just focused on the boy's education.
Billy's parents aren't entirely opposed to the situation if it will help their boy, but that's in keeping with their general level of behavior. Herb is fond of making such observations as "You've got a nice ass for a kid your age" to his young daughter while Martha fights off the advances of her lecherous married cousin (Todd Weeks) even while subtly encouraging them.
But while the play offers no shortage of luridly fun moments - the performers are clearly having a great time diving into their juicy roles - it never quite settles on what it wants to be.
Shifting awkwardly between Gothic caricature and sensitive character exploration (most notably in its well-drawn depiction of the sexually troubled teacher), it fails on both levels, lacking the necessary outrageousness for the former and the insight for the latter.
Director Jackson Gay is ultimately unable to reconcile the work's conflicting elements, with the result that the real scarcity here is that of substance.
Scarcity
Reviewed By: Dan Bacalzo, Sep 21, 2007
Kristen Johnston, Michael T. Weiss, and Jesse Eisenberg give strong, nuanced performances in the world premiere of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, which is getting its world premiere at the Atlantic Theater Company's Linda Gross Theater. While the play, directed by Jackson Gay, is compelling, it's marred by a few significant flaws.
Scarcity is set in a small town in Western Massachusetts, where Martha (Johnston) works hard to support her family with little help from her alcoholic deadbeat husband Herb (Weiss). She is occasionally assisted with bill paying and groceries by her cousin Louie (Todd Weeks), who makes no secret of his amorous intentions towards her, despite his being married to Gloria (Miriam Shor).
Martha and Herb's children, 16-year-old Billy (Eisenberg) and 11-year-old Rachel (Meredith Brandt), are both intellectually gifted, but are constantly in danger of being stifled by their home life. Billy bottles up his anger, which still manifests in fist fights with classmates, and longs for a chance to escape. The attentions of his teacher Ellen (Maggie Kiley) offer him an opportunity to transfer to an out-of-town private school, but her interest goes beyond the bounds of propriety.
Thurber sets up her action in an engaging manner, and the central four-person family unit is well-defined. Johnston is wonderful as Martha, bringing a warmth to the character -- particularly in her more comedic moments -- but also displaying a strength of will that makes her dangerous. Martha knows what compromises she needs to make in the best interests of her family, but she'll only allow herself to be pushed so far. Weiss manages the difficult feat of making Herb utterly detestable (the inappropriate comments he makes about his daughter are particularly nauseating), yet still pathetically sympathetic.
Eisenberg lets Billy's emotions simmer just underneath the surface, occasionally exploding into a rage, or clamping down to avoid doing just that. While Billy manipulates Ellen for his own ends, we never lose sight of his own vulnerability and how much it may be costing him to act the way that he does. Brandt still needs to work on her vocal projection and enunciation, but she succeeds in making us care about Rachel, and the young girl's uncertain fate at the end of the play seems the most tragic.
Unfortunately, Thurber is not as adept at fleshing out the remaining characters, or making their actions completely legible. Ellen, in particular, is an enigma -- perhaps due to the fact that Kiley seems completely miscast. Several times in the script, characters make disparaging remarks about Ellen's appearance, yet Kiley is not only beautiful, she also comes across as superbly sophisticated. If she were more of a plain Jane or downright ugly and socially awkward, then her improper conduct towards Billy might seem more dramatically sound. Even then, the character as written seems woefully underdeveloped.
Shor makes the most of a rather minor role, bringing a humanity to Gloria's sullen resentment of Martha, which could easily slip into caricature. On the other hand, Weeks comes on too strong as Louie. True, the character is a jerk, but the actor doesn't need to drive the point home in as broad a manner as he does.
The most troubling aspect of the play, however, is an inconsistency of tone. There's a sit-com-like feel to several of the scenes that undermines the work's more serious intent. Thurber's goal seems to be to capture the fears and desires of this family that needs to fight to escape the pitfalls of its economic circumstances. Gay's direction mines the play's dark humor, but the audience often seems to be laughing at these lower-class characters in a way that is very problematic.
Scarcity
Theatre Review by Matthew Murray, 9-20-07
There's not much voting, you'll meet no Presidential candidates, and for all the characters we meet "red" and "blue" are colors and not ideologies. Nonetheless, Scarcity stakes an early claim to the title of the best political play of the 2008 campaign - and maybe the 2007-2008 theatre season.
Lucy Thurber's probing drama is receiving only an adequate production at the Atlantic Theater Company under Jackson Gay's direction, but the subtleties and exigencies of living life on the brink burn brightly through their everyday surroundings. Centering on a family living just above the poverty line in western Massachusetts, Scarcity dissects and vivisects the concerns of the lower class and the upper crust that's always so certain it knows better.
Martha (Kristen Johnston), who works 50 hours a week at a dead-end job, is married to the alcoholic and unemployable Herb (Michael T. Weiss), much to the chagrin of local lawman Louie (Todd Weeks), who's long harbored a crush on Martha and frequently has to return a drunken Herb to her in handcuffs. Martha and Herb's children are the brilliant Billy (Jesse Eisenberg), who just started at a new high school for gifted students, and Rachel (Meredith Brandt), who wants to accelerate herself there immediately and skip some four grades in the process. Those goals might be attainable, however, with the help of first-time-out teacher Ellen (Maggie Kiley), who's taken an interest both in Billy's future and in Billy himself.
Yet this is no soap opera, in which easy relationships are examined with a tidy, numbing predictability. Self-esteem and patience, like money, are in lethally short supply, and no one is willing to waste what few moments they have left on things bereft of meaning. For Billy this means taking what he can while the taking is good, regardless of whom he has to leave behind. Rachel's obsession with things yet to be takes the form of a deck of tarot cards she wields with the threatening prowess of a switchblade, and results that are often as bloody. Louie sees no future without Martha; Louie's cast-aside wife Gloria (Miriam Shor) sees no future with her. Martha's lucky if she can see anything at all, and Herb only seems to have eyes for Rachel.
All the foresight and myopia converge in the young-old-money Ellen, whose condescending do-gooding - with the best of intentions and the worst of results - suavely underscores the tension of a nation in which no one wishes to be told how they must live. Progress is not for everyone; learning to cope with the inertia of existence is all that some can hope for. With very little fanfare, Thurber's play explores each of the characters tendencies toward motion or inaction, focusing with abrasive clarity on what they need to be happy - or just merely be. The only curse, which hovers above everyone in Scarcity, is not being able to live up to whatever your potential is.
This is made clear only in one scene, set in the wake of an explosive card night with Louie and Gloria, in which Martha tearfully contemplates the disintegration of her life as lived with Herb. Johnston progresses so gradually and so naturally from elation to despair in recollecting her faded beauty that she momentarily recalls Amanda Wingfield from The Glass Menagerie: the woman of promise who's faded into irrelevance. A few other isolated moments, related to Louie's decibel-heavy exclamations drawing on his sexual rage or Gloria's dissatisfaction with the life he's given her, suggest deeper explorations of these characters deceptively normal problems.
Otherwise, the performances tend to derive from stridency, skirting dangerously close to the realm of the Bundy clan from TV's Married With Children. But Thurber's group isn't made up of laughable losers - their plight is real, the children's need to escape from it for purposes of survival is genuine. In Gay's production, only Walt Spangler's cluttered tract-housing set reinforces the pressures toward conformity that alternately energize and enervate these people. Everything else serves as a form of commenting on them, including the lighting (by Jason Lyons) that employs enough flash-bulb effects to make you feel their life is the subject of a newspaper expose on the silent victims of President Bush's tax cuts.
But Martha, Herb, and the rest don't need to be explained with the theatrical equivalents of quotation marks. They speak for themselves, their pride (or shame) of place telling us all we need to know about who they are and where they are (or are not) going. Scarcity, left to its own devices, is a bracing and compelling portrait of Middle America in crisis. But too often, this production - like Ellen - reminds us exactly why the meddling of outsiders can be far more dangerous than the problems we bring on ourselves.
Scarcity
September 20, 2007
By Paul Menard
It would be hard to argue that the premiere of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity at Atlantic Theater Company isn't topical. With America's rural communities currently experiencing a critical mass exodus of educated youth -- known as "rural flight" -- Thurber's explosive family drama about a brother and sister longing to escape poverty in small-town Massachusetts certainly is relevant.
Unfortunately, it's also predicable; while the topic may be timely, Thurber's gifted-boy-trying-to-escape-small-town story line sadly has very little to say that's actually new. Martha (3rd Rock From the Sun's Kristen Johnston) is the frazzled matriarch of her low-income family, working 50 hours a week at her dead-end job while her 16-year-old son, Billy (The Squid and the Whale's Jesse Eisenberg), and precocious 11-year-old daughter, Rachel (Meredith Brandt), essentially raise themselves. Faced with an alcoholic, out-of-work father and a dependency on food stamps, Billy plans his escape out of his impoverished home and into an exclusive prep school.
Combining rough-and-tumble naturalism with violent outbursts worthy of Cops reruns, Scarcity presents characters at their breaking points. Like a trailer-park Three Sisters, Thurber's well-drawn characters may dream of getting to the big city but are often unwilling or unable to change their situations. Though it's thankfully injected with Thurber's charmingly offbeat humor -- delivered with deadpan hilarity by the young Brandt -- Scarcity never offers any real insights, opting instead for clichés about low-income America.
Director Jackson Gay keeps the production reined in -- perhaps a bit too tightly -- and, like Thurber, goes for easy choices, such as momentum-crippling blackouts. And though Scarcity boasts an impressive cast, the performances are disappointingly spotty. Still, Johnston is an appropriately earthy and charming Martha, while Michael T. Weiss brings a surprising likability to Herb, Billy's drunken father. But for all its engaging moments, Scarcity remains a dissatisfying exercise in which opportunities for real depth are a bit, well, scarce.

Toi - toi - toi tonight!

Broadway.com Q & A with Kristen Johnston
by Robert Sandla
When the lights come up on the first scene of Scarcity, the new play by Lucy Thurber at the Atlantic Theater Company, Kristen Johnston is slumped on a faded couch looking like her hair hasn't met the contents of shampoo bottle in some time. Johnston brings a riveting commitment and physicality to Martha, a character that ricochets between maternal warmth and breathtaking selfishness. It's a far cry from the riotously funny sexpot alien Sally Solomon in the long-running NBC series Third Rock from the Sun, a role that earned her two Emmy Awards. Johnston has made a clutch of Hollywood films, among them the underrated Music and Lyrics and the daft Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, in which she played one Ivana Humpalot, a character with a name that captures something key about the actress: She's a smart, sexy woman who is in on the joke. But if Johnston is famous for her TV and film work, it's theater that she loves best. Her association with Atlantic began two decades ago with a performance in The Lights that snagged her a Drama Desk nomination. Recent off-Broadway credits - The Baltimore Waltz, Aunt Dan and Lemon and a Central Park production of Much Ado About Nothing opposite Jimmy Smits - show off her range, and Johnston made her West End stage debut last fall in Love Song. Broadway.com recently caught up with the witty, affable actress for a candid chat about her life and career.
Q: Let's talk about Martha in Scarcity. What drew you to this role in this play?
KJ: Every year, Neil [Pepe, artistic director at the Atlantic Theater Company] asks me, "What are you doing? Are you available for some theater? Do you want to do something with us?" Theater is something I don't take lightly. You're working onstage every single night, and it's absolutely the hardest job in terms of what we do as actors. When I decide to do a play, I meet the director, meet the playwright, and I ask tons of questions. With this play, I just couldn't say no. Lucy Thurber's voice is something you don't hear often. It's really raw and unstudied; it comes from some visceral part of her body. Her voice is dark and twisted and deeply funny.
Q: She's a tough cookie, this character, not really sympathetic.
KJ: When I read the play, I realized that Martha is somebody I don't know. I've done Shakespeare, and I felt I knew those women. I get Beatrice [in Much Ado About Nothing]. She's single and lonely and witty and much more. I didn't know the woman in Scarcity. I have a little house in a corner of Connecticut, and this is the woman who packs my groceries up there. I don't personally know her.
Q: So what happened during the rehearsal process?
KJ: It's been an amazing experience. We start rehearsing, and it turns out that I completely know this woman [laughs]. The producer and director saw it in me. I get her now and love her very much. She's doing the best she can with what she has. There's something about her lust for life and her passion that I connect with. On the other hand, she beats her kids. She tells her son he's going to be great - and then she hits him. It's not sane, it's not okay. Hopefully, that is tempered by the fact that she is a loving person. At least we understand where she's coming from. She's totally in love with an alcoholic [played by Michael T. Weiss]. I know a lot about alcoholism; there was a lot in my family. When you have that in your life growing up, you're constantly on guard, watching to see if it's going to be a good day or a bad day. Martha is one of those women whose life changes on a dime. Somebody brings home ten dollars and it's a great night. Someone comes in drunk and it's shitty.
More about her other acting experiences here:
Caught in the Act!
Thursday September 20, 2007 06:00 AM EDT
Kate Winslet, dressed stylishly in all black, with husband Sam Mendes, taking in the off-Broadway show Scarcity at the Atlantic Theatre Company in New York. "She looked very pretty - like she was part of an arty crowd," an observer says.

Fade, an Anthony Stagliano film, invites you to join us at the Illinois International Film Festival, on Sept 14th at noon, at the Arcada Theater, 105 E. Main Street, St. Charles, Illionios.
Mr. Stagliano will be in attendance for a Q&A session that day.

Fade features a moving final performance from David Connolly (Thirteen Conversations about One Thing) who tragically passed away in the fall of 2006. Sarah Lassez (Nowhere, The Blackout, Mad Cowgirl) also offers a captivating performance along with appearances by Michael T. Weiss (TV's Pretender, Jeffery, Until the Night), and special guests Anthony Drazan (director of Hurlyburly and Zebrahead, in his debut performance), and Devon Odessa (TV's My So Called Life). Fade also features music from improvisational legends AMM, Art Bears, Ginnungagap, and original music by Cameron Presley (Upsilon Acrux) and Hollis Lee (Midnight Sun).
www.fadefilm.com
www.illinoisinternationalfilmfestival.com

Note from Tony on the New York premiere: Michael was unable to attend.

100 Plays (or Less) You Should Know: A Preview of the Fall Off-Broadway Season
by Robert Simonson - 10 Sep 2007

Meredith Brandt, Kristen Johnston, Jesse Eisenberg and Michael T. Weiss in Scarcity. Photo by Doug Hamilton. Click on it to enlarge.

The ties that bind interfere, too, with the aspirations of the two siblings in Lucy Thurber's new work, Scarcity, set to begin the Atlantic Theatre Company's season when it opens Sept. 20. This is particularly true for Billy, who is given the chance to leave his rural New England town and attend a different school. Kristen Johnston is among the cast. That world premiere is followed at the Atlantic by another: Trumpery by Peter Parnell, beginning Nov. 14.

As already mentioned, official reviews and photos from the play won't show up prior to the premiere of "Scarcity" on September 20, so another excited fan was kind enough to share her thoughts. Her photos with a seemingly happy Michael (wearing her gifts) have been added to the Pictures gallery.
Melissa:
The actor/actress' have the ability the draw you into each scene as though your were apart of the family that is struggling to survive one day at a time.
Martha (Kirsten Johnston) is an assistant manager at the mall, and yet she relies on food stamps to keep food on the table. Her money doesn't go towards the bills or other necessities that her family needs. Her money strictly provides an abundances of boozes and cigarettes for her husband and herself ... nothing more.
While Herb (Michael T. Weisss) on the hand drinks from dawn to dusk. His emotions he keeps hidden for his family, however occasionally his face tells all, which he makes sure that, they never see by turning his head away or waiting until their back is to him or the other way around. Herb tells it like it is, to those that are around him ... as does Martha when the moment arises.
Louie (Todd Weeks) Martha's, cousin, pays their bills, buys groceries for them, rescues, Herb, on a daily bases and makes sure that he never gets arrested. Louie, lets his feeling be known to Martha as to where he stands whether, Herb, is present or not, for he could care less.
Needless to say, the kids are basically on their own ... Billy (Jesse Eisenberg) is always stressed out ... he is basically on the borderline of truly going insane if he can't find a way out of his predicament ... therefore seeking help from his teacher, Ellen (Maggie Kiley) which in turn makes them become emotion and psychically attracted to one another.
Rachel (Meredith Brandt) is more like her father, for she too hides her emotions from everyone, that is until the time comes when she realizes that her brother, Billy, is leaving her behind.
Gloria (Miram Shor) too struggles to keep her and her other-half together, for she deep down inside has always known what her husband feelings are concerning Martha. She lets her feeling be known one night while, they are at Martha and Herb's house playing cards and the fight begins which in turn is a forgone conclusion ...
You never know from one moment to the next what is going to happen next. Each minute that passes by you will find yourself doing one of the following: Laughing, sighing or find your eyes brimming with tears, you too are caught up in the moment, feeling their feelings, anger, desires, desperation, happiness, sadness, trapped in a world that they cannot or chose not to dig their way out of the hole, that they had let themselves fall into.
The ending too me was very emotional, there wasn't anything that one can do or say to change the facts that the family was faced with.
So, life will continue on for them the way it has for many years, live and let live as they so choose to do.

Taken from an interview of Steven Long Mitchell and Craig Van Sickle with 'Slice of SciFi' from Sept. 7, 2007, about their upcoming mini-series "Tin Man", where they were also asked about the chances of a third movie for "The Pretender". Although nothing new, they say this since the tP Con 2001:
SoSF: As a team, you have been credited with a number of television series including NBC's highly rated "The Pretender" as executive producers during its five year run. What inspired that particular project or concept?
SLM: That was a labor of love and a script that was originally an "expect" pilot, which rarely happens in television where you develop outside the studio or network system. What really inspired it was the idea of a character could be a hero as everyone in life is searching for their identity and how we fit in, we wanted a hero who would be searching for his identity but who also could have any identity he wanted, but didn't know who he was. We wanted a hero that could come into your life and learn things from you by helping you and in his own way be helping himself. There's a movie that Tony Curtis did called "The Great Impostor," which is based on a book by a guy named Ferdinand Demara, which was a great inspiration to us but then we also had a system the C.I.A. had in the early 50s that we built upon as well.
CSV: It was called the "Genius Project." They would take genius kids and basically bring them into the C.I.A. In the morning they would teach them the regular math, reading, all that stuff and in the afternoon they would have them play games like thermo-nuclear war. They would literally brain pick ideas out of these genius kids that later on actually did become C.I.A. hardware, operations tactics and what not. So we thought that would be interesting to have a genius who could do a lot of different things and knew about everything there was to know because that's the environment he was raised in and just the idea of the fantasy of a lead TV character that could become anybody he wanted to be. We just felt it would be an interesting series franchise and had a great time doing it. Our fans still clabber for the answers because we never closed "The Pretender" out. We will just say to them please be patient, it�s going to happen, hopefully soon.
SLM: And will happen in relationship to "Strange Highway."
SoSF: Thank you gentlemen. Another Slice of SciFi scoop, oh, that will be great!
SLM: We will continue the story line of this digitally on the web.

As official reviews and photos from the play won't show up prior to the premiere of "Scarcity" on September 20, some fans were kind enough to share their thoughts and experiences.
Karin, a French fan of Michael T. Weiss, and Marty, an American theatre buff, attended early previews in late August 07, and both allowed me to quote them and use photos they have taken with Michael after the show.
As some of you might already know, I am technically challenged, so I had asked a friend for assistance with the photos, and Renate of bean-land.de kindly pushed her other duties aside to help me out! Thanks a lot!!

First photos of Michael in New York.

Karin:
He is really talented for the achieved to sell his Valmont to a French woman [in 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses']. I would have been so devastated if he'd messed up the part. But he was incredible, far beyond my expectations!! Outstanding performance. The whole thing was really good indeed, for you just can't be good on your own. Shame there seems not so many opportunities for him so far to express his acting in different directions. The character of Herb in this play is similar to others past roles if you see what I mean. Not that he is not his usual best, but some directors should consider using his tremendous versatile abilities which make him a rather unique actor.
Best regards, Karin
---
Marty:
I have to say that Scarcity is the most interesting play I have seen in some time. It is brilliantly written, and never over your head. When watching it, you feel like you've met these people in your life. It is gritty, ugly, and real. I was really was amazed.
Great writing is nothing without a great cast, and Scarcity certainly has that. Kristen Johnston is fantastic as Martha. It was surreal for me to see her in such a heavy dramatic role after only seeing her in comedies up to this point. She pulls it off perfectly.
Michael T. Weiss is equally brilliant as the retch of a father and husband Herb. It was a huge departure from the clean cut roles he played on The Pretender and Profiler.
Jesse and Meredith were great as the children. Meredith really has talent beyond her years.
I also think that Maggie Kiley is brilliant at the attentive teacher Ellen. I wish I had a teacher like that in school.
Todd Weeks and Miriam Shor are the a great feuding couple, a perfect match.
Everything comes to a head in the final 10 minutes of this emotionally charged play.
I can hardly believe things worked out the way they did either. The cast came out pretty quickly after the show. I only waited there about 15 minutes total. It's a small theater in the middle of a residential block in Chelsea (a former church, absolutely beautiful) so there was really only one way out.
See more of Marty's impressions about the play, and more of his photos with other cast members at the WitchesOfOz-Board.

Toi - toi - toi!

Weiss Guy
TV star Michael T. Weiss makes his long-awaited Off-Broadway debut in the Atlantic Theater Company's Scarcity.
By: Brian Scott Lipton, Aug 29, 2007
Broadway producers may be chomping at the bit to put television and film stars into their shows, but Off-Broadway, it's still about getting the best person for the part. So despite two decades of stardom on the West coast, including the lead in long-running NBC series The Pretender and playing Steve in the film version of Paul Rudnick's Jeffrey, Michael T. Weiss was willing to not just audition -- but to put himself on tape and fly to New York on his own dime -- to land the role of Herb in Lucy Thurber's dark comedy Scarcity, which begins previews at the Atlantic Theater Company on August 29.
"Auditioning is a good thing; it keeps you humble," he says sincerely. "People have this whole preconception of what it means to be a television and movie guy. But if you want something, then you have to go for it."
In Scarcity, which marks the actor's Off-Broadway debut, Weiss plays the alcoholic father of two teenagers in a depressed rural Massachusetts town, one of whom is given the opportunity to escape. "I've spent a lot of my career playing heroes, like Jared in The Pretender, but playing part of a dysfunctional family is more interesting," he says. "My character has given up all hope for himself, but he still has hope for his children, which is a weird and sad place to get to."
Weiss also sees a larger message in Thurber's work. "The play is really about how hard it is to rise above your socioeconomic position," he adds. "I've always felt very blessed and lucky in the world, and I have great compassion for people who struggle to get through the day. Sometimes, you have to remind yourself that some people are just trying to find something to eat."
Weiss said he did some research to play an alcoholic -- although not hitting the bottle every few minutes -- and discovered some interesting things about those afflicted with the disease. "I learned that many of them drink to medicate themselves. They think they'll feel better; they don't do it to feel worse. Still, it gets the better of many people in the long run," he notes. "And in the kind of small towns like this play is set in, drinking is one of the only things available to do."
The actor isn't the only "big name" in the cast; his wife is played by Emmy Award winner (and stage veteran) Kristen Johnston and his son by rising movie star Jesse Eisenberg, who will be seen next month opposite Richard Gere in The Hunting Party. "Kristen is so much fun, fun, fun; but she's also incredibly hard-working. And Jesse is just great," says Weiss. "I love being in rehearsal with them, and Lucy, and our director Jackson Gay. In theater, everyone's head is in the right place; it's about the craft and the work. To me, there's nothing better than spending all day in a room working with smart people on great material. Sometimes, I wish you could never stop rehearsing."
That sentiment isn't totally surprising from someone who was a child actor in his native Chicago, who had dreams of a stage career in New York. However, Weiss decided to go to college at U.S.C. -- where his classmates included Ally Sheedy, Anthony Edwards, and Forest Whittaker -- and he was quickly discovered by Hollywood while performing in a local showcase.
He's worked steadily there for nearly 20 years, finally coming east to appear on stage at Boston's Huntington Theater Company in their productions of Burn This in 2004 and Les Liaisons Dangereuses in 2006, both under the aegis of his friend Nicholas Martin. "Hollywood sucks you in," he says. "That other coast just kept me very busy for a long time."
Considering his success, one would imagine Weiss would never consider giving up acting. "I think about it every morning when I wake up," he says with a laugh. "But it's in my blood, so I don't think I will ever stop, even if it is a crazy way to make a living. However, I've been doing mixed-media artwork for the past few years, and that keeps me sane. There was a show of some of my work in L.A. recently and everything sold out in four hours."
As for what's ahead after Scarcity -- be it another Off-Broadway show or another hit TV series -- the 45-year-old actor says anything is possible. "I love New York, so all I need is another good reason to stay. But that doesn't mean I wouldn't do another television series. Right now, my standard is that I won't do anything that I'm not proud of," he says. "But the other nice thing about being my age is you realize the importance of living in the moment. I don't have the energy anymore to spend all this time thinking about what things might mean in the big scheme of life. I just want to do good work."

Family Rocked When Opportunity Knocks in World Premiere, Scarcity, at Atlantic Theater
By Kenneth Jones, 29 Aug 2007

Photo by Steve Shevett. Click on it to enlarge.
l.t.r: Maggie Kiley, Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Johnston, Michael T. Weiss, Meredith Brandt, Miriam Shor and Todd Weeks in rehearsal for Scarcity.

The world premiere of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, a drama of familial loyalty, class status and personal aspirations, starts Aug. 29 at the Atlantic Theater Company's Off-Broadway home, with Kristen Johnston among cast members.
The new work - marking Thurber's Atlantic debut - opens Sept. 20 for a run through Oct. 14. The troupers directed by Jackson Gay include Atlantic members Johnston ("Third Rock From the Sun," Atlantic's The Lights), Maggie Kiley (Atlantic's The Lesson, Frame 312) and Todd Weeks (Atlantic's The Voysey Inheritance, Broadway's Full Monty) and Meredith Brandt, Jesse Eisenberg ("The Squid and the Whale"), Miriam Shor (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and Michael T. Weiss (NBC's "The Pretender," the feature film "Jeffrey").
"Set in rural western Massachusetts, Scarcity tells the tale of two siblings [Meredith Brandt and Jesse Eisenberg] whose aspirations to escape the confines of poverty and small town life come into direct conflict with their sense of family responsibility," according to Atlantic notes. "When 16-year-old Billy [Eisenberg] is afforded an opportunity to change schools and move out of town by an unusually attentive young teacher, his family [parents Kristen Johnston and Michael T. Weiss] starts to unravel around him. This raw, emotionally rich world premiere new drama from playwright Lucy Thurber explores the stark reality of how class in America shapes our very image of ourselves."
Without giving too much away, Thurber told Playbill.com, "Scarcity is about the pull between the loyalty you feel for your family and the loyalty you feel towards your own personal dreams."
Stories about American family life are so often focused on the middle class, upper middle class or the rich. Did Thurber go into Scarcity specifically wanting to look at poverty and class, or did the family come first and their "situation" come second?
"I'm not sure how to separate the two," Thurber said. "Scarcity is about a family that is living in poverty. I wanted to write a play about love, loyalty and the culture of poverty in rural America, the family and the scarcity model are intertwined."
In the play, the family lives below the poverty line, and accepts welfare. "My first four plays are about class in America," Thurber said. "There are so many un-seen subcultures in America and I happened to grow up among the rural poor [in western Massachusetts]. I wanted to write stories about the people I loved growing up and the people I left behind in the country."
The play's original title was Innocence is a Sin, "which was a horrible and heavy-handed title," she said, adding, "I changed the title to Scarcity because of this definition: In economics, scarcity is defined as 'a condition of limited resources and unlimited wants and needs.' In other words, society does not have sufficient resources to produce enough to fulfill subjective wants. Alternatively, scarcity implies that not all of society's goals can be attained at the same time, so that trade-offs are made of one good against others."
Thurber's play Stay was presented Off-Broadway last season; her other plays include Where We're Born, Ashville, Killers and Other Family and Monstrosity. She is a member of MCC Playwrights' Coalition, Primary Stages writing group and New Dramatists.
Jackson Gay returns to Atlantic, where she directed the Pulitzer Prize finalist production of Rolin Jones' The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow and Kia Corthron's Master Disaster for the 10x20 one-act festival at Atlantic Stage 2.
The design team features scenic design by Walt Spangler, costume design by Ilona Somogyi, lighting design by Jeff Lyons and sound design by Daniel Baker.
Scarcity plays Tuesday through Friday at 8 PM, Saturday at 2 PM & 8 PM and Sundays at 3 PM at Atlantic Theater Company at the Linda Gross Theater, 336 West 20th Street.
Tickets for main stage productions are $55 and available by calling Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or at ticketcentral.com.
For more information, visit www.atlantictheater.org.

Or how Dan Kois and Lane Brown of 'Vulture' write (and I couldn't agree more!):
3rd Rock From the Sun's Kristen Johnston, Jesse Eisenberg, and Michael T. Weiss are set to fill out the cast of the Atlantic Theater Company's upcoming production of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, a searing family drama that ... wait, Michael T. Weiss? NBC's The Pretender? Oh, man! This is gonna be awesome!

The next screening of Fade will be at the Illinois International Film Festival in St. Charles, on September 14 at 12:00pm (noon).
The festival will take place at the Arcada Theatre, 105 E Main Street, St. Charles, IL 60174, (630) 587-8400, from Friday, Sept. 14th - Sunday, Sept. 16th, 2007.

Be aware that the following might contain spoilers about the story. So don't say afterwards you haven't been warned!

Auditions via Cam Baxter - Thread Started on Jun 13, 2007, 3:36pm
SCARCITY
Atlantic Theater Company is casting Scarcity by Lucy Thurber. Jackson Gay, dir. Rehearsals begin July 31; runs through Oct. 21.
Seeking — Martha Lawrence: late 30s to mid-40s, tough survivor, works a menial job in rural Western MA to support her two children and her husband Herb, who has trouble holding down a job. Martha is sharp as a tack and somewhat volatile, often swings between being very maternal and loving, and harsh, dependent on her children for the emotional solace she doesn’t get from her husband, though she loves him very much;
Herb Lawrence: late 30s, well-meaning, erratic and shackled by a drinking problem, wants to preserve the image of a functional, happy family, but can’t seem to manage to hold down a job or focus on his children, has a great sex life with his wife Martha, but because of his drinking can’t be emotionally available to her or his children, a bit of a blowhard, but his bark is worse than his bite, like Martha, has always lived in their small town, and has rarely if ever conceived of leaving it;
Rachel Lawrence: age 11, fiercely intelligent, in many ways the source of emotional stability in her family, often called upon to comfort her exhausted, overworked, emotionally-starved mother, Martha, worships older brother Billy, Keen observer of the family, nothing gets by her, she is in no way naïve, by the same token, she is still a child, and has an 11-year-old’s need to be taken care of;
Billy Lawrence: age 16, strapping, physically mature, very smart and is excelling in school, though this is not an identity he has embraced in his small town, fully pubescent, hormones are raging and he’s really awakening to feeling like an adult, losing patience with the instability and poverty of his family life, begins to find solace in a growing relationship with his teacher, Ellen, extremely protective of and close to younger sister Rachel;
Ellen Roberts: mid 20s-early 30s, idealistic young teacher, well-bred and over-educated, has moved to the area to step out of the rigid expectations of her privileged world and to see what she has to offer, a neophyte teacher, having recently finished graduate school, is kind and motivated, has not found that she fits into the local community easily or well, and sees in Billy a focus for all of her abundant energy;
Louie: late 30s/40s, Martha’s cousin. Local cop, has done very well to make good in a town where there are few opportunities. In a volatile but basically functional marriage to Gloria, and is in love with Martha, takes care of the Lawrence family because of his feelings for her but also out of a sense of familial duty and in keeping up appearances for a family which is gradually unraveling. He frequently buys them food, and peels Herb off the floor of the local bar. Reaching the end of his rope holding the Lawrences together;
Gloria: 30s/40s, has known everyone in the play forever and is married to Louie, is like family in that she feels no compunction barging in the door and the Lawrences feel no fear about either including her in family life or booting her out the door. Basically looking for deeper connections in life, with her husband in particular and resents the amount of time he spends taking care of the Lawrence’s. Tough, emotional and fearless.
Equity principal auditions will be held June 19, 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m. & 2:30-6 p.m. at Atlantic Theater Company Stage 2, 330 W. 16th St. (btwn. 8th & 9th aves.), NYC. Sides will be provided at the audition. A complete script will also be made available to read. Bring pix & résumé, stapled together. Currently $407 min./wk.; changing after Aug. 1. Equity ANTC Contract.
Casting Notice Details:
Categories: Union Stage
Production Personnel: Jackson Gay, dir.
Pay: Professional Pay
Male/female role: Male, Female
Age Range: Child (ages 6-12), Teen (ages 13-17), Young Adult (ages 18-29), Thirties (ages 30-39), Forties (ages 40-49)
Ethnicity: Caucasian/White, African-American/Black, Latin/Hispanic/South American, Asian, Native American, European, Middle Eastern, Indian/South Asian, Other
Nudity: No

FADE, an Anthony Stagliano film, invites you to its world premiere screening at the ACE Film Festival on Saturday, August 25th at 6:20 PM, at the Broad Street Ballroom, 41 Broad Street, Manhattan.
Fade features a moving final performance from David Connolly (Thirteen Conversations about One Thing) who tragically passed away in the fall of 2006. Sarah Lassez (Nowhere, The Blackout, Mad Cowgirl) also offers a captivating performance along with appearances by Michael T. Weiss (TV’s Pretender, Jeffery, Until the Night), and special guests Anthony Drazan (director of Hurlyburly and Zebrahead, in his debut performance), and Devon Odessa (TV’s My So Called Life).
Fade also features music from improvisational legends AMM, Art Bears, Ginnungagap, and original music by Cameron Presley (Upsilon Acrux) and Hollis Lee (Midnight Sun).
Read more at:
WWW.FADEFILM.COM and FADE at MySpace.

For the story of the film, and the story about how the film came together see news from 6-6-07,  from 2-10-07, the 2006 News Archive from 5-12-06, and the 2005 News Archive from 10-17-05, 6-29-05, 6-20-05, and 6-6-05.

.... "Scarcity" will feature Atlantic Company members Kristen Johnston, Maggie Kiley and Todd Weeks, as well as Meredith Brandt, Jesse Eisenberg, Miriam Shor and Michael T. Weiss.
Set in rural western Massachusetts, "Scarcity" tells the tale of two siblings whose aspirations to escape the confines of poverty and small town life come into direct conflict with their sense of family responsibility. When sixteen-year-old Billy is afforded an opportunity to change schools and move out of town by an unusually attentive young teacher, his family starts to unravel around him.
Kristen Johnston (Martha) returns to the company where she has appeared in numerous productions including 'Overruled', 'As You Like It', 'Portrait of a Woman'. She won two Emmy Awards for playing ‘Sally Soloman’ on the hit NBC series, '3rd Rock from the Sun.'
Todd Weeks (Louie) most recently appeared in Atlantic's production of The Voysey Inheritance and Maggie Kiley (Ellen) most recently appeared in Tina Howe’s New York premiere of the play 'Birth And After Birth'. Miriam Shor (Gloria) last appeared Off-Broadway in Hedwig and the Angry Inch (1998).
Jesse Eisenberg (Billy), Michael T. Weiss (Herb) and Meredith Brandt (Rachel), who is eleven years old, will all be making their Off-Broadway stage debut. ....

Click on it for larger scale.

by Lucy Thurber
with Meredith Brandt
Jesse Eisenberg
Maggie Kiley
Kristen Johnston
Miriam Shor
Todd Weeks
Michael T. Weiss
directed by Jackson Gay
Set in rural western Massachusetts, Scarcity tells the tale of two siblings whose aspirations to escape the confines of poverty and small town life come into direct conflict with their sense of family responsibility. When sixteen-year-old Billy is afforded an opportunity to change schools and move out of town by an unusually attentive young teacher, his family starts to unravel around him. In this raw, emotionally rich world premiere drama, up and-coming playwright Lucy Thurber explores the stark reality of how class in America shapes our very image of ourselves.
August 29 - October 14 ; Tue-Fri at 8, Sat at 2 & 8, Sun at 3
At The Linda Gross Theater
336 West 20th Street (bet. 8th & 9th)

Bits of news on Iowa:
We have just received proposals from several distributors and will be making a decision soon. It should be in distribution thereafter but I don't know the exact timeframe.
Neil Farnsworth

SCARCITY
Drama
2 M (40s), 3 W (2 late30s/early 40s, 1 20s), 1 boy (16), 1 girl (14)
Single Set
A small town in Western Mass. A family, the Lawrences, struggles with poverty, boredom and lost potential. Into this isolated town comes Ellen. She is a young woman, highly educated, wealthy and well traveled. She wants to give back to her country through education. She starts teaching in the public high school where Billy and Rachel Lawrence go. Ellen develops an obsession with Billy, his intelligence, insight and potential. Her obsession and desire to lift Billy out of poverty tears the family apart.

A Family Unravels in 'Scarcity'
By Michael Kuchwara, AP Drama Writer
Monday, August 6, 2007, 09:31 PDT NEW YORK, (AP) --
Kristen Johnston, Michael T. Weiss and Jesse Eisenberg are among the actors appearing in "Scarcity," the first show of the season for the Atlantic Theater Company.
The play by Lucy Thurber opens Sept. 20 at the theater's Chelsea home, 336 W. 20th St. Preview performances begin Aug. 29. "Scarcity" concerns the conflict faced by two siblings who try to balance family responsibility with their desires for a better life.
Also in the cast are Maggie Kiley, Todd Weeks, Meredith Brandt and Miriam Shor. Jackson Gay directs the world-premiere production.
For tickets, call Ticket Central, 212-279-4200, or go online. For more information on the Atlantic's upcoming season, visit the Web site.

Weiss, Johnston to headline Atlantic Thater Copmany's "Scarcity"
by Robert Kahn (robert.kahn@newsday.com)
July 30, 2007
One-time stars of TV's "The Pretender" and "Third Rock From the Sun" will headline "Scarcity," the first production of the 2007-2008 season from the Atlantic Theater Company -- the off-Broadway playhouse that launched the Tony-winning hit "Spring Awakening."
Michael T. Weiss and Kristen Johnston are among cast members signed on for the world premiere of the Lucy Thurber play, the story of two siblings whose aspirations to escape the confines of poverty and small-town life come into conflict with their sense of family responsibility. The drama will begin previews on August 29 ahead of a Sept. 20 opening at the Atlantic, on West 20th Street in Manhattan. 2 Hours with one intermission.
Aside from Weiss and Johnston, a member of the Atlantic Company, the co-stars include Jesse Eisenberg ("The Squid and the Whale", Joaquin Phoenix's "The Village"), Maggie Kiley (the upcoming Joaquin Phoenix film "We Own the Night") and Miriam Shor ("Hedwig and the Angry Inch," stage and film).
Thurber makes her Atlantic debut with "Scarcity." Her play "Stay" was presented Off-Broadway last season. Director Jackson Gay returns to the Atlantic where he directed the Pulitzer Prize-nominated production of Rolin Jones' "The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow."
Call 212-279-4200 or visit www.atlantictheater.org for ticket information.

Kristen Johnston to Star in Atlantic's "Scarcity" World Premiere
By Kenneth Jones, 30 Jul 2007
The world premiere of Lucy Thurber's Scarcity, a drama of familial loyalty, class status and personal aspirations, starts Aug. 29 at the Atlantic Theater Company's Off-Broadway home, with Kristen Johnston among cast members.
The new work (Thurber's Atlantic debut) opens Sept. 20 for a run through Oct. 14. The troupers directed by Jackson Gay will include Atlantic members Kristen Johnston ("Third Rock From the Sun," Atlantic's The Lights), Maggie Kiley (Atlantic's The Lesson, Frame 312) and Todd Weeks (Atlantic's The Voysey Inheritance, Broadway's Full Monty) and Meredith Brandt, Jesse Eisenberg ("The Squid and the Whale"), Miriam Shor (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and Michael T. Weiss (NBC's "The Pretender," the feature film "Jeffrey").
Performances will play Atlantic Theater Company at the Linda Gross Theater, 336 W. 20th Street, NY 10011.
"Set in rural western Massachusetts, Scarcity tells the tale of two siblings whose aspirations to escape the confines of poverty and small town life come into direct conflict with their sense of family responsibility," according to Atlantic notes. "When 16-year-old Billy is afforded an opportunity to change schools and move out of town by an unusually attentive young teacher, his family starts to unravel around him. In this raw, emotionally rich world premiere new drama from playwright Lucy Thurber explores the stark reality of how class in America shapes our very image of ourselves."
Thurber's play Stay was presented Off-Broadway last season; her other plays include Where We're Born, Ashville, Killers and Other Family and Monstrosity. Jackson Gay returns to Atlantic, where she directed the Pulitzer Prize finalist production of Rolin Jones' The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow and Kia Corthron's Master Disaster for the 10x20 one act festival at Atlantic Stage 2.
The design team features scenic design by Walt Spangler, costume design by Ilona Somogyi, lighting design by Jeff Lyons and sound design by Daniel Baker.
"Scarcity" will play will play Tuesday through Friday at 8 PM, Saturday at 2 PM & 8 PM and Sundays at 3 PM.
Tickets for main stage productions are $55 and available by calling Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or at ticketcentral.com.
For more information, visit www.atlantictheater.org.

Read also: Broadway.com ; TheaterMania ; BroadwayWorld ; Variety

Razor Sharp won for 'Best Action Film' at the 2007 Comic-Con International Film Festival over the weekend. Congratulations!
The award is designed by the same person who does the Emmys. It is a gold strip of film with the Comic-Con logo embossed in each frame, and the whole thing spirals up out of a really cool, engraved base.

Also, the visual effects supervisors Aaron Kupferman and Tim Everitt of "Razor Sharp" won another award over the weekend for 'Best Special Effects' at the Action on Film Festival in Long Beach, CA.
The film was also nominated for 'Best Costume', 'Best Action Sequence', and Cassidy Freeman as 'Breakout Action Star'.

From Marcus Perry, writer and director of Razor Sharp:
Hey guys,
... RAZOR SHARP is screening as part of the Comic-Con international film fest. We're up for best action film.
Razor Sharp
Category: Best Action Film
Thursday, July 26, 12:15 - 12:50pm
San Diego Convention Center, Room 26AB (on the south side of the Convention Center, above Hall H)
For more information on the con, go to: Comic-Con 2007
If you can't make the screening, RAZOR SHARP will run all weekend long at the Wizard Magazine booth, where I'll also be promoting the first issue of the RAZOR SHARP comic. The comic hits the shelves nation wide on August 15. ...
Marcus Perry, Writer/director

Razor Sharp — It's anything but business as usual for corporate thief Veronica Sharpe when she's hired to battle her way through a high-security skyscraper and steal an exotic codebreaker. However, Veronica's morality and skill are put to the ultimate test when she's confronted with the dark reality of the codebreaker itself. Loaded with as much humor as edge-of-you-seat action, this is one adventure that's criminal to miss.
Participating panelists include Marcus Perry, writer/director of "Razor Sharp"; Jeff Henderson, "30 Days of Night"; and Jamie Hardt, sound/music editor of "Spider-Man 3", "Fantastic Four", "Equilibrium".

From 'Pop Culture Q&A' by Rich Heldenfels, posted on Thu, Jul. 19, 2007:
Q: I loved the TV series The Pretender. What ever happened to the actor who played the part? And when did the series start and end?
A: Michael T. Weiss has kept a much lower profile since The Pretender ended, but he has hardly vanished.
Besides acting, he has been busy as an artist, working in "various mixed media often including combinations of photography, ink, colored pencil, oils, and digital manipulation, to explore how we as socialized beings sublimate our intrinsic anima," according to www.michaeltweiss.com. (You can find a gallery of his work at that site.)
The Pretender originally ran from 1996 to 2000, with two follow-up movies airing in 2001.

Seems Michael T. Weiss is still working out at Gold's Gym in Venice, CA. Or at least he did so last spring, according to the website of the French martial arts duo Emilien de Falco and Greg Justin of Team M-A-C.
Enjoy the full size pic of smiling Mike!

Finally, a photo of Michael T. Weiss (looking very suave) from this year's Huntington Theatre's 2007 Spotlight Spectacular! on April 30, 2007, along with more photos from other guests at this event, has surfaced in the online edition of the Boston Magazine. Use the 'Search' option for Spotlight Spectacular.

The official website of Fade has been updated with a new opening page, a short synopsis, a 2nd trailer, a 2nd poster, and information about its world premiere at the ACE Film Festival in New York, on Saturday August 25, at 6:28pm, at the Broad Street Ballroom.

For the story of the film, and the story about how the film came together in the first place read the posts from 6-6-07 and 2-10-07, and the 2006 News Archive from 5-12-06, and the 2005 News Archive from 10-17-05, 6-29-05, 6-20-05, and 6-6-05.

From Marcus Perry, writer and director of Razor Sharp:
Hey guys,
Catch RAZOR SHARP open the 'Very Short Films Festival' here in Los Angeles at their gala kick-off this July 13. The film screens at 8:50pm, and will be followed by a short Q and A. Here's the venue info:
The Montmarte Lounge
6757 Hollywood Blvd. (Cross streets are Hollywood and Highland)
Friday, July 13, 8:50PM
I really hope you can make it. See you there!
Best,
Marcus Perry

On a personal note:
As you may or may not know already, Yahoo! Photos will close on Thursday, September 20, 2007, at 9 pm PDT. After that time, any photos remaining in the Yahoo! Photos will be deleted.
Full info about that, read here. So far, this doesn't affect photos directely hosted on Yahoo GeoCities.
To avoid that the photos I have stored in the Yahoo Albums will be gone forever, I'm currently moving them to another photo storing service at Photobucket. They are transferred automatically, but during that no one is able to access them. The old account is already locked.
As soon as I have the new URLs, I'll do my best to change all the old links on this site into the new ones, and I post them here, so that you can either update your bookmarks or/and the links to my various albums.
Fingers crossed that everything works out ok! Thanks for your patience.

From Marcus Perry, writer and director of Razor Sharp:
Hey guys,
Well it's been at least a month since any of you have seen RAZOR SHARP, so I have some good news to curb your withdrawal. This July, you'll have two opportunities to catch the short pun and kick its way across the screen.
I'm proud to announce that RAZOR SHARP has been selected to launch the 2007 San Diego Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival on July 26!!
Screening for a panel of celebrity judges, including actor Thomas Jane of "Punisher" fame, this is the be-all and end-all of geekdom, and over the past few years the con has become a Hollywood industry hot spot. The festival will play to thousands of fans and studio executives alike, and will be a perfect opportunity for anyone who hasn't seen RAZOR SHARP screen to a live audience soak up the fun. Here's the screening info:
Razor Sharp
Thursday, July 26, 12:15 - 12:50pm
San Diego Convention Center, Room 26AB
For more information on the con, go to: Comic-Con 2007

But ... If you can't wait that long, RAZOR SHARP will be one of three short films opening the Very Short Movies Festival in Hollywood on Friday, July 13, 2007.
This preview party screening will be followed by a filmmaker Q and A (which many of you could probably do for me by now).
For more information, check out this link: Very Short Movies Festival
I hope you'll all come out and support the cause!
Best,
Marcus Perry, Writer/director

The Very Short Movies Festival will either take place at the Egyptian Theatre on 6712 Hollywood Blvd., or at ML Hollywood on 6757 Hollywood Blvd., on July 13th.
Timeline:
6 - 8pm Cocktail Party
8 - 9:30pm Film Screenings and Q&A
9:30pm - 2:00am After Party
Marcus is currently trying to find out the location ... I'll keep you posted.

From 'Celebrity Extra' by Cindy Elavsky, June 21, 2007:
Q: Whatever happened to Michael T. Weiss (from "The Pretender")? He played Jordan's brother in "Crossing Jordan," but I haven't really seen much of him lately. -- Joan K., Copperopolis, Calif.
A: Michael has been doing a lot of voiceover work, including animated series "The Justice League" and "Disney's the Legend of Tarzan," as well as voicing the role of the protagonist, The Nameless One, in the hit computer game "Planescape: Torment."
The 45-year-old actor, who got his break by playing Dr. Mike Horton on "Days of Our Lives," also has been a personal trainer, working with stars like Pierce Brosnan and James Brolin. Michael is an accomplished artist, working in many mediums, such as photography, ink, colored pencils, oils and digital manipulation. To learn more and to see some of his work, go to www.michaeltweiss.com.

Anthony Stagliano, writer and director of Fade has kindly informed me that the film will have its premiere at the ACE Film Festival in New York, on Saturday August 25, at 6:28pm, at the Broad Street Ballroom. "The premiere should be a lot of fun, and we'll see who can attend and who maybe might not be able to."

"Fade" is about personal identity, marriage, and death-sometimes all at once, sometimes separately. The first stirrings of the story come from a real, but strange illness; Fatal Familial Insomnia, when it appears, keeps a person awake round the clock until his body no longer functions and he dies. We used this as our starting point to look into the corners of strained relationships and see what dust death kicks up there. We want to see how wide the gulf between two people can get before they are finally on opposite sides. Death has its way of widening gaps, opening wounds. Our narrative technique is one of angles; we like to look at scenes sideways, from above or below, but never straight on. The effect is closer to a nightmare than to a bedtime story. Fade is a story of sleeplessness, told through a nightmare-the nightmare of dissipation, sorrow, and early death.
Cast: Sarah Lassez, David Connolly and Michael T. Weiss

For the story of the film, and the story about how the film came together see  2-10-07, and the 2006 News Archive from 5-12-06, and the 2005 News Archive from 10-17-05, 6-29-05, 6-20-05, and 6-6-05.
Film sites with information about "Fade":
Fade at the IMDb;
Fade at MySpace;
Fade, its official website (not yet alive).

The festival takes place from August 24-26, 2007, and further information, including the full schedule and film list can be found at the official website of the ACE Film Festival.

New pieces of Michael's art in mixed media have been added to his website Michael T. Weiss Fine Art.

The short film Sledge : The Untold Story aka "Sledge: The Story of Frank Sledge" has been renamed to Confessions of an Action Star, after the now feature version was sold to a Japanese distributor at the recent Cannes Film Market.

Transformer picks up 'Confessions' - By Tatiana Siegel
May 22, 2007
Cannes -- Transformer Inc. has scooped up Japanese distribution rights to the spoof "Confessions of an Action Star" from Shoreline Entertainment.
The mock actioner takes a satirical journey through the eyes of a composite character, Frank Sledge, a male stripper-turned-action star. Frank's fictional cronies, who watch his rise to megafame include cameos by a slew of A, B and C-list actors playing themselves. Although Shoreline wouldn't disclose the names of the cameos due to contractual reasons, footage of the film available to buyers featured Angelina Jolie, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving and Eric Roberts.
Transformer acquisition exec Shinichiro Kato said the film, which is described as a homage to the action films of Jean-Claude Van Damme, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Steven Seagal and Keanu Reeves, is particularly enticing to the Japanese audiences, known for their thirst for American actioners.
"That's what makes this picture so enticing for our market," he said. "The film stands alone as a funny action spoof, but the cameos, playing themselves, make it so real, which helps push the satire and makes the genre fresh."
"Action Star" is executive produced by Double Edge Entertainment's Bobby Sheng.
The deal was brokered by Shoreline's Sam Eigen and Brian Sweet.

Taken from Huntington's blog, Friday, May 18, 2007:
Final Dress - Thursday:
... This evening we played to a nice crowd of nearly 200 friends and family cheering everyone along, including Huntington favorite Michael T. Weiss, the parents of actor Brooks Ashmanskas, the parents of costume director Nancy Brennan ...

Finally some news on Iowa:
We are anticipating a distribution deal within the next few weeks that would have IOWA in DVD distribution in the US by year end. We are just beginning to shop the film internationally.
Neil Farnsworth

Distributor Shoreline Entertainment will screen Sledge : The Untold Story at the current Cannes Film Market / Marche du film (concurrent with the Cannes Film Festival) for potential international buyers. No public screenings though, so I surmise none of the actors will attend. But fingers crossed for world wide sales.
I had asked the film's producer Todd Grossman if he has more information about it, and here is his answer: ... we should know more after Cannes.

From the PR Office of Bostons's Huntington Theater:
Mr. Weiss was indeed at the gala event. Pictures from the event have not started appearing yet. I expect within the next month.
The event earned $710,000, a Huntington record.
Casting for next year has not been finalized. So far, Mr. Weiss is not cast in anything.
John Michael Kennedy
Director of Public Relations
Huntington Theatre Company
281 Huntington Ave
Boston, MA 02115

A Pretender fan (not the proprietor!) connected with that MySpace page Pretender Fans Unite, had asked me to put up a link to their site, quoting: "On this site we are trying to gather as many fans as possible in order to gain a third Pretender movie."
They have also created this Fox forum for the same purpose. Good luck on their endeavours - I haven't stopped contacting TPTB ever since we began asking for the 4th season of tP, but with no apparent good news since the last movie had aired.

Seems that Michael T. Weiss attended this year's Huntington Theatre's 2007 Spotlight Spectacular!, that took place on Monday, April 30, 2007, at least according to this snippet from the Boston Globe:
Former "Seinfeld" buddy Jason Alexander returned to Boston to help his alma mater, Boston University, at the Huntington Theatre Company's Spotlight Spectacular! last night. Joining Alexander at the event were Victor Garber and his "Present Laughter" costar Brooks Ashmanskas, as well as Huntington veteran Michael T. Weiss, who will always be "The Pretender" to us.

This year, Michael T. Weiss has again donated one of his paintings to the auction for the Huntington Theatre's upcoming "2007 Spotlight Spectacular!" benefit event, that will take place at the Westin Boston Waterfront Hotel on Monday, April 30, 2007 at 6pm, hosted by Jason Alexander.
You've seen Michael T. Weiss' talent on stage. Now appreciate his artistry through another medium. Own this unique piece of provocative artwork titled J'Attends, composed with mixed media on paper, by the celebrated actor last seen at the Huntington as Le Vicomte de Valmont in last season's production of Les Liaisons Dangereuses.
Weiss also starred in the Huntington's 2005 production of Lanford Wilson's Burn This.
Best known for the lead role as Jarod on the NBC television hit "The Pretender," Weiss is a playwright, artist, and environmental activist and friend of the Huntington.
The artwork is framed and measures 8"x10" (16"x20" framed).

Item Number: 293
Donated by Michael T. Weiss
Opening Bid: $1,000.00
Estimated Value: Priceless
Leading Bid: Be the first to bid!
Number of Bids: 0 [as of April 25]
Time Left: 2 days 13 hours 31 minutes
Online Open: Apr 6, 2007 9:00 AM EDT
Online Close: Apr 27, 2007 6:00 PM EDT
Special Instructions: This item is available both online and at the event.
Live Event: After the online close, this item will be going to a Live Event for further bidding. Absentee Bidding offered.

Razor Sharp has won a Remi Award at the 40th Houston Worldfest Film Festival.
Congratulations!

The next screening of Razor Sharp will be at the 40th Annual Worldfest Independent Film Festival, on Earth Day, Sunday, April 22 at 3:00pm, in the series "Adult Delights".
The festival runs from April 20 - 29, 2007. All film screenings will be at the AMC Studio 30 at Dunvale Theaters, 2949 Dunvale Rd, Houston, Texas 77063.

The closing film of the festival on April 29, at 7:15pm will be the premiere of the directorial debut of Robert Davi (formerly of "Profiler"):
The Dukes - A doo wop group (Chaz Palminteri & Robert Davi) who at 22 were on top of the world, find themselves struggling for survival in 2007. They have a manager (Peter Bogdanovich) who is desperately trying to get them work, but at each turn is met with failure. Finally pushed to the extreme, they pull a heist only a fool would attempt, which leaves even more desperate, when all seems lost, they find themselves.

Update from writer/director/producer Marcus Perry:
Next Thursday night, March 29 at 7:30PM there will be a special screening of my film RAZOR SHARP along with a Q and A at Cinespace on Hollywood Blvd. as part of their dinner and a movie series, starting at 7:00PM. It's a great venue for dinner, and a cool bar to hang out afterwards too, so spread the word. We need to pack the place, and the film will be projected! Here's the address and schedule:
CINESPACE
6356 Hollywood Blvd. (between Ivar Ave & Cosmo St), 2nd floor
Hollywood, CA 90028
Call 323.817.3456 to make a reservation.
Q and A with the filmmakers to begin at 7:30PM
Screening at 8:00PM
There's no cover at the door, so bring lots of friends. It should be a good, mellow time! I hope to see you there!!
-- Marcus

Two more award-winning short films ENTITY:NINE, and SACRIFICE have recently been added to the schedule.

Update from writer/director/producer Marcus Perry:
RAZOR SHARP will screen next weekend as a special guest of Wizard World L.A., a big comic book convention that's sponsored by Wizard magazine held at the Los Angeles Convention Center. This special screening of the film will be Saturday, March 17 at 5:30PM, in room 510 and I'm told it will be introduced by Kevin Smith.
As far as cast in attendance goes, we'll have Cassidy Freeman and Skye McCole Bartusiak for sure on Saturday.
In addition, myself and the production team behind RAZOR SHARP will be teaching a mini film school at the convention on Friday, March 16 from 3-4PM if you're so inclined to check it out and hear more about how we made the short.
You can also see RAZOR SHARP all weekend long at the film's official booth on the convention floor (booth # 1011).

Ask Dr. Mikes's LA correspondent Marjorie Laflin will stop by, to show our support and to check out what is going on - for an eventual report.

The scan of the back cover of the DVD only lists the languages English, Spanish and French and subtitles in these languages, and that 'The Pretender 2001' is in Full Frame format, and 'Island Of The Haunted' is in Wide Screen format.
I had hope that this was only an early draft that was designed before TPTB decided on the bonus material.
But today I received an email about that from TVShowsOnDVD.com: No, there isn't any bonus material on the set, sorry. Gord

On 1-2-06 I had posted the following (now in the 2006 Archive) as Unknown projects:
"The Huntington Theatre has added the casts biographies to their website, and they have two projects listed in Michaels bio, that I had never heard of before (or maybe they have only slipped my memory), and that are not listed at the IMDb. Excerpt from Michael's bio at About the Company: ... Mr. Weiss' yet to be released films include Iowa, Marmalade, Fade, P.T.A., and Razor Sharp. ...
Not even Huntington's public relations office knew much about them then: Sorry, I don't have information on those projects. The biography was supplied to me by Michael, I didn't write it. JMK

Finally, "P.T.A." is listed in Michael's resume at the IMDb.
Not much information, probably supplied by his agent/management. Only Michael's part is listed as 'Teacher', and a 'Michael Levine' is listed in the section for director/producer/distributor.

Happy Valentine's Day.
Enjoy these five lovely new publicity stills by photographer David Zaugh in this album!
Thanks to Maria for the heads-up.

According to Anthony Stagliano, writer and director of Fade, the information on the IMDb had been updated on Jan. 16, 2007 with some corrections on cast and crew, now in its final form (but don't worry, Michael T. Weiss is still there).
And also with a release date for the Czech Republic in Dec. 2006. Only that bit of information is no longer correct. But the film wil be entered in several film festivals this year, so keep watching.
An official website is in development, but getting the film out is definitely their priority.
For the story of FADE see the 2006 News Archive from 5-12-06, and the 2005 News Archive from 10-17-05, 6-29-05, 6-20-05, and 6-6-05.

As already reported on Nov. 8, 2006, Iowa won for 'Best Picture', Diane Foster won for 'Best Actress', and Michael T. Weiss won for 'Best Supporting Actor' at the 2006 Midwest Independent Film Festival, in Chicago, IL.
Now an article by Alexis Finch, explaining the voting process for these Year-End Awards has appeared in todays Screen Magazine.
According to Mike McNamara from MidWestFilm, the award is A lovely crystal statue!

Update from writer/director/producer Marcus Perry:
I’ve confirmed that my production team and I will be teaching a mini-film school at the March 16-18 Wizard World Convention. Designed as a seminar on how to make a comic book film on a budget, the panel will provide tons of helpful production tips on everything from storyboarding, set and costume design, to visual effects. Using RAZOR SHARP as a model, our goal is to demystify the filmmaking process for anyone aspiring to create a project of their own.
Best,
Marcus

A nice little write-up on the premiere screening can now be found at the website of the Wizard Universe. 2007 Academy Award nominee for 'Best performance by an actress in a supporting role' in "Little Miss Sunshine" Abigail Breslin ("Signs") also attended the event.

Dear Michael: I wish you all the best for this special day, with lots of fun and happiness, health and good luck!
Instead of a *real* present, I made this little slide show for you:

Birthday Show

The promised photos from the premiere are now loaded into the Razor Sharp album. Enjoy!
Again a huge 'Thank You' to my friend Renate, mastermind behind the Sean Bean site Bean-Land, who did the work on the pictures!
Maybe there will be more from another photographer, no promises though, but keep your fingers crossed.

A question on the side: Since Michael studies art and paints, did he have a say in the choice of paintings Dex is surrounded with?
Answer from Marcus Perry: As far as the paintings go, I had no idea Michael was into art until he came to set that day. But he got really excited over the gallery, and I think that helped him connect with his character a bit more. So basically it was a big, happy accident.

Also, the article by Sarah Vance about 'Marcus Perry - Razor Sharp : Near-Future Action with an Old School Twist' from the current issue of Scr(i)pt magazine is now available online as a .pdf file.

Thanks to Marcus, I could now see the film too. Such a pity that it is only so short! It is a rollercoaster ride of the best kind, an adrenalin rush and lots of fun! The film really looks like it had cost millions of bucks, so all those who worked on it are really very skilled in their respective crafts! And apart from the LOTR films, I hardly ever saw such an indepth look in how a film came together. Not to forget to mention the choice of actors. As Marjorie already wrote in her review, we know Michael can act, but this script gave him something that he could sink his teeth in. And the sparks flying between Cassidy and him are so much fun to watch. Oh, and keep an eye on the development of the website of the Teletransglobal Corporation ;o)

Next chance to see "Razor Sharp" will be at The Staples Convention Center in Los Angeles, CA, March 16-18 at the Wizardworld Tour 2007: Anyone looking specifically for that movie should aim for Saturday night. We aren't sure exactly what time we will have the movie showing at, whether it's at the start or end of the film fest itself, but it's definitely showing Saturday night. It will take place after the convention hours however you will still need a convention ticket to attend the film fest. Adam, WizardUniverse.com

Marcus Perry: Evi, [...] I’ll also have a booth set up on the convention floor that will (hopefully) be screening the short continuously all weekend. I’ll be passing out posters, and will have a lot of the film’s production art on display too. With any luck, I’ll also be able to drag Michael T. Weiss and the rest of the cast down for a special appearance. But the screening on Saturday night will be the big event for RAZOR SHARP at Wizard Con L.A. It will play in conjunction with the awards ceremony, and I’m told by the Wizard staff that they have a big surprised planned for the film. [...] Marcus

FOX has revealed the artwork of the DVD box for the two Pretender movies Pretender 2001 and Island of the Haunted, which will be released on DVD in the US (together on a two-sided single disc) on March 13, 2007.
More about it here.

The following report and review by Marjorie Laflin is exclusive to "Ask Dr. Mike". Don't even think to reprint it without permission!
If you want to use it, please ask me first.

The Premier Screening was held at the Fine Arts Theater, a movie theater on Wilshire Blvd., near the eastern end of Beverly Hills. It was slated to begin at 8 PM. By 7:30, when your reporter arrived, there was already a small crowd on the sidewalk outside. Stepping into the lobby, the reason was obvious. It was packed with cast, crew, friends, and well-wishers.
The Fine Arts is a nice old theater, somewhat plain but kept in good repair. Nice seats and the requisite sparkly silver stage curtain and beautiful red draped side curtains. The lobby is small, especially when crowded with a pre-event reception. There is a concession stand with nearly unbelievably low prices and large theater area with a seating capacity of 422. On this evening, it was filled nearly to capacity.
Before the event, I was able to talk at some length with the heroine of Razor Sharp, Cassidy Freeman. An extremely friendly and cheerful person, she is a talent to watch.
As the lights in the lobby clicked, I found a seat. The first one seemed not quite right so I moved forward about three rows and took a seat near the aisle. Imagine my surprise a few moments later when I looked around and saw Michael T. Weiss across the aisle and only one row behind me. He was very sharply dressed, as usual. White turtleneck with tailored jeans that looked very fresh. His hair, always a topic of discussion, was expertly cut in the currently popular "Ivy League" style: somewhat short with a good part of it brushed up.
The evening began with a few words from the producers Brian Pianko and Marcus Perry (who also wrote and directed the film). The theater darkened, the screen slid open, and Razor Sharp was ON! Whoosh! You are taken into the action with a heartpounding rush. You are then returned a day earlier to the meeting between Veronica (Cassidy, the hero) and Dex (MTW, the villain of the piece). This is best acting on his part that this reporter has personally seen since the movie "Jeffrey." The slight accent, the devilish looks, the bland intentionally uncomprehending stare, the fury, acceptance, and wheedling at the end--all combine with just the right eye movement, tilt of the head, and voice inflection. It is a real treat to watch.
After the showing, Marcus Perry took the stage again and introduced the cast and crew individually. In introducing MTW, Marcus said, "Your hero is only as good as your villain." Razor Sharp has an exceptional villain and an exceptional hero. The developmental core of the movie is the wonderful interplay between MTW and Cassidy Freeman, both truly gifted actors.
Leaving the theater, I was able to accost MTW from behind to announce that I was there on behalf of "Ask Dr. Mike." He certainly knew of the website and pronounced it "amazing!" He was very cordial and a delight to talk to. We chatted a bit more about "Ask Dr. Mike." He joked that it is the place he goes to read about what he's doing himself!
My primary goal was accomplished, however, when I asked him what environmental organization he most preferred. He said, "ECO. I've been away from it a little recently but definitely ECO. It will always be ECO." With that he shook my hand firmly and kindly wished me a good evening.
I must admit that I waited in the lobby until I was sure that someone would take pictures of the cast. I had my camera but I was hoping for a professional to turn up. Eventually one did and promised me that he would be sending the shots on to Marcus, who will certainly send them to Evi.
With that I waived a cheery farewell to Michael and he returned the smile.
A truly lovely evening.

(© by Marjorie Laflin, 2007)

Mr Perry has now confirmed that I'll get the photos from that evening, as soon as he gets them. Until then, another still from the film has been added to the album Razor Sharp. Enjoy!

The film will have its premiere tonight, and to commemorate this, the official site of Razor Sharp went online today.
All contents are accessible, only the 'Behind The Scenes' videos will officially launch tomorrow, Thursday, January 11th, 2007.

"Razor Sharp" will have its premiere screening on January 10 in Los Angeles. "Ask Dr. Mike" is invited, and will cover the event.
Also, Scr(i)pt magazine has a story about the film in its current issue from Jan/Feb 2007, (with Emilio Estevez on its cover):
New Writer Profile: Marcus Perry’s Razor Sharp
by Sarah Vance
Up-and-comer raises $100,000 and makes a slick action short à la Die Hard.