BRICK | The Play

Another Successful Run of BRICK The Play

2010-11-19T11:52:00.003-05:00

Great conversation yesterday afternoon with Leslie Price, Artistic Director at the Children's Theatre of Western Springs (IL) and Emily Monteagudo, Director of their recent production of BRICK The Play.

The newly revised version seems to work (starting at the end, retold in flashbacks), though plot clarity is still an issue...as it is in the film.

Apparently, the high school reparatory company at CTWS loved working on BRICK The Play. (Many of the cast members have become fans of 1940's-era film noir...and that, of course, is a really good thing.)

If you saw the production (or were in the production), I'd love to hear your feedback. ALL comments are welcome!

Chicagoland Premier

2010-11-06T20:49:00.002-04:00

BRICK The Play has opened in Western Springs, IL!

I can't wait to see it!

A Scholarly Connection

2010-04-12T07:20:00.003-04:00

Professor E. Bert Wallace of Campbell University recently presented a paper on BRICK The Play at the 2010 Southeastern Theatre Conference's (SETC) Theatre Symposium at Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia.

The symposium's theme was "Theatre and Film" this year. In his research, Bert found few credible examples of films turned into straight plays...but a definite appetite among play-makers for non-musical stage adaptations.

Here's hoping Bert's paper is picked up for publication in the annual journal which is published by the University of Alabama Press.

Another midwestern production of BRICK The Play?

2010-03-11T14:44:00.003-05:00

Nothing is official yet, but signs of a Lincoln, Nebraska production of BRICK The Play look promising.

These guys and some IB theatre students at Lincoln High School (and their teacher) are interested in helping bring the play to town in August!

Notes from Brendan #1...er, 2 (after JGL, of course).

2010-02-25T09:16:00.002-05:00

COMMENTS ON NEW BRICK THE PLAY DRAFT BY UNIVERSITY STUDENT JUSTIN SEAY, MS2009’S “BRENDAN.”

I just finished BRICK The Play 3.0. Great work. Really, seriously awesome. You've streamlined it in the best possible ways.

The flashback style between the field confrontation and the narrative works great. It breaks up the lengthy exposition of that scene in a way that makes the audience relish those moments for the clues they provide, rather than filling them with a desire to pause and rewind it Tivo style so they can keep up with all the reveals. It keeps them reminded of the end game, and curious as to how it will play out.

The decision to reveal Laura as the bad guy from the outset caught me off guard, and at first I wasn't sure about it. But you made it work with the scene at the end of the first act. You got us to a point where we could trust Laura again. You exchanged the tension of MS2009's BRICK The Play—not knowing who it was (a tension that was hard to maintain with the myriad twists in the investigation)—with the better tension of wanting her to be good, wanting to trust her, but not being sure if you can. This is Brendan's conflict, and making the audience feel this same tension is friggin awesome. In the previous version this tension only really reached a head in the last confrontation scene, but now, its much more prevalent through the whole play. Now, the shock at finding out how wrong Brendan was about her is stronger because you've started her out as being untrustworthy and by the time of the last scene we've come full circle from the beginning and are once again wanting to believe her, to trust her, to see her and Brendan happy together. This makes her final moments- the baby, the "mother-f***er" line, all of it, that much more powerful.

The streamlining and combining of the kitchen scene works much better and flows in a much more natural and logical way that makes Brendan and the Pin's dealings seem vastly more engaging, instead of a series of pauses between kernels of moments. It also makes Brendan seem much stronger, like he actually is smart enough to be a player on the Pin's level. He still is in over his head, but the idea that the Pin would ever take him seriously is much easier to believe now.

I think my favorite change though, is the new Brain/Kara confrontation. This new rewrite puts Brain in a far more active roll, and capitalizes on the girl Brain (still your best idea ever I think). This Brain is no longer a sidekick, but a player in the story, and sees herself as that. Kara's evilness is way better exposed when she's sexy towards Brendan all the time, and and evil devil-bitch to another girl. Her tactics changing make her more powerful, and Brain more lovable. The last moment's are way more awesome because of this.

The bleacher setup. Great idea. keeps the "high school" aura. It's unobtrusive, but provides a great solution for characters stepping in and out of Brendan's reality.

So yeah. This whole thing is gold. better than ever. I miss BRICK The Play and envy greatly whoever your next Brendan will be. keep me updated on how Brick-Chicago progresses. I want to know when it is, cause if possible I'd want to road trip it up there for the opening. That's how enthused I am by reading this.

BRICK The Play 3.0

2010-02-22T15:08:00.003-05:00

I just completed a newly revised version of BRICK The Play that I hope will become definitive.

This new version is shorter that the MS2009 production, but longer than the DRAMAC edition. I've permanently cut the Lug Chase (one of the film's most satisfying cinematic moments, but nearly impossible to replicate on stage) and discovered a brand new scene where Brain confronts Kara backstage.

One big change is structural in nature, as Brendan's final confrontation with Laura on the football field starts the play. And we return to this point twice more in Act I and three times in Act 2.

I decided to use this flashback device as both a way to clarify plot points and to emphasize what I feel is the main conflict in the story: will Brendan trust Laura.

Quite often it is the noir protagonist's chief struggle: will he believe the girl he knows he shouldn't? For BRICK, I think it's central. Nothing in the story matters as much as Brendan discovering who put Emily "in front of the gun." That's the mystery he's unraveling, it's what compels him forward and drives all the action.

By making his final confrontation with Laura the skeleton we hang the story on, we ask our audience to struggle with Brendan. Will we trust her?

The other big change is one rooted in the play's growing theatricality. I've always talked about how Rian's film is joyfully cinematic...at times even playful in its cinementality.

As such, I believe the play should be just as joyful, theatrically. As fun a play, as BRICK is a movie.

From the start, I've set the play in a kind of "limbo," or non-specific place that becomes all the locations in the film with lighting and a few small set pieces. But now, I've enhanced that theatricality by placing nearly every character on the stage for the entire show, watching from several rows of bleachers that line the upstage wall.

This means fewer blackouts for scene changes (the MS2009 production had a blackout and scene change every three minutes or so), while also creating a visual "line-up" of sorts for the audience. As the story unfolds, the audience may now look at the various suspects and think about their role in the mystery.

I think this is an exciting update to the play that truly makes it a piece of theatre, as opposed to a cinema adaptation.

Want to check out the new version of the script? Drop me a line, and I'll send you the PDF file. I'd love to hear your feedback!

BRICK in Chicago

2010-01-24T15:39:00.005-05:00

Still lots of details to work through, but I'm hopeful following a terrific meeting with Leslie Price of The Theatre of Western Springs.

Looks like early November 2010 for BRICK The Play in Chicago.

BRICK in the windy city?

2010-01-21T08:05:00.005-05:00

Meeting Saturday morning in Columbia, SC with a representative from The Children's Theatre of Western Springs regarding a Fall 2010 production of BRICK The Play by their High School Repertory Company.

This...is good news!

BRICK Down Under

2009-10-25T19:05:00.002-04:00

Cheers to DRAMAC!

2009-10-24T01:52:00.002-04:00

BRICK The Play as presented by Macquarie University’s student-run theatre guild, was a rousing success.

Working from a more streamlined script, the story’s high action content was emphasized...and with it, an absolutely fearless journey into Brendan’s (played with grave conviction by Andrew Jackson) desperate quest for the truth.

Laura, deftly played by Steph Merriman, was precisely the femme fatale we were hoping for. As her role in the cover-up is revealed, we gasp. It’s not how we expected things to go. Ah, noir!

Isabella Woolley as Brain was compelling in her thinking-gal’s devotion to the good fight. Matt Dennis’ Dode was spot-on. And Nib Brattoni’s Pin was the show-stopping highlight it is meant to be (with the Aussie accent...shades of Alan Rickman, perhaps?).

Excellent performances ran deep into the cast list. No doubt, DRAMAC’s BRICK The Play will be hard to out-do.

MAC Lobby Display

2009-10-21T20:13:00.001-04:00

2009-10-15T08:33:00.000-04:00

HOW WAS THE SHOW? Let us know! Post comments and photos.

2009-10-08T10:25:00.001-04:00

What's next for BRICK The Play?

2009-10-03T22:34:00.003-04:00

The DRAMAC gang is going all out to completely sell out every performance of BRICK The Play at Macquarie University. Make your reservations by e-mailing the box office directly: brick@dramac.org.

DRAMAC's presentation of BRICK The Play in Sydney will be the second full production of the play this year. We're looking for two more opportunities to add to our production history in early 2010, and a late summer/fall production in New York City.

Contact Chris White if you'd like to be production version 3.0 or 4.0!

There Will Be Blood

2009-09-25T17:16:00.004-04:00

BRICK The Play is unusually violent for a stageplay (well, not counting Shakespeare's tragedies).

There was a performance in the SC/USA production when an apparently mentally ill audience member slipped into retching convulsions each time a stage punch landed. And despite our stage managers' most humane efforts to relocate this woman to the lobby, she and her family felt it best to endure.

Thanks alot, Rian. Nice story.

Be fair-warned future audience members, NSW/AUS fight choreographer ("Boots") is readying a rip-roarin' smack-down for all y'all. No word yet on the use of stage blood (there was quite a bit of the old red stuff in the SC/USA version).

Weak-kneed audience members should stay away at all costs.

Playwright In Residence

2009-09-20T22:11:00.003-04:00

I am thrilled to report that I will be attending the second week of performances for BRICK The Play Down Under.

Thanks to many Fundable supporters and a ridiculously generous gift from Ildi Revi of Leopard Forest Coffee, I have a plane ticket booked that will put me in Sydney the morning of October 20 and bring me back to the US on the 29th.

So...THANK YOU supporters! And thank you Ildi. And I CAN'T WAIT to meet the cast and crew of BRICK The Play at Macquarie University.
What an amazing opportunity!

No cobblers needed for this play.

2009-09-06T09:24:00.004-04:00

Those who saw the play last spring in South Carolina, will find a more streamlined script for the New South Wales production.

I've tried to build on what worked in the first full production, and improve things for the second.

A lot of old films—especially film noirs—devote time to following the detective as he moves from place to place...car to office, seedy hotel to underworld hideout. This is often referred to as "shoe leather." A whole lot of walking, without much actually happening.

These transitions are actually an essential element of the film noir genre. And Rian Johnson pays homage to that tradition in BRICK...primarily using such passages to build tension. (And on one ocassion—the Lug fight—he plays it to the its ultimate, ironic conclusion.)

On stage (and in most modern cinema) too much shoe leather is narrative death. It kills momentum and flow.

So in the play, ALL between-scene action has been cut away...even Brendan's phone booth scenes are reduced to audio only in the most recent draft.

When Brendan asks Brain for Em's locker number, we never see him go to her locker and find the red party invitation. When he pulls it out, we assume he went there to find it.

And much of the building tension at the end that begins with Tug killing Dode and ends with the shots fired in The Pin's lair, is built by plot points just flying by...pausing only long enough to remind us who is a good guy and who is a bad guy.

Rian's BRICK screenplay is lean. But BRICK The Play feels even tighter in some spots. Keeping things moving in the live environment is essential to the audience feeling the building dread.

Girl Brain? A Controversial Choice!

2009-09-04T22:19:00.005-04:00

One thing that's different from the film, is that in BRICK The Play, Brain...is a girl.

And though it is a choice that was first made of necessity (not enough dudes in the acting company), it has become one that Rian Johnson himself has expressed fondness for—particularly Reid Cox's performance in the initial production.

The latest production of BRICK The Play at Macquarie University in Sydney will again feature a female Brain (Bella Woolley, left).

The ensuing sexual tension between Brendan and his Brain, adds a really nice, noir-inspired flavor to the brew. And fans who see the stage version will find a tidy plot twist at the very end.

As Rian might say, "a controversial choice." But it's one live audiences seem to like a great deal.

CONGRATS TO THE JUST-CAST DRAMAC COMPANY OF BRICK THE PLAY! IT'S GOING TO BE GREAT!

BRICK The Play Down Under?

2009-08-30T10:02:00.002-04:00

As news of BRICK The Play spread across the Internet, director Chris White was interviewed by Adam Kempenaar and Matty Robinson on Chicago Public Radio’s “Filmspotting” program.

And that’s how a theatre-trained cinephile in Australia heard about the play. Christopher Marchand, a student at Sydney’s Macquarie University, tracked Coach White down via e-mail, and invited the American high school teacher to visit Australia this October to make BRICK The Play there with the university’s student-run theatre society.

It will cost Chris about $2,500 to get from Greenville to Sydney. The students at Macquarie have promised to provide for his expenses during his two week residency, but a little help buying the plane ticket would be greatly appreciated.

Support transcontinental theatre and the reimagining of a great film on the live stage. Fund...BRICK The Play Down Under! A gift of any amount is welcome.

BRICK Happened.

2009-07-20T12:16:00.003-04:00

A complete update is coming.

PROOF

10 Days and Counting!

2009-03-15T17:59:00.002-04:00

Why are we seating our audience on the stage?

2009-03-08T11:58:00.004-04:00

We've got this amazing new Auditorium...500 comfortable seats...a huge stage...so why are we performing BRICK in a 20 foot square, with the audience half a foot away on three sides?

Because theatre is always better...when it's close.

I love U2. Dig the new record. But I have no desire to sit in the upper deck of a football stadium for one of their shows. I want to be close!

I hate texting my daughter Gibson (even though she likes it quite a bit). I'd much rather be sitting next to her...talking...up close and personal!

And teaching...I will take a class of ten over a class of 50 any day. Why? Because closer, smaller, more intimate is better.

When you want to say something really important...share something personal...let someone in on a secret...closer and smaller is better, right?

That's how I feel about the theatre we make at Mann. What we have to say to our audience is really important, personal...it's like an amazing secret, just for them.

So BRICK players, BRICK audience...let's get close. Let's share something really, really cool. Something big...huge...in someplace small.

PHOTO: London's Cockpit Theatre.

One Month Before Opening Night

2009-02-28T20:13:00.003-05:00

Thursday, February 26, we ran the entire show for the first time.

Although the fights are still far from finished, the complex sound and lighting design is not nearly implemented, no costumes or final props are being used...I must say that things are looking good.

- We are working on the mainstage now. All blocking seems to work in the actual space.
- All actors know their lines...earlier and more precisely than in any previous Mann Show production.
- Principal actors are doing quite well. Rian Johnson's BRICK characters look different in our version, but are just as believable as those in the film.
- Our Stage Manager (Mandy Gonzales) and Assistant Stage Manager (Taryn Miller) are quite a team...our best ever.
- The crew at Todd Inc. is already working to make the cast's hair look great.
- The Brendan-Lug fight is a blast...different from the film, but just as exciting.

A whole lot of hard work lies ahead, but we're on pace to have an incredible show March 26.

Hey...would anyone mind if I change the credits/curtain call music? I like "Sister Ray" a lot, but am feeling something different for the play.

PHOTO: LaBrian Drummond (Brad Bramish) thanks his Stage Manager. (Siovean Lehner, Photography)

The play has been blocked.

2009-02-07T23:20:00.003-05:00

"Blocking" refers to the director's (and sometimes actors') plan for movement on a stage. Some plays require very precise and deliberate blocking. Other plays need very little. Some directors like to meticulously plan and direct every movement on stage. Still others sit back and let their actors have free reign.

BRICK called for a more stringent blocking plan than any other play we've done at J.L. Mann. One reason for this is the numerous stage combat scenes, but the main reason is because we're doing the play in a very small, empty (I like to call it, "limbo") space. There aren't many visual cues for our audience to know where they are and where they're going. In lieu of this, a very precise stage movement plan is required.

Figuring it all out was exhausting. It took two and a half weeks of after school rehearsals. Next week we begin reviewing our work...making sure that it works. I expect that we'll have to make certain corrections...may even have to rethink a scene or two. Our actors will be off-book (lines memorized) beginning Monday. Seeing them moving in the space without scripts for the first time is sure to inspire a creative blocking idea or two.

Kudos to Stage Manager Mandy Gonzales and her Assistant Stage Manager Taryn Miller (pictured above from the fall 2008 play, MUSEUM). Together they make a great team. The next two weeks will try their patience no doubt...remembering blocking, helping the cast off-book, collecting all the required rehearsal props. Here's hoping the cast remembers to thank their stage managers generously and often.

BRICK INFLUENCES

2008-12-23T14:43:00.004-05:00

In his highly entertaining DVD commentary, BRICK writer-director Rian Johnson says that he discovered and fell in love with Joel and Ethan Coen's MILLER'S CROSSING (1990) in film school. From this, he found inspiration in the dark, detective fiction of Dashiell Hammett. Hammett created "private dick" Sam Spade, the brooding detective brought to life by Humphrey Bogart in John Huston's THE MALTESE FALCON (1941).

If you plan on joining the cast or crew of BRICK—or if you are a future audience member who can't wait for March 26 (Opening Night!)—get ready by seeing these films [Rian also cites Polanski's CHINATOWN (1974) and Kubrick's A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971) as influences on the language of BRICK] and Hammett's books and stories.

I remember seeing MILLER'S CROSSING during college, myself. My roommate bought the score and used to play it all the time in our dorm room. It would be the Coen's next film, BARTON FINK (1991), that totally rocked my world, though.

As theatre artists, our influences come from all sorts of places. This play is inspired by Rian Johnson's film, BRICK. But the very idea of turning a cool film into a stage play comes from childhood, I think...all those afternoons of playing World War II with my buddies. Or playing with Star Wars action figures while listening to a record of the music. Oh, and lest I forget, the very notion of high school theatre being something cool, fun, exciting...that all came from my own experience with theatre in high school...Mrs. Suber, my drama teacher.

Something is influencing you right now, today. Your life has been filled with influences—some good, some bad. Take inventory. How do, how will these things manifest themselves in what you create?

CONSIDER THE COMMITMENT BEFORE AUDITIONING

2008-12-20T15:33:00.005-05:00

David Sims, Heidi Kurtz, and Chris White will be meeting at 1:00 PM on Monday at an undisclosed location to discuss scheduling for the upcoming production.

This is where it gets tricky. Coordinating this ambitious production with both CCES and Mann's crowded school schedules has forced us into a condensed, ten-week rehearsal period...the shortest ever for a Spring Production.

The bad news is that we will have to cram a bit to get all the necessary acting and technical rehearsals in. A whole lot of work done on the fly.

The good news is that we'll be done with the entire production just as Spring Break is beginning. So...we all will be able to truly relax and enjoy a full break from an intensive three months of school and theatre.

I tell people who audition for plays at J.L. Mann that they can expect to spend about 100 hours working on the play. Some spend far more, others may spend fewer hours. Still...if you plan to audition and accept a part in BRICK, you must be willing and able to devote a full measure of life and time to the project.

So think hard before you come out to the Auditions on Monday, January 12 and Tuesday, January 13. The rewards of being in BRICK will last a lifetime, but...the time commitment will be great.

STAGE NOIR

2008-12-13T12:27:00.005-05:00

BRICK the film embraced many elements commonly found in American noir movies of the '30s and '40s. As we bring BRICK to the stage, the Production Team intends to integrate some of those elements as well.

This play should be dark...hazy...kind of creepy, actually. Characters should materialize out of the darkness at times. In fact, there should be several startles as certain people suddenly appear from the darkness. It is important that the audience feel as though they are observing the play from the shadows...or maybe the Pin's creepy, basement corridor. Remember that scene in the film? When Brendan first visits the Pin? Tug turns on the hallway light and there's like half a dozen thug dudes lining the walls. THAT. That sort of thing needs to happen in our play.

Film noir took a whole lot of look and feel from early German Expressionist cinema. I recommend seeing the BRILLIANT Robert Weine film, THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI (1920). It's a terrific movie...and illuminating (irony!) when considering noir's darkness.

MANN SHOW ANNOUNCES BRICK

2008-12-10T18:30:00.003-05:00

This year, MANN SHOW 2009 presents the world-premier of the play, BRICK.

Drama Coach Chris White is adapting the screenplay of writer/director Rian Johnson's 2005 film of the same name. (Johnson's next film, THE BROTHERS BLOOM, stars Adrien Brody, Rachel Weisz, and Mark Ruffalo, and is set for a January 16 US theatrical release.)

BRICK, a gritty and provocative thriller, follows loner Brendan Frye as he untangles the mystery of how the girl he loves turns up dead. Along the way, Brendan plunges into the dark and dangerous social strata of rich girl Laura, intimidating Tug, addled Dode, drama queen Kara, and the ominous Pin. USA Today calls BRICK, "a clever, twist-filled, whodunit." Rolling Stone says, "A spellbinder! It pins you to your seat."

The show runs two weekends, March 26 through April 4.