Monday 5th May
Today I had a think about a musical play set in 1985.
Other than the fact that I was born in 1985, there really is no signifficance to that date. I could have chosen any other time in history, 1985 just seemed to crop up.
It's just a period musical.
Of course I will not write the music itself, but I will choose which songs I think should go into it. My rule for this play is that the music will carry the story, and the dialogue and acting will only last for a few minutes, and serve only to link the songs together.
But hopefullly, it will be made easy to understand the story using this fashion of playwriting which I think is new and different. Some would say lazy.
So that is my idea.
Now comes writing the sucker. What will the story be about?
I'm not sure at the moment. I know it will involve drugs, music of the era, and possibly an issue with a divorce that will lead a character down the wrong road.
Here is an erratic plot-type-thing I spilled out today. To me it makes perfect sense because it highlights certain ideas and triggers certain memories of what I ant to happen.
To you it probably doesnt mean a thing... quite literally...
Vanilla Dream 1985.
A play written by Tony Lee Healey.
Chaos.
Resolution of chaos.
New beginning.
Drug-taking, and dancing to the music of the eighties to fill a hole left in his lifeby the divorce of his parents.
Because, also, he wanted to be a writer and never got a good enough English grade to go to College and study it.
He feels himself a failure, and that society views him as a bum because of his failure.
He tells all to his girl.
She suggests that he go find his father and get the answers that he needs.
INTERVAL
Turning up on the doorstep of his father, his father explains to him that sometimes people just stop loving each other.
And he asks if the same could be said for society and for his mum. His dad says yes, but it doesn't have to be like that.
He goes back home. He stops his mother drinking, stops running from the drug dealer after him because he owes money, and commits to his proper girlfriend not the blonde he confided in and who he was going to do the dirty with.
In the end he dances with a new electricity.
Everything is resolved and he plans on re-sitting his exams in the summer.
Everything will be alright.
Begins with someone starting to sing "the hills are alive..." but then a plant in the audience throws sponges and the person realises she is in the wrong play. she runs out of the hall in a panic.
At the very end, all join hands and bow to the audience, and poppers sound loud in the hall...
I hope you could sort of find something from that.
It's my hope to have each act (two acts) about half hour long with a half hour interval. The actors/dancers will need a rest bite before going back on stage.
I like the idea of having a story illustrated visually as well as verbally. To say it is only the first step. To really express that emotion/feeling/motive, or what have you, an actor or actress really needs to move.
Dance, jump, shout, dive, etc etc.
Whatever is needed.
I think it could be cool. Now I have to choose songs from which to work. Note that I'm doing this backwards. Instead of writing it first and then going through the arduous task of finding sounds to match it, I'm going to work from the songs.
I might even find inspiration in them.
You never know.
I'll keep you all posted on how that progresses, along with my short story about the clown.
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Today I saw X-2 and yesterday I saw Dreamcatcher. I won't go into detail at all other than to say: Go see Dreamcatcher.
Buy X-2 on DVD when it comes out, but don't bother with it as far as seeing it at the pictures goes. You'll be dissapointed.
I sure was today.
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Back to my play:
With it I would really like to use the music and the actions and the dialogue to portray a character in crisis. From which, at the end, he will emerge with a fresh head.
If you have any suggestions, or have found something on the web you feel would help me in this, then please e-mail me. It will be gratefully acknowleged.
Also e-mail me if you can think of a good 80's song that would help out in the play and suggest HOW it would help.
If you can. Again, I'd be grateful.
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I would love to convert Michael Chabon's WONDER BOYS into a play, but I don't think that it would work. Not really. There's just too much good stuff there that would have to be cut out due to constraints as far as the set and stuff go.
But I suppose there could possibly be a way.
For my play, I might want to have another look at American Graffiti to see how sort of teenager-type movies are handled; how that whole genre is dealt with.
I might have it as a sort of love story. But have the love interest totally inaccessible.
As you can tell my thoughts are a bit erratic at the moment. It's cause I'm hyped.
I got to go.
I got to get something down on paper.
Even a swear word.
Look after each other.
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