Il y a longtemps; it's been a long time ....

Hello. I'm in Quebec City again. Sorry if anyone was checking here for updates. As it all turned out, the plays went well enough, including my one performance as Frederick in Glover, Vermont at the town hall, though Peter Schumann told me I needed a director.

I wasn't able to stay in New York City as long as I wished, for several reasons, so I wasn't able to thank people who worked so hard on the two plays. I'll put a thank you here.

It looks like Frederick was à propos, no? The capitalist barbarians of whom he spoke did indeed take the gates, and as Frederick thought his father thought, nothing could stop them.

Here in Quebec City I have difficulty with access to the kind of technology a writer needs now. Even so, I'm writing. I don't know if I'll write plays for a while, not unless Mark Dannenhauer wants to be Basho, in which case yes I'll write about Basho. But I'm trying to write stories now, be they true or fiction.

I love this quotation from William Maxwell, seen in a recent New Yorker magazine article about him:

"For me, 'fiction' lies not in whether a thing, the thing I am writing about, actually happened, but in the form of the writing ... a story, which has a shape, a controlled effect, a satisfying conclusion — something that is, or attempts to be, a work of art." William Maxwell

I'm going to start a new blog, this one with essays about the Quebec and Mexican borders and about learning French and Spanish as I've tried to do.

Anyway, thanks again to all: Ralph Pochoda and Gwynn MacDonald, especially, and all the many talented people who did Lucila's Story. I think it was important, your doing it. I know it was, for me, and I hope it was for you, and I really hope it was, if even just a very little, for the world at large.

Courage, now. Courage.

Frederick will also show in Vermont

In the Glover Town Hall, Aug. 20, 8 pm, free of charge, the playwright in the solo role. (No competition for Ralph Pochoda in the Fringe, as anyone can surmise.)

Paul McCartney was here and ...

he was truly great. He said for one song, "Sing with me, this one's for John," and 250,000+ sang, again and again, "All we are saying is Give Peace a Chance." It was amazing. And it was free!

Back to the website?

Since I'm still in Quebec City without good access to a computer whereon I can put site-building software — but where I get to see Paul McCartney free, with 200,000 other celebrants of the 400th anniversary of Quebec, July 20 — we're expecting a more normal and certainly more complete website soon. In any case, to go back to the website, click here: http://www.meyouandeli.com/.

Ralph Pochoda sent a photo!

Here`s Ralph Pochoda who accepted the solo role in A December Eve`s Visit with Frederick Demuth. Ralph was recommended by Jason Grote of Theatre against War.

Fringe matters

Below, a link to the New York International Fringe Festival, a production of The Present Company:
http://www.fringenyc.org/

How to read the scripts for both Fringe 2008 plays

Scripts for both Me,You & Eli productions in Fringe 2008, as well as our Fringe 2005 production, Pierrot le Quin, and many other plays by Sylvia Manning (SilviCol) are at Celtx Project Central. The play about Frederick is on Celtx with the working title of A Christmas Eve`s Visit with Frederick Demuth.

The links are in the right column of this page. If for any reason the link doesn`t work, enter Celtx Project Central in the Google search box, then Silvicol in the search box on the Celtx page, and you will be directed to a list of plays.

"I really like Celtx, a Canadian free collaborative website. If you write plays and need software for formatting, I really urge you to download the free Celtx before you spend money on something that`s no better. Actually, all members of any production can benefit by using the collaborative features of Celtx." -- Sylvia M. SilviCol

Schedule for both Me, You & Eli productions in FringeNYC 2008 Festival!

So here are the schedules for both plays, just received today.

VENUE #19: CSV Cultural and Educational Center - Milagro
CAPACITY: 63
ADDRESS: 107 Suffolk Street
(Rivington & Delancey Streets)
SUBWAY: F train to Delancey Street
J, M to Essex Street

VENUE RESTRICTIONS: 11:30pm out, Saturdays not before 2pm

SHOW TITLE RUNNING TIME
2. A December Eve's Visit with Frederick Demuth 30
2. FRI 8/8 @ 5:45 – 6:15
2. SUN 8/10 @ 8:45– 9:15
2. SUN 8/17 @ 2:45 – 3:15
2. WED 8/20 @ 8:00 – 8:30
2. FRI 8/22 @ 8:30 – 9:00





VENUE #17: The Connelly Theater
CAPACITY: 99
ADDRESS: 220 East 4th Street
(Avenue A & Avenue B)
SUBWAY: F, V to 2nd Avenue & Houston

VENUE RESTRICTIONS: Out by Midnight

SHOW TITLE RUNNING TIME
6. Lucila: a play for Gabriela Mistral 90
6. SAT 8/9 @ 2:45 – 4:15
6. TUE 8/12 @ 4:45 – 6:15
6. WED 8/13 @ 7:30 – 9:00
6. SAT 8/16 @ 5:00 – 6:30
6. FRI 8/22 @ 5:45 – 7:15

Note from Sylvia SilviCol, the cast so far for Lucila

Hello. I write from Quebec City, the University of Laval, where I`m doing a long-term stay (sejour longue), meaning I have a very comfortable room with telephone and shower (or even a bath!) and all is beautiful as always here in the civilized city. Yesterday Quebec celebrated 400 years of history. Imagine? And still civilized, still kindly, still gracious, still a city where the bus drivers kindly correct the manners of the young, if need be.

So if need be I apologize for going so long without posting anything (and worse for the website itself) but it`s mainly because I was first in a cabin in the woods without electricity, in northern Vermont, and since coming here I`d been unable to find a computer to use because all was closed for the weekend and early week celebration of the 400th anniversary of Quebec.

But here we are, with Joe`s note below. He also sent a list of the cast so far, and I`m very, very pleased to see that he himself will play Don Baldomero. Here`s the list:

Inma Heredia (The Queen of Truth)
Annalisa Derr (Lucila)
Elena Araoz (Emmelina)
Elizabeth Acosta (Pepita)
Laura Gaspari (Adelaida)
Joseph Franchini (Baldomero)

And by the way, to read either of the plays chosen for this year`s FringeNYC festival, go to Celtx Project Central with http://pc.celtx.com, then put the name SilviCol in the search box. A thumbnail feature sketch comes up -- the picture is me at 11 in Central Park -- and then if you click there you`ll have a list of plays. The play for Frederick Demuth is called A Christmas Eve`s Visit ... on Celtx, and the play for Gabriela Mistral is called Lucila`s Story.... Once you have the play come up, click for the stageplay. There. That`s simple, right?

By the way, the play Me, You & Eli produced for the 2005 NYC Fringe Festival, Pierrot le Quin, is there, too, along with two other Maupassant adaptations. The idea was to have the three produced together as a full evening with Maupassant, a wonderful story teller.

Celtx, by the way, is free to use for playwrights and screenwriters and anybody working collaboratively. It`s a great way to go, in my opinion. It`s Canadian. No W`s.

Laissez-vous des comments!


Sylvia SilviCol

Word about Lucila from Joe Franchini, Director

From Joe:

We had our call backs this past week and I think we have a terrific cast! It is very exciting! In every case we got the actor we wanted for the role.

I am now organizing the schedule and then will book the rehearsal space. Our hope is to rehearse Monday and Wednesday evenings and Saturday early afternoon beginning the week after July 4th. We have a lot of work to do.

Next on the agenda is getting the musicians. We have some promising candidates (from Craig's List!) and hopefully we will be lucky there, as well. Jeff is writing the songs and I am sure they will be great.

Leecia is keeping up with the set, lighting and musician guys. I am hoping for news about them soon.

Joe

Casting Call from Joe Franchini for Lucila's Story

Hello All,
>
> I am directing a show in this year's NY Fringe Festival and before we
post a casting notice we thought it would be a good idea to send this
out asking for recommendations from people we know. We will be putting
a casting notice up on various websites in about two weeks. Auditions
will take place at that time, as well. The performances are in
August.
>
> There is no pay involved but we (same writer/director) did a piece in
fringe a couple of years ago that got great reviews and was a fun
experience.
>
> This year's piece is called Lucila's Story and is a play based on the
childhood experience of Gabriella Mistral, the first South American
woman to win the Noble Prize for literature. The piece takes place at
the turn of the 20th century and is about the title character's journey
into the world to get an education.
>
> In most cases we are looking for actors who can convincingly appear
Chilean. We are open to all submissions and will consider everyone.
>
> Cast breakdown:
>
> Lucila. Actor should ideally be in her 20's but with a youthful,
girlish quality. She is a fanciful, hardworking, serious and thoughtful
young girl. Actor should appear South American (Chilean). Some choral
singing.
>
> Emmelina. Lucila's big sister. Late 20's. Serious and determined
to advance her family's position by becoming a teacher. Actor should
appear South American (Chilean). Some choral singing.
>
> Pepita. Lucila's mother. 40's to early 50's. Musical, open minded,
poor, unconcerned with advancement, content with her life. Actor
should appear South American (Chilean). Some choral singing.
>
> Adelaida. 40's. A teacher. Stern, critical, highly strung. She is
losing her eyesight. Actor should appear South American (Chilean).
Some choral singing.
>
> The Queen of truth. A spirit who lives in the forest and Lucila's
friend. Mystical, full of humour, wise and spiritual. Open to actors of
all races. Some choral singing.
>
>
> Please let us know if you or anyone else you know might be interested
in auditioning.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Joe Franchini
> 212-234-6288

Hi. I just learned today that a blog is the best way to go if you're on the go, which I am in these summer months leading up to the FringeNYC 2008 Me, You & Eli productions in August. It's a little strange for the webmistress, if you will, to never have mastered blogging much less have even begun, but that's the situation. This is my first post ever. As I'll be in Quebec, maybe NY, and Vermont, this is the way to go if you don't have your own situation for sitebuilding. Or so I just learned from Jethro Hayman here in the village of Glover. Anyway, we'll have both places going, this site and www.meyouandeli.com (to be built again with Yahoo Site Builder, which Jethro explained to me is less usable when you're anywhere but at your own desk.) So, ok, we'll see if this posts. We'll see what happens.