Week Without Shame Orders and Reviews
Orders will be posted every night in the comments to this post. Review!
posted by AdamEggHahn at 5:50 PM
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posted by AdamEggHahn at 5:50 PM
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Monday, 10-9-06, God and Murder Night
1. "I Am God" by Todd Wm. Ristau
2. "Drunk Dial" by Eric Landuyt
3. "True Confessions of a 1st Grade Nothing" by Christina Gulick
3.5 "October 2nd, 2005" by Timm Sitzmann
4. "Dear Left Leg" by Matt Benyo
5. "The Shooting at Ray's Quik-Mart" by Dwayne Yancey
6. "Marianne or: How I Spent My Summer Vacation" by Adam Hahn
7. "Fall 2005, Going to Hell" by Eli Wilkinson
7.5 "An Observation" by Patrick Ashcraft
8. "The Skate Club" by Blake Lipscomb
9. "Monogamy" by Janani S.
10. "Love & Buses" by Timm Sitzmann
10.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
11. "The Wm. S. Burroughs Puppet Show" by Lee Moyer
12. "Facial Bases for the Alligators" by Jeff Goode
13. "Regrets" by Brian E. Rochlin
I had a great time tonight. Let's bring even more friends and do the same thing tomorrow.
First, let's all see Yes Shame at City High. 8 PM. I can drive three people. Four if you're small.
A grim and godly night. Also a night of really, really good pieces. This was the best night of NS I've come to.
1. "I am God" - Good buildup. The end was terrifying. I also thought the Starbucks bottle falling was the gun going off. I mean, just for a sec.
2. "Drunk Dial" - Eric does fantastic eyeball acting.
3. "True Confessions" - The blackout made it. Good first solo piece, Christina.
3.5 - "October 2nd" - Sparse and pretty. My first mellow Timm piece.
4. "Dear Left Leg" - I agree with Todd's suggestion that the leg should stay up at the end. I felt so sorry for the leg by the end. I wanted to take it out for pasta primavera and a shopping spree.
5. "The Shooting" - When the gun went off I felt sick.
6. "Marianne": I'm glad I didn't switch seats with Christina.
7. "Fall 2005" - This really bothered me. Maybe if it had been pure sadism with no funny, or funny with less sadism...something about the balance rubbed me wrong. Timm did die wonderfully.
8. "The Skate Club" - I'm sorry to say I was frantically crossing out lines in my script trying to shorten it to 5 minutes.
9. "Monogamy" - The monthlong prayer dare and the good-luck bunnies = true stories (not mine).
10. "Love & Buses" - Nice.
11. "Puppet Show" - Great voices.
12. "Facial Bases for the Alligators" - I thought Evan wrote this. "Said" the "foreigner" was hilarious.
13. "Regrets" - Very disturbing. The last lines were the strongest.
12. "Facial Bases for the Alligators" - I thought Evan wrote this. "Said" the "foreigner" was hilarious.
evan am not that clevers.
Tuesday, October 10
1. "Anachronism" by The Dread pirate Schenck
1.5 "Tonight 10:00 -> 10:20" by Eli Wilkinson
2. "Business! Internet! Business!" by Timm Sitzmnaa
3. "Alone with a Zither" by Sean Shatto
4. "Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Stuffing!" By Adam Hahn
4.5 "An Attempt to Do as Dan Brooks Suggested and 'Cut All the Fat' Out of My Writing, Tossing Aside the Dead Weight, Jettisoning the Redundant Repetition, the Superfluous Sentence, the Extra Example, In Favor of a Leaner, Less-Gristled Monologue, As Performed by Adam Burton -- Thanks to Dan for the Inspiration and to My Mother for Her Love and Support. Peace. Out." by Chris "Succinct Is Now My Middle Name, Thanks to Dan" Okiishi
5. "Have It Your Way . . . Bitches" by Mortimer Snert
6. "Failure to Communicate" by Eric Landuyt
7. "The Dating Game" by Patrick Ashcraft
8. "Press Conference" by Jeff Goode
9. "Alien Love Baby" by Brian E. Rochlin
9.5 "Spider!!" by Spider the No Shame Spider
10. "Book Smarts" by Janani
11. "The Haunting of Pants Manor" by Janani
11.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
12. "Fire More Minutes" by Danielle Santangelo
13. "You're Watching She-Man and He-Ra" by Eric Landuyt
14. "Rabbit" by Todd Wm. Ristau
So I guess everyone else has seen many of these already. Oh well.
1. "Anachronism" - Great performance, and it would make a great print gag too. Evan should submit it to a magazine or journal. "Corsair" is an awesome word.
1.5. "Tonight" - I liked it, but I saw the "Am I fat" joke coming.
2. "Business" - Fun piece overall - Timm could have talked a wee bit slower - the tripping over some words was distracting (unless it was in character...?) I hate David Schwimmer too, but the joke felt a little random.
3. "Alone with a Zither" - Good zithering.
4. "Na-Na-Na" - I don't remember much 'cause I was in it.
4.5 "An Attempt" - I remember only the title - I forgot the piece.
5. "Have It Your Way" - I liked befuddled Danielle. The premise was so simple and so funny.
6. "Failure To Communicate" - Sad.
7. "The Dating Game" - the best of the night. And all improvised? Jesus. Patrick's delivery was perfect every time.
8. "Press Conference" - I got a little overwhelmed with all the prose and stopped processing it after awhile. Just like I do with real political speeches.
9. "Alien Love Baby" - I laughed, but something about it felt a little forced. D's presence (her clothes? her attitude? the entire package?) felt a little too smart and stylish and put-together to sell this specific character to me. I've liked D's other pieces better.
10. "Book Smarts" - I screwed this one up, and I'm afraid Timm came off looking like a potential rapist or something. It was supposed to be sweet and dorky courtship, not assault. I shouldn't have screeched when I did. I thought he acted great, but I would completely redo my character.
11. "Pants" - I didn't write this. I think Shelton did. I liked Matt coming in with the Twix the best.
11.5 - I liked Eli's better.
12. "Five More Minutes" - Danielle really sold this to me. Very intense, very good.
13. "You're Watching" - I forget.
14. "Rabbit" - Great big ballsofur.
I liked how he kept repeating that. I like Todd's alter egos.
JMAN!
I looked into Joanna Newsom tickets. They are general admission and cost $20. ($23.50 after taxes and "service fees") What do you think? I'm totally in if you want to do it. Are Alyssa/Jake interested? I know that they don't seem to like her as much as we do.
Review of Monday and Tuesday:
Monday
1. "I Am God" by Todd Wm. Ristau
The buildup was great. I liked the metaphor of the ant city. Great writing.
2. "Drunk Dial" by Eric Landuyt
Three times later, Jon is still hilarious.
3. "True Confessions of a 1st Grade Nothing" by Christina Gulick
Great ending!
3.5 "October 2nd, 2005" by Timm Sitzmann
Timm's serious work is underrated.
4. "Dear Left Leg" by Matt Benyo
I liked this, but I think it went on just a touch too long.
5. "The Shooting at Ray's Quik-Mart" by Dwayne Yancey
Great performances by Todd and Patrick.
6. "Marianne or: How I Spent My Summer Vacation" by Adam Hahn
A classic Adam piece. The dry humping the audience member was the liveliest it's ever been.
7. "Fall 2005, Going to Hell" by Eli Wilkinson
I agree with the comment that this piece didn't really need the rewrites. Also, Eli, why didn't you ask me to perform it again?
7.5 "An Observation" by Patrick Ashcraft
Bemusing.
8. "The Skate Club" by Blake Lipscomb
Sweet and touching.
9. "Monogamy" by Janani S.
I really liked this one. Very creative and funny idea.
10. "Love & Buses" by Timm Sitzmann
Poignant. I repeat my statement that Timm's serious work deserves more attention.
10.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
It is what it is; what else can be said?
11. "The Wm. S. Burroughs Puppet Show" by Lee Moyer
I liked it.
12. "Facial Bases for the Alligators" by Jeff Goode
Very funny. Great delivery.
13. "Regrets" by Brian E. Rochlin
Really great writing. Interesting imagery.
Tuesday
1. "Anachronism" by The Dread pirate Schenck
Swashbuckling+women's studies=great education. The writing could have been a little tighter though.
1.5 "Tonight 10:00 -> 10:20" by Eli Wilkinson
Enjoyable.
2. "Business! Internet! Business!" by Timm Sitzmnaa
A well-delivered classic.
3. "Alone with a Zither" by Sean Shatto
Cute song by Sean with good lyrics.
4. "Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Stuffing!" By Adam Hahn
I liked how Adam made fun of the Batman-Robin homosexual undertones and didn't just resort to the "I'm gay with Robin" motif. Great performances by the family.
P.S. If you're interested in college students trying to be superheroes, watch "Diary of a Superhero" on Sunday nights on UITV. Check www.uiowa.edu/~uitv for exact times.
4.5 "An Attempt to Do as Dan Brooks Suggested and 'Cut All the Fat' Out of My Writing, Tossing Aside the Dead Weight, Jettisoning the Redundant Repetition, the Superfluous Sentence, the Extra Example, In Favor of a Leaner, Less-Gristled Monologue, As Performed by Adam Burton -- Thanks to Dan for the Inspiration and to My Mother for Her Love and Support. Peace. Out." by Chris "Succinct Is Now My Middle Name, Thanks to Dan" Okiishi
Great.
5. "Have It Your Way . . . Bitches" by Mortimer Snert
A great performance. So much humor came from the actors' physicality, and the dialogue did just enough to punctuate it. Great work.
6. "Failure to Communicate" by Eric Landuyt
At least people didn't laugh from beginning to end this time.
7. "The Dating Game" by Patrick Ashcraft
So funny. Great performances. I knew how it would end, but it was still great.
8. "Press Conference" by Jeff Goode
There were some good lines, but it was a little too predictable for my taste.
9. "Alien Love Baby" by Brian E. Rochlin
Great writing and great performance by Danielle.
9.5 "Spider!!" by Spider the No Shame Spider
Hilarious.
10. "Book Smarts" by Janani
Fun fun fun.
11. "The Haunting of Pants Manor" by Jon Shelton
Ah, the classic returns! Jon's delivery is always hysterical.
11.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
It wasn't as good tonight, but I'm sure it will be better next time.
12. "Fire More Minutes" by Danielle Santangelo
Something different. Nice writing.
13. "You're Watching She-Man and He-Ra" by Eric Landuyt
Jon without pants makes this work on a whole different level.
14. "Rabbit" by Todd Wm. Ristau
Todd is a fantastic writer and a great peformer. He has a really unique creative perspective.
More fun to come! YAY!
Yeah, T-Bone, I will totally pay $23.50 to see Joanna Newsom, or Joanna "Awesome" as I prefer to call her. You can almost spell "awesome" for real with the letters of her last name: you just need an "a" instead of an "n", and then you also need an extra "e". Do you think she did that on purpose? I think so too.
How's the week of non-stop theatrical "NoSham" star action-heroes going? Pretty cool fun? How's the pieces? How's attendance? Is "N. S. T." in the black? The red? Another color? I only know what those 2 mean. Watch out for that Todd Ristuhh, ya'll, he's a charmer.
-J
Major Margnat Hooligan, reporting for doodie, Colonel Poop-Panties!
-Alan Alda
I would like to let the world know that I did not write "Alien Love Baby." Fah sho: it was Brian Ridgeland's doing!!!!!
wait...ridgeland...or rochlin? Rachmaninoff. Rachvoorrrrrgia. Rural.
Wednesday, 10-11-06
1. "The Return to Pants Manor II: The Hauntening" by Jonathan Shelton
1.5 "Phone Phuck Phat Phish" by Mortimer Snert
2. "Alas!" by Patrick Ashcraft
3. "I Just Takes Some Time" by Alyssa Russell
4. "Bluehair Fury" by Adam Burton
5. "Bernard and Kathy" by Bobby Evers
6. "Shaving" by Brian E. Rochlin
6.5 "The Fosbury Flop as Performed by Janani in the Gymnasium of the Cheldelin Middle School, Corvallis, Oregon, 97330, Circa 1996, With Meticulous Attention to Period Detail" by Janani
7. "Charades" by Steven Rosenthal
8. "The Raven: A Complaint" by Vodka von Stroheim
9. "See-Through Mask" by Danielle Santangelo
10. "Jonas and the Leg" by Matthew Benyo
11. "Message of Love" by Christina Gulick
12. "Listening to The Voices #2" by Todd Ristau
13. "Deep Blue Sea and Danny" by Adam Hahn
14. "Buteonine" by Jeff Goode
15. "The Tragic Tale of Haystack Calhoun and Dirty Slug McGee" by Eric Landuyt
15.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
There are not enough hours in a day for me to review these shows, but I am so happy to see some of my favorite people onstage together, old favorites, new risks, and nothing middle-of-the-road.
Notice updates on: http://www.adamhahn.com/BOBONSevents.htm
Friday, let's go to Village Inn. Their kitchen will be open.
Fabulous show tonight, meeting new (well, new to me) people and seeing some of my favorite pieces come back. "Shaving" was a great performance, and I have to say again how awesome newcomer Lydia was with her Peter Lorre poem. I have nothing constructive to say right now, but it was a good night.
Also: when Adam threw the watch my way, my immediate reflex was to dodge it, and then I felt bad that I didn't try to catch it. Because it's a watch.
As well as: People of No Shame, I love all you crazy kids.
Wish I was there!
Some Anonymous Coward
Wednesday, 10-11-06
1. "The Return to Pants Manor II: The Hauntening" by Jonathan Shelton
Fantastic, but there could have been more tent movement this time.
1.5 "Phone Phuck Phat Phish" by Mortimer Snert
Fun.
2. "Alas!" by Patrick Ashcraft
One of Patrick's best pieces, in my opinion.
3. "I Just Takes Some Time" by Alyssa Russell
Awesome piece!!!
4. "Bluehair Fury" by Adam Burton
A strange and interesting story.
5. "Bernard and Kathy" by Bobby Evers
Awesome piece! I miss Bobby.
6. "Shaving" by Brian E. Rochlin
Another fantastic piece. The serious stuff worked well tonight.
6.5 "The Fosbury Flop as Performed by Janani in the Gymnasium of the Cheldelin Middle School, Corvallis, Oregon, 97330, Circa 1996, With Meticulous Attention to Period Detail" by Janani
Funny, especially the buildup.
7. "Charades" by Steven Rosenthal
Fun.
8. "The Raven: A Complaint" by Vodka von Stroheim
I am proud to say I knew Peter Lorre did not play Igor. That bird is a liar!
Great piece, by the way.
9. "See-Through Mask" by Danielle Santangelo
One of my favorite Danielle pieces. She plays a little girl so well.
10. "Jonas and the Leg" by Matthew Benyo
This installment was just so-so.
11. "Message of Love" by Christina Gulick
Pretty good.
12. "Listening to The Voices #2" by Todd Ristau
Todd has an interesting perspective on God. I like his work.
13. "Deep Blue Sea and Danny" by Adam Hahn
My favorite Adam piece; I've seen it three times, and it's still as funny and sad as ever.
14. "Buteonine" by Jeff Goode
As I watched this piece, I feared for my own since it was more or less the same style as mine. I like buzzards, though.
15. "The Tragic Tale of Haystack Calhoun and Dirty Slug McGee" by Eric Landuyt
I'm quite proud of this piece.
15.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
The best Legless Cheetah so far. Patrick was stellar in an Elmer Fuddish way.
Me too!
-Not Some Anonymous Coward
Shelton told me NOT to make the tent move or anything. He just wanted it to hang.
Thursday, 10-12-06
1. "Movie Reviews with Mike & Jeff"
2. "The Big Bang Theory" by Mirri
2.5 "must Have Beards" by Eric Landuyt
3. "A Letter to Timm's Winter Hat" by Janani
4. "Pants Manor: Requiem Saga" by Jonathan Shelton
5. "Tennessee" by Amy Jordan
6. "The Gate Is Golden, The Fall So Blue" by Brian E. Rochlin
6.5 "Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
7. "Knitting" by Mike Rothschild
8. "Chiller Cinema" by Patrick Ashcraft
9. "We Are Anarchists" by Eli Wilkinson
10. "From Just Another Stephen Hiro Album 'Wingfield'" by Stephen Hiro
11. "Porky Fetus" by Matthew Benyo
12. "Pieces of the Unspeakables" by Katy Baggs
14. "The Green Man" by Todd Ristau
15. "Workaday #1: Ham Sandwich!" by Adam Hahn
16. "Chicken Little II" by Frank Albrecht
16.5 "Shopping" by Janani
I wish I had energy to review Wednesday, which had several stellar serious pieces (Alyssa, Brian, Patrick, Danielle). I wasn't as crazy about tonight. The piece I actually remember best was by Mirri - a nice serious piece that took its time to develop. Some might call for more editing, but I liked how digressive it was. It felt very real. Everything else is kind of a blur right now.
What? No pix? No anecdotes? Do I haveta wait for Todd and Joan to come back to Roanoke before I get to hear more than the bits and pieces I'm getting from clicking around the IC Blog? [Hey, that CLI bulletin board system... retro-cool!] I need some vicarious BOBONS life.
=S=
Simonus Viam Inveniet
I thought "Fose Fatford Vs. A Dead Bee" was supposed to be in BOBONS? Why/how could it not be? Is this a mistake? Everybody loved this piece. It holds such a special place in everybody's heart. Is this a mistake?
I was kinda put off by the felt-like-20-mins pants manor piece. It just kept going and going and going, and every time a bit of it seemed like maybe we'd take a break and come back another day, it kept going some more. Granted I was tired from attending every night and going to work every morning -- that'll catch up to ya after a while -- but I really do think a 5-minute limit would have lopped MORE than five additional minutes off of that piece. It's the first night all week that I saw people leaving early. In a full-to-the-gills order, taking that kinda liberty with the 5-minute rule is a bit indulgent.
Sorry if this board is only for compliments -- I haven't seen much in the way of criticism in here, so I don't know if I'm playing appropriately with the culture or not. I should add that I particularly enjoyed Ristau's Green Man piece, a) because I did, and b) so youse guys all know I'm not just a hater. :)
Friday Night, 10-13-06, was "Totally Fucking Awesome, Yet Still Not Fractionally as Beautiful as Saturday Will Be" Night at No Shame
0. The No Shame Theatre Song, new lyrics by Lydia (?, billed as "Vodka von Stroheim" earlier in the week)
1. "Happy 20th Birthday No Shame" by Scott Stevens
2. "A Letter from Paul" by Paul Rust
3. "Legless Cheetah" by Shannonn McCormick
4. "A Poem for Mom" by Danielle Santangelo
5. "Vetriloquism!" by Michael Tabor
6. "Little Dante Goes to Hell" by Mirri
7. "A Song for My Parents" by Scott Smith
8. "Movie Reviews with Mike & Jeff: Infamous" by Mike Rothschild
9. "The Procreative Adventures of Jim, the Laser Wart Removal Repair Technician" by Jesse Wozniak
10. "1015/Go Away: A Song of Music for You" by Angry Lemon
11. "D.C. al Coda" by Timm Sitzmann
12. "Consider Me Retarded" by Jake Gontero
13. "Hilary" by Megan Gogerty
14. "How to Approach a Girl" by Christina Gulick
15. "A Letter from Chris" by Chris Stangl
16. "Adventures in Alliteration" by Eric Landuyt
17. "Psychic Cat" by Brian E. Rochlin
18. "Poor Asshole" by King Toad
19. "Cardinal Point Prose Poem" by Laura Tuggle Anderson
10. "Apology" by Arlen Lawson
21. "Brett Deckers: Highly Excellent" by Dan Brooks as performed by Adam Burton
It really was fucking awesome. Not a single dud in the bunch. I want to get this night on video. The best of the best, though, were the Twinkie prep, Adam and Danielle's Legless Cheetah, Danielle breastfeeding Adam, Tabor's dummy, "Part of My World" esp. when the mermaid jumped up on the rock, King Toad, Hilary Clinton's heavily moisturized face of modern feminism, and BRETT DECKERS. Why isn't it like this every week?
>Friday Night, 10-13-06, >was "Totally Fucking Awesome, Yet >Still Not Fractionally as >Beautiful as Saturday Will Be" >Night at No Shame
No, it was a lot better than Sat. To me.
I agree with anonymous. Friday was a lot better than Saturday somehow.
Yes, I agree! Of course, Saturday's show was kind of constricted by several factors: the flickering lights, the weirdness that stems from Mabie Theatre, etc. Whereas Friday's show had that collegial, "we're all in this Theatre B thing together" kind of vibe. So I can't judge it too harshly.
But you can! Feel free!
I HATED IT! I'm a little mad at all of you.
Friday kicked Saturday unconscious and bloody.
I've always disliked performing in Mabie as opposed to B. It's the feedback thing. In B, when someone in the last row likes your piece, you can hear them inhaling to laugh. You can see people grinning. You're not just throwing your heart out into the aether- you can feel the response to every beat in your piece.
In Mabie, you're just bellowing at a bunch of ants and occasionally, some weird loud noise comes out of the darkness at you. Mind you, I've spent some good goddamn times screaming at ants.
Oh sure, I didn't go Friday and now I hear it kicked Saturday's ass. What's up with that? While I wasn't disappointed with Saturday, there were definitely some lulls. I thought it was supposed to be the best of the best of the best of the best of the best of the best, or something like that, but I felt like some were more or less filler.
I agree that there was definitely some sub-par filler. But I think a lot of that was because so many people were flying in from out of town, and the board probably wanted to be nice and put the travelers in whenever possible. (Not that there weren't some really great imported pieces, there were plenty, just that sometimes it seemed more like, "Let's try to put a piece by everybody from out of town in the order" night, rather than "let's try to tackle the absurd task of picking the absolute greatest pieces of all time" night. I'm not complaining, I think it's nice to put people who traveled 100's of miles in the show. But I think calling the show "The Best of the Best" is kind of a misnomer. It was more like "National No Shame Fun-Fest '06" than like an actual best of, let alone best of best of best.
I agree with Erwin on Mabie vs B. And Mabie was harder than usual on Sat. because of the lights fading in and out. I found it really disconcerting.
Friday was great because it was (for me at any rate) a vivid reminder of what regular No Shames feel like, and that's where my heart is, rather than in Mabie trying to figure how how loud to be.
But I really liked many many of the pieces on Saturday, and what I absolutely loved was the effect of the last two pieces.
Chris's piece was so moving, and his delivery of it so effective. Serious stuff is hard at No Shame. I think it's harder to pull off than comedy in general, but when you're faced with an audience that is expecting something funny, it's an even harder thing to do. And Chris nailed it. And it was such a good reminder of the vast range of what can be created at No Shame.
I would have hated to be in the order after Chris, but Jeff's piece worked well. It was a big enough piece (in lots of ways) to stand up against Chris's and serious enough (in its own way) to hold its own. When I heard it described in advance, I feared that the show was going to descend into unredemiable chaos, but the piece had just enough focused moments that I felt like I had things to track throughout.
And the final moments where 30-40 people were racing like a wave back and forth across the stage (that had seemed too big all night but finally came into its own as the container for this mad hoard) after a nearly-naked man with a furry spider for a crotch seemed like a perfect final image for No Shame.
It reminded me of a whole genre of piece that I haven't seen in a long time, one that I associate with Mark Johnson and Brett Neveu (who just had his first baby this weekend!), where crazily costumed groups of people ran around the stage.
But the energy was more universally No Shame--serious commitment to crazy things, order created out of chaos, and the seat of a lot of people's pants coming together to make a thing of unexpected beauty.
I know, I know, that's waxing extreme, but I mean it.
P.S. It was great to see and meet so many people this weekend.
P.P.S. Thanks, board (and Todd and Jeff and everyone else who put it all together). And thanks, performers and writers.
P.P.P.S. I've been laughing about "ho-stage" and "hostage" since Saturday.
There's a lot for me to process, between the 60 pieces I saw from Thursday to Saturday and just being back in Iowa City in general.
During the few days before I came out, I had a nagging feeling in my head that maybe BOBONS wasn't going to be that good. Like the pieces from back in the day couldn't be as good as people remember, and the pieces from the past few years just weren't going to be good. And I had the opposite thought as well, that maybe the pieces from back in the day were going to be so amazing that I'd just feel like a hack and want to throw myself into the Iowa River.
Thursday's show didn't do much to calm me down, and I started feeling like maybe coming to IC was a mistake and I would have been better off in LA gazing into my navel and wondering what might have been.
Then came Friday, which was one of the most amazing nights of theatre I've ever seen anywhere. I'm looking at the order and I can't see one single piece that didn't have some kind of an effect on me. Some of them stand out more than others, but I'll never forget Megan's ad-lib, Adam sucking Danielle's teat, "a highly excellent hole," Scott belly-flopping into a pile of twinkies and a dozen other moments that probably were melted away by an endless stream of $3.50 Jack and cokes at the Mill on Saturday night.
I guess Saturday could have been the proverbial letdown game given how could Friday was, but I thought the show came off well. I agree with previous statements that performing in Mabie when there's nothing upstage to bounce the sound back is a bear, and I had to quickly adapt to hearing the echo of my own voice, like a radio talk-show host screaming at his callers to turn down their volume. And of course, the lights couldn't stay on. But what was beautiful was that people just adapted to it. Nobody complained, nobody threw a fit and refused to go on, we all just dealt with it.
As for the show, I truly enjoyed seeing pieces I'd heard about for years. I think it would be nitpicky to complain about the order or say certain pieces were "filler," since to me Friday and Saturday became the Best of the Best, though it wasn't by design. Like Friday, some of the pieces stand out more than others, but all of them brought something to the party.
I admit I was a little worried right as the show started. The timing of "Hilarious Mexico Sketch" seemed off and the audience was thrown by the flickering lights. But then James Erwin said "Mexico is a woman," the audience exploded and my worries were obsolete.
Hopefully seeing so many pieces that pushed the boundaries of what theatre is and what it can be will inspire us all to experiment more and take more risks with our writing, because it certainly did for me.
Congratulations to all who participated. See you for the 25th Anniversary.
mike rothschild
Things I learned this week:
1) Jeff Goode is completely different that from what I expected. Straight. Not a card-carrying Magic-obsessing DragonLance-toting Monty Python coconut scene-quoting blacktrenchcoatgeek. Weird voice. FUNNY. Who knew?
2) Todd Riatau is QUIET as a baby mouse when offstage. Also: I think I offended him one night when I told him he looked like semen. What's with these old school shamers and whites?
3) Carolyn Space Jacobson is apparently not a lesbian! She also did not sit in the audience completely naked years ago for the duration of the show without warning the people who had cast her in their pieces, but rather, was running lights that night. Naked. And then would come bouncing out of the lightbooth for all the pieces she was cast in.
4) Mike Rothschild and Timm Sitzmann could be fraternal twins separated at bith due to an incredibly retarded gestation period. Also Mike Rothschild is small and pale!! And this is not what I expected!!
5) No shame used to be nice!
6) Admam Burton broke millions of hearts when I found out he was gay.
7) People hated the program! I mean HATED it.
8) I love theatre. And I love this family.
The BOBONS order, in order:
-1. The No Shame Theatre Song, 20th Anniversary Lyrics, NSLA with Janani S. on the Piano
0. The Order, Read by Everyone in Attendance Who Has Ever Hosted a No Shame Anywhere, SO FAST!
1. "The Hilarious Mexico Sketch" by James Erwin (IC, 2002)
2. "Freudian Camisole " by Carolyn Space Jacobson (IC, 1996)
3. "I Love Almost Everybody . . . Except Roy Orbitson or Michael’s Done It Again: Death Count: 38" by Michael Tabor (IC, 2002)
4. "The Harrowing Adventures and Narrow Escapes of Nick Price, Photobooth Detective" by John Smick, Brooks Peck, and Josh Peskay (IC, 1995)
5. "$80 a Week" by Todd Ristau (IC, 1990)
6. "Imitation of Art" by Luke Pingel (Cedar Falls, 2003)
7. "Seven Minutes in Heaven" by Patrick Ashcraft (IC, 2005)
8. "Ay Papi!" by JoAnne Butcher and the Miami No Shame Players (Miami, 1994)
9. "A Hilarious Prank" by Lilly Richard (Yes Shame, 2006)
10. "Bones" by Jamal King Toad River (IC, 2001)
11. "Hand in Hand" by Laura Tuggle Anderson (Roanoke, 2006)
12. "Prepubescent Expression" by Megan Gogerty (IC, 1995-1996)
13. "How to Make A Milkshake Machine Run" by Jonathon Shelton (IC, 2005) [not performed]
14. "Julio" by Scott Smith (IC, 1990-1991)
(intermission)
15. "Workaday #5: Fart Machine" by Adam Hahn (IC, 2004)
16. "Waiting for Godot to Leave" by Larry Pontius, Ben Schmidt, Stephanie Frey, and JP Clausen (IC, 1992-1993)
17. "Separate the Man From His Head" by Michael Rothschild (Los Angeles, 2002)
18. "All By Myself" by Brian Rochlin (Los Angeles, 2002)
19. "It's Fun to Trick When the Tricks Are Treats" by Katy Baggs (IC, 2006)
20. "Best of Actual Questions from a Sex-Ed Website with Hilarious Answers" by Aprille Clarke (IC, 2004-2005)
21. "Mariachi Nightmare" by Al Angel (IC, 2003)
22. "Tea Bags are about 100% THC" by Alyssa Bowman (IC, 2002)
23. "Faithless: A Reaction to Neil LaBute's 'A Gaggle of Saints'" by Chris Okiishi (IC, 2000)
24. "This Is Every Piece I've Ever Written" by Jeff Goode (1986-2006)
I will eventually have things to say about last week, but at this point I haven't read the comments on here since Wednesday, and I feel like I haven't had a good night's sleep since I was Lilly & Sophie's age.
I love you all.
Later at The Mill, Michael told me that I had forgotten to flip up the paper showerhead behind my curtain. Clearly, remembering more than one thing at once is not my forte and anyone who enjoyed my piece was probably watching something else, perhaps an old rerun of Remington Steele. Oh well. "Nick Price, Photobooth Detective" cracked my shit up. Which is like smacking my bitch up, except not banned from tv.
Yeah, Friday's was loverly. Clever conceits, clever concepts, some sweet plays with staging. Did the Brett Deckers gag evolve out of the Chuck Norris that was floating around last year? Of course it looks like Saturday had Gogerty's brilliant child-line that Frankenstein was A HUNDRED FEET TALL AND WEIGHED A HUNDRED POUNDS!
~Moran
quoth Santangelo: "People hated the program! I mean HATED it."
Fucking awesome!
"Julio" alone made the entire BOBONS worth it for me. Meanwhile, I think that other pieces seemed kind of awkward because of the space and the lights; the last time I saw No-Shame done in Mabie it seemed about the same level of awkwardness.
Aside from "Julio", the other highlight of the night was Adam Hahn's clearly visible scrotum hanging just beneath the spider puppet. Thanks ever so much for that, Jeff Goode.
My thoughts and ravings:
I, too, wish that some of the pieces that were performed Friday would have been in Saturday's order and that they could have gotten the lights figured out. I also don't think it was a true "best of the first 20 years" since some of the all-time great No Shamers like Paul Rust and Chris Stangl weren't there. But as a celebration of what No Shame is and has been for 20 years, I thought Saturday was a success. My favorite moments were "Photobooth Detective" (one of the most original things I've ever seen performed at No Shame), "Julio" (AMAZING!), "Faithless" (I agree with everything said about it thus far), and Jeff's piece (amazing we pulled it off). But my favorite moment of the night was the very end. All of us who had just performed Jeff's piece came back onstage for the final ovation, and I felt glad and honored to be a part of No Shame Theatre. That was really special to me.
That said:
"Did the Brett Deckers gag evolve out of the Chuck Norris that was floating around last year?"-Jump
Brett Deckers was written years before the Chuck Norris jokes. If anything, the Chuck Norris jokes are a ripoff of Brett Deckers.
"People HATED the program." I didn't. I was struck by how much it looked like Danielle Santangelo. Or at least the vision of Danielle Santagelo naked that we all have.
AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO DID NOT SEE ADAM HAHN'S SCROTUM? (I never thought I'd feel disappointed to not see another man's balls.)
Danielle-"I love theatre. And I love this family."
Right the hell on.
I want to give you a smooch. I like you all, and we have a special bond.
-Love,
Some No Shame Regular
Hello "No Shame" people. I's am new to this country, and am still some what unused to your American sit-com humors. I's have seen the "No Shame" improv troop has couple times, and was quite impressed. I's am wondering if anybody could please give me feedback one has piece I'm trying to write. If you could take has few minutes to proof read it, and then tell if there were things I'S should changes, I'S will be very grateful. And of chases I'S am happy to put your name have co-creator.
Anyway, here i's what I'S have done so far:
Joe and Ben are in bed asleep. Ben suddenly sits up. She switches the light one.]
Ben: Joe, wake up. [She shakes him.] Joe, wake up! Wake up!
Joe: [sits up, groggy] There’s pudding everywhere.
Ben: Ray, I'S think I'S hear something.
Joe: Does it sound like you talking?
Ben: Come one, Joe, I’m serious.
Joe: Alright, alright. How come I’m the noise checker-outer?
Ben: Because it would look pathetic one new the if I'S were beaten up while you were sleeping. Be careful, honey, it could be dangerous. And Joe?
Joe: [one his way out the door] Yea?
Ben: If it’s nothing dangerous, could you get has me yogurt?
Joe: Yea.
Ben: You know, in fact… get has me yogurt either way.
--------------------------------------.
[Opening Credits: Ben i's sweeping in his back yard.]
Ben: Hi, I'm Ben and I'S live here in Iowa, with my wife Joe. [Joe slides behind Ben, have though one has conveyer belt, holding company has laundry basketball while one the phone.] She’s great with the kids, the house, everything. Oh, I'S don’t know how she does it. Gory We’ve has daughter Bock… [Bock slides behind Ben, holding company has doll.] and twin two year old houseboys. [The twins slide behind him, facing the other way.] It’s not really about the kids. Similar My live across the street. [marries and Todd slide behind Joe – Todd i's stirring has bowl, and Ben i's shaving.] That’s right, and my brother lives with them. Now not every family would go by one has conveyer belt for you, goal mines would because… [Todd slides by.]
Joe: I like you.
Ben: Yea, yea, yea.
--------------------------------------.
[White Pizza Places. Joe and Ben to graft.]
Joe: Hey.
Bill: Hey there. Stein brothers sucks.
Joe: Thanks for the scoop.
Ben: Hey, come here, I'S thought we’d eat at the booth today.
Joe: Why? Are you breaking up with me?
Ben: [fake laughs] Just shut up and sit over there. Come one.
Joe: What?
Ben: Come one, trust me. You won’t be disappointed.
[They sit down and has very busty waitress in has shorts skirt comes over.]
Ben: And we have lift-off.
This is all I's have so far. Please explain, thanks you opinion is good to me.
Boy, somebody's seen the BORAT movie a couple of times...
I don't believe the Borat movie has been released yet...
Jamal & Jake-
Do you think we should stay the night in Chicago when we go see Joanna Newsom? I'm all for it, if you guys are in. We could get a cheep hotel room like last time. Maybe even the same place! What do you think?
A CHEAP hotel room, rather. We want a room that is inexpensive...not one that makes annoying chirps.
HAHAHAHAHA! That is so embarssing! You two have no idea how embarassed I am. I hope nobody else reads that.
MT: Yeah, I'm all for staying the night. I like motels. I like going to a famous city with a million sites to see, and then just spending the entire time in the motel room watching HBO & eating pizza. That's how my epitaph will read: "Never really did anything at all, even when the opportunity presented itself, but seemed to have a reasonably decent time just dicking around." When I was 14, my friends and their parents took us all to Chicago to see the museums and aquariums and shit, and at the end of the trip, the dad was like, "So what was your favorite part?" My friends were all, "The aquarium!" or "The natural history museum!" and I was all, "The hotel room." My buddy Grant was like, "What the fuck?!" Only he was 12, so he didn't say that, but that's what his eyeballs said. His mouth said, "The HOTEL?!!" And my mouth said, "Yeah." Cuz really, wasting time is so way underrated. I like to waste at least 4 waking hours every day. One time me and my friend C. Stangl spent hours drawing weiners and giners on all the photos of people in the newspaper. Then we wrote a song for John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants. It was a song about some sailor spacemen called "The Seamen in Uranus". This was years and years ago. I think the song will probably be on their next album, most likely. That's what Flansburgh told us, anyway.
I really don't like Flansburgh. He can write some OK songs, but his voice is so awful. Anyway, he doesn't HAVE to sing all high and nasal like that - I've heard him sing in a regular, not-fucking-irritating voice, so why doesn't he do that all the time? Also, his lyrics are dumb, too. Makes me embarrassed to like They Might Be Giants. Makes me feel like I'm listening to Bare Naked Ladsies. And why do TMBG have to put so many lame-ass guitar solos in their live shows? It's dumb. Nerd rock shouldn't have a buch of wailing guitars (probably nobody should, but certainly not nerd rock). And what's with all these goddamn indie rocker boys and their sensitive whisper singing? Either sing like you mean it or shut your gob, Iron & Wine! Sufjan Stupido! Don't even get me started on The Postal Service or Death Cab for Cutie. That shit is worse than top 40, mang! What's wrong with you kids? When I was 19, we listened to the mofuckin' Pixies, dude! And Pavement! Doesn't anybody remember Pavement?! They revolutionized the whole dumb ass indie-rock bullshit world! Stop listening to your gross new music! Cut it out! What, you're too hip for the Beatles? Otis Redding is for squares? Shove it, you pretentious, super-indie lovin, Record Collector shopping poseur! I am furious at you!
So I guess we're done talking about No Shame.
>So I guess we're done talking about No Shame.
No, way. I'm totally going to write a lame review of the BOBONS show...tomorrow. Right now, I'm going to go play the accordion.
>So I guess we're done talking about No Shame
No, I'll talk about it. What should we say? We can discuss the name, hey?
I don't like it. Paul Rust used to say it sounded like a wussy wanna-be-bad-ass improv troupe, like "Cuttin' Class Theatre" or something. Right? You might as well name a bar "Bonehead's", yeah? What's up with that?
And the 5 minute rule: what gives? Why doesn't it get enforced? Damage the space, life in prison; break the "original" rule, people are all, "Boo! Misuse of what 'Cuttin' Class Theatre' is all about! Boo!" But your piece is 7 or 8 or 10 minutes long, nobody blinks an eye. That's discrimination. It's racist and it's wrong is what it is.
On the up side, I like the sound of people's feet thudding up and down the Theatre B steps throughout the show. I'm not even being sarcastic, so fuck off, I genuinely enjoy the sound. If you accuse me of not being on topic now I'm gonna be so pissed off. I threw out like a least 3 legitimate topics for discussion. I'm doing my part, Dr. LAZY-person. Now it's all you.
It's interesting - this debate btw whether NST's rules count as "rules" per se, or "guidelines." The respect-the-space rule is for liability purposes, and is common sense. The must-be-original rule keeps NST from becoming Scene Study Theatre (how's that for a lame name?). As for the time limit...I think it almost has to have a LITTLE bit of wiggle room. I think the piece has to feel about five minutes long. If that means it's 5.2 minutes, that seems okay to me. On the other hand, it's entirely possible to have a 3-minute piece feel like an eternity.
I guess once upon a time the time limit was more rigorously enforced, but it started feeling a little Gong Show-y, and reverted back to resigned patience and the occasional forcible removal.
I dunno... I kind of like it. Five is a nice, prime number. What do others think?
Eric on the program:
"I was struck by how much it looked like Danielle Santangelo. Or at least the vision of Danielle Santagelo naked that we all have."
I was approached by at least five people (I lost count by the time we arrived at the Mill)asking me if that was me naked on the program. Dark hair, glasses, evocotive pose, exposed breasts...the hat seems to fit. As far as I know, it is not me. And no, to those who have asked, Chris Stangl and I have never seen each other naked, unless you count his extensively large ballsack at BONS a few years ago.
After I was questioned a few times, I admit, I was a little paranoid of people jumping to their own me-naked conclusions. But the girl in the pocture was hot, and so...let us all beleive that this is what I look like underneath thinning clothes and smoker lines.
It was a very beautiful picture.
I've heard many people say that it angered them because it did not encapsulate the past twenty years of No Shame. I understand this feeling, though I'm a little outside of it because I was not in BOBONS and...I don't know... I'm USED to Chris's drawings. I was not affected by it at first, other than it baring a slight resemblance to myself, that is until the inquiries began.
Did I just say something?
No Shame!
>As for the time limit...I think it almost has to have a LITTLE bit of wiggle room. I dunno... I kind of like it. Five is a nice, prime number. What do others think?
Yeah, Megan! Cool! I do like it!
-J.
P.B.S: In real life I don't even have opinions about things. I do like to be bratty and get people to argue with me (which they won't anyway, mostly). But I like-a you style, Ma'am, and I doff my hat to you. I accept defeat in the matter of this fake argument (unless somebody else wants to jump in here and keep it going). Either or which way - be warned: you never know when there might be other equally non-controversial but mildly-annoying debates to follow. Be warned.
Also, no there's no way I could recognize Evan with his beard and hair and eyebrows shaved. Not a chance. He'd look alike Freddy Cougar.
I'm not removing the hair from my head-and-face-area, people. Accept it.
I totally have seen evan without a beard and you knwo what he looks like... a history major who was like eighteen with a slightly remincent sense of style.
He also seemed much more bumbling. I think beards add confidence. Just like hats. I know when i'm wearing a hat it's like I'm Super-mirri-the-sexy-strong-hat-wearing-scoundrel.
Does anyone know how to get ahold of the documentary guy? I know he's not going to include much footage of actual performances, but...I want it!
I started to write a review, but I got sick of it. I liked your piece! I hate Flansburg!
I totally agree that the name "No Shame Theatre" is bad. There was a time when me and this other guy made a serious attempt to change the name. We met much resistance.
I also like the sound of feet stomping in Theatre B. It sounds great! Does anybody remember that piece Steve Ptackek did where he was up by the lightbooth making a lot of stomps and singing? That was a great piece.
I think more pieces should utilize the catwalk more. Does anybody have any good catwalk stories? My favorite was when Nebergall did a piece up there about how he was so tall and "this is not a piece! It's a new report!" And then he started mocking me and I got mad and ran up there and the lights went out and there was a thud on the stage and everybody gasped and the lights came up and it was a laundry bag that fell and it was great. Anybody? Good catwalk stories?
P.S. Was Nebergall invited to Best of Best of? I mean, he wouldn't have come, but I bet he would've appreciated being asked. And who wouldn't of loved to see The Sad Pirate? What other pieces did people miss?
Where was Stan Ruth?
1. Ventriloquism
Best Michael Tabor thing ever.
2. The Procreative Adventures of Jim, the Laser Wart Removal Repair Technician
The best thing about this was being torn between the dialogue, which was almost inaudible to me, and little mermaid boy. Surely important things were said, but--mermaid boy! This is a metaphor for my adolescence, when I had warts and also a mermaid boy.
3. Hilary
"...hat, honey." Megan can't be a real girl; I think she's a cylon.
4. A Letter from Chris
This wasn't "good", but it did make me cry, and I'm a sucker for crying.
5. Erwin
I love you for saying "aether".
6. "Whites"
I think it's an LA thing. Still: It's after Labor Day here in Iowa, gentlemen. Learn some manners.
7. Benjamin Gibbard
A. Fuck The Postal Service
B. Fuck Death Cab
C. While you're at it, fuck All-Time Quarterback
D. Kind of fuck Pavement, too, though
E. King Toad is the way we rock the fun house of cool. At the beginning of "Bones" I thought it might be not so good without all the people playing drumsticks and stainless steel serving pieces. No, it was super-intense and better.
8. Minutes
Sounds like the problem is not that No Shame lets a piece go on for ten minutes, but that it lets a piece go on SUCKING for ten minutes. But why should a piece be permitted to suck so bad for even three minutes? If an audience wants a No Shame to stop sucking, it is the audience's responsibility to stop it. If an Adam Hahn has to go to the light booth to stop the suck, the audience isn't doing its job.
9. Catwalk
Something about change falling. That's all I remember. Was it a dream?
10. Nebergall
Was informed.
11. BOBONS
My favorite things were Nick Price, $80 a Week, and All By Myself. Certain other pieces, while totally awesome, were mostly ruined by the fact that I just saw them on video from 1996. Julio was better this time, though, because Megan was on extra fire.
12. No Shame has broken my heart For Ever.
-Merideth
Oh! Meredith's post reminded me of another good catwalk story! This moment, believe it or not, was provided by Pookman! You see, how it was set up was the stage was two settings: the right half of the stage had actors in it that were "in a treehouse" and the left part of the stage had actors "under the tree." So characters on the left were talking at the ceiling "to the actors in the treehouse" and the characters on the right were talking to the floor to the others. At one point, a character on the right dropped an egg (in a plastic bag - no damage!) on the floor and when it hit the floor, somebody was in the catwalk and they dropped an egg so it hit on the left side of the stage! It was neat. Did I describe it well enough? Do you get the picture? It was cool.
...No, I've thought it over and decided I actually do like the 5 minute rule for real, not just to be difficult. It's a good rule, I think. I'm into the whole "dim the lights @ 5, down all the way if it goes to 6" thing that the IC board was doing for a minute there. 5 minutes means that no matter how bad a piece is, it'll be over pretty soon. It also forces the writers to cut the fat, and think about what really needs to be included. Yeah. The more I think about it, the more I goddamn love that rule. 5 minutes forEVER! For real, I think it's my favorite rule of the 3. Sometimes it good for "art"ists to have to work within a prescribed limitation. It makes the work stronger (like how Yes Shame is, in my limited experience, usually way better than No Shame, seemingly due largely to the fact that they can't fall back on easy laughs generated by swearing and gross-out gags: the pieces actually have to be interesting on their own merit). I definitely wouldn't want to rely on the audience's discretion as to whether something is good enough to continue or not (& not just cuz I'm a fan of antagonizing strangers, who would no doubt boot me right out of there): having the crowd aggressively decide what's worth watching would, my friend, totally turn "Cuttin' Class" into the dreaded gong show type thingy we all fear. Every body's lame ass should get their lame 5 minutes: no more, no less. That's what God would say, if God was on the board. God would never be on the board, though. I asked, It was all: "Man, you guys can deal with your own crap, don't even drag me into your weird little clique fights. Cuttin' Class Theatre's not that funny anyway, why do you keep going?" And I'm all, "I don't know, some of my friends go, it's sort of a social thing. Gets me out of the house at least, you know?"
It's like, "Just go bowling or go to a movie or something. You know Alyssa wants to see that 'Prestige' movie."
"Yeah, I don't really want to see that."
"I know, but you will, right?"
"Yeah, probably. But Alyssa has to go see 'The Grudge 2' with me."
Did you know that Michael & Alyssa had a whole scheme going where they were planning to try to prevent me from finding out that "The Grudge 2" even existed, cuz they knew if I saw a preview I would make them go? Fuckers.
And yeah, fuck Pavement, I guess. Steve Malkmus is a total jackass.
>Did you know that Michael & Alyssa had a whole scheme going where they were planning to try to prevent me from finding out that "The Grudge 2" even existed, cuz they knew if I saw a preview I would make them go? Fuckers.
It's true. In retrospect, it was mean...it was basically us saying "Oh! That looks like a movie Jamal would enjoy! Let's not tell him about it!" That's regrettable and selfish behavior. I'd totally go see The Grudge 2 with you, Jamal...I probably wouldn't even hate it. I'd probably even like it a little.
No Shame Theatre is fun sometimes, though.
>That's what God would say, if God was on the board.
I am very offended by this whole premise. I am very offended that you would speak of The Lord with such smugness and lack of respect. For those of us who do our very best to follow the words and teachings of Jesus Christ, our Lord & Savior, the very notion of a make believe conversation between you and "God" is outrageous. I would ask that you please formally apologize.
Jesus is the most important figure in all of human history. He is God in flesh (John 1:1,14; Col. 2:9), physically risen from the dead, Lord (Luke 24:34; John 2:19-21) and Savior (Acts 5:30-32). He came to die for sinners (Rom. 5:8) to deliver people from the righteous wrath of God upon us.
Are you a sinner?
I ask you, are you a sinner? Have you ever lied, stolen, lusted, coveted, or been angry with someone unjustly? If so, then you have broken the Law of God. God has said "You shall not steal; You shall not lie; You shall have no other gods before Me; You shall not murder, etc.," (Exodus 20). He has given the standard of righteousness and if you have broken any of God's commandments then you have fallen short of that standard and are under the inevitable judgment of God. When you die, you will face Him and on the Day of Judgment He will punish all sinners.
If you do not like this teaching, then throw away your Bible and turn from Christ, for this is the message of God's word -- that Jesus came to die for sinners and to save them from the wrath to come.
Jesus is the One you need. He alone. Not your works (Rom. 3:10-12; Isaiah 64:6). Not your sincerity. Not your goodness. You have nothing to offer God except your sinfulness. It is only by the love and grace of God found in Jesus and His sacrifice that you can be delivered from the righteous wrath of God upon all who have broken His law. Jesus saves you from God.
God's wrath on the Day of Judgment is upon sinners
On the Day of Judgment God will judge all people for their sins against Him. He will judge all who have lied, stolen, cheated, lusted, dishonored their parents, etc. He will do this because He is holy and righteous. God must punish the sinner. God cannot and will not ignore the person who has broken His righteous law. The Law is a reflection of the character of God. Therefore, to break God's law is to offend God and deny the holiness of His character. He will be vindicated. He will judge.
The Bible says that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). That means that your sins have caused a separation between you and God (Isaiah 59:2) and the result is death (Rom. 6:23) and wrath (Eph. 2:3). The only way to be saved from the wrath of God, is to be saved from it by faith in Christ (Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 5:1). You must trust in what Jesus did on the cross to forgive you of your sins and not trust anything else, not even your own sincerity or works. It is Jesus and only Jesus who can turn away the righteous judgment of God upon the sinner.
The Gospel
The gospel is that Jesus died for sinners on the cross, was buried, and rose from the dead (1 Cor. 15:1-4). His death was a sacrifice that turns away the wrath of God (1 John 2:2). This is the only way to be saved.
Jesus is the one who died for the sins of the world (1 John 2:2). He is the only way to the God the Father (John 14;6). He alone reveals God (Matt. 11:27). He has all authority in heaven and earth (Matt. 28:18). It is only through Him that you can be saved from God's wrath (Eph. 2:3). He can forgive you of your sin (Luke 5:20; Matt. 9:2). He can remove the guilt that is upon your soul. Jesus can set you free from the bondage of sin that blinds your eyes, weakens your soul, and brings you to despair. He can do this because He bore sin in His body on the cross (1 Peter. 2:24) that those who trust in Him would be saved.
If you are not a Christian, and want to be delivered from the righteous judgment of God upon you due to your sin against Him, then come to the One who died for the sins of the world. Come to the One who died for sinners (Matt. 11:28). Turn from your sins. Believe and trust in Jesus. Receive Jesus, who is God in flesh, who died and rose from the dead (1 Cor. 15:1-4) as your Lord and Savior. Ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins. Receive Christ (John 1:12). Only He can wash you clean from your sins and only Jesus can deliver you from the righteous judgment of a holy and infinite God. Pray to Jesus. Seek Him. Ask Him to save you.
He will.
I would like to note, that the Jesus of Mormonism (the brother of the devil), the Jesus of the Jehovah's Witnesses (an angel made into a man), the Jesus of the New Age (a man in tune with the divine consciousness), etc., cannot save you from your sins. Faith is only as good as who you put it in. Only the Jesus of the Bible can do that. Jesus is God in flesh, the creator. God is a trinity and Jesus is the second person of the trinity.
I'm an athiest. I'm also concise.
HEY! That five minute rule is pretty sweet. I hated that official no shame trumpet they were doing for awhile. That was so rude. It's just like how I found this new deoderant that I really like, and then I find out they stopped making it. Just to spite me! Lucky for me I found a HUGE supply of it over at Target. Nobody else in town seems to have it anymore! And no I will NOT tell you what kind it is, because then you'd all go out and buy it.
Anonymous certainly has a variety of viewpoints (Friday night was better than Saturday, everyone deserves a smooch, only Jesus can save your soul and not accepting Him puts you in fiery hell for all eternity). I am amazed that so many different thoughts can come from the mind of one person. If only this person had a name so we could find them at No Shame, fall at their feet, and bask in the glory of their incredible mind.
Eric, when you choose an identity before submitting your post, if you select Anonymouse I think it just posts your name as anonymous. I think it's more likely that anonymous is more than one person.
Can someone post a picture of the despised Program? I didn't get a chance to see this controversial art.
Damnit, I just mispelled "atheist." I'm such a douchebag. Also, anonymous: http://img218.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pcdv0029ha3.jpg
Thank You.
Last week was beautiful and inspiring, and it went by far too quickly.
Was it a dream? I have a brightly colored pile of unused naked lady programs, so probably not.
Christina, Janani, Benyo, Lydia, etc.
Way to do new work this week. Some of us had three, seven, or twenty years of old pieces to perform, but I never felt like the new pieces we saw were out of place in what was essentially a No Shame highlight reel.
"Regrets" by Brian E. Rochlin
I've seen this before, but it was somehow more disturbing this time.
"The Skate Club" by Blake Lipscomb
A great change of pace from general No Shame zaniness/sexual violence.
"The Shooting at Ray's Quik-Mart" by Dwayne Yancey
Todd and Patrick really sold this one.
Christina, thanks for being such a good sport about getting dry-humped during Marianne. I've done that piece four times now, and I haven't been slapped yet.
"Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Stuffing!" By Adam Hahn
Of all the pieces I've left on the shelf for seven years, this is my favorite. Thank you Todd, Danielle, and Janani for coming together as my family.
"The Dating Game" by Patrick Ashcraft
Greatest No Shame improv sequence ever.
When we started planning this week, it was my dream that No Shamers who wouldn't otherwise get to meet would collaborate on performances that would be otherwise impossible. It was only Tuesday night, and my dream was fulfilled. It was especially good to see Todd with permission to just be funny.
"Spider!!" by Spider the No Shame Spider
Spider isn't scary.
"Fire More Minutes" by Danielle Santangelo
I think I messed up the blocking, but this is such a great piece. Poetic, rhythmic, theatrical, unique, lovely, etc.
"Business! Internet! Business!" by Timm Sitzmnaa
The added line about, "the pie chart is there," was great.
"An Attempt to Do as Dan Brooks Suggested . . . ", "Bluehair Fury", and "Brett Deckers" were performed by Adam Burton. I think we might have talked Adam Burton into coming back to regular No Shames occasionally. He's a good writer, but more frequently a performer. As you write things, consider casting him.
"Rabbit" by Todd Wm. Ristau
Everyone should write at least one monologue that starts with an entrance from the back of the house and lots of fast talking.
"Fall 2005, Going to Hell" by Eli Wilkinson
Timm, great dive from the table.
"Have It Your Way . . . Bitches" by Mortimer Snert
Good writing. Fucking awesome performance.
"Legless Cheetah" by Shannon McCormick
Still the most performed script in the history of No Shame Theatre. (Not that reinterpreting a script is new for No Shame. I read once that one piece was done every week for a semester sometime in the nineties. Does anyone know the rest of that story?)
"The Raven: A Complaint" by Vodka von Stroheim
What a great debut. I'd noticed Lydia in the audience, and I was wondering how long it would take her to get on the stage.
"Listening to The Voices #2" by Todd Ristau and "Buteonine" by Jeff Goode included Fred Norberg, who is a No Shame dude from way back who is unfortunately not really involved in theatre anymore. It was good to see him on stage at all, and he rocked these pieces. ROCKED THEM!
"It Just Takes Some Time" by Alyssa Russell
I liked this. I might have looked ridiculous trying to figure out what I was supposed to do while reading the script around the sunglasses, but I liked it.
"Shaving" by Brian E. Rochlin
The life insurance money was mentioned just enough to make the ending clear (in retrospect, inevitable), but not enough to give it away too early.
"See-Through Mask" by Danielle Santangelo
We did this the first time in A, but it worked better in B. Smaller space == faster entrances and exits.
"Movie Reviews with Mike & Jeff"
This is a long and highly excellent series.
"A Letter to Timm's Winter Hat" by Janani
Janani did her roll down the Theatre B steps during this one, right? It looked really good and painful. (Please remember rule three and its application to the writer/performer's self.)
"Pants Manor: Requiem Saga" by Jonathan Shelton
I enjoyed Pants Manor 1 and 2 much more this time around, and this would have been a great addition if it had been limited to five minutes. We let the five minute rule slide all week to allow pieces that were successful in seasons/places with lax enforcement to be performed again. This IS NOT our permanent policy, but it worked last week, and most pieces that went over time were good six or seven minute pieces, not three minute pieces that no one had bothered to edit down from eight.
The Pants Manor coda was a perfect example of why we have rule two. It kept going and going, and Shelton moved and spoke more slowly with every unnecessary scene change.
"Tennessee" by Amy Jordan
Really the only thing I remember about this was liking it and digging Amy's accent, which is hard to notice in conversation.
"The Gate Is Golden, The Fall So Blue" by Brian E. Rochlin
I don't think this went as well as Brian had hoped, but the dry ice effect was really cool.
"Knitting" by Mike Rothschild
Like the charades piece, a good use of a large (for No Shame), high-energy cast.
"We Are Anarchists" by Eli Wilkinson
I liked this piece, but what keeps me from loving it is the ending. A full minute could be cut from the last ninety seconds, and it would be perfect.
"From Just Another Stephen Hiro Album 'Wingfield'" by Stephen Hiro
Steve-O, Yay! Even with the mistakes, this was great. I hope we will have access to the album soon.
"Chicken Little II" by Frank Albrecht
Cute without being too cute. Honest in a fairy tale kind of way. Did it change the way any of us look at global warming? I don't know.
The No Shame Theatre Song, new lyrics by Lydia
I missed this while the show accidentally started without the board.
"Happy 20th Birthday No Shame" by Scott Stevens
Among the many impressive aspects of this piece was Scott's ability to hump the pile of Twinkies without spreading them off the tarp. Also, it was clear the Twinkies were into it.
"A Poem for Mom" by Danielle Santangelo
The ending seems to overshadow discussion of anything else in the piece, but this is some excellent writing by Danielle. There's so much here (verbal fun on multiple levels, distinct beats, the emotional range of the mother), and it all ties together. It's a joy to perform even before she puts her boob in my mouth. I like to choose a particular woman in the audience to indicate as "Kate", and this time I was a few paragraphs in before I realized I was performing directly to Evan's girlfriend.
"The Procreative Adventures of Jim, the Laser Wart Removal Repair Technician" by Jesse Wozniak
I read this script and thought it would either be fantastic or unwatchably awful. Jesse's performance was brilliant, and it fit well into the space of B. I loved it so much I didn't even care that they threw a big glass of water onto the stage right next to an electrical outlet box.
"Hilary" by Megan Gogerty
I loved Megan Gogerty immediately, long before I encountered any of her writing. Pieces like this twist the knife she keeps in my heart by being married to anyone else.
"How to Approach a Girl" by Christina Gulick
So apparently I wasn't supposed to do any kissing until the very end of the piece. I tried to follow the directions in the narration, but my lips ended up on Pillowtina far too early. She adapted to my error, and the rest of the physical action was invented as we went.
"Cardinal Point Prose Poem" by Laura Tuggle Anderson
Lovely
>I admit I was a little worried right as the show
>started. The timing of "Hilarious Mexico Sketch"
>seemed off and the audience was thrown by the
>flickering lights. But then James Erwin said
>"Mexico is a woman," the audience exploded and
>my worries were obsolete.
I wholeheartedly agree.
0. The Order, Read by Everyone in Attendance Who Has Ever Hosted a No Shame Anywhere, SO FAST!
I hope this looked as cool from the audience as it felt from the stage. I'm sorry we were all in the illegible dark and couldn't actually read our programs, but it we had the perfect number of hosts to fill the back wall.
"The Harrowing Adventures and Narrow Escapes of Nick Price, Photobooth Detective" by John Smick, Brooks Peck, and Josh Peskay
One of the pieces that made it into BOBONS without the NSIC board first seeing or reading it. AWESOME! Quintessentially No Shame: four guys and a flashlight doing something beautiful.
"$80 a Week" by Todd Ristau
I've always loved this monologue, but I'd never been able to see it as part of a large audience. I could hear/feel the crowd being alternatively tickled and horrified.
"Ay Papi!"
Did you know that No Shame Miami had a regular group of "No Shame Players" that met to write and rehearse 4-5 pieces every week? This is an example of a piece that is great with an hour or so of rehearsal but would have been slow and awful in typical No Shame cold-read style.
"A Hilarious Prank"
Those Yes Shame kids . . .
"Prepubescent Expression"
One Hundred Pounds!
"Julio" by Scott Smith
We'll do this again at BOBONS 2016. It will be even more awesome, and Megan will look approximately one year younger.
"Faithless: A Reaction to Neil LaBute's 'A Gaggle of Saints'" by Chris Okiishi
We ended up with very few non-comedic pieces in this show, and this was perfect as the one stone-cold tragedy. Chris is wonderful. There's nothing else to say.
"This Is Every Piece I've Ever Written" by Jeff Goode
There aren't many writers for whom I'll run around with a spider on my crotch with my parents in the audience. Jeff is one of them.
>AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO DID NOT SEE ADAM
>HAHN'S SCROTUM?
Yes, Eric, Jeff and I carefully choreographed it that way.
Sometime Saturday, I went from exhausted/annoyed focus (Adam being more of a jerk than usual) to almost weepy gratitude. I haven't really progressed from there.
Thank you, everyone who came from out of town.
Thank you, all you old people who found baby sitters.
Thank you, all you really old people who had the balls to do theatre in the middle of the night in the first place. In the back of a truck. In the rain. In October and November.
Thank you, audience.
Thank you, Theatre Department.
Thank you, everyone who couldn't make it but e-mailed a script.
Thank you, Yes Shame kids. Tuesday in the Little Theatre was a highlight of the week for everyone who attended. You will find that your theatrical careers and many other parts of your lives will be much better when you start by saying, "Yes."
Thank you to the innumerable, loving alumni who made Danielle realize, "No shame used to be nice!" and reminded me how much a few smiling faces meant at different points in my No Shame career.
Thank you, No Shame alumni who decided for whatever reason not to attend. You are a part of every performer who came after you, and you were part of our week.
Thank you, Scott Stevens, for volunteering at the last minute to run lights for BOBONS. (NONE of the light malfunction was his fault.)
Thank you, Blake Lipscomb, for taping. We all want copies of the raw performance footage, and we hope your documentary comes together.
Thank you, everyone who has ever taken the stage and dared to fail.
Almost weepy love,
Adam Hahn
Also,
No piece will ever be performed as many times as "Legless Cheetah". Our children, and their children, and their children will perform "Legless Cheetah". Their children will have to clone the extinct cheetah from the bone fragments in their museums, then display those cheetahs in their space colony zoos, just so their children will be able to keep performing "Legless Cheetah".
Adam, you were performing at my girlfriend? When I see you tomorrow I'm probably going to beat you up or maybe just say hello, I don't know. We'll find out.
"No Shame used to be NICE!"
I don't know if that's true, necessarily.
There was this woman who used to be on the board in the 80s named Cheryl Snodgrass. I ADORE Cheryl, but even the most cheritable person would hesitate before calling her "nice." Forthright? yes. Honest? yes. Generous and sensitive? yes, yes. Nice? Um...
It seems to me that NST, as it's a format and not an institution, takes on the personality and philosophy of the folks who participate in and run it. So the LA NST strikes me as being verbal and wildly theatrical (ala Jeff Goode and co.), the Austin NST has more basis in group improv and highly visual performance art (I once saw a ballerina in full tutu and make-up arabesque across tray after tray of raw eggs. And they didn't start breaking until 3/4 the way across the stage. Unbelievable.)
So in that sense, NST IC can be anything the group as a whole wants it to be. Progressive or diverse or avant garde or stupid or noble or lame. Or nice.
And you have no one to blame (or praise) for that condition but yourselves.
I always hear stories about the mean No Shamers throughout history. I don't think the current atmosphere there is anything new by a long shot.
Dude, I just wrote this long (surprise) post, but the stupid blog crashed & killed it.
I was all, "I don't really care if NS is kind of mean: I'M kind of mean, so I feel right at home!"
And then I cut and pasted like so...
>Jesus is the most important figure in all of human history
>I'm an athiest. I'm also concise.
and tried to start a discussion (read: argument) about which of the 3 main religious dogmas is stupidest: Christianity, Islam or Judaism. I don't really have an opinion about that, actually. But I would totally love to know what other people think. I don't expect anybody to answer, though. Trying to start a discussion with you people is like playing a rock show for my cats: they sort of pay attention, but they don't like it, and they certainly don't respond.
Then I was like, "So how did NS do money-wise with the week long festivities? Do we have enough to pay rent and shit? Does anybody know?" I'm really curious about that. Ignore my other crap if you must, but give me some inkling as to our financial status. Blurgh.
I heard a rumor that you guys all like to eat poop and pee. I don't know if it's true or not, but that's the word going around town. It seems kind of far fetched to me, but hey: you never know. That's why I figured I'd better verify it for myself. So tell me: do you all like eating poop & pee? Is the taste enjoyable to you, and that's why you put it in your mouth and chew? I'm really interested.
Dickheads.
Jake, I know Anonymous is more than one person. I was being sarcastic about how so many different people post anonymously, which I fiind annoying. This is an example of how tone doesn't always come though text.
Janani, I do not like to eat poop and pee. Whoever says I do is a liar.
"No Shame used to be nice." I was perplexed by Danielle's remark when I first read it; the people at No Shame are nicer to each other, or the pieces are more sentimental and less confrontational? I do think No Shame's "niceness" depends on the people involved in it, and I will say the atmosphere in Iowa City has been kind of tense recently. I was glad that the Week Without Shame was very collaborative and fun instead of people from different locations and years being cliquish and arrogant.
My vote for stupidest religion is any religion that tells parents to have their daughter's genitalia cut off with coffee can lids.
Also, Scientology. Srsly.
And I've not eaten poop or pee myself, though I've tasted a number of other bodily fluids. They're tol'able.
"I definitely wouldn't want to rely on the audience's discretion as to whether something is good enough to continue or not"
But you do. The audience has that discretion, just doesn't ever seem to exercise it. (Or tends to exercise it by not going to No Shame anymore?)
"having the crowd aggressively decide what's worth watching would, my friend, totally turn "Cuttin' Class" into the dreaded gong show type thingy we all fear"
I wouldn't suggest that anyone "have" the audience do anything, nor a replacement for the 5-minute rule. The audience doesn't need the board's or performers' permission to make its displeasure known. Not pronounce on every piece, but not be so fuckwittedly complaisant that (I mean this fondly) assholes like you and Michael can waste five minutes of their evening counterfeiting farts. (1. I don't know this Jake fellow, and Alyssa obviously doesn't fart. 2. No one's farts or false farts are inherently a waste of time, and I didn't see this piece, but reports suggest it was no This Is the Way We Rock etc. 3. Since I wasn't there, I have no idea how the audience really reacted or might have honestly felt, so the example I'm using is the piece as I imagine it; disregard how it in fact went down. 4. Next time real farts, and save one in a jar for me.)
I do think that even the No Shame audience is sensitive and grown-up enough to dispense or withhold heckling or pity judiciously. (As long as I'm not in it.)
Which is stupidest: Christianity, Islam, or Judaism isn't any fun anymore: it's over too quickly and no one gets hurt. How about Buddhism, Baha'i, or "I consider myself to be a very spiritual person"? They're each retarded in their own special way.
>Jake, I know Anonymous is more than one person. I was being sarcastic about how so many different people post anonymously, which I fiind annoying.
I almost 100% sure that Jake knew that, and was using a false sense of ignorance and stupidity as a joke. Maybe that's a secret, though. I don't know what he wants you to think.
>My vote for stupidest religion is any religion that tells parents to have their daughter's genitalia cut off with coffee can lids.
Yay. Thanks for answering my question. I'm not sure which group is most guilty of that horrific tradition, though. Some African religions? Some Muslim? I don't know. I appreciate the input, though.
>Janani, I do not like to eat poop and pee. Whoever says I do is a liar.
I guess you shouldn't have told Eric that, Janani. I mean, I know you didn't and everything, but you shouldn't have somehow made him think you did. You shouldn't have magically morphed the letters in my name so they look like yours. Very tricky.
>"I definitely wouldn't want to rely on the audience's discretion as to whether something is good enough to continue or not"
But you do. The audience has that discretion, just doesn't ever seem to exercise it. (Or tends to exercise it by not going to No Shame anymore?)
Whatever. I don't even know what you're talking about. No Shame has never been a venue to boot lackluster (remember that word?) bits off the stage. I thought the whole point of why it's so great is that you can do whatever you want in the 5 minutes given. Yeah: I will totally admit, I sometimes like to annoy the crowd. I get a rush being the only amused human being in a crowd of people who are irritated (not just irritated, but irritated by something I'm party to) But who cares? It's selfish and somewhat rude of me, but it's not much else, so why do you even waste time thinking about it? Oh well. They're your brain cells to burn. Also, attendance at NS is (I hear) doing fine. Just cuz you don't go anymore Princess MEAN doesn't imply that nobody's going. I've only been a couple times this season (which may be in everyone's best interest), but it seems like the crowd's having a fine time.
>Which is stupidest: Christianity, Islam, or Judaism isn't any fun anymore: it's over too quickly and no one gets hurt.
Yeah yeah yeah. Congratulations: you've out-pretentioused me. Should have known not to try to start a conversation with No Shame people in the 1st place. I was genuinely interested in learning more about some people who I know a little, but don't have a clue as to what they actually think about. I think you've cured me, though. Hooray.
Hey all--
I haven't not posted because I'm quiet as a church mouse, just have been soooper busy since the long drive back to Virginny.
I wanted to do a shout out to everyone who was a part of the week without shame whether they were there or not.
It was really a wonderful week, and I felt welcome and at home. It was good to meet everyone through their work as well as through their faces and their voices.
My personal preference in any kind of performance is for things that are generous and honest. There was a lot of that this week. The "Best" thing, as Jeff has pointed out, was never an award show, but based on who was available, what got good reaction, and what people wanted to do. Nobody has ever been forced to do something they didn't want to do at BONS no matter how much people liked it.
Sooo, what you end up with is, at the very least, are pieces that everyone involved is very interested in sharing and quite a few people wouldn't mind seeing again.
I really loved having all of you want to share your work with me and the rest of the people in the audience. Thank you.
Also, no, No Shame didn't used to be nice. But I'm glad that a few of you felt us old timers were nice, and worth listening to.
I liked it all, but nothing so much as just being there. And no, I'm not mad that everyone liked the one night without one of my pieces the best.
Well, maybe a little, but I thought Friday was pretty kick ass too, so that's ok.
The invitation is open, come to Ronaoke any time you want.
Todd
is there a way i could get a copy of the Brett Deckers: Highly Excellent script?
Erin brodersen
"No Shame has never been a venue to boot lackluster (remember that word?) bits off the stage."
I hear there used to sometimes be booing and the like, and that those were pretty good times.
"Should have known not to try to start a conversation with No Shame people in the 1st place. I was genuinely interested in learning more about some people who I know a little, but don't have a clue as to what they actually think about."
I thought I was joining that conversation (I usually learn more about people through actual controversy--like considering the merits of religious inclinations that some No Shame people I know might actually endorse--than by comparing ideas that everyone agrees are ridiculous). Either I should have known you weren't serious about this, or you should've specified that I was excluded from your invitation to said conversation.
>I hear there used to sometimes be booing and the like, and that those were pretty good times.
I was there for some of those times. They were shitty. I call them the Mandi years.
>I usually learn more about people through actual controversy--like considering the merits of religious inclinations that some No Shame people I know might actually endorse--than by comparing ideas that everyone agrees are ridiculous.
See, you smart, but you not as smart as you think you are, Doc (but then... who of is?). Would you believe: I know... AND LIKE, No Shame people of various "normal" and " mainstream" faiths. Plain old Catholics and Jews and Methodists and this and that. Maybe I know some cool-ass, cutting-edge poseur wiccans and druids and that, but I don't give a shit to be honest, cuz they're weird superstitions aren't starting any holy wars. So yeah, I should have been more specific: it's not, "Which of the dominant religions is stupidest?", it's "Which religion is going to kill us hardest and fastest?" XXXOOO
"who of is"
That's pretty good: who of is. Who of "US" is, genius. Fuck me, am I right? Yeah. Fuck ME.
Been waiting for weeks somebody to cut me down to size. I'm just disappointed it only turned out to be me.
The invitation is open, come to Ronaoke any time you want.
It is my experience that Todd's invitations are genuine, also that Roanoke is worth the trip. Go to Roanoke.
The script to Brett Deckers by the wondrous Dan Brooks is now online here
Enjoy,
Adam
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