I THINK WE CAN, I THINK WE CAN

Previous posts found me lamenting the lack of male actors in the suburbs. This post still has me pouting, but there is hope, as the numbers have changed.

At last count, we have six men lined up to audition for the pseudo-Elizabethan thriller Murdering Marlowe by Charles Marowitz. We also have 10 women auditioning for only two parts, which is very typical and unfortunate.

Perhaps we should do something with a dominant female cast. That would makes sense. Maybe The Trojan Women as suggested by Terry Domschke (Artistic Director) or a gender-bending take on a classical play with the author long dead (as suggested by Tara Schuman - Stage Manager). Perhaps the low turnout is due to the foreign title. This is, after all, a newer play, which will be the Chicago-area premiere.

This is a discussion me and my fellow Janus folks had last night.

Would a better-known play attract more people to audition as well as an audience to support them? The obvious answer is yes.

So why would we decide to do two new plays to christen our new space? It appears better to play it safe, right? Of course it does.

The problem is that I (Sean, the director of these two plays) have been seduced by their wonderful theatrical qualities.

These are great plays for actors with meaty roles, thrilling language and interesting stories. Oh, yes, the audience will find them exciting as well.

This is little consolation when your current show struggles to find an audience and your next show cannot easily be cast.

Still, I have hope that these next two days will present us with more actors to audition and a strong weekend closing of Life X 3. At least that's my hope. I thing we can, I think we can, I think.