By Jessica Back, AKA Nada Teezovich
“Anything for anyone
who wants to do it, that’s our motto- but you have to audition,” says Danielle
Cochrane, Associate Artistic Director of Drastic Theatre Company. I sat down with she, Matios Simionian, and
Veronica Zahn for a chat about what drives the newest theatre team in Detroit- It aims to engage the community in theater that will; entertain, educate, and inspire-
and a bit about what makes it different.
Danielle Cochrane (left), Matios
Simionian (center) and Veronica Zahn (right) are members on the production team for Drastic
Theatre Company.
The Drastic Theatre Company is comprised of 9 core members
and growing all the time. Auditions were
just held for this season and the idea is to hold auditions annually to add to the
production team. This is Drastic’s
maiden voyage, and members are excited about what the future holds as well as
how the first season will pan out. “This
theatre is about being an outlet for artists in the community, reaching new
audiences that may have never seen a play before, and being affordable theatre,”
explains Cochrane, “going to see a very established company do even a one-act
can be upwards of $30 a ticket, and is often out of town. This way the mentality can be ‘you have
nothing to do on a Friday (or Sunday) night?
Got $5? I’ll spot you- let’s go
see a show and have a drink.’”
The theatre company has found a home for its first season in
The Elizabeth Theatre- an intimate facility located above the Park Bar in
downtown Detroit. It is a collaboration
that both sides are excited about. “The
Park Bar has been interested in catering to the theatre crowd in particular,
and what better way than to offer theatrical events in the upstairs of the bar?”
A shot of the exterior of the Park
Bar. The bar is connected to Bucharest
Grill and has a staircase leading to the Elizabeth Theater upstairs.
I attended the opening of the space as a mixer on Saturday
the 20th. Having just closed a production I
was stage managing for, it gave me a feeling of support and confidence to go to
an event dedicated to the opening of a new venue that included the gathering of
some of Detroit’s most dynamic theatre folk.
I was pleasantly surprised by the friendliness of the crowd- not only
the people who were at the event, but those simply hanging out. I stumbled up and down the street for a
moment trying to figure out where the bar was at- the Park Bar doesn’t have a
sign on the front of the building and nothing to indicate to first-timers where
it is located by sight- when finally I asked a couple of people standing on the
sidewalk for directions. “You’re
standing across the street from it” they laughingly said, and chided me a bit
about not knowing about the space. We
then had a 15 minute chat about why I was there, and committed to hanging out
inside. This was before I knew that the
party itself was upstairs. Ah, life- new
friends passing so quickly out of view.
If the space is as inclusive and interesting as my first impression
gave, I’m sure I will see Julius and Kimberly again.
It’s clear from that and other encounters I had with both
regulars and employees of the Park Bar that the partnership here is built on
solid ground.
The Park Bar: good times, great
people, and a theater upstairs. What
more could you possibly want?
As for the maiden voyage of Drastic Theatre Company, it’s
also clear that members are jazzed about the docket of plays in the season. Veronica Zahn, director of Hurts So Good, is excited about the
prospect of directing. “I was originally
approached to be production manager, but I had a conversation with [Joshua
Blake Rippy, Producing Artistic Director and head of Drastic] about directing
and here I am.” That’s how it works at
Drastic. Many members of the company
specialize in different areas of production as graduate students at Wayne State-
Veronica focuses on stage management.
But at Drastic, it’s possible to develop as an artist in many fields of
interest- like a stage manager who also likes to direct. Veronica is also enthralled by the concept of
working with the playwright to produce this show. “This is the first time I have ever worked
with the playwright of the production I’m directing, and the first time I haven’t
chosen the script personally. I’m really interested in [Resident Playwright
Edmund Alyn Jones’s] piece and am looking forward to collaborating with him.”
As for Matios Simionian, performer in Hurts So Good and Managing Director of Drastic, his thoughts on the
play are succinct. “This is exactly what I was looking for- a small cast with
no frills and just acting, two people on stage telling a story.” Mat is also excited to have the luxury of the
playwright on the team to work closely with and fine-tune the show through
rehearsals and collaboration.
There’s one more thing that Drastic has which sets it apart
from any new theatre company I’ve seen in this area- the Resident Dramaturg and
Dialect Coach, Andrew Papa. In Speech and Debate, for instance, members
of the ensemble must have knowledge of a type of birth control used. Cochrane explains, “Topher sent an email to
Andrew and asked ‘What is the rhythm method?
There’s a reference here and I have never really had it explained to me.’
Andrew, excited to start right away, answered the question, and also sent
Topher information on all the political figures mentioned in speech and debate,”
Cochrane adds that Papa went on to send information on French lingerie and the
prevalence of AIDS in the Mid 2000's for Red
Light Winter, all in the same email. As for dialect coaching, Cochrane needs to use
a French droll in Winter and states, “We’re
transcribing everything into IPA and really getting into how the dialect works.” All of this is impressive for a new company-
or for any company really- and having a resident dramaturg and dialect coach
onboard to assist is sure to produce equally impressive results.
Drastic Theatre Company is looking forward to presenting its
first year, which includes Hurts So
Good/Red Light Winter in conjunction and Speech and Debate later in the season. Tickets for Speech are $5 and tickets for Hurts/Red are $10. Affordable theatre, in a renovated space,
connected to a bar, surrounded by really cool people- I predict that this will
be a success.
A final thought from Cochrane on the theatre:
“We are professionals
with degrees, yes, and we happen to enjoy what we do. If a mail carrier enjoys what he/she does it’s
looked at differently- my point is that even though I love my job, it’s still a
job and we deserve to be given the same appreciation as any other
vocation. We started this company as a
pool of professionals who have to have an outlet, and we welcome anyone who
feels the same to audition for us and join the crew.”
For more information on Drastic’s season or to find out a
little more about it, go to www.drastictheatercompany.com
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