Tag: theatre
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Stage Rage theatre photos
I’ve recently snapped some publicity photos for my spouse’s theatre company. What do you think?
From “Paradise Lost” 2018
From “Waking Nightmare” 2019
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PortFringe 2015 Summary
Holy wow. It was an exhausting week filled to the brim with great new plays.
Standouts include Dolphinephilia, a trippy farce based on the true story of Margaret Howe Lovatt. It was presented by the mysterious Marine Mammal Communication Project. Also in the realm of the absurd was Aliens vs. Beckett, a spin on the classic Waiting For Godot, and presented by the always slimy Crowbait Club. And The Green Room, a hilarious one-man show featuring a man arguing with his sock puppet.
And those were only from the shows that I saw. The festival featured dozens of acts, and after soldiering through this week, I commend all who gave the effort for their art.
Megan, as per her usual mode, outdid herself. She acted in three plays, and wrote/directed one as well. I really enjoyed the perky conversations of Take the Long Way home, and the excellent set designed by Carl Currie. And Megan’s performance in the poetic Boy Come Home was perhaps the best of her career.
I also acted in my first PortFringe show. I shared the stage with my wife, as well as the talented Adam Ferguson and Kristina Balboa in Allie Munier’s comedy I Can’t Take You Anywhere. It was an honor to act in such a well-written and humorous play. I hope Allie submits it to more festivals.
I shaved my beard for my art. Most people liked it, while others, myself included, found it strange to see my bald face. One person said that I looked like a creepy pedophile, and that hurt a bit. I’ve never quite understood that comment. How does one look like a pedophile? Perhaps it says more of the describer than it does of the described.
I’m glad the week is over and that we can get a break. Enjoy some photos.
The slimy facehugger from “Aliens vs Beckett”
Cleaning up after “Boy Come Home”
My shiny new, bald face.
The cast of “Take the Long Way Home”
The set of “Take the Long Way Home” -
Cool Designs for PortFringe 2015
Here are two flyers, hot off the presses for PortFringe 2015. Both were lovingly crafted by Allie Munier. Yours truly will be starring in I Can’t Take You Anywhere, alongside my wife. We will be playing a quarreling married couple. If you like these flyers, then you should obviously come see the plays. ( I’m writing this post from a campground by the way ).
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2015 Portland Fringe Festival
For the past seven years I’ve supported my wife, Megan, in her whole-hearted devotion to the difficult art of play making. This past year, I’ve been joining her onstage and backstage occasionally. I’m thinking about changing my title from Rocco Tripaldi, Theatre Husband to the slightly elevated Rocco Tripaldi, Frequent Collaborator.
As I move forward in this endeavor, a quote from the legendary comedian, Groucho Marx comes to mind: “I don’t care to belong to any club that will have me as a member”.
I learned today that a play that Megan is a part of earned over $1000 in crowd funding to appear in this year’s Portland Fringe Festival. When I heard this news, I initially thought that it seemed excessive to solicit donations for Fringe, which is essentially a way to test out new work. Megan reminded me what Fringe is really about. The festival, like most other theatrical events, is competitive. The artists involved don’t simply want to test out their work, they want to take it to the next level. Sometimes you need to make a big impression to achieve that.
Friends in Portland, friends in Boston, friends in New Hampshire and Rhode Island: come see PortFringe. Come especially if it’s been over 5 years since you’ve seen a play. Come as an excuse to visit us and visit Maine. Come to see great artist striving for bigger spotlights!
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Port Fringe Preview
The countdown is on for this year’s PortFringe festival, and the hashtags are just starting to warm up. Get excited people, and make sure you come support the amazing talent in this town.
To wet your whistle here are a few enticing bits from the web!
And remeber to come see “I Can’t Take You Anywhere” starring yours truly playing opposite Megan Tripaldi. Without giving away too much, here’s some cryptic images from our writer / director Allie Munier. We’ll keep you posted as time draws closer.
Poster concept art by Allie Munier 
First table read! -
Other Desert Cities #tbt
Other Desert Cities is a play by Jon Robin Baitz. Megan and I saw a fine performance of the dramedy at the Old Vic last year. I was a mere 5 feet from #MarthaPlimptonsButt. #tbt! She turned in a fabulous performance as Brook Wyeth.
I’m throwing it back this Thursday in honor of the upcoming performance at the Mad Horse Theatre Company. They opened Other Desert Cities this evening, and it will be running through May 17. If you love a good show, go see this. Mad Horse does not disappoint. And if you are new to the theatre world, Other Desert Cities is a great intro course on contemporary theatre. Give it a try.
Do you want to go for free? We bought season passes this year, and we have many extra tickets because we haven’t been able to make a lot of shows. Hit me up and I can hook you up.
Here are photos from last year. #tbt!
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In Praise of Property Design
This week Mad Horse Theatre is opening Alligator Road, a brand new play by Callie Kimball. In the play, the main character has lost her husband and inherited his hardware store. She covers every item in the store with hand-knitted cozies. Why, you ask?
You’ll just have to see the play.
Megan Tripaldi designed the props and the set dressings. She worked with a clan of knitters to essentially yarn bomb a hardware store. For those of you who know her, and how much she loves knitting and theatre, it will come as know surprise that this was a dream gig. She nailed it!
I got a look at the set tonight, and I was delighted by all the tiny details. I tip my hat to Megan and to Chris Sullivan who designed and constructed the set. I didn’t get to see the show because they were sold out. Get your tickets while they last.
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Roadtrip to Morgantown
After driving through the quaint seaside towns of Connecticut, the chaos of New York and New Jersey, the endless rolling farmlands of southern Pennsylvania, and the twisting mountains of West Virginia we arrive in Morgantown. And just in time to celebrate burrito Friday at Black Bear Burritos, then quickly walk through the wintery mix to the MT Pockets Theatre Company. We are here for their annual one act play festival, which features productions written by playwrights from around the country. Megan’s play, Hit Person, was one in ten chosen from a pool of over 300 submissions.
I am overdressed. My three piece suit, which I put on to express pride in my wife’s accomplishment, is too much for the casual, friendly atmosphere of the MT Pockets. Everyone knows each other; some of them have worked together to build this event. Just as I start to wish that I was wearing my standard jeans and hoodie, Toni Morris, the creative director gives us a warm welcome. She is expecting us. Our 10 hour drive earns us VIP treatment to match my unusual attire: waived admission, and reserved front-row seats.
The show starts, and we experience 10 well written plays, some of them funny, some sad, some of them frenetic, some quiet. All of them are beautifully acted, and creatively directed to make use of limited resources. Megan holds my hand while her play is staged, nervous at the first time seeing her words come to life. She is close to tears (of joy) when the lights go down.
We meet the cast after the curtain call. They are all impressed that we drove so far, they recommend some good eateries in Morgantown, and they admit that they were more than nervous performing for the playwright in the front row. Though we are starting to get sleepy, we have enough energy to keep the conversation going for a bit. We learn that Missy Ryan, who portrayed Nichols in Hit Person, is a profession clown. She hopes to travel to schools and use her character Miss Pockets to educate students about pressing issues. And Bobby Wolfe, who portrayed Spencer, was recently in Out of the Furnace and he shared stories about working with Woody Harrelson and meeting Willem Dafoe. We leave the theatre exhausted and elated.
