Although the numbers attending our show have been small, the general response from audience members has been overwhelmingly positive (and I should know, I've spoken to just about every audience member who has attended...save a choice few). Also, a bunch of people have been posting responses to the show on Facebook and Twitter. I posted some of the initial responses in my previous blog post called, FIRST REACTIONS TO OXYGEN. Since then several more people have posted to public forums, social networking sites, and blogs/web publications about Oxygen. Probably the most flattering, and thoughtful, response came from playwright Liz Maestri who posted an article called, "FutureSound: dirty, violent theater comes to DC," to a web publication called The Pink Line Project. Follow the link and give it a read. It has some great insight into our production, as well as the DC theater scene in general.
A fairly positive, and somewhat rambling, review has also been posted to DC Theatre Scene, and you can follow the link if such things interest you. I know it's not cool for an actor to admit he reads reviews of his shows, but...whatever. It's not an overwhelmingly emotional celebration of our show, but the guy seemed to overall like it. So...there.
Other things that might prove more useful for you if you're considering coming to the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (CHAW) to see Oxygen might be things like production photos and sounds from the show. Teresa Castracane did the photography for the show during our final dress rehearsal and, if you have access to Facebook, photos from our production can be found HERE. There are a lot of great images and she really did an excellent job of capturing the aesthetic and feel of the show. Also, Marcus Kyd, artistic director of Taffety Punk, has started posting music from the show to the internet! If you don't already know, the show is broken up into ten tracks, much like a CD, and each track has music written by different DC area bands and artists to create a totally unique soundscape. Track 8, The Pearl, by The Inexhaustible Chalice, was just posted this week. Give it a listen to get a taste of some of the music in the show.
Again, individual audience members I've spoken to have been incredibly positive about the show. Here's an example of just some of the additional responses that have been posted on Facebook and Twitter:
I went to Oxygen @TaffetyPunk tonight. @MarekKrawczyk & Esther Williamson were terrific.
- Richard Byrne, playwright (Twitter handle - @BalkansBohemia)
Support this incredibly creative group and run-don't-walk to see this beautifully realized, lyrical, hard-hitting, insanely well-acted trajectorial (if that's a word) exploration of the human condition in these chaotic times. The simple actors toolbox of really talking and really listening gleamed like the polished edge of a switchblade.
- Howard Wahlberg, actor
Saw it last night. An amazing experience. Excellent work! Don't miss it!
- Molly Moores, actor
This show is so amazingly thought provoking on a personal level- you'll [love] it- incredible actors! So well staged!
- Eliza Kelly, actor
Congratulations to Marcus Kyd, Lise Bruneau and Taffety Punk for tackling such an on-the-fringe play as Oxygen.
- John Moletress, Theatre Director
More OXYGEN please!! Only a few more [performances] of Taffety Punk's high energy punk-Euro-performance-piece (ends May 19). Full-throttle performances by Esther Williamson & Mark Krawczyk backed by dj Dan Crane w/ music by likes of locals Edie Sedgwick, The Caribbean, The Gena Rowlands Band, local electro-punker Jupiter Rex & Kathy Cashel. No singing here & not really a play, but it's something along the lines of a Hedwig & the Angry Inch confessional that fans of Black Cat DC & DC9 Nightclub [would definitely] love too.
- Michael Kyrioglou, Theatre Communications Manager for theatreWashington
Perhaps the most gratifying feedback of all came from one of my acting students from George Washington Carver Center for Arts & Technology. He and his parents loved the show and kept me in rapt conversation for about 15 minutes after the show discussing the strength of the acting, the visual imagery, and the various philosophical theories present throughout the text of Oxygen. Also, knowing they came down all the way from Baltimore County, Maryland to Washington DC just to see me in the show was the most gratifying thing about last night's performance...especially after an exhausting two show day.
The process itself has been exhausting, but really rewarding. Esther Williamson and I have been working on this show for about 5 months now (yes...you read that right...5 MONTHS), along with Danny Crane who joined us as our DJ about midway through the process, and we, along with our directors and the rest of the company would really love to see more of you come out and check out what we think is a really rich, engrossing, thought-provoking, kick-ass, cool, and FUN show. For myself this is the culmination of 5 YEARS, or so, of thinking about Oxygen ever since it was handed to me by Professor Robyn Quick during a brief meeting at Towson University a while back. I wouldn't have held onto the script for so long if I didn't think it was something special, and I hope all of you reading this have a chance to come out and check out the show and see just how wonderful I think it is...as well as a true artistic collaboration among performance, visual, and musical artists.
Come on out to see Oxygen.
You'll be glad you did.
Go to www.taffetypunk.com for ticket information.
ADDITIONAL BLOG POSTS FROM ME ON OXYGEN:
