It is not a privilege.

Dear Baltimore Sun,

I am not privileged to have you cover the work that I do. I am a theatre artist, I survive with or without you. I will do my art whether or not you cover me. You can't survive without people reading you, well guess what, you lost one more.

Until the Baltimore Sun starts to give the Baltimore Theatre Community the respect that it deserves, I want nothing to do with it.

What sparked this new influx of hatred of the Baltimore Sun?

I submitted a letter (via email) to the editor last night of the Baltimore Sun. You can find it here. Today I got an email back from the Letters Editor asking me to contact them to verify the letter was indeed real and what the "nature of your involvement with this issue". Called, left a message. Got a call back and it all when down hill from there.

He asked me my involvement, I told him I'm working with one of the actors of Take Me Out in my current show and that I direct in town. I also act, produce, do make-up, etc. He then said it was odd that they had just got a letter the other day talking about how angry they were with the Sun about the nudity and how I was praising them (don't remember the exact wording). I was like "What?!?" Apparently he missed the first part where I said I was outraged and angered by the article.

As I made my position on the play clear and how they obviously missed the boat on the opportunity to discuss the plays ever-relevant themes, he actually said to me "shouldn't I be happy that the Sun featured a community theatre piece?" I told him no, because of the way that they did it. I once again said all they focused on was the nudity, not the themes that are playing out in American politics right this second.

Well needless to say I don't think they are going to run it. Oh well. Fuck the Sun Papers, they aren't worth all this heartache. Time to make some art!

8/30/08 - As of today they have not run the letter.

My Letter to the Baltimore Sun

"Outrage by the Sun's obsession with nudity"

Dear Editor,

I want to express my anger and revulsion towards the article that Ms. McCauley wrote on August 24, 2008 entitled “A diamond in the buff”.

As a local theatre artist in Baltimore, I was outraged, I was appalled and most of all I was disappointed that the Sun would discredit a play that was nominated for a Pulitzer and is Tony award winning. It was made clear by the Sun that it does not have the time to cover "community" theatre productions. I was excited and hopeful that such a wonderful play had caught the attention of the Sun, at least until I read the article. The play is not about nudity, yet Ms. McCauley's article made that the main focus. The nudity is not gratuitous; it makes sense in the action of the play. If they were in the locker room and did not change, then you mess with the world of the play and would disconnect you with your audience.

By sensationalizing the small amount of nudity (only 10 minutes in Ms. McCauley's words), you discredit the work that these actors do. You do a disservice to the courage that these actors have to take on such themes and portray them with vigor and vulnerability. You cast a shadow on the Baltimore Theatre Community.

I appreciate that the Sun took the time to examine a "community" theatre piece, but I am also shocked that during an election year and right before the Democratic National Convention, that your writer would completely pass over the metaphor for American Democracy. You missed the chance to explore how theatre is a reflection society's feelings and how the racism and bigotry that are rampant in this piece play a role in American politics. We are on the verge of a new era in politics and this play discusses themes that will play out in this election more than they ever have before. America has the chance to have its first African American president and you brush over a play that uses the game of baseball to discuss those issues. In the future when you choose to grace community theatre with your presence, make it about the work we do, not about basic human anatomy.

From Take Me Out:
"Baseball is better than democracy -- or at least democracy as it's practiced in this country -- because, unlike democracy, baseball acknowledges loss" and "Democracy is lovely, but baseball is more mature."

Lynn Morton
Baltimore, MD

Commitment

So working on Helena Troy has been fantastic. The cast has been really amazing and super fun to work with. I've learned a lot about myself and how people work together.

So we have the honor of performing at the Page-to-Stage Festival at the Kennedy Center this Labor Day and now one of the actors has told us today that they will not be able to make it. WTF?

I really don't want to talk shit about anyone, but I'm a little peeved, especially since earlier in the week they had me find out our time slot because this person wanted to attend a Labor Day barbecue with friends. I don't want to get into anymore specifics, but this does prompt me to talk about commitment.

Commitment is defined as an act of committing to a charge or trust. To commit is to obligate or pledge oneself.

To commit yourself to a production means that you are there for the duration. I understand that this is a group of volunteers that are doing this for the pure love of theatre, but that does not mean that your commitment should not be just as strong as someone who is getting paid to be there. You accepted the role, now follow-thru on what you said you were going to do. You disrespect the production and your fellow cast and crew by backing out of something that had been planned since the process started. You disrespect yourself and violate your own integrity. It is not okay to give last minute notice saying that you will not be able to make a performance that had been previously scheduled.

If there is one thing that Rich's play taught me it is "no matter how much you love the theatre, it will never love you back." Let me just say, he totally nailed that one.

8/28/08 - Update before I'm off to rehearsal. The lovely actor who had conflict problems has rearranged their schedule to join us at the Kennedy Center. I appreciate this actor living up to their commitment that they made. It shows true integrity to follow-through.

Watch, A Haunting - First Read-Thru

So tonight was the first read-thru for the show I'm directing at The Strand - Watch, A Haunting by Molly Rice. I've mentioned it before, but thought I'd say it again in case you forgot (or for my own vanity, who knows?).

I'm super happy with the casting choices I've made AND the girl that I cast as Jenny read the part of Granny. She did really wonderfully tonight and I think she's talented enough to handle the dual roles. So I'm pleased to say... I'M DONE WITH CASTING! :)

Casting done, check. Figuring out how to pull this all off, up next.

Also, super exciting! If you live in Baltimore, or within a reasonable distance, I invite you to make your Halloween plans now and attend the Free for Baltimore night at the Strand on October 31st (Yes, that's Halloween!). We will be putting on a free show of Watch at the Strand and will be having an old skool Halloween party. Think bobbing for apples, peeled grapes and wet spaghetti! Super fun and what better than a ghost story at a haunted theatre with fun festivities afterwards?

P.S. The Strand has a blog as well. Visit it, comment and keep up with whats going on at the Strand. So far it seems like a really great theater with a strong purpose and a strong mission, which I totally respect.