FYI—Read More Horror Stories

Ruthanna Emrys is an author based in Washington, DC. Ms. Emrys recently had an opinion piece circulate through National Public Radio about how reading horror stories can actually help us to survive and make sense of our own horrifying world. We are all about the power and value of a good horror story right now at the Commonweal as Scott Dixon’s new adaptation of Dracula: Prince of Blood makes its way to the stage later this month. The timing of this article could not be better because, honestly, who doesn’t appreciate a good tale of things that go bump in the night?!

Reading Horror Can Arm Us
Against A Horrifying World

by Ruthanna Emrys

Jeremy van Meter as the Vampire Lord in Dracula - Prince of Blood

Jeremy van Meter as the Vampire Lord in Dracula: Prince of Blood

Tom Lehrer famously said that satire became obsolete when Henry Kissinger won the Nobel Peace Prize. And yet here we are, still struggling to exaggerate the follies of power until power can’t get around us. Horror has much the same resilience. As terrifying as the world becomes, we still turn to imagined terrors to try and make sense of it. To quote another favorite entertainer, Neil Gaiman, “Fairy tales are more than true: Not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.” Horror, descended from those tales, tells us about more monsters — and more strategies for beating them.

The banal evils of the world — children shot, neighbors exiled, selves reframed in an instant as inhuman threats — these are horrible, but they aren’t horror. Horror promises that the plot arc will fall after it rises. Horror spins everyday evil to show its fantastical face, literalizing its corroded heart into something more dramatic, something easier to imagine facing down. Horror helps us name the original sins out of which horrible things are born.

Click here to continue reading the full article.

Dracula: Prince of Blood, a world premiere adaptation by Commonweal professional resident ensemble member Scott Dixon, begins previews August 31 and opens September 8. 
Get tickets —> Performance Calendar
Thanks for reading and I’ll see you at the theatre—Jeremy. 

Dracula—Deconstructing and Reconstructing a Classic Horror Story

Retelling a Classic Horror Story
through a New Play

by Scott Dixon

As a playwright, one is often in search of that perfect word for a particular moment. It can take a while to find—experimenting with different words and variations of words. In times like these, my bookshelf copy of Roget’s International Thesaurus is my best friend. Right now, I’m searching for the best word to sum up my feelings about rehearsals starting for Commonweal’s world premiere production of my play, Dracula: Prince of Blood.

Ah yes, I think I have it…WAHOO! (I don’t think that’s over the top at all. I bet Paula Vogel and Tom Stoppard say the same thing at the start of a new rehearsal—even if it’s just to themselves.)

Opening night will, of course, be exciting and, like a kid before Christmas, I doubt I’ll sleep much the night before. But where Dracula: Prince of Blood is now, this phase of a new play’s lifecycle is my favorite. It all started with Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula. Then, a few years ago now, I came along to deconstruct and reconstruct this 19th-century classic horror story into a 21st-century play. During that time, the only creative voice in the room was my own—supplemented here and there with input from others with whom I shared my work-in-progress. But basically, I was the soloist.

Dracula - Prince of Blood by Scott Dixon, adapted from the Bram Stoker novel

           Lizzy Andretta and
         Jeremy van Meter in
       Dracula: Prince of Blood

Then Dracula: Prince of Blood gets selected for Commonweal’s 2018 season, and steadily more voices get added. A director is hired, and a team of design artists is assembled, to do their own deconstructing and reconstructing of my work through the lens of their creativity and imagination. And now the cast is gathered to add their contributions. I have gone from being a soloist to one member of a larger chorus.

And this is how it’s supposed to be. It’s true that I have a certain anxiety about giving up my total control, but that’s ultimately just a flash of ego. It’s natural and I let it pass through because what’s about to happen is simply amazing. It’s the lesson I learned watching a play of mine brought from page to stage for the very first time with Commonweal’s 2005 production of The Nutcracker & The Mouse King. I had the special experience of watching talented artists take the story I’d written and bring it to life in ways which were beyond anything I could have imagined for myself.

That’s exactly the kind of energy that’s in the air right now. I get to be on the inside and the outside at the same time—intimately knowledgeable of what this particular telling of the Dracula tale will be like, and yet being surprised by new discoveries in every rehearsal I watch. I’m already incredibly proud of this production. I hope to see you at the Commonweal where we can both enjoy the hard work and talents of so many.

Until then…all the best to you!

Dracula: Prince of Blood begins previews August 31 and officially
opens September 8 —> PURCHASE TICKETS.
Thanks for reading and I’ll see you at the theatre—Jeremy.

Guest Actor Series #2: A Vital Part of the Professional Theatre Company

In this edition of Drama Unfolds, we learn more about Colleen Barrett. Colleen is an actress living and working in Minneapolis/St. Paul but graciously accepted our invitation to “drive south” to join the cast of The Clean House in the role of Ana. We are thrilled to have her as a guest/seasonal actress this year and sure hope you get the chance to meet her and see her gorgeous work on stage.

A Most Important Part of our Theatre Company

by Colleen Barrett

Guest Artist - Colleen BarrettDescribe yourself in a sentence.
—A work in progress.

Where is your hometown?
—I was born in Seattle, WA. Lived in Des Moines, WA, St. Paul, MN, New York City, Milwaukee and Saigon, South Vietnam.  My parents emigrated to America in the early 1950’s. I hold dual American/Irish citizenship.

From your short time as a guest actor at the Commonweal, what have you learned about the company?
—Passionate, engaged and dedicated people who excel at whatever they put their hearts and minds to.

Where do you live when not in Lanesboro?
—I commute back to a suburb of Minneapolis.

What is the best part about that place?
—We don’t have any airplane noise and there are tiny bright green frogs that attach themselves to the glass windows at night in summer.

As a child, did you have dreams of what you wanted to be when you grew up? What were those dreams?
—No. I didn’t dream. We had a tough time and we were very poor. I started working to help my family in 5th grade. Seven of us lived in a two-bedroom apartment and my Mom babysat two other little boys Monday to Friday 7am to 5pm on top of her five kids. Dad worked as a mechanic for Northwest Airlines on swing shift. We had a lot of serious challenges when I was growing up. I was supposed to go work in a civil servant job – but I always knew I didn’t belong there. I’m too quirky.

Cheaper by the DozenDo you recall the moment or set of circumstances that led you to the stage?
—Sr. Raphaella cast me as the Mother in the play Cheaper by the Dozen in 8th grade at St. Philomena’s Grade School in Des Moines, WA. She didn’t audition us, she just assigned us our parts. I was very quiet and shy. When I came on stage in the school cafeteria for the first performance I felt completely at home.

Tell us something about you that might be surprising.
—I’ve worked tons of jobs. Kitchen assistant in a retirement home; burger stand; record shop; chairlift operator near Mt. Rainer; janitor; follow spot operator; manager of a high-end women’s clothing store in NYC; assistant buyer on 7th Ave in NYC; studied dance in NYC for 5 years; terrible waitress; dresser for the Men’s Chorus on Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables at the Ordway; a slimer on a fish processing boat in Alaska; flight attendant for 2 regional airlines; over 20 years experience as an on-camera talent and voice actor in the midwest.

You love theatre. Why?
—The professional theatre world called me and I knew that I loved acting with a passion but didn’t know how to pursue it. There wasn’t a clear pathway when I was growing up. I just kept stumbling along trying to learn what I could and to study with people I respected.

Why did you take the role of Ana in The Clean House?
—I knew and respected The Commonweal Theatre’s work. Many actors I admire have worked for the company. I have also had the good fortune to work with Adrienne Sweeney in the past and jumped at the chance to work with her again.

I found Sara Ruhl’s writing a river of inspiration about the complexities of love, memory, time, parents, children, husbands and wives, lovers of any age, siblings, myth and “things that come in unannounced.” How could I say no to two beautiful roles? I get to play two women who are so very different from me and are passionate and romantic! I am a “mature” actress and who knows if I will ever be offered the chance to play those kinds of roles again!

I’ve lived long enough to know that when the Fates offer me a gift… I’d be foolish to say no.

Seeing Colleen take the stage in The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl is just one of the many things to do in Lanesboro. Hungry for another idea? Go for a hike, tackle the high ropes course or simply get back to nature on the beautiful grounds of Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center
The Clean House plays through October 22 —> PURCHASE TICKETS
Thanks for reading and I’ll see you at the theatre!—Jeremy