sleep tight

Happy Halloween! As a special Halloween treat, one of my favorite Gi60 pieces of all time.

Sleep Tight – a piece by Charlie Bernstein and me – from G(hosts) in 60 Seconds.

it’s a Gi60 weekend!

It’s that time of year, once again, for Gi60! (Gone in 60 Seconds – the One Minute International Theatre Festival).  Gi60 is an evening of 50 short plays in (approx) 50 minutes.  I’ve gone international again, this year, with six pieces performed across three different shows – inc pieces in the Brooklyn and UK Leeds shows, and four in the Gi60 NextGen show (also in Brooklyn).  Above is one of my pieces from last year’s NextGen show – Bupkis.

Tickets are still available for all of the shows this weekend.  You can find links here.  And if you can’t make it out to Brooklyn, the evening shows will also be live streamed.

I will be haunting both of the Saturday shows in Brooklyn, and will likely have a few copies of both Plrknib and Miserable Adventure Stories with me for signing.

Here’s all the information on the shows and tickets.

Hope to see you there!

mom comes to visit

Scene – JEFF and BETH settle cozily onto the couch with Chinese food and prepare to watch TV. Jeff glances over at Beth, and flirts with her.  She flirts back.

JEFF:  I’m glad we got to spend more time together this weekend.

BETH:  Me too.  It’s been great.

They watch TV.  Jeff puts his arm around her.  They look into each other’s eyes, snuggle closer, as if about to kiss.  Suddenly, a screeching, bird-like VOICE comes from offstage.

MOM (OS):  Jeff!?  Jeff – are you home?!

JEFF:  Oh no.

BETH:  Maybe if we’re quiet, she’ll go away…?

MOM:  Jeff?!  Is that you?  Are you here?!  I love you! It’s your mother, Jeff!  Are you in there?

JEFF’S MOM enters in baggy housecoat, and loaded down with several large suitcases. When she talks she sounds like a broken, skipping record.

MOM:  There you are!  It’s me, Jeff! Your mother! I love you! Who’s this?!  Who’s this?!

JEFF:  It’s Beth, Mom.  You’ve met, like, five times.

MOM:  I’m his mother!  I love him! Do you love him?

BETH (embarrassed):  Uhm…well…uh…

MOM:  I love him!  I’m his mother!

two apple pies

As we enter the play season for Gone in 60 Seconds (Gi60), here’s a piece from last year’s show – Two Apple Pies.

liquidity

I’m excited to announce that I’ve got pieces going up in both the Gi60 and Gi60 Next Gen play festivals in June.

Here’s a look at one of my pieces from last year’s festival:  Liquidity.

ace and me

Gi60 – the annual, international one minute play festival – is this weekend at the Department of Theater at Brooklyn College.  For ticket information, click here. I’ve had pieces in the show for several years now.

Here’s “Ace & Me” – about my dog – from last year’s show.

the brittany clarke interview

My piece, The Brittany Clarke Interview is now up at the extremely well-named Back Hair Advocate.

 

The Brittany Clarke Interview

The Tawny Rumaine Show in progress. TAWNY plays host to BRITTANY CLARKE.

TAWNY: We’re back! So. Brittany. Brittany Clarke!

BRIT: Yes.

TAWNY: This was it. This was the year that Brittany Clarke took a second rate character – Joan Johnson – on a completely forgettable show – Still Married! – and turned her into an icon.

BRIT: Well – it wasn’t just me –

TAWNY: (to audience) Did she not revolutionize television!? Yes! Yes, she did!

more

breaking bad – the flynn phone

INT.  WHITE LIVING ROOM – NIGHT
SKYLER, tearful and distraught, speaks on the phone to WALT.  POLICEMEN, nearby, listen in on the conversation.

INTERCUT

EXT.  STREET
WALT, angry, bleeding, and distraught, talks emotionally to Skyler.

SKYLER
Just come home.

WALT
I’ve still got things left to do.

Walt hangs up and attempts to rip his cellphone in half, but – surprisingly – it doesn’t break.  Ferociously, he twists and twists and twists at it.  He smashes in against his car.  It still doesn’t break.  Angrily, he throws the phone to the ground and jumps up and down on it.  He pulls out a gun and shoots it.  He picks the phone up and stares at it, wide-eyed.  It’s in perfect condition.

MONTAGE of Walt trying different methods to destroy the phone.

* METH LAB – in yellow, Tychem hazmat suit, Walt holds the phone – via pincers – over a vat of bubbling, smoking acid.  He dips the phone, then brings it back up.  The phone is perfect.
* BEHIND GARAGE – Walt tries to pull the phone apart via gigantic electromagnets.  A nearby RV shakes uncontrollably.  The cellphone doesn’t move.  Walt reacts, impressed.
* LARGE CONCRETE BUNKER – Walt flings a piece of crystal at the phone, which causes a massive explosion.  The phone remains unharmed.  Walt stares, agog.  The phone BUZZES.

A text message appears:    CAN I PLEASE GET THE DEMO PHONE BACK?  IT’S MY ONLY COPY!!! – SAUL

Walt stares at phone.  A devious idea comes to him, and he grins.

INT.  SAUL GOODMAN’S OFFICE – DAY
SAUL, recently killed, lies in a pool of blood in his office.

EXT.  SAUL GOODMAN’S OFFICE
Walt rushes out of the office, gun dangling by his side.

EXT. HIGHWAY
Walt with giant barrel of money and bags waits to be picked up by SAUL’s NEW IDENTITY MAN.  A van pulls up, Walt gets in.  The van zooms off.

TITLE        ONE YEAR LATER

INT.  LIVING ROOM SET – DAY
A cheery INFOMERCIAL.  Walt, poorly disguised, with dark full head of hair, muttonchops and a skewed Dali-esque moustache, sits on a large couch next to his cheerful young new WIFE who cradles their newborn baby SON.  They look very familial and sit across from JOAN RIVERS.  Joan holds up a bright, crystal blue cellphone and addresses the camera.

JOAN
You can smash it, bash it, crush it, drop it out of a plane, poison it with Ricin!  This phone will work!  What’s it called again?

WALT
(proudly) The Flynn.  Made from my own special sauce!

JOAN
And if billionaire Whitey Waltzenberger –

WALT happily points to himself.

JOAN
– and his family believe in it, you should too!

WALT and his new WIFE joyfully hold up their phones.

JOAN
Thank you, Whitey!

WALT
Thank you, Joan!

JOAN
Can I keep this?

WALT
I would advise against it.

They all laugh.  Walt starts to cough – and coughs up some blood into his hand.

SUPER
The FLYNN
$39.99 for the next 20 minutes!
May not be available in New Mexico

your handwriting

JEFF
Is my handwriting messy?

Sophie glances over at a notepad with Jeff’s writing on it.

JEFF
Daphne said my handwriting’s messy.  I don’t think it’s messy.  Small – but it’s not messy.  At least I don’t write in swirls and flourishes –

SOPHIE
Write your name.

Jeff writes his name, hands the notepad to Sophie.

SOPHIE
I have no idea what this says.

JEFF
Oh c’mon –

She takes his pen and writes:  JEFF ROBINSON in large, readable, block letters.

SOPHIE
That’s what your signature looks like to you.

She writes a long squiggly line – that is clearly nothing but a long squiggly line.

SOPHIE
That’s your signature to everyone else.

 Jeff takes back the notepad.  A WAITER brings more coffee.

sleep tight

Sleep Tight – a piece by Charlie Bernstein and me – from G(hosts) in 60 Seconds – is on GI60’s YouTube channel.