MORE HONORS FOR WOODS

Just before the New Year starts, San Francisco Bay Times names TheatreWorks' Into The Woods one of the top 10 theatre shows of 2005.

Happy New Year To All!!

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Martin

WOODS - REVIEWS!

Aisle Say - Judy Richter

"Fractured Fairy Tales - TheatreWorks Revives Into The Woods"
Bay Area Reporter - Richard Dobbs

"TheatreWorks Goes Into The Woods For Some Holiday Delight"
Inside Bay Area - Chad Jones

"Fairy tale mash-up. Characters collide with each other and, eventually, reality in TheatreWorks' new presentation of Into the Woods."
Mountain View Voice - Julie O'Shea

"Magical Woods Is A Don't-Miss Production"
Palo Alto Weekly - Jeanie Forte

"Into The Woods is An Absolute Triumph!"
San Francisco Bay Times - Tom w. Kelly

"Heart, Darkness, In Deep Woods. TheatreWorks Blazes Trail Through Thickets Of Fairy Tale Musical"
San Jose Mercury News - Karen D'Souza

"Fairy-Tale Finery. TheatreWorks ventures deep Into the Woods."
Silicon Valley Metro - Marianne Messina

"A Bewitching Production of Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods"
Talking Broadway - Richard Connema

AN OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD PERFORMANCE

I wasn't going to write another entry until Monday but I just had to. The amazing Thursday Farrar, who normally plays the Witch was ill today so her understudy C. Kelly Wright had to go on. This has been a very difficult week for C. Kelly and tonight she managed to put eveything aside and give a performance that I will never forget. She didn't just get through the show - she gave the performance of a lifetime. She nailed every lyric (and this is Sondheim baby) and every emotion that the role requires. We were all in awe of how brilliant she was. You go baby girl! God I love the theatre!

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M.

REVISITING 2005 - A GREAT YEAR IN REVIEW

2005 has been an amazing year for me - probably the best ever. I saw dreams become reality and hope turn into goals. Here’s a little recap of major events starting with last December:

December 2004
*I performed at Coastal Rep’s Talent Show - after not singing for what seemed like an eternity. I am scared out of my mind. Audiences were so wonderful to me as I sang "I Have Dreamed" from The King & I.
*My Mom & I attended Bette Midler’s Kiss My Brass concert. What a way to ring in the new year.
*I finally quit smoking. Thanks to the Stanford Stop Smoking Program - I no longer sound like Bette Davis on crack when I wake up in the morning.

January 2005
*Rehearsals for Sweeney Todd at Foothill Music Theatre began as did my second semester at Cañada and rehearsals for Soldado Razo & The Poetry of War for which I worked as Assistant Director.

February
*Sweeney Todd opens to great reviews. A tough rehearsal process but I had so much fun performing with James Monroe Iglehart & Diana Torres Koss.

*TheatreWorks announces their season which includes Into The Woods.
*I wish upon a star.

March
*While performing In Sweeney, I was cast in Bus Barn Stage Company’s The World Goes ‘Round, which is a show I had been longing to do for years.
*Soldado Razo & The Poetry of War opens.
*Managing work, theatre & school starts to hurt a little bit.

April
*During rehearsals for The World Goes ‘Round I am asked to audition for Tom Jones & Joseph Thalken for an understudy position in their new musical. I sing "I Enjoy Being A Girl" as my audition piece, I make Tom Jones laugh and I am cast as Daniel Marcus’ understudy in the west coast premiere of Harold & Maude: An Intimate Musical. Completely speechless.

May
*World opens - I wish all of theatre could be this fun. It was so refreshing to be a part of a fun & collaborative atmosphere. I fell in love with my cast & director: Jen Oku, Paul Araquistain, Linda Picconne & Jackie McSwanson and Barbara Cannon.
*I receive my first negative review - ever (it had to happen sooner or later) for being too loud. And that's bad?
*I finish my first year of college. (Silent backflips)
*I also see my first ever Broadway-Bound flop The Mambo Kings. The best thing about the show was Christiane Noll whom I would share the stage months later - small fucking world.

June
*Rehearsals for Harold & Maude start. I am scared shitless. The cast includes Broadway legend Pamela Myers, who couldn’t have been nicer to me. I finally find out what working with a professional theatre is like - fucking awesome! I also find out that TheatreWorks treats you like a loving family member. I took summer off to commit myself to the show - it changed so much during rehearsals. Being a part of a new musical is both exciting and scary.

July
*H & M opens. I never get to go on but I was sure ready to. I felt great about my work & runthrough and had an amazing time and will forever hold special memories from this production. Pamela Myers makes me cry every time she sings The Chance To Sing. I got to work with Joseph Thalken - him accompanying me on the piano. Me happy.

August
*I finally see Wicked and I fell in love with Eden Espinosa who took my breath away.

September
*I turn 26 and actually happy about it.

*Okay, 27.
*Start school again and once again work for Linda Hoy this time with two one act plays.
*I see my best friend Heather perform in Teatro Zinzanni with Thelma Houston headlining. Fabulous show.

October
*I am offered a role in Into The Woods.
*I still think I’m dreaming.

November
*Rehearsals for Into The Woods start.
*I manage school, work & 8 hour-day rehearsals. My ass is soo tired.
*For Whom The Southern Belle Tolls & Babel’s in Arms opens at Cañada and become critically acclaimed productions.

December
*Into The Woods opens and is one of the most critically acclaimed productions of the year.
*My blog celebrates it’s first anniversary.
*And even though I worked on six productions, I receive a 4.0 GPA for my third semester at school (first time ever) and finally... for the first time in years, I am actually looking forward to the new year and all that it brings.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Martin

(Ever After - Act I Finale of TheatreWorks' Into The Woods)

BEST OF 2005: THEATRE & MOVIES

I am currently writing my year in review but I thought why not mention my pick for the best theatre productions in the Bay Area.. I love going to the theatre and this year I saw a lot of great performances, some good and yes, some very very bad. I was so blessed to be a part of some extraordinary productions this year, but I was also able to be an audience member and see some amazing theatre.

Here are my top five Bay Area Theatre productions (in no particular order):

Teatro Zinzanni (Pier 29) - now in it’s sixth year and continues to amaze audiences. Wanna have a good night out - go see this show. It’s a fab dinner mixed with comedy, music & some of the most talented acrobats, contortionists and magicians in the world.

The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? (A.C.T./Geary Theatre) Left me speechless. A fearless performance by Pamela Reed. Simply as good as theatre gets.

Wicked (National Tour/Orpheum Theatre) - Eden Espinosa who gaave a performance I will never forget - completely took my breath away and I bet she’s taking breaths away on Broadway. I have never seen an audience so eager to give a standing ovation to the entire company. By far, the best musical I have seen this year.

Crucifixion (N.C.T.C.) - As an unexpected surprise - I got to meet Terrence McNally - he was so nice and signed my copy of Master Class, which already has Faye Dunaway’s signature. It was a brilliant production with a perfect cast that included my friend Paul Araquistain.

Intimate Apparel (TheatreWorks) - funny, touching & heartbreaking. Another brilliant ensemble cast. Jackson Davis broke my heart with his performance of a Jewish tailor.

Honorable Mention: Baby Taj (TheatreWorks) - I thought the huge stage at the Mountain View Center for the Arts was a bit too big for this intimate piece but I loved it - especially its inspired casting and witty humor.

And while we’re at it here are the 5
Best Films (in no particular order):

Capote - A tour-de-force performance by Philip Seymour Hoffman. Brilliant script - I couldn’t get out of my seat after it ended. Just brilliant.

Brokeback Mountain - The best film of 2005 and perhaps one of the greatest love stories ever captured on film. Heath Ledger, whom I normally can’t stand, broke my heart in a fearless & moving performance. Jake Gyllenhaal was amazing. I better hear "and the Oscar goes to..." a lot with this film.

The Producers - the funniest film I have seen all year. Yes It was campy & so over the top but I didn’t care - I laughed my ass off. An honor to the original film with a brilliant cast. Kudos for keeping most of the original cast intact. Will Ferrell & Uman Thurman did a great job and added star power to the film.

In Her Shoes - I couldn’t believe I actually loved Cameron Diaz in this film - touching and moving and all about relationships, especially with one’s sibling. Shirley MacLaine’s performance is one of her best.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose - Yes, don’t laugh - I mean it - I stand by my choice. A courtroom thriller & chilling horror movie both combined to make this one of the scariest & most thought provoking films I have ever seen. Acting kudos to Laura Linney, Tom Wilkinson and Jennifer Carpenter whose screams still haunt me.

Honorable mention: Batman Begins - brilliant cast (Bale, Neeson, Freeman, Caine, Oldman) & by far the most intelligent of the series. Not to mention a hot Batman who can act.

SHORT & SWEET WEEK

It was wonderful to have the entire company back and healthy for our four performances last week. After a wonderful Christmas weekend, I feel rested and ready to tackle another killer 8 show week. Christiane will be performing with the SF Symphony on New Year's Eve so Alison Ewing will be playing her role for 3 performances and Mary Melnick will be playing Florinda. It should be most exciting.

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M.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

As Faye Dunaway said in Mommie Dearest:

"Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night."

Much love & happiness,

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Martin

(That's my gorgeous cat - Henry)

DUE TO OVERWHELMING RESPONSE

There will now be one more added performance on Tuesday, January 3rd at 7:30 PM. This will be the last extension. The show must close on January 7th. This is your chance to see the show if you have not been able to get tickets.

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M.

THE SHOW MUST GO ON!

Another interesting and exhausting week. Only this weekend, illness took a hold of a couple of our cast memebers and our awesome understudies went on. Patrick Leveque did a kick ass job as the Wolf, stepping up for ailing James Iglehart and Dann Howard was the Stewart and Angie Layfield played one of the stepsisters played by the amazing C. Kelly Wright (I always get the stepsisters names confused). All of them were fantastic. I love live theatre - that element of the show goes on no matter what, brought this exciting energey to our cast. We all want our ailing cast memebrs to get well quick and join us back soon.

There is a new review by Aisle Say added to the reviews section - scroll down.

We have a short week coming up - only four performances before Christmas. I am so thrilled now that school is out to be able to catch up on much needed some rest.



On a totally different subject, I saw Brokeback Mountain today - it is perhaps one of the most beautiful love stories I have ever seen captured on film. I don't care if you're gay or straight - go see this movie.

Have a wonderful week y'all!

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M.

AN INTERESTING WEEK

What an interesting week this has been for us at the Into The Woods company. Full of surprises that only a venture like live theatre can give. The week started on Tuesday when during the first act the trees which are on computer tracks were not working. This throws off the balance of the entire show and needed to get fixed, so we had to stop the show during Act I for three minutes to fix it. The audience was very warm to us that night despite the technical glitch.

On Friday night, I missed one of my entrances - I had no excuse, I simply forgot how quickly I needed to go back on stage. Luckily my colleagues covered for me beautifully. What's funny is that the following night, C. Kelly Wright who plays one of the Step Daughters, forgets her entrance in the same scene. The Royal Family is doomed =+) Despite a few minor incidents, the show continues to develop beautifully. All the reviews have been glowing and I think makes this show one of the highest rated this year.

I have never done 8 shows a week, so it has been a learning experience to say the least. I am looking forward to the end of my school semester on Thursday so I dedicate myself completely to just doing the show.

This is actually a complete day off for me - no school, no appointment, nada - so I'm going to chill until tomorrow.

Have a great week y'all!

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M.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARTIN'S BLOG!!

My blog has turned 1 year old!!! Part journal, part gossip column - it is one of my dearest hobbies. I am planning a big year in review thing before the year is over so look for that soon. I will write more tomorrow on this past week of Woods stuff. Too tired to move right now.

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M.

ADDITIONAL PERFORMANCES

Due to the overwhelming demand for tickets for Into the Woods, there will be two additional performances of the Sondheim musical: Tuesday December 27 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, January 1 at 7:00 pm

Don't miss your chance to see this amazing production!

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M.

A MAGICAL OPENING NIGHT

Opening night of Into The Woods was...well, It was one of those magical nights I know I will remember for the rest of my life. The entire day was an emotional one for me as I kept thinking about the first show I saw at TheatreWorks and how I hoped that one day I would get the chance to work there - I never thought that my dream would come true - twice in one year. I also kept thinking about a couple of years back when I thought I didn't want to do theatre anymore - I started to think that maybe a guy of my size had no place on stage. I am so relieved that bullshit way of thinking is gone. There will be always be parts for guys my size - this year alone, I played a deliciously evil role in Sweeney Todd, was part of a brilliant ensemble in The World Goes 'Round, assisted directed two plays at my college, understudied six different characters in Harold & Maude and now I couldn't think of a better way to close the year than with this opportunity. I am over the moon.

After the grueling process of tech & previews - we were ready to open. We had an amazing opening night audience which also included my Mom & my mentor/friend Linda Hoy - both seemed so proud. A lovely reception followed the performance in the Grand Ballroom of the Lucie Stern. The magic continues.

The next day we had not one but two performances to do and then today at 8:30 AM I visited St. Joseph's school as part of TW's school outreach program to get kids excited about the student matinee this upcoming Wednesday. Yes, It was one of those coffee days but I had a blast talking to the kids about the theatre & the show.

We have eight performances this week so I am going to try to go to sleep early tonight and catch up on some much needed rest.

Before I forget, I found one more article about the production, this one from the Mercury News. The reviews should start coming this week and I will post them here as they are printed. Richard Connema from Talkin' Broadway had this to say on All That Chat: "I don't usually do this before my review comes out but TheatreWorks production of Into the Woods is a perfect gem."

Have a great week y'all!

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M.

THIS IS IT!

Tonight, I get to fulfill one of my dreams - performing in a TheatreWorks production directed by Robert Kelley. I couldn't be happier (plus a little bit excited & scared.) We are all ready for tonight's opening.

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M.

p.s. The traditional greet & meet at TheatreWorks after the performance will start with Sunday's matinee performance - and those of you who are going to see the show please call me or e-mail me and let me know you're coming so I can be sure to go out and say hello to you.

p.p.s. One more article before opening. This one from Bay Area Living.

FINAL PREVIEW

I had to remind myself that I am a human being and I was seriously tired so I stayed home from school today. The icing on the cake was that I was not called to rehearsal this afternoon. Just one more preview before our opening night tomorrow - I couldn't be happier.

Another article on the show from Stepping Out.

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M.

WOODS PREVIEWS

I can't believe I'm typing at this hour, I can barely move - but we had an awesome preview tonight - just two more before opening! I'll write all about it on Monday. You just gotta see this show - I know I sound like a broken record but trust me - it's an event.

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M.

p.s. I'm in love with this cast!