Theresa Rebeck - Seminar: A New Comedy

SEMINAR BY THERESA REBECK Productions in Print
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Copyright 2012 by Theresa Rebeck. All rights reserved. CAUTION: Professionals and amateurs are hereby warned that Title of Play is subject to a royalty. The plays produced as part of Productions in Print are fully protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America and of all countries covered by the International Copyright Union (including the Dominion of Canada and the rest of the British Commonwealth), the Berne Convention, the Pan-American Copyright Convention and the Universal Copyright Convention, as well as all countries with which the United States had reciprocal copyright relations. All rights, including professional, amateur stage rights, motion picture, recitation, lecturing, public reading, radio broadcasting, electronic reproduction, such as CD-ROM, CD-I, information storage and retrieval systems and photocopying, and the rights of translation into foreign languages, are strictly reserved. Particular emphasis is laid upon the matter of readings, permission for which must be secured from the Authors agents in writing. (212) 277-9000. (212) 277-9000.

All inquiries concerning amateur rights should be addressed to the following agent: SAMUEL FRENCH, (212) 206-8990, Manufactured in the United States of America Cover Design: Serino/Coyne
Interior Layout: Nathan Spring ISBN-13: 978-1-57525-810-2 ISBN-10: 1-57525-810-2 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Essay from the Playwright Ive had my own experiences with really brutal teachers. Remembering all the times I had my heart stomped on by a powerful figure whose approval I desperately wanted, it just seemed like an innately terrifying and hilarious situation. And I guess, from that, came Seminar. Though if Im being fully honest, I also just thought it could be funny to see a really, really gifted actor in his fifties take apart a bunch of actors in their twenties. We were blessed with a first rate cast for Seminars first production. Each actor brought a lot to the table and because of that the play gained an enormous wealth of humanity in rehearsal, and we were not sure it was funny anymore.

And we were okay with that, because in a lot of ways, its a very fascinating and humane play about these people and their desperation and their passion. When an audience saw it for the first time and roared with laughter, it was a shock and a wonderful reminder that, Yeah, these terrifying situations are full of comedy. I think the play hold its own up thereaudiences are responding to its humor and its heart. The play is about the dream of being an artist and how confusing it is to achieve a sense of that in a world that defines art so narrowly, in capitalistic terms, which belittles the spiritual realities of art. Theresa RebeckJerry O Connell, Hettienne Park and Lily Rabe in a scene from Seminar on Broadway at the Golden Theatre. Hamish Linklater and Alan Rickman, in a scene from Seminar on Broadway at the Golden Theatre. Hamish Linklater and Alan Rickman, in a scene from Seminar on Broadway at the Golden Theatre.

Photo: Jeremy Daniel. Essay from the Broadway Producer Conventional wisdom says you should never open a new play cold on Broadway; especially a comedy that has never had the benefit of an audience reaction or been reviewed by a critic. To go through the rehearsal process without hearing audience laughter is (at moments) an excruciating and unnerving experience. Nevertheless, when you trust the material and collaborate with a talented and dynamic team, a confidence guides you to conquer fear and produce something fresh. I feel fortunate to have had that experience with Seminar. For me, a great play starts with the characters and their story.

Theresas witty and insightful script instantly caught my attention. Seminar is a play about writers struggling to fulfill their creative vision. It is also a play about the strength of the human spirit, what we sacrifice to achieve our goals, and the compromises life forces us to face on the road to success. Seminar is immensely smart, contemporary, engaging and heartbreaking, inspiring, and from the first scene laugh out loud funny. I knew this play deserved a world premiere on Broadway; and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did the very first time. Hart Jr. and Patrick Milling Smith, Roy Furman, David Ian, David Mirvish, Amy Nauiokas, and James Spry, with associate producers Matthew Schneider, Wake Up Marconi, Jamie Kaye-Phillips, and Charles Stone/Ben Limberg. and Patrick Milling Smith, Roy Furman, David Ian, David Mirvish, Amy Nauiokas, and James Spry, with associate producers Matthew Schneider, Wake Up Marconi, Jamie Kaye-Phillips, and Charles Stone/Ben Limberg.

The executive producer/general manager was 101 Productions, LTD. The production played the John Golden Theatre. Sam Gold directed the play. Scenic and costume design was by David Zinn, lighting design was by Ben Stanton, original music and sound design was by John Gromada; the casting was by MelCap Casting, the production manager was Peter Fulbright, the production stage manager was Charles Means. Alan Rickman in a scene from Seminar on Broadway at the Golden theatre. Photo: Jeremy Daniel Scene OneAn apartment.

Izzy, Martin, Kate and Douglas.DOUGLAS I mean the place is amazing, the grounds are completely, like its this astonishingly sculpted landscape, where everything seems to be sculpted out of trees and water so that interiority and exteriority meet, you know, what you are surrounded by is this exquisite, idealized just completely perfect environment---Martin, behind him, cant stand all this.DOUGLAS --and the buildings almost hover over the grass, like on a hot summer day when the air is so warm that its tangible, the manor seems to hover and theres so much, the trees are so present that you can feel them growing, Im not kidding! You start to realize that medieval conceptions of magic frankly must have just been completely based in a kind of reality, that things were so green and growing that all the time, it must have seemed a sort of magic, at least thats what it feels like because it was just such a creative environment. Everything so perfectly balanced. The interiority and the exteriority. You know that thing that Indigo Jones was always trying for, there theres such a perfect harmony between the interior and the exterior world that MARTIN (overlapping) Inigo. (then) Inigo. (then) INIGO.

You said Indigo. Its Inigo. DOUGLAS I said Inigo. MARTIN No, you said Indigo. DOUGLAS I said Inigo. MARTIN Not if you dont care about accuracy in language. KATE Come on. MARTIN But if you do care about accuracy DOUGLAS I said Inigo. MARTIN Then it might matter, a little. DOUGLAS Anyway it is an awesome place to write. DOUGLAS Anyway it is an awesome place to write.