Is What It Is Productions

Disclaimer

Sep 10, 2002

The opinions and thoughts expressed in this issue of the newsletter are not necessarily those of Is What It Is Theatre, its board of directors, its staff, or any of its present or previous casts or crews.

This is my company. This is my forum. It's one of the methods I have to get through this week. So I'm using it.

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I noticed today coming into work -- we all have day jobs at IWII -- that it was already strangely quiet. Not nearly as much chatter and random noise. And we still have 24 hours before the real anniversary. But the dread is already settling in.

We are producing Macbeth now, and we seem to finally have our full cast and crew. It's humid, warm, and bug infested, but I know I had a good time. I think everyone else did to. I hope so. Because not many people get to do this.

It's one thing to not be cast in a show. It's entirely another to live in a place where you aren't allowed to even try. To live somewhere where there likely aren't any theatres to begin with, and certainly no "community" theatres, and certainly no theatres being operated clandestinely in a backyard. Much less a big backyard, because no one can afford that kind of property. Where you can't afford a couple hundred bucks to toss away on props and costumes, such mundane little items, all purchased for the sole purpose of hoping that in seven weeks, a few people will slap their palms together for us for about, oh, one or two minutes, then go home.

There aren't many places like that in the world, but this country is one of them.

As you remember the terrible anniversary that occured last year, if you do nothing else, remember that. Remember that you won't have it this good anywhere else. Or at least, I personally won't -- I guess I shouldn't speak for you. This place is not perfect, and this place often makes us choke on rage, shock and disgust. But at the end of the day, we have something worth fighting for. And those who don't have our luxuries have proven they are willing to give up anything to take our freedoms from us -- even the simple freedom of going to work in peace, being allowed to fret over deadlines and early morning meetings in our skyscrapers.

I am not advocating anything other than remembering where we live. Realizing that tomorrow night, I have the opportunity to direct my friends, new and old, in my backyard. That I've been given the chance to live one more year, and that it is never too late to start hugging people more often, praying for them, or just smiling. Some of those relationships are fourteen years old; some only fourteen days or less. But there is no place I'd rather be than with all of them, and thank God I have the privilige of doing so.

Thanks for reading. And again, just to be clear, what I am about to say does not reflect the beliefs, opinions or thoughts of any other member of this company, past, present or future.

God Bless You.

~ Tom Leveen, Artistic Director