...well, almost.
Todd Wallinger - Playwright
Saturday, May 14, 2022
Copper State Bookshop opens new theater
...well, almost.
Friday, May 13, 2022
Tarheel Murder finally takes the stage
Tuesday, May 3, 2022
Cotton State Bookshop funds Ukraine rescue group
Saturday, April 23, 2022
Whole Latte Love to be published
Just got the word that Pioneer Drama Service has accepted my play Whole Latte Love for publication. It's an important milestone for a couple of reasons.
First, this is my 20th play to be published. Second, it's my first play to be accepted in almost two years.
That dry spell was largely my fault. After snagging a literary agent in early 2020, I spent much of the next two years trying to break into novels.
Well, that didn't work, and looking back now, its seems like a big waste of time. But it was something I had to try.
Now I'm back to writing plays--and even that's had some fits and starts. My first play back was It's a Madhouse!, but because it was written on commission, I had to wait until it had premiered at the school that commissioned it before I could submit it to my publisher. That premiere happened late last month, and I'm just putting the final, post-performance polish on the script now.
Next I wrote The Real Reason Dinosaurs Went Extinct, but after it got rejected by Pioneer, I decided to approach some theater companies directly before submitting it to another publisher. That play will get its premiere this weekend in Wellington, New Zealand.
It was my third play back that got accepted. I'm hoping now I can keep the pipeline full.
Whole Latte Love was a play I've wanted to write for a while. With the unending popularity of coffee shops around the country and, well, pretty much everywhere, I was surprised to find there were no plays actually set in one. So I knew there was a need.
The first question was: do I make it a mystery or a farce? I actually started writing it as a mystery (it would have been called--what else?--Whole Latte Murder). But I soon hit a wall with the plot. And I really didn't want to spend three months writing about murder, even if it was a funny one.
Then I thought I'd make it a You've Got Mail type story, where a big unfeeling corporation tries to stomp out the little guy. But I didn't know where to take it.
Then I thought, I'd make it a magical coffee shop (echoes of The Enchanted Bookshop?), in which the coffee casts a spell on the customers. But which spell? Love at first sight, as in A Midsummer Night's Dream? Eternal youth? A truth serum?
It wasn't until I realized I could include all three spells, plus three others--and have the scatterbrained new barista mix them up for the customers--that I had my story.
Here's the opening:
ISLA: So tell me, Shelly. Why do you want to work at Whole Latte Love?
SHELLY: Oh, it's because I just love coffee! All kinds of coffee! I love the taste of it! I love the smell of it! I even love the way it feels against my skin.
ISLA: (Joking.) What do you do? Bathe in it?
SHELLY: Why? Is that weird?
ISLA: Huh? (Realizes SHELLY's serious.) Oh. Well, it's not exactly normal.
SHELLY: I can stop.
ISLA: That won't be necessary. (Scans the resume.) I see you've worked at quite a few coffee places.
SHELLY: Oh, yes! Practically every one in town! I started out at Starschmucks. Then I went to Ditch Bros. After that came Cocakpoo Coffee. And my last job was at Munchkin Donuts.
ISLA: So why did you quit?
SHELLY: I didn't quit. I was fired.
ISLA: Fired? From all of them?
SHELLY: All but Munchkin. They filed a restraining order against me. Said I was too intense!
ISLA: Imagine that.
I think the story's a lot of fun, perfect for both high schools and community theaters. It has lots of female roles, it's easy to produce (single set! few props! no special technical requirements!) and it's got a positive, upbeat message.
What the world needs now is love, sweet love. And Whole Latte Love has plenty of it.
Thursday, March 31, 2022
Wolverine State Butler finds the Python
I was eleven years old when reruns of this groundbreaking show were first shown on American TV. And I adored them. I didn't always get the humor. Some of the jokes were too British. Other jokes were over my head maturity-wise. But I knew they were funny and I watched them over and over again until I could quote them from memory (the exploding penguin sketch was my favorite).
So it thrilled me to learn that a director in Michigan compared the humor in my play The Butler Did It! to those bad boys. The director is Brad Kenyon and he's directing the show next month for the Athens Community Theatre. The Daily Reporter has the story.
"It's not Bob Hope snappy punchline-pacing, but a delightful blend of physical and verbal comedy that makes it hilarious," Kenyon said. "There's influence from classic Hollywood productions, old-time vaudeville and Monty Python."
The article also notes that the actors contributed plenty of their own comedy nuggets, which always makes me happy.
Check it out if you're in the area. The show may not contain the funniest joke in the world, but I guarantee it'll make you laugh.
Thursday, March 24, 2022
Peach State Bookshop gives it away
Tuesday, March 22, 2022
Saskatchewan Meatballs gets funky
Until now.
According to a local newspaper article, Footlighters Theatre Society in beautiful Creston, Saskatchewan is performing my restaurant farce Million Dollar Meatballs this June--and they're setting it in the 1970's disco era.
Does that mean a glittering disco ball hanging from the ceiling of Chez Monyeu? Bell bottoms on the bus boys? The sounds of ABBA playing between scenes? The article doesn't say. But it does make clear that director Jason Smith is a man of exquisite good taste.
"We looked at a lot of scripts before choosing this one," Smith said. "It's just so ridiculously funny and will be a lot fun for audiences of any age."
This is just their third show since reopening after the pandemic. And they have only one goal.
"We wanted this season's productions to make the audience laugh," Smith continues. "And Million Dollar Meatballs will definitely do just that."
Sounds groovy to me!