Lightning Strikes
I love this animated gif showing a lightning strike in super slow motion.
Note that the lightning’s path is not created instantly; inside the ionized air the electricity needs to try lots of different little paths before it finds the right one and then BOOM — the strike hits the ground.
Like in writing, lightning needs to map out its path first and try lots of different things — test lots of little choices before it finds the correct path — and then BOOM!! It hits for maximum effect.
Bizarre, Innovative Love Triangle
The Huffington Post’s Daniel J. Kushner wrote some really nice coverage on Chautauqua Theater Company’s New Play Festival; included is a very cool sneak peek at my latest play, BUILD. [LINK / PDF]
Build at Chautauqua
Hey gang! So I’m here in Chautauqua, New York doing a workshop production of Build; it’s been a fun and awesome process — Chautauqua is a lakeside resort town with the feel of Disneyland’s Main Street USA mixed with The Road to Wellville. And it’s an incubator and crossroads for all the arts: Visual, literary, theater, dance, music.
Build is a play about guys that make videogames — about constructing another world inside of a machine. So this post is for Chautauquan audiences and those curious about the present state of video gaming — a sort of “DVD Extras” to go along with the workshop performances of the play.
Why We Fight
Year Zero Los Angeles has now completed its run. Don’t worry — the play is headed onward to more American cities; more about that soon.
Anyway, people have often asked me how I felt about the show — it garnered great reviews and an incredible reaction from its audiences. But for me, the following kind of reaction/connection is what makes the process completely worthwhile: An email that I am reprinting here with the permission of the original author:
My name is June and I was one of the few Southeast Asian Americans studying theater at CSULB. My boyfriend is a Khmer-American who has been here since he was 8 months old. He was deeply moved by the story since it hit so close to home for him. Everything from the characterization to the interior decoration was so on point. He, too, knows little about his mother’s past, went to Lakewood High, and watched while others around him either got into trouble or bettered themselves through assimilation. (I grew up a more privileged Thai-American who fell in love with Cambodia upon my first study abroad trip there.)
Thank you so much for bringing out our stories. I only wish that more people like my boyfriend could come and see this show to know theater does not only cater to the privileged but can tell us that we are not alone.
When I get an email like this, it makes me think two things: 1) Writer/Director/Cast/Crew/House, we’re on the right track. And 2) Creators and Audience: We both give a lot to each other and we both get a lot from each other.
Let’s keep on going.
We Are Not in the Answer Business
Yesterday I did a talkback after the show. I like doing talkbacks because it gives me and the audience a chance to connect and find out more about each other. Beyond supplying answers to their questions, I learn a lot about what they’re thinking through their questions.
But sometimes there are questions that are asked where I don’t want to provide any specific answers. [Read on with confidence -- there are NO SPOILERS about the play ahead!]
My Work in Print
Year Zero
Available from Samuel French and Amazon.com
Cowboy Versus Samurai
Available from Samuel French and Amazon.comFor a complete list of books containing my work, please click here.
