Mike Mariano

In their first theatre-related column since July, the New York Observer printed an article written not by missing critic John Heilpern, but by the dude from Gawker.

Don’t get nervous—Choire Sicha (now Senior Editor for the Observer) wrote a genuinely entertaining fall preview. Anything that name-checks Joy Division is fine by me.

Spurred by this, I sent a second e-mail to the Observer that led to some fresh information about our favorite critic: Heilpern is expected to return shortly. Pay no attention to my ominous conjectures in the previous post; Heilpern’s absence isn’t much more than a summer break of sorts.

I’ll be eagerly awaiting his return. In the meantime, I suppose there’s nothing to do but read Village Voice reviews of the Magical Brazilian Dolphin Musical!

Update: If you need photographic evidence of our subject’s well-being, Playbill provides it.

An article in Everett, Washington’s Daily Herald today shows how playwrights and publishing companies are essentially beating up drama students for their lunch money.

Some of the royalty percentages discussed aren’t too different from a professional production; only the smaller stakes make it seem more desperate. But one-third of the gross ticket sales for Oklahoma royalties? Half of the production cost for Les Mis, Jr.? You can only ask schools to tithe so much before the quality of the work suffers.

Drama students at Kamiak said they don’t mind scrimping on costumes at Value Village or other thrift stores if it means finding the right play.

Good for Value Village, but how does that look onstage? Do our little league Nicely-Nicely Johnsons resemble Beckett tramps? Is our Audrey II a sock puppet? Is Grease Lightning a Tonka Truck?

A bigger budget doesn’t mean a better production. But no high school play should look like “a high school play”; how else are students expected to be more than just “high school actors”? As playwrights, don’t we want our plays to be healthy and well-fed?

As we mull our answers, a reminder: there are many plays on this site, and rates are negotiable. You know the e-mail address.