AOTA-240607 - Christopher Greyson, Morgan McCabe, Canterbury Summer Theater 2024 Season

This week on Art of the Year features mystery adventure novelist Christopher Grayson, who's written over 20 novels that include his detective, Jack Stratton. Next, we have theater professional Morgan McCain, whose latest project is directing Doom's Arts Foundation's summer production of Tally's Folly. Our spotlight's on Canterbury Summer Theater's 2024 summer season with artistic directors Ray Scott Crawford and David Graham. Express yourself, you art, and show the world your heart. Express yourself, you art, and show the world your heart. You're in the know with Esther and Larry, art on the air today. They're in the know with Larry and Esther, art on the air our way. Express yourself, you art, and show the world your heart. Express yourself, you art, and show the world your heart. Welcome, you're listening to Art on the Air on Lakeshore Public Media, 89.1 FM, WVLP 103.1 FM, our weekly program covering the arts and arts events throughout Northwest Indiana and beyond. I'm Larry Breckner of New Perspectives Photography, right alongside here with Esther Golden of The Nest in Michigan City. Aloha, everyone. We're your hosts for Art on the Air. Art on the Air is supported by an Indiana Arts Commission Arts Project Grant, South Shore Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Art on the Air is heard every Sunday at 7 p.m. on Lakeshore Public Media, 89.1 FM, also streaming live at LakeshorePublicMedia.org, and is available on Lakeshore Public Media's website as a podcast. Also heard on Friday at 11 a.m. and Monday at 5 p.m. on WVLP 103.1 FM, streaming live at WVLP.org. Our spotlight interviews are also heard Wednesdays on Lakeshore Public Media. Information about Art on the Air is available at our website, breck.com, slash A-O-T-A. That includes a complete show archive, spotlight interviews, plus our show is available on multiple podcast platforms, including NPR One. Please like us on Facebook, Art on the Air, WVLP, for information about upcoming shows and interviews. And we'd like to welcome to Art on the Air Spotlight from the Dunes Arts Foundation Summer Theater, and the upcoming productions they have. We first have Michael Laswell, who will be directing Blythe's Spirit, but is also all season there for Scenic Design. From the next show, Tally's Father, we have Rob Morris, and he's going to talk about participating in that. They have not yet started rehearsals yet, but they will very shortly. And, of course, Elise Comani, who all herds the thing to make sure everyone's in place. Welcome to Art on the Air Spotlight, gentlemen and lady. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. Well, Michael, we'll first kick it to you and talk about Blythe's Spirit, directing that and everything like that, and also then a little bit about, maybe just a real brief thing about your background, and then also about the theme design for all the shows this season. Yeah. This season, we decided we'd explore the theme of the way the course of true love never runs smooth. So, it's the bumpy road to love, and in Blythe's Spirit, I wanted to do this show my whole life. I worked as an actor and a director and a set designer over and over again. And this is kind of the Olympics of set design, because there are a lot of special effects, a lot of magic, a lot of crazy stuff. But it's sort of about how a guy gets turned into an accidental bigamist when he throws a seance just for a goof. He thinks he has hired a phony medium to have a seance, and it turns out she's the real thing. And so, he thinks happily married to his second wife, but his first wife comes back from the dead. And one of the critics described it as a psychic menage a trois, as he tries to juggle two wives at once. And they don't like each other a lot. Eventually, a lot of crockery gets thrown through the air, sometimes by invisible beings. So, that's Blythe's Spirit. So, tell us a little bit about theme design things planning for the whole season. Do you try to incorporate a whole concept like, okay, I'll use this in this show, and now what can I use from that in this show? Tell us about your process. I have to be sneaky, because the turnovers are really, really fast. So, the basic platform arrangement of this beautiful English arts and crafts country house that's all art nouveau and beautiful is there, but then we turn it into a ruined boathouse for the next show, for Talley's Folly. It's supposed to look like it was once a grand architectural folly, and then, kablammo, a hundred years go by, and it goes to rack and ruin. So, we're going to build a beautiful set, and then we're going to crackle finish all the paint. And tell us real briefly about your background, just like about 30 seconds here or so. Oh, yeah. I used to work as an actor all the time in New York, and as a director in New York and Chicago and Oregon, and the set design job was always my day job. I wasn't a waiter. I was a set designer. Well, that's excellent. Well, we appreciate that. We'll move on to Rob Morris, who's going to be in Talley's Folly, and it's a two-character movie directed by Morgan McCabe, who we have interviewed as a feature interview. So, Rob, tell us briefly about yourself and a little bit about the play. Well, currently, I'm an English teacher, head of middle school, but I've been doing theater for, you know, 15, 20 years now, and it's become a passion of mine, and getting an opportunity to do a role like this, I'm just really looking forward to continuing to dive into it. I know we don't officially start rehearsals until June, but the co-star and I have been working on the side, working on our lines, memorizing, getting that going. Tell us a little bit about the show, Talley's Folly. It's set in 1944. I know that. Yeah, it's set in 1944. It's in Missouri, and we've got, you know, Matthew and Sally that they were together a year ago, and they're trying to figure out what went wrong in that last year, and, you know, from that beautiful boathouse that is now ruined, it's now coming together, and they're, you know, they're trying to see if they can make love work or not. Rob, do you have a past connection with the Dune Summer Theater? No, this is my first time, and I think Michael is a big reason why I'm involved. You know, kind of, he had seen me in something, and, you know, kind of wrote me into it. I'm thrilled that I got my first walk around to the site just yesterday, and it's just a beautiful venue, and just a great opportunity, and great stage, and I'm looking forward to seeing it all. Are you in anything else this season, or is this the only show you're in? For myself, this will be the only show I'm in at the Dunes. Okay. Are your students aware that you are an actor? Yeah, I have the posters up in my room. Every time I'm in a show, another poster goes up. I've lived in the area for two years, and so I'm getting a little collection, and now I've added this one to the list. Okay, very good. Well, Michael, we'll come back to you briefly. When the resources, you talked a little bit about how to make the transition from one show to the next in terms of scenic design and stuff like that. What type of crew do you work with? I mean, are you a hands-on scenic designer, or you're also the master carpenter? I am hands-on. I am feet-on. I am here 12 hours a day. My days usually start at 10 in the morning and go until 10 at night. Alex, who does everything, Alex Front of the theater, helps me out, and we've got a lot of community volunteers. We actually have a team of people making unbreakable Chotsky vases and lamps and plates made out of metal, and we're glazing them to look like they're fine ceramic so when they fly through the air or jump off the mantelpiece, they don't get broken. Excellent. Well, Lisa, we'll kick it to you so you can remind people the dates of at least these two shows and some of the things coming up and how to get there. Yeah. So, Life Spirit opens on May 31st, and it runs until June 16th, and so it's every Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. Central Time, that's Chicago time, and then Sundays at 2. And we open, the bar opens an hour before, and we're hoping, fingers crossed, we'll also have a food truck there with Mexican food, so come early, enjoy the beautiful lawn and patio, and you can get tickets right online. Dunesarts.org, D-U-N-E-S-A-R-T-S dot O-R-G, and the best deal is four more, $25, buy four tickets. Well, thank you for coming on Art in the Air Spotlight. Rob Morris, Michael Leswell, and Elise Cremani from Dunes Arts, and it's dunesarts.org. Thanks again for coming on Art in the Air Spotlight. Yeah, thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Esther and Larry. And a spotlight extra. The museum at Lassen's Resort will feature a second culinary anthropology, a taste of Potawatomi heritage, on Sunday, June 9th at 3 p.m. with Chef Eric Hines and Dr. Ezekiel Flannery. Information about this event is available at LassenResort.com and is presented with a grant from Indiana Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Art in the Air Spotlight and the complete one-hour program on Lakeshore Public Media is brought to you by McAuley Real Estate in Valparaiso, Olga Patrician, Senior Broker. And as a reminder, if you'd like to have your event on Art in the Air Spotlight or have a longer feature interview, email us at aotaatbrek.com. That's aotaatbrek, B-R-E-C-H, dot com. Art in the Air is supported by an Indiana Arts Commission Arts Project Grant, South Shore Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Hi, this is singer-songwriter Kenny White, and you are listening to Art on the Air on Lakeshore Public Radio 89.1 FM and on WVLP 103.1 FM. We are pleased to welcome Christopher Grayson to Art on the Air. Christopher is a Wall Street Journal bestselling author of mystery and action novels. He wrote the well-known detective Jack Stratton series. He is a self-published author. His title, And Then She Was Gone in 2016, made the shelf awareness self-published bestseller list. His childhood love of reading and storytelling led him to writing. His current novel is Jack and Jill and the Blue Light Killer. Thank you for joining us on Art on the Air. Aloha and welcome, Christopher. It's very nice meeting you. Aloha. It's very nice meeting you, too, and thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it. Well, Christopher, thank you for reaching out. You're the type of guest we love to have on the show. And our audience always wants to know about your background, your origin story. And I always see it up by saying how you got from where you were to where you are now. So tell us all about Christopher. Well, I was the youngest of six kids. My mother is my absolute hero. My father was a mathematician and just a wonderful guy, a Fulbright scholar, had tea with the Queen of England and cocktails with Winston Churchill. And unfortunately, he passed away when I was only a month old. So my mom, as a single mom in a day and age where there weren't a lot of single moms, raised six kids and took care of her parents. My grandfather was a World War I soldier. And so growing up in that environment was challenging. We were very poor. But she always made it so entertaining and fun. I remember growing up in the New England winters, and she put a kiddie pool downstairs. And we'd either fill it up with water or fill it up with sand and go downstairs and play. And she would find things before the Internet. And she would always challenge us to never be bored. A creative person is never bored. And she was one of the people that started inspiring me to write stories because she would say, you need to entertain yourself. And we would. And I started with, I spent a long time raised by my grandparents going up to their house. And so I grew up with a very older influence. I used to watch the Bowery Boys. And none of my friends knew anything about the Bowery Boys or any of the shows I saw. But I grew up on westerns and absolutely loved them. And then I found reading. I think I read The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit when I was only in fifth grade, fourth, fifth grade, and just devoured it. I loved fantasy. I loved reading. And that love of stories ended up growing into a love of theater. So I had a chance to act in, as I said, the first play was in elementary school, but it wasn't until junior high that I got into musical theater. And I thought that was the best thing in the world. The first time I remember ever walking out on stage and having people clap for me, now that was addictive. Just the energy and the immediate feedback. And I wanted to learn everything about it and just really devour theater, devour classes. I did plays in community theater, in school. I wrote a play when I was in ninth grade about for a one-man show that I absolutely loved. And it was in high school, early high school, that I decided I wanted to be an actor and trained for that. I did get derailed in other parts. Like I said, I was growing up at the youngest of six, poor. I did stumble. I had some run-ins with the police on many occasions and actually some substance abuse issues. And then I stopped that when I got back into theater. And I went to Emerson College, had a wonderful program for youth in the summer. And I did two years of that. And I learned to dance. And I fell in love with dancing. I wasn't Baryshnikov, but it was fabulous. And I got in great shape. And then I blew my knee out when I was in college. I got to college. I was doing a multitude of plays. And I broke four ligaments in my left knee. When I was in the hospital, I got accepted to a world dance school. And that was a real kick in the teeth. Because I couldn't dance anymore. So I needed to... Creativity is kind of like a Jurassic Park where they say life finds a way. Creativity finds a way. So I started writing. And I wrote a book called Pure of Heart. And it was a fantasy novel, like my hero token. And back then, that's where dinosaurs roamed the earth. And you didn't have self-publisher. So I sent it off, I believe, to Del Rey Publishers. And the woman loved it. She said, it's not right for us, but I really love your book. Can I send it off to this other company? And I said, sure. And one thing I didn't know, and I didn't even realize it until I wrote my book, The Girl Who Lived, is when I was in the hospital, I have addictive tendencies, I guess. And I got addicted to morphine and the painkillers. And after getting out of the hospital, and once the painkillers ran out, I replaced it with alcohol. So at a very young age, still in college, I ended up going through five different drug rehabs. And so that derailed the writing career. And I put it aside, and I listened to everybody that is growing up, wanting to be in theater. There were a lot of naysayers. You'll never make it. You'll never be an actor. Do you want to be a starving actor? And then it shifted to, do you want to be a starving author? You'll never make it. What are you doing? And I listened. And that, you know, if I look back at my life, and I try to honestly look at the biggest regrets that would be, the biggest regret is listening to the faith quenchers, as I call them, that love to run up with buckets of water and throw it on the creative fires. And it wasn't until I was married and my wife wanted to write a book, and the whole independent publishing had come out, and she said, can you help me? And I said, I do not want to mess up. It would be like an artist saying, can you help me with my painting? And I'm like, I don't want to mess up your painting. I don't know what I'm doing. So I said, oh, well, let me write a book. I'll write a mystery. And it was there. It just, I just said, this is what I think was born to do. And I got back into it. And so that's how my writing career started to flourish again, and I can go into more depth onto any of that. Well, I want to go back a little bit about theater. Do you have any favorite plays or musicals? And even though you couldn't dance, there's still roles for kind of like, you can still move on stage without doing a real heavy dance. Are there any favorites of yours? Oh, there are plenty of favorites, and I actually did get back in. I did a Christmas show at a church in Florida, and it was one of those mega churches where they pick you up in a golf cart, and they were doing, it was actually, it was wonderful because it was in Naples, Florida, and they had the Naples Philharmonic. A lot of the members played the music while I acted, and I was just like, where have you been all my theater life? Because you could not do a bad performance. If you start to say a line, and then all of a sudden you have all these instruments kick on, I'm like, oh, this is fantastic. I did almost kill the sound people, though, unfortunately, because I grew up without microphones. So when I got up on stage, I said, I looked and the back was so far away, and I'm like, I can project, I can hit the back, and I was so nervous I totally forgot they had mic'd me up. So my first line, everybody jumped up, grabbing their heads, and I'm like, I apologize. But I think the, I was in anything goes for musicals, West Side Story, those are some of them. I actually danced in West Side, and it was fantastic. So, and then I was in a play called Jackknife, again, about a Vietnam vet. It was only a three-person show, and absolutely loved it. And that was after my knee, too. So coming back in the acting performances, again, I think I stepped away more out of fear, like any rational thing, again, with everybody driving me about, this is what's expected of you, and you'll never make it, and get a job in computers and not think of, you know, is this a passion, is this what I love to do? Yes, it pays the bills, but was it what I love to do? Absolutely not. It's interesting, you said your first book was a mystery. Had you been a fan of that genre? Because up until then, it's been the fantastical. Which is not to say that a mystery can't be fantastical, but. I had actually always also wanted to be a police officer growing up, because I used to watch all these police shows with my grandfather. And for me, and it was, it's partly, computers weren't all bad, because it's that problem solving, the puzzle solving. And I love that, but I think that my strength in going to mystery is they're more of ensemble pieces, and more that tell a story. Like my Jack Stratton series, all 11 volumes blend together in the story of Jack. And so you see characters that keep reoccurring and showing up, and he has such a mixed background. He was raised, you know, in the foster care system. So there was that love of mysteries too. And I'm a true crime buff, and an excellent question. Yeah, you know what, while we're at that point, we want to hear a little bit about Jack Stratton in your newest book, and maybe give us a sample, and maybe you'll listen to one later. But if you could, just tell us a little bit about, well, tell us first a little bit about the book, and then maybe a good excerpt from it. Okay, great. Well, this new one is Jack and Jill and the Blue Light Killer. And so what I've tried to do with all of the books in the series, and it helps keep me fresh as a writer, and I think fresh for the audience, is they all hit a slightly different aspect of the mystery genre. Some are cold case files. Some are kidnappings. Some are more of the traditional whodunit. Some tend toward more of the thriller aspect. This is more of the traditional mystery Jack going back to his roots. In some parts of the series, he was actually off the force. Now he's back on the force. He's recently married, and you get to go along with the love of his life in the book. And I'm really glad because a lot of the reviews are saying that the romance is still there, even though they're married. It's kind of like the moonlighting experience with Bruce Willis when they said, the minute they get together, the sparks start flying. So I'm glad that Jack and his wife Alice, who's a real spitfire, the sparks keep flying. So Jack gets fit with a new partner named Jill in this one. So there is the Jack and Jill aspect. And Jill is a detective relocating from California, and it opens up with Jack coming back from his honeymoon, and he takes out the trash, and there he discovers a body in the trash. And it sets off a whole series of events because I modeled the town, Darrington, where he is under the way the police are set up here in Cookville, which I cannot say enough nice things about the police department here. They actually have a citizen's academy, and you can go on ride-alongs. They have a nine-week course. You can really see what the officers go through. Like, for example, on the ride-along, I went out, and the very first ride-along, he got a call that a woman was having a psychotic crisis and threatened her neighbor with a gun. And we had to go to the outskirts of the county, down this windy road, and this sign said, do not enter written. Like, if you had a font of, like, the deranged font written in red spray paint, do not enter. And this poor police officer had to go check on her, the woman that, you know, the report with a gun. And he said, if you hear anything, call in for me. How do I get the gun out? And it really helps put yourself in the policeman's shoes, and that's what I try to do with all the books. So it's about a suspected killer, and they don't know if somebody in their own law enforcement department is involved. And so it goes, you have the city police that have jurisdiction in the city, and Jack works in the sheriff's department, which has jurisdiction technically everywhere in the county and the city. But now he has to work with this new partner, and the sparks fly. Okay. Well, let's take a listen. Jack and Jill, Blue Light Killer, and this is Christopher Grayson. Tyrell Miller sat in the last booth at the diner, pressing his hands against his right leg to stop it from shaking. Beads of sweat quickly dotted his brow as he wiped his forehead with a napkin. He took another sip of water, but his mouth was dry again before his glass was back on the table. The little bell above the door chimed and a mountain of a man strode through. Carlos Degato's bushy eyebrows bunched together, forming a continual line of thick black and gray hair. His forehead wrinkled into deep troughs while his lips pressed together tightly in a thin line. The waitress stayed behind the counter as the angry-looking man lumbered toward Tyrell, the diner's lone occupant. Tyrell didn't know if Carlos was mad because Tyrell had asked to meet him. Carlos always seemed angry whenever Tyrell was around, but this was different. He looked ready to kill. Slipping out of the booth, Tyrell held out his trembling hand. Carlos shook it with the strength of a man who worked manual labor his whole life. He sat without saying a word. Thank you for meeting me, Mr. Delgado, Tyrell said. Carlos slid into the booth and swallowed, not trusting his shaking hands. He didn't dare try to take a sip of water to dampen his mouth. Would you like something to eat or drink, Tyrell asked? Carlos shook his head and continued to stare, silently studying Tyrell. Tyrell exhaled. He placed his hands on the table and then on his lap. That felt like too much of a submissive position, so he crossed his arms. But that seemed too defiant, so he settled on placing his hands back on the table. Your daughter and I have been together for five years. Next Monday, sir. The deepening scowl on Carlos' face made his stomach sound. So that's our big anniversary. I've been thinking and praying. I wanted to get your opinion. I mean, permission or blessing to ask Rosa. Carlos' thick, callous hands stroked the rough stubble on his chin. His eyes narrowed, like a bear debating about eating an unsuspecting hiker. A deep rumble built in his chest and reverberated in his throat. Tyrell sat up straight and lifted his chin. I want to ask Rosa for a hand. Doesn't she need both of them? I understand if you're hesitant considering my past, but what? A broad grin spread across Carlos' face. He reached across the table and grabbed Tyrell's arm. With both of Carlos' beefy hands wrapped around Tyrell's, Carlos shook his arm so hard that Tyrell's teeth flattered. Of course, it depends on what Rosa says, but if she agrees, I will treat you as my own son. Wonderful, and that's from Jack and Jill, The Blue Light Killer, Christopher Grayson. So you get to know what's happening there if you read the book. Yeah, I have a question. So you're ready to start a new novel. What is happening for you in that moment? Do you have a character name? Do you have a situation? Do you know? I mean, what is that moment of starting something like for you? Usually I start with a character. Like there are, and this is where my theater background, I think, really comes into play. Like there's two schools of thought in theater that I really debated, the American school of theater and the English side. And Alec Guinness was a huge inspiration for me, and he really takes everything from the physical. Like, for example, even with, well, I've already told you that I just broke my kneecap, but I put on shoes, pants, I dressed up for this interview. And the reason I dressed up for the interview is you walk differently, you talk differently, everything changes about you. And so for the characters, I really want to get inside them. I want to do their walk, get their physical nature down. And that's one of the things about like when I imagine Carlos lumbering through the door and Tyrell, you know, sitting there. I will take a character and then get inside that character and go with a placement. And so sometimes the spark is like I have a new series coming up that I can't wait until it comes out about Charlie Westbrook, and she's a female detective from Boston who moves to Tennessee. And it all started because a friend of mine here says, oh, well, we were laughing about all the colloquialisms in the South. And he said, does your head spin? And he said, I bet that would make a great, you know, a great book. And I said, it would. And having it, and I needed a detective. And the name hit me. And then once I got her physically down, the story just, they flow. You can just put them in the situation. And I guess my love of improv takes it from there. So I'll just see what happens once they're in that situation. So it's, and that's just a joy. It's being back on stage for me. You know, one thing, and we only have about a couple minutes left, Christopher, but now is it easier that, kind of to answer Esther's question, now that you have an existing character like Jack Stratton, to take him through the different adventures you had in all your different novels, when you come to another one, you kind of already know the person there. Oh, I find it so much, it's so easier. It is, it's fabulous. It's like visiting old friends. And so I have a number of different series, but once you have them down, you know how they'll react. If I put Jack into a situation, I know what he'll do. I know what Alice will do. I actually have the character who wrote POV of the dog, Lady. People love it. And that's one character that, hands off, I can't let anything happen to. I have got it. I have received so many e-mail messages. If you do anything to the dog, I'm like, I won't, I promise. But it does make it so much easier because you know what they're doing. And I think it's a way of, you know, people talk about the dreaded writer's block, and I don't have it because I can just switch it up and go to a bunch of different series, like I had Mysteries. Well, we only have about a minute left. We want to give you a chance to tell us how people can find your books, where and everything like that. And you talked a little about, I don't know if you have any book signings. I mean, we plan to air this sometime at the end of May, early June. But tell us a little bit more about how people can find you online and such. If you go to graysonmedia.com, G-R-E-Y-S-O-N, media.com, you can sign up for my newsletter. You can actually get, I'm adding new novellas to it all the time that are free that you'll get. You can get the free First Patrol, Jack's First Adventure, the one with a Yakuza assassin named Kiku. That's great. And I'm putting another new one on there shortly. So you can, as they say on cars, drive it around the block, kick the tires, see if you like it, it's for you. Reach out if you have any questions for me. I love hearing from people. I answer every email personally because, again, I think it's that I can't do it without the readers, and I actually love the readers. Well, Christopher, this has been a wonderful interview. I'm so glad to get to know you and also to read your novel in preparation for the interview, Jack and Jill, the Blue Light Killer. That's Christopher Grayson. You can find him at Christopher Grayson, and Grayson is great with an E, .com. Thank you so much for coming on Art of the Air and sharing your art and literary journey with us. Thank you. It was such a pleasure. I really appreciate it. Yes, it was so delightful. Thank you so much. Art of the Air listeners, do you have a suggestion for a possible guest on our show, whether it's an artist, musician, author, gallery, theater, concert, or some other artistic endeavor that you are aware of or a topic of interest to our listeners? Email us at aota.com. That's aota.com. This is Whitney Reynolds of The Whitney Reynolds Show, and you are listening to Art on the Air on Lakeshore Public Media, 89.1 FM and on WVLP 103.1 FM. We would like to welcome Morgan McCabe to Art on the Air. Morgan is a performer, director, designer, dramaturg, producer, arts consultant, and educator. She is a SAG-AFTRA and Actors' Equity member and has performed and directed at regional and international theaters. She is the director for Dune Summer Theater's Tally's Folly, which opens June 28th. Thank you so much for joining us on Art on the Air. Aloha and welcome, Morgan. It's very nice meeting you. It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you. So, Morgan, we always like to find out about our guests for our audience, like their origin story, you know, and everything. I always like to tee it up by saying how you got from where you were to where you are now. So tell us all about Morgan. Well, let's see. I was born in Denver, Colorado, and then we moved back to the east coast, mid-Atlantic, which is where my mom's family was from. My dad's family was out west. They were homesteaders in Wyoming back in the day. So then we moved from mid-Atlantic to the Midwest, to Indiana, then to Illinois, and then to Southern California. And along the way, I got a chance to perform in a variety of different ways, dance, play piano, sang in a choir, did some theater work. And when I graduated from high school, I wasn't really sure whether I would want to go into theater or not, but I loved it very much. And so then I went to law school, or began pre-law. I didn't actually go to law school. Decided that was definitely not the route for me, and decided to pursue a career in theater. So, yeah, worked a lot of waitress jobs, bartending jobs, catering jobs, you know, that classic profile of an unemployed artist. And, yeah, still doing it all these years later. Fantastic. In so many different ways. So when you were starting out, was it mostly acting, or had you had other ideas? I think probably I was more interested in costuming. I have pictures of me as a child with my grandfather's glasses and hat on, and I'm riding a tricycle. So I think I was into, like, disguise and get-ups right from the get-go. Performing-wise, I was taking a lot of dance classes, and I had to perform, of course, for that. I wasn't particularly good at it, and I think the reason they sent me to them was because I was clumsy. But something I have never gotten over. And then around fifth or sixth grade, I became much more interested in performing to be in a real play, not just a classroom play. I was in Joliet at the time, and there was a marvelous woman named Georgeanne Goodson, who was very involved in the Joliet Drama Guild. And she taught some classes at our grade school, and I got a chance to work with her. So she was one of the first people who had a professional approach to theater that I encountered. It wasn't just, let's do this in the classroom as a way to expand our reading and literacy or whatever. But, yes, she was a big inspiration and a role model for me for many years. Do you have any favorite roles that you have over the years, or a role that you have not done that you want to do? Oh, well, there's lots of those. That would be a long list, but a favorite role is definitely... I had always wanted to play Josie in A Moon for the Misbegotten by Eugene O'Neill, and I got the opportunity to do that. And that was an outstanding thing, because it not only was a role that I dreamed of doing for many years, but I got to go to Europe and do it. I got to go to Vienna. So I wasn't too far. Definitely a cool, cool thing. There are a lot of plays that I've done. Some of them were new plays that not everybody would be familiar with the title. But I worked with a group in Chicago, Chicago Dramatists Guild, for many years. And in the process of working with them and a theater company that worked closely with them as well doing some of their new plays, I got to do some roles that felt like I owned them, you know, because I was with the player for so long. And I don't own them, but I like to think that my voice was heard in how the character came to life. So it was exciting to be able to work that way. So musicals or plays, do you have a preference or do you care? Well, it depends on whether I'm in the audience or whether I'm directing and on stage. I enjoy a good musical, but I am not very adept at directing them because I don't really perform in them. And I think that part of my skill set as a director is that I can talk to actors because I am one. I don't presume to know everything about how every actor works, but I've been up there and been as flummoxed by what to do next as the next actor. So plays, whether they're comedies or tragic comedies or dark, those appeal to me, straight plays, the most in terms of acting and directing. If you put me in the chorus and you're still going to be going, somebody's not hitting the right note. That being said about directing, let's say, so how did you and Dune Summer Theater come together? Did you hear about Talley's Folly or did they contact you? How does that work? Well, I had known about Dunes for quite some time and late last summer, I saw that they had a post on Facebook looking for actors for the new plays festival that Steve Scott had put together. And I wrote and said, oh, I would love to do that. And Steve Scott, who I have known for many years because we crossed paths a lot in Chicago. And so I got an email from him saying, oh, how wonderful. Yes, I'm glad to know that you're in the neighborhood. And then I did. I took part in that reading. And then I had an email from him earlier this year asking if I would be interested in directing for the festival or for the summer theater program. And I said, well, yeah, I think that would be wonderful. And Talley's Folly is such a beautiful play. I'm delighted to be working on it. Well, since you're talking about it, why don't you tell us a little bit, give us a thumbnail sketch of what it's about. Well, I think it's a very heartfelt love story. It's very tender. It's very smart. It's about two people who kind of, well, some people would describe it as apples and oranges, right? It's that they're two very different people. They're both fruits. They come from very different worlds. Matt's background isn't entirely clear. It's 1944. He apparently has arrived in the United States from Eastern Europe. But it could be Latvia, it could be Lithuania, it could be Prussia, it could be Germany. It's not really clear. He is Jewish and he has traveled to the United States and lived in New York and St. Louis. And somehow he met a young woman who lives in Springfield, Missouri, Sally, and she's born and bred there. A good family, family that's working class, has their own factory. She's a nurse. She's working with people who are coming home from the war effort. And they had kind of a fling the summer before last. And he has come back with the intention of letting her know just how important he thinks their relationship is and finding out if it can possibly work. She's kind of resistant to it. And I don't want to give any spoilers because there is kind of a twist to the story. I just want people to come and see it. You'll fall in love with both of them immediately. And I've got a phenomenal cast, so I think it's going to be a terrific show. Is there only two in the cast? Is that right? It's only two people in the cast. Some of your listeners might be familiar with is Robert Morse, who will be playing Matt. And Amanda Tomczyk, who is also a region actress, will be playing Sally. And they already have a lovely chemistry working for them. I had coffee with them not too long ago because all the auditions were by Zoom, as happens these days. So I hadn't actually met Robert before. And so we got together and had a cup of coffee and I got to meet them. And they kind of finish each other's thoughts already. So I think it's going to work out well on stage. In directing an intimate show like that, you really have kind of like a triangular relationship, director and the two actors. So the dynamic must be very interesting there. And this is set like in 1944, if I'm correct? That is right. Yeah, 1944. Yeah, it does present a different dynamic, entirely different. Some of the first things I directed were one- or two-person shows. So I feel really comfortable in that. And then I've also directed shows with, you know, 17 to 40 people, which are... I don't know if I want to go that route again. Just especially in community theatre, because getting schedules together can be a nightmare. But with two people like that, that dynamic, that triangulation, there's an interesting... Yeah, it gives you an entirely new perspective on the work. I think all three people end up on stage. Oh, sure. Yeah. Which I like to back away from, but I think it's kind of inevitable in a way. Your investment level is much more intense. Sure. Now, you've been doing other directing assignments. And I know one of them that kind of fell through during COVID at Purdue Northwest. But Gary Shakespeare Theatre, you know, you just recently did that show. I did last summer. They invited me to come back, because I'd been involved in the company when it first started. And they said, this is our 10th anniversary. Would you like to come back and direct a show? And I said, oh, that's such a sweet offer. Thank you. Yes. Do I get my pick? And they said, yeah, whatever you want. And I said, mm, a tempest. So we did that last summer, and that was a lot of fun. And then I just directed at Marian Theatre Guild, Birthday Candles, which was a true delight to work. I cannot talk about how extraordinary that group is in terms of its high level of cooperation, collaboration, getting the job done. Everybody is just on the same page. It was like a return to my roots, which were in community theater. But in the best possible way. And so, yeah, it was a reaffirmation of that. You're listening to Art on the Air on Lakeshore Public Media 89.1 FM on WVLP 103.1 FM. So thinking about that and going back to Tally's Folly, with your wide breadth of experience and this small intimate play, how much input do you have on other things, such as sets and costumes? And do you have input in those areas as well? Well, I'm about to have my first production meeting with everybody this afternoon. Although I have talked with Michael Laswell. He will be building the set. Not only is he directing Blythe's Spirit, but he is designing the set for Tally's Folly. And we have had meetings. We've had three meetings, I think, already. And I've seen all the blueprints and everything for it. And it's just going to be gorgeous. Absolutely. His attention to detail is phenomenal. His ideas are just so robust and very much in alignment with what I'm asking for. As far as input, I said, can I get the boat a little bit further this way? And he said, sure. So very comfortable working relationship. I'll be meeting the costume designer and lighting and sound people this afternoon. The show has – it's pretty sleek. It has a minimal soundscape. There are some very specific musical things that will need to be incorporated because they are mentioned in the script. So we'll see where we go with those and how that leads us in other directions. And generally, that's the way I work. Whether it's costuming, set, lighting, or sound, what does the story tell us, what's on paper, and how does that help us advance the storytelling? Do you have a project down the road that you are looking to do? I mean, you're involved with also doing, I see from your resume, television-type things and such. But is there any project that you would like to do? And we talked about any role that you may want to have, but maybe a directing project or even in other areas, costuming and things like that. Well, I would love to have a company. I've been trying to figure out how to make one work. Gets together, reads plays, talks about them, invites audiences to come in and give feedback. In the little town that I'm in, which is New Chicago, Indiana, most people in the region aren't really clear where that is. Some of the people that live across the river from me in Lake Station go, where's New Chicago? But we've tried using the library and getting people to come. We've tried other settings. And it's rough. I feel like people want to go and be entertained. And those that haven't been introduced to how wonderful a community, a group of theater practitioners can be, they may be a little shy. I would feel they just don't have time. So those are some of the obstacles I'm looking to overcome. And hopefully down the road we'll have something going that creates a more generous contribution to the community in terms of hearing new voices, seeing new talent, and becoming engaged themselves in a creative process that I think is really powerful. Have you ever thought about writing a play? Well, yeah, I've thought about it. I thought it's a really difficult process. Yeah, I'm still doing things with a Chicago dramatist. So one of the teachers I work with has actors come in and do cold readings for the playwrights. So they don't have to listen to each other read their own material. They get to listen to actors interpret it, which is a very formative thing, I think, for a lot of playwrights, from what I hear. I'm fascinated by the process. I have never really seemed to have the time to clear everything off my desk and sit down and do that. I've had ideas for them. But right now I kind of feel like, you know, I'm going to leave it to people that know what they're doing. I'll be there and say, you want to read it? I can get the actors together and direct for you. Have you ever workshopped a playwright's play, you know, where it's in that, I mean, it's just kind of like what you talked about there, but I've been an actor inside of a, so you see the development of that until it gets to the stage? Oh, yeah, that's a lot of them. So two companies, like Chicago Dramatists and also Stage Left, which I was part of for a number of years. And prior to that, Commons Theater. The connection between all three of those, for me, was new plays. We did them a lot. Did one called Chagrin Falls by Mia McCullough, who was a playwright with the Chicago Dramatists Guild. And there was a character named Irene. She's one of the ones I feel like I own. I got to work with her from the very beginning. And now that play has gotten produced across the country. Another one was a play by a Chicago playwright named Rohita Malik, who had had some workshopping done on the play that she started developing at Chicago Dramatists. Did a little workshopping on it at the Goodman Theater. So Rohita's play was about a group of women going to Mecca. And that one started out as a story in a backyard in Skokie, around a campfire, with the women talking about their trip to Mecca. And it ended up with it actually being set in Mecca. And I played the group leader, who was a convert, and had some unresolved issues about her son's death there. So that was very exciting. And yeah, that is an extraordinary process. It feels like you're very fulfilled. And you have this sort of legacy then that goes on, because even if your name's not associated with it, you had a voice in it, in that production. Right, the foundation of the thing. You know, one thing that's on your resume, and I don't think people know this term, but maybe you can describe what they do, is a dramaturg. What exactly, I know it, but why don't you explain what that is? Right, a dramaturg is someone who does research about the world that the play is set in, and communicates that to the cast, the production staff, including the director and all the scenic element people. They also are often responsible for helping to create notes in a program. And that's it in a nutshell. It's an academic kind of a thing. It's not something that actors necessarily have to bring on stage. For instance, I just sent notes to one of the actors, about Prussian Jews, because the character says, this person was a Prussian Jew, and the other character says there were no Prussian Jews. And I thought, well, what does that mean? So I had to look it up. So I looked it up and sent a link, an article, about just what that meant, in terms of the contextual history of it and everything else, which was utterly fascinating. And we may not be familiar with it now, but it may be vital for the actors to know it, so that they can make that comprehensible and maybe put a little quick note in the program. I don't know. We'll talk about it at the production meeting later today. As you're approaching this with Dunes Summer Theater, and, of course, compare it to, like, Gary Shakespeare, for example. You did them, they did them in multiple venues, some of them outdoors and things like that. But tell us about the working environment at Dunes for you. Well, that is an extraordinary set of circumstances. I mean, this building is like this mammoth. I'm not sure. I haven't gotten a quite count on how many seats there are. Probably 500. And it's this huge proscenium with a very deep backstage area. And so that's going to be very exciting. Our rehearsals start on June 3rd, so I'll have more to say about it after that. And the show doesn't open until June 28th. And you have to work around the existing show that's running, too. Right. There's a rehearsal room there, so we'll probably be working in it with two actors. And, of course, we have plenty of time on stage even when in production. You're approaching Tally's Folly, and then we didn't talk about what you have any plans beyond that. But tell us maybe about anything you have visioning just down the road, maybe after June 28th, what's on your plate? I think I'll take a little time off and a vacation. I want to get out of town, get out to California to visit family. But I am hoping to get some things going for the fall, fall production of some sort I hope I'll be directing. And I am having a conversation with a couple of very cool people about the possibility of doing something at Christmas. I have an Indiana Playwrights version of the Christmas Carol that's pretty wacky and cool. I'm trying to see if I can shop that around. It could be a DIY where you use it for a fundraiser, an auction off the rolls. It's really fun. In our last moments here, we want people, how can they find you either online, like a website, Facebook, your social media, and such as that? I'm kind of low profile on all that. I do have a Facebook page, Morgan and Dave in Chicago, Indiana. I don't really have much more presence than that. But in terms of the work that we're doing, you can go to dunesart.org for tickets for Talley's Folly. And there's a lot of information going on there. Yeah. That sounds great. Morgan McCabe, thank you so much for coming on Art in the Air. Talley's Folly will be running June 28th through July 14th at Dunes Arts Foundation Summer Theater. They'll be coming right after Blythe Spirit, which they'll be running. Morgan, thank you so much for coming on the show and sharing your theatrical journey. Well, thank you. Thank you so much. It was a pleasure. Thank you. Same. It's been a pleasure. We'd like to thank our guests this week on Art in the Air, our weekly program covering the arts and arts events throughout Northwest Indiana and beyond. Art in the Air is heard Sunday at 7 p.m. on Lakeshore Public Media, 89.1 FM, also streaming live at lakeshorepublicmedia.org, and is available on Lakeshore Public Media's website as a podcast. Art in the Air is also heard Friday at 11 a.m. and Monday at 5 p.m. on WVLP, 103.1 FM, streaming live at wvlp.org. If you have a smart speaker like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, or Apple Siri, just tell it to play Art in the Air to hear the latest episode. Our spotlight interviews are heard every Wednesday on Lakeshore Public Media thanks to Tom Maloney, Vice President of Radio Operation for Lakeshore Public Media, and Greg Kovach, WVLP's Station Manager. Our theme music is by Billy Foster with a vocal by Rene Foster. Art in the Air is supported by the Indiana Arts Commission Arts Project Grant, South Shore Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. We'd like to thank our current underwriters for Lakeshore Public Media, Macaulay Real Estate and Valparaiso, Olga Patrician, Senior Broker, and for WVLP, Walt Redinger of Paragon Investments. So we may continue to bring you Art in the Air. We rely on you, our listeners and underwriters, for ongoing financial support. If you're looking to support Art in the Air, we have information on our website at breck.com slash aota, where you can find out how to become a supporter or underwriter of our program in whatever amount you are able. And like I say every week, don't give till it hurts. Give till it feels good, and you'll feel so good about supporting Art on the Air. If you're interested in being a guest or send us information about your arts, arts-related event or exhibit, please email us at aota at breck.com. That's aota at breck, b-r-e-c-h dot com, or contact us through our Facebook page. Your hosts were Larry Breckner and Esther Golden, and we invite you back next week for another episode of Art on the Air. Aloha, everyone. Have a splendid week. Express yourself through art and show the world your heart. Express yourself through art and show the world your heart. You're in the know with Esther and Larry, Art on the Air today. Stay in the know with Larry and Esther, Art on the Air our way. Express yourself through art and show the world your heart. Express yourself through art and show the world your heart. Express yourself through art and show the world your heart.