Phoebe

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Reading a mystery

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Categories: base instruments, Tags: ,

One of the fun things about the story of Base Instruments is that it’s a Fair Play Whodunnit. That means it’s a mystery where all the necessary clues are presented to the audience, so they have the chance to solve it along with the detectives.

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Andrew Prentice, Samantha LeVangie, and Elizabeth Hunter reading Base Instruments.

This is important for the June 10th staged reading of Base Instruments with Bare Bones. Many people like to let staged readings wash over them, but when the story is a mystery, it prompts the audience to see if they can figure it out for themselves. But the makes a new challenge for the actors who are reading it. A whodunnit with lots of twists and turns often involves a lot of detail, with the dialogue supplying most of the information. That can lead to a lot of exposition, which can easily all blur together and lose the important clues.

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Circe Rowan reading as Mary Stone.

That means the actors have to take extra care in the scenes where the characters are working through the information they’ve gathered to solve the crime. It has to be kept interesting enough so that no one zones out, but also clear enough so that all the clues come across. And finally, for the sake of verisimilitude, it has to sound natural, like the characters actually are detectives sharing information with each other trying to figure things out.

The combination of all this is the way to get the listeners engaged in unraveling the plot. I love when the audience is hanging on the details of the story, trying to pick apart what’s really going on! That’s the fun of going to all the trouble of putting together a Fair Play Whodunnit.

The staged reading of Base Instruments by Phoebe Roberts will go up on June 10th at 8PM at with the Bare Bones reading series, brought to you by Theatre@First.

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Video recording of Mrs. Hawking production!

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Categories: base instruments, mrs. hawking, performance, Tags: ,

I am very proud to present the video recording of the fully produced Mrs. Hawking, the first installment of our series!

Mrs Hawking from sydweinstein on Vimeo.

This recording captures the Arisia 2016 performance on the main stage at the Westin Waterfront Boston. We were very lucky to have videographer Syd Weinstein and his crew run the cameras during our run, and he has edited together a dynamic, focused recording. What I love about it is that it captures many of the finer details of our story that might not be so clear onstage. I think it’s a great representation of all the hard work and craft coming together to tell this unique story.

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I’m also glad to have this because, since Mrs. Hawking has seen four runs over the last two years, it’s going to be retired from production for the time being. This will enable us to free up the time and resources to produce the subsequent installments. Having this recording will still allow people to experience it even though it’s no going to be performed in the near future.

That’s especially great for the upcoming June 10th staged reading of part three, Base Instruments. Watching the video will enable the audience to get up to speed with all the spectacle of the full production before experiencing the further story. So, for those of you who missed the performances at previous shows, or for those who’d like a closer look at all the nuances of the production, please check out this awesome video.

The staged reading of Base Instruments by Phoebe Roberts will go up on June 10th at 8PM at with the Bare Bones reading series, brought to you by Theatre@First.

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Exciting things about the reading of Base Instruments

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I’m really excited to be tackling Base Instruments for the upcoming staged reading. I’m pleased to say that I think that each Mrs. Hawking story so far is better and stronger than the last, partially from knowing the characters better, and partially as I develop as a writer. And this part three has so many new additions to the series that I can’t wait to get this story out there.

Here’s some fun things that are new and special to part three:

It’s a true mystery. A murder mystery, to be precise, a good-old fashioned whodunnit. Those are tough to put together so that they make sense and yet still provide suspense and challenge. Base Instruments is a fair play mystery, too, so the audience will see all the clues the characters see and have the chance to piece things together as the detectives do.

The size of the world has expanded. At this point, the world around our heroes has filled up with interesting recurring characters, including Officer Arthur Swann and Nathaniel’s family, wife Clara and brother Justin. This means that our cast can split up and come back together as they follow various story threads, so multiple plots can interweave and expand the scope of the tale.

Further development of our characters. Several ideas have been seeded in the previous shows that are finally coming to fruition. Mrs. Hawking’s fear of advancing age affecting her career. Mary’s figuring out what kind of protégé she want to be. How much Nathaniel will keep helping Mrs. Hawking from the important people in his life. Base Instruments shows the characters facing these challenges head-on, creating both a satisfying payoff and setting up the next step of their paths going forward.

If that sounds, exciting to you, then be sure to come to the staged reading in Somerville on June 10th!

The staged reading of Base Instruments by Phoebe Roberts will go up on June 10th at 8PM at with the Bare Bones reading series, brought to you by Theatre@First.

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Accomplished at the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016!

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Categories: performance, Tags: ,

We have successfully put up Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina at the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016!

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I am so grateful to everyone who helped make these shows a reality, from our talented cast, to our hardworking crew, to our wonderful audiences who gave us such great feedback. A special shoutout goes to Bob Perry and the rest of the crew organizing the Steampunk Festival, who was so welcoming and secured the accomodations for our shows.

What is next for our stories will be coming soon. The next Hawking event is the June 10th staged reading of part three, Base Instruments, with the Bare Bones reading series produced by Somerville’s Theatre@First. Join us at 8pm to hear the first publication exhibition of our third installment’s script!

Also, we’ll be discussing our plans for future productions, as well as releasing some video recordings of previous ones, debuting for the first time on this website. More to come later this week!

The staged reading of Base Instruments by Phoebe Roberts will go up on June 10th at 8PM at with the Bare Bones reading series, brought to you by Theatre@First.

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Base Instruments to have staged reading with Bare Bones at Theatre@First!

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Part three of the Mrs. Hawking saga, Base Instruments, will have a staged reading with the Bare Bones series with Theatre@First!

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Bare Bones has hosted both previous installments of the story, which were instrumental in developing them for the productions, like we’re going to have this coming Saturday at the Watch City Steampunk Festival. Here’s our fabulous cast, a mix of veterans of both production and reading:

Mrs. Victoria Hawking – Elizabeth Hunter
Miss Mary Stone – Circe Rowan
Mr. Nathaniel Hawking – Andrew Prentice
Mrs. Clara Hawking / Miss Elena Zakharova / Miss Yulia Sherba – Samantha LeVangie
Mr. Justin Hawking / Mr. Kiril Chernovsky – Eric Cheung
Sergeant Arthur Swann / Lord Nicholas Cavil – Matthew Kamm

Produced by Jess Viator, with much thanks to Theatre@First!

So, once you check out our upcoming performances of Mrs. Hawking at 2PM and Vivat Regina at 6PM on May 7th at Government Center in Waltham, you’ll naturally be raring for a taste of the next chapter. Be sure to join us for the reading of Base Instruments on June 10th at 8PM at Unity Somerville for the exciting further adventures of the Hawking crew!

Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina will be performed on May 7th at 119 School Street, Waltham, MA at 2PM and 6PM as part of the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016 in Waltham, MA.

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On the schedule at the Watch City Steampunk Festival ’16!

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Categories: miscellany, Tags:

Our shows are on the schedule of events happening at the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016!

2016 WCSF logo with Day

On the festival day of May 7th, our first show, Mrs. Hawking, will be performed at 2PM, and our second show, Vivat Regina, at 6PM, both in the auditorium at Waltham Government Center at 119 School Street in Waltham. Check out the exciting theatrical trailer for a glimpse of the excitement:

But we’re not the only great events happening that day. The festival will be full of entertainment, including live music, art displays, vendors, and food. Rumor has it the kraken that lives in the Charles River will rise up for a grudge match against a clockwork robot!

Be sure to check out the schedule not only for the information for Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina, but also for all the other great events happening that day at this totally free family event. Our shows are quick, free, and fun– only one hour each with no ticket price! –so be sure to make a day out of it. Come for the shows, stay for the rest of the festival!

Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina will be performed on May 7th at 119 School Street, Waltham, MA at 2PM and 6PM as part of the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016 in Waltham, MA.

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Times and location for Watch City ’16 shows!

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We now officially have times and a location for our performances at the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016!

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Our performance venue this time is going to be in the auditorium in Waltham’s Government Center at 119 School Street. It’s just a few blocks away from Waltham Common, where the outdoor portion of the Festival will be held.

Our shows Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina will be held in the afternoon and evening the day of the Festival. Mrs. Hawking will be performed at Government Center as a 2PM matinee, while Vivat Regina will be our evening show in the same place at 6PM.

The shows run about one hour each, and admission is completely free of charge! Catch one or catch both, we would love to see you all there. :-)

Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina will be performed on May 7th at 119 School Street, Waltham, MA at 2PM and 6PM as part of the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016 in Waltham, MA.

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Vivat Regina character arc previews – Mary

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Categories: miscellany

Despite the fact that the series is named after Mrs. Hawking, in many ways this is really the story of Mary. It’s about her growing into a true hero, and in saving others finding the way to save herself.

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Played by Circe Rowan, Mary’s journey comes from the fact that her world used to be very small. As a servant and a member of the lower classes, everything about her life encouraged her to never use her own mind, to never speak her own thoughts, that she was of most use to others doing what she was told. She has seen very little of life, and has never been encouraged to see herself as a person with skills and strength to give.

In being Mrs. Hawking’s assistant, she must learn many new skills— how to fight, to move with stealth, to operate without detection, to take on personas, to come up with plans of attack. The level of excellence required to pull off something so difficult as saving people from the traps of society is enormous, and when we enter Vivat Regina, Mary is struggling to meet the high expectations. And with her mentor’s constant pushing, she’s begun to doubt whether or not she has it in her to meet it all.

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But it’s not enough to just learn what Mrs. Hawking has to teach. Mary has to learn her own strength, her own way of doing things. And part of this is developing the confidence in herself, both her abilities and her own judgment, to push herself to do what she has to do. And sometimes that’s going to mean speaking out, disagreeing, making her own path.

It’s no small task for a former servant girl who was supposed to make herself invisible at all times. But Mary is an exceptional person, and watching her grow into her potential shapes a huge portion of this story.

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Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina will be performed on May 7th at 119 School Street, Waltham, MA at 2PM and 6PM as part of the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016 in Waltham, MA.

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Mrs. Hawking TV show bible posted!

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Categories: development, supplemental, Tags:

The show bible for the Mrs. Hawking TV pilot is now available!

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As you may know, the Mrs. Hawking story could be adapted to many different kinds of media, but I can’t help but think that serialized television is the ideal form. To that end, the first stage script has been adapted into a pilot for a TV series on this website, now updated and in polished form.

But when you’re trying to a script for a TV show out there, a useful tool to have for pitching it is the show bible. That’s a short, five-page document outlining the important broad strokes of the series. It describes the setting, the major ideas, the important characters and their journeys, as well as giving an idea of the direction the storytelling is going to take. So we decided to put one together to accompany our pilot.

The bible is now posted on this website. It was hard to boil things down to their essentials, but actually all the writing about the characters and planning out the story in the blog was incredibly helpful for figuring out what to say! Check out the bible to get an idea of how we’d translate this idea to the screen.

Until then, there’s always the stage plays! Be sure to check out our shows Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina at the Watch City Steampunk Festival in Waltham on Satuday, May 7th! We’ll give you some cinematic action performed live for your enjoyment!

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The colors of Vivat Regina

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Categories: performance, vivat regina, Tags: ,

I’ve always loved the potential for storytelling in the choices one makes in costume design. In Mrs. Hawking, we used a series of oppositional color pairings to make statements about the characters and their circumstances. In Vivat Regina at Arisia 2016, with the help of costume designer Jennifer Giorno, we devised a new palette to support the new story.

For the leads, they maintained the color schemes they were introduced with in the original. Between her stealth suit and her widow’s weeds, Mrs. Hawking’s color is black. Nathaniel’s splash of color is his familiar red cravat. And Mary, with her maid’s apron and skirt and ballgown, sets the tone for the rest of the play with her blue.

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For Vivat Regina, we stuck to a cool, blue-based color palette. Unlike in the previous piece, where high class was indicated by red, we had everyone in the opening ballroom scene in shades of blue. Mary is getting better at blending in, but her obviously lighter shade indicates that she’s not really one of them.

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Arthur is of course in a traditional police blue. As a police officer, he will always appear in blue, just as Mary does, which forges a subtle visual connection between them.

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For Mrs. Braun, she appears in a dark violet that serves as a subtle hint to the character’s true identity. It’s a blend of the blue of our palette and the red that previously was saved for the upper classes, and this color in particular has traditionally been reserved for the highest ranking members of society in a number of cultures.

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For Clara, we wanted something eye-catching and just a little bit daring, so we went with green. It’s a step away from blue, but different enough from any other character to always catch the eye. It tells us that Clara has no trouble fitting into her society, but she can’t help but stand out.

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The green even crosses over to Nathaniel in the scene in the embassy. Though his eveningwear included a silver vest and cravat in part one, for part two we decided we wanted him to pick up Clara’s color. It shows them unified as a team.

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Finally, the one other coloring shakeup comes in the form of Mrs. Hawking’s dishabille. Her robe is her typical black, but when she’s not dressing for anyone else, some white enters her wardrobe. We’ve never seen her in anything but black before, so even this one small change is eye-catching. Still, her colorless presence keeps her stark against the rest of the cast.

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Mrs. Hawking and Vivat Regina will be performed on May 7th as part of the Watch City Steampunk Festival 2016 in Waltham, MA.

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