[victoria & scott]

Guten Tag [bostossers]-

Over the next few entries I am going to introduce everyone to the cast through a questionnaire I made up (and lovingly "borrowed" from Proust and James Lipton). They are all in the process of answering it, but our Production Stage Manager Victoria Coady decided she wanted to play as well and sent me her answers. She convinced me to answer it as well, so I am combining both our answers into this one blog post. Feel free to respond in the comment section with your own answers!

Victoria Coady - Production Stage Manager (aka PSM)

Have you ever been in a SpeakEasy show before?
I stage managed "The Wrestling Patient", the co-production between SpeakEasy, Boston Playwrights and FortyMagnolias last year.

Where did you grow up?
Here, in Boston! It's funny that I'm working in this town now- when I was growing up, there weren't a great deal of professional companies in Boston, so I didn't think I'd have the opportunity to be a professional theater artist in this town. It's pretty awesome, kind of a dream come true.

Zodiac sign?
A Leo. *Totally* a Leo.

What is the worst job you have ever had?
Actually, it's related to one of our props in [title of show]! In high school, I worked for a restaurant called Johnny's Luncheonette in between Harvard and Central Squares, and my first position there before I became a waitress was to walk around Harvard Square in the brutal heat of summer wearing a sandwich board and handing out takeout menus. It was such an absurd gig- I became friends with all of the street people of the Square.

What is your first memory of theatre? First show, first class you took, first movie you watched that sparked your interest?
My first memory is of "Queen Zixi of Ix", a play I did when I was maybe 6 or 7. I played a fairy, and my blocking for the first scene was to blow bubbles and do fairy things in the background. I only had one line: "But shouldn't there be a limit to the number of wishes?" I completely dropped my one and only line, because I was too busy blowing bubbles. Thank god we had a great stage manager to feed me my line, right?

Do you have any funny/embarrassing on stage mishaps?
Too many to count. TOO MANY. Curtains getting stuck as the play was supposed to start, an actor that didn't show up for a performance and I had to read his lines from the booth, gunshots that didn't go off onstage... the stories, man. The stories.

Who are your favorite heroes of theatre?
I'm a huge Shakespeare buff, so a lot of my heroes are in that field of theater- Mark Rylance, for what he's done with the Globe Theater, Cicely Berry, Darko Tresnjak, Sir Peter Hall. I am also a big fan of the work of some more modern playwrights, and friends of mine: John Kolvenbach, Deborah Asiimwe, Sigrid Gilmer.

Who are your favorite heroes of real life?
Those are my heroes! They're real!

What vampires do you face your own life?
Well, I've only been working professionally for about three years now, and so the decision to pursue a career in the arts is one that I sometimes question in this economy. It's not easy to make a living doing this job, but I remind myself that many people aren't lucky enough to find what they love to do at a young age, and I honestly, truly can't imagine myself doing anything else with my life. So, I stick with it!

Rock, paper or scissors?
Scissors- I'm a stage manager, I like office supplies.

Milk, dark, or white chocolate?
White chocolate, all the way. Those Lindt truffles are heavenly (cast, you know what to get me on opening night!)

Boxers or briefs?
Uhm... Gap undies?

Favorite drag queen name?
I'm actually going to steal from the show, because it's too perfect: Tulita Pepsi!

Guilty pleasure?
TV. And popcorn.

Who would play you in the movie of your life? (Lifetime Original or Cinematic release, you choose)
Well, I've been told I look a little bit like Zooey Deschanel, and she's got a really pretty voice...

If heaven exists, what would you like God to say as you arrive at the pearly gates?
Places for Act 2, please... haha.

Victoria and I enjoying ourselves on a break from rehearsal

Scott Sinclair - Assistant to the Director

Have you ever been in a SpeakEasy show before? If so, what?
I had a cameo in Jerry Springer – The Opera as “Guy at water fountain” in the video of Jerry entering. Don’t worry, I will make sure to sign autographs for you all.

Where did you grow up?
Suburbs of NYC in a town called Suffern, NY, which was made famous by an episode of Sex and the City.

Zodiac sign?
Pieces.

What is the worst job you have ever had?
I spent a summer collecting census and traffic flow information. That included walking around different neighborhoods in the blazing heat looking at houses and trying to determine how many people lived there by counting doorbells and mailboxes. We also would sit at railroad crossings in our cars and literally count how many cars crossed the tracks over the span of 5 hours. Sometimes we were on back roads where there would only be 4 cars the entire day we were there.

What is your first memory of theatre?
I saw Cathy Rigby in Peter Pan on Broadway when I was 4 years old, and the only thing I really remember is watching the show with binoculars and telling my mom, “They’re not really flying!” The next show I saw, which I really remember is Beauty and the Beast. I was transfixed by the costumes and the fireworks on stage (this was before it moved to the Lunt-Fontainne and was downsized).

Do you have any funny/embarrassing on stage mishaps?
This one time, I was playing Wendy in Peter Pan, and they accidentally pulled the cable for me to fly instead of Peter and I was yanked out of bed…oh wait…that wasn’t me, but luckily it was preserved and is on Youtube for everyone to enjoy!

For real, a funny mishap was when I was in West Side Story back in high school. I was Action and in the prologue, Riff was supposed to hold one of the sharks while I punched him in the face. I went to “punch” the Shark, and accidentally punched Riff in the face for real. Lieutenant Shrank then comes in and breaks it up. While she (of course it was played by a girl because there we didn’t even have enough boys to play all the Jets and Sharks) was talking, I looked down at my hand and saw blood on it and started to freak out. I thought I broke his nose or something. However I noticed the "blood" had a raspberry scent and realized it was the fake blood used in the same scene...

Who are your favorite heroes of theatre?
Tony Kushner. Every word that man writes is gold. Jerome Robbins for brilliantly connecting dance to the plot and adding so much emotional weight to the shows he worked on. Joe Papp for having such a vision that is still being executed to this day.

Who are your favorite heroes of real life?
Ellen Degeneres. I honestly think she is the great equalizer. Who doesn’t enjoy Ellen?

What vampires do you face your own life?
With college graduation coming in May, beginning the job search process is a huge vampire. I am constantly thinking to myself “You aren’t smart enough. You don’t know enough. You don’t have enough experience. You’ll never get a job.” Die vampire die is becoming my new motto.

Rock, paper or scissors?
Paper. I feel you can do more with it.

Milk, dark, or white chocolate?
Dark. If you haven't had dark chocolate Reeces, I highly suggest going to the store and buying a bag. It will change your life.

Boxers or briefs?
The hybrid.

Favorite drag queen name?
Cybil Rights or Robyn Banks

Guilty pleasure?
Jersey Shore.

Who would play you in the movie of your life? (Lifetime Original or Cinematic release, you choose)
The only thing I have ever gotten was Haley Joel Osmont circa the Sixth Sense. I don’t think there is any resemblance anymore.

If heaven exists, what would you like God to say as you arrive at the pearly gates?
“That’s what she said.” I know it makes no sense, but I would hope he has a sense of humor…