Brian McDermott is a playwright living and working in the Lehigh Valley.
As part of an ongoing series of interviews with artists working in theater, including last year's Tony Award winning playwright Christopher Durang, and other regional artists such as Ralph Montesano, Bill George, Doug Roysdon, Joshua Neth, and Dave Fry, Lehigh Valley Stage submitted a few questions to Brian about his work.
His Christmas comedy 'Tidings' is to be performed at Zion's Reformed UCC in Allentown in December.
Tell us a little about your background.
I was born in New Jersey. My father was an executive for Merrill Lynch so we moved with every promotion. Growing up I lived in New Jersey, Massachusetts, Michigan, and the Lehigh Valley and then, as an adult, lived in upstate New York and Virginia. I have lived in the Lehigh Valley the longest so I consider this area my "home." I graduated from Parkland Senior High School in Orefield and attended Kutztown University.
What are your personal favorite plays and productions, both here and elsewhere'
Of my own plays I have enjoyed every production “ every one had it's own surprises and joys for me and each was a learning experience for future plays I would write. For me, as long as the audience is entertained, I am happy. There are so many great productions done locally it would be impossible to single them all out but there definitely is a smorgasbord of great theater here and people who don't take advantage of it are just crazy.
What got you involved in theater in the first place'
When I was in junior high school I auditioned for the two shows they produced every year but was never cast. Even in my final year of school “ after auditioning at least five other times “ I was not cast. I decided to give up on theater when I moved up to the high school but was coaxed by friends to audition for the first play of our freshman year (Neil Simon's "God's Favorite"). I auditioned and was cast “ and was hooked. I had also done two shows with "Stage Door Workshop" as sort of my "summer camp."
When did you begin writing plays'
I was taking a theater arts class in high school and our teacher wanted us to do a short scene. He said we could use any play we wanted to or we could write our own. Those words struck me like church bells ¦ "write my own play'" I went home and, with plenty of help from my mother, wrote a very funny scene that went over well about a man and woman trapped in an elevator. My parents had a "we'll help you the first time “ but next time you're on your own" style of teaching. So, the next scene I wrote “ on my own - was a disaster. It went on forever and was so dull. I learned from that and the next scene on my own was better ¦ and they just kept getting better after that.
What were the first plays of your that were actually performed onstage'
I had stopped writing plays after high school and hadn't even considered writing any until I read in The Morning Call that the Pennsylvania Playhouse was seeking submissions for a one-act festival they were running. I wrote a short play and was surprised and thrilled when it was selected as a finalist. The play was titled "Nowhere Man" and was directed by Michael Traupman. He assembled a wonderful cast and they did a brilliant job with the play “ which ended up winning the "audience favorite" award that year. I continued to write and submit to this one-act competition and I kept being selected as a finalist (it was blind-judging so there was no favoritism). Most of the productions were great but there was one year that the show as a boring mess “ but I have learned that problems and failures are a better learning tool than success.
How would you describe your plays'
I enjoy writing comedy-drama. I'm a huge fan of Neil Simon's work and I try to emulate his style when I write while still developing a style of my own. I adore witty banter. There is nothing more interesting (for me) than two sharp-tongued people having a heated discussion where they both want to win. I've been told that my plays are "gay" but they're really not. I write gay characters, but my plays are about ordinary people and the extraordinary situations we get ourselves into ¦ and then try to get ourselves out of. A lot of my plays are about people trying to hide something from everyone “ those are the ones I enjoy writing the most. I also like to write about characters who see themselves as failures and their efforts to try to turn themselves around by the end of the play. I've also written a few "dark" plays which are more black-comedy and macabre but haven't had any of them produced ¦ yet.
Tell us your process for writing plays.
I start out with an idea, usually at three o'clock in the morning when I should be asleep. Most of my ideas come from random happenings or boring situations I encounter and think to myself "now, what would happen if ..." Once the idea has settled down I try to catch it and twist it and stretch it into something tangible to see if I can turn it a one-act or even a full-length. I have been writing a lot of one-acts lately. I was a part of the "31 Plays In 31 Days" where playwrights are tasked to write a play a day for the month of August so I think I've been "programmed" to write short plays. Once I have the idea I decide on the character who is going to convey the story “ and who they will need to interact with in order to convey that story effectively. I never work from an outline and prefer to just let the story unfold as I write it. I create a setting and characters and let them play out the story in my brain as I write the words on paper.
Now, talk about 'Tidings': What inspired it'
I had actually written "Tidings" as a very different piece “ sort of a "don't be so materialistic at Christmas" story because I was so tired of the attitude of people around the holidays: the riots at Best Buy on Black Friday, the fact that stores begin to decorate for Christmas when it's not even Halloween, and the general attitude I was seeing of "I want that! I want that!" It's ironic because I am not a religious person but I kept thinking I could write a play that might open people's eyes to the real spirit of the holidays without having to tackle the religious aspects. I had watched so many Christmas specials and movies that I kept thinking "I could write better than that." In fact, there are very few Christmas specials I think are very well done. Of course, "Charlie Brown Christmas" and "Rudolph" are classics along with movies such as "Miracle on 34th Street." My favorite Christmas movie ever is a little-known 1985 movie titled "One Magic Christmas." And then I sat through "Santa Clause The Movie" one night when it was on NBC and thought "I could write a better Christmas story in my sleep" ¦ I think that was the catalyst that got me started on writing "Tidings."
I asked the Playhouse for permission to submit "Tidings" to their play-reading committee for consideration “ they said yes “ and they ended up selecting it for production. My friend Rebecca Bohun submitted a proposal to direct and was selected and we would meet for coffee at Starbucks to work on things that we felt needed fixing and discuss our "visions" for the show. "Tidings" actually went through a major rewrite before production began “ several characters were added and the story was tightened up and made a little more focused. I tried to be very involved prior to the show going into rehearsals but once auditions were over I stepped back and let her handle it and the result was a festive and funny holiday show that was very well-received.
The play itself is a mixture of several Christmas stories and television specials which we have all been exposed to in one way or another. The two main stories which "collide" are "A Christmas Carol" and "It's A Wonderful Life." I always wanted to write a comic play about Ebenezer Scrooge but I couldn't figure out how to do it without it being set in Victorian England so I merged the two stories and set it in the present day “ although it really is a timeless piece which can be staged in any time period from the early twentieth century forward. It is still a story about realizing what is important at the holidays is NOT shopping and presents but I tried to make it more humorous and heartwarming than preachy.
What is your vision for the play'
I always "envisioned" this as this grand Christmas spectacle “ which would be sort of ironic since the show is about NOT embracing the spectacle of the holidays and more about the simple joys: friends, family and loved ones. When I wrote it I had all sorts of grand ideas such as a huge Christmas tree with presents forming Santa's "throne" and giant candy-canes forming an arch. I'm glad I never mentioned any of this to Rebecca as her "vision" was much more toned down and worked perfectly.
How did you become involved with CKP'
I auditioned for "Heaven Can Wait" through a friend of mine who had just been in the previous CKP show. I was cast and had such an enjoyable time that I tried out for "Inherit The Wind." Unfortunately, I moved closer to Philadelphia for work after this so I was unable to do any more shows. But I still had friends who were in CKP productions so I would come up to see the shows and would be greeted warmly by the director and producer when they would see me “ which led to a discussion about doing one of my plays and about a year later CKP produced "Shore Insanity" which was based on my original play "Lying At The Beach."
What are your trepidations, if any, about having your shows produced'
Honestly, I've lost my fear of worrying about my shows being produced. This production of "Tidings" will be my sixth full-length production and I've learned that the things I worry about are not going to matter so long as the audience enjoys themselves. Having said that, my biggest "concern" is what every playwright worries about “ having my lines spoken correctly. Honestly, it's my biggest pet peeve and yet I am a wimp when it comes to correcting people. I also worry that the set will be nice. So far, I have never been disappointed in that respect.
Please tell us about your involvement in Rainbow theater, and also about gay-themed theater in the region, its past and present states.
Rainbow Theater began because of a lack of "gay themed theater" in the valley. I had been introduced to Rainbow Player's artistic director Dean Hiatt and we had discussed doing one of my plays ¦ and then did another ¦ and had plans to produce my one-and-only musical I had written before the company closed up. Sadly, there was a lack of support for the Rainbow Players and I don't want to speculate as to why that was. My fear is that it was the "gay theater" stigma which doesn't make any sense when you look at the "gay theater" that has done well on Broadway: The Normal Heart, Rent, Angels In America, Take Me Out, La Cage Aux Folles, Kinky Boots. It's sad because Rainbow Players did a lot of great work and supported several worthy causes and if there was a chance to bring them back to the area I would be completely on board and would love to work with them again!
Anything else you want to touch upon'
One thing I am truly grateful for is to have had so many talented friends who want to be involved in my productions “ whether on-stage, backstage, or as director. I have had the honor of working with some of the greatest talents in the Lehigh Valley on my shows and I'm sure their work has made my writing look and sound much better than my brain ever could.