Review Fix Exclusive Midtown International Theatre Festival Coverage: Inside ‘Glockcoma’

Review Fix chats with Playwright Bob Rotay and actress Loni Ackermanwho discuss their new production “Glockcoma,” which is set for a run at this year’s Midtown International Theatre Festival.

For more on this production, click here.


GLOCKCOMA by Robert Rotay, music and lyrics by Rachel Rotay, directed by Brian Catton, musical director Andy Evan Cohen; starring Loni Akerman*, Amber Crawford*, Rachel Rotay, Carmen Lamar*, Madison McGhee, and James Solar. A Lifetime of regrets with only one way out. (Musical) *AEA

Performance Schedule: Wed 7/27, 8:30pm; Fri 7/29, 6:00pm; Sun 7/31, 1:00pm

Review Fix: What was the inspiration for this project?

Bob Rotay: Three differing aspects motivated  to write “Glockcoma.” First, my wife asked me to write a play centered on my daughter Rachel’s song “Turning Pages.” The request was in the form of a ” honey do list.” Secondly, Rachel (my daughter), needed a framework in which to write her songs around. Clothes hang on the body, music hangs on a play with music. Lastly, on a personal level, I needed to express what we all go through – handling life’s regrets. I have them, we all have them.                                                 
Review Fix: What your creative process like? 

Rotay: I have been an engineer now for almost 30 years. Engineering is process oriented. Process oriented thinking and problem solving techniques have become ingrained into my everyday life. Writing this play made me realize that there is an inherent skeletal structure, an envelope and differing criteria which must be met. There are time constraints, set constraints, budget and monetary constraints that all must be met while simultaneously meeting the creative, the human aspects and the story I wished to tell. My engineering background helped me achieve this end. 

Review Fix: What makes this different or special?

Rotay: Not many plays are written by engineers and not many plays are written by a Father and Daughter. The Father wrote the book and the Daughter wrote the music. This is special.

Review Fix: What did you learn about yourself through this process? 

Rotay: This project has revealed the following about me. Firstly, all the skills I have applied in life can be useful and applied to the creative process. Secondly, I discovered how much I love writing and exploring in the “play format.” Lastly, that one must overcome their inertia. It is too easy to do nothing, but an engineer, his 13 year old daughter with their supportive wife and mother respectively, are going to have a play performed in New York City. Put your mind and creative energies together and the sum is greater than the whole.

Review Fix: How does it feel to part of something like this?                                                                                   
Loni Ackerman: I love being part of a new production. The cast is an inspiration, as is our director, Brian Catton.

Review Fix: What are your ultimate goals for this production and for the future?

Rotay: My goal for the future is that everyone involved in the play gets something out of it. This may sound crass, but let’s be honest. Loni Ackerman, Carmen Lamar, Amber Crawford, Madison McGhee, James Soller are all wanting recognition for their talent. I want them to get the accolades they deserve and new roles in other plays. Rachel my daughter has a dream of going to Julliard. Will this help, I hope so. Brian Catton the director- what does he want? He wants what all directors’ want- recognition and more plays to direct. Finally, what does Bob Rotay want? If this goes well, he would like to write another play. Remember human ingenuity coupled with collaboration can produce marvelous and wonderful things! I look forward to the future.                                                                


Review Fix: What do you think your audiences will enjoy the most? 

Ackerman: The audience will be blown away by our composer’s music and lyric….Rachel Rotay…and she’s 14 years old!

Review Fix: What’s next?

Rotay: Well speaking from my point of view, I would like to write more. I have lots of ideas. More ideas than time

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 13819 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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