Review Fix chats with Albi Gorn, playwright and actor, who discusses his newest production, Gornisht.
PLANET CONNECTIONS GIVES YOU GORNISHT: SIX ROMANTIC COMEDIES BY ALBI GORN.
PLAYWRIGHT ALBI GORN BRINGS US SIX UNIQUE COUPLES TELLING SIX UNIQUE – AND COMICAL – RELATIONSHIP TALES. SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE AS AGE, EXPERIENCE, CULTURE, AND GOOD OLD COMMON SENSE ALL JOIN THE MERRY DANCE OF A DOZEN LOVES AND LOVERS.
Directed by Robin Anne Joseph, the company includes Jeff Calhoun, Laura Credidio, Michael Lichtstein, Becca Quinn, Linda Voth, and Albi Gorn himself.
The 2017 Planet Connection Theatre Festivity runs June 12 – July 9 at The Clemente, 107 Suffolk Street, NYC. “Gornisht†performs June 14 @ 9:15 PM; June 16 @ 9:00 PM; June 18 @ 12:00 PM; June 25 @ 8:30 PM; July 5 @ 9:00 PM; and July 7 @ 5:00 PM. For tickets, visit PlanetConnections.org.
Planet Connections Theatre Festivity are multiple theater, film and music festivals. Planet Connections’ artists use their work to shed light on causes that matter and inspire audiences to get involved. All of PCTF’s artists raise awareness for an organization or topic of their own selection.
Review Fix: What’s your creative process like?
Albi Gorn: It starts with an observation, sometimes an event or possible event, sometimes just a thought, phrase or dialogue exchange. I have these all the time but when it won’t go away and keep buzzings around my head, I know I need to write it down. I first envision every moment I want to reach and depict, and then I connect the dots.
Review Fix: What makes this different or special?
Gorn: Gornisht is a collection of six one-act plays, each trying to capture a relationship gone or going sour that gets rescued by some unexpected event or turn of events. I’ve mounted all of them before individually but to put them together in one evening has always been my dream. I’m anxious to see if the gestalt of the evening is greater than the individual parts.
Review Fix: What did you learn about yourself through this process?
Gorn: I mostly direct my own plays but here I let me wife, who is a much better director than I am, take charge. That left me free to act in a couple of the shows, which is a kick. What I learned is that by letting go of the control I could actually watch my plays like an audience member, and enjoy them with a much less critical eye.
Review Fix: How does it feel to be a part of something like this?
Gorn: If by something like this you mean the Festivity, I have to say there’s definitely a buzz at the meetings I’ve attended. And of course, for me, who has spent most of my theater life everywhere put New York City, I feel like I’m in the big leagues. In fact, this project began when a good friend of mine, Jeff Calhoun (cast in Gornisht), said that on his bucket list was “to act in a show in New York.” I put this production together so that Jeff (and I) could see that happen.
Review Fix: What are your ultimate goals for this production and for the future?
Gorn: Of course, my first goals is get decent sized audiences. I know whoever comes will be glad they did. This is good stuff, funny, really surprising, and ultimately, I think, quite moving. It would be wonderful if someone who saw it wanted to pick it up, but I know that’s not how the real world works. And my future plans are to find as many stages as I can that are willing to let me mount my stuff, and just keep the continuum continuing.
Review Fix: What do you think your audiences will enjoy the most?
Gorn: I think the surprises are always the most gratifying moments for my audiences. I never write with the intent of creating unexpected twists, but my characters frequently lead me there. There are plenty of laughs, but these are real people mostly in real situations; and even in the fantasy plays these are the fantasies we all share in different ways. And the hope is always that the unexpected will cause you to rethink what you have just seen and maybe see it in a different way.
Review Fix: What’s next?
Gorn: I have one-act plays in two local festivals here in Westchester, there is another evening of my one-acts (and a beautiful one-act by my wife) slated for the fall in Rochester, and I’m hoping another local group will greenlight a full-length project I pitched them recently.
Very good interview with a very good and gifted writer.