8/1/2023 0 Comments Brenda lee eagerNow I volunteer at Cedars Sinai Hospital and sing to patients at bedside as a part of their music for healing program. I started creating lyrics and melodies and singing them as therapy to get me through the day. It’s coming directly from the ancestors and their mission is to open you up so that you can become who you were meant to be on your journey. When she gives directions, it’s not just coming from her. She is kind of a vortex, an oracle for the ancestors in the way that she works. Director Shirley Jo Finney made it even harder because she was relentless in insisting that I go there. In order to play Ogun, I had to open up my heart center and that meant dealing with all of the experiences in my life that made me close it off to the world in the first place. What has the Red/Brown experience been like for you?Ĭhallenging. Most people think that loving others first is the way it works, but I think it starts within, first and radiates outward. I think he sees that in giving his greatest gift, love, to Oya, he has to also remember that loving himself is the most important thing that he will ever do. It’s hard to do that when you are living on a planet with so much turmoil. Their gift is to bring love to the planet. People like Ogun are warriors, but they are warriors in a different way. It’s also taught me that it’s okay to be a peaceful warrior. All the parts of myself I’d like to pretend aren’t there were necessary to play him. Vulnerability, extreme sensitivity, insecurity. His love is so strong that it pulls Oya from the depths of depression, for a while. He realizes that his love can save people. As an older man, he turns his open heart into his strength, when he realizes that love is his gift. I think this is why he stutters as a young man: he is so open and vulnerable. It’s like when you’re a little kid and all you want to do is love and then somebody comes along and shakes you into the harsh realities of life. To walk through the world with an open heart can be frightening. Ogun is a man that comes from the heart center. How would you describe your character of Ogun? Who am I fooling? I’m no actor! I’m going to ruin the whole show! ( laughs) That’s the cycle I go through. I celebrated when I got the role in Red/Brown. So, in being true to myself and my actor instincts, I can just let them decide if I’m right or wrong for the piece. If they didn’t? Well, I’d have to figure out a way to be okay with that. This art thing is sensitive. I was going to just show what my instincts were for the role and if they liked what I brought into the room, great. After hundreds of auditions, and landing some great guest star roles on television, by that time I’d made the decision that I wasn’t going to pretend I was somebody else to try to impress the Director or Producers like I did when I first came to L.A. Enjoy These Snapshotsĭorian Baucum What was it like auditioning for Red/Brown?īy the time I auditioned, I’d been in L.A. The Los Angeles Premiere at the Fountain theatre stars Gilbert Glenn Brown, Matthew Hancock and Theo Perkins. This haunting, funny, and heartbreaking tour de force probes sexuality, coming of age, and the bonds of family as the brothers struggle to discover identity and to unearth a new sense of freedom. After a homecoming in the bayous of Louisiana, the Size brothers, Ogun and Oshoosi, try to start fresh. The Brothers Size is a hot-blooded, music-filled drama from one of the country’s most exciting new voices. Kim (via speaker phone!), lighting designer Pablo Santiago, costume designer Naila Aladdin-Sanders, choreographer Ameenah Kaplan, composer/sound designer Peter Bayne, music director Brenda Lee Eager, and production stage manager Terri Roberts.Īward-winning director Shirley Jo Finney returns to direct The Brothers Size, the second play in McCraney’s Trilogy, following our acclaimed and award-winning In the Red and Brown Water. Adding their artistic contributions were set designer Hana S. Producers Simon Levy and Deborah Lawlor led the meeting with Co-Artistic Director Stephen Sachs, Associate Producer James Bennett and Technical Director Scott Tuomey. It’s going to be a beautiful and powerful production with a fluid, quick-moving mixture of set, lights, music, movement and sound supporting three talented actors.ĭirector Shirley Jo Finney spoke to the designers and shared her vision for the play. The design and production team for our upcoming Los Angeles Premiere of The Brothers Size by Tarell Alvin McCraney gathered this week to discuss the many design elements needed for the production. Director Shirley Jo Finney shares her vision for ‘The Brothers Size’.
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