Alexander Bar | Megan's Head

The Fabulous Finkelsteins, and me

On October 23, 2016

In Cape Town, deeply personal, me on stage, theatre stuff

1351_the_finkelsteins_are_coming_to_dinner_photo_nardus_engelbrecht_4 (Photo Nardus Engelbrecht)

This little lovely play has been a lifesaver for me on so many levels, and as we turn towards our final week of this run (it has flown by with joy and delight) I am beginning to reflect on some of the secondary enjoyments of being an actor person in a successful production.

Being ‘just an actor’ doesn’t come naturally to me. I am a bossy, over compensating publicity maniac, a used car salesman of the theatre, hell bent on begging, pleading, cajoling and sometimes even paying for an audience to come and see our work. But The Finkelsteins are Coming to Dinner has managed to get its own audience for us to enjoy. I haven’t had to nag anyone. When I default into thinking about who hasn’t come and who has said they would but haven’t I quickly change that old worn script, because, who cares?

I look out into the audience (I only allow myself to see actual faces during the curtain call) without knowing who is there, and it is a surprise and thrill to find out at the end that there were people in the audience who I know. I am able to receive the love and warmth of strangers and friends alike, and I am completely able to play utterly unselfconsciously on stage without thinking about who is there.

I can check up on our bookings and delight in how well they are doing without panicking about the few nights that are still not sold out. I can allow myself to not check up on bookings at all. I can walk into the space knowing that I will be generous and present and do my best (and hope it will be the best night ever, every time) and honour the work, without thinking about any single aspect of production, or admin, or technical, or publicity.

Yes, it helps that the Alexander Bar team have created the perfect venue for these perfect gems of shows. Yes, it helps that I share the stage with two, true superstar men, and let me name them again, Andrew Laubscher and David Viviers. Yes, there is a brilliant debut playwright Richard Kaplan whose play I was lucky to have been cast in. Yes, I can’t help but think of the future of this play and whether there is one, and then I have to stop myself; it’s not my job right now. Right now I live in the luxury of having a day off before our final week of eight shows, and I am going to love every single moment of them.

The Finkelsteins Are Coming (to Dinner)

By megan

On September 6, 2016

In Cape Town, me on stage

The Finkelsteins-5 Tadah! Here is our poster.

The truth is that I am procrastinating, right this second. Instead of writing this post I should be learning my words. There are a lot of them. And it’s been a while since I was in a conventional play, with dialogue, and scenes, and other gorgeous actors, and a director, and set and props. It is fabulous and scary and challenging and hilarious and fun. And there are a lot of words.

I am in a brand new play, just written, (by Richard Kaplan) and this is the first time it is being performed. It premiers at the CT Fringe, and then we go on to do a run at my favourite Alexander Bar. We did a play reading of it at the beginning of the year, and everyone loved it so much we decided to do the production. We are me, Andrew Laubscher and David Viviers, directed by Adrian Collins. It’s a pretty phenomenal team. The Finkelsteins are Coming to Dinner is a funny, heartwarming, odd, gay, Jewish love/ghost story.

I am excited and nervous, in both parts. And I am hoping people come. You can book for the fringe here.

The Worst Auditioner in the World

By megan

On July 20, 2016

In Cape Town, me on stage, theatre stuff

There has been something that has kept me giggling for 3 weeks. I haven’t been talking about it much because I have been preoccupied with Niqabi Ninja which is pretty harrowing stuff. Sexual harassment revenge stories are not for sissies. Now that Niqabi Ninja has opened, I want to tell you about why I have spent most afternoons these last 3 weeks giggling, laughing and guffawing my head off.

Nicola Date asked me to help her with her one woman piece The Worst Auditioner In The World. She did a trial run of it at The Masque earlier in the year, and next week on 28, 29 and 30 July she has a 3 performance showcase at Cape Town’s (and my) favourite small, experimental theatre, The Alexander Bar. Go here to book.

Nicola has written a hilarious little script, all based on her true experiences at auditions and castings. I know they are true because similar ones have happened to me. There is the casting for a cave person, the outrageous imaginary eating, swimming, sleeping, walking, dancing when something crazy happens, the implausible, unreasonable, the totally unimprovisable. There are the questions, the retakes, the hopes lifted and dashed. And our worst auditioner keeps trying; tail up, smile fixed, brain quietly doing somersaults at the things asked of it.

What fun laughs it has been playing with Nicola as we stifle our laughs and force ourselves to be serious while we work. Every time we see each other we add another silly thing which keeps us amused. Please come and look at this thing. And laugh with us.

Niqabi Ninja and every woman

By megan

On July 16, 2016

In Cape Town, deeply personal, me on stage, theatre stuff

NN by Nicky Newman - WEB-16 Only 4 people have seen rehearsals of Niqabi Ninja so far. A 12 year old girl, a grade 12 female student, Nicky Newman the photographer, and a man (Jon Keevy, Alexander Bar theatre boss and lighting designer). The 12 year old told us afterwards that she knew all about things like (sexual harassment) that from school. The grade 12 student shared with me a private story about her own bad and harassing experience, Nicky shared some of her ‘harassment in Facebook comments’ stories, and Jon retold a story about the sexual inappropriateness of a man who lives in the same building as a friend of his. Something like this has either happened to you or to a woman you are close to. Those are the facts.

At every rehearsal one of us (and there are only three of us there usually) will have a story to tell, either about what happened to us on the day, or in the past. I have begun to realise that every single woman has string of sexually implicit incidents that embroider her life. Not every incident will make us feel like a victim, but that doesn’t change the nature of the incident. Women, and girls, are targets of this mostly under reported, under responded to sexual behaviour. And most men don’t really understand the range and breadth of it until they are told about it.

Niqabi Ninja reflects something of every single woman and girl’s experience at some point. It’s hard to swallow but it is undeniably true. Have you ever met a woman who has not been sexually harassed? Can you believe that?

Loren Loubser and Bianca Flanders, two unbelievable actors and amazing storytellers, remind me of different parts of myself. We are totally different in style, attitude, personality, background, age and experience. And yet, we have so much in common, mostly in the stories we tell about being women. And men, most of you need to hear these stories, just to know, to have the invisible made visible. We are ready to tell you.

Niqabi Ninja is on at the Alexander Bar on 18, 19, 20 July and 1, 2, 3 August. (The pic is another of Nicky Newman’s amazing photos)

Niqabi Ninja – we need your help

By megan

On July 8, 2016

In Cape Town, deeply personal, inspiration, me on stage, political, theatre stuff, world of work

This post is a letter/press release/call for help.

Dear theatre lovers, fighters for causes, feminists, allies, survivors, and community members,

I am currently involved with a beautiful and important work, Niqabi Ninja, that I want to bring to your attention.

Niqabi Ninja is an avenging Superhero, born on the streets of Cairo, who is ready to seek out and avenge every single act of harassment she has experienced at the hands of men. She has a list, a record of injuries and a variety of punishments to mete out. Watch out men of Cairo. Niqabi Ninja has a score to settle, and she is coming after you.

Set in Cairo during the chaotic time of the Egyptian uprising, Niqabi Ninja is an extraordinarily beautiful play giving two actresses a chance to explore the range and complexity of harassment against women, and one woman’s ability to develop a response.

Niqabi Ninja is written by emerging young Egyptian playwright Sara Shaarawi, and directed by me, Megan Furniss, and performed by Cape Town’s rising talents Bianca Flanders and Loren Loubser. We have put this show together on zero budget and 100% commitment and passion.

The play premiers at The Alexander Bar on 18, 19, 20 July, for a showcase of three performances, and we have just heard news that we have an additional 3 dates on the 1, 2, 3 August.

I am convinced that this work, these outstanding performances, the subject matter and how it is presented, will speak to a wide audience in South Africa, but more particularly to a young, student audience. I am looking for advice, production skills, a producer and project management to get Niqabi Ninja to its biggest audience. I am open to all suggestions, possibilities and options. Please let me know if you are able to attend one of our premier performances. Let me know if you have ideas, contacts, suggestions, skills to share. The truth is, this is gorgeous work and I am terrible at anything besides the creative stuff. And share, share, share this post.

Why I am happy (even though the world is totally upside down)

By megan

On June 25, 2016

In Cape Town, me on stage, theatre stuff

On Monday of this last week we started rehearsing Niqabi Ninja. It is a brand new work, written by Egyptian playwright Sara Shaarawi. I met her last year at the WPIC and I worked on an excerpt. I immediately put it on my to do list, and I revisited it after the Reference List protests at the University currently known as Rhodes. Niqabi Ninja is an extraordinary two-hander that investigates sexual harassment in a totally engaging, honest, contemporary, timeless way. Although it is set in Cairo, it could so easily be Cape Town, or Joburg, or Rio, or anywhere where there are women, and men who harass them.

In a gift from the theatre gods, two of Cape Town’s finest young actors signed up to perform this show. I have completely fallen in love with Bianca Flanders and Loren Loubser, who remind me what an amazing training UCT drama school is. These women are exciting, committed, passionate, rigorous, imaginative, generous, questioning, brave and so powerful. I cannot wait for them to be seen.

We have three showcase performances on the 17, 18, 19 July at the Alexander Bar. Come and see the work that makes me so happy.

Megan's Head

A place where Megan gets off her head.

Tag: Alexander Bar (Page 2 of 8)

The Fabulous Finkelsteins, and me

The Finkelsteins Are Coming (to Dinner)

The Worst Auditioner in the World

Niqabi Ninja and every woman

Niqabi Ninja – we need your help

Why I am happy (even though the world is totally upside down)

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