At some point I had written down a bunch of thoughts about how we might do a neighborhood listserv play, but I’m not sure where that is.
So here are some notes/thoughts from what I remember/think:
- One easy thing to stage would be to have a selection of printed out (likely fictionalized so as not to be mean) letters to a neighborhood listserv and each actor reads them either just out loud or as typing on a computer
- If done well, you could assign a different topic to each person and orchestrate it in an entertaining way
- Some obvious topics for consideration would be:
- Parking issues (can never find a space; someone’s parking too long in one spot; damn people not even in my neighborhood parking here, etc.)
- Crime (break-ins; suspicious characters; people asking for money, whether legitimate or not; we should all have webcams and take pictures of everyone)
- Property taxes (oh man, property taxes!)
- Renters (short term rentals; people who don’t care; what’s going on in that damn house?)
- The old days (remember when our neighborhood was a fantastic paradise of all that is wholesome, but now it’s crap?)
- New developments (they’re disrespecting the neighborhood; have they even considered traffic congestion; will we ever get sidewalks?; do they have to chop down all those trees?)
- Resources (anyone know a good plumber/repairman/tree trimmer/cleaner?)
- Lost pets (peacocks, dogs, cats, ferrets, hamsters, snakes, etc.)
- Advertising and the blowback (this isn’t the place to advertise your kids’ lego set or your homemade jams)
- What to name the new park (OMG, don’t even get me started)
- Thinking about a short piece, I’m intrigued by the musical idea, even if no music
- Maybe it’s a neighborhood meeting and each actor has something he/she’s pushing, and they’re talking over each other and it eventually reaches a fever pitch as something very bad or very good (or very something) is about to happen (demolition, the apocalypse, the arrival of a WalGreens!)
- While the idea is funny and people can relate to the goofy and repetitive and controversial things said on a listerv, the structure is crucial to elevate it to the next level (like that 21 Chump Street musical I love from This American Life)
- In terms of longer pieces, you could do a lot more with this, with city planning, arguments, etc. (but you’d need to make it distinct from Parks & Rec level satire)
- Maybe interactive parts where audience members have a say?
- UPDATE: Consider people like the dude who finds a government conspiracy in public transportation (gov controls where people can and can’t go with public buses)
So maybe start with a short, crisp, well-structured piece that ends with a bang. Then think longer term beyond that. It could turn into another beast too (SciFi, absurdism, etc.). Maybe the whole thing is happening as the world is being destroyed (so you’ve got people complaining about parking spaces as an asteroid approaches).
Thinking…
