Time: 10:41 pm tuesday april 3, 2001 

I am so looking forward to seeing how this develops here in 
Austin. Way to go Shannon!

Time: 9:31 am wednesday april 4, 2001 

Hey, what distinguishes No Shame from open mike?

Time: 12:13 pm wednesday april 4, 2001 

:Hey, what distinguishes No Shame from open mike?

While the sign up aspect of No Shame makes it very similar to 
other open mikes, there are a few aspects of the format that 
distinguishes it from your typical run of the mill open forum.

One, while most open mikes are dedicated to a single art form 
(poetry, singer/songwriter, stand up comedy), No Shame operates 
under the umbrella of theatre. This means that anything that 
involves performance of one sort or another. So on any given 
night you might have for instance 2 dance numbers, 3 songs, a 
poem, 4 monologues of varying seriousness, one cool juggling act, 
and 4 scenes/sketches. The variety makes for a pretty cool show.

Two, most open mikes are dedicated to the solo performer, whether 
poet, comedian, or singer. While solo performances are common and 
encouuraged at No Shame, just as many pieces will involve 
multiple actors/dancers/what have you.

Three, No Shame, while still informal, has a little more 
possibility for production value than most readings that happen, 
say, in in the middle of a cafe. The stage at the Hideout is 
small but big enough for a number of people and by bringing 
scripts with light cues, performers can take advantage of the 
lighting at the Hideout for a slightly more polished feel than 
many open mikes can provide.

Hope this answers your question. Glad you'll be coming. See you 
at the Hideout.

Your host

Time: 11:37 am sunday april 8, 2001 

Last night was our First No Shame and I would like thank 
everyone who came out and watched or participated in the show. I 
think it went pretty well. I hope the word spreads. All righty, 
here's the order.

1. "No Title," by Allison De Frees: performed Allison DeFrees 
and Shannon McCormick. A stands in front of audience waiting. S 
reminds Allison from the audience at each minute mark how much 
time she has left; performance art.

2. "Gertie's Story," by Ben "the Rock' Sterling: improvised 
dramatic monologue.

3. "Moustrap," by Milton Bradley: performed by Mike D'Alonzo and 
Jeremy Lamb. Mike reads the instructions to the game Moustrap 
while Jeremy plays bongo: performance art/poetry.

4. "Pee Sippers," by Janine de Luna-Azul: Janine plays a 
character who tastes urine samples for corporate drug testing; 
comic monolgue.

5. "A Thousand Inside Jokes," by Jeremy Lamb: performed by 
Jeremy Lamb and Shannon McCormick and a random audience member. 
J takes too long setting up the stage and is asked to leave; 
conceptual comic monolgue.

6. "I Want to Tell You This?" by Jeffrey H. Marzi: performed by 
Shannon McCormick. Odd piece with typos and misspellings; comic 
monologue/letter.

7. "Trust," by David Gunderson: performed by David Gunderson: 
David relates story of an allergic reaction to a prescribed drug 
and the quality of individual uniqueness; dramatic monologue.

8. "Midnight Reckoning," by Peter Neveland; dramatic/poetic 
monologue.

9. "Sincerely Dead," by Craig Kotfas: performed by Craig Kotfas. 
With back to stage Craig transforms in a munchkin then turns and 
serenades the audience, then returns to normal; comedy sketch.

10. "Blimpie," by Jon Benner and Yasmin Kittles. Jon and Yasmin 
smile a lot silently in a cafe and then conduct a Q -&- A session 
with the audience; comdey sketch.

11. "The Sound of Love," by Plastique DuMond. Lights are turned 
out and the PA plays a series of street interviews with men and 
women about the opposite sex; media piece.

12. "Gook Hotlicks," by Hung Nguyen. Hung dons Vietnamese hat 
and attempts to play some "wock -&- woll," but has troouble with 
his amp. No one is sure if this is intentional, but it's not. 
Five minutes mostly of feedback and strobe lights. Musical 
sketch.

13. "The Indian in the Cupboards Friend," by Brett Webster. Stop-
motion animated film of naked GI Joe accomplish feats in the 
kitchen; film.

Time: 3:36 am monday april 9, 2001 

great show. i had a wonderful time performing and i was 
impressed with the variety and quality of all the pieces. the 
most enlightening part of the experience was hanging out 
afterwards and hearing everyone's new ideas for the next show. 
it has to be one of the most fertile and inspiring atmospheres 
for performance anywhere. i can't wait till the next one.

Time: Fri, 13-Apr-2001 23:01:08 GMT     IP: 134.161.106.63

hey just wanted to say its great to see that you guys had a good 
turn out for your first show! will there be scripts being posted 
soon? id love to check out some of whats happening down there. 
best of luck.

luke pingel
cedar falls no shamer

Time: Wed, 18-Apr-2001 04:01:16 GMT     IP: 64.12.101.179

Hey Austin,

I'm one of the regular shamers in Iowa City and was wondering 
how and when your No Shame came about and how it functions, as 
there is little info on the web.  I guess what I'm most curious 
about is if it stemmed from a former Iowa Cityian (that can't be 
the right word).

Anyone that feels like spinning the yarn for me can email me at:

aaron-galbraith@uiowa.edu

Time: Sat, 21-Apr-2001 17:32:38 GMT     IP: 63.180.94.42

Cowgod blesses thy undertaking.

Cowgod parts the long reeds for thy passage.

Cowgod answers prayers with long lows, under a sliver moon.

Cowgod gives its body unto thee, that thou may eat, yet does not 
die, but lives yet, and always.

Cowgod, in a cloud of flies, lies in the shade and ruminates.

Time: Sun, 22-Apr-2001 19:42:40 GMT     IP: 207.193.41.166

Hey everybody, great show last night. Even though it was only 
our second No Shame and many of the performers were first time 
No Shamers, it really felt like everybody gets the potential of 
the format. I can't wait to see what everybody does in the 
future.

As the host of the show I think I'm going to refrain for a while 
from weighing in on which of the pieces I was most fond of last 
night. I'd love for y'all to use the board to review the show, 
talk about what floated your boat, etc. It's good for all of us 
to hear what we have to say about each others' work and think 
about what we can do in the future. Also, if anyone has the 
names of those performers whom I didn't know, please inform us. 
Thanks a ton. 

OK, enough talk, lets get on with the order.


0. Announcements and order, by Shannon McCormick. Shannon 
distributes video of Jesus movie to the audience, as well as a 
notebook collected earlier that morning from Airport Boulevard 
filled with the love jottings of some heartbroken girl for a boy 
named Simon Moreno.

1. "Viva Casrto! A Comedic Revolution!" by Carie Esquenazi. 
Performed by Carie Esquenazi. Serio-comic monologue from the 
point of view of a middle-aged to elderly woman about Cuba. Part 
of Carie's one-woman show.

2. "The Beat," by Korey Simeone. Performed by Korey Simeone. Rap 
done in German to hip-hop track played over the PA. Musical 
piece.

3. "Frank Langella--?!!" by Noah Henson. Performed by Noah 
Henson. Noah rails against the recent surfeit of male genitalia 
in films and the sad dearth of female genitals in same. Also 
discusses the various merits of various slang terms for the 
female package. Serio-comic monologue.

4. "Portrait of Myself as Me," by Yasmin Kittles. While music 
plays, Yasmin inspects herself in a mirror, tries on various 
outfits, and deals with body issues. Dramatic performance piece.

5. "Special Announcement," by Taylor Maddux. Performed by Taylor 
Maddux. Taylor dons bow tie provided by Ratgirl and delivers 
advertisement for the Drug Attic, a wholesale warehouse for 
illegal substances. Comic monologue.

6. "Sex for Christians," by Jeremy Lamb and Jeff Amos. Performed 
by Jeremy Lamb and Jeff Amos. Jeremy reads chapter on sexual 
petting from book titled Sex for Christians. Jeff provides 
musical accompaniment and then sings song highlighting the 
points of Jeremy's reading. Musical/comedy sketch.

7. "Bubble Boy," by Roy Dearen. Performed by Roy Dearen. Roy 
enters stage naked except for a giant swath of bubble rap 
encircling his torso. Recites the tale of Bubble Boy, who has 
grown a second skin made of bubble wrap and finds relief from 
stress when audience pops his bubbles. Comedy sketch.

8. "The Artificial Vagina-Maker," by Ratgirl, adapted for the 
stage by Amie Elyn. Performed by Amie Elyn, Ratgirl, Dan Bisbee, 
and Carie Esquenazi. Fairy tale of a giant rat who makes sex 
toys and her encounter with a giant fly. Comedy sketch.

9. "A Cat and a Dog and a Cow and a Pig," by Thai Le, adapted 
for the stage by Shannon McCormick. Performed by Shannon 
McCormick, Allison DeFrees, Amy McCurdy, Yasmin Kittles, Mike 
D'Alonzo, and Aaron ??. Story written by a young child about the 
adventures of the title characters. Comedy sketch.

10. "In a Canoe," by Travis Holmes. Performed by Travis Holmes. 
Boy scout recounts time he comes across the mother of a mentally-
handicapped summer camper having sex in a canoe with another Boy 
Scout. Serio-comic monologue.

11. "Untitled #12, or After Rehearsal Special," by Amy McCurdy 
and Aaron ??. Performed by Amy McCurdy, Aaron ??, and Shannon 
McCormick. Amy and Aaron rehearse their stage slaps and beat the 
crap out of each other. Devolves into a violent wrestling match 
which is broken up by Shannon squirting them with a water 
bottle. Comedy performance/sketch.

12. "Tested," by Skipper Chong Warson. Performed by Skipper 
Chong Warson. A discussion of the strata of women based on one 
ability to masturbate while conjuring them in one's head, and 
one woman who fell into the rare third category. Dramatic 
monologue.

13. "Shoop!" by Bitches, Ho's and Sluts. Performed by Yasmin 
Kittles and friend. Intentionally awkward improv where they play 
a dentist and a plumber and then take questions from the 
audience on their performance and other related issues. 
Conceptual improv sketch.

14. "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon," by Jordan T. Maxwell. 
Performed by Jordan T. Maxwell. Jordan plays his new game of 
Extreme Kevin Bacon with the audience. Gets stuck on Groucho 
Marx, but is successful with Chow Yun Fat and Alf. Comic 
performance piece.

15. "Neal Medlin," by Neal Medlin. Performed by Neal Medlin. 
Neal goes urinates in the bathroom right next to the Cabaret 
stage and leaves door open for all to see if we wish. Does part 
of a rap about Jackson Pollack while tossing a cup of water on 
the back wall of the stage to make an impromptu action painting. 
Performance art piece.

15.5 "Dutch Theatre," by Allison DeFrees. Performed by all in 
the audience. Allison and Shannon get everyone to go up on stage 
while they stack the chairs in the cabaret. Then all are advised 
to leave and go drink.

Time: Mon, 23-Apr-2001 17:21:17 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artists et the Shamu Sho,

I liked the way wee sat in chers and watched the arts together. 
That made mee feel gud. It wus fun to popp the bubles. Also, it 
maid mee feel like a reel artist becus I got to stand on a stage 
and the lites wuhs brite in my i's.

Thank yu Amie four making my storee intos a play end leting mee 
bee the Ratto.

Thank yu Boobie Dann four beeing in the play, even tho yu didnit 
like it and thot it wus stoopid.

Thank yu Carey ladie four beeing in the play. Yu haf nise hare.

Thank yus other peeples four claping four us. And thank yus other 
peepels four lafing evin tho sumtimes we wasunt funi.

Your Fellow Artist end Shamu Frend,
Ratgirl

Time: Mon, 23-Apr-2001 18:44:29 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artists et the Shamu Sho,

Allso, their wuhs know blak peeple their. Not evin eny blak 
ratts. (I em a Norweejin ratt.) Wear wher awl the blak peepel?

Your Fellow Artist,
Ratgirl

Time: Mon, 23-Apr-2001 21:37:54 GMT     IP: 198.214.102.11

It's funny, but certain nights at No Shame seem to develop 
thematic links between pieces, which obviously no one could have 
known about before the show. Maybe it's just the power of 
suggestion, but my feeling is that things are just out there 
collectively for one reason or another and we all just pick up 
on them. OK, that's abunch of mystical crap, but you know what 
I'm getting at.

Anyway, pieces in the last show had some recurring images/themes.
Here are three that leap out:

1. More than one piece had people on the verge of being 
naked/exposing themselves in some way: Yasmin's piece, Roy's 
Bubble Boy thing, Neal in the bathroom.

2. Tons of sexual content. This one's intersting because there 
was almost no sex in the first evening. But the last show was 
filled with sex, and specifically there was a whole lot of 
vaginal discussion going on.

3. Not one but two adapted stories complete with narrator and 
everything. 

Other themes/stuff I'm forgetting about?

In response to Ratgirl, the lack of African American faces at No 
Shame is perhaps symptomatic of theatre in Austin in general? In 
my dreams No Shame will become a Jesse Jackson approved rainbow 
of every imaginable ethnic group/sexual persuasion/trans-human 
contingent (I'm thinking of the rats among us) possible. 
Democracy in action.

If we only go to the theatre to hear our own pet theories about 
society mouthed back at us, why even bother? No Shame is a forum 
for democratic expression that should be open to all points of 
view. And if some one espousing truly repugnant ideas were to 
come on stage at No Shame, I hope we as an audience would have 
the courage to say so then and there or here in this forum. I 
would prefer this to the usual p.c. neo-liberal clucking of 
tongues amongst a like-minded choir that shuns confrontation. 

Now I've gone and climbed up on a soap box. Sorry. Intersted in 
your response to my little art and democracy screed, however. 

Shannon

Time: Mon, 23-Apr-2001 23:24:53 GMT     IP: 63.116.14.89

While I think there was a semblence of a theme last Saturday 
(4.21.2001), I also think theatre (No Shame, no doubt) needs to 
be about what concerns us the most. 

Whether it's goal-oriented (getting on-stage 40 times), testing 
material (like Carie's Viva Castro!) or just telling stories 
(like Travis' Canoe tale), I think No Shame needs to be more 
than a way to spend 15 5-minute chunks of our lives.

Whoa.

Time: Tue, 24-Apr-2001 00:07:40 GMT     IP: 209.184.0.73

I certainly agree that No Shame needs to be more than a way to 
spend 15 5-minute segments of our lives. But I'm not exactly sure 
what you're saying, Skipper. That certain pieces at No Shame on 
any given night might be boring/frivilous/poorly rehearsed is 
certainly without a doubt. But we should maybe take it on good 
faith that everyone is bringing in something that they're 
interested in seeing performed and that they're not negotiating 
with the format from a false position. 

If someone is approaching the format cynically--treating the show 
as No Pride rather than No Shame--I hope we would have the 
courage to tell that person to do better work. I think many 
people may come and try No Shame as a way to become more 
confident as performers, to learn something about acting or 
writing, and as fellow perfomers we owe it to them to help them 
become better. Not by flattering pieces that aren't saying much 
or aren't in any way accomplished, but by challenging people to 
improve. I'm certianly not proposing that the No Shame model 
replace the professionalism and vision of traditional theatre, 
but I do believe the open forum can serve a valuable purpose in 
the development of theatre artists.

I'm certainly as guilty of filling space on the No Shame bill the 
other night as anyone else who performed. But I wanted to see 
what the sensibility and logic of a third-grade story would look 
like on stage. And hopefully I've learned soemthing from that 
that will result in better work in the future.

Anyway, on the theme issue, two more things. I think certain 
shows may have odd currents of similarity running through them 
because what concerns us most is often so very similar itself. I 
mean family, sex, death, joy, sense of identity--odds are that on 
any given night, a bucketful of material will be drawn from one 
of these perrenial wells. Second, I think frivolity and whimsy 
and the ability to get up in front of people and misbehave is one 
of those aspects of our lives that we periodically need to 
indulge and can be one of the things that concerns us most.

So, Skipper, we may be violently agreeing, I'm not sure. What do 
you think?

Shannon

Time: Tue, 24-Apr-2001 21:50:05 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artists et No Shamu Sho,

Sori I ben geting the naim rong.

I wunted to say sumthing abowt wot Shannon sed, sos I copeed it 
hear:

Shannon rote:
"But I wanted to see what the sensibility and logic of a third-
grade story would look like on stage. And hopefully I've learned 
soemthing from that that will result in better work in the 
future."

I got a feeling win I wuhs waching it that sum of the peepels in 
the play Cow and Pig Eeting Sno didnit taik the storee seeryusly 
enuf end wuhs trying to doo to much to maik it funi. This is a 
slite critisism, but it mite hep yu if yu doo it agin. Yu hef too 
trust the storee. Trust the stuf yu ar dooing. Allso, it heps iff 
yu dont drink to much cofee befour the sho.

Yore thots?

Your Fellow Artist et the No Shamu Sho,
Ratgirl

Time: Wed, 25-Apr-2001 03:15:15 GMT     IP: 63.11.189.2


as far as for the comment that i, COW, of course, did not "taik 
the storee seeryusly enuf" and "wuhs trying to doo to much to 
maik it funi" i disagree. in my one line "hello ever body. i'm 
cow. and a big fat cow too! Moo!" i feel that i gave the role 
of "cow" a strong level of depth that i did not realize cow was 
capable upon first reading the script. when i was first handed 
the script i immediately thought "there's no way," i mean, did i 
have the talent as an actress to take this role on at this point 
in my career? how could i take on a character with such 
complexity? but despite my immediate reactions, i decided to just 
go for it. it would be a challenge, and that's what "no shame" is 
about anyway, right? so i did it... after all the motivation 
conflicts and characterization issues i struggled with- i had 
done it. i delivered my line with the vigor and sassiness that 
only COW could posses. yes, COW is funi - as many humans are in 
the real world. just b/c she is a cow does not mean she needs to 
be flat and serious.
so... to answer your question: i wuhs taiking the storee 
seeryusly.

COW

Time: Wed, 25-Apr-2001 05:03:18 GMT     IP: 66.68.79.115

Let me say this from the get-go: No Shame is a great idea. Having 
75 minutes of 15 bits of theatricalness in one sitting is great. 
Like a triple espresso. Whoo-oo-oo-oo. Shake it off.

With that said, I think every single one of Saturday's shows had 
merit. Every piece had something going for it -- whether it be a 
sense of, like Shannon said, "frivolity and whimsy" or something 
more, um, of a exploratory nature.

In my previous post, I was mostly expressing concerns for No 
Shame's direction, possibly its future. I want it to be good. I 
want it to kick ass. And I want it to be fun. And I want to help 
it be all of those things. A tall order? You betcha. And can I 
get some butter on the side?

Consider this, MOMFest began as a revolt against FronteraFest 
(which began as a way to showcase smaller shows, kind of like the 
Not Ready for Primetime Players). It's become a matter of too 
much theatre and not enough theatre that speaks to [insert 
theatre demographic here]. And in a way, maybe No Shame is a 
reaction against MOMFest. Maybe not. Probably not. I mean there's 
going to be a Best of No Shame, right?

There were shows last Saturday that I enjoyed more than others -- 
clearly, a matter of personal taste. Everyone could agree with 
me. Or no one could agree with me. Like I said, personal taste.

But I guess that's the point of No Shame; to get on-stage and 
have no shame about it.

I think Salvage Vanguard's motto (I HATE THEATER) is great. What 
most people think of as theatre is god awful. Wretch, vomit. I 
think the only way theatre can survive is for it to re-invent 
itself. And I think No Shame is a good way to do that. Maybe not 
the perfect way, but who the hell is perfect?

Well, not counting me of course.

*smirk*

Time: Wed, 25-Apr-2001 05:05:26 GMT     IP: 66.68.79.115

I was out of the room when "A Cat and a Dog and a Cow and a Pig" 
ran. Sorry.

No comment.

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 18:31:16 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Cow,

Cow, I wuhsint toking abowt yu. Yu jist stude their end yu wuhs 
funi. End then yu sed, "I em Cow," end it wuhs funi. Butt that's 
oky, yu maike sum gud poynts I shud tauk abowt.

I wuhsnit cleer in my udder mesij. I didnit meen too say evrywon 
shud bee seerius end flat. I jist ment that I saw a lot uv 
poschuring that wuhs distrackting frum the storee end frum sum of 
the uther preforminces.

Nott too git thim al mad et mee, butt what doo Cat end Dawg hev 
to say about it? Them wuhs the wons that I thot wuhs jist fuking 
around.

Is wee aloud to say fuk?

Your Fellow Artist,
Ratgirl

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 18:39:43 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artists et the No Shamu Sho,

Not thet their is enything rong wif fuking around, its jist thet 
Cat end Dawg's fuking around wasnit awl thet intertaning too mee, 
Ratgirl.

Maybee its beecuz I dont like Cats end Dawgs. Maybee neks time yu 
cud hav it bee Rat end Rat, end mee end Ratboy kin play there 
parts.

Your Fellow Artist,
Ratgirl

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 18:49:40 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artist Skipper et the Shamu Sho,

Yu sownd lik yu ar kising ar ass.

Wy is yu dooing thet? Wee ar yu fellow artists. Wee dont nead ar 
asis kist. Wee nead too bee chalinjed end prudid too bee betur.

Stup kising ar asis, Skipper. It maks mee think yu hev sumthing 
unplesint to say thet yu arnt saying. Like thet yu think wee suk.

Your Fellow Artist,

Ratgirl

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 19:07:07 GMT     IP: 24.27.44.115

I'm not in the right frame of mind to jump into this debate.  
However, I do want to say that I had waaaaay more fun at No Shame 
Theatre Night than I have had at almost every other piece of 
theatre I have subjected myself to over the years.  Even with the 
warts showing.  It's the spirit of the thing that I enjoyed.  We 
were all free to do whatever we wanted and the audience was there 
for us, whatever the outcome.  Thanks, Shannon, for bringing this 
to Austin.  We need more stuff like this.  Because sometimes, 
polish doesn't matter as much as heart and soul.

Amie

PS:  Salvage Vangaurd is lame and American Demons sucked ass.  If 
they "Hate Theater" so much, why did they produce exactly the 
type of show they're supposed to hate?

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 20:33:40 GMT     IP: 63.11.187.71

amie...
i have to agree with you. salvage vanguard is probably the worst 
thing i have ever experienced - the word "pretentious" comes to 
mind. 
and ratgirl... got it. when you had written the first message i 
took it as an attack... thanks for the clear up.
COW

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 21:28:44 GMT     IP: 198.214.102.11

Der, I can't even get this thing to post correctly. Lots of stuff 
on the ol' No Shame message board that I'd like to respond 
to/write about.

First, as far as Skipper's comment that went like this:

In my previous post, I was mostly expressing concerns for No 
Shame's direction, possibly its future. I want it to be good. I 
want it to kick ass. And I want it to be fun. And I want to help 
it be all of those things. A tall order? You betcha. And can I 
get some butter on the side?

The direction of No Shame is one of those things that is hard to 
predict/control, whatever. I too want No Shame to be good and to 
kick ass, and I'm glad that you, Skipper, want to help it be all 
of those things. Given that any of us will only be writing 1/15 
of any given show, this is indeed a tall order if we go it alone. 
The way people can ensure that we have good shows is to set 
standards by doing really outstanding work that challenges 
everybody else. A bad piece on a night of mediocre pieces may not 
stand out, but a bad piece on a night with several dynamite 
pieces will. The audience will know it and so will the 
writers/performers. The other way to provide for high quality is 
to approach people whose work you like and encourage them to keep 
coming to No Shame. It's always surprising to me when people 
whose work I like are surprised to hear that some one appreciates 
what they do. Everybody needs encouragement I guess.

One thing I've noticed, and which is perfectly natural given 
where we are in the evoultionary development of No Shame here in 
Austin, is that we've had very few pieces that call for more than 
one performer, and evn fewer that call for more than two. Part of 
this is we're all still learning who we are, establishing who's a 
regular, etc. I was happy though that last shos there were some 
last minute castings of people whom the authors didn't know, like 
Ratgirl casting Carie E., etc. As we go on, I imagine this will 
become more common. In fact, I just got an email from Roy the 
Bubble Boy looking to get in touch with Allison DeFrees because 
he thinks she'd be good for his next piece.

No Shame originally started back in Iowa City (well before my 
time) as a reaction against the limited performance and 
production opportunities for undergraduate theatre students. The 
founders got fed up with this situation and decided to make their 
own theatre, however tough that might be. My founding of No Shame 
wasn't a reaction to FronteraFest or MOMfest. Perhaps response is 
a better word, though. Having seen the number of writers and 
performers in this city, I thought No Shame would be a successful 
venue here, and I shamelessly wanted to put myself at the center 
of a bunch of cool, talented, whacked-out deviants. Simple as 
that.

Yasmin, I'm glad that you and Ratgirl have clarified you're 
discussion. I knew what Ratgirl meant and am glad no one has 
taken offense. I meant to post something earlier, but you all 
beat me to it. Ratgirl, in defense of my actors, the flaws 
with "Cat and Dog, etc.." are mine, in that it was so hastily put 
together that I didn't ever rehearse the piecew with them. I just 
handed out scripts and said "go to..." Sometimes this works 
brilliantly, and sometimes the results are mixed. Hard to predict.

Amie, thanks for the kind words about the show, the amount of fun 
you had, etc. The great thing about No Shame, in my opinion, is 
the amount of ownership it elicits from people. Even though we 
may only be onstage briefly on a given night, something about the 
format makes people care about being an audience member, which is 
sometimes left out of the equation. You know it's funny, I didn't 
see American Demons, nor Wallpaper Psalms, but this is the first 
time I've heard people say bad things about Salvage V. I liked 
their Holiday shows, and felt that there was a lot of kindred 
spirit between that show and what we do. But it's intersting that 
here people are confessing to not liking some of their works. 
Could it be that we others think that the emperor has no clothes 
but are afraid to say anything because we've all been told to 
believe the hype? That an authentic response from the audience 
has been excluded from the process. With No Shame I hope that 
won't happen, but there's something about the format that pretty 
ensures it won't.

That is all.

Shannon

Time: Thu, 26-Apr-2001 22:05:49 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artist et the Shamu Sho,
I luv the Shamu Sho. I allmos criyed win I red Shannon's last 
mesij. I wish Roy the Bubel Boy wud ask mee too bee in his peece.

Cow, I em glad yu ar not madd et Ratgirl. Maybee wee can doo a 
Rat end a Cow sho sumday et the Shamu Sho.

My stooge saw Emberissing Seamen et the Blew Theater, to. Shee 
sed it wuhs like 4 peepel jist fuking around un a NEA grant. End 
the refferince to Collmeblind shutings wuhs gratuitus end 
patrinizing. End she hed sat their hoping the acters wud al 
shute thimselfs wif the gun. Butt they didnit.

End the stooge remimburs the erlee days uv Salad Vangard win 
Jaysun Newlandur tole acters hee wunted to make them intoo rok 
stars ore cult ikons.

Whut hapined too the salad days uv Dafeed Boochee. Wear hav al 
the reel freeks gone?

Your Fellow Artist,
Ratgirl 

Time: Fri, 27-Apr-2001 19:07:24 GMT     IP: 24.27.44.115

I am heartbroken to announce that I will be unable to attend or 
perform in the next No Shamu Show (aka No Shame) because of a 
previous family-related committment.  However, I will be there 
in spirit and I am eagerly planning my own Shamu work, hopefully 
to debut sometime in May.

As for the lameness of Salvage Vanguard, yes, I agree Shannon, 
that many people are afraid to say what they think about certain 
companys and certain shows because of the enormous pressure 
to "like" something that everybody else says is good.  I despise 
this herd mentality.  I don't think audiences are given enough 
of an opportunity to judge a show based on their own life 
experiences and preferences.  Even the critics in this town 
often gloss over weaknesses and poor quality in their reviews.  
And it's not just the small companies who are guilty of 
producing crap, it's everybody.  I'll give you an example:  Zach 
Scott's production of Closer last season.  I had read the play a 
couple of years prior to this production and liked it, even 
though many people had a negative reaction to the script (same 
with the State's Virtual Devotion, but that's a different 
story).  So I plunked down my $20 dollars and went to the show.  
I had hoped to see something worth that ridiculous sum of 
money.  Instead, I was treated to mostly poor performances, 
shoddy accents, bad costumes, uninspired design, and idiotic 
directing.  And the critics LOVED the show.  Surprise, 
surprise.  But what was most disgusting to me was to look at the 
faces of the people sitting in the theatre with me during the 
show.  I could see that many of them were trying very hard to 
enjoy themselves because they had been told that this was a 
great show by the media, but I could tell that the vast majority 
of those people didn't really have a clue or didn't really 
care.  THEY DIDN'T TRUST THEIR OWN JUDGEMENT.  And that was a 
very sad thing to witness.  Now, perhaps some of those people 
really did enjoy the show, but I strongly suspect that most of 
them saw the same problems that I did but decided it wasn't 
worth the potential ridicule and hassle to speak up about it.

It is our duty, as citizens of this earth, to be true to 
ourselves and not buy into propaganda bullshit and hype.  It is 
unforgivable if audiences leave a theatre thinking that they saw 
a good show because they paid a certain amount of money or a 
certain company produced it or a certain critic liked it.  We 
are lazy as a society.  We have a bad habit of letting "people 
who know better" tell us what to think and believe.  THIS MUST 
STOP RIGHT NOW!  Because art, like customer service, will become 
stagnant and intolerable unless we demand quality.

Amie Elyn

Time: Fri, 27-Apr-2001 20:16:28 GMT     IP: 165.97.10.201

Dear Fellow Artist et the Shamu Sho,

Kin wee doo to things et the Shamu Sho? I hev to idears four nex 
time. Iff wee kin ownlee doo won thing, then I wont bee mad.

Your Fellow Artist,

Ratgirl

Time: Fri, 27-Apr-2001 20:28:36 GMT     IP: 129.116.78.131

Thanks for letting me rap, shannon.  Had a lot of fun watching the other 
people as well.  Hope to do it again.

      Kilim

Time: Fri, 27-Apr-2001 20:44:12 GMT     IP: 198.214.102.11

Korey,

Any time bro. Your rap was one of my favorite pieces of the 
night. It also was one of those kinds of pieces that No Shame is 
made for because I'm not sure under what other context you'd be 
able to perform that rap in front of a live audience.

Anyway, talk to you soon.

Shannon

Time: Fri, 27-Apr-2001 21:03:25 GMT     IP: 198.214.102.11

If you have two pieces for one night, here's the rough policy. 
Sign up for one and then wait around to see if the 15 slots don't 
fill up. If they don't, I don't have a problem with some one 
doing more than one piece. That is provided, of course, that more 
people than there are slots don't want to do a second piece. If 
that happens, y'all just have to work it out amongst yourselves.

Option two is do one piece that's definitely yours and then 
collaborate so thoroughly with others that no single person is 
the author and bill yourselves as some other entity. Yasmin did 
this the other week when she did her piece by herself and then 
did that improv thing with her friend (whose name, Yasmin, I'd 
still like to find out) where they called themselves Bitches, 
Ho's and Sluts, or whatever they were.

Time: Sun, 29-Apr-2001 06:46:52 GMT     IP: 209.208.125.115

her name is kate