Ryan's Hope Discussion Thread

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Faith was the younger sister and insecure when it came to her older sister Jill. The attractiveness thing doesn't make sense as that wasn't part of the story in years. (That said I'd never have written a story about that triangle as the SoapNet episodes ended before it got to that point, so I can't really comment as I haven't seen enough of it elsewhere.) 

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Actress Gloria de Haven (Bess) passed away earlier today.

 

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Sad to hear. One of the last film stars (sort of stars) left of that era. I enjoyed her in Summer Stock.

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I never knew John Gabriel worked with AMC.

 

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[safe]

Thanks for posting that... I also didn't know John did that for AMC.

[safe]

Michael Levin (Jack) and Karen Morris-Gowdy (Faiht #4) did a staged reading of one of RH's producer and writers Paul Avila Mayer's play (probably in early 1984 although  the way was this piece is written, it sounds like it might have been right before both Paul and Karen were let go  from RH in late 1983 because the writer still refers to them as being part of the show [RH].

 

http://www.nytimes.com/1984/02/05/nyregion/staging-a-season-with-script-in-hand.html

STAGING A SEASON WITH 'SCRIPT IN HAND'

By ALVIN KLEIN

Published: February 5, 1984

 

WHEN a neighbor in Great Neck recently said he hadn't seen a new play since ''Tobacco Road,'' Lawrence Sigman knew a mission had to be accomplished.

Hence, Theatrevisions, a corporation that Mr. Sigman, an English teacher at Woodside Junior High School, who is also a ''stand-up comic'' at the Improvisation Club in Manhattan, formed with his wife, Jacqueline Barsh, a director and actress who has been a member of Actors Equity for 40 years.

This is, actually, the second stage in Mr. Sigman's twofold mission: to nurture new plays and audiences on the Island. Stage one started two years ago when he presented two ''staged readings'' of new plays (''Red Storm Flower'' and ''The Overland Rooms'') in, respectively, Great Neck and Hewlett.

These were financed by grants from the Nassau County Office of Cultural Affairs and the Great Neck Library. Theatrevisions is being financed by Mr. Sigman and Miss Barsh, with some private contributions.

For Theatrevisions, the concept of a staged reading has evolved into what they call a ''script in hand'' performance, which, Mr. Sigman explained, involves a short-term opportunity for actors to expand and playwrights to experiment - and for both to be encouraged.

Props and lighting are used. Actors are asked to make a two-week commitment, as opposed to two months, which Mr. Sigman said is the standard for Manhattan showcase productions. Only 20 hours of rehearsals are required, and the plays are given for three performances each, during one weekend.

Such performances - somewhere between a reading and a fully staged production - demand ''special techniques,'' Miss Barsh said. Only experienced actors possess them, she maintained. Equity members take part in performances along with non- union actors.

In order to operate under the theatrical unions' ''showcase code,'' which permits the professional actors to work for only their expenses, the performances have to take place ''within the five boroughs,'' Miss Barsh said. For accessibility, Little Neck, Queens, where the Theatrevisions performing space is situated, was chosen.

Among the actors whose talents are being ''stretched,'' Mr. Sigman says, for such occasions, are Michael Levin and Karen Morris-Gowdy, who have prominent roles in the soap opera series ''Ryan's Hope.'' They were seen in Theatrevisions' first production, ''Pine Cones,'' last month. Written by Paul Avila Mayer, who created, writes and produces ''Ryan's Hope,'' the play was based on his own turmoil as an 8-year-old child when his parents - his father, Edwin Justus Mayer, wrote the original screenplay for ''To Be or Not to Be'' and the play ''Children of Darkness'' - decided to get a divorce. An eight-play ''script in hand'' season is now under way. The second in the series, ''Welcome to the Moon,'' which is billed as a ''romantic comedy'' by John Patrick Shanley, is scheduled to be seen Thursday and Friday evenings at 7:30 and Saturday afternoon at 2 in the Parish Hall - capacity 85 - at Christ Lutheran Church in Little Neck. Reservations can be obtained by calling (516) 466- 9464. Tickets are $4.

''Welcome to the Moon'' had a fully staged, and, according to Miss Barsh, a poorly received production at Off Off Broadway's Ensemble Studio Theater in 1982.

''It was done as a 'Saturday Night Live'-like satire, instead of the tender love story it really is,'' she said.

In form, the play consists of 11 short plays, lasting from four minutes to 20 minutes each, and wedded into one by the theme of love, for which the titular word ''moon'' is a metaphor. Mr. Sigman is the director. Miss Barsh directed ''Pine Cones.''

To gain credibility, Mr. Sigman said, ''we must have a season,'' adding: ''One or two plays aren't enough. We have to keep it up.''

Thus, six more plays are scheduled. ''Charley ('Big Chief') Redstone,'' a drama about an American Indian family, written by E. Claude Richards, has been announced for March 1, 2 and 3. Two one-act plays concerning elderly people - ''The Desk'' by Richard Urdahl, a minister in the church, and ''Nesting'' by Nicki Wilson, will follow on March 22, 23 and 24.

''Intimate Relations,'' by Davida Rosenblum, a comedy about the break-up of a marriage - the playwright's own - is scheduled for April 12, 13 and 14.

The other plays are: May 10, 11 and 12 - ''Bear Paw Mountain,'' a historical drama by Russel Lawrence Barsh, who is Miss Barsh's son, and teaches Indian lore at the University of Washington in Seattle; June 7, 8 and 9 - ''The Proxy,'' a Southern comedy set in the 1930's by Celestine Frost, and June 28, 29 and 30, ''The Congregation,'' a full-length play by Mr. Urdahl. Several plays are lined up for next season.

With his non-theater going neighbor in mind, Mr. Sigman, who is listed as the artistic director of Theatrevisions, has been ''ringing doorbells, handing out fliers and putting ads in local newspapers.''

''Other soap opera actors who are stultified by a certain success but unfulfilled artistically have expressed an interest in working with us,'' he added. ''Everything's a cliffhanger, and we've enjoyed living on the edge. All we want to do is say, 'We're here and it's worthwhile.' ''

 

 

Edited September 9, 2016 by safe

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Thanks for finding that article.

 

Toup-free Bernie Barrow, very un-Da like, in the Merrill Lynch ad early in this.

 

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Michael Hawkins

 

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[safe]

Thanks for posting that...I couldn't help but be reminded of Michael Hawkins saying that the LIAMST writers still wished David Birney was playing the role instead of him. 

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I can see why.

 

It's odd how much younger he sounds even though it was just a few years. 

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Ilene Kristen on Loving.

 

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