this halloween have guns. will rent. is your costume warehouse! Ask the Experts props + 9am-1pm Saturday, October 1 UMKC Solo & Small Firm Incubator, 4743 Troost accessories too! Non-profit Formation Workshop 6pm-8pm Thursday, November 17 Kansas City Artists Coalition, 201 Wyandotte . 1313 State Ave. Kansas City, have guns Kansas 66102 will rent. Phone: (913) 321-4867 Blog Notes www.kcstage.com/blog “Research: Art Works” Grants studies at UMKC. “Mastering the Screen- Grants are available in this new category play: Using Structure, Form and Imagery for research projects to analyze the value to Create a Successful Screenplay” is and impact of the arts in the US. Grants scheduled for November 19 from 12:30 generally range from $10,000 to $30,000 to 4:30 pm, and the workshop is $40 for and while they do not require matching members of the Writers Place, and $60 funds, applicants are expected to provide for nonmembers. More information can some cash or in-kind services in support be found at writersplace.org. of the project. The deadline is Nov 8. For COVER [CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT FRONT]: Damian more information, go to www.nea.gov/ Grants for School Buses grants/apply/Research/index.html. Blake, David Towery, Jeff Bell, Alan The Big Yellow School Bus Grant provides Tilson, Tim Taylor, David Schlumer, Ron up to $500 to help schools meet the trans- Megee in center. Photographer: Bob Amphitheater For Sale portation costs of educational field trips Compton. Hair and Makeup: Andrew An amphitheater located in Camdenton, to arts institutions and activities in Mis- Chambers. Costumes: Jon Fulton Adams. Mo. is up for sale - on Craig’s List. Accord- souri that are funded by the Missouri Arts Space courtesy of The Unicorn Theatre. ing to the listing, the amphitheater is on Council. The grant meets a growing need 77 acres, with reserved seating for 10,500 to help schools fund student field trips to Top Billing patrons and lawn seating for 5,000. The full art museums and exhibits, music, dance, Spotlight on Ron Megee ...........................2 Craig’s List classified can be found at http:// and theater performances, which are often kansascity.craigslist.org/reo/2489088334. eliminated due to the pressures of dwin- Starring html for more information. dling budgets. Funded by the Missouri Arts Leawood Stage Company Council, the program invites eligible K-12 Amphitheatre Fight .............................3 schools (public, private or charter) in Mis- Don’t Forget to Leave the Writers Place Screenplay Workshop souri to apply for up to a $500 grant to Ghost Light On ..................................4 The Writers Place will be presenting a be used during the 2011-2012 school The New York Fringe Festival workshop designed for the beginner or year. For more information, visit http:// is Not for Sissies.................................5 intermediate screenwriter, hosted by Mitch kea.nu/macbus. Brian, who teaches screenwriting and film Stand-Ins Auditions ..............................................16 Blog Notes ..............................................1 Calendar ................................................8 Events ...................................................13 T HE WRITERS PLACE Film Clips .............................................13 Performances ..........................................6 Cast of Characters Find your writing tribe at The Writers Place. Scott Bowling ............................Webmaster Richard Buswell .................Managing Editor New Classes and Events in Kansas City! Bryan Colley ................... Graphic Designer Angie Fiedler Sutton ............ Associate Editor Visit us for: • Readings Tricia Kyler Bowling ...............Subscriber Rep • Workshops Bryan Colley .......................... Blog Curator • Writing Groups Letters to the Editor ...... [email protected] • Networking Events Want to write for KC Stage? • Write-Ins Read our submission guidelines at www.kcstage.com/contributors • Education Open to the public at: 3607 Pennsylvania • Kansas City, Missouri 64111 (816) 753-1090 KCVol. 13 • No.STAGE 12 • Issue 146 • Oct 2011 Stay informed about our events. [email protected] • 816-23-STAGE PO Box 410492 • Kansas City, Missouri 64141-0492 November Submission Deadline: October 10 Facebook: Like our page! www.kcstage.com © Copyright 2011 by KC Stage. All material contained in this pub- Twitter: Follow @kcwritersplace lication is the property of or licensed for use by KC Stage. Any use, duplication, or reproduction of any or all content of this publication is prohibited except with the express written permission of KC Stage or the original copyright holders. Printing by Alphagraphics. www.kcstage.com OCTOBER 2011 1 Continued on page PB Spotlight on Ron Megee by Angie Fiedler “Actor, playwright, producer, and dandy.” So says You can also see a lot of inspiration in his creation of Ron Megee’s resume, and the various credits show this Late Night in his working with Gorilla Theatre and the wide variety (and inherent humor). Everything from Human Observation Lab in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. the various parodies/homages during the run of Late And then in 1997, with A Tribute to Alfred Hitchcock’s Night Theatre to being in The Laramie Project in 2001 to The Birds, Late Night Theatre was launched and lasted doing props for the Coterie’s production of The Wiz to for ten years. having what amounted to a cameo appearance in the “I did a couple of shows beforehand,” Megee says, Lyric Opera’s Daughter of the Regiment, Megee has done mentioning Valley of the Dolls specifically. “When I it all: and he couldn’t be happier about it. started getting the itch that maybe I could do this on “I have to do all of them,” he says when asked what my own and this style of theatre—well, not really on his favorite aspect of the performing arts is, “because as my own, it took a giant family—we jumped off the cliff I get burned or get tired of one thing, then I can I still together and did The Birds at Westport Coffee House.” keep my toe in the pool, as I like to call it, and still feed As to why Late Night ended up closing house, Megee my artistic side. I love the creative admits a good chunk of it was finan- process—I like working as a team. cials. “We were paying everybody, There’s something magical about a but the rent kept going up because bunch of people coming together to the Sprint Center was being built,” make a vision. It’s a drug—it feeds he says. But he also states that the my soul, and I’m not sure how else to finances were only part of it. “We describe it. [There’s] something about started taking ourselves too seri- it, you can have an audience of two or ously,” he says. “It was losing its fun eight thousand and there’s something factor. If it’s not feeding your soul or about that rush of being on stage.” if it’s draining you, you’ve got to step Megee was born in Olathe, Kan., away.” He also wanted to have Late but had moved to Anaheim, Cal., Night go out on a high note. where he lived until the age of 15. His But the Late Night style has far freshman year was in a small logging from died. Whether it’s the Unicorn’s town in Washington state, but then A Very Joan Crawford Christmas last his family moved to Blue Springs, December or the various Coterie at where he went to high school and Night productions he’s been involved got involved in theatre through City in, Megee still is doing shows in that Theatre of Independence. vein—including the current show at “I think the people that do not take the chance to do the Coterie, Children of the Damned Corn, which Megee community theatre are fools,” he says with a laugh. “You wrote and directed. learn so much in it. First off, you have to do everything, “This one is children that take over a town and kill and that’s really what real theatre is like. People that go with sickles,” he says with a seriousness that belies the to school and think that that’s how theatre is going to phrase. “Notice *I* don’t have any children,” he says be once you get out in the real world have a lot to learn. with a smile. “I’m fearful. Nor do I live by a cornfield. And community theatre, certainly, gives you the, well I’d Now, you might.” When I mention that I did grow up say give you the balls to do it, might as well just say it. in a farming community, he’s quick to ask me, “Did “It’s the best place to start. The moment you’re help- you wear little blond wigs?” ing get your own costumes and you’re building the set In all seriousness, Megee loves working with the and painting it and you have to perform that night, teens as part of the Coterie’s program, where he teaches that gives you the ‘oomph’—it helped me to do my a class, and in fact started getting them involved in own theatre.” Continued on page 15 2 KCSTAGE “Good theatre should spark debate, not applause.” ~ Anonymous Leawood Stage Company Amphitheatre Fight by Jamie Lin Since 1998, the Leawood Stage Company has worked lowing in a letter to Mayor Dunn: “A buyer of a home with the City of Leawood and Leawood Parks and or property should research what is zoned and planned Recreation Department to present a variety of enter- for the area surrounding the land they are purchasing.” tainment, including an annual musical production. LSC The plans for the amphitheatre were in place prior to makes their home at Ironwoods, a public 70 acre park the three surrounding neighborhoods and were avail- where citizens can enjoy Prairie Oak Nature Center, The able for all potential buyers to read before deciding to Lodge at Ironwoods, a Challenge Course, the Oxford purchase a home adjacent to the park.