My Mind-Blowing Half-Year Review
Let's reflect on everything artistic I've done this year. It's even more than I thought!
Looking back.
If you know me well, you probably know about my gratefulness practice. Every morning I make sure to whisper a quick thank you for all of the good things that happened the day before. It could be as little as a great slice of pizza, or as huge as signing a new contract, but the results are the same, it keeps things in perspective. No matter how rough your day was, the good things kept happening and will continue to happen. It’s a great tool for fighting depression and staying optimistic in a world that makes it very easy to focus on the negative. I’ve been having a rough time with my job search (Hyperallergic recently released a report published by CRNY where they interviewed 13,377 NY artists and found that almost 60% made less than $24k a year in a city where $54k is considered middle class and $124k is required to live comfortably, so I’m guessing I’m not alone.) so for this issue of my newsletter, I wanted to focus on all of the things I’ve done this year that I’m proud of. Let’s go!
March: “Error:Logic”
Over the past 2 years, I’ve been working with Ari Rubensteins’ Curv productions and Strange Orbit Films to create a half hour short (or pilot) that centers around a man building a robotic version of himself so that it could replace him in his own life, citing the pressures of everyday life under late stage capitalism as justification. Starting off as a 7 minute short that I wrote on a whim during the pandemic, the script caught the attention of producers and VFX artists and grew into a collaboration between several companies. Unfortunately, production took a huge hit during the WGA and SAG strikes of 2023, which also hurt the VFX industry and production was halted at the tail end of the year. In order to preserve and showcase some of the assets created during the process, Ari and his team created a showcase short, which I also wrote, called “Error: Logic,” which showcases many of the digital assets which were created for “Ben|Bot”. It’s been accepted to several film festival and has won 2 awards, which we’re all proud of. I’m still hopeful that the full 30 minute piece can be made, but until then, please enjoy “Error:Logic” by clicking on this link and entering the password: iflyhome.
April: “The Giant Sleeps Between Two Rivers.”
Most of you read my 2nd Newsletter which detailed the whole story and process behind my first full length production of the year. This collaboration/commission with The Motor Company was a huge success. Hundreds of people came through The Battery to see our show, with our largest show seeing over 60 people come through to watch! That’s unheard of for a free piece of walking theatre in a public park. It ended up being The Motor Company’s biggest show ever. I’m very proud of it.
May: “User Agreement” reading.
I couldn’t begin to describe the excitement I felt when Theatre Untitled accepted my play “User Agreement” as a part of their season of public readings. When Baltimore based director Nigel Semaj, came on board to direct, I was even more thrilled. I wrote this play at the height of the pandemic and it’s received so much love from everyone who’s seen a reading, or read it! Did I mention it was an O’Neill finalist, a finalist at Ars Nova and Bushwick Starr, AND got me interviewed at Juilliard (where, during the interview, David Lindsay-Abaire asked “How did you write that play?! How did you balance the use of technology with the story and characters so well??”). This play has a long journey to getting produced; It’s extremely unconventional, but May’s reading was extremely well received and I’m looking forward to getting the word out about it!
June: “Collective Empathy Formation” on Theatre Row
ACTING?! That’s right, I still do it sometimes and in June I got to do it for an amazing playwright (and buddy of mine) Calley N Anderson. Her 5 person ensemble play, “Collective Empathy Formation,” an hour long one-act, was a part of the Downtown Urban Arts Festival and premiered in early June at Theater Row, to an extremely enthusiastic house.
June: “Corktown” at Irish Rep
Oh I’m not done with June, because right after “Collective Empathy Formation” ended, rehearsals for C.N. Smith’s “Corktown” began at Irish Rep for the Transatlantic Residency. I had the pleasure of sitting with Jim Culleton and Gavin Kostick from Fishamble theatre (Dublin) and learning all about Irish history, while helping to workshop a brilliant new play. It all culminated in a public reading at Irish Rep followed by a session of further development. I came away with so many new friends and so much love for this theatre company. I need to go to Ireland, y’all.
June: “The Church of the First Order of Cloud City’s Inaugural Unity Jamboree”
I was so excited to put my playwright hat back on for the development, rehearsal, and concert run of me and Nate Weida’s immersive science fiction church musical, “The Church of the First Order of Cloud City’s Inaugural Unity Jamboree.” Directed by Andrew Scoville, ‘Cloud City’ received a 3 show run, at Judson Church as a part of this year’s Prism festival. Around 200 people came out to see our concert style musical. This was a very cool moment for Nate and I, as we had started writing ‘Cloud City’ in 2017 as a part of Fresh Ground Pepper’s Playground Playgroup. Joining this festival made time and space for us to make some much needed updates and changes and see a much more realized reading of the work. We can’t wait for the opportunity to continue developing and finally mount the full work for an audience.
July: “Death Avenue Posse”
If you had the chance to read my last newsletter, you already know why this one was so meaningful to me. Writing an hour long one act during the busiest month I’d ever experienced in my life and delivering it in time for it to get a few weeks of rehearsal, was a feat in itself, but the High Line, a place I’d worked for for almost 9 years, until 2020, selected me based on my resume and accolades to write a piece for them as one of their public programs. They didn’t even realize that I used to work there! On Sunday July 14th, we presented 2 showings of “Death Avenue Posse” to around 210 patrons and the response was extremely positive. We were all tired and rundown from such an unbelievable work schedule and turnaround, but we’d accomplished something pretty special.
What’s Next and How Can I Help??
I’m so glad you asked! Next, I’ll be getting flown out to Santa Fe, NM to help craft a night of infused dining, discussion, thought pieces, and flamenco performance during our next Apotheculture Club event (an organization I co-founded with Opera Director James Blaszko) on August 10th. After that, I’m excited to join the Harlem 9 theatre company as a playwright for this year’s 48 hours in Harlem the piece will be performed on the evening of August 25th (more on this later). How can you help? There are many ways, I need so much help. I’m looking for employment, so if you know of any good, flexible opportunities, please send them my way. Also, if you have the means and enjoy good, old fashioned money donations, I’ll never say no to kindness. My Venmo is: @Ben-Holbrook, my Cashapp is: $baholbrook, and my paypal username is baholbrook. Another simple, yet impactful way to help, is to forward this email to any agents, managers, or industry people that you feel I should be connected to. I’m, still seeking representation and am always looking to expand my network of collaborators, so spreading the word is always appreciated. And, as always, thank you for reading!!