Pat Tuesday: big finishes and strong starts
Hi y’all! Happy Pat Tuesday! We skipped last week because of an influx of wildness but we’re back strong and better than ever to celebrate the final week of the BIG BEAR Kickstarter! This past month has been one of the most fulfilling of my life—realizing that a project I’d built has people excited, passionate, and eager to be produced has fully changed my entire outlook on what I’m even doing in my creative life. We have a couple really cool goals left, including MUCH-DESERVED cast raises and some key show elements that we won’t be able to do otherwise, so it’d be chill as hell if you were able to support.
ALSO: we’re gonna be announcing tickets soon to see BIG BEAR in person (maybe even in a special off-Tuesday email this week)—keep an eye out!
And as the Kickstarter ends, REHEARSALS HAVE BEGUN! And I wanted to chat with y’all about my process. This one has been so fun, because it’s a room full of people I deeply love from all aspects of my life—from close creative and personal besties like Angela Giarratana and Kimia Behpoornia, to longtime collaborators and like-minds like Vic Michaelis and Chris Renfro, to newer friends in the past couple years who I’ve clicked with immediately like Joey Richter, Jon Matteson, and Lauren Lopez, to literal college-age friends who have grown up together like Emily Skeggs. This is a rag-tag gang of gems from every aspect of my life, and last Thursday, all the talk went silent as they turned to me and said “okay what do we do now?” And after months of posturing that I was gonna direct this, I remembered—oh yeah, I have to direct this.
Of course it’s been a blast—yesterday was “big shirt day” so I came prepared:
And despite looking like that, I have the gall to ask these people to listen to my direction. Wow.
I wanted to let you in on my process—something I’ll be doing weekly to the backers of the Kickstarter if you donate. For shows like Mamma Mia! But Different and Moon Goon shows, it’s a mad dash to get everyone on the same page. There’s some similarities here, but we also get the luxury of diving into stuff and working out moments. However, because schedules are crazy, I have very few moments with everyone together, the goal was simple: block as fast as possible then run over and over until it feels good. In order to do that, I used a printout of the set and some tiny paper figurines (made for me by our wonderful designer KC McGeorge) and I blocked everything in my dining room with photo references. They came out like this:
Now this obviously looks insane, but it was so clarifying for me—this set has two levels. It has five exits. It has a staircase and a landing. And it’s gonna be covered in trash.
Because I was so prepared, we blocked 95 pages (out of 115—cuts are already happening) in 2 ½ hours! This show almost has its full bones! And after this week, it will. I can’t wait to keep updating you with how this show is going! It’s gonna be a thrilling final week with the Kickstarter, so keep an eye on it, and if you want to help me see this thing through, I’d love your support!
PAT’S PROJECTS - what I’m working on
Havin’ A Day with Keith Leak, Jr. - my sweet SMOSH buddy Keith has a GoFundMe for his cancer battle (which has re-ignited recently) so I had him on my podcast to fulfill his request of being taught to drive. It was fun and special.
WORDPLAY at Dynasty Typewriter - This Friday, my buddy Rekha Shankar is hosting a brand new show full of fun word games and Angela Giarratana and I are on a team! It’s gonna be wonderful nonsense and I think I might also be in a morph suit?
AOAOAOA Merch! - Everyone’s favorite chaotic improv podcast now has merch! I personally love the shirt and the sweatshirt—grab something for the Hollywood hot-shot in your life, even if it’s you!
PAT’S PICKS - something I love that you should love too
Mike Nichols: A Life by Mark Harris - This is the single-handedly best book about directing I’ve ever read, and I’m harnessing it as I get into my own directing journey. Mark Harris details both the successes and failures of Mike Nichols’s career, and goes into his processes and how he spoke to actors to get results. It’s a fascinating look at a multi-faceted genius and everything that comes with it.
Okay, love you! Talk soon!
Patrick