The playwright is in the house, or in this case, the playhouse: The Riverfront Playhouse in Aurora.
The Riverfront Playhouse will present the comedy “Upfronts and Personal” by Ken Levine at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays from March 18-April 23.
Levine will be in attendance at the April 1 and 2 shows.
Ken Levine is an Emmy Award-winning writer, director and producer. In a career that has spanned more than 30 years, Levine has worked on several television series including “M*A*S*H,” “Frasier,” “The Simpsons,” “Wings,” “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Becker” and “Dharma and Greg.”
For his work on a 1982 episode of “Cheers,” he shares an Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series. He also hosts the podcast “Hollywood & Levine.”
“Ken Levine has a blog that I’ve been following for about 10 years, and I frequently contribute comments, so he at least knew my name when this came up,” said Craig Gustafson, who is directing the show for The Riverfront Playhouse. “I asked to read his play ‘Upfronts and Personal.’ It’s like a long, terrific episode of ‘Frasier’ or ‘Cheers,’ but with more sex. It has points to make about human relationships and integrity, but overall, it just wants to get laughs. And I love shows like that.”
“Upfronts and Personal” takes place in an upscale Manhattan hotel suite which is being used as an office and reception area for a studio, Worldview Television. The story addresses the process of getting a TV show on a network schedule as one studio attempts to place two sitcoms on the new fall line-up. How far will everybody have to go? What compromises must they make? Which ethics will they have to abandon?
“The play’s title refers to an event in network television, the upfronts,” Gustafson said. “This is when the networks and sponsors gather together in New York City to plan the fall TV season. With these presentations, the sponsors are buying commercial time ‘upfront,’ based only on clips and faith. The ‘personal’ has to do with the intrigue and backstabbing involved with the process.”
In addition to Levine attending the two shows, he will participate in a post-performance talkback. A talkback is a chance for audience members to discuss the play with the actors, the director or, in this case, the playwright.
“From various postings on Ken’s blog, I gathered that whenever anybody in the country does one of Ken’s shows, he goes to see it,” Gustafson said. “When I heard he was coming, I asked if he would be willing to do post-show talkbacks, and he said ‘Yes.'”
According to Gustafson, the moderator for the “Upfronts and Personal” talkbacks will be Debbie Trueblood, the former executive director of the Illinois Park and Recreation Association.
“She is a legendary local stage manager and an expert at guiding groups and committees,” Gustafson said.
Having the playwright in the house affects those involved in the production in different ways.
“The reaction by the cast varied,” Gustafson said. “Some cast members were really pumped to hear about it. One or two said, ‘Don’t tell me when he’s coming! I don’t want to know!” To which I gently said, ‘Well, everybody’s going to know.’
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“For myself, even at normal times, I am not charitable about actors paraphrasing the words of a play,” he continued. “The playwright selected those words and sentence structure for a reason, so that’s how you say it. This time, it’s ‘The playwright is coming to see this, guys. I want the words verbatim.’ So there’s a little pressure. But I’m looking forward to it.”
Gustafson also looks forward to rehearsals. For him it is a time when he can make modifications with the actors and the characters.
“One of my favorite phrases in rehearsal is ‘I like what you almost did,'” Gustafson said. “The actor had a good idea, but didn’t take it far enough; so we tweak it. I can’t make unfunny people funny. What I can do, if they have the tools, is show them interesting ways of using them. It’s very much a teaching and learning experience. I really like the fine tuning of it all.”
‘Upfronts and Personal’
When: March 18-April 23
Where: The Riverfront Playhouse, 11-13 South Water Street Mall, Aurora
Tickets: $15-$17
Information: 630-897-9496; riverfrontplayhouse.com
Randall G. Mielke is a freelance reporter for the Beacon-News.