Monday, February 20, 2012

FRIGID Festival Interview - Ed Malin of "Judge, Yuri & Executioner"

By Byrne Harrison
Photo by Lauren Arneson


Ed Malin (Writer) is interested in language and history. After interning at The Women's Project in the '90s, Ed has enjoyed the diverse theater scene of New York and beyond. Japanese theater is another favorite. In 2010, Ed was the MC of No Shame at The Tank. Plays include "The Inconstant Infection," "Film Noix," "Presumed Retarded," "Dog Spelled Backwards Is Krishna," "The Pithecanthropist," "Vandalusia-A Louvre Story," "Bolivar luvs San Martn," "L'aardvarcchio," "Le Chakra du Printemps," "I Shall Not Be Suede," "Judge Yuri & Executioner," "Sexy Monk," "Inversion of the Baby Snatchers," "The Addicts," "Mesculun-Feminine," "The Troubadour Struck by Lightning," "The Color Brunette," and "Girl = Mass x Anorexia." His work has been performed at FringeNYC ('97, '05, '06, '09), The Samuel French Festival, Dixon Place, Manhattan Theatre Source, the Brecht Forum, Galapagos, the Wicked Ren Faire, The Home Of, and the Nuyorican Poets Café. Ed edited the Spontaneous Combustion Anthology for Manhattan Theatre Source and is a member of the Dramatists Guild. Several of his plays are available online through IndieTheaterNow.

Show: "Judge, Yuri & Executioner"
Website: www.temeritytheatre.org

How did you first get involved in theatre?

I started off with an addiction to radio plays, where to me it was all in the timing. I started writing stage plays in 1992 and soon after moved to New York.

Who are your biggest influences?

I enjoy comic performers like Tom Lehrer and funny yet educational writers like Tom Stoppard. I also like science fiction like Doctor Who and Isaac Asimov for the value it places on human happiness.

Tell me a little bit about your show.

The show is about Zack, an 85-year-old masochist who prefers older women. Since his girlfriend just left him and there can’t be that many kinky older women around, he is upset. But he sees the opportunity to tell his colorful life story. It may shock audiences when he announces that the bandage from his recent circumcision can come off now, but there will surely be a sense that it can’t get any worse than this so enjoy your life!

What inspired you to write it?

My college experiences included being asked to perform in the Rock Horror Picture Show. This taught me about the lifestyle of masochists and other “perfectly normal” yet “more honest” people. I developed my solo show at one alternative lifestyle event in New Jersey, where, wearing only a jockstrap and bathrobe, I read the first draft in front of an eager audience. Really, the realization that someone wanted to hear a bluntly-stated but amusing life story helped me continue to develop the play.

Who are your collaborators and how long have you been working with them?

Mac Rogers, the performer in this solo show, has worked with me since 2002 on several projects at Manhattan Theatre Source. I first asked him to play this character in 2005, and we have evolved the show since then. He is a wonderful actor, capable of bringing out the humor in the story of the 85-year-old in the show. Last year we brought director DeLisa White into the picture. DeLisa has directed several well-received shows at Manhattan Theatre Source, including Nat Cassidy’s solo show “Things At The Doorstep”, a winner at the 2011 NY Innovative Theatre Awards.

What's next for you after FRIGID?

I am looking forward to working on the 2012 InGenius Festival produced by the Manhatan Theatre Source Writers Forum. I am also applying to FringeNYC with a Pythonesque piece about Troubadours, to be directed by DeLisa White.

And finally, if you could say anything to your potential audience, what would it be?

My show is about the dread of making your own decisions and how its never too late to stand up for yourself. Frigid is the best festival I know for one-person shows. It’s an honor to be a part of this festival and to be able to speak to people so directly.

"Judge, Yuri & Executioner"
Written by Ed Malin
Company: Temerity Theatre Company
Directed by DeLisa White

The Red Room
85 E. 4th Street

Feb 23, 8:00PM
Feb 24, 11:00PM
Feb 26, 12:30PM
Mar 01, 9:30PM
Mar 03, 8:00PM
$8.00 / $10.00

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