Emails to Joe White

Have you ever opened your eyes and forgotten just who you were?  Maybe I’m a sexy southern belle with no desire to settle down, or am I supposed to be delivering sushi to the Upper East Side?  Wait, aren’t I a stripper with a fascination for bathrooms?  Oh no, I remember now, I’m a part-time waitress at a Mexican cantina who just started taking ESL classes at night.  Phew…that was scary.

Life is weird and wonderful and sometimes you’re given a gift that you can’t believe you have.  Is ‘work’ supposed to be this much fun?  Am I really sharing the stage with this incredible cast?

Hi, I’m Rena Strober and I’m currently playing a plethora of women in Joe White’s life in the wacky romantic comedy ‘White’s Lies’ at New World Stages.  I never thought schizophrenia could be so much fun!  I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce a few of these women to the friends of ‘White’s Lies.’  Sometimes I feel they’re terribly misunderstood and judged wrongly.  I think the best way to give you a glimpse into their hearts is to share with you emails they have sent to Joe.
Enjoy!

From dblackheels68@yahoo.com:
Hi sexy!  
I had a great time at your office last night…I hope the paper cuts heal quickly. I still think they were all worth it. ;)  Thanks again for introducing me to all those fancy scotches. I never knew how warm they would make me feel.
Call me!
-D

From pitagirl72@columbia.edu
Joe, I don’t like games, unless I know I’m going to win.  I’ve owned guns bigger than you.  I want you on Tuesday.
Bang bang
Y.L





From LesLes494@theWNBA.net 
Yo, it’s Les, I spoke to Debbie and she’s really into meeting you for a drink.  I guess we’ll all go out together J  Call us!

From CanCanLoo@walmart.com 
Joey Joey, I love you soooo much did you ever wonder why paint smells like that I hate my neighbor my bellybutton smells. What was I saying…oh..i love you and think my dad and his friends would want me to make a baby with you named Arnold. Did I leave my favorite holiday inn pen in your pants there is a noise in my ear I love tile when it’s cold. I love you you you youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu…hi joey…didyou call me and I missed it? Call the bar and my dollar just got stuck in there…ewww…oh wait..it’s out..i love my dollars. I love you. Hi joey

From Carmelcorn@misojos.com
Yo se que no hablo ingles bien, pero creo que eso podemos olividar y seguir con el connection que tenemos.  Tus ojos dicen todo ... y tu cuerpo, tambien.  con tigo me das cuenta que no necesito un hombre de mi pais.  Te quiero.  Quiero cubrirte con una margherita pegajosa y lamerla despacito.  Llama me.

Playwright Ben Andron Waxes About His New Adventure

About four years ago, a guy I used to know from High School (a few grades younger than I was, but we were both active in the theater program) called me out of the blue. He was unemployed, living in NYC and trying to make it as a theater producer. He asked me “have you ever thought about writing a play?” I’ll be completely honest; I hadn’t. I’d written some TV before, kids’ animation, mostly, and I have a drawer of un-produced movie scripts, but never a play. He said that NY needs new comedy. He said, “If you write a play, I’ll produce it!” So I thought, OK, what the hell? And I wrote something.

Cut to March 24^th, 2010. I’m in NYC, walking down 50^th street, past New World Stages, and there’s a banner on their marquee that says “White’s Lies”. I go around to the stage door entrance, walk into Stage 4, and there right in front of me, is a gorgeous, fully built set – a real tangible structure – a physical representation of some random little idea I had a long time ago, matching my description to the last detail, and then some!

As I make my way down the aisle, people keep coming up to me to shake my hand, producers, actors, photographers, crew… They’re taking pictures; they’re telling me how much they love the play, saying how great it is to meet me… "I know this is perfectly normal for people in the theater business, but I’ve been in the theater business for about an hour at this point, and for me, this is anything but normal. And that’s the thing I can’t get over; how ‘real’ everything is. It’s the kind of thing that so many people – myself included – dream about. And yet there it is, right in front of me. Seven amazingly talented actors – some of them quite famous – gathered together to bring this thing to life, shaking my hand, telling me they’re excited to be a part of this…

We all sit down to read through the script for the first time. It goes amazingly well for a first read, but as I listen intently to those words that I wrote – only breaking concentration once or twice to look up at the set and marvel at the surrealism – I have two simultaneous conflicting emotions: One is how amazing this all is, hearing those words come out of those mouths, on this stage, knowing that in a few weeks, it will be on its feet, open to the public… And the other is panic; after all, in a few weeks, it will be on its feet, open to the public! We won’t be ready! That line isn’t right! That scene is dragging! I have too many words in that paragraph! Too many syllables in that sentence! That joke will never be funny to anyone other than me! I have a lot of work to do to make this thing perfect… and that’s what it takes to snap me out of the whole ‘this isn’t my real life’ thing.

I’m here to do a very specific job: to make this play as sharp and funny as I possibly can. And now that I have my very specific task, the dreaminess of the ‘dream come true’ goes away, because the truth is, this is my reality now. Don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but today I am a playwright, and it’s time to get to work.

Cheers!

Ben

Christy Gets Comfy With Her Castmates

Hi all!!!

I am so excited to be working my butt off with the amazing cast and crew of White's Lies at The New World Stages! I did the reading of this play about 6 months ago and was so excited to 'get the call' to come back to NYC. I have been working in Los Angeles for the last six years. Luckily the weather is warming up here. When I did Avenue Q at The Booth theater it was going into winter - I strategized this time ;)

Its so rare that you find a group of people who actually like each other and WANT to work together. I can honestly say it is an honor to share the stage with my fellow cast-mates. 

Tuc Watkins - not only is he dreamy but he is hilarious and a true leading man.

Peter Scolari - actually expands my social consciousness with his talent and charm. He makes me laugh by breathing.

Andrea Grano - Is gorgeous, classy and has sophistication that merits emulating.

Rena Strober and Jimmy Ray Bennet - have to be paired together (when you see our show, you will see why). The two represent why I have continued acting in my twenties. They embody the small part of the theater world that is sane and insane at the same time. Being around them seriously brings my performance up. Off stage, they are just as enchanting!

Last but certainly not least, Betty Buckley.

I have been blessed to work with some great performers in my life. Betty takes the cake. She is everything I want to become.

JEESH! I hope they feel the same way about me!

So no gossip here ;) Except that this show is fantastic and you need to come see its ridiculousness. Its so rare that people vibe artistically like this. Egos don't exist and art can actually occur! One word of advice - get our drink specials at the Time Out lounge before the show....!

Cheers!

Christy

Blogging Away

Welcome to the very first entry in the official White's Lies blog. We'll be serving up members of our terrific cast and creative team every Monday, Wednesday and Friday in a frothy blog stew. And if we get really desperate for content, we might even throw a producer in there once in a while. (Yum, producer stew!) We hope to entertain, enlighten and give you a look behind the curtain. Of course, if you've seen the show you know there is no curtain. It's not that we're cheap (we are), but that we're so proud of our beautiful set that we want the audience to see it from the moment you step into the theater. Then again, the show is called White's Lies so you know we must be hiding something. Honestly, it makes you wonder if you should believe anything you read in this blog. Honestly.