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Premiere (The City Theater Company, 1992)This “serious comedy” draws on improvization to turn humor in on itself... a lollapalooza of horror- melodrama, but even at its most wrenching, Premiere revels in play... Cynical? You bet. But Locke cleverly turns the humor in on himself as the playwright-director playing the character of a playwright-director grinds anguish into neat patties of popular entertainment. Yet Premiere isn’t neat or predictable... a triumphant sense of mind and emotion at frolicsome, serious play. You won’t be bored. Sacramento Bee ...a powerful and provocative new play that unravels like a mystery, builds tension like a thriller and has enough funny moments to escape an easy label. At turns gut-wrenching and darkly, howlingly funny, it’s the kind of theater that jolts the most jaded thetergoer and serves as a reminder how powerful theater can be. It is a play about manipulation—the sometimes willing manipulation of actresses by their director, the manipulation of actors’ own feelings for professional purposes, and the manipulation of the truth.... The second act’s revelations explode on the audience like carefully targeted bombs. Grass Valley Union Premiere is a piece that derived from improvization. Karen Leigh, the producer/director/actress with whom I had worked on The Dolly and the first production of Murder and Edna Redrum, said to me when she saw On Daddy's Birthday and its double triumvirate of sisters, “Bob, you write such interesting parts for women, I want you to write a play for me and two other actresses you trust.” Premiere came out of that. I decided to write a play about theatre and I got in touch with my old acting buddy from high school days, Sandy Hillard, and my newer acting buddy Dee Davis. I decided to write a part for myself too, Zeke, the playwright/director searching for the right actress to star in his new one-woman play. In auditions Zeke narrows his search to these three actresses and now they must vie for the part. And vie they do, as Zeke can be fierce and tyrannical, particularly as he grows more vulnerable as the play goes on. 
Here is the fierce Zeke, brutalizing Leenya Kareenya, the Karen Leigh character who keeps changing her stage name with every persona she tries on. She has infuriated Zeke by dropping out of character and ruining what was about to be a beautiful moment of theater. 
Here Zeke is gentle with Hallie, his wife divorced many years past and the mother of their daughter who has just graduated from college and who has never forgiven Zeke for having abandoned his marriage and family. 
Here are Bob and Sandy, Zeke and Hallie, back in 1961 at their Junior Prom in Pleasant Hill CA. Sandy was nominated as Best Actress in a Drama by the Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance, I was nominated as Best Director of a Drama, and Premiere was nominated as Best Original Script and Best Performance of an Original Script. To read Premiere
Copyright © 2004 Robert Locke |