Cayle Chernin Blog May 6thCollected Stories – I’m doing a Play! Everything has changed..my universe has reconfigured. It’s all about Ruth, Ruth and Lisa and Delmore Schwartz. It’s New York! “smoky bars and late night sessions” the late 50ies in the City that Ruth tells Lisa, her protégé, about. The long ago love affair of a Girl and a Poet! It’s about writing: “you gotta get in there and shoot” and about appropriation of voice “ you stole my Story…what am I without my stories”. I’m doing a play I’ve wanted to do for a long time, ever since I first read Collected Stories by Donald Marguelis. And that is the wonder of being an actor: of inhabiting the reference points of another; of learning the dynamics of this person Ruth Steiner, of deciphering the truth and embracing the emotional journey: If I were Ruth, and she was me. From the press release: “Collected Stories” is a dynamic two-woman drama that constructs and then tears apart the relationship between a creative-writing mentor and her too apt protégée. Collected Stories is about a respected short story writer and teacher in her mid-fifties, Ruth Steiner (Cayle Chernin) has carved out a comfortable life for herself in a Greenwich Village apartment that she has occupied for decades. Lisa Morrison (Erin Mackinnon) is a callow yet talented young graduate student and aspiring writer, a child of suburban privilege when she meets Ruth and offers to become her assistant. Over six years, in as many scenes, Collected Stories eavesdrops on Ruth and Lisa as their relationship evolves (from mentor/protégée to loving friends to adversaries) and ultimately disintegrates-touching on age, artistic license and betrayal. Our rehearsals are in full swing: this is our first 6 day week and I really needed my day off today..to finally commit Act one, scene 3 to memory and to read and reread Act 2, scene one..which will be our week end focus. Sasha Wentges, our director is pregnant with creativity and a baby..Spring has truly sprung. Tarragon Theatre Extra Space: Previews Wed. May 23rd media: wayne at: wayne@rogers.com or call 416.656.0707 And there have been some other nice hits along the week: Family Practice screened at NFB as part of Wild Card FF. It was fun to see it again and watch it with Daren Foster, the writer. Grifter mommy dearest! And part of the opening scene from Moon Shadow, a play I wrote in the Fringe all night play writing contest, and which placed third in the New play Contest, was performed at the writer/actor Dropship Entertainment’s: Sing For Your Supper. Loving the feeling that there is a lot going on in Toronto. Hating that I have to miss anything but committed to nothing but Collected Stories until I’m at least off book and on track! The auditions which I was able to participate in, for casting Lisa were amazing: I read with over 40 actresses, young women who did such good auditions..monologue after monologue, they delivered the goods..the magic that happened with Erin MacKinnon, again is that alchemy that just happens and is ‘right’. Ruth’s journey and the story of Collected Stories is taking me places..some of them are way back in my own past, my first love, “I was glad I lost my virginity when I did, it was really cluttering up my life” and loss: as my old and Dear mentor Anais wrote: “Life hurts, relationships hurt”… I’ve mentored students along the way..that have been in my acting classes over the years, I hope I’ve imparted and encouraged a respect for the creative process, and I have been subjected to some interesting repercutions from mentoring and being mentored.. but of course the joy of connecting with another, that is the greatest human possibility. So much to think about. As Ruth says: “the good ones ask the right questions..that’s the key”.
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