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| Shakin' Hands With Mr. Collins An interview with the writer/director of Stiffy. by Rob Matsushita Ron Collins, it should be noted, is one of the nicest guys on the planet. Collins is well known amongst Broom Streeters for being quietly patient and unerringly dependable. He's been in and involved with several Broom Street shows, and the 1999 season kicked off with his Broom Street writing and directing debut: Stiffy. It was a HUGE HIT. This interview was conducted on the Wednesday before open, before the cast arrived. Collins was nervous but well-composed, almost as if he himself was a bit amused by his own emotions. In exchange for the interview, I helped him shovel the driveway. Broom Street Theater: What is Stiffy, exactly? Ron Collins: Stiffy is a (radio announcer voice) comic and insightful look at the world of sexual addiction! BST: Where did this start? Why sexual addiction? RC: Everybody's asking that. BST: It does seem to be a natural question. RC: Um...Stop the tape. (Laughs) Let's just say I've done my research on the subject. I think the main thing is the timing with the President Clinton scandal. I actually wrote the show a couple of years ago, when I had the flu; three days later I had the first draft in my hand. I had to edit it a bit for the cast...and [I also] wrote specific parts for them. We're very pleased with the results. BST: Let's talk a bit about the writing process. How long did it take to write overall? RC: Um...three days for the rough draft, and then probably a month of my spare time--at night, a few hours a night--to get the final script. I'm a slow typer--I don't type--so everything was (miming the hunt-and-peck typing style) one...single...letter...at...a...time. BST: Yeah, I'm the same way. And I'll probably be typing this just like that. So, what kind of expectations do you want people to have for this? RC: I don't want them to have any--other than to be entertained. It's written so that you can take the show on a lot of different levels. Everybody should be entertained, but also you can get some strong messages out of it. By the end of the play, you should walk out of here really thinking some [of the messages] through in your head. BST: Let's also talk about the directing process. RC: Don't want to go there ever again. (Laughs) BST: So will this be your last? RC: I probably won't be my last because I'm a sucker. See, I haven't reaped the rewards of the audience. I think that's what it's all about. Sharing what you have...and I haven't been able to share--except with the cast. BST: Right. RC: But it's a lot of work. I knew it was going to be a lot of work--I have directed before. Children's theater. And I figure that if I can work with children I can work with just about anybody. (laughs) But adults have their own issues; one of them being everybody's working, everybody's busy. Trying to schedule a play during Christmas vacation, holidays, illnesses, the weather--it's just come together by miracle. Literally. Everybody got in the show who auditioned if they had at least some semblance of being able to be here. And I'm really glad I did it that way because there's people involved in this theater now who would have never gotten a chance--there are only four people in the cast who have ever done Broom Street. BST: There are a lot of newcomers in this cast. RC: Yeah, and it's worked out really well. We've had to do some grooming on what's proper theater ettiquette, like, um...showing up for rehearsal (laughs). The show really does depend on your ability to work with others and be prompt--we've had some lessons on that in this production. But people have learned, and I feel confident that any one of these cast members will be back here again and would be very at home with the other directors. |
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