Yes, that says Zuckerberg, and yes, it is a real tweet.

“The best Internet writing establishes a defined relationship between the writer and the reader, either implicitly or explicitly. And over the course of an hour or so, Blogologues does the same thing between the actors and the audience — with the added challenge of breathing life into words intended to be read on a screen. The five charming actors who make up the cast each take on roles as monologists, Greek chorus members, stage pieces and any other role informed by the pieces adapted..and each is performed with gusto and respect that attempts to stay true to the original.” – Huffington Post Comedy 

“The best thing since the World Wide Web.” — Lauren Leto, co-founder, Texts From Last Night

“Intricately staged, energetically performed and cannily curated, the audience can’t help but become invested because the players are so damn committed.” — Rachel Sklar, Change the Ratio

“The short stories and one-line tweets are performed expertly, with perfect comic timing and dedication… Lively Productions is taking performance to the next level; Blogologues combines live theater and ever-popular websites like Twitter, Texts from Last Night, various blogs and other Internet trends. The actors perform these ‘net novellas verbatim, making for a very honest and hilarious night at the theater.” — Show Business Weekly

“The concept is simple, really. Posts, tweets, and blog entries performed verbatim from the internet. But the genius recontextualization of these humorous posts increases their hilarity!”– Sophia Fraioli and Lauren Kaelin, co-founders, When Parents Text

“And, although the original posts may have been serious, we promise the hour long JK-ing show will have you LOLing or ROFLing instead of just chuckling anonymously behind your computer.” — Refinery29

“Blogologues: Younger than Springtime, now at the Players Theatre, is a surprisingly carefree romp through the world of the Internet.” — Theatermania

From the creator of Lesbians Who Look Like Justin Bieber! Who doesn’t love that site? Answer: No one.

“Blogologues is one of those shows where, no matter if you would rather seek out indie theater or troll Reddit, you will find at least one piece that speaks to you. The cast is just as smart and talented as the bloggers who created this content, and together they make a truly unique piece of interactive theater.” — Crushable

“Now that I’ve seen Blogologues current production, Younger Than Springtime, they have my nomination for a MacArthur Genius Grant.  I realize that my endorsement will probably get them evicted from their homes, a pair of plantar warts, and a Darwin Award instead.” — Blogger, Lame Adventures

“It’s more than just hilarious… it’s really GREAT work. It is, frankly, what Saturday Night Live was like in the 70′s; biting social satire delivered with energy and polish. Yes, it made me laugh out loud. Blogologues makes me believe that there is, in fact, a future for sketch comedy.” — Scotty Watson, comedian, Second City Toronto

“You simply must see it. You simply must.” — Blogger, The Miss O’Show

“Taking funny online content and presenting it to an audience works because it takes the internet from a solitary place to a social place…It also helps to have a talented, energetic cast.” — Blogger, Hot Femme in the City

“I love you, Blogologues.” — The Bloggess

If you’ve made it this far, well, this is my website, so it’s time to toot my own horn just a little bit. I clearly slept with the following reviewers:

“Allison Goldberg, performer and co-creator, absolutely shines in this production. Her transformation from one interesting character to another is flawless and fluid. Goldberg’s acting chops and contagious energy also do not go unnoticed.”  — Show Business Weekly

“The show, the brainchild of actor/curators Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula … creatively showcases Internet writing, which they rightfully assert is some of the most clever and thoughtful work currently being produced.” – Huffington Post Comedy 

“The show’s co-creators, Jen Jamula and Allison Goldberg, give the evening’s stand-out performances: Jamula is hysterical as a newsletter-penning, enema-promoting Gwyneth Paltrow, while Goldberg brings a unique voice and physicality to every role she assumes.” — Theatermania

As actors, we barely got to enjoy the fruits of our labor; by the time we finally opened, we also closed. As producers, Jen and I were frustrated by the number of people who expressed interest in the show, yet were unable (understandably!) to attend our one-night-per-month extravaganzas for various reasons. So, for the first time ever, we ran one show for four consecutive weekends, from April 13th through May 5th, for a total of sixteen shows. (And for the first time, in a new venue: The Players’ Loft at 115 MacDougal Street, NYC.)

The production was our eighth iteration of Blogologues since we began the project last May, and was titled Blogologues: Younger Than Springtime. The show featured material related to– you guessed it– spring. So, allergies, birds, Passover and Easter, spring fever, and… sex outside. Naturally. And more. We chose a spring theme because we were aiming for something relatable, while trying to get across to new audience members the fact that the project is timely, thematic, and adaptable. We also replaced a few posts with new ones as we went along, since that’s the ever-changing nature of the internet, and hence the show.

As producers/creators, behind the scenes, the show was plagued by constant chaos– faulty projectors, a certain someone that we hired didn’t deliver– so it goes with any small business, I suppose, but it’s heartbreaking when it’s yours, no matter how many times you tell yourself that sketch comedy isn’t brain surgery. Or any surgery, for that matter. Overall, however, we believe the show was a great success: Entertaining, while hopefully commenting on our society by virtue of the structure and concept itself. It also was a huge leap for us to go from two to sixteen shows. In the next post, I’ll talk about some of the truly wonderful press we received, but in case you’re that anxious, you can click here.

Our lovely cast. From L to R: Dave Thomas Brown, Jen Jamula, Matt Cox, Allison Goldberg, Wendy Joy. Directed by David Hilder. Staged managed by Becca Pickett, assistant stage managed by Casey Malone, and lighting design by Jimmy Lawlor. Projections by actor Dave Thomas Brown, and sound by Matt Cox. I love our team.

]]> http://allisongoldberg.com/2012/05/16/blogologues-younger-than-springtime/feed/ 0 alligold springtime cast http://allisongoldberg.com/2012/05/14/benefit-at-hudson-terrace/ http://allisongoldberg.com/2012/05/14/benefit-at-hudson-terrace/#comments Mon, 14 May 2012 22:46:59 +0000 alligold http://allisongoldberg.com/?p=417 Continue reading →]]> So, as opposed to updating as news rolls in — you know, kind of the point of this blog — it appears that during times of chaos, I don’t post at all. I’m sure that no one in the history of humans has ever been guilty of this before.

I’ve decided not to backdate this post, because that seems weird and sort of lie-y, but I would like the events of these last two months to appear in the order that they occurred. In other words, I shall now tell you about an awesome event that occurred at the end of March: Our benefit at The Salon at Hudson Terrace to raise funds for the first-ever run of Blogologues! (No more one-night engagements!)

First of all, Hudson Terrace is beautiful and its staff is wonderful. Two months later, I’m still shocked and gracious that they hosted us, and I highly recommend that you reach out if you’re planning an event. Many thanks go to our DJ, Darren Azman, who put us in touch with the venue, and then rocked out late-night at the actual event.

That’s right, people. Hudson Terrace is so swanky that they projected our logo INTO THE CHANDELIERS.

Many thanks also go to Reserved for Rondee, a band that you should absolutely know, and not just because they performed for us, but also because they are so unbelievably awesome. I’m not going to lie, we asked them to play because Jen and I were in a Fringe show back in the day with Billy Magnussen, their guitarist,  and we heard the band was great– we hadn’t actually seen them live yet! But honestly? THEY BLEW MY MIND. Their lead singer, Trevor Vaughn, literally ran across the bar. Like, I cannot explain this to you; you must witness it for yourself. These boys, in addition to being ridiculously good-looking, put on a freakin’ show. You should definitely check out their music, donate to their Kickstarter campaign, like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, and all that other jazz. Seriously. Go stalk them. You won’t be sorry.

Reserved for Rondee setting up at the beautiful Hudson Terrace.

This photo of their performance in no way whatsoever does them justice.

In addition to great music, we also performed a few… you guessed it… Blogologues. I know: you’re shocked.

Jen Jamula, performing Steven Spielberg Hates Me, from girlonthecontrary.com.

Me, probably saying something inappropriate.

Lastly, many thanks to the companies and individuals that donated to our silent auction, and to those who attended, danced, bid, and made the evening a generally great and successful evening.

Stay tuned for more outdated news soon!

Rachel organized a similar show last year, in response to the fact that only 1 out of 30 comedians in the official SXSW line-up were women. Despite causing a bit of a stir last year (as it should), it seems that no one worked to guarantee a more equitable line-up this year. Given the amount of funny women out there—and the number of hilarious stand-up comedians in the event that we hosted—that’s kinda messed up. I guess not everyone’s into vajazzling jokes.

Anywho, we had a grand old time being flown out for the totally awesome rogue competitor. An honor, really.

Me, looking like a weird pre-teen next to Jen, as always.

Innumerable thanks go out to Rachel, who, as far as I can tell, is working nonstop—literally, nonstop—to promote women in their respective fields. I don’t think she sleeps.

She might be a vampire. A super generous, thoughtful, hard-working vampire.

Rachel Sklar looking totally hot. Which only proves my theory.

Oh, and just so you know: this one event doubled the number of female comedians present at SXSW.

You can read more about efforts to change the ratio at SXSW here.

So then I skipped town, went to Nicaragua, and battled monkeys. (True story.)

Anywho, before the skippage, this awesome review/interview went up on The Observer’s (relatively) new tech site, Betabeat, in a piece entitled Blogologues: The Internet Is Stranger Than Fiction. It made me super happy, but I was busy packing monkey-battling gear. (That’s a lie. We were unprepared for the attack.) And that brings us to now.

If you’re interested in learning more about the project– or just procrastinating– please do click here and read the full review. Otherwise, as usual, I’ve included a few choice quotes below.

Thanks for stopping by!

P.S. Monkeys are vicious.

The digital and the theatrical got cozy with one another on Monday night at Blogologues: Come Here Often?… For the duration of the hour-long show, a cast of five kept the audience laughing at the sorts of cultural relics typically enjoyed while sitting alone at a laptop: Craigslist’s Missed Connections, personal blog entries, Texts from Last Night, etc.

The … program informed audience members that they could expect to see blogs performed as monologues and “other wacky material that probably shouldn’t be read out loud.” But judging from the unrelenting laughter at the 7:30 show, theatergoers had no problem with what they heard.

Hello, wanderers of the web!

Last spring, Horse Trade Theater Group graciously invited Lively Productions to develop our project, Blogologues, through a six-month developmental series, in which every month we create an entirely new script, rehearse it, and perform it. We’re sad to leave Horse Trade’s theater, UNDER St. Marks, but fingers crossed we’ll be running this show for more than one night at a time very soon. Stay tuned, and we hope to see you tomorrow night!

Blogologues: Come Here Often?

Conceived by Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula
Produced by Lively Productions in association with Horse Trade Theater Group
Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place)
Monday, January 30th
7:30 and 9:30 PM 
Smarttix.com or call 212-868-4444.

Tickets are $15 and include a beer!

Come early for a drink before the show! Doors open at 7:00 and 9:00.

This month, Blogologues is here to help you find your soul mate. Join us, and you will learn the do’s and don’ts of dating, witness the end of a few meaningful relationships, experience the blossoming of new ones (perhaps with strippers), and, of course…Zombies.

We think it’ll be fun. So, what we’re getting at is…will you go out with us?

Featuring a raffle brought to you by PplLikeMe!

• Directed by David Hilder
• Stage Manager: Courtney Ferrell
• Lighting Design: Jimmy Lawlor
• Graphic Design: Dave Thomas Brown

Cast: Andrea Biggs*, Matthew Cox, Danny Gardner*, Allison Goldberg*, Jen Jamula*

Blog posts from Colin Nissan and Charlotte Hamilton (McSweeney’s), Laurenne Sala (Humans Are Funny), Lily O (WTF Is Up With My Love Life), Jessica Schnall (Alone With Cats), JD (JD’s Man Stories), Chiara Atik (HowAboutWe) … Content from Twitter, Craigslist, Texts From Last Night, Damn You Autocorrect, When Parents Text, F My Life, Overheard In New York and Overheard in the Office!

This is our last show in our series at UNDER St. Marks!  Please join us!

Save the date for the next Blogologues: November 28th at 7:30 and 9:30 PM. Details coming soon!

For those who think that the Internet and theater can never co-exist, you need to get your asses down to New York City’s East Village and check out Blogologues, the hilarious monthly theater show where a troupe of actors reenacts posts from your favorite blogs.