And I don't mean Neo like Todd Anderson Neo, either
When I first moved to Chicago, I went to see Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind at the Neo-Futurarium. When you walk into the theater, there’s a cast member there writing out nametags for the audience. That person may decide to name you Spanky. Or Cleopatra. I’ve seen that show dozens of times over the past ten years, and it’s eerie how the names chosen for me always reflect my mood. Once, I was Molly Ringwald. Lost Cause. Pretty Smiley Blonde Girl. Mrs. Holmes (the guy had named the entire audience after teachers from his high school, apparently. Funny thing was, I had a Mrs. Holmes at my high school, too. My AP English teacher). That first time, though, I was named Superstar, and from that moment, I was hooked. TMLMTBGB was it. The Neo-Futurarium was the place. The Neo-Futurists were the cool kids who sat at the cool kid’s lunch table, and I would forever sit with the pigtail-having, nose-blowing, glasses-wearing AP English students, buying my ticket at the door and watching writer/performers challenge my perceptions night after night for ten fucking years.
Until now. Now I am totally Reese Witherspoon accepting the Oscar, saying “I never thought this would happen to me, being a little girl from Tennessee.” Except, of course, I’m from Michigan. And I have no Southern accent or really expensive dresses (although, I aspire towards both).
I’ll be performing at the Neo-Futurarium as part of their Neo-Solo Performance Festival. The show runs eight weeks and the line-up changes every two: I’ll be up at the end, May 25, 26, 27 and June 1, 2 and 3. Also on the bill that night is the wonderful Dina Connolly with “Bernadine and Dina.” “In December 1977, fourteen-year-old Bernadine "Dina" O'Neill died in a fatal auto accident. Eight months later her niece, Dina Connolly, was born. How do you get to know your namesake when she's already gone? Mail her letters, and wait to see if you get a response … ”
I’ll be doing “I’m Fine and I’m Happy,” with Julie Korman, she of the achingly beautiful voice and rock-star style. I first saw Julie sing at Schuba’s, and I went up to her after the show. “I was wondering if you’d help me with a story,” I asked.
JULIE: So, you want me to sing at a reading?
MEGAN: Not exactly.
JULIE: Is this performance art? ‘Cause I don’t—
MEGAN: It’s not performance art.
JULIE: So what is it exactly?
“’I’m Fine and I’m Happy’ is collaborative storytelling between a writer and rock singer about a time when a writer and a rock singer found out they were both in love with the same guy. Megan Stielstra’s story and Julie Korman’s music come together to show the explosive, beautiful, and awkward moments in relationships, and the struggle between expressing what we feel and hiding it behind an ‘I’m fine.’"
So, the show runs now until the beginning of June. Check out as much as you can—they have a great deal where if you bring your program back you get discounted tickets—and there’s some amazing stuff to see. I caught the opening on Thursday with Chloe Johnston and Lusia Strus’ and left thinking, laughing, bitching and dreading. All the makings of great theatre. My opening night is Thursday, May 25, and I’d love to see you all there for my very first honest-to-goodness performance in a real honest-to-goodness theater, which is very much NOT in a bar (FYI to all my under 21ers!).