Docu-Diabetic

I haven't seen many docu-dramas or theater that could be considered part of the documentary genre, and yet, I am suddenly drawn to explore the pros and cons of the art form. I watched a friend of mine create a docu-comedy about "Hair", when I was teaching at Westmont in Santa Barbara, CA. It was hilarious! He worked on a piece called "Fear" this past year, and I wasn't able to see it, but I hope it went well. At any rate, I had no other reference to documentaries beyond that and a few television series or movies until now. I am reading The Laramie Project by Moises Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project, and I couldn't be more hooked!

I wonder if this kind of theater would have a successful impact on the local community of Amherst, MA. Beyond that, I wonder if a documentary theater piece on Diabetes would have an impact on the local community, the national community, or even the global community. I need a place to start, and I think I might be able to find that by locating my local JDRF chapter. I am already well on my way by connecting with other people with Type 1 Diabetes (I don't have it, but my wife does and I love her dearly). Each day I spend dreaming about this Arts Festival the more tangible and real it becomes. And although I have had many dreams fulfilled in my life, none of them have happened when I wanted nor in the way I had planned. This is another dream that is already spinning far from my dream, and yet fulfilling it far more powerfully and profoundly than I had originially imagined. I can't help but thank God for that blessing! I will finish reading The Laramie Project and begin to put the balls into play that are necessary for developing a documentary about the daily lives of people with Type 1 Diabetes. A project dedicated to my wife and her constant inspiring strength!

Theatre Documentary on Fear

A friend of mine that I went to school with, Casey Caldwell, is

"currently developing a documentary play about people's fears, nightmares, and phobias, based both on the stories of everyday people and an exploration of fiction, psychoanalysis, and history. It deals with three major questions: Why are we afraid of what we're afraid of, why does fear have such power in our lives, and what do we do about it?

"We as a people are defined by what we fear; it is one of the major motivations for everything from government policy to our personal daily decisions. Our fears are logical and rational (like fear of nuclear bombs) and illogical and strange (like Arachibutyrophobia: fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth). We have bizarre, sometimes hilarious nightmares, and also powerful real fears based on what we see in the news and hear from our government. This project will explore all ends of that spectrum, from the strange (like that time you were convinced your parents were aliens) to the serious (like when you almost drowned). And in looking at these stories, I hope to find out why we as people do the things we do, but also understand just a little bit more about what it means to be human.

"So basically, I want your stories! They can be everything from silly and mundane to grim and life-altering. Your identity will be protected, of course, in the play's final product (names will be changed, and any details that you want left out can be). So come participate in this exciting process!

"Contact me at casey.caldwell@yahoo.com if you have a story for me and we can set up a time to do an interview, and join this group for continuing updates about the project as it develops."

Please, go and check out what he is doing here, and give him your stories. The more he has to explore, the larger demographic he has to pull from, the better this piece of theatre will be. I watched a documentary he created about hair, and it was the most hilariously insightful piece of theatre I have seen to-date.