Episode 20: Deathscribe 2010 Part Two Podcast!

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Episode 19 Deathscribe 2010 Part One...

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DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Author - Chris Hainsworth interview

We thought you would like to hear from our DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Festival selections authors. Let's talk to Chris Hainsworth, whose piece in the show will be The D'Arque House, directed by Nic Dimond.

CHRIS HAINSWORTH

1) Where horror is concerned, what does radio give us that visual media cannot?

I think it invites itself into your brain because it stimulates the imagination more.  Seeing something can actually make it less frightening.  Jaws comes to mind.  But I think 9 out of 10 times, what you envision is far more terrifying than anything that can be shown to you.

I think seeing something allows you to create a distance from the experience.  Because you can rationalize it.  "Oh that looks fake."  "I can see the wires."  But just listening to something - it causes you to fill in a lot of information - and no one can scare you like yourself.

2) "The D'Arque House" creeped us out. What is it about "The D'Arque House" that creeps you out?

Losing someone you love is the most terrifying thing I can think of.  The overwhelming grief and the feeling of powerlessness can paralyze you.  That was the jumping off point for the D'Arque house.  From there it was a matter of thinking "how can this possibly get worse?"

To me it would be having to stay in that place.  Unable to move on.  And forced to have to deal with that loss on a daily basis.  And worse - having something so horrific become mundane.  The fact that the capacity for human suffering can be boundless.

3) What's the sound cue in your piece that you're excited to hear in foley?

I am excited to hear what the sound of the universe ripping open is like.  You know.  Just for future safety knowledge.

4) What actor, from any time, has the best voice for horror?

I watched a lot of the old American International films this Halloween which may be impacting my decision, but for me it's a toss up between Vincent Price and Boris Karloff.

5) What difficulties does a 10-minute constraint present when writing, especially where horror and/or radio are concerned?

For my tastes, I have to be able to care about the characters in order to be frightened for them.  So developing empathy for folks in ten minutes is tricky.  Also - having time to establish a beginning a middle and an end in ten minutes can de very difficult.

The upside is - it really makes you get down to it.  It makes you evaluate what is really necessary to tell the story.  The first draft of Remembrance from last year was 30 minutes long.  So I cut twenty minutes out of it.  I missed those twenty minutes but I doubt anyone else did.

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The DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Jury will be dining at the Morseland.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Author - Liz Siedt interview

We thought you would like to hear from our DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Festival selections authors. Let's talk to Liz Seidt, whose piece in the show will be Tape Deck, directed by Bob Fisher.

LIZ SIEDT

1) Where horror is concerned, what does radio give us that visual media cannot?

 I don’t think it’s so much about what audio horror gives us as much as it is what it doesn’t. You can’t see anything happening in front of you, so your mind starts filling in the blanks. And nine times out of ten, whatever you’re imagining is worse than what they could have shown you. Plus, because you’re the one visually constructing these terrifying things, it’s like you’re a part of it- you are basically an accessory to whatever the author has concocted.

2) "Tape Deck" creeped us out. What is it about "Tape Deck" that creeps you out?

 Ha... “Tape Deck” creeps me out because it’s based on something that actually happened to me! Not the whole thing, thankfully... At my last apartment a woman- a very drunk woman- somehow managed to get past my apartment’s front gate and ring my buzzer six or seven times, at four AM. Then she started screaming and yelling and pounding on the doors. I pressed the “Talk” button on my buzzer and told her to go away or I’d call the cops, and then I hit “Listen.” She said, “Is this your apartment, or mine?” like she was genuinely trying to work it out, and then she walked away. Now it’s funny, but at the time it really freaked me out. So I just thought, what if that situation had gone a bit differently?

3) What's the sound cue in your piece that you're excited to hear in foley?

Well, one of my characters actually doesn’t have any lines- he’s just a collection of sound effects, so I’m really looking forward to hearing his “dialogue” with the other characters: mostly the barely audible breathing sounds he makes. I hope everyone in the audience leans forward to try and hear it better!

4) What actor, from any time, has the best voice for horror?

You’ll think I’m weird for saying this (weirder anyway) but George S. Irving, the guy who did the voice of Heat Miser in The Year Without a Santa Claus is my pick. To be clear- I’m not scared of Heat Miser. I think he’s sorta cuddly-looking. But when I was a kid, George S. Irving read the audiobook of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz, which was my favorite collection of scary folktales and urban legends. (I was a horror enthusiast from a young age.) For an eight-year-old, the books are unsettling enough, especially with Stephen Gammell’s illustrations that look like they’re reaching off the page at you, but Irving reading it out loud was actually sort of terrifying. He’s got this pretty friendly-sounding voice, but something about the way he reads these stories- like he’s really savoring them- is just really creepy.

5) What difficulties does a 10-minute constraint present when writing, especially where horror and/or radio are concerned?

With horror, you definitely want to give your story time to build up suspense and also to lull people into a false sense of security, but with only ten minutes, you have to pretty much cut to the chase. Also, there’s less time to establish characters for an audience to identify with, so the audience only has a few minutes to think “Oh, I like this guy, he’s an awful lot like me. I hope nothing bad happens to him,” before you do something really nasty to him.

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The DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Jury will be dining at the Morseland.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Author - Jude Mire interview

We thought you would like to hear from our DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Festival selections authors. Let's talk to Jude Mire, whose piece in the show will be Monitor Spectare, directed by Lance Baker.

JUDE MIRE

1) Where horror is concerned, what does radio give us that visual media cannot?

Radio has a lot of the same great advantages that traditional writing has. Both require the participation of the audience to fill out the story. I can toss a character, creature, or setting into a story or radio play and every member of the audience is going to visualize their own version, personalize it. In film, there is a definitive version. You can’t come up with your own ideas because everything is right there on the screen. Stories and radio plays allow you to participate. Also, radio isn’t limited by a special effects budget; it doesn’t cost more to set the story in an exotic location or have massive scale events taking place. This gives more freedom to the author.

2) "Monitor Spectare" creeped us out. What is it about "Monitor Spectare" that creeps you out?

I think the creepiest things are the concepts behind the character. Sure, events may be gory, creepy, and unsettling, but unless it has something to do with the point of the story, it doesn’t connect with me. In Monitor Spectare the thing that really creeps me out is that the main character really is a good guy who does everything right and it doesn’t matter, horrible things still happen.

3) What's the sound cue in your piece that you're excited to hear in foley?

There are some lines spoken in Latin. Latin is creepy. After all, it’s a dead language.

4) What actor, from any time, has the best voice for horror?

Hard to say. It’s difficult to separate the voice from the movies. If by “best” you mean actually scary, chilling, I’m going to have to go with Anthony Hopkins’, Hannibal Lechter. Vincent Price is up there, but he’s got just a little too much cheese at times to be truly frightening.

5) What difficulties does a 10-minute constraint present when writing, especially where horror and/or radio are concerned?

It’s all about fitting everything in. There are a lot of components to a good horror story. You’ve got about three minutes to introduce the setting, the characters, and what their goals are. Another three to establish the problem so the audience knows exactly what’s going on and how that conflicts with what the characters want. Then you’ve got about three minutes to ruin everything and, hopefully, kill a bunch of characters. Oh, and at some point you should have made sure your audience cares about the characters you’re killing. Few people cry over road kill, unless it’s your pet. Emotional investment matters in horror.
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The DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Jury will be dining at the Morseland.

The Four Moon Tavern sponsors DEATHSCRIBE

WildClaw Theatre is very pleased to announce that The Four Moon Tavern is generously sponsoring DEATHSCRIBE 2010.

This cozy tavern, located in Roscoe Village at 1847 West Roscoe Street, has been a WildClaw favorite for years. With a great jukebox and a superior menu full of a variety of comfort foods (Meatloaf, Shepherds Pie, Fish and Chips, Chicken and Dumplings and two kinds of Bratwurst, just to name a few), the Four Moon Tavern has carved out it's own distinct place in the pantheon of Chicago's great neighborhood joints. With daily food and drink specials, a cozy back room and a pool table, it is the perfect place for a casual evening with friends, or to catch a Bears or Bulls game. WildClaw highly recommends stopping by on a Saturday or Sunday for the tasty brunch and the recession-busting buck fifty Miller High Life special.

Stop by soon, and tell them WildClaw sent you.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Author - David Schmidt interview

We thought you would like to hear from our DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Festival selections authors. First up - David Schmidt, whose piece in the show will be The Change in Buckett County, directed by Carolyn Klein.

DAVID SCHMIDT

1) Where horror is concerned, what does radio give us that visual media cannot?

Radio give us a big and damn-dark old closet for our minds to throw our worst imaginings into, and then invites them to come crawling out.  A movie can hope to engage the audience's imagination through suggestion, but radio demands it.  In listening, you start to actively imagine the scene, and once you're imagining - you've engaged a part of yourself in the story.

2) "The Change in Buckett County" creeped us out. What is it about "The Change in Buckett County" that creeps you out?

The first thing I thought of when I wrote this script was the *setting*.  Desolate farm fields in winter.  Feet crunching through the snow at night.  Skeletal tree creaking.  Wind blowing the drifting snow.  I used to visit my Grandparents' farm as a kid, and that barren landscape seems like a really bleak place to be when something terribly wrong is happening... 

3) What's the sound cue in your piece that you're excited to hear in foley?

There's a part in the story where something is making a leathery flapping sound in the trees.  I'm really curious how they'll interpret that, and what they'll use to make that noise! 

4) What actor, from any time, has the best voice for horror? 

I love so many - Karloff, Welles, Cushing, Lee, etc.  But the best has to be Vincent Price.  He has such a rich texture, and a fun way of rolling words around.  He could make anything sound exotic and sinister.  Plus, he always seemed to take such great delight in making it good ghoulish fun.

  

5) What difficulties does a 10-minute constraint present when writing, especially where horror and/or radio are concerned? 

I don't think I'm particularly good at short stories.  I have a tendency to want to embroider things and expand them into larger arcs.  (Sometimes to my own detriment.)  But something about writing short-form for radio seems to really inspire me.  Maybe it's that dark closet door creaking open inside my head...  :D
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The DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Jury will be dining at the Morseland. 

Musings on Foley for Deathscribe

So Deathscribe is coming...FAST.  Seriously buy your tickets because these scripts are amazing.  At the moment, I am going over them very closely trying to figure out how to make sounds like "claws rending flesh" and "1,000 mouths opening". 

So that got me thinking, what was your favorite foley effect from previous Deathscribes?  Listen to the podcasts and respond!  And come to see this year's spooky offerings on December 6th. 

Or you could stay at home and watch a crappy holiday movie...a nightmare in and of itself.

MORSELAND sponsors DEATHSCRIBE!

WildClaw Theatre is very pleased to announce that Morseland is generously sponsoring DEATHSCRIBE 2010.

This restaurant, bar, and music venue located in Rogers Park is one of the best places in town to check out a local band, get an after work cocktail, or relax with a game of pool. Located right down the street from The Mayne stage at 1218 W. Morse Ave, we highly recommend that everyone attending DEATHSCRIBE stop in for a bite beforehand, and a drink after.

They have great daily food and drink specials, and fabulous menu served until 10:30 daily, a late night menu served till close, brunch on Sundays, and a super friendly staff.

It is one of the best intimate live music venues on the North side, with styles range from jazz to hip-hop to latin to rock and everything in between.

WildClaw recommends that everyone check out this jewel of a nightclub on Chicago's northside. It would be a horror if you missed out. And, in particular, if you want to check out this great place before DEATHSCRIBE, check out the band BIG TIME, Chicago's premier Tom Waits tribute band, on November 30th. And don't forget to tell them WildClaw sent you.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 at the Mayne Stage - Dec. 6th!

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 - In One Month!

In one month, at Chicago's Mayne Stage theater, WildClaw Theatre will present the Third Annual International Festival of Horror Radio Plays. On December 6th, 5 tales of terror will be performed radio-style, complete with live music and sound effects accompaniment for the prize of the Bloody Axe. We'll be listening for you.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Final Lineup

After months of reading, we have made our final decisions for DEATHSCRIBE 2010. Before going any further, we at WildClaw want to sincerely thank EACH AND EVERY author who submitted a script for this years festival. We are humbled and honored that so many talented, passionate people were willing to share their talent with us. This was the most competitive crop of scripts we've received to date, and we were very excited by the quantity and quality of horror plays we had the pleasure of reading. We had some very hard decisions to make, and we thank everyone who submitted for your contribution. Radio horror is alive and well!

That said, we are very pleased to announce our lineup for

DEATHSCRIBE 2010, The Third Annual International Festival of Radio Horror Plays

Featuring:

CHATTER, by Newt Calkins, directed by Greg Kolack

TAPE DECK, by Liz Siedt, directed by Bob Fisher

MONITOR SPECTARE, by Jude Mire, directed by Lance Baker

THE D'ARQUE HOUSE, by Christopher Hainsworth, directed by Nic Dimond

THE CHANGE IN BUCKETT COUNTY, by David Schmidt, directed by Carolyn Klein.

We hope to see you at the Mayne Stage, on Monday, December 6th, 8pm. Tickets on sale now.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Directors

We are very excited to announce our lineup of guest directors for the 3rd Annual DEATHSCRIBE Radio Horror Festival.

These talented men and women have taken on the creepy task of crafting the eerie and spooky stories that will make up DEATHSCRIBE 2010, on Monday December 5th, at the historic Mayne Stage.

The directors for DEATHSCRIBE 2010 are:

Nic Dimond - Artistic Director of Strawdog Theatre & director of DEATHSCRIBE 2009's winning piece.

Carolyn Klein – Actor and director, ensemble member of Seanachai Theatre and an artistic associate with Strange Tree.

Bob Fisher – Artistic Director of The Mammals.

Lance Baker - Actor and director, ensemble member of A Red Orchid Theatre.

Greg Kolack – Jeff Award winning director, with a long list of Chicago and Midwest productions to his credit.

There you have it. Watch this blog for the announcement of the five final DEATHSCRIBE 2010 submissions, coming soon!

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Submissions close at Midnight tonight!

Yup, tweak that script. Polish that metaphor. Add that scream and clanking chains. Then wrap it up in a neat bow and entrails and send it in. Check the rules to make sure you did it correctly.

DEATHSCRIBE 2010 Submissions Due Friday!

Cross those T's. Dot those I's. Smoke those entrails. DEATHSCRIBE 2010 submissions are due tomorrow!

Blood Radio Episode 17, DEATHSCRIBE 2009 part 3

We are pleased to release Blood Radio Episode 17, featuring DEATHSCRIBE 2009 part 3.

Click here to listen.

In episode #17, we proudly present part 3 of DEATHSCRIBE 2009, featuring ‘Remembrance,' written by Christopher Hainsworth and directed by Nic Dimond, a reading from Quirk Publishing’s SENSE AND SENSIBILITY AND SEA MONSTERS, plus a special guest performance by Pat Smillie singing Monster Mash.

We remind everyone that submissions are still being accepted for DEATHSCRIBE 2010, which will be held at the Mayne Stage Theatre, Monday, December 6th. Submission deadline is October 15th. Check out http://www.wildclawtheatre.com/wc_html/deathscribe10.html for more details.

28 days left to SUBMIT to DEATHSCRIBE 2010

Joe Janes, besides keeping busy with 365 Sketches, Robots VS Dinosaurs, and teaching at various institutions around town, is working up a script for DEATHSCRIBE 2010.

I'm also writing an original piece for Wildclaw Theater's Deathscribe. This is something I've wanted to do since its inception. The goal is to write a ten-minute horror piece for radio. A tough task that I look forward to wrangling with. I think comedy and horror have a lot in common. It's about building and releasing tension.

Are you? Submissions are still being accepted. For 28 more days, we are willing to read ALL of your nightmares. For more info, go to http://www.wildclawtheatre.com/wc_html/deathscribe10.html Perhaps this year YOU will bring home the BLOODY AXE.

Fangoria reminds the masses to SUBMIT!

Fangoria loves WildClaw

Blood Radio Episode 15, featuring DEATHSCRIBE 2009 part 1

Blood Radio Episode 15, featuring DEATHSCRIBE 2009 part 1, click here.

In episode #15, WildClaw Theatre is very proud to release part 1 of DEATHSCRIBE 2009, featuring 'The Most Beautiful Woman in the World,' written by Clint Sheffer, directed by Cecilie Keenan, and 'Bags of Blood,' written by Daniel Caffrey, directed by Don Hall.

Submissions are being accepted for DEATHSCRIBE 2010, which will be held at the Mayne Stage Theatre, Monday, December 6th.  Submission deadline is October 15th.

Start Writing Your Scary 10-Minute Play

There is still time to write your entry for DEATHSCRIBE 2010. The submission deadline is October 1st. Check out the rules.

You could be the next winner of the Bloody Axe. Write a scary 10-minute radio play, complete with sound effects and enter it in our 3rd Annual International Radio Horror Festival, DEATHSCRIBE 2010.

If selected your play will be performed live with the help of a marvelous band and a live foley artist in a magnificent theatre in front of hundreds of horror fans. Then podcast later on WildClaw's Blood Radio. If our celebrity judges pick your play as the festival winner, you will receive the adoration of thousands, the Bloody Axe (wiped clean of fingerprints), and a visit from the Elder Gods. Who wouldn't want that!

Start writing!