IRTE's Alex Decaneas

This week we're talking to cast member Alex Decaneas. He's gearing up to be the leader of the Groovy Gang when "The Groovy Gang Adventures" begins on April 6.

Did you watch cartoons like Scooby-Doo or Josie and the Pussycats when you were young?

Yes definitely, though I am not sure if Scooby and Josie were the top Hanna-Barbera cartoons of my liking.
Top Cat... Couldn't get enough of that show. Space Ghost and Birdman were close runners up. Love that Birdman theme.
When I was younger I had a crush on the blonde drummer from Josie and the Pussycats... but who didn't? Am I right? Heh...er...um.

What were your favorites?

I think I loved "Top Cat" so much because he was such a smartass. And he got away with it. As a developing smartass I felt a connection.

Can you tell me a little about the character you're playing in "The Groovy Gang Adventures"? What inspired you to create him?

I play Tad Stevens, all American boy next door, rich kid, self-proclaimed leader of the gang, lover of ascots and complete moron.

I wanted to explore the Fred role, but twist it to the idea that... what if Fred comes from a place of authority where he should have none? What would that be like?

Alex as Tad Stevens directing his film school thesis in LA.

 Did you belong to a groovy gang when you were a kid?

More of a groovy duo with my cousin... if you consider playing video games, writing stories, making stupid films, and generally being anti-social akin to teenagers solving mysteries in places they should never go.

Can you tell me a memorable adventure you had when you were young?

I remember ditching some church function with a friend of mine to explore what was out back behind the church... which was in a pretty rural area. Turned out to be (what I thought of at the time) as a huge expanse of forest. So we're running and climbing up hills and doing stupid swashbuckling shit like hitting each other with sticks, when I hear this blood curdling scream of my name.

"Aaaaaaaaaaleeeeeeeeeeeeeex!"

It's my father, and I know I've been caught. And I turn and sprint to get back to the church, but I am an uncoordinated mess and slip through some rocks, twist my ankle, and land in a huge mud pile. Needless to say the rest of the church day was... interesting.

I'm sure it was. Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions, Alex.

"The Groovy Gang Adventures" opens Saturday, April 6 with a performance at Gotham City Improv. Check out the full schedule here.

Tickets are only $6.

Are you a junior high, high school, or college student? Tickets are $3 at Gotham City IRTE performances with advanced reservations.

Too cool for school? Take advantage of the "3 for 3" deal! Tickets are $3 per person for groups of three or more with advanced reservations (only at Gotham City).

IRTE's Jamie Maloney

With our first show of the season approaching, I thought it'd be great to get to know some of the cast of "The Groovy Gang Adventures" through the lens of cartoons, adventures, and groovy gang-iness.

Today, let's hear from Jamie Maloney who's going to play Peter Alan Wilcox.

Did you watch cartoons like Scooby-Doo or Josie and the Pussycats when you were young?

I watched a lot of Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space. I had a big crush on Melody when I was 5 years old. At some point in the 90's the Cartoon Network had a marathon of J & the PC's and I taped all of it. I still have that tape. I often watched Scooby Doo at a friend's house before school and would argue Scooby Doo vs J& the PC's. I took Josie's side but in retrospect I see that Scooby was the original and the best.

What were your favorites? Why?

I always liked the episodes that had guest stars. Especially when they starred real life people like Don Knots or Abbott and Costello. I wondered how they managed to make the transition to the cartoon world, and looked for discrepancies between their animated and real life selves. Phyllis Diller looked much younger as a cartoon than as a living person. I saw the Harlem Globetrotters on Scooby Doo before I saw them in real life and was disappointed by them in real life.

Tell me a little about the character you're playing in "The Groovy Gang Adventures". What inspired you to create him or her?

I'm playing Peter Alan Wilcox. He's approaching 110 years old and is inadvertently responsible for every disaster and tragedy that occurred during the 20th century. He's an unintentional super villain long past his prime. I came up with him for a show I did a few years ago called "Match Wits". He came from a few disparate sources including a character voice I did for an even earlier project and my love of history.

Peter Alan Wilcox in his black ops days.

Did you belong to a groovy gang when you were a kid?

I was kept pretty sheltered and isolated for most of my childhood so the only gangs I was in were the ones made up of my Star Wars and GI Joe figures and the occasional reluctant family pet.

Can you tell me one a memorable adventure you had when you were young?

One summer at sleep away camp I snuck off the camp grounds with a bunkmate to go to a candy store. We had to walk through the woods, past a graveyard and across a road, the whole time not sure if we were going the right way and trying not to be spotted by anyone. We dove into roadside ditches and patches of poison ivy (at least I dove into the poison ivy) whenever cars drove by. We got away with it and should have left it at that but we got greedy and went again. We had our cover story all figured out. We made it to the store and on the way back we were inevitably caught. I barely got a syllable of our story out before my dumb ass friend went and told the truth. We spent the rest of the day sitting on the Field House porch while this asshole counselor that everyone hated sat in front of us eating all of our candy while we watched.

That's an "extreme interrogation" technique used by the CIA today. No doubt Peter Alan Wilcox would make that camp counselor, and his snitch bunkmate, pay.

Thanks so much Jamie for sharing some great memories with us.

The Groovy Gang Adventures opens on April 6, 2013! For further details, visit the IRTE website!

Remembering Arthur Storch

On Tuesday, March 5, I heard from a friend about the passing of Arthur Storch. Playbill's Robert Simonson wrote about him here.

At the time of his retirement in 1991, Mr. Storch said, "I think what I am most proud of, as far as Syracuse Stage is concerned, is that we created a standard of quality that does not cater to the lowest common denominator. The bottom line has always been: This is the best play and these are the best people, not this play will sell the most tickets."

I met Arthur as a member of the Actors Studio. He was one of the auditors at my audition for the Studio. I also played a small role in a production of "Machinal" he directed there that starred Angelica Page (she went by Angelica Torn at the time). He was almost always there at the Studio's sessions, helping critique the work of the actors. And, I'd run into him occasionally outside the Studio. Even after retirement, he taught a class in directing.

He always looked to achieve that "standard of quality that does not cater to the lowest common denominator." When he directed, he asked for maximum effort from the actors. Some rehearsals became real pressure cookers, moving through the same blocking again and again, and expecting full involvement at all times. There was at least one day in "Machinal" rehearsals, an actress blew up and stormed out of the room. Arthur listened to her when she returned, but insisted on seeing what he wanted to see, then got the whole rehearsal back on track. After all, if you don't push yourself fully, your work will never be fully complete.

He demanded a lot from actors under his direction. There were times he demanded more from actors in the Actors Studio sessions. If he didn't think the work was up to snuff, he told you in no uncertain terms. Two finalists for membership worked on a scene  in a session I saw once, and the actors were having a tough time of it. They didn't seem to be connecting to anything, but the actors continued, soldiering on. Afterwards, Arthur verbally eviscerated them. They didn't have a focus, or connection, or a myriad of other things required of good acting. He looked half sick and astonished that a poor performance was possible. I felt bad for the actors, but Arthur was not wrong in his criticisms.

I happened to run into Arthur later in the evening of that same day. I was taking an improv class in the same building he was teaching a directing class. The first thing he asked was "did you go to session today?" "Uh-huh". "What did you think? I couldn't believe it. Those two don't know the first thing about acting." He went further. The guy could not stop talking about it. I got the impression he had been thinking about it all day. I had nothing to add other than the two on stage had had a rough day. All I could think of was what he thought about my acting. I remember working on "Ghosts" in session once. Arthur was there, but didn't say a word during the critique. Maybe no news was good news.

Arthur was so passionate about acting and the theatre. He had a driving will to produce the best play possible. He had standards for performers few can achieve. Of course, he worked with amazing actors all his life, and knew from experience what truly dedicated actors can achieve. He brought life to the Actors Studio, and really spoke for a full and deep dedication to the craft.

Arthur Storch 1925-2013

Choose Your Adventure

Our new show, The Groovy Gang Adventures, is premiering in April. It's is inspired by adventure cartoons we watched as kids. I, personally, spent many hours watching cartoons. These adventures were mostly Hanna-Barbera cartoons like "Josie and the Pussycats", "Jabberjaw", "Charlie Chan and the Chan Clan", and "Scooby-Doo".

I have only vague memories of Charlie Chan, and Jabberjaw. My clearest memories are of Scoob, and "Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space". I do remember another actioner, Jonny Quest that I really liked, but it had a much more serious tone to it than the others. If Jonny Quest were made today, I have no doubt the monsters would be men in disguise smuggling heroin.

One of the fun things about Scooby-Doo is they'd have celebrity guests who would play animated versions of themselves; Jonathan Winters, Phyllis Diller, and Don Knotts to name a few.