#Tashina Richardson

[agencytheatercollective]

I’m Always There - Tashina Richardson

This series will help acquaint you with the talented weirdos who are (almost) always at No Shame Theatre every Saturday night. Here’s Ms. Richardson. 

Who the hell are you? A Texas transplant who found a bunch of weirdos to hang out with (almost) every Saturday.

Why do you seem so familiar to me? I probably don't? Unless you're like "who's the blonde girl that's not Anna Lucero?"

What the hell do you perform at No Shame? Movement/dance pieces, primarily. But I've written some stream-of-consciousness stuff (most of it involves yelling at men), and done a few original songs as well.

What draws you to movement theatre? I'm gonna be vain and quote myself here, although it's in relation to movement as an exercise rather than performance: "Good movement exercises let you figure out how to relax into your character and naturally react to the people around you without TELLING you to do it. The actor becomes a proactive part of the process, creating in the moment, rather than just taking direction and figuring out how to motivate action later." It's a little different on the No Shame stage than in a fully-realized production, but I believe the intent is the same. Creating in the moment and naturally reacting to environment are important aspects of performing for me, and I feel most comfortable doing those through movement. (Click here if you want to read more of me yammering on about movement.)

Who/What are you favorite artists/songs to move/dance to? Radiohead. Radiohead. Radiohead. Bjork, Adele, Sigur Rós, The Cinematic Orchestra, Sia, Alt-J... and Radiohead.

How’d you get started coming to No Shame? My friend Cody is a member of The Agency, and he along with Billy Baraw had mentioned it to me before I moved to Chicago. I decided to experience my first No Shame on July 18, 2015 - which also happened to be my birthday. I haven't looked back... except that one time, when I thought someone was following me.

Do you have any favorite f**cking No Shame memories? I've seen a ton of good stuff at No Shame, but my favorite memories are probably when I yell at men after the show because they spout some sexist crap at me. (I wouldn't normally say "crap" but I don't know if this is PG-13 or if Ethan and Huck are gonna whip out their wangs.)

Have you ever gotten engaged to someone you met at No Shame?? HOW DID YOU KNOW?!?!? I did actually meet my fiancé at No Shame. I proposed to him on our one year anniversary with an art print from The Lincoln Loft that says "Bill You Murray Me?" He's a musician named Josh Rowe. Go like his Facebook page and buy his albums so that he gets rich and we can afford a wedding.

I like the cut of your jib, Ms. Richardson.  I have a bunch of non sequitur questions for you now.

What’s up, doc? Shhh. Be vewy vewy quiet, I'm hunting wabbits.

You and Whose Army? Come on. Come on.

What's the most you ever lost on a coin toss? I'm not sure, but I used to eat coins all the time as a child. I hope the sewer monsters got all of it and took it to the casino!

Who framed Roger Rabbit? Christopher Lloyd? I think. Let's be honest, we were all too busy imagining what it'd be like to bang Jessica Rabbit. Or Bob Hoskins. Or both.

Are we human or are we dancer? We are all The Killers. The Killers are we.

Lastly, is there anything you’re working on now that you’d like to promote? How kind of you to ask! I am actually starting rehearsals on an original play called "ID," which I created with my friend Brittany Alyse Willis through our multi-city arts collective, Lady Square Arts. The play is like a millennial post-modern The Iceman Cometh. The production runs February 17-19 and 24-26 at The Lincoln Loft - if you come on a Saturday, you can stay afterwards for No Shame!

[sundowntheatre]

Check out this video of Carter Stubbs Takes Flight director, Tashina Richardson, talking about the show! We're always taking reservations for seats, so pop on over to http://www.sundowntheatre.org for more information.

[agencytheatercollective]

I’m Always There - Robert Littwin

This series will help acquaint you with the talented weirdos who are (almost) always at No Shame Theatre every Saturday night. Next up, Mr. Robert Littwin. 

Who the hell are you? Several personalities stuffed into one corporeal body. A wanderer searching for moments of warm authenticity in an ice age of crisply-frosted Dali-mustaches and post-modern exceptionalism.

Why do you seem so familiar to me? Because I’m a short, stocky, bald-ass beefmuffin with a douchebag beard. I look like an aged-out Wrigleyville bro-tard. I could very well be any generic villain on the “Sifi” channel. I go to a ton of shows around Chicago and contrast sharply against the lanky, lengthened, extra-bearded, and over-inked crowd. 

What the hell do you perform at No Shame? Everything. I started with confessional stories, graduated to stand-up, then poetry, then music with Josh Rowe (pocketfulofscoundrel), and after a few months of that, I began writing sketches with Huck Poe. I make a point of performing anything that scares me. It becomes a challenge. I’ve even shown my bare bottom onstage.

You take a lot of pictures. What gives? A lot of my friends are performers, most of whom had either paid headshots or crappy stage pictures on their various social media pages, nothing in between. I had a decent camera on my phone, so I started taking action shots for them to post. After a while I became pretty good at it. Now I get requests to do it at various shows around the city.

Do you have any favorite f**cking No Shame memories? There are so many! “The Otterbear Café” was a big one. The gasp I got when I turned my back to the audience and was wearing nothing underneath the apron made the whole sketch worthwhile. 

Performing “The Muppets Make A Porno” with Cody onstage and Adam and Ryan heckling us was pretty epic. 

Meeting the people I would later dub The Texas Trio (Sarah Q, Danielle Trudeau, and the indomitable Tashina Richardson) were all great moments in my life. They’re all so honest, clever, and genuine. I’ve written several poems about each of them. 

Having a three-hour conversation with Bryan O’Shea. That night he intimidated the poor theater crowd with a horrifyingly hostile set. I approached him afterward, ready to literally toss him down the stairs, and found out that he was trying to shock the audience into laughter. He was genuinely baffled as to why everyone was so offended, which caught me completely off guard. The conversation spanned from working a room to the philosophy of Gandhi. Later I found out he mentioned our conversation onstage and admitted to an audience that he needed to open up more. 

Recently my father visited Chicago and performed at No Shame. My chest swelled with pride. His singing voice is still amazing. 

Watching Ed Towns perform a flawless, killer set with material entirely ripped from that morning’s headlines. You could tell none of it was scripted and he was speaking straight from his gut. 

Performing a Kyle Parris impersonation in front of Kyle Parris. I love meta-textual material. 

Huck Poe waxing Ryan’s butthole onstage was a moment of sheer comedic genius (he has quite a few of those). 

Speaking of Huck, I decided to write with him the night I saw the debut of his now infamous Yabbo The Clown character. He wordlessly created expert comedic tension and it mesmerized me. 

What do you bench? My latest set was 245 pounds for 7 reps, which puts my theoretical 1RM (1 Rep Max) at about 300 pounds, or, as I like to call it, 3 Cody Lucases. (editor note from Cody Lucas: It’s actually only equivalent to two of me.) 

I like the cut of your jib, Mr. Littwin. I have a bunch of non sequitur questions for you now. 

Where have all the cowboys gone? Wait, what is a “jib” and why would you cut it? And how am I supposed to articulate the obsolescence of an entire profession? If I had to guess, I’d say they’re hanging out with the cobblers, printing press operators, phrenologists, and Jimmy Hoffa.

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag, drifting through the wind, wanting to start again? No, but I thought he was a man, but he was just a paper bag. I’ll see your Katy Perry and raise you a Fiona Apple. Call. 

You talking to me? You talking to me? No. I’m typing this at 1:24 am on a weeknight, stripped down to my underwear in my sauna of a Chicago apartment.

Pop quiz, hotshot. There's a bomb on a bus. Once the bus goes 50 miles an hour, the bomb is armed. If it drops below 50, it blows up. What do you do? What do you do? Shoot Jeff Daniels in the leg. That’ll teach him to make a pointless sequel to ‘Dumb and Dumber’ 

Are we human or are we dancer? Neither, but if you want a set of lyrics that have haunted my brain since 3:00 pm on August 10th, 2014, these would be more appropriate: 

It started out with a kiss How did it end up like this It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss Now I'm falling asleep And she's calling a cab While he's having a smoke And she's taking a drag Now they're going to bed And my stomach is sick And it's all in my head But she's touching his chest Now, he takes off her dress Now, let me go

[agencytheatercollective]

I’m Always There - Josh Rowe

This series will help acquaint you with the talented weirdos who are (almost) always at No Shame Theatre every Saturday night. Here’s Mr. Rowe.

Who the hell are you? Just some weirdo with a guitar. 

Why do you seem so familiar to me? We probably knew each other in another life.

What the hell do you perform at No Shame? Mostly songs that I write under the moniker pocketfulofscoundrel, but every once in a blue moon you might see me put on my acting shoes.

Who are some of your biggest influences? Dylan, Elliott Smith, Margot & the Nuclear So & So’s, Cat Stevens, The Beatles, The Boss, Big Star, Conor Oberst, Mark Mulcahy, Joanna Newsom……This list could go on for a LONG time.  

Who’s your favorite Beatle? Probably John, for his tenacity, but it’s hard to choose. They’ve all got their strengths. I love Paul’s romanticism, George’s introspection, and Ringo’s joy.

How’d you get started coming to No Shame? My buddy Ethan invited me after he learned about it through taking classes at Green Shirt Studios. Turns out I went to college with Andrew Gallant so it was a great way to reconnect with him and Sommer and see the wonderful things they’ve been doing with The Agency Theater Collective. I’ve been hooked ever since! 

Do you have any favorite f**cking No Shame memories? There have been a lot of great nights at No Shame, but the one sticking in my mind right now is the Saturday after the election. It was a rough week for all of us and, somehow, that night’s performance captured all the anxiety, shock, and fear of 2016. In the end, though, it reminded us of all the hope we still have as a community of artists. That’s honestly the best thing about No Shame. It’s really is a supportive community and we grow and learn from each others’ art. Plus there’s always a lot of ridiculousness for comic relief, because artists should never take themselves too seriously.

Have you ever gotten engaged to someone you met at No Shame?? Actually, yes, I have! I met my fiancée Tashina Richardson at No Shame. We actually just had a No Shame wedding ceremony on New Year’s Eve! Speaking of Tashina, she’s directing a show, ID, which is going up at The Lincoln Loft, home of No Shame, on February 17th.  I’m actually the music director for the show, so if you’ve seen me at No Shame and liked what you heard you should check it out. For updates, check out Lady Square Arts on FB.

I like the cut of your jib, Ms. Rowe.  I have a bunch of non sequitur questions for you now.

How many seas must a white dove sail before she sleeps in the sand? Uh, I think it’s about, uh…136…Uh, it’s either 136 or 142!

Dude, where’s my car? That’s good question man. I could actually use a ride…

Hey, what else can we do now except roll down the window and let the wind blow back your hair? We could hit up Sonic, eh?!? Before we run into that highway all jammed with broken spirits on a last chance power drive, I could probably use a milkshake. 

WTF? Right? SMH. JK. LQTM. 

Are we human or are we dancer? Only Hunter S. Thomson knew the answer to that question…so I guess we’ll never know : (

[sundowntheatre]

Brad McEntire, playwright of Carter Stubbs Takes Flight, drafted this image as inspiration for our poster art! Gives you a little hint as to what the show's about. Rehearsals start Monday, and we'll have some behind-the-scenes content for you.

[sundowntheatre]

We're currently enjoying some down time with Sundown Collaborative Theatre, so enjoy this video from May 2012, featuring Tashina Richardson and Brittany Willis. They created a piece for the Dallas CityArts Festival on the TheaterJones Stage on behalf of Sundown.