** Video from world premiere ** Cast and crew ** Script ** Soundtrack ** Graphics ** PG bits **

Video from world premiere (summer 2024)

Here’s a one-hour video from Sunday August 4 (if you like the video, please read on for info about how to support the cast and crew—by Venmo or by helping us get more shows!—and there’s a second one-hour video below if you’re a glutton for punishment):

These two videos (above and below) are from the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival, July 26 – Aug 4. If you like the video(s), please support the cast and crew—thank you if you have  already!—by (1) sending us a Venmo @standupecon; anything helps but $15 per person sounds about right to me and $50+ will get you a signed print of our awesome 11 x 17 poster, mailed to a U.S. address, or (2) bringing us to your school or other venue; see our college proposal one-pager for info on the show plus bonus activities for political science, environmental studies, philosophy, literature, economics, and more! And if you don’t use Venmo or want to talk about bringing this cast and crew to you—or casting your own theater, college, or high school production of the show—please email/text me at yoram@standupeconomist.com, 206-351-5719. And FYI I think the cast and crew did a great job, but I also think the show could be even better with some modest revisions that are underway on the script, etc! Also here are two reviews, from The Utah Review (scroll down) and Utah Theatre Bloggers.

Video from Friday August 2 (IMHO the videography here isn’t as good—some key bits will be hard to get if you don’t already know the story—but I think this show was a bit better in terms of the actors’ lines and audience response):

 

The amazing cast and crew

  • Addie Bowler (GRACE) is a senior in the Musical Theater Program at UVU. Instagram, headshot.
  • Guillermo Oviedo (SAUL) is a senior in the Musical Theater Program at the University of Utah. Website, Instagram, headshot.
  • Anne Louise Brings (NIKKI) is an award-winning actress from Salt Lake City, UT. Website, Instagram.
  • Meg Chamberlain (KATHERINE) is a proud SAG-AFTRA member and has performed from New York, NY to Portland, OR.
  • JayC Stoddard (LANCE) was part of the Great Salt Lake Fringe Audience Choice Award-winning show Exposure in 2017. (Ditto for director Josh Patterson!)

The rest of the team is director Josh Patterson, stage manager Annie Brantley (with assistants Yomara Montiel and Nik Peterson), production manager Tara Hogan; Clean The Darn Air campaign intern Lauren Reynolds; and writer/producer Yoram Bauman.

Script, synopsis, and ad-style summaries

Here’s the full script (comments welcome via email or use the Comment feature in the doc itself!) and here’s additional notes (older versions, notes from readings, etc.).

Synopsis: 

Saul puts the “action” into climate action, flirting with young women and roping them into volunteering for a carbon tax ballot measure campaign. But then he falls for Grace. Is there hope for them, or for the planet?

Directed by Great Salt Lake Fringe audience-choice-award winner (and Snow College theater professor) Josh Patterson, written by Yoram Bauman, PhD, “the world’s first and only stand-up economist“, and starring Addie Bowler, Guillermo Oviedo, Anne Louise Brings, Meg Chamberlain, and JayC Stoddard.

Seize The Initiative! A romantic comedy about falling in love… with democracy.

10-second-ad-style summary: 

  • NIKKI: You know how some men, they’re only after one thing?
  • GRACE: Mm.
  • NIKKI: What if signature-gathering is his one thing?

Hence the tagline for the show: “Some men are only after one thing.”

60-second-ad-style summary: 

  1. Close-up on SAUL (Scene 1): “I meet hundreds of women every day…” 
  2. Zoom out to show that SAUL is wearing a campaign sandwich board and speaking at a campaign training session: “It’s like speed dating.” 
  3. Different camera angle, still on SAUL (Scene 1): “At best, you could meet the love of your life…” 
  4. Cut to GRACE, who (with NIKKI) is waiting to enter a concert venue and is speaking to SAUL, who is collecting signatures from them (Scene 2): “We’ve got an extra ticket to the show, want to come?”
  5. Cut to NIKKI, responding to GRACE: “Wait, you’re inviting Jimmy John to join us?”
  6. Back to SAUL at the training session (Scene 1): “…at worst, you might find someone you can  rope into volunteering for the campaign.” 
  7. Cut to GRACE, flirting with SAUL outside the concert venue (Scene 2): “I would like to see what you look like without a sandwich board.”
  8. Cut to SAUL, responding to GRACE: “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’d like to see what you look like with a sandwich board.”
  9. Voice-over narrator: Directed by Great Salt Lake Fringe audience-choice-award-winner Josh Patterson… 
  10.  Cut to KATHERINE, speaking to SAUL (Scene 3): “I know, I know. You’re just putting the ‘action’ into climate action.”
  11. Voice-over narrator: Seize The Initiative! is a romantic comedy about falling in love… 
  12. Cut to LANCE, at a wedding giving a toast (Scene 9): “I recently had a vasectomy…”
  13. Voice-over narrator: …with democracy.
  14. Cut to KATHERINE, speaking to GRACE and SAUL (Scene 6): “This campaign is doomed.”
  15. Voice-over narrator: Coming July 26 to the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival. 
  16. Cut to NIKKI, speaking with GRACE (Scene 4): You know how some men, they’re only after one thing? What if signature-gathering is his one thing?

Soundtrack ideas

Here’s my dream soundtrack (still working on music rights!)

  • “Classic Hoagie” (Stretch Armstrong, 1994). This song (by an Utah ska band!) plays as the intro to Scene 1. Thanks to Scott van Wagenen for permission to use this song at Fringe!
  • “9 to 5” (Dolly Parton, 1980). The first 20 seconds or so plays after the first signature-gathering success in Scene 1.
  • “Sometimes It Takes Balls to Be a Woman” (Elizabeth Cook, 2007). The first 20 seconds or so plays after the second signature-gathering success in Scene 1. 
  • “Do the Lasso” (Justin Champagne, 2020). The first 20 seconds or so plays after the third signature-gathering success in Scene 1.
  • “Fight for Your Right (to Party)” (Beastie Boys, 1986). The first 20 seconds or so plays after the fourth signature-gathering success in Scene 1.
  • “Wawa Hoagies” (Aaron Out, 2017, produced by Casimir Pokorny). [Note: Parts of the video contain profanity and a bit of mild nudity. ALT: Family Edit.] The section of about 0:25-0:59 plays at the end of Scene 1, and about 0:59-1:30 plays at the end of Scene 2. Thanks to Aaron Brodsky for permission to use this song at Fringe!
  • “Sandwich Man” (Paolo Conte, 2004). The first 18 seconds plays at the end of Scene 3, and the next 12 seconds (or more) plays at the end of Scene 4. 
  • “You’re Not My Favourite Sandwich” (Elsa Birgitta Bekman, 2019). The first minute or so plays at the end of Scene 5 (and into the beginning of Scene 6), the instrumental bit at 2:16-2:30 plays at the end of Scene 6, and 3:34-3:57 plays at the end of Scene 7. Thanks to Elsa Birgitta Bekman for permission to use this song at Fringe!
  • “Do the Lasso” (Justin Champagne, 2020) returns at the end of Scene 8, maybe 0:21-0:34 or more.
  • “Sandwiches Are Beautiful” (Bob King, 1980) in Scene 9!

Graphics (and old Fringe info)

Here’s some updated graphics: a poster (PDF), a two-sided business card (PDF), a one-sided business card (PDF), and a square stand-alone image. All three of them are below.

 

Front / back (note that these are vertically-oriented):

 

Below here are some older (outdated) graphics:

Here’s three options for the poster (one-flag, ring, two-flags):

 

Here’s an older poster (needs some veggies!):

Here’s some other / older graphics:

 

 

Also here’s some old text about Fringe:

The six shows (at The Ballroom in Trolley Square) are:

  • F July 26 at 9:00pm  **  Sat July 27 at 4:30pm  **  Sun July 28 at 6:00pm
  • F Aug 2 at 7:30pm     **  Sat Aug 3 at 3:00pm     **  Sun Aug 4 at 6:00pm

Ticket option #1: You can get tickets from the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival. They sell single tickets for $15, or you can get a multi-pack of tickets (3 for $35, 10 for $85) that you can use all for the same show or for all different shows. (Fringe shows range from plays to stand-up comedy to burlesque, each with a description and a rating from PG—the rating of our show—to R. See “How to Fringe” for details.) See below for Specific directions to the venue.

Ticket option #2 (with goodies!): IMHO the Fringe website is a little confusing, so another option is to get tickets from me (plus goodies!):

  • For $25 per ticket you’ll find waiting for you at the show a beautiful 11 x 17 show poster, plus I’ll get you set up with all the tickets you want—as long as they’re not already sold out! (I take Venmo @standupecon, or email/text me and we’ll figure it out: yoram@standupeconomist.com, 206-351-5719.)
  • If you want to support the show even more, kick in an extra $100 to have your show poster signed by the cast plus get a signed copy of my Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change!
  • Want to do even more? For $500 you can get your name on the show poster as a supporter. (Just like Betty Tanzey, Dave Kozin, Dennis J. Mullen, Hazen Babcock, Mandie Weinandt, and Toby Adelman, who are on the show poster right now!) Added bonus for $500 donors: If the play ends up in Hollywood then I’ll do my best to list you as a co-producer: if I walk the red carpet then you walk the red carpet!

Don’t live in SLC? For just $50 I will mail you a beautiful 11 x 17 show poster, for $150 the cast will sign your poster (or you can upsize to a 14 x 22 “window card“-sized poster or get a signed copy of my Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change), for $500 you can get your name on the show poster as a supporter… and for considerably more we might be able to bring the show to you! We’re exploring shows around Utah and Idaho, on the west coast, on the east coast… and anywhere in between, so let’s talk! (yoram@standupeconomist.com, 206-351-5719, and PS I take Venmo @standupecon.)


Specific directions to the venue in SLC: Give yourself extra time to find The Ballroom in Trolley Square because we only have an hour for the play, so we will start right on time! If you’re driving, I strongly recommend these exact steps: (1) From 600 South, turn north onto 600 East, then pretty much right away—after about 100 feet—turn right into the (free) underground parking lot for Trolley Square. (2) Continue straight and go down the ramp to the lower level, then find a place to park near the bottom of the ramp because that’s where the elevator is; you will see the word “ELEVATOR” painted in giant letters. (3) Take the elevator to the top level. (4) As you exit the elevator, The Ballroom will be immediately behind you. (You will be facing south as you exit the elevator, and you will probably see a sign in front of you saying “Alliance Theatre”. Don’t go that way! The Ballroom is to your north.) See this graphic, and/or see the “Attend” page of Great Salt Lake Fringe.

PG bits

Here’s my account of PG bits, i.e., parts that are even the slightest bit risqué (note that many of these can be edited if needed):

  • Scene 1: There’s a suggested clip of music from “Sometimes It Takes Balls to Be a Woman” (Elizabeth Cook, 2007); this song is about women’s empowerment, not sex, but still: balls. Also, BOB/LANCE says “I like dirty air” with a suggestion that perhaps he could say it in a sexy/dirty way.
  • Scene 2: LANCE drinks beer. NIKKI makes a sandwich joke about “condiments”, a play on words with “condoms”. And the suggested end-of-scene music involves smoking, drinking, and flirting.
  • Scene 3: Lots of double entendre at the beginning when GRACE and SAUL talk about signature-gathering being “hot”, “You were amazing last night”, etc.
  • Scene 4: There’s a line about how in politics “it helps to have a sausage and some white bread.”
  • Scene 6: LANCE drinks beer, and LANCE and SAUL talk about The Myth of Sisyphus, an essay by French philosopher Albert Camus about whether suicide is an appropriate response to the absurd futility of life. (He argues that it isn’t: “One must imagine Sisyphus happy. The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man’s heart.”)
  • Scene 8: At the end, GRACE and SAUL (back-to-back, both wearing sandwich boards) rub up against each other, and GRACE  says something suggestive in response to a question from SAUL (“What are going to do between now and then?” / “I’ve got some ideas”).
  • Scene 9: LANCE drinks beer. He also tells a vasectomy joke.