David Lindsay-Abaire

When I was in NYC I got to take part in a Master Class at the Cherry Lane Theatre in Greenwich Village. The guest playwright was David Lindsay-Abaire. He just won a pulitzer for "The Rabbit Hole" and also wrote "Wonder of the World", "Fuddy Mears" and "Kimberly Akimbo".

I made sure to take notes so I could share what I heard/learned and here it is...

His mentors were Christopher Durang & Marsha Norman. Whom he met when going to Julliard. He also mentioned learning from Stephen Belber who was a fellow student.

When asked why most of his leading roles are played by women he said he did it because women need more leading roles - he's trying to balance things .;) When he comes up with a story idea - he asks himself if it can be played by a man or women, if it doesn't matter - he makes the character a woman. And maybe his Mother (who has been a huge influence on his life) has influenced some of the creation of his female characters too.

He also tries to write each character so they all have their moment in the show no matter the size of the role. Any character could walk away with the show. He operates on the theory that he wants the parents to be proud even if their son/daughter is only playing Waitress #3.

He really doesn't have a set process for his writing, often his writing is dictated by deadlines. (Sounds like me!)

His advice to directors that deal with his more comedic scripts - "Don't put a hat on a hat." In order words, let the script be funny - don't add extra visual gags or overdo.

His thoughts on reviews - audience size matters! If it is a big audience the odds are more in your favor that the laugher will balance out the non-laughers. If you have a small venue with a couple laughers he thinks that affects the reviewer (whether they admit it or not).

Fuddy Meers - Was inspired by a story he saw on 20/20 about a man who woke up every morning without memories. He waited awhile to start writing the play, but when he did he had trouble tracking down the transcript to that story or finding any information on the medical phenonmenon. Had he dreamed it? He decided to proceed with the story anyway and then 4 years after it was published someone came to him with the illusive transcript.

Wonder of the World - Since the Broadway production, he has helped with another production of the show and cut 20 minutes out. Although he is still not satisfied. He is hoping to work with another production and cut another 5 minutes out and then he'll re-publish for use.

The Barbie Doll head storyline was inspired by a friend of his who worked in the ER and told him about a similiar incident. D L-A's good friend TR Knight called him from the set of Grey's Anatomy to tell him that they were using a similiar storyline and was concerned that they were ripping David off. David of course couldn't really prove anything and just had to chalk it up to the fact that others had heard that story from an ER friend too!

Rabbit Hole - The inspiration for this came from something he'd heard, "If you want to write a good play, write about things that terrify you most." He said it wasn't until he had a child that he fully understood those kind of feelings. Thus the lose of a child in Rabbit Hole.

Nicole Kidman has bought the rights to Rabbit Hole and DL-B is adapting it for the screen. He said screenwriting is where the money is. But the process is more difficult than playwrighting. Movies are a much more visual medium than plays so there is a shift from a lot of dialogue to something that can be shown on film. Dealing with those in Hollywood isn't always a picnic either - He had one Hollywood Exec tell him - "Oh! You're a playwright - that's so cute!"

But yet, he keeps adapting - cause that's where the money is. He recently adapted a kid's book , Inkheart, and is working on the sequel even though the first one isn't out yet! He said it is more difficult to adapt someone else's writing and was careful not to add too much "extra" as to stay true to the story. When the execs looked @ the first draft they told him they wanted more of what he had added. So he did - worried about the author, only to have the author tell him that he'd captured the story beautifully!

Kimberly Akimbo has also been adapted for the screen. Steven Spielberg (his wife drug him to see the show and he liked it) optioned the rights but it has not been greenlit yet. They want to cast a 16 year old and put "old person" makeup on her so they are testing the makeup before they proceed with production.

He wrote the book for "High Fidelity" and in retrospect said it was a terrible idea for a musical, because the "hero" really didn't have hero qualities. And if your lead in a musical isn't all that redeeming or likeable - that can be a problem.

Currently he is writing the book and lyrics (first time writing lyrics) for Shrek The Musical. He said they are adding more stuff to flesh out the story line and writing it has been the most fun he's ever had. Of course he can't wait for it to open so he can start making some money! :)

A book recommendation he gave - "The Playwright's Guidebook" by Stuart Spencer