DIRECTING AND/OR DEVELOPING YOUR PROJECT: Fringe shows and independent theatre productions vary greatly in terms of what it takes to get them ready for performance. On LOVE, MADNESS AND SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN, I worked at length with writer/producer/actor Jim Cox editing and shaping the script and advising on revisions before we actually started rehearsal. Other shows have completed this process and are ready for a director to step in and begin the rehearsal process. I've directed more than 30 new plays and musicals and my involvement has ranged from significant developing of the material prior to production, to shows already fully cast and designed, wherein I join the team just prior to the rehearsal period.
I also have a great deal of experience producing theatre in Los Angeles. For any projects I direct, I am also open to operating as a producer/co-producer or production adviser.
Each show is different in terms of what is required of the director. Thus, the first step is for the producer(s) to consult with me to determine the scope of my contributions. The next step is, of course, the fun part: working with the producer(s), writer(s) and/or performers on the creative path we will embark on.
Naturally, the fees for my services depend on how much my duties extend beyond direction of the show. The best way to start this discussion is to contact me with the basics of your production: dates, venue, rehearsal location*, type of show (solo/play/musical), cast size and where the production currently stands in terms of readiness of material, cast, designers, etc.
And feel free to contact me with any questions about my work, my approach, my process, or anything else!
I look forward to hearing about your project!
* I have a rehearsal studio in my home in Boyle Heights (near downtown Los Angeles) that is available to all productions I am involved in.
SHOW DOCTOR: What is a "show doctor?" For almost as long as there has been theatre, there have been show doctors. The term was originally coined in the golden age of Broadway, when shows had significant tryout tours out-of-town, rehearsing during the day, running preview performances at night. Shows in trouble and even shows with just minor problems would call in experienced directors, playwrights and/or producers who were not previously involved with the project. They would, via a "new set of eyes" watch rehearsals and previews, then share their notes and thoughts on how to fix or improve the show. Some of Broadway's biggest name directors and writers moonlighted as show doctors (Jerome Robbins, Arthur Laurents, Mike Nichols). Perhaps the most prolific "show doctor" was Neil Simon, who was called in so often to diagnose and cure various productions, be became known as "Doc Simon" to many who knew him.
I have been called in as a show doctor on many occasions, both officially, unofficially and confidentially, and have always been able to make the show better, whether I recommended drastic changes or just small or sublte ones.
The "doctor" is always in...and I make housecalls.
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TRACE OAKLEY is a veteran theatre director with more than 60 productions to his credit. He has more than 100 additional productions to his credit as either actor, playwright, producer, or administrator, working in his home town of Denver, on Broadway and Off-Broadway, both coasts, and on national and international tours. Los Angeles directing credits include THE MANITOU HOUSE, which he also wrote, LOVE, MADNESS AND SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN, THE TRIAL OF DALI (Hollywood Fringe Festival), ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, RUDDIGORE (Proof Doubt Closer Theatre Company), PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (Culver City Public Theatre) PEARLY GATES (El Portal Theatre), CRIMES OF THE HEART (Windward JG), LOVERS AND OTHER STRANGERS (Avery Schreiber Playhouse), BOB CRATCHIT AND MR. TIGHTWAD (Secret Rose Theater), STANDING ON MY KNEES (Collaborative Artists Ensemble), THE ACCIDENTAL CLUB (Whitefire Theatre) and 'CARRIE' THAT TUNE: HIT SONGS FROM FLOP MUSICALS, which he also conceived and wrote. Trace worked on the Off-Broadway and Broadway productions of ROLLIN’ ON THE TOBA, and later stage managed and co-directed the Los Angeles production. He received a United Nations medal for distinguished service for his U.S. Department of Defense touring production, HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE WHODUNNIT, which performed at military bases throughout Europe. Recent regional credits include HEDDA GABLER and ANNA CHRISTIE for Northern New England Repertory Theatre Company and RADIUM GIRLS, as artist-in-residence for Stage III Theater in Casper, WY. Other directing credits include A CHRISTMAS CAROL (where he had the distinction of giving future teen heartthrob Zac Efron his first professional acting job), BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE, and SISTER MARY IGNATIUS, and more than 15 world premieres at Denver’s historic Changing Scene Theatre. He served as artistic director for Denver’s famed Chicken Lips Comedy Theatre, where he also co-starred in Murder Most Fowl, the longest running show in Denver theatre history. Trace is the proud co-founder of the Proof Doubt Closer Theatre Company, now in its fifth year.