Brad Forenza's SQUEAKY Streams Via The Hollywood Fringe This Sunday
Cyberspace - Squeaky, written and directed by Brad Forenza, will stream for free as part of the (virtual) Hollywood Fringe experience, on Sunday July 5, 2020 (6pm PT, 9pm ET)
Squeaky takes place in 2014 at the announced wedding of cult leader Charles Manson and his millennial bride. Squeaky, Manson's chief acolyte and the attempted assassin of Gerald Ford, has crashed the anticipated nuptials to stake her claim. As she holds the wedding guests hostage, she opines about the current state of affairs and the unavailable men in her life.
Re-conceptualized for a socially distanced Hollywood Fringe, five actors play different dimensions of the titular character. They include: Sara Eklund (Manson-era Squeaky), Brad Forenza (2014 Squeaky), Rosie Gunther (Poetic Squeaky), Brooke Hoover (Political Squeaky), and Roberta Lipp (Coffeehouse Squeaky).
Tom Pryor, who appears as the wedding officiant, indicated that re-conceptualizing Squeaky for a virtual audience proves "a great way to perform our craft." Fellow cast member, Sara Eklund, feels streamed theater is an effective way to "continue live performances in a time when we are isolated and need connection most."
For Brooke Hoover, isolation was a theme attributed to Squeaky herself. "As a child, I always felt empathy for Disney villains because I knew their cruelty came from fears of loneliness, failure, and abandonment. In Lynette [Squeaky]'s case, cruelty likely stems from some of those insecurities." Cast member Rosie Gunther observed that 2019's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood may have provoked "new intrigue" into these insecurities, and the ways in which they may have been exploited.
All actors agreed that the success of their performances hinged, in part, on approaching Squeaky from the inside-out. "Everyone thinks they are justified in their thoughts and actions, even if they do bad things and feel guilty about them," noted Roberta Lipp. "As an actor, your job is to convince the audience that your actions are justified, just like you'd try to convince anyone."
Squeaky, a story of unrequited love, political fanaticism, and one woman's quest for liberation, streams live (and for free) via the virtual Hollywood Fringe experience, on Sunday July 5, 2020 (6pm PT / 9pm ET): https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86392703419
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