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Places Please, Act One:

Selections from Warren Kliewer’s

“Poems around and about theatres”;

Liturgies, Games, Farewells;

Red Rose and Grey Cowl

 

Performed by Michèle LaRue

Cliff Goodwin: Production Consultant

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Warren Kliewer called his theatre poems “a glimpse into the private lives of a public art form.” This exuberant spoken-word performance also glimpses into the private and public lives of the author, who grew up in rural Minnesota – in a community of German-speaking Mennonites whose values and traditions frowned upon the frivolous. 

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Kliewer was a much-published poet and essayist before he ran away to join the theatre – as actor, director, playwright, and producer. Those talents and the pull of his heritage inform these offerings.

 

From a nightmare-ridden scenic designer to a day-dreaming gardener, from a bewildered New York playwright to a stubborn Kansas farm wife, from an accident-prone diva to an adventuring eight-year-old: these poems are tiny one-acts of compelling drama and insightful comedy.

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Places Please, Act One comprises 35 poems and 41 speakers. One hour long, it is simply staged and adaptable to most performance situations. A discussion period or lecture is optional.

 

""""""""  Reviews  """"""""

 

    “Vivid, evocative, and wholly original.”  

Simi Horwitz, award-winning arts journalist

 

“These poems . . . were written to be heard, to be performed; these are performance poems.“

Raylene Hinz-Penner, foreword,  

Places, Please, Act One 

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“For anyone who cherishes theatre, the poems in Places, Please, Act One are a delightful discovery. Brimming with insider wit and wisdom, they are also immediately accessible to all. Michèle LaRue’s skillful and vibrant interpretation of multiple characters captures with humorous affection, all the charm of this truly original material.”

Karl Levett, critic, Back Stage Weekly

 

“Places, Please abounds with Kliewer’s intimate knowledge of and love for the stage, for actors, for acting itself. LaRue’s voice is so intimate and emotional, yet controlled and completely in character.”

Angelo Verga, Curator of Poetry & Spoken Word, Cornelia Street Café, N.Y.C.

 

“A fine poet, Warren Kliewer had a genuinely warm feeling toward flawed human beings, and a sense of humor. He also had a sharp, steely eye for human foibles and idiocies.”

Allen Davis III, Director, Playwrights Unit,

The Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, N.Y.C.

 

“They're great!!!  And absolutely right on!”

Carrie Robbins, Broadway costume designer; playwright

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