All Eyes on Me

This scene was Naomi Ibasitas’s suggestion. When we were filming Base Instruments this summer, we needed ensemble in Victorian eveningwear to fill out the ballroom scene, and Naomi offered to put on her Rosaline costume from Gentlemen Never Tell, and it sparked the idea that Rosaline was actually at the same ball, noticing Justin being his rakish self in that scene. There’s a moment where Clara exits with some other guests to chat, and Naomi suggested that it’s in that moment that Clara herself was the person who told Rosaline about Justin. I loved that idea; I think the two of them would get along. So here’s a very rough attempt at imagining how that little exchange would have happened.



( Day #5 - Sisters Against Strange Men )

October Review Challenge, #12 - "What is the most sympathetic villain you've ever written?"

This one I struggled with a bit. This was the second one suggested by my friend Jonathan, and I probably would not have considered adding it on my own.

Being the English teacher I am, I like to establish a definition for a concept before I use it. Antagonists are the figures in the story trying to prevent the protagonist from reaching their goals, but villainy I would characterize as when an antagonist has malicious intentions or is specifically supposed to be in the wrong. I frequently use non-villainous antagonists for the purpose of having conflict that’s not so cut and dried as somebody doing a good thing versus doing somebody a bad thing. It’s a great way to introduce shades of gray and complication.

However, I do love a good villain. Particularly when they’re genuinely wicked. To the point where if I want them sympathetic, I tend to keep them more toward the mere antagonist side, and if I let me them a real villain, they tend to be pretty nasty. So this makes it a little tricky to pick one who I genuinely want you to feel for.

There’s barely a villain to be had, with the exception of the intentionally broad General Hacksaw from part three, in any of the first four episodes of Dream Machine. Instead, most of the conflict there is interpersonal, between characters who are varying degrees of wrong but ultimately trying their best. Mrs. Hawking has a new villain almost every show, but most of them are supposed to be embodiments of various Victorian social ills— misogyny, class predation, systemic abuse or neglect —and so are rarely meant to be sympathized with. In Adonis, the majority of the characters are AWFUL, some to the point of being gross, to create a sense of the brutal world.

What I do frequently have is people who are responsible for some horrible act that was in some part driven by their circumstances. I frequently write about social ills, particularly ones that create negative environments that force people into terrible positions. So I do often make use of villains whose actions are not defensible, but who likely would not be forced into such desperate conditions if not for the unfairness around them. Without spoiling them, the solutions to at least two of my mysteries— Hawking IV: Base Instruments and The Tailor at Loring’s End —factors this in heavily. Even a character like Elizabeth Frost in the second Hawking trilogy, easily one of my wickedest, has to fight through the impossible position her class crushed her into, and the hugely unfair expectations placed on her as a too-young governess to a girl only five years her junior.



So of course I like making the conflict one that has more dimensions than just good-guy-versus-bad-guy. But no-villainy is a path I more often take than sympathetic-villainy.

October Review Challenge, #5 - "What theme shows up frequently in your work?"

By theme, I mean the ideas one deals with frequently in one's writing, the ideas that you like to ponder and explore. I am a very theme-focused writer— I couldn't even write a silly comedy without trying to say something with it —so naturally I have quite a few that I'm particularly interested in that show up frequently.

So I have plenty to choose from. Gender roles. Sexual objectification. The power of charisma. Learning to recognize and dismantle one's privilege. Claiming and reclaiming agency. The terrifying ordeal of being known. The pain and power of hope. Ego versus selflessness in attempting to do great things. I asked people once on Facebook what they thought my most persistent ones were, and these were among those that showed up in the responses.

But when I made this list I picked one at random to talk about, so I think today I'm going to discuss a very persistent one, fear of aging. While most writers tend to themes because they find them interesting, this is one is REAL personal for me, since it's basically my own biggest fear. I'm afraid of losing my looks, losing my physical capabilities. And I'm afraid of being forgotten about and dismissed, in our culture where unattractive and fragile old women are routinely pushed aside. I've always felt like a lot of people don't notice my inner qualities until they notice my outer ones, many of which fade with age, so it's something that haunts my thoughts.

As my most significant project, Mrs. Hawking naturally has a lot of examples of my style. But the lead character of Mrs. Hawking is profoundly afraid of aging in her own way. She's not concerned with her appearance like I am, but her work by which she determines her whole identity is dependent on her physical capability. She's forty years old when we meet her in 1880, and her society already considers her an old woman even though she's not. But by the time she gets injured in part III: Base Instruments, she's reminded of how her work will grind her down physically, and it will only get harder as she gets older. The idea terrifies her, because if she gets to the point where she can't be a society avenger, she doesn't know who'll she'll be. The second trilogy of Mrs. Hawking the issue really kicks in, and from here on out she's going to be forced to confront that her superhero life is finite. I believe you always should make your hero go through the thing that is hardest for them, and this is what Mrs. Hawking will have to deal with if she is truly to grow.



It's also an issue in my new comedy project, Dream Machine. The lead character Leah is a fairly extreme and ridiculous parody of myself, so naturally I've taken my little issue with aging and blown it out of proportion with her as well. Although weirdly with her, I've had her already decide she's a crone and is just focused on staying looking hot. I plan to have this frequently occur with her. But episode 3 in its entirety is about another character, the Robert Downey, Jr.-inspired second lead Ryan, dealing with the fact that he's aging. For him it's about figuring out how to change with the world around him, because, as the first rule of narrative states, the only alternative to change is death. That is frequently the challenge posed to a character afraid of aging— are they going to figure out how to change to survive and thrive as they're no longer armored with their youth as they once were?

Not all my themes are quite so personal as this one. But because it speaks to my own feelings, I think I have some thoughts about it that come from somewhere real.

New photo gallery on Mrshawking.com!

Photography by Annushka Munch
Costume design by Jennifer Benfield
Makeup design by Jessicalee Skary
Set design by Bernie Gabin
Production design by Phoebe Roberts

Arisia 2018

Base Instruments - ACT I

Featuring Cari Keebaugh as Mrs. Hawking, Circe Rowan as Mary, Jeremiah O'Sullivan as Nathaniel, Matthew Kamm as Arthur, Sara Smith as Clara, Christian Krenek as Justin, Jackie Freyman as Miss Zakharova, Andrew Prentice as Lord Seacourse, Lucas Commons-Miller as Chernovsky, Jennifer Benfield as Miss Sherba, and Sara Dion and Travis Ellis as Ensemble.

Check out the gallery today!

New gallery on Mrshawking.com!

Photography by Annushka Munch
Costume design by Jennifer Giorno
Makeup design by Jessicalee Skary
Set design by Bernie Gabin
Production design by Phoebe Roberts

"Base Instruments" Act II
by Annushka Munch

from "Base Instruments" at Arisia 2017

Featuring Cari Keebaugh, Circe Rowan, Jeremiah O'Sullivan, Arielle Kaplan, Eric Cheung, Sara Smith, Matthew Kamm, and Ava Maag.

Click here to view the gallery of images from the show!

New gallery on Mrshawking.com!

"Gallery – Base Instruments at Arisia ’17 - Act One"

Photography by Annushka Munch
Costume design by Jennifer Giorno
Makeup design by Jessicalee Skary
Set design by Bernie Gabin
Production design by Phoebe Roberts

Arisia 2017

Base Instruments - ACT I

Featuring Cari Keebaugh, Circe Rowan, Jeremiah O'Sullivan, Arielle Kaplan, Matthew Kamm, Eric Cheung, Sara Smith, Andrew Prentice, Isaiah Max Plovnick, Ava Maag, Sara Dion, and Travis Ellis. Photography by Anna Muench with costume design by Jenn Day.

New post on Mrshawking.com!

"Performances at Arisia 2017 accomplished!"



At Arisia 2017 this past weekend, Mrs. Hawking brought its two most recent shows, part 2: Vivat Regina, and the world premiere of part 3: Base Instruments. And I am so delighted to report that the performances went great.



Read the rest of the entry on Mrshawking.com!

New post on Mrshawking.com!

"Cast lists for Vivat Regina and Base Instruments at Arisia 2017!"

We have finalized our casts for our shows at Arisia 2017, Mrs. Hawking parts 2 and 3, Vivat Regina and Base Instruments!



Read the rest of the entry on Mrshawking.com!

New blog entry on Mrshawking.com!

"Challenges of staging Base Instruments

This fall we’re going to be going into rehearsals for Base Instruments, the third installment of the Hawking series. I’m extremely excited. Not only is Base Instruments the first true mystery of the series, in my opinion, each installment is better than the last, and so this most recent one is the best story yet. I can’t wait to bring that our audiences at Arisia 2017 next winter. But in moving on to this show, we’re definitely inviting new challenges in the staging process!



Read the rest of the entry on Mrshawking.com!

New post on Mrshawking.com!"

"Recording of Base Instruments staged reading"

Were you hoping to catch the Bare Bones staged reading of Mrs. Hawking part three, Base Instruments, but couldn't make the performance date? Well, turns out you are in luck, because we were able to capture the reading for your listening pleasure!



The following two files on the Mrs. Hawking YouTube channel have recording of the audio of the Base Instruments reading. Act one is in the first recording and act two is in the second. The quality is not perfect, as they were recorded on the fly during the reading, but they do a good job capturing the performances and the reactions of the audience.

Watch on YouTube

What I particularly enjoy about these is they preserve the natural responses of the listeners in the moment. I really enjoy noting what lines got laughs-- Eric Cheung as Justin Hawking had scenes where it was almost a one-to-one laugh-to-line ratio! And I really got a kick out of the charmed reaction they had to the scene between Mary and Arthur. It even draws my attention to where there WASN'T the response I was expecting, so I know where to examine more closely for editing. And of course it captures the awesome performances of the actors. I was really lucky to work with such a talented cast, many of whom were switching not just between characters, but also accents!

So if you missed the Bare Bones reading, please give these a listen. It's a great way to take in the story of Base Instruments, performed by talented people with live audience feedback, just the way a show like that is intended.