backstage 2024
—our fetching bossa nova singer remains convinced that there is only one man that will have his way with her and that is the man she plans to have a family with— that’s funny right
Read More backstage 2024Author: Dana Smith
Author and Entertainer
physical comedy
If you are seated at your writing desk it may seem that the first task to attend to is bringing the words of your characters to life on the page. Often the story unfolds by what the characters say, much less attention is given to how a character moves, what they are wearing, even the […]
Read More physical comedymuscle memory movie
A good few words are nice, a sharp eye catching visual is priceless.
Read More muscle memory movielove with road closures
Men are just that one subway stop away from a more fully realized understanding of love.
Read More love with road closuresPaul’s Slide Changes Everything
To the north near Carmel is Malpaso Creek and to the south near San Simeon is San Capoforo Creek, between the two is Big Sur. Erupting out of the Pacific Ocean rise the Santa Lucia Mountains. The Coast Highway rises and falls here, its winding path cuts through the steep rock and rubble, the highway […]
Read More Paul’s Slide Changes EverythingRoad Closure Landslide Barricades
Truth as told by a highway traffic control worker turns out to be worth its weight in barricades. Our trip north from Morro Bay up the Coast Highway would terminate 50 miles from our start at Limekiln State Park. This is where we meet the grizzled veteran of many a highway closures. Born in Bakersfield […]
Read More Road Closure Landslide BarricadesCliffhanger
We drive to camp south of Big Sur. We’ll head over to Death Valley for two days, then to Grapevine Canyon Petroglyphs. This last stop isn’t too far from Searchlight, Nevada where the pugilistic Harry Reid got his first haircut and fistfight. I’m still plotting out the next screenplay— Cliffhanger— that’s a working title of […]
Read More CliffhangerBlame it on the Bossa Nova
Key decision in my run up to the next screenplay is selecting the music tracks. Even if things all get tossed out, I like building a file of songs that catch the flavor. Bossa is of course Brazilian built for yearning, heartbreak and pathos. You want to dance you’ll play a samba. Bye, Bye […]
Read More Blame it on the Bossa NovaWhat the World Needs Now—
I’ll never forget seeing West Side Story for the first time. Until that moment I had thought the American musical could never accommodate what Bernstein, Sondheim and Jerome Robbins would stage for audiences. West Side Story’s impact was like St Peppers Lonely Heart Club Band, 2001 A Space Odyssey—these are not insignificant moments, we don’t […]
Read More What the World Needs Now—Maestro—
Capturing Leonard Bernstein’s life would revolve around the story of his extraordinary marriage to Felicity— Felicia Montealegre Bernstein—
Read More Maestro—