Steve Edwards

Host: Drama of a difference frequency returns this weekend to the stages of Strawdog Theatre... This Sunday Strawdog embarks on the third installment of its ongoing exploration of old style radio theatre. Strawdog Wireless Programme Three features new radio plays, a live band, and complete foley effects all performed in front of a live audience at the fictitious WRLS studios. Strawdog Wireless is the brainchild of director James Anthony Zoccoli and Artistic Director Nic Dimond. Nic Dimond says this type of performance is theatre of the mind.

ND: The concept behind this kind of radio drama leaves so much to the imagination. It's almost like reading a novel. You know where the images are laid out and you get to interpret them however you want and that just fits so nicely with the way we like to approach things in general. And also, I have to say, it's just fun.

Host: What's different about doing a radio drama than doing a normal theatrical play:

ND: For me it emphasizes the writing even more. It makes it really important for the story to hang together and be cohesive. Whereas when you're dealing more kind of standard theatrical stuff, it leaves a little more room for interpretation. It needs to be pretty solid on the page before we even put it up on music stands and microphones. But then after that it feels really similar to me. It feels like you go through the same process of discover and trying to mine each different moment. Figure out what exactly is going on. Figure out how the different people are reacting and the really neat thing about the way that we're approaching it is it's a stage show as well. So there are physical aspects of it that you won't be able to pick up on when you're listening to the radio but the all the folks in the studio audience are rolling in the aisles. It all goes back to earlier in the century; this hourly radio variety show idea. The King Biscuit Flower Hour back in the day.

Host: What was the inspiration for WRLS?

JAZ: We wanted to do radio plays as best we could, but again give the audience in the theatre as much spectacle as possible. And there was no easier way to do that than to create a mythological radio station. And the people of the ensemble and all the players who have come into the process just helped build that character. And the word "wireless" became synonymous with this project - it sort of a working title because sort of the first way we referred to radio as a culture - was the "wireless." And then WRLS just came out of that when we were looking for call letters and everything slowly but surely snowballed and now we have this crazy culture of this station

ND: We try to approach it with the idea of having three feature pieces for each. And then, on top of that, is the WRLS world, where we get to see the machinations of, like, which of the actors dig each other. Which of the actors have a long-standing beef.

ND: This is a play about a cast of actors doing a radio play with three different radio plays embedded. Yeah I know, it's crazy.

Host: Well how would you describe, James, the character and format of WRLS?

JAZ: Well the character and the format of WRLS is ever changing. We try to put WRLS in the most interesting of circumstances. So, for instance, in Programme Three, after the foibles of the previous two... In Programme One we see the station under the investigation of the FCC. In Programme Two we the a number of crazy mishaps which lead to the entire station staff being arrested. And then in Programme three we find them in their darkest days doing a pledge drive trying to them earn the money to pay for their FCC fines and legal fees etc and they are in their last hour of; imagine this people 2184 hours, 13 whole weeks, of pledge drive programming.

Host: It's the pledge drive to end all pledge drives. So that's the backdrop against which WRLS Programme Three unfolds and then we have three specific plays that are performed by the players. And there is another story here that related directly to the radio. This is a play by Brett Nevue who's received a lot of acclaim for the work that he's done her in Chicago and beyond. This particular story talks about a love affair with radio. What happens in this piece?

JAZ: it is the most nostalgic piece of our presentation this time around and harkens back to the 40's radio days. And shows us a guy who is sort of down on his luck but has a lot of high aspirations, and does indeed love the radio and wants to be on the radio despite his obvious inadequacies.

HOST: Well Strawdog wireless Programme Three kicks off this Sunday and runs through the 31st on Sundays and Mondays at the Strawdog Theatre. The artistic director of Strawdog Theatre is Nic Dimond. James and Nic, thanks very much.

ND: Thank you very much for having us.