Dizzy Miss Lizzie’s Roadside Revue

Q	Briefly describe your background/training.
A	STEVE: No real formal training. I got hooked on theatre in high school, I also got hooked on rock and roll. I taught myself to play guitar (and a few other instruments). I played clubs (way too many) and toured after I got out of school. Played in a few bands that had minimal success. Put out some records and CD's and ended up getting back into theatre .I just love that DMLRR combines both the music that I love with all the aspects of theatre that I love. I guess you could say my training came from listening, watching, and doing. DEB: Growing up, I was surrounded by music, theatre, ballet, opera, art, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, you name it. I wrote, directed and starred in many productions in my backyard, thanks to a very supportive audience i.e. my family. I started dance lessons at 4, piano lessons at 9 and doing theatre when I was 10. As far as college goes, I started out pursuing a music degree at Catholic University but would up finishing with a degree in theatre from NYU. And I have been working in theatre ever since!
Q	How old were you when you knew you wanted to be an artist?
A	STEVE: Maybe around 10. An artist, rock star, or hockey player. Those were the big ones for me. DEB: 10.
Q	Who is your greatest professional inspiration and why?
A	STEVE: That is a hard one to answer. Inspiration might be John Lennon or all the Beatles. They were a combination of everything for me. There is also my high school theatre teacher (Don Cox). He was the first person that thought I had the talent to do this. He is gone now but I often think he would really dig what Deb and I do. There are many other. I am inspired by real people that take chances. DEB: Now that I am in the DMLRR era of my professional life, I would say Pete Townshend is a huge inspiration. Other artists in the 60's and 70's who created all of this exciting work that crossed over from rock into concept albums and theatre — like Tommy, Quadrophenia, Pink Floyd's The Wall, David Bowie. There was so much experimentation that crossed over genres. The Beatles weren't afraid to mix music hall-esque songs with rock and beautiful ballads all on the same album. I find the artistic freedom of that era to be very inspiring.
Q	How do you manage wearing different 'hats' as a self-producing artist? What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?
A	STEVE: Very carefully. Strengths are my tenacity;, weakness is my organization. DEB: It's difficult. I am not a business person nor am I very assertive with marketing and networking. We are hoping to expand our organization to include someone with strengths in those areas. But I'd like to think that the creative elements are definitely my strength. I'm not so bad with the organization elements either.
Q	As a self-producing artist, what qualities make for a good show idea in your opinion, and what is typically your first step in realizing your artistic vision?
A	STEVE: Just doing something that speaks to you. At the end of the day you can only please yourself and the person you are working with (I am lucky to have a partner with a like vision, Debra). The first step is coming up with a cool idea. DEB: Great stories and strong characters — also, something that we haven't been over-saturated with in our culture. First step: RESEARCH! Lots of reading.
Q	How much material do you prepare for a show, and what percentage of it typically makes it into the final performance?
A	STEVE: Tons. That is hard to say, sometimes it is very hard to let something go, but it my come back you never know. DEB: By the time a show gets to Fringe, it's probably the 5th version of the piece. Tons of material is cut, added, revised, re-revised. Probably 50% makes it into the final version. We start out with a vision of what we want the piece to be — the vision usually stays pretty much the same — all of the material has to serve that vision.
Q	Speaking as a spectator, what do you look for in performance?
A	STEVE: Passion, believability. DEB: Something new. And genuine. Innovative. A well thought out and realized vision and concept.
Q	What makes your work unique?
A	STEVE: The way we combine the music with the script. Very few groups do what we do. DEB: The marrying of so many different influences and genres. The performance style. The fact that most of us are playing instruments and acting. We're a rock band/theatre company. Not too many of those around. Also, we perform only original material.
Q	What does 'success' mean to you?
A	STEVE: Just getting to do this as our only job, to be able to devote ourselves full time to this. DEB: Finding an audience and reaching an audience that may not have previously enjoyed going to the theatre.
Q	Why are you doing the Capital Fringe Festival?
A	STEVE: The fringe is a fantastic place for a company like ours to present new work. It gives our audience the chance to see our shows in their very early stages, and gives us the chance to interact with our audience on such an intimate level. It is invaluable. DEB: We love Fringe! The audiences are amazing. It's the best environment to try out new work. It's great meeting other Fringe artists — seeing their work, hearing their stories and experiences. Being part of the Fringe community.