AudenSTAGE TO SCREEN: In Conversation with David Auburn

Dates and Venue 26 April 2014, 3pm | Vancity Theatre, 1181 Seymour St

Reviewer Ed Farolan

This new event series produced by entertainment journalist/publicist Katherine Brodsky (Random Minds) and Aaron Craven (Actor/Artistic Director, Mitch & Murray Productions) is a newly launched on-going series seeking to bring film and theatre talents to Vancouver to dialogue with and inspire Vancouver's creative community through informative interaction.

The first invited guest was New York-based David Auburn, playwright, director and screenwriter who won the Pultizer Prize and a Tony Award for his play Proof. His films include The Girl in the Park (2007), his directorial debut, which was screened and followed by a Q&A. His other film was Lake House (2006) starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock which he wrote as a screenplay but didn't direct. After a 1.5h dinner break, the audience was treated to a live stage reading of Auburn’s play Proof, featuring some of Vancouver’s top actors.

During the Q & A, I asked him what his preference was: theatre or film. He said he enjoyed doing film more than theatre. I found him quite frank and humorous at times. When someone commented that the film which stars Sigourney Weaver had a feminine touch to it, he quipped that there was nothing feminine about him as he was a black belter in karate and a macho man.

It was interesting to find out more about Sigourney. In this movie, we heard her singing, and Auburn said that she wasn't lip-singing, and that she really knows how to sing. This Alien actress, according to Auburn, is also very meticulous when it comes to acting. I guess the audience got their $47 worth of interacting with this top talent who did give a lot of insights on working in theatre and film.

© 2014 Ed Farolan