This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:06] John Schwab: Hi, John Schwab here, and welcome to the Curtain Call Podcast.

[0:10] John Schwab: Curtain Call is the podcast that takes you deep behind the scenes of the theater world, bringing you in-depth conversations with the story makers that are shaping the future of theater.

[0:19] John Schwab: We pull back the curtain to reveal the stories behind the stories and give you a glimpse into the backstage world like, well, really know what the podcast does.

[0:27] John Schwab: This week I'm chatting with some of the cast and creative team behind the premiere of Eric Henry Sanders' play, Maybe Probably.

[0:34] John Schwab: A play about two couples as they navigate the hilarious waters of preparing to have a baby, or you know, having recently had one.

[0:41] John Schwab: Now we are all either the product of this process or have gone through it ourselves, so I know you can relate.

[0:49] John Schwab: Sanders isn't new to London and UK theater, with his work being seen here in London and the Edinburgh Fringe.

[0:56] John Schwab: And he's also worked with Maybe Probably's director, Lydia Parker, and it turns out that one of the cast members too, coincidentally cast in Sanders' first play.

[1:06] John Schwab: I won't tell you how long ago, because it would be unfair to both playwright and cast member, who is a friend of mine.

[1:14] John Schwab: Full disclosure, I sat down with Sanders and Parker as well as cast members Christy Meyer, Maria Teresa Creasey, and Lance Fuller.

[1:21] John Schwab: They spoke of the joys of returning to the theater and especially in a comedy, and also the process of discovering just what they could bring to the production from their personal experiences.

[1:32] John Schwab: Have a listen.

[1:44] Eric Henry Sanders: I am Eric Henry Sanders, and I'm the playwright of Maybe Probably.

[1:48] Christy Meyer: I'm Christy Meyer, and I'm playing Kate.

[1:51] Lance Fuller: My name's Lance Fuller and I play Hugh.

[1:54] Maria Teresa Creasey: My name is Maria Teresa Creasey and I play Zoe.

[1:58] John Schwab: Tell me, how did we get here?

[2:00] John Schwab: How did we get here?

[2:01] John Schwab: Where are we? Where does Maybe Probably... because I've read a little bit from the website? It's had a bit of a journey.

[2:06] John Schwab: It's won some awards, always good, you know, competitions and things.

[2:12] John Schwab: How we... if I can direct the questions to you back.

[2:15] Lydia Parker: Yeah, so Eric and I met back in, I think it was 2014 when I produced Obama America, which was a festival of short American plays at Theatre 503.

[2:27] Lydia Parker: And Eric had sent in his play Bong Hits for Jesus.

[2:33] Lydia Parker: Brilliant short play. Amazing.

[2:35] Lydia Parker: I didn't direct that one, but we stayed in touch, and he kept saying, you know, oh, I'd really like to play on in London, and we were torn between this and Reservoir, which I directed a reading of, I can't remember what year, but Christy was in that.

[2:53] Lydia Parker: And I said, you know, gosh, I love Reservoir, but it's so depressing. I really want to do a comedy.

[3:00] Lydia Parker: So we decided on Maybe Probably, and we've been talking about it for a long time, but then of course, pandemic hit.

[3:08] Eric Henry Sanders: I have no idea what you're talking about.

[3:11] Lydia Parker: So there was a bit of a delay, and then you know, we thought, you know what, this is the year to do it.

[3:20] Lydia Parker: So that here we are. And coming out of the pandemic seems like doing a comedy, sort of heartfelt comedy about renewal and birth and all these things just seemed really appropriate.

[3:31] Lydia Parker: So yeah. And was it strictly... have you thought about London as a place, as a city for it to come to? I mean, it's... you had a couple plays here now. Is it a place that you... a destination that you think your plays sit well with, Eric?

[3:45] Eric Henry Sanders: Absolutely. I mean, I live in Western Massachusetts, but generally, and you know, my background is in Chicago, but being from New York and having worked done in New York and working with Lydia here among others in London has been just absolutely perfect, and so it's, you know, two great theater towns, New York and London, and so hopefully this is the right spot for it, and maybe we can even bring it back there too.

[4:12] John Schwab: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And you guys just jump in. You know, there's no... we don't have to go around in a circle, it's not a meeting, as it were. Just how did you get involved? Was it Lydia reaching out, or did you hear about it? Was it casting or straight offer for me?

[4:31] Christy Meyer: Nice!

[4:32] Lance Fuller: What?

[4:34] Christy Meyer: Nice!

[4:35] Lance Fuller: You and I will talk later.

[4:39] Christy Meyer: I think I auditioned about 15 years ago when I did Eric's first play. I did Eric's first play called Mary's Annie at the Hudson Stage Company.

[4:47] Lance Fuller: Oh wow.

[4:47] Christy Meyer: And I knew him there, and we kind of reconnected when we did a reading that Lydia's already mentioned. And that was actually hilarious because Lydia cast Christy in that reading without knowing that we had this connection, and so, and in fact, I don't think I really knew that... like I saw your name, but it didn't really register until I saw you in person.

[5:05] Lance Fuller: Not until you came out.

[5:08] Christy Meyer: It's crazy. It's so great. So yeah, so um, yeah, so we did a reading, you know, we read through a couple years ago before the pandemic, and then the pandemic hit, and then well, did all of you do that reading, or did we both did, correct? Christy and I both did.

[5:23] Lance Fuller: What, the boys were just not like up to it?

[5:26] Christy Meyer: Were we both pregnant at the time as well?

[5:27] Lance Fuller: We were both pregnant at the time.

[5:32] Christy Meyer: Come on.

[5:33] Lance Fuller: We were both pregnant.

[5:34] Christy Meyer: That's insane.

[5:35] Lance Fuller: So I've worked with Maria before on Our American Cousin at the Fimbor and Christy, I worked with on the reading, Ross's reading. But I mean, I had... I don't know, I had Christy in mind right from the start as Kate. I just thought she is Kate. She has to play this, and you know, and after Maria did our little reading, you know, just in a studio, I was like, oh my god, yes. Maria is so easy, but it's really lovely to work with actors I've worked with before.

[6:09] Christy Meyer: Yeah.

[6:10] Lance Fuller: We just kind of understand each other.

[6:12] Christy Meyer: And that's... I've seen... I mean, I've seen you around. I don't know how much we've worked together, but you know, we've... I've seen you on the circuit here as well.

[6:21] Maria Teresa Creasey: Like, you know.

[6:24] Maria Teresa Creasey: We did a reading, like she directed, you know, American Actors UK, right? The play festival, and I was in a show she directed then and then when she would mention this show, I looked at who was already in it.

[6:40] Maria Teresa Creasey: Oh right, and I was like, those are all people I know and I want to work with. Like that was it. I was going, yes, because I know Christy, but we've never met in person. We knew each other, we knew of each other but had never met in person.

[6:53] Lance Fuller: Corey and I did one day on set together in 2016 for Conjuring 2.

[7:00] Christy Meyer: Okay.

[7:00] Lance Fuller: And so I remembered him, I'm not sure he remembered me, but you know, whatever. But it's fun because you're like, hey, we actually did meet each other once before, but yeah. So it was a really big draw before I'd even read the play to be like, yeah, totally, I want to work with all these people.

[7:17] Maria Teresa Creasey: And then...

[7:18] Christy Meyer: Once you read the play, you totally fell in love with it.

[7:20] Lance Fuller: Absolutely.

[7:20] Christy Meyer: That was... I could see Lance was going there.

[7:22] Lance Fuller: Yeah.

[7:23] Christy Meyer: The next thing.

[7:24] Lance Fuller: But that's it. Once you... you're like, sure, send me the play. And I read it that day and went, yeah, absolutely.

[7:28] Christy Meyer: Yeah.

[7:29] Lance Fuller: Because it's just, you know, when you read something go, ha, you know. Because it's easy, it's easier to laugh when there's other people doing stuff. And sometimes when you're reading it yourself, it's harder to have the joke land. But I was laughing, so I was like, yeah, I totally want to do this.

[7:42] Maria Teresa Creasey: But I think this is one of those rare plays where the dialogue jumps off the page at you. It's just a beautifully written script. And I mean, and anyone with a family or having had kids is gonna immediately just be so familiar with the situations and the horror and the hilarity and the enormous change of going from being kidless, childless, to what that introduces to your life.

[8:17] Christy Meyer: Because you know the hurricane that is people with young children, and you're like, whoa, thank god it's not me. And then it is you kind of.

[8:25] Lance Fuller: It's very cool. I mean, I'm just gonna put it out there. I'm gonna feel like we're on the other side of that, which is amazing.

[8:31] Christy Meyer: But um, but also, you know, we have a 14-year-old, he's not gonna listen to this, it doesn't matter. I mean, he could be a nightmare. I don't know. He's a great kid, but Sammy, if you are listening to this, buck up.

[8:45] Lance Fuller: No, um...

[8:48] Christy Meyer: I know, Sandy's good too.

[8:49] John Schwab: So we okay, we're getting a hint of what Maybe Probably is about. I should ask the playwright to give me a kind of synopsis of it.

[8:57] Eric Henry Sanders: Oh god, I haven't done the elevator pitch in a while.

[8:58] Eric Henry Sanders: It doesn't need to be the elevator, but you can fumble around it, I'm sure we'll get the gist. It's the story is about a couple in 10 scenes representing the 10 months leading up to the birth of their first child.

[9:12] Eric Henry Sanders: So each scene, as we progress from not having... not being pregnant and yet not even really wanting children, it progresses all the way to the moment before they're about to give birth.

[9:24] Eric Henry Sanders: So, but it's a comedy, and then there's this secondary couple, and they have a toddler, which off stage because having them on stage is a nightmare, and they are experiencing both the joys of parenthood, if we can put it that way, with the toddler, and also they're coming to their own decisions about having a second child.

[9:50] John Schwab: Okay.

[9:52] Christy Meyer: Okay, we are all parents here.

[9:55] Lance Fuller: Yes.

[9:56] Christy Meyer: So part of the funny thing is...

[9:56] Lance Fuller: Not less, not less, but the smuggest smile on his face, right?

[10:04] Christy Meyer: He's always the most... he's always the most well-rested.

[10:04] Lance Fuller: Well-rested.

[10:08] Christy Meyer: I guess commented on often.

[10:10] Lance Fuller: He knew his lines before anybody else. I was like, you have too much time on your hands.

[10:13] Christy Meyer: There's a natural joy in this.

[10:18] Lance Fuller: He's not worn down.

[10:20] Christy Meyer: His clothes are new, everything else.

[10:21] Christy Meyer: Well, clean. Corey's a dad. And actually, my daughter Sabrina used to babysit for his kids, which is a funny thing because he's kind of a neighbor of mine.

[10:22] Lance Fuller: Yeah, clean.

[10:31] Christy Meyer: But it is that thing where we'll be in rehearsal going, you know, what was your labor like? Oh my god, mine was like this, you know, and then go, oh, what was your pregnancy like? Comparing notes, you know, and then Eric now that he's here saying, 'Well, you know, for my wife it was like this, and Corey's saying, No, ours was like this. So it lots of experiences, which it brings it all back, but also, you know, when I read the play, well, for me, I'm from New York, both my daughters were born in Brooklyn. This takes place in Park Slope, Brooklyn, which was down the road, and it's like, wait a minute, that was me. I mean, it wasn't later in life, I have my kids much younger, but it's still, you know, it kind of brings back these memories of everything that you go through, and it was just so real for me, but also all the humor is very real too.

[11:21] Christy Meyer: And that's what I love about the play. It's a comedy, it's not slapstick, it's not farce. It comes from a very, very real place of the fears that you go through.

[11:31] Lance Fuller: Yeah, especially when you've waited almost four decades to have a child, and your life is pretty set, and you're pretty set in your ways, you know. But then that hour approaches of the eggs, you know, getting a bit old, and you kind of go, Well, this is our last shot.

[11:52] Eric Henry Sanders: Should we do it? Should we take that leap of faith? So it is, I think it is resonant for a lot of women that that wait these days to have a child.

[12:01] Lance Fuller: Yeah.

[12:02] Eric Henry Sanders: I was gonna say, in that moment, too. I think women sort of like the clock is ticking. I mean the clock is tough, ticked, that's not that's a different podcast.

[12:14] Maria Teresa Creasey: I know very, very good.

[12:16] Eric Henry Sanders: Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's a very nice. But you know, like that thing that I think that women universally, whether or not they decide to have children, do have that moment. I think I have friends who've been like that where they think, do I want to, do I not? And then they choose not to, but there is something like chemical, there's something hormonal in a woman that you sort of whether or not you choose to, something kicks in if you haven't done it. And I think it's quite common now for women to wait because you think in careers, you're thinking like what's you know, what's gonna happen, and then that thing happens where you're like, Yeah, maybe. And what I love about the play is, and I've I've done development work on this play in a number of places at the Goodman Theater and Florida Repertory Theater, and just uh and in New York at uh the new group and a bunch of other places.

And what I love about it, and first of all, I absolutely adore this cast. I love the people I'm working with. It's the exact right place to premiere it. And uh what but what's been wonderful about seeing uh audiences respond to it and seeing people develop it together, is that it always brings up this kind of connection to human to uh to their own experiences, their own connection to humanity in sort of a bigger, broader sense. And so there's there's all the humor of it, but there's there's this deep, you know, kind of connection of what it means to be human, and whether whether you're thinking about your your own parents and what they were going through when you were born, or whether you're going through the experience of being a new parent or or having kids who are older, um, it's always this just sort of joyous thing of like and and joyous and and um honestly like nerve-wracking, terrifying, terrifying, that's a good way to put it. Of just being a human. Now we're gonna take a tiny little break for a word from our sponsors.

[14:02] John Schwab: Be right back. Hey everyone, this is Salicia Thomas from Black Hair and the Big Leagues, part of the Broadway Podcast Network. Welcome back to the Curtain Call Podcast.

[14:14] John Schwab: Lance, are we making you feel like you should have babies? You should be a dad we're talking about.

[14:20] Lance Fuller: I mean, just on all honesty, as someone who doesn't have uh uh you know your own family uh with kids, um when you you're bringing something completely different to the piece because it's it feels like you know there is uh everyone else in the cast and uh creative team do have the family coming from a different angle, is it fun to play, you know, bringing something uh a different energy in?

[14:45] Lance Fuller: It it it is. I mean it's it's the interesting thing is like to be perfectly honest, we're coming at it from I'm coming at it from the perspective of it's not that we didn't try. Right. So um so some of the stuff we talk about is actually like I can relate to that. And it's whether or not at one point you you decide to play it as someone who's like, no, we just never did it, or you're someone who's like, I understand the struggles to get to that point, and then so you bring a lot of that.

[15:15] Eric Henry Sanders: Yeah, right. And this is an argument we've had, or not an argument, it's a discussion we've had, which is the character is very like seemingly chill, but I'm like, I think some of that comes from the struggle to get to where they got to.

[15:27] Maria Teresa Creasey: Yeah.

[15:28] Lance Fuller: I think you were talking about Eric, I think that that childhood, parenthood, you know, we all know people who have gone through, especially at our our ages, um who have had a had a struggle or who have had children or whatever. So I think as a related uh something that a play that someone can relate to, I think this is pretty spar on.

[15:50] Eric Henry Sanders: Yeah, it it's I think it's one of the nicest comments I had from an audience members, it was at the Florida repertory. Um, we had a big reading of it with about 250 people in the audience. And the the this woman stood up who was probably in her early 20s, and she said, I wasn't expecting to love this play because it wasn't a subject that I was particularly interested in. I'm not interested in having children at this stage of my life. Don't know if I ever will be, but but the the way that you but the humor and the way it was constructed and all of that, and and the connection, and I think she began thinking about her own parents and and their struggles. So it brought all that together in a way that's just so I was just so so joyous about that comment because it it seemed like her c it was meant to say it's relatable to a wider audience, not just parents.

[16:39] John Schwab: On uh on a completely different um still related on a different tack. I mean, we're still coming out of what you were talking about, you know, about this kind of thing. And um, you know, the big the big plays have all opened, they're back up and running, but the smaller theaters are still just beginning to kind of get back. Well, how important is it to put on something that is funny to get people back in and and you know the second part of that question is you know, why why should people come and see, maybe probably.

[17:12] Eric Henry Sanders: Wow, I mean, I think you know, not just for the laps. I mean, I have to say, when I tell my friends, and I'm like, it's a comedy this time, and the the look of relief on their faces, you know, but also I mean, I I think it's it's more than that. This is very heartfelt. It's it's about like Eric keeps saying, it's a love story, it's about a love story about a couple who decide to have a baby, and a lot of their worry is: is this going to change who we are? You know, and I think that's a major part of this story. It it's funny, but it's also there's so much more underneath it for me. And I think just coming out of a period of isolation. I'm so thrilled to be back in the theater. I think that's like the main, you know, the major thing, like having and getting to work with actors in person again.

It's just like I I couldn't ask for anything more. I mean, it got really dark there for a while. I think it's nice to laugh a little bit. It's just kind of nice to have a little relief from that, you know.

[18:10] Maria Teresa Creasey: And thanks, Zoom. You did you did what we needed for a little while.

[18:14] Eric Henry Sanders: Yes. And Lydia's also commented before throughout the process that the that the fringe venue is actually the perfect location for this play because most of the scenes are two-person scenes. It's a slice of life, you know, of every month of their pregnancy. And it um it just feels like an intimate, an intimate space will help it, you know, red line.

[18:38] Maria Teresa Creasey: Yeah, that's a perfect.

[18:41] Eric Henry Sanders: I think it would suit any theater, but it is especially like big theaters as well. But I do think you'll have a you know, uh a particular intimacy that you might not get at a larger theater.

[18:51] Lance Fuller: Yeah.

[18:51] Eric Henry Sanders: Being a fly on the wall almost, yeah, in that space, yeah.

[18:54] Maria Teresa Creasey: Yeah, exactly. We're peeking into their lives at what is what it feels like to me. I mean, I always talk about I love immersive theater, but this is really immersive because the audience is right on top of the actors.

[19:06] Lance Fuller: Yeah, exactly.

[19:07] Maria Teresa Creasey: Going through every emotion, you know, every expression on their face. The audience can see because they are right there, and that's what makes it so special, you know, in such an intimate small space. But it would transfer to a big theater very well.

[19:25] Eric Henry Sanders: Exactly any western thing.

[19:26] Lance Fuller: With minimum race of at least.

[19:29] Eric Henry Sanders: We'll make it work. Final, final question.

[19:33] John Schwab: I always ask this is a final question. What would you like people to go away with when they come and see maybe probably? What would you like them to leave the theater with?

[19:40] Maria Teresa Creasey: A smile.

[19:42] Lance Fuller: Yeah, I think they'll leave uh with a smile and feeling really joyous. And I think that they will tell other people about it. I think that that it's the kind of play where you want you want other people to experience the thing that you've just gone through.

[19:58] Eric Henry Sanders: Anything to add to that, guys?

[20:01] Maria Teresa Creasey: Well put, but I I keep thinking too that it was always like we I think we talk about it like a comedy and generally call it that, but like that never like that doesn't work unless there are moments that are really hard or the moments that contrast.

[20:16] Lance Fuller: And it talks about it in the play, right? The contrast of difficulty in life with joy in life is what makes the joy even greater. So there's some really tough moments and a lot of funny moments around those because just we don't we laugh at people freaking out about stuff. That's just always funny to us.

[20:35] Eric Henry Sanders: But that's so yeah, I think they hope they go away going, yeah, that was funny and really got to me as well.

[20:41] Maria Teresa Creasey: Yeah.

[20:41] Eric Henry Sanders: And ultimately a sense of hope, I think that um, you know, that we don't always walk out of the theater with. I've been in those, I've been in those kind of players. But that the story's uplifting ultimately, yeah.

[20:59] Lance Fuller: And you can I think walk away a little bit on a cloud with that.

[21:05] Maria Teresa Creasey: Cool.

[21:06] Eric Henry Sanders: Yeah, I was gonna say warm and fuzzy feeling, but I feel like that's much more eloquence about that.

[21:10] John Schwab: Well, warm and fuzzy is the elevator pitch version of what you might.

[21:14] Eric Henry Sanders: Um it wasn're not gonna go with. Where could where can we see it?

[21:18] Maria Teresa Creasey: Uh we are at the Old Red Lion Theater, um, which is near Angel Tube. It's on the 20th of September to the 15th of October.

[21:28] Eric Henry Sanders: And I have to add, we have two parent and baby matinees.

[21:34] Maria Teresa Creasey: Nice Thursdays, the 6th and 13th of October at 2 p.m. And we really want to encourage parents to come in who have babies and can't usually get to the theater. Please come and see this play because it's your life. And you don't get to see that very often on Facebook.

[21:52] Eric Henry Sanders: I think that's gonna be I'm gonna come to both of those matinees and encourage my worst children I know to come and just tantrum it up.

[22:00] Lance Fuller: Tantrum it off.

[22:03] John Schwab: Listen, guys, thank you so much for talking with me. Um yeah, see you on there on the stage.

[22:10] Eric Henry Sanders: See you on the old Red Lion Theater.

[22:12] John Schwab: Thanks so much. Playwright Eric Henry Sanders, director Lydia Parker, and cast members Christy Meyer, Lance Fuller, and Maria Teresa Creasey.

[22:28] John Schwab: Unfortunately, Corey English had to leave before we started recording, so uh he wasn't there, but uh he was missed. Thank you for listening. But before we go, just a quick reminder to say that if you like this episode, or indeed any of our episodes of the Curtain Call Podcast, please go to whichever streaming platform you use and leave a rating review. It really does help.

[22:45] John Schwab: And it helps others like you find the podcast. If you want to reach out to me, you can find me on all the socials at John Schwab, J W Ch N S C H W A B. And lastly, I'd like to just give a big thank you to the entire team of Maybe Probably, which opens on the 20th of September, 2022 and runs through the 15th of October at London's Old Red Lion Theatre. Grab your tickets at oldredliontheater.co.uk.

[23:14] John Schwab: Thank you for listening. Speak to you soon and stay safe. Bye!