Noah Budin

Justin Robinson (Bobby) and Brian Zoldessy (Teach) on the set of American Buffalo opening May 6.

28 years ago I was 28 years too young to play the part of Donny Durbrow in David Mamet’s American Buffalo. But I did. It was terrible. There were so many things wrong with that production, me among them.

I won’t mention where it was or who directed it or the other actors names or the directors “concept.” But, I should have known from the start that casting me, a 23 year old, in that role was a bad idea. But I was 23, a newly minted college graduate with a degree in theater, and very eager. What did I know?

It actually drove me away from doing theater for a while. It spooked me.

Flash forward. I’ve had a long a varied (and somewhat successful) career in the performing arts. But I have a “real job” now so I can actually make a living. I still perform, mostly as a singer/songwriter. But I really don’t have much time to devote to theater. Because that’s what it takes – devotion. Rehearsals can be long and arduous. And there’s lots of outside “bookwork” that needs to be done. Memorization.

My memory is not great. But a few years ago I decided that I would take on small rolls every couple of years because one, I enjoy being in plays and, two, it’s a good way exercise my memory in new ways. All the research shows that you’ve got to keep your mind active as you age to keep it supple and working well. Mental exercise for the mind is like physical exercise for the body.

So, here I am, 28 years beyond college, and the opportunity to play Donny comes up again. It’s with people that I trust, admire and respect in theater. The location is convenient. So, I accepted the role.

OK. It’s one thing to exercise my memory. But I believe I am giving my memory a heart attack.

Donny is not a small role. There are only 3 characters in the play. Mine never leaves the stage for the entire two acts. When I finished highlighting all of my lines, there wasn’t much white space left. I finally am, as we say, off book. But it kind of makes my head hurt.

It is a pleasure to work with the brilliant actor and director Brian Zoldessy. Brian works full time at Tri-C east as the head of the Theater Department. But if my brain is having a heart attack, I can’t imagine what Brian is going through. Most people who act and direct don’t do them all in the same show. Brian is directing this production. He’s also playing Teach, a huge role. I must say, he’s doing both brilliantly.

I think it’ll be worth checking out. Brian is terrific. I feel good in the role – I am, at least, in the correct demographic. And the very talented Justin Robinson, a Tri-C student, is playing Bobby.

There are only 6 performances. The Studio Theater only has 45 seats. Tickets are only $10.00.

Don’t bring the kids. It is Mamet. The play is typical Mamet slice-of-life theater, which means the language is crude and the content is of an adult nature. Probably R rated. But Mamet is a good writer and nothing is gratuitous.

28 years after I nearly scared myself out of doing theater forever, I get to exorcise some demons. It’s a rare second chance, and the role of a lifetime.

Call 216-987-2438 for reservations.

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Cleveland, Ohio…indeed, Northeast Ohio…is a vibrant cultural arts Mecca.

Yes. Really.

Let’s start with the Cleveland Orchestra, one of the world’s best.

And the Cleveland Playhouse is the country’s oldest regional theater, having been an early theatrical home to luminaries such as Margret Hamilton and Joel Grey. And Tom Hanks did some early work with the Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival, now called The Great lakes Theater Festival.

Don’t forget University Circle, especially the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Playhouse Square

Playhouse Square has been staging local professional productions and bringing in bus and truck shows (national tours of Broadway shows), concerts and other professional entertainment for years. The JCC always did pretty good work, especially when Dorothy Silver was at the helm. And there are a few small, professional theater companies that have been around for a while, like Dobama and Karamu House. And many that have come and gone. Today, there are many more professional theater companies, and professionals to fill

Cleveland Public Theater

the jobs. Cleveland Public Theater, the Fairmount Performing Arts Conservatory and the Beck Center for the Arts are some of them. And, of course, there are Community Theater productions aplenty with theater hobbyists filling the rolls and building the sets.

Equity Actors abound. There are actually people who earn their livings solely in the arts. Not many, not like New York or Chicago, but some. There are fine acting schools and programs here, like the above mentioned FPAC and Baldwin-Wallace. Even Tri-C East – Cuyahoga Community College, Eastern Campus – has as it’s theater department head a guy that spent many years in New York and L.A. working on Broadway, Off Broadway and in films (such as Saturday Night Fever and Woody Allen’s Annie Hall and Stardust Memories).

His name is Brian Zoldessy.

Brian is directing and starring in a production of David Mamet’s American Buffalo at Tri-C East. I am proud to be a part of that production.

American Buffalo is a three person cast. I’m playing the roll of Donny Dubrow. It’s a big roll. Not only do I get a lot of stage time (I actually never leave the stage for the entire two acts), but I get to work with one of Cleveland’s finest directors and actors. And, I get to exorcise some demons. But more about that in my next post.

The play will only have six performances, and it’s a very small theater – only 45 seats – so, call now to make reservations: 216-987-2538. Tickets are only $10.00. Performances will be Friday, May 6 at 8PM, Saturday, May 7 at 8PM, Sunday, May 8 at 2PM, Thursday, May 12 at 8PM, Friday, May 13 at 8PM, and Sunday, May 15 at 2PM.

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So, I’m finally getting a chance to blog. It’s been a busy few weeks and it’s not slowing down for me until mid May. I’m in rehearsal for a production of American Buffalo right now, so that takes up most of my time when I’m not at work. But that’s a blog unto itself.

Let’s put this songbook to bed.

THANK YOU! Thank you all for your generous support,well wishes and spreading the word for me. We’ve surpassed our goal of $4624.00, thanks to all of you. Whether your pledge was $1.00 or $1000.00 (and I’ve gotten both) it’s all very much appreciated, and it all makes this project possible.

The pledge deadline is April 14th (so you can still donate, if you want!*) and my funding will become available after that. Actually, they tell me, it takes about three weeks for Kickstarter and Amazon to process the funds and send them to me. Once that’s done, and I pay my songbook creator Joe Eglash (oySongs), we’ll begin the final stages of publication. I don’t have a projected publication date yet, but I’ll let you know when I do.

That’s all about the songbook for now. On to other endeavours.

*My $4624 figure was based on a 2007 quote. I’m betting the printing costs have gone up since then, so anything over the stated Kickstarter goal will go to good use!

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Sorry I haven’t posted anything more interesting lately, like about songwriting or upcoming performances. This Kickstarter project has been consuming. There is, after all, a limited amount of time that I have to either meet the goal or get nothing for my efforts.

It’ll all be over soon, one way or another.

So, we are officially into our second week of fundraising for the songbook and, at this writing, we are 52% of the way there. That’s good.

But the majority of that happened within the first two days of the launch, and half of the funds raised are from one VERY generous $1000 pledge. Thanks you pledger! (You know who you are.) There’s still $2184 to go. And unless I get two more $1000 pledges, or 2184 people donate $1.00, I may not make it. That would be a shame.

So, please visit the Kickstarter site, and perhaps even more importantly, spread the word. If you have any contacts with local Jewish newspapers around the country, or organizations, musicians and song leaders who’ve used my music, please pass the info on to them, or their info to me.

Thanks!

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Almost one week in. 46% funded. Added content to the text. Added a new level at which to pledge. Corrected the typo in the video.

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Here’s my Kickstarter video:

Noah Budin Kickstarter Songbook Project

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My Kickstarter project is officially launched! Please visit https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/733606432/the-noah-budin-songbook

I’m working hard to finally finish my songbook. It will include all 22 songs from” Hallelujah Land” and “Metaphor.”

Kickstarter is a really cool arts and artist funding website. But, it’s all or nothing. Here’s how it works: You make a pledge. If we don’t reach my goal in the allotted time, you pay nothing and I get nothing. If we reach (or surpass) the goal, your pledge will be processed, I get to finish the songbook, and you receive the incentive gift that’s listed on the right hand side of my Kickstarter page.

The end date for this project is April 13, so timing is important! Please visit today and check it out. And, yes, please send this message to everyone you know!

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“To participate in creative endeavors is to answer an implicit call from God. Creation is not something that happened a long time ago and ended, but an ongoing process in which we are invited to participate.”

I lifted that quote from a post by singer – songwriter David LaMotte. It’s a terrific article about music in religious and worship settings. And, even though the word “church” appears in the title, it applies to all people of any faith. The link is below.

Why the Church Needs Art

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So, here we are, at my new website. This is the page you will land on when you go to www.noahbudin.com. It serves as my home page, a blog, and my newsletter. That is, it will take the place of the newsletter I used to send out. You can subscribe to this blog and receive the posts in your in-box.

I’m also assigning categories and adding tags to the posts. I’m not completely sure what that means, but my webmaster assures me that it’s a good thing. I know that they can enable you to decide which posts you want to read and/or receive. You probably know more about it than I do, so I’ll just keep adding the categories and tags, and you use them to your liking.

Also, I will not (generally) be using this space for my songwriting blogs anymore. I will keep those at my other blog site called “Keeping My Composer” (formerly known as, and possibly still coming up in searches as, “Noah’s Notes.”) You can find that one here: http://noahbudinsongs.blogspot.com/

I will mostly be using this space for performance and product related updates. Mostly. So, stay tuned, and thanks for reading.

Oh…also, feel free to pass this site info along to anybody you know and urge them to subscribe. Help me drive some traffic here! I check the stats often, and they aren’t pretty. Thanks!

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