Ruben Carbajal

Project Playright Opens 11/9

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:14:55 -0500

My new short about an unsuccessful stalker will be one among several ten-minute plays on hand. The fourth annual Project Playwright features a collection of short plays by fresh, talented playwrights from around the country. Featuring new works by Micheline Auger, Ruben Carbajal, Richard Martin Hirsch, Tom Hoefner, Jamie King, Krista Komondor, David Lewison, Rhea MacCallum, and Craig McNulty. Directed by - Melani Adair, Robert Marra, Scott Rodrigue, and Malinda Sorci With - Jon Arthur, Morgan Baker, Beau Cole, Kelly Demaret, Caroline Eckman,Caroline Hearns, Jesse Murphy, Steven Tylor O'Connor, and Tyler Rackliffe November 19-23, 2008 Access Theater Wednesday - Saturday at 8pm 380 Broadway 4th Floor Saturday and Sunday 3pm (Walker and White) General Admission $15 for tickets visit www.smarttix.com or phone 212.868.4444

Quote

Sat, 25 Oct 2008 13:46:50 -0500

I want to write about what it feels like to live, instead of being a relief from what it feels like to live. --David Foster Wallace (1962-2008)

Links

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 11:48:05 -0500

George Orwell on Henry Miller More doodles from yours truly Creepy Gnome Returns, Frightens Dancing Teens Writer and 13P founding member Madeline George's hilarious and insightful (2005) speech on lying. Like that? Buy this. How to Vote Early

Doodles

Sun, 12 Oct 2008 17:35:34 -0500

My name is Ruben Carbajal, and I am a compulsive doodler. Starting from a young age, I would scribble over every available piece of paper. Checks, bills, cardboard boxes, nothing was safe. My habit is now under control, though I am still a menace during meetings of any kind. About ten years ago, I started clipping my better marginalia. This week, I got my hands on a scanner. Here's a sketch, a favorite, I made of the two main characters of The Gifted Program, waiting for a bus in the snow.

Quote

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 10:59:01 -0500

A big success in a small theater is better than a small success in a big theater and much better than a small success in a small theater. -- Eugene Ionesco

Quote

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 14:51:35 -0500

"Pace is story just as surely as character is destiny." --Stanley Kubrick (excerpted from Kubrick by Michael Herr)

Autumn Almanac

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 18:02:46 -0500

Sorry, kids: summer is dunzo. The best way to celebrate the end of our most skin-cancerous season? For my money, it's the upcoming Robyn Hitchcock show at Symphony Space on November 22nd, where my favorite musician will be playing the entirety of what might be the ultimate autumnal album this side of Plastic Ono Band, I Often Dream of Trains. For the uninitiated, it's a deathly-quiet album chock full of bones and skulls and leaves crackling underfoot. That is, when it's not veering into a few desperate explosions of utter despair. The surreal moments of Hitchcock's gallows humor keeps the whole thing gently, if precariously, afloat. For those of you who haven't seen me in a while, and that means just about everybody, on November 22nd, nothing, and I mean nothing will keep me from this event. Second best way to celebrate fall?

The World's Best Prom for Free!

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:53:48 -0500

Here's a documentary film I co-produced with six talented cohorts in 2006. If you thought Sissy Spacek's prom was a big deal, you obviously have never been to Racine, Wisconsin. Anyway, see the whole thing here, free of charge! If you like what you see, why not purchase the home version?

The 5 Stages of Death in Under a Minute

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:31:09 -0500

Several years back, an actor I knew landed a small part in a movie. He heard he figured prominently in the coming attractions trailer before a summer action flick. Naturally, he was excited to catch himself on the big screen. "One ticket for Gone in 60 Seconds," he told me, "is the loneliest sentence I've ever uttered." While we're on the subject of things that will disappear in a minute or less, here's my entry in the 2008 GI60 Play Festival, recently held simultaneously at Brooklyn College and Leeds University. On Death and Dying* * with Apologies to Elizabeth Kubler Ross A DOCTOR holds an X-Ray, while a MAN in a paper robe awaits his fate. A Slide Reads--- On Death and Dying* *with Apologies to Elizabeth Kubler Ross Next slide-- The Five Stages of Death MAN So? DOCTOR Bad news. We've found a spot. MAN And? DOCTOR The worst has happened. MAN (Choked) How long do I have? DOCTOR (holding X-Ray to the light) By the looks of this...I'd say...thirty...maybe sixty seconds-- tops. Slide-- Stage 1: Denial MAN There's been a mistake! You must be reading that X-Ray wrong! DOCTOR I wish that were true. Slide-- Stage 2: Anger MAN You incompetent fool! Isn't there something you can do? DOCTOR (Shaking his head) It's inoperable. Slide-- Stage 3: Bargaining MAN (Pleading, grabbing DOCTORS lapels) If I can just live long enough to see the last reality television show canceled... DOCTOR No such luck. Do you have your affairs in order? Slide-- Stage 4: Depression MAN (Angst) Why bother? I've got, what? Fifteen--- DOCTOR (Looking at watch) Ten. MAN Ten seconds left? Slide-- Stage 5: Acceptance MAN (Diplomatic) Well, I've had a good run. On the bright side: no more tax returns, traffic jams, La Cucaracha ring tones, ice-cream headaches, inscrutable pharmaceutical commercials, Bill O'Reilly, or Prostate Exams... DOCTOR (Snapping his glove on) One more for old times' sake? MAN (Faraway look, steadying himself) I...I can feel my life force draining... DOCTOR (Noticing X-Ray, sees something) Wait a minute... MAN I...I can see it... A tunnel! A tunnel of light...it's beautiful! DOCTOR (Holding X-Ray to the light) Silly Billy! I had this thing upside down! That spot's supposed to be there! You're perfectly healthy! Slide--- Step 6: Anger MAN puts his hands around DOCTOR's throat. Chokes him. Slide-- Step 1: Denial DOCTOR (Choking) This can't be! I'm too young to die! Curtain

T-Shirts Spotted in Macau

Sun, 03 Aug 2008 04:06:42 -0500

Return of the Music Video

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 15:09:09 -0500

Ain't the internets great? A few months ago, I shared a fantastic music video by director Markus Wambsganss, and wondered what he was up to. Well, he found my little piece of the web, and sent me a link to this equally wonderful video he did for the band Notwist. I can't wait to see this guy make a feature.

"I pass through here occaisionally, like the angel of death."

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 18:25:06 -0500

You never know who you'll bump into in a New York subway station. Today, I walked past Robyn Hitchcock, a musician I hold in the highest esteem. I didn't see his face at first, but when I noticed a pair of purple pants and a swirling psychedelic shirt, I was certain it was him. Throwing caution to the oncoming C Train, I introduced myself, thanking him for his music. He was extremely cordial. We talked briefly about upcoming shows, including a set in November at Symphony Space. He asked me if I was a musician. When I told him I was a playwright, he paused, and seemed confused. No one ever knows how to respond to that one. I asked him what he was doing in town, and he said, "I pass through here occasionally, like the angel of death." It seemed a very Robyn Hitcockian thing to say, and it was the perfect punctuation to our brief, but unforgettable (for me) meeting.

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 11:41:19 -0500

What will change in Bed Stuy?

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 09:21:19 -0500

One of my photos is featured on Balletvox, a new socially-generated site covering this year's election. I only wish I knew who created the posters that were mysteriously pasted all over my neighborhood.

Triptych

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 13:56:20 -0500

A superb short story in the latest Brooklyn Rail by Mojie Crigler.