The Arsonists: Behind the Scenes
In 2012, Norbert appeared in The Arsonists at The Odyssey Theater in Los Angeles in the lead role of Mr. Biedermann. Norbert’s
character looked like a lot of fun -- nervous and a total wreck over the circumstances surrounding him. Beth Hogan, the actress who
played his wife, had the same demeanor and they looked very well matched. Norbert mentioned that his character was a very
messed up sort of guy and not likeable in the least.
The reviews were very complimentary and favorable for this play. Norbert was nominated for two awards for his performance as Mr.
Biedermann: Best Male Lead, L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award, and Male Comedy Performance, L.A. Weekly Theater Awards. Several
other cast members have been nominated as well. Congratulations, Norbert!!
One review that wasn’t posted on The Odyssey website is the one from Back Stage, a publication for acting professionals. The Arsonists
is their Critic’s Pick of Los Angeles Plays. Here is a link to that here:
Back Stage Reviews The Arsonists.
Norbert sent several photos from a rehearsal of the play, some candid shots of the cast as well as a few wonderful stills. And even
better -- there is now a full feature presentation of this play than spans two pages that can be found here. The entire cast was
fabulous and it was a real joy and privilege to be able to see this play.
Max Frisch was born in Zurich, Switzerland in 1911, and is the author of
numerous novels, journals and dramatic works, and was also an
architect. He died of cancer in 1991. Additional reading on Mr. Frisch can
be found here on Wikipedia.
The Arsonists, also known as Firebugs is available in print from Amazon.
The play was directed by Ron Sossi who is the Artistic Director and one
of the founding members of The Odyssey Theater Ensemble -- Alan
Abelew and Norbert being a couple of the others.
The Arsonists is from a translation by Alistair Beaton, a British satirist
playwright. There is a nice bio of him on his website here.
The Odyssey Theater is located at 2055 Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA.
Be sure to become a Fan of the Odyssey Theater Ensemble on
Facebook -- you will find additional photos and a trailer!
A clip of a few scenes from this play can be found here.
Photos by ENCI.
All of the rehearsal photos below were taken and contributed by Norbert.
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