A Burn Your Bookes Round-Up

We're only three days away from the opening night of Taffety Punk Theatre Company's production of my play, Burn Your Bookes. Exciting (and a tad nervous) times for the playwright.

But rehearsals have been great, and the amazing cast and crew -- led by director Marcus Kyd -- have made my dream of bringing the strange story of Edward Kelley and his alchemical ambitions to the stage a reality.

To get Balkans via Bohemia readers in the alchemy groove, I'm offering a couple quick links to things that have been written about or otherwise concern the play.

* One of the best resources for materials about a number of the characters in Burn Your Bookes is Czech Radio's English-language service.

When the one-act version of Burn Your Bookes was awarded first prize (and a production) at the Prague Playwriting Festival in 2007, Czech Radio did this interview with me about the play and my inspiration for it.

Czech Radio also did this fascinating story about the life and career of Edward Kelley's stepdaughter, the poet Elizabeth Jane Weston and a succinct relation of the strange career of John Dee in Bohemia. Listen to or read these three articles and you'll be quite prepared for the show.

* Did you miss the terrific sneak preview of Burn Your Bookes that Taffety Punk did at the Kennedy Center last September? It's archived online right here. (Real Player required, alas.)

* I've also been writing a bit about the play and the background materials for here at Balkans via Bohemia. There's (1) a Q&A about the play; (2) a post about about my pursuit of the trail of Edward Kelley in Prague and (3) a bit more information about why Kelley likely was not an alchemical fraud.

And most important? Here's the link for tickets. The production runs from Friday April 30 to Saturday May 22 at Capitol Hill Arts Workshop. Tickets are only $10. I hope to see you there if you're in the DC area!