Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog

Sunday’s Enquirer features the story of how to Cincinnati Shakespeare actor Jeremy Dubin and friends created a Top 10 entry for Joss Whedon’s Evil League of Evil competition, earning a place for Tur-Mohel video on the DVD of Amazon.com’s hot-selling “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog.”

There’s lots more of Dubin’s thoughtful comments than the excerpts that appear in Sunday’s Enquirer.Here’s the story:

Enquirer: How is Joss Whedon like Shakespeare?

Dubin: “Well, first off, I think Joss would be extremely flattered by the comparison. He is a huge Shakespeare fan, and word is during ‘Buffy’ and ‘Angel’, he would have the casts over to his house periodically to do Shakespeare readings. “I think one of the most apparent similarities is their elastic use of language. Shakespeare, who is credited with the creation of well over 2,000 words, delighted in the innovative use of language. “He would create new forms of existing words, for instance he took the noun ‘assassin’ and created the verb ‘assassinate’; or he would put words together to form new ones, like ‘eyeball’ or ‘bedroom’. And then there are the words like ‘whirligig’ which were just the sheer coinage of his brain. “Whedon takes a similar delight in linguistic acrobatics. There is in fact an entire book called ‘Slayer Slang’ dedicated to his vocabulary. He has used both ‘Keyzser Soze’(‘The Usual Suspects’) and Scully (‘The X-Files’) as verbs and referred to an attractive woman as ‘mattressable’; he has thrown words together in new ways- ‘monkey-pants’ is one of my favorites. And, like Shakespeare, he has coined completely new ones like ‘flabottonum’. “Shakespeare was also given to the use of foreign languages in his plays, employing phrases in Italian, Latin, or in the case of ’Henry V,’ an entire scene in French. Whedon employed a similar multi-lingualism in his brilliant but short lived science-fiction series ‘Firefly’. The characters speak a hybrid of English and Chinese, flowing seamlessly back and forth between the two (usually using the Chinese to express the more vulgar sentiments). And like Shakespeare, the world of Whedon is rife with witticism and wordplay.”

Enquirer: Was Tur-Mohel inspired by Shakespeare?

Dubin: “While I would love to say that Tur-Mohel was a contemporary interpretation of Shylock or something, the truth is, no, there was no Shakespearean influence for this character. “The idea came from some conversations I had had with friends who were debating whether or not they were going to have their children circumcised. It is apparently becoming more popular to forego this procedure, and (even though I don’t think this movement has taken root in the Jewish community). I just envisioned a bunch of ticked-off idle mohels up in arms. “As for creating a winner, a huge amount of credit goes to Ryan Lewis, who directed and edited the piece. Ryan is a local filmmaker who I had worked with a couple of times before on the 48 Hour Film Project and another film of his called ‘Emulsion.’ “Once I had the idea, I pitched it to him, and very fortunately he was excited to do it. He and Mike Maney (the director of photography) showed up on the day of the shoot with equipment, know-how and some very deft eyes. The shoot only took about three hours, and Ryan had it edited by the next day.”

Enquirer: What don’t people get about the relationship between the classics, Buffy and comic book culture?

Dubin: “It has often been suggested that comic books are the American mythology. They have become a part of our collective unconscious. “Whether or not one is an avid reader of comic books, everyone knows Superman and Lex Luther, Batman and the Joker. They are undisputedly a part of our cultural vocabulary, just as the pantheons of the gods were for the Greeks, the Romans or the Norse. “The ancient myths have gone through thousands of permutations, reflecting the changing zeitgeists of the cultures of which they were born. A similar phenomenon has occurred in the world of comics. “In the Forties and Fifties, Superman was hands down the most popular comic book hero. His bright primary colors, his unwavering dedication to truth, justice and the American way reflected the country’s vision of itself and its place in the world. In the past couple of decades Superman’s popularity has faded, taking a backseat to the darker and more psychologically complex Batman. "Look at the luke-warm reception of the last Superman movie compared to rabid excitement generated by ‘The Dark Knight.’ Our vision of ourselves has changed, and we’ve embraced a darker hero for a darker time. “The great classics like Shakespeare, also manage to juxtapose the epic with the personal. For instance, ‘Henry V’ tells the story of England’s greatest hero leading his army to victory against impossible odds in the famed battle of Agincourt. And yet some of the most moving passages from this play deal with the travails of a rag-tag group of commoners. “The really good comic book writers, like Whedon (be it in the comics or on shows like Buffy and Angel) do the same. We watch the characters engage in mythic struggles of good versus evil, usually with the fate of the world at stake, but also watch them struggle with the personal, trivial challenges of every day life- the things we all have to go through. I think the combination of those two things is what makes great literature."

Enquirer: Tur-Mohel now has potential eternal fame thanks to the Internet, you just did a gangbusters job directing “Twelfth Night.” What was the artistic high point of your year?

Dubin: “I’ve been lucky enough to have a couple of artistic high points this year. I’ve been a huge Joss Whedon fan for many years, so being included on the ‘Dr. Horrible’ DVD was an incredible thrill. Then there was the thrill of directing “Twelfth Night,” my mainstage directing debut at CSC), which was a truly amazing experience."

Enquirer: Since it’s on the Internet, does it feel like eternal fame? Or at least till we destroy the planet?

Dubin: “Well, those 15 minutes do tick by quickly. However, I have been kind of blown away by the response on the net. I’ll occasionally google ‘Tur-Mohel’ to check out the buzz. I believe this is referred to as ‘ego-surfing.’ “It’s been viewed in something like 50 countries, which is pretty cool, and has been mentioned in the Time Magazine blog, the Onion, Entertainment Weekly and the Guardian amongst others. I’ll enjoy it while it lasts, and in the meantime, I have some exciting theatrical challenges at CSC to look forward to." Enquirer: what’s next?

Dubin: “No plans for a sequel or anything at this point, however, Ryan, who is incredibly techno-savvy, has created a website (tur-mohel.com), as well as a facebook and myspace page.”

Enquirer: When are you directing again? Soon I hope?

Dubin: “I’ll be assistant directing ‘Comedy of Errors’ with Matt Johnson (who also appears in ‘Tur-Mohel’) in a couple of months, which I’m really looking forward to. It’s always a pleasure working him, and his take on COE is going to be a whole lot of fun. Then next season I hope to return to the big chair again for a show or two.”

Enquirer: Do phenomena like Dr. Horrible, and all the ways the Web can be employed, from Whedon to Obama, need to be factored when considering the next generation of audiences for live theater? Not just for getting the word out, but artistically? As you consider these answers, how does it impact you as a director?

Dubin: “Without question, the web has had a huge impact on marketing, from on-line ticket sales to promotional videos. CSC has begun using sites like Facebook and YouTube to try to connect with more people. “Artistically, while mediums like television, and to a lesser extent movies, have been drastically affected by the onslaught of Web entertainment, I think the effect is much less pronounced in theater. From ancient Greece to the Globe to today, the nature of live theatre has always been a communal one — actors and audience sharing an experience in a physical space. “Is it possible to have that kind of communion in cyberspace? Perhaps it is — the virtual worlds of online role playing games continue to grow in popularity. And in essence, this is people from all over the world coming together in real time to experience some very visceral storytelling. "What kind of impact this could have on the future of theatre is a question for someone smarter, and most likely much younger, than me.” IN NEW BUSINESS, this is my week of furlough. I’ll be back with new Buzzzzz....in early February.