Bob Weick, a former Lehigh Valley resident, will be channeling Marx in 'Marx in Soho' 7pm September 21, 2018 production on stage at The Charles A. Brown Ice House on Sand Island, Bethlehem.
Admission is freeFor more information, contact
LEHIGH VALLEY STAGE: Of all the writers you've read, missions you've shared, messages you've wanted to deliver, roles you've wanted to play, what is there about Karl Marx and Marx in Soho that has driven you to invest your acting career so deeply into this show'
ROBERT WEICK: This Lehigh Valley performance is a kind of a homecoming for me. I started acting late in life at the age of forty. Bill Sanders of Civic theatre and George Miller and Kate Scuffle of Theatre Outlet gave a rookie like me an opportunity to work with them and I fell in love with the art form. Through my work at Theatre Outlet I met Dick Nepon who served on their board of directors. Dick handed me a copy of Marx in Soho saying " This would be a great role for you." I knew next to nothing about Marx at the time, and didnt feel at all prepared to take on a one man show. I placed the play on my bookshelf. Little did I realize at the time that his thoughtful gesture would change my life.
The debacle of the 2000 election, the tragic events of 9-11, the rush to preemptive war with Iraq, the growing realization that the world is a horrible place for masses of humanity, my children coming of age in the midst of the madness, all moved me to ask why. I sought a way to contribute to understanding why the world is this way. What forces are at work' How can I contribute and get involved' What can I do'
I had more questions than answers. I knew the author of Marx in Soho, Howard Zinn, was a dedicated advocate for peace and justice and a brilliant thinker and historian. I took that simple gift from Dick off the shelf and started to read. It was now 2004. I had started acting professionally in Philly. I brought the script to John Doyle of Iron Age Theatre and he agreed to direct the show. It was a well received and the final performances sold out. Howard Zinn loved the production and encouraged John and I, I should say Howard commissioned us, to take the play on the road. With Howard's encouragement, support and friendship I've performed the role over 300 times now.
LVS: How is Marx most relevant today, and where is he less relevant, and to what extent and how does any of that matter' What are people's greatest misconceptions about Marx and Marxism'
RW: "Follow the money". We are all familiar with that quote in regard to Watergate. Many of the crimes and abuses we see all around us in the world today have their roots in the drive for economic power. If we want to understand economics and our world who better to learn from than one of our greatest philosophers, Karl Marx. Marx analyzed capitalism in a very thorough and scientific way. The fact that capitalism dominates the world economy, and he is the most profound critic of that system , is alone proof of Marx's relevance in todays world.
The greatest misconception of his life's work is that he was somehow in favor of totalitarianism. His name being associated with the horrors of Stalin, and other regimes that wrongly called themselves communist, doesn't help. Marx rails against Stalin and his ilk in the course of the play. People rarely recognize that Marx believed in freedom and democracy, a society of “freely associated men”. Marx saw communism as the ultimate expression of democracy. Democratizing the economy to meet human need and leading to the full development of our human potential. That capitalism, with its competitive nature, its cyclical crises, its gross inequity, its environmental destruction, its dehumanizing effect on the worker, impedes this free development is clear to most honest observers. Marx was brilliant, a genius, as well as prophetic and visionary. In a world threatened by the rise of Trump and right-wing authoritarianism, with fascism on the rise, with inequality at all time highs, he couldn't be more relevant to where we find ourselves. The play speaks to us here and now.
LVS: I'm one of those intellectually challenged folks who has great faith in the power of theater to teach subtly while engaging and entertaining subversively and broadly. So I'd like to hear how you take a complex series of ideas and messages and present them in such a way that keeps an audience from checking their cell phones repeatedly over 70 minutes of their precious time.
RW: Fortunately for me Howard Zinn was a great story teller! He was known for his great sense of humor, along with his intellectual integrity.
The play is flat out hilarious at moments and also deeply moving at times. We meet Marx the man, the father and husband, warts [ I should say 'boils' ] and all. A man at once full of arrogance and self doubt.
I applaud your faith in the power of theatre to effect change. Art speaks to us in a way that a lecture or scholarly tome can not. Only those who dont care about people, who lack empathy, or who lack curiosity and don't care about the state of the world tune out the message of the play.
LVS: What has the reception been to this work' I'd love to hear about both the enthusiasm and the outrage, if any. What kind of push-back have you gotten from doing this show over the years, and how has that changed with the abrupt shift in American politics since you began, if at all'
RW: Reaction has run the gamut, as you might imagine. The play is most often received enthusiastically and has garnered great reviews. You can see them on the webpage www.marxinsoho.org . But as you might expect there has also been controversy. Marx is a maligned and misunderstood figure in history. I'm often faced with open hostility at the start of the play. One venue was shot up and vandalized in Texas. But even the most hostile audience undergo a shift as the play progresses. Audiences feel like they meet the real Marx, and to their surprise find they like him.
LVS: What do you most want audiences to gain from experiencing this show with you' What do you want them thinking and talking about when they're driving home after a performance, or talking about over breakfast the next morning'
RW: The play is ultimately a message of hope and call to action. It encourages us to recognize we all have a role to play to create a just society. In America we are encouraged to be simply workers and consumers. These mindless roles keep the wheels of capitalism turning. We are more than cogs in an industrial machine. We are citizens. We have a responsibility that requires us to participate in history, not just observe it on a screen. Just as in theatre there is a role for everyone in the struggle for a better world. My hope is that people may be edified, and inspired to participate in the process of change. There are a number of worthwhile organization in the Lehigh Valley that would welcome interested citizens. My hosts for this performance, are doing important work. LEPOCO is another.
I hope some folks will be inspired to find an issue they care about and get involved. In my experience, to work with other people, whatever the results, immediate or long term, makes life both interesting and rewarding.
LVS: It's always important to theater people to know if they can make a living wage in their chosen art. What counsel can you give them in this regard' (One of our great local artists has often told me a full-time artist should never marry a full-time artist, for example.)
RW: The economic life of an actor is a challenge. Which tells you something about the capitalist system. And, no surprise, I have yet to find a capitalist or corporation willing to underwrite my work. Having a solo show that one can tour at will is a help. I also continue to shoe horses on a part time basis. As you know Ara, something bigger than money brings many of us into the world of the arts.
In a society where there is no right to health care, housing or even food we have to look out for each other. And we can all participate in the process of change. The world needn't be one in which so many people are alienated, exploited and living in precarious conditions. Its a matter of will, a matter of engagement.
Artisitc expression is an essential component of our humanity. It is often the inspiration behind social movements for change. Is it any wonder there's little support for it found in our capitalist institutions' Yet, as history shows, change does happen. When people organize and act together we make progress. Artists have, and can, contribute mightily to that process.
Read Howard Zinn's "Artists In Time Of War"
LVS: How has your commitment of time and creative energy and perhaps even your financial resources into this show impacted your acting career in particular and your life in general'
RW: When I mentioned earlier that the play has changed my life, well, that is an understatement.
Meeting and becoming friends with Howard, my deep friendship and respect for director John Doyle, finding meaningful work, performing all across the country and in the UK, growing in understanding of how the world works and the forces at play, working with other good people in service to social change, well, it's been a remarkable and rewarding journey to say the least. Occasionally leading to run on sentences. :-)
Meeting the challenge of solo performance has helped me develop as an actor. It has led to other work here in Philly as many directors have seen the play.
After long stretches on the road touring I'm always glad to be cast in another show and enjoy the pleasure of ensemble work. I'm currently under contract with Hedgerow Theatre for their first two plays of the 2019 season. Chekhov' Three Sisters, and Moby Dick. Im looking forward to it. There's nothing better than to be in a room of dedicated artists
LVS: What will come next for you, when you've laid this character to rest and feel you want or need to move on'
RW: The tour of Marx in Soho continues. I have a show in Media Pa on Sunday the 23rd and I'll be in DC on Monday the 24th, and my college tour is ongoing.
I've performed the play for fourteen years and I'm not tired of it. Surprisingly each performance is different experience as the audience is my scene partner. I’m still excited to step on stage as Marx and as an expression of my love for Howard and his work. It is an expression of my art and activism. Yet i look forward to the day when everyone understands what Marx had to say to us and the play is no longer needed. Until then I'll play my part for peace and justice.