IMFourPlay

Darren Vierday returns for a second season of FourPlay after entertaining audiences last season with a wide array of kooky characters. Known for "going political" early, Darren brings an edge to his onstage work. I joined Darren at an obscure political rally located in some untamed swampland in Southern Florida (with a can of mosquito repellent, a personal navigation device and a clean pair of socks) for some sychronized chanting and a little Q and A.

Current favorite musical: I saw Hedwig and the Angry Inch recently at the Fringe Festival. I can't get the music out of my head.
Current favorite improv game: It varies. Right now, I'm itching to play Tag-Team Monologue.

DC: Darren, you're a natural fit for this production as music and singing have been a part of your life for quite some time. Several weeks ago, I particularly enjoyed a romantic and jazzy onstage duet with you during a Slice of Life -- I was the woman, of course! Before hitting the SAK stage as a regular ensemble player, you sang with several choirs and choral groups. Tell us a little about that.

DV: Thanks, David! I started singing at Chamberlain High School in Tampa, FL. I was part of the concert choir and a vocal ensemble group, Act I, in which we did contemporary music. My director, Daniel Compher, stressed finding the correct pitch, and then how to blend those pitches with the overall chord. I went on to sing with USF's University Singers during my first attempt at college, and continued with a private vocal teacher, Zanda Moore. Zanda not only gave me techniques I still use, she also recruited me for a carolling group which I still sporadically sing with today. I think that's why I enjoy duets, especially when the harmony "locks in."

DC: That is a great feeling when the singers and musician completely find each other. While music has long been part of your life, improvisation training came a little later for you. What brought you to SAK University to study all those years ago?

DV: I was following a girl I with whom I had spent Valentine's Day 1993 in Olustee, FL at a Civil War reenactment. I lost her number, then drove to Longwood to drop by (once I had found her address). She was surprised to see me, and sad to tell me she now had a boyfriend. They were going to this place called SAK that night, and invited me to be a third wheel. The evening was not as awkward as one might think, and I started classes later in that year. I eventually moved to Orlando in 1995, and worked my way up through the classes, from Next Generation (which is what our Lab Rats were called back then) to Ensemble member.

DC: The things we do for love!! You just closed an original improv show at the Orlando Fringe Festival, The McGrawsky Files, a fast-paced long-form wacky crime drama parody created with fellow SAK alums Francisco Laboy, Charles Frierman and Chris Dinger. How was that experience?

DV: I have had the pleasure of working with SlothCo for the past few Fringes. It is always a pleasure to work with those guys. McGrawsky was fun, because I love all those TV cop shows, especially CSI.

DC: I still recall an extremely clever offer you made in our initial run of FourPlay when you endowed a mysterious character played by Robyn Pedretti (a fellow returning member) as a phantom lady of the lake during the last moments of the second act. Do you have a favorite memory from the last run that you'd like to share?

DV: We had a great confrontational song in the second act of a show. I can't remember the details, but I remember you really shoved me hard. Not hard enough to injure me, but enough to fuel our song, which turned into this Valjean/Javert duet that really advanced our story. If you touch me again, though, it will erupt into fisticuffs, my good man.

DC: I've been warned... Hey, Darren - you've got a little something on your shirt... Gotcha...

To learn more about Darren's politics, go here.