FOR PIANO AND HARPO
When: 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 4 p.m. Sunday through March 5.
Where: Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside, Burbank.
Tickets: $30-$45.
Information: 818-955-8101, www.falcontheatre.com.
When: 8 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 4 p.m. Sunday through March 5.
Where: Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside, Burbank.
Tickets: $30-$45.
Information: 818-955-8101, www.falcontheatre.com.
Dan Castellaneta is best-known for his role as Homer Simpson on “The Simpsons,” but the Los Angeles voice actor is also an accomplished performer, comedian and screenwriter as well as a bit of a musician. His hard work has earned him many accolades, including four Primetime Emmy Awards and opportunities.
“As some people say, (the secret to success is) just putting in your time and doing a lot of what it is I do, especially I put a lot of time in acting and improvisation, but also a great amount of luck too, just being in the right place at the right time,” Castellaneta said. “But your luck will only happen if you’re out there doing it.”
“Doing it” for Castellaneta means writing and starring in the play “For Piano and Harpo,” which runs at the Falcon Theatre in Burbank through March 5. It follows concert pianist Oscar Levant’s struggles in the psychiatric ward of Mount Sinai Hospital to save his marriage and regain his sanity.
The idea for ‘For Piano and Harpo’
Castellaneta was reading Harpo Marx’s autobiography, “Harpo Speaks,” and came to the chapter during which Marx discovered Oscar Levant was living in his home.
“I said, ‘That is a play I would like to see’ — to see those two completely different characters, where Harpo was the optimist and the sprite and was mostly noted for not speaking, Oscar Levant was very well-known for his wit and gift of gab, and he was a complete neurotic and had all kinds of problems with drug addiction and he had particular kinds of neuroses that hemmed him in in terms of what he could do in his life,” Castellaneta said.
Instead of waiting around, Castellaneta decided to write the play himself, focusing on Levant’s struggle with mental illness and drug addiction and how his memories of Marx helped him cope.
Castellaneta relates to Levant
Levant was a pianist, composer, author, comedian and actor. He composed music for more than 20 films, as well as many songs, and wrote three memoirs. He suffered from neuroses and hypochondria and eventually became addicted to prescription drugs, which led to frequent stays in mental hospitals. He died from a heart attack in 1972 at age 65.
Castellaneta admitted that he has something in common with the troubled Levant.
“He had problems performing in public, even though that’s what he did, and I’m probably a shy person and not very comfortable being in public, even though I do like to perform,” Castellaneta said. “I guess there’s parts of me that are definitely neurotic. I have my fears.”
The two men also excel in versatility, having careers that span many areas of entertainment.
Learning from Homer
Even though he was interested in acting, Castellaneta studied art education at Northern Illinois University.
“But it became clearer and clearer to me that it was not something that I wanted to do,” Castellaneta said. “It really did require a lot of dedication to become an art teacher, and I just felt like this was something I was always more interested in doing, theater. I thought while I’m young I’m can still give it a shot.”
In 1983, after graduation, Castellaneta began working at The Second City in Chicago, and he landed the voice of Homer Simpson on “The Simpsons” when it launched on the “Tracey Ullman Show” in 1987. Being Homer has added to his prowess as an actor.
“I think probably the thing I learned from doing it was that even though — and this is from Jim Brooks, too — he’s a cartoon character that you want people to believe he’s real and that’s basically acting,” Castellaneta said. “Even though you’re up on the stage and people know you’re an actor, you want them to believe that whatever you’re doing is real.”
Lately, Castellaneta has been concentrating on writing, primarily for the stage. He and his wife, Deb Lacusta (who also performs in “For Piano and Harpo), have been doing improvisational workshops, where the material they create is later developed into plays. “For Piano and Harpo” came out of those sessions.
He and his wife have also written “Empire Burlesque,” a musical about the Spanish American War, which is being workshopped by American Blues Theater in Chicago.
Hoping to draw attention to Levant
Castellaneta hopes that “For Piano and Harpo” will bring attention to Levant, who he feels has been mostly lost to history.
“I really hope it will spark some interest in Oscar Levant; he’s a really interesting character in the world of American culture, whether it’s high culture or pop culture, and hopefully people will enjoy it,” Castellaneta said. “He was actually in his time one of the most well-paid and popular concert pianists, but he was also a very interesting character, very funny. He inspired other writers. Oscar wasn’t completely healthy, but he got himself healthier when he started to reach out to other people within the psych ward and even outside of it.”
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