Stop Me Because I Can’t Stop Myself

Out of Hand Theater will collaborate with three former Theatre de la Jeune Lune company members, playwright David Kranes and psychiatrist Jon Grant to develop STOP ME BECAUSE I CAN’T STOP MYSELF, an immersive, Vegas-style show about impulse control disorders, particularly gambling, shopping and sex addictions, using Dr. Grant’s book of the same name as a primary source.

STOP ME BECAUSE I CAN’T STOP MYSELF will deliver real personal stories of addicts through the most popular Vegas formats—magicians, comedians, impersonators, show girls and cover bands, inviting the audience into the world of these diseases, and exploring the boundaries between science, morality and free will.

Impulse control disorders are diseases that cannot be cured by will power, and are treatable with drugs and therapy. These diseases affect us all: almost everyone has a friend, relative or colleague who suffers from an impulse control disorder. Yet they remain almost completely hidden. Why? Perhaps no other disease is as morally-loaded. We blame the sick. They blame themselves. They are wracked with guilt and shame. They hide their illnesses as long as possible, past losing family, job, friends and home, because they believe they are weak, evil people. They are a silent “other”, too ashamed to seek solace or
help, unaware that their problem is a disease, and the disease is treatable. We are all bombarded with enticing images of shopping, gambling and sex, and now that they’re available all the time online, they’re even harder to avoid. Casual sex is the stuff of summer
blockbusters. Bad day? Try a little retail therapy. Need a break? Plan a casino weekend. In STOP ME BECAUSE I CAN’T STOP MYSELF, we will create a Vegas casino nightclub: Las Vegas is our shopping/gambling/sex mecca, a fantasy world where time doesn’t exist, where you can be anything and anyone, where drinks and entertainment are on the house. It’s our wildest dream and worst nightmare.

The format will be a Vegas-style variety show by gambling, shopping and sex addicts with their doctor as the MC, with acts based on interviews with actual addicts. Using real personal stories, delivered through the most popular Vegas formats—magicians, comedians, impersonators, show girls and cover bands—we will invite the audience into the world of these diseases. We will explore the moral, legal and medical sides of these issues: if people with these diseases literally cannot help themselves, can we blame them for their actions, or hold them legally responsible? Where will this argument lead? Where are the boundaries between science, morality and free will?

How will you make a show like this?

In developing STOP ME, we will draw on the creation processes of both Out of Hand and Jeune Lune, as well as the expertise of a scientist who studies and treats these disorders, and a playwright who works as a casino consultant. STOP ME will draw from Dr. Grant’s book of the same name, his research, and personal stories from Dr. Grant’s other research and personal interviews. Jeune Lune’s style and creation techniques will complement Out of Hand’s beautifully: Out of Hand’s work is highly physical and visually rich, just like Jeune Lune’s, and some of our company members are also Lecoq trained, although we primarily use Viewpoints and Composition in our development process. Playwright David Kranes brings to the collaboration the innovative play development techniques he championed as Sundance Playwrights’ Lab artistic director, including improvisation, music and storytelling. David also consults in the casino industry, where he helps casinos create atmospheres that encourage guests to stay longer and gamble more money. Finally, Jon Grant, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Minnesota, where he co-directs a clinic for Impulse Control Disorders, is a leading expert on these disorders. He is the author of several books, including Stop Me Because I Can’t Stop Myself.

To develop the piece, the team will discuss the research, conduct interviews and brainstorm, and then, based on this work, director and Out of Hand co-artistic director Ariel Fristoe will give a series of assignments. The artists will work on these assignments in small groups, and then present their work to the rest of the team. David will develop text based on these presentations and improvisations, and a composer  will work with the team on the musical numbers. Ideas that the group feels are successful will be pursued further; ideas that are not will be discarded. We will then piece these ideas together and develop connectors to make a complete story. After initial research and a weekend workshop, the primary development workshop will take place at the University of Minnesota in October 2012 over three weeks, culminating with a public workshop
presentation. In early 2013 we will finish the rehearsal draft, and STOP ME will go into rehearsals in July.

Out of Hand Theater has a substantial history of collaborating with international scientists and artists to reach new audiences in new ways. We work with scientists both to advance public understanding of important, widely-misunderstood scientific concepts, from evolution to the origins of life to water sustainability; and to bring to public consciousness the discoveries taking place in the lab which have the power to transform the way we think of ourselves as humans, thereby serving a vital function of theater.

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