Aging In An Age of Change
The final two Minnesota Fringe performances of Aging In An Age of Change were cancelled due to illness, but we're hoping to remount in the not terribly distant future. Stay tuned for updates!
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Scot returns to the Minnesota Fringe Festival with an all-new one-man production: Aging In An Age of Change. "We don't have to burn out or fade away. There's a third option between taking up too much space and ceasing to exist!"
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Scot returns to the Minnesota Fringe Festival with an all-new one-man production: Aging In An Age of Change. "We don't have to burn out or fade away. There's a third option between taking up too much space and ceasing to exist!"
If you're on this page, you're either just learning this show exists, or you've been directed here by QR code for the show program. Either way, welcome! Here's the program info:
Scot Froelich (writer/performer) is a longtime Fringer, having produced three other shows at Fringe - Men Will Be Boys, Break Your Heart, and A Man's Guide - performed in a half dozen others, and created sound design for countless shows, including this year's When You Hear the Chime and Age of Change. He's also an author whose work can be found on Amazon and at scotfroelich.com, and a musician who hosts the monthly show Singin' With Scot (formerly Whiskey In the Living Room) at The Phoenix.
Mike Mellas (director) is a director and dramaturg in the Twin Cities. He's honored Scot and Ben brought him in on this project! When he's not doing theatre, he's typically cuddling with his dogs, or listening to his super talented partner Nicole sing. Check out another show Mike's directing for the Fringe: Tales from the Fiefdom by Bubba Holly and Louie Opatz at The Southern Theatre.
Ben Layne (script collaborator) is proud to be collaborating with Scot Froelich and One T Productions once again, having worked with Scot previously on Men Will Be Boys and Break Your Heart. Ben has also served as Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Freshwater Theatre for over 12 years, and has worked as a freelance director and actor around the Twin Cities for nearly 20 years. Recently, Ben has shifted his focus, and started studying Marriage and Family Therapy in the Graduate program at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota.
Voice overs:
Game show announcer: J Merrill Motz
Dude in commercials: Ben Layne
Alcohol & progressive lens ads: Sheree Froelich
Rogaine ad: Megan Kim
Nissan Z ad: Nicole Marie Wilder
Director's Note:
"At a certain point, I realized that I needed to better understand a few things; what is my purpose here, how do I avoid becoming the cranky old coot I most fear becoming, and what is the alternative - the third option between taking up too much space, and mitigating myself into oblivion?" --Scot Froelich, from the Introduction of Aging In An Age of Change.
This was always going to be a show about change. When I first joined Scot and Ben on this project, they were already clear about what this show needed to be. Back in February, the three of us chatting over zoom, no one was clear on what the show would be. But the why of this show was always there.
The three of us discussed our desire to see a show address what it means to be an older white man making art today, in this current moment. We discussed why we wanted to see a show about the practices of finding our space in this world, about finding an option that's neither taking up all the oxygen in the room nor ceasing to make art.
This is our attempt at that show. This is a show for other aging white dudes. And it's a show for people whose lives are intertwined with aging white dudes. And it's show for people who will one day be aged white dudes. Change is hard. Change is ongoing. Change is necessary.
--Mike Mellas
Thank you: Sheree Froelich, Kira Pontiff, Jenna Papke, The Phoenix, Hamm Clinic, The Dude Chat, The Rev. Mark Moore, Shalee Mae Cole Mauleón, Dan F (WWDD), Meg Swanson, Mary Moore, Michael Kammes, and our amazing venue techs Sasha and Tom!
Resources for today’s show:
Thoughts and takeaways:
No one does it alone! While this show has only one live performer, a dozen or more people contributed feedback, insights, time, labor, and resources to making it happen. We’re not alone and it’s okay to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.
Scot Froelich (writer/performer) is a longtime Fringer, having produced three other shows at Fringe - Men Will Be Boys, Break Your Heart, and A Man's Guide - performed in a half dozen others, and created sound design for countless shows, including this year's When You Hear the Chime and Age of Change. He's also an author whose work can be found on Amazon and at scotfroelich.com, and a musician who hosts the monthly show Singin' With Scot (formerly Whiskey In the Living Room) at The Phoenix.
Mike Mellas (director) is a director and dramaturg in the Twin Cities. He's honored Scot and Ben brought him in on this project! When he's not doing theatre, he's typically cuddling with his dogs, or listening to his super talented partner Nicole sing. Check out another show Mike's directing for the Fringe: Tales from the Fiefdom by Bubba Holly and Louie Opatz at The Southern Theatre.
Ben Layne (script collaborator) is proud to be collaborating with Scot Froelich and One T Productions once again, having worked with Scot previously on Men Will Be Boys and Break Your Heart. Ben has also served as Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of Freshwater Theatre for over 12 years, and has worked as a freelance director and actor around the Twin Cities for nearly 20 years. Recently, Ben has shifted his focus, and started studying Marriage and Family Therapy in the Graduate program at Saint Mary's University of Minnesota.
Voice overs:
Game show announcer: J Merrill Motz
Dude in commercials: Ben Layne
Alcohol & progressive lens ads: Sheree Froelich
Rogaine ad: Megan Kim
Nissan Z ad: Nicole Marie Wilder
Director's Note:
"At a certain point, I realized that I needed to better understand a few things; what is my purpose here, how do I avoid becoming the cranky old coot I most fear becoming, and what is the alternative - the third option between taking up too much space, and mitigating myself into oblivion?" --Scot Froelich, from the Introduction of Aging In An Age of Change.
This was always going to be a show about change. When I first joined Scot and Ben on this project, they were already clear about what this show needed to be. Back in February, the three of us chatting over zoom, no one was clear on what the show would be. But the why of this show was always there.
The three of us discussed our desire to see a show address what it means to be an older white man making art today, in this current moment. We discussed why we wanted to see a show about the practices of finding our space in this world, about finding an option that's neither taking up all the oxygen in the room nor ceasing to make art.
This is our attempt at that show. This is a show for other aging white dudes. And it's a show for people whose lives are intertwined with aging white dudes. And it's show for people who will one day be aged white dudes. Change is hard. Change is ongoing. Change is necessary.
--Mike Mellas
Thank you: Sheree Froelich, Kira Pontiff, Jenna Papke, The Phoenix, Hamm Clinic, The Dude Chat, The Rev. Mark Moore, Shalee Mae Cole Mauleón, Dan F (WWDD), Meg Swanson, Mary Moore, Michael Kammes, and our amazing venue techs Sasha and Tom!
Resources for today’s show:
- A Starting Point, a resource for demonstrating productive methods for communicating across ideological lines.
- Braver Angels, an organization you can join that teaches specific skills for constructive dialogue
- A Finding Brave podcast episode where a researcher talks about the need for healthy gender identification even within cis-gendered individuals
- ContraPoints episode: ways to address myriad issues and how to change our minds about how we think about them.
- A Pod Save America episode on persuasion and changing minds about important topics
- Using therapeutic fanfiction to rewrite your life: Starship Therapise
- Suicide prevention resources:
- https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
- https://save.org/what-we-do/grief-support/
- Dial 988
- Discussion of depression related to professional and personal efficacy: Optimize Yourself - Michael Kammes
- National Alliance on Mental Health
Thoughts and takeaways:
- Any social checklist of personal progress or success has the potential to be the enemy of mindfulness, kindness, and genuine self-worth. A focus on someone else’s checklist and trying to fit ourselves into it is the enemy of being in the moment and appreciating where we're at. Define yourself, your progress, and your success on your own terms.
- Changing one’s mind can be extremely painful but rewarding: https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/interactive/2023/christian-home-schoolers-revolt/
- A Man’s Guide for Appropriate Behavior in the 21st Century, a blog addressing problematic beliefs and behaviors: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/21stcenturymen
- YouTube link for the Man's Guide discussion series held at the 2019 MN Fringe: https://www.youtube.com/@amansguide21stcentury64
No one does it alone! While this show has only one live performer, a dozen or more people contributed feedback, insights, time, labor, and resources to making it happen. We’re not alone and it’s okay to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.