Kill Shakespeare says: "Hope to see y'all soon in Charlotte"
This weekend the K.S. boys mark their return to Charlotte, North Carolina to attend the 2013 HeroesCon!
It's been a couple of years since we were in the land of the soft drawl and the hush-puppy and Andy and I are excited to see all the fans in the area, as well as make tons of new ones (for those hoping to see Anthony, sorry, but with the big guy having just returned from London, and with Boston (part deux) and Chicago still on the docket we thought we'd give him a break).I'm also going to have the great pleasure of driving down to the convention with the talented Scott Chantler (Northwest Passage, Two Generals, Tower of Treasure). Scott and I will both be set up in Artist Alley -- I'll be at booth AA-107 with trades, new issues of The Tide of Blood, and t-shirts and buttons galore!Come on by, say hello, take a silly picture or two and maybe win some free swag if you can answer some CANADIAN TRIVIA!ConorPS: A big thanks to Rico, and everyone else at Heroes Aren't Hard To Find, the amazing shop in Charlotte that runs this convention. You guys are the greatest.
Bonus Sneek Peak of Issue #4
With the skies pretty dreary here in Toronto and the temperature being a jerk and dropping from the lovely 20 degree days we'd enjoyed a week ago to as low as nine (seriously?). I know that I really need a pick-me up.So, I thought I'd share that impulse with the rest of you. Normally we only toss out four preview pages from any given Kill Shakespeare installment, but with issue #4 due out tomorrow and such a grey day around me I thought, what the heck? Go nuts.So here I am, going nuts (I'm a wild man, you should see me eating full-fat yoghurt... bad!).Enjoy! (As always all pencils and inks are by Andy B. while Shari Chankhamma turns in another superlative colours job).
Love is in the air. Kill Shakespeare-style!
UPDATE (May 28th, 2013): Julia Beckmann, who owns Amore Vita, saw the below post and super-kindly sent over a bunch of the most relevant Kill Shakespeare snaps. So while I would still VERY HEAVILY recommend you go over to her site (http://www.amorevitaphotos.com/) you can now look at some of those photos right here, right now!(How's that for service, huh?)
As the wonderful Mr. Anthony Del Col so kindly noted, a year ago this day was when the love of my life, Crystal Luxmore, and I got married.It's been a fantastic year and I'm blessed beyond belief to have met my perfect partner.I love you sweetie.But enough about that... because we've got ANOTHER awesome couple we need to focus on.Rico Renzi, part of the team of awesome dudes & dudettes behind Heroes Aren't Hard To Find, one of the top comic shops in the WORLD sent this very cool e-mail to me.It seems that Josh, one of Heroes' regulars, decided he needed to get his love of comics into his wedding photos. That, in itself, is cool: we love all things geeky and romancing up here in Kill Shakespeare headquarters.But what made this REALLY awesome? The bride to be, Denise? She seems to be a K.S. fan!Check out this link for Amore Vita - if you scroll about half-way down through Julia's pictures you'll see Kill Shakespeare's cameo (you'll also see some great visual references to Superman, Star Wars and other classic components of the geek canon).Hug someone you love!Conor
Conor's Con Pix Galore! (And an ANDY B. retrospective: "A Man and his Beard")
The past few weeks have been a pretty busy time for the K.S. boys. You've seen Anthony jet off to exotic far-flung locales like... Ottawa and... Calgary...But while Anthony was enjoying the high-life, poor lil' ol me has been stuck doing AMAZING SHOWS in Chicago and right here in Toronto -- TCAF 2013.I've been quite the shutterbug as I learn to play with this new Galaxy Tablet and I even took a bit of video of the Kill Shakespeare stage show that played at C2E2. I wanted to share some memories of the events and thank all the amazing fans and friends who came out and supported us in both places. I had SUCH a good time talking with all of you.We've said it before, but I don't believe that any other book has such diverse and interesting fans as K.S. does!Now let's see some photos!Below are a few from the stageplay that went on at C2E2 and was put on by the amazing Strawdog Theatre. I've already posted a few on our Facebook account, but these are a few samples that I took of the show. The rest you can find in this album.
Of course C2E2 was more than just theatre -- we also had fans and cosplay galore. To get a flavour of the delightful madness here are a few shots to whet your appetite. You can see more of C2E2 in this album.
This past weekend was TCAF -- a more "refined" comics experience. While cos-play isn't really a "thing" at TCAF it was a great chance to see old friends and to steal a ukele
For more TCAF click here.And finally, for those of you who haven't seen Andy B. for awhile you may not know that he now owns the 1,965th best beard of ALL-TIME. He just passed this guy and is closing hard on these guys.Andy graciously agreed to pose for a series of photos so we can commerate a time when life was simpler, and all that mattered was a man, his beard, and how many birds could nest within it.
For the entire, surely to be award-winning, collection - click here... if you dare!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY WILLIAM!
“It is my birthday. I had thought t' have held it poor”
- Antony and Cleopatra
Act 3, Scene 13
“Today is your birthday. It’s my birthday too, yeah”
- The Beatles
Yep, today is Willy Shakes birthday and the Bard is still going strong. In fact, our favourite, self-doubting, quill-wielding creator turns 449 today!
It's been a long run for Shakespeare and we're proud to say that this also is an anniversary of sorts for us. Way back on April 14th of 2010, just before Shakespeare's birthday, so we could maximize publicity - natch, we released the first issue of the first series of our little baby.
We weren't really sure what to expect. We'd sold our investors and families on the fact that we had this BIG idea, but who really knew what we had? After all of you made that first issue sold out and then we went into a second printing and you guys made sure THAT sold out too we had an inkling that we might actually have that BIG idea.
Since then, 13 more issues have hit the stands (with #14, the third issue of The Tide of Blood, hitting stores tomorrow), we've developed a stage show with one of Toronto's top theatre companies, Soulpepper, and seen that show tour across Canada, the U.S. and now Dubai, we've made t-shirts and buttons and all manner of ShakesGeare that people seem to like, we've been developing a mobile game and an enhanced graphic novel that we hope will take sequential storytelling to the next step, and we've been courted - quite feverently at times - by the world of Hollywood to make K.S. into T.V. or film...
So, while today is REALLY about the man who inspired us, and upon whose works all our ideas rest, we're still pretty proud of the little space we occupy for people who are excited that William Shakespeare was ever born.
Here's hoping for another 449 years from Shakespeare, and at least another 49 for Kill Shakespeare! And here's a HUGE thank-you to all of you, the fans, supporters, and Bardolaters who have taken our little idea and made it into the BIG one we hoped we had.
Conor
Conor on stage with Neil Gaiman (Video)
As mentioned last weekend I had an amazing time out in Orlando where I got to be part of the International Association for the Fantastic Arts' annual conference.One of the real treats was getting to be IN a play with Neil Gaiman. The play was called "The Sum of Your Experience" and the lovely dirtectrix, Carrie J. Cole, sent me a link to a video of the show.Bill Clementine, a noble IAFA member, shot the video and edited it for this clip and the narration is provided by Brett Cox.(And if you don't know which one is me and which one is Mr. Gaiman? I'm the handsome one - GRIN)We did this after just one hour of rehearsal - so I think it's pretty amazing we didn't screw up too many lines (I combined two lines once but Neil covered like a champ -- see if you can spot my screw-up).Enjoy!
Kill Shakespeare goes to school -- in Dubai!
With all the cons going on sometimes it gets tough to look ahead at what's coming next so it was nice to find an e-mail in our in-boxes from Melanie Guidera who is part of the Backstage Dubai team helps Ben Caddy and the rest of the MEFCC team with education programs at the Con as well as teaches English and Film at the Emirates International School - Meadows.Melanie sent us some great pictures from the school of Backstage Dubai's team of actors running a shortened version of the Kill Shakespeare reading they will be performing at the Middle East Film and Comic Con.The kids at the Emirates International School- Meadows seemed pretty taken with the performance and we hope to see many of them at the show -- and then maybe again when Backstage puts Kill Shakespeare on for a two-week run in the Emirate.
Dream a little Dream with Neil.
Every once in awhile in the course of promoting Kill Shakespeare opportunities come by that see us starstruck. This past weekend was just such an occasion.While Anthony started the weekend holding down the fort in Rochester Minnesota (and rubbing shoulders with comci superstars like Bill Willingham), I was in Orlando after being invited to the International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts.The IAFA is an academic conference that focuses on sci-fi, fantasy, and horror. Attending the conference is like going to the very smartest corner of a ComicCon, except with a swim-up bar, and no furries.The 34th edition of the conference had five papers on The Walking Dead, two on semi-obscure Swedish Vampire flick Let the Right One In and a paper entitled Do Linguists Dream of Electric Sheep? A Study of Constructed Languages in Speculative Fiction.I even sat in on one paper that linked changing Renaissance Fairs to Stephen Colbert's notion of "truthiness" and what it called a growing problem in American Politics of ignoring what is true for what we want to be true (as always, blame the trolls people).So, for a geek like me this was heaven.But I was talking about being starstruck, and while being around so many smart interesting people was dizzying enough what REALLY made me need the shades was the chance to rub elbows not once, but twice, with a certain gentleman named...... Neil Gaiman.Yeah, him.As part of the deal the IAFA offered us they said they'd pay for a night in a hotel and make sure that whichever of us came down would sit on a panel with Neil and other scholars and talk about adaptations of Shakespeare.(the fact I got to go to this one explains why Anthony is currently sunning himself in SoCal while I hang out in lovely, but much colder, Toronto.)But if that wasn't enough the amazingly talented Carrie Cole, who helped put together the Kill Shakespeare stageshow when it was in Arizona had a surprise in store for me.You see every year at the IAFA they perform three, one-act plays that were chosen as winners of a competition. This year Carrie was directing them, and knowing what a ham-bone I am she asked if I would be willing to be in one of the plays. I agreed, but because the play would be a day after I was scheduled to go to FablesCon from Orlando I was ready to beg off."Oh, but don't you want to know who will be acting opposite you in the play?" she asked."Wellll, I guess....""It might be someone named... Neil Gaiman."So, about 45 minutes later I had my plane changed and was staying an extra day in Orlando which is how I ended up on stage on Friday night looking at one of the greatest writers of our time as he pulled a gun on me.The play was a taut two-hander called The Sum of Your Experience and was written Trace Crawford. It involves the strange case of a man who gets robbed and the mugger who steals all his stories.Appropriately Neil got to be the tale thief while I was the sorry son-of-a-gun who loses everything -- including the memories of his children.While I didn't get a great chance to hang-out with Neil afterwards (he had been on his feet for three straight days) I was able to chat a little bit and passed on a couple of Kill Shakespeare t-shirts to him and his wife Amanda. He was as gracious and polite as everyone said he would be and is one of the smartest people I've ever meant.Below are a few pictures from Orlando (and there may be one or two of a certain comics genius).
Kill Shakespeare hits Toronto ComicCon this weekend
Anthony and I will be at the Toronto ComicCon this weekend.
The show is at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and starts at 11 o'clock on both Saturday and Sunday.You can find us in Artist Alley at Table P20. Rumour has it, though it cannot be confirmed, that Anthony might get killed by a Chantler again.Hope to see all of you there!Conor
Sleepless (with excitement) in Seattle.
This past weekend was a hum-dinger for the Kill Shakespeare crew.While Andy, and Anthony did a whirlwind tour of Southern Ontario I was off in the Pacific Northwest getting a chance to enjoy the hospitality of the great folks who run the Emerald City Comic Con.The show was a HUGE success. Yes, we sold all our books, oodles of t-shirts, buttons, and prints, but that wasn’t what made the show work for me. What made EmCity so amazing were the legions of people we met who came by to express their support, to talk comics or Shakespeare or Canada (especially the Canadian sorry dance).It was also a real treat to see so many people come out to my writing and business panels as well as to over one-hundred people who saw the Kill Shakespeare Dramatic Reading performed live at the convention. The actors were great, the crowd even better (they even laughed at all my post-show ‘jokes’) and I can honestly say I haven’t been as proud of Anthony, Andy or my work as I was in that moment.Seattle, I salute thee.And next year I have to come in a day early so I can tour the underground city. I didn't know this but Seattle is basically a double decker city down by the water - how cool is that?Below are some photos from the weekend. To see more surf on over to our Facebook page (Kill Shakespeare).
Kill Shakespeare heads to Emerald City!
This weekend the intrepid duo of Kill Shakespeare will be forced to split up.Anthony stays in Toronto to oversee our big gallery show at the Comic Book Lounge (587A College St.) on Saturday evening, which if you are in Toronto you REALLY need to go to, while I head out to the left coast to hit Emerald City Comic Con.I've never been to the Seattle show but am excited for many reasons:
1) Show founder Jim Demonakos is an amazing guy AND married to the lovely Canadian comics fanatic Andrea Demonakos (nee Ball)! So any chance to see their smiling faces is one you HAVE to take.2) Jim, and Kyle Stevens, the dynamic duo behind the awesome Nerd Rock band, Kirby Krackle, will be performing on their home turf as part of Kracklefest 3!
3) The Kill Shakespeare Dramatic Reading is going to hit the ECCC stage on Saturday at 5 P.M. I can't WAIT to see what the amazing people at Balagan Theatre will do with our baby when it hits hall 2ABand4) I get to host two different panels. One on writing at 3 PM on Friday in room #401 the other is on the business of creation on Sunday at 5 PM, also in room #401So if you are attending Emerald City please swing by artist alley, table J-02, to say 'hello' and pick up your copy of Tide of Blood Issue #1!Hugs, Conor
Sneak Peek: Cast photo for Kill Shakespeare in Dubai
We're on quite a theatrical run here of late, eh?This morning Anthony and I were treated to a lovely surprise when Gautam Goenka, the mastermind behind Kill Shakespeare's Dubai stage debut, sent us a photo of a cast rehearsal.
In the photo from L to R are our Iago (Amod Munga), Othello (Eben Thomas), Hamlet (Ahmed Rabieh), Gautam (the director of the piece) and Juliet (Priyanka Johri). I'm definitely digging the fact that almost half the cast are using tablets to run their lines -- it's a digital world now, baby!Unquestionably the Middle East Film & Comic Con is going to be one of the highlights of the year for Anthony and I. Not only do we get to escape the cold Canadian spring for the warmth of Dubai (MEFCC runs April 5th and 6th), and help grow comic culture in the Middle East, we'll also get to see all the great work Gautam and his dedicated team of actors are doing in person.(Even if I will burn like a son-of-a-gun out there in the desert).Ta,Conor
WAY MORE AWESOME: TIME OUT CHICAGO PREVIEWS THE KILL SHAKESPEARE DRAMATIC READING
One of the most exciting and, for me, nerve-wracking projects for Kill Shakespeare in 2013 is the on-going roll-out of the stageshow.It's exciting because the stageshow allows us to reach an entirely different audience and get new people interested in stepping into the Kill Shakespeare world. It's nerve-wracking though for that same reason: new people means new opportunities for misunderstanding the "point" of Kill Shakespeare. We're here to praise the Bard, not to bury him, as those who've attended a convention with us have probably heard us say, but not everyone gets that.Moving to the stage is also a bit intimidating because theatre audiences can have a reputation for… well, let’s put ths kindly, bone-shattering snobbery.
And theatre critics? Oh, man they can be the WORST: with a glass of chardonnay in one hand, a wheel of camembert in the other, and cheekbones that could cut glass, they scare the hell out of me by just SAYING the name Brecht.Add to all THAT, the reality that in about a week the most ambitious undertaking of the dramatic reading EVER attempted is hitting the stage in Chicago, and you can tell why my already poor sleep habits might take a further nose dive.Imagine my relief when Anderson Lawfer, the head-cheese over at Strawdog Theatre, the folks who are going to put Kill Shakespeare on stage for an unprecedented THREE WEEK run, called me to tell me that Time Out Chicago wanted to do an article on the show. It seems like those arbitrers of all that is cool in the Windy City think Kill Shakespeare fits the bill.And indeed they have, and they seem quite excited about the whole thing. Kill Shakespeare: The Dramtic Reading will hit the boards on March 4th and goes until the 26th in Strawdog's cabaret space (the warm-and-fuzzily named Hugen Hall - grab tickets here).
Aside from talking up the show, Time Out goes in-depth aboutAnderson and the rest of the Strawdog team and their penchant for staging some of the most interesting and innovative theatre in the city.I certainly hope that fans of ours in and around Chicago will be able to attend the show -- from what Anderson tells us it is going to be an experience unlike anything else that you have seen.And if Ms. Snooty-critic with the killer cheekbones and the gluten-free diet doesn't like it? Well fine... I'll sleep soundly regardless.(plus, I'd just show her this)Conor
Not To Be Missed!
The reviews are rolling in from Halifax for the Kill Shakespeare show and they are GOOD!
First, Kate Watson, of legendary weekly The Coast, gave the production a very strong review saying:I see over a 100 plays a year, and I'm predicting that Kill Shakespeare will stand out as one of the most memorable and entertaining of 2012.She raved about the cast provided by Lion's Den and Vile Passeist and then concluded by saying the show was "not to be missed".To read the full review click here.After that we got another great shout out from The Chronicle Herald. This is Halifax's largest daily newspaper. The Chronicle ended up giving us a feature length review. Not just on the theatre show (which Elissa Barnard called "marvellous"), but also on the whole concept.The Chronicle was also amazed at the work of Andy B.:Belanger’s illustrations are a beautiful and sometimes extraordinary art, especially when Hamlet must face his own demons in the hall of mirrors sequence.To read more of what the Chronicle, uh, chronicled click here.And remember, Haligonians, there are still three shows left to catch tonight and tomorrow night at 8 PM as well as a 2 PM matinee on Sunday.Thanks to everyone who has gone out to see the show so far, we really appreciate your support.
Bardicide at Bus Stop!
There are tons of memories and photos to share from the Halifax ComicCon, and I promise I'll get right on that but, first, I wanted to make sure our friends and fans in Nova Scotia know they can come and support Kill Shakespeare by attending our....FIRST EVER PRESENTATION OF THE KILL SHAKESPEARE STAGE SHOW ON A "MAINSTREAM" STAGE!!!!The Kill Shakespeare stage show is a 90 minute (including intermission) theatre extravaganza that takes all of Andy's amazing art and uses it as backdrop for a team of actors to stage a radio-play style performance complete with live foley and music.
We've teamed up with the amazing people from Lion's Den Theatre and Vile Passeist Theatre to put the show on for a whole week from Tuesday October 30th, to Sunday November 4th. We'd love for you to come join us. And if you can't make it please think of sharing the news on Facebook and Twitter.
Kill Shakespeare at Bus Stop Theatre (2203 Gottingen Street, Halifax):
Tickets $20, $15 for students and anyone with a HalCon pass.
October 30th - 8 PM. Opening Night: stay for drinks and snacks with the cast, director and co-writer!October 31st - 8 PM Halloween Madness: Costumed guests pay student rate. Free lootbags! November 1st - 8 PMNovember 2nd - 8 PMNovember 3rd – 8 PMNovember 4th – 2 PM Matinee, 8 PM Closing Night/Trivia: Free K.S. swag for winners!See you at the show!
Kill Shakespeare is coming to HalCon and the stage!
Halifax has ALWAYS been one of our, if not our absolute, favourite shows on the schedule.
The combination of excellent organizers, a lively and interested crowd, and the hospitality Atlantic Canada is famous for makes it a winner in our books.This year we're going to be doing even more at HalCon than usual -- we're bringing the Kill Shakespeare stageshow!On Saturday at 3:45 PM Kill Shakespeare will be presented by the amazing Lion's Den Theatre in association with Vile Passeist. The two groups have banded together and have been rehearsing the show for almost a month.
Yes, a MONTH. And it isn't JUST because they'll be putting the show on at HalCon.Nope.No siree.You see THIS time around, Kill Shakespeare is going to step beyond the convention scene for THE FIRST TIME EVER.That's right, Kill Shakespeare is hitting the stage in downtown Halifax.
Kill Shakespeare at Bus Stop Theatre (2203 Gottingen Street, Halifax):
Tickets $20, $15 for students and anyone with their HalCon pass.
October 30th - 8 PM. Opening Night: stay for drinks and snacks with the cast, director and co-writer!October 31st - 8 PM Halloween Madness: Costumed guests pay student rate. Free lootbags! November 1st - 8 PMNovember 2nd - 8 PMNovember 3rd – 8 PMNovember 4th – 2 PM Matinee, 8 PM Closing Night/Trivia: Free K.S. swag for winners!We hope all of our East Coast friends will be at HalCon and can catch the free show. We'd also love it if you tweet and post about the Bus Stop theatre run.Better yet, come out with your HalCon pass and get a $5 discount and bring a friend who missed HalCon to the show.This is our chance to prove that comic culture and Shakespeare mix like chocolate and peanut butter!See you soon!Conor
Andy Belanger gets the Star Treatment
Comic journalism, like comics themselves, sometimes doesn't get the credit it deserves.It also can see a sharp divide. Bloggers talk about the latest "capes" book while the "serious" journalists focus more on the sort of work you might see Adrian Tomine or Alison Bechdel put out.
So it was an extra pleasant surprise to read Keith Silva's amazing piece on our own Andy Belanger (with a nice helping of Andy's sweetheart Becky Cloonan) in the e-pages of Comics Bulletin. The story really embraces Andy's love of genre as well as personal storytelling.The feature length article takes a look at Andy's whole career - starting with the fact that Andy's Dad was Batman... no, seriously...
Keith has put together a wonderfully written piece that is a real credit to journalism and also surprised me by teaching me a few new things about our fave artist and partner.Enjoy the read!Conor
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANTHONY!
Today, some thirty years ago more or less (well more, but whose REALLY counting?), Anthony Del Col came onto the scene.Please join me in wishing him a wonderfully happy birthday and here's hoping he survivies yet ANOTHER death defying stunt on his big day. The stout-hearted man has taken on sky-diving, bungie cord jumping, working with me, and now he's set to take on another daredevil adventure -- walking the EDGE of the CN TOWER!For a look at what Anthony is going to face watch a few minutes of this video -- I can't wait for the photo of Anthony sitting in thin air.Anthony, you're a great partner, but more importantly than that you bring joy to every room you walk into and a smile to every face.Have a great one - and here is a little birthday song for you!
Snail Trail!
Last weekend, on Saturday August 18th, Toronto's oldest comic shop - The Silver Snail - moved house.Sorta.
The Snail has been on the cusp of moving for several months as their old digs on 367 Queen West has been sold to be developed as condos (surprise, surprise). But because of slower than expected rennovations at their new home-to-be at 329 Yonge (in Yonge and Dundas Square) the store hasn't been able to move.But that didn't stop the Snail's new owners Mark and George from organizing a very cool
event that saw hundred of volunteers line up, side by side, from the old locale to the new one. Then this human chain moved over a 100 boxes and props from the old store to Yonge and Dundas square.Sure, there wasn't anyplace to PUT these boxes as the workers were still hammering and sawing away BUT that didn't matter because the boxes were actually filled with goodies that were then raffled off to all the helpers.The whole thing was covered by several media outlets giving our comic-friends some great buzz as they prepare to expand the Snail's legacy.
Yours truly got to be a marshall, which basically means I had to carry boxes across intersections... 'cause if a volunteer gets run over that's a tragedy, if a red-head gets whacked that's a Louie CK bit.Hope you're all enjoying the Expo! See you in a couple of hours.Conor
K.S. Friends, "Bad Kids Go To Hell", Bring Their Film To FanExpo
Going to conventions as much as we do you get the great opportunity to meet other creative entrepreneurs, and one of the real pleasures of the job is being able to share their work with your own fans and supporters.
So without further ado...One of the most interesting events that should be on top of your "things to do at FanExpo", is the Bad Kids Go To Hell screening.Based on the bestselling Bad Kids Go To Hell graphic novel, which is kinda a 'John Hughes meets Halloween' idea, the film is going to premiere at the FanExpo on Saturday night.You can meet Matt and "Bazza" the two creators of the book and film at Booth #802 (they are special guests of the Silver Snail) and see the film at 6:30 PM in room 715. Check the boys' newsletter for a special "Detention Slip" that can get you into the film.
Matt and Barry (Baz's REAL name) are great guys that we met when we first started promoting Kill Shakespeare - their comic-to-screen journey is one we're working hard to emulate - so for any of our fans who also loves a good old-fashioned 80's style sex and scare story you should make a point of checking out the Bad Kids journey.For a better taste - here is the trailer: