Talking to Playwright Beau Heckman about his World Premiere Play LEGENDS OF: THE WEREWOLF

Beau Heckman

by Gil Benbrook

Beau Heckman has graced many stages in town, including in shows for Childsplay, the Phoenix Theatre Company, and Theatre Works, but Southwest Shakespeare Company is where he's made his local home, having appeared in lead and supporting roles in over a dozen productions there. He's also designed props for numerous SSC shows and recently made his directorial debut for one of their virtual shows.

Now Heckman makes his playwrighting debut, also at Southwest Shakespeare Company, with Legends Of: The Werewolf, a loving homage to the TV series In Search of... that ran for five years in the late 1970s to early 1980s and was devoted to investigating mysterious phenomena such as UFOs and Bigfoot along with other unexplained phenomena.  

In final rehearsals and tech prep for the show, Heckman sat down to answer a few questions on how the play came to be.

Since this is a world premiere play, what would you say that Legends Of: The Werewolf is about?

Heckman: "It’s a love poem to Syfy documentaries shows like In Search Of..., Ancient Aliens and many of the history channel programs."

How did the idea for the play come to be?

"It began over coffee. I can’t remember how the conversation led to this, but I happened to mention that there is a shared werewolf myth that extends around the globe. I guess it sounded interesting, because before I knew it I was being challenged to write a play. And that voice in my head that immediately says no, no, we could never do anything like that, was silent for once."

When did you start writing it, and how does the final version compare to your original idea for the piece?

"I began writing this in late February or early spring of 2021. The final version is more or less what the original concept always was except for a brief trip to the Darkside when I thought the play needed to be moodier. That was going nowhere so I quickly jumped back to the original concept and infused my love for Sci-fi documentary series."

How did the rehearsal process impact the play? 

"It was interesting getting it up on its feet. That helped to infuse a lot of life into the stories that are told throughout this play. It was also a challenge, as we were building this from the ground up and create that TV set for Legends Of."

Since this is the first play you've written, what difficulties did you encounter while writing it?

"What difficulties? I think… All of them. I had these ancient stories, but you can go onto YouTube and see all of them. I wanted to make mine different and tell my own story at the same time, and setting it in both the 1970s and today."

You're both acting in the show and the playwright. Did you write the play with the plan that you'd be playing Professor Edward Halsingland, the host of the TV show in the play, or did the decision to be in the show come about after it was written?

 

"Part of the challenge was it was a one-man show for myself. Although I don’t see why it couldn’t be played by anyone."

The play centers around a paranormal TV show - are you a fan of those types of shows, and was there any specific type of research around paranormal activities and/or werewolves you did while writing the piece?

"I’ve always love those shows! Watching In Search Of as a kid in the 70s really had an impact on me. Amelia Earhart, Easter island, Pompeii… I still watch those shows today, but I’m a little bit more of a skeptic."

What do you hope audiences will take away from seeing Legends Of: The Werewolf at Southwest Shakespeare Company?

"I hope the audience goes away feeling like they were just on a ride at Disneyland, and happen to learn something along the way."

CLICK HERE for more information on Legends Of: The Werewolf, which runs October 1 - October 15, with performances at Taliesin West

photos courtesy Southwest Shakespeare Company