The 5-Question NYMF Interviews: BLOOD [BY THE MUMMERS]

We are rolling right along in our NYMF 5-Question interview series with Blood [By The Mummers], a supernatural high school comedy/romance. Will there be blood? And who are [By The Mummers]? The Producing Director of [By The Mummers], Frank Cardillo, answers our questions:

Me: How would you describe your show in one sentence?

Frank Cardillo: It’s Macbeth meets Twilight with a 90210 swagger.

Me: Who are [By The Mummers]?

Frank: [By The Mummers] were spawn out of the famed Bless the Mark Players troupe (hence BTM) at the Sterling Renaissance Festival about one hour north of Syracuse. We were all trained by Improv & Interactive Theatre guru Gary Izzo (‘The Art of Play’), where we all learned how to create our own character driven world.

Me: What has the development process of Blood been like?

Frank: We’ve had two previous incarnations. In 2009, the first show we ever did was Blood.Only then it was with our play-within-a-play format (a through line of all our original shows). Half of the staged show featured the actors behind the roles and the other half was a parody with two songs (think ‘The Muppet Show’). Last year, we went full tilt with a 15 song musical workshop. That production had less of the play-within-a-play but elements were still woven throughout. For NYMF, we have a Rocky Horror like narrator at the opening – the last remaining element of that ‘play within.’

Me: How would you describe Blood musically?

Frank: A pop rock musical, leaning occasionally towards camp. The influences have a very broad range – from Meatloaf to Jonathan Larson to Green Day to Queen to Lin-Manuel Miranda to Danny Elfman.

While we’re on the subject, you can take a look at our friend Kristie Wortman taking on our ballad 'Bleed Me Dry' in music video form:

Me: What are you most looking forward to about NYMF?

Frank: Every member of [By The Mummers] has great talent, but when you put them together as an ensemble with a clear canvas. . . Spectacular things happen. I am constantly amazed by their abilities to evoke truth onstage. I really can’t wait to see a wider audience to be a part of that.

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