.png)
Jersey Arts Podcast
The Jersey Arts Podcast presents in-depth, one-on-one conversations with the liveliest and most intriguing personalities in New Jersey’s arts scene. From the casts of hit shows to critically acclaimed film producers; from world-renowned poets to classically trained musicians; from groundbreaking dance visionaries to cutting-edge fine artists, our podcast connects you to what’s happening in your local arts community.
Jersey Arts Podcast
American Theater Group Celebrates Family and Heritage with 'My Italy Story'
"My Italy Story," written by Joseph Gallo, directed by Charlotte Cohn, and starring Michael Notardonato, is a nostalgic exploration of family, heritage and the ties that bind us. Spurred by pleas to help reunite his fractured family, a young man quits his job as a New York account executive and travels to Vallata — the tiny Italian town of his ancestors. Not until he returns home, however, does he discover a secret that unlocks his past.
Loosely inspired by his own experiences, Gallo wrote and originated the one-man show as an homage to family. He is now passing the reigns to Michael Notardonato who most recently appeared in the off-Broadway musical hit, Romeo and Bernadette. And you may remember distinguished director, Charlotte Cohn, from one of our previous podcasts covering the play, "Canned Goods."
Jersey Arts speaks to the trio about family, the immigrant experience, and the importance of storytelling. Don’t worry, you don’t need to be Italian to appreciate this play or this podcast.
Thanks for listening!
- Subscribe to The Jersey Arts Podcast in your favorite podcast player.
The Jersey Arts Podcast is one medium of Feature Stories on Discover Jersey Arts (jerseyarts.com), where articles and videos also cover New Jersey’s vibrant arts and entertainment scene.
Discover Jersey Arts is presented by ArtPride New Jersey. The program was co-founded by, and is currently supported by funds from, the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. Additional support for JerseyArts.com content is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.
- Subscribe to the Discover Jersey Arts' weekly e-newsletter to have stories delivered to your inbox.
- Follow and contact us @jerseyarts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
This is Gina Marie Rodriguez and you're listening to the Jersey Arts Podcast. I don't know about you, but I've just learned that October is Italian Heritage Month. I had no idea, and it comes on the heels of Hispanic Heritage Month, which strangely ends mid-October. But all that really means is, personally, I'm having a great month and will be accepting gifts for the duration. I jest, unless, of course, you'd actually like to buy me gifts. But if you'd rather celebrate in a different way, I might recommend American Theatre Group's production of my Italy Story.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:My Italy Story, written by Joseph Gallo, directed by Charlotte Cohn and starring Michael Notardonato, is a nostalgic exploration of family heritage and the ties that bind us. Spurred by pleas to help reunite his fractured family, a young man quits his job as a New York account executive and travels to Vallata, the tiny Italian town of his ancestors. Not until he returns home, however, does he discover a secret that unlocks his past. Loosely inspired by his own experiences, Gallo wrote and originated the one-man show as an homage to family. He's now passing the reins to Michael Notardinato, who most recently appeared in the off-Broadway musical hit Romeo and Bernadette, and you may remember, distinguished director Charlotte Cohn, from one of our previous podcasts covering the play Canned Goods. Today, the four of us chat about family, the immigrant experience and the importance of storytelling. And don't worry, you don't need to be Italian to appreciate this play or this podcast.
Joseph Gallo:Hi, I'm Joseph Gallo. I am the playwright of my Italy Story.
Michael Notardonato:Hi, I'm Michael Notardonato. I'm Thomas DaGato and all characters.
Charlotte Cohn:Hi, I'm Charlotte Cohn. I'm the director.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Yay, I'm so excited to meet everybody today. I'm really excited about this story. As a half Italian myself, I'd love to talk about Italy. I got the fist pump, which is so very Jersey. Although, are you from Jersey, Michael?
Michael Notardonato:No, I'm not. I'm not. I'm from the Chicago suburbs, but I'm first generation. My dad is born and raised in Italy.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Oh, wonderful, that works out really well for you. That wasn't one of my questions, but I'm going to ask you now. Great. How does that relationship, being first generation, help you create these characters? I don't know, this is kind of semi-autobiographical for Joseph, right? So I don't know if you're creating a new or if you're pulling from Joseph's life or how you're going about this.
Michael Notardonato:You tell me your your style here yeah, no, joseph has so beautifully created these characters, but it's my job to interpret them as we start the process with Charlotte, our director. Director and, but yeah, definitely having an Italian cultural background. The first time I read the script I was a little spooky, because some moments like wait, is this my family too? I think there are so many themes that if you're Italian, you'll understand and I don't want to give too much away, but you know, just just, you know, italians can hold a grudge. There's a lot of, there's a lot of themes that really resonated with me, that I have such personal experience with them. And even just the visuals he creates in the script, sitting at two picnic tables, end to end of 20, 25 people in the kitchen and, you know, drama's dressed like a grandma's, dressed like a gypsy cooking, like all these visuals are. So you know they really resonate with me.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:I love hearing that I'm going to go to Joseph now because I want to know where this story came from. What inspired you to put it all on the page?
Joseph Gallo:Well, I think for me to I have to, I guess, introduce how I came to solo performance, because I think that's really, you know, I think, essential to telling how, as a writer, I landed here. When I first moved to New York to be in the arts, I was a bartender down on the at the Prince Street Bar on Wooster Street, which was down the block from the performing garage where the Wooster Group was in residence and Spalding Gray was one of their actors and, you know, you could arguably say that in the history of solo performance he's kind of like the godfather and he used to come into our bar all the time and and I would talk to him and he invited me down to see one of his performances and one of the things that he used to do in between his solo performances. He would do these things where he would interview members of the audience, anonymous, you know, you just randomly pick somebody, they get on stage, and then he would just, you know, he just asked him questions very revealing, very theatrical actually, and so I went and I was one of the people selected, he interviewed me and I became a fan from that point on and I really, you know, embraced, you know what he was doing. And it was a few years later then that I saw Chazz Palminteri do "A Bronx Tale, and that was the moment when I was sitting in the audience.
Joseph Gallo:At that point in time I, you know, I was starting to evolve as a writer, as a playwright, and I was sitting there and I watched that amazing solo show and I went I can do that. And so right after that I wrote a couple of short solo plays that I performed down at here space in lower Manhattan, and then and then I took a trip to Italy and my world just sort of opened up. It was the first time I had gone there and I came back and I started telling sort of the story of my trip, which evolved into something much bigger and much deeper, and at that point in time I was always a writer and, you know, somewhere along the line I was like somebody said to me oh, this is your next play, and I, of course, wrote it all down.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Was there something that prompted that initial trip to Italy?
Joseph Gallo:Yeah, you know it's, it's interesting because interesting. You asked that because it's still. I know I know the play, you know I won't even. You know it's, it's, it's auto fiction, right, which is semi autobiographical, which is, you know, it claims the authority of fact but it also embraces the freedom of fiction at the same time. And if you know, it claims the authority of fact but it also embraces the freedom of fiction at the same time. And if you know if, if you're writing auto fiction correctly, it should always be emotionally true. So you know, there is a point where you know, where I have to stop explaining to people, like what really happened, what, what didn't happen.
Joseph Gallo:So, while I did, in my real life, get some ghostly visits from my grandmother, the idea from the play actually was sparked when I had come back. No, I hadn't even gone to Italy yet. I was in Little Italy and I was in a place on Mulberry Street having dinner. I could look right into the kitchen and there was this little Nona in widow black, over the over the you know the stove, stirring the sauce and the gravy, as we would call it. And and I just had this inspiration that I wanted to write about my grandmother and my family and that, literally, like that night, I came home and just started, you know, filling up a notebook with everything that I could remember about my family. So really it started there.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:I love that and I'm just gonna say I love watching Italians speak because, while it's a stereotype that we speak with our hands, it's really engaging for me to to watch you guys tell stories. I really. I get frustrated that this is a podcast because nobody else can see it, but you're just very it's fun to watch. So thank you for talking with your hands. I do it too, but you can't see mine right now. Anyway, Charlotte, hello, my darling Hello. Can you tell me what excited you most when you first got this script?
Charlotte Cohn:Yes, and I will also note that Jews also speak with their hands and ergo the connection to "My Italy story.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:There you go, which I appreciate. Please continue to do so.
Charlotte Cohn:That's it. That was what sparked no, what really spoke to me. What I found really interesting are the themes of family and belonging and coming back home. All of those things are prevalent in all of us. This is unifying for every person on earth. So, you know, I am a person who's far away from her family, so I think about this daily and the longing for that and the longing for my community, I mean that sparked my interest, also, coming from Canned Goods, which was, you know, also based on a true event, historical event, but it was very, you know, it was very heavily dramatic. I was still longing to do something warm and fuzzy and uplifting and and my Italy story really hit that on all fronts, so I was very excited to read it really hit that on all fronts, so I was very excited to read it. And it just goes on a real lovely journey with conflicts and it just leaves you smiling. That's what I was looking for.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:That's really good to hear. I did see Canned Goods, which was wonderful, but I did leave sobbing, so I guess it's nice to hear that we've branched out to comedy not branched out moved on to comedy or at least more uplifting source material here it will be tears of joy, I hope.
Joseph Gallo:I'm going to say, Gina, that if there isn't a dry eye in the house, we haven't done our job as artists. Let's just say that.
Charlotte Cohn:We'll do our best.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:We'll do our best. I'm looking forward to it. So, speaking of previous shows, right, ken Goods was wonderful, but I also happened to see Michael in Romeo and Bernadette.
Joseph Gallo:Oh, you did.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:I did. That was gosh. How long ago was that now?
Michael Notardonato:Was that pre-pandemic? Oh, it was pre-pandemic and post-pandemic.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Okay, because I think I might have seen it pre-pandemic, which is really, it was probably shot in our first space, alphabrauda, yeah. Yeah, but it was wonderful. I just wanted to say that.
Michael Notardonato:Oh, thank you.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Of course, but I also selfishly wanted to ask if there's any opportunity for you to sing in this show.
Michael Notardonato:No, this is not, and I'm actually there's not. I'm also very excited to tackle a play. Um, I mean, I was actually just chatting about this with charlotte the other day. As singers and or doing a musical like you, have to worry about warming up your voice and people think, oh, you might not have to do that for a play as well, but it might be even more important, because you're using your voice not even just for an hour, over an hour straight, but in just different ways that you would approach a musical and you can get exhausted in different ways just from speaking. So, yeah, definitely have to take a lot of care of it, the instrument, during this process as well.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Absolutely. I can only imagine I was going to ask you about that. What does it feel like when you are? I mean, you're the one holding down the fort, you know, it's all you. So what is it like to take on a oneman show?
Michael Notardonato:I won't lie, it's scary but it's so exciting. I mean, I don't do things that don't frighten me, because that's what I love about theater. I like to take on a challenge and I like to see if, well, can I actually do that? But yeah, it's. I carried many shows, but you're always supported by an ensemble and it's going to be interesting when the ensemble is also myself. But it's a challenge I'm ready to take on and I'm yeah, I'm just really excited for it.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Well, having seen your work, I have every confidence that you'll do a wonderful job. Thank you, but Joseph, you, if I'm not mistaken, you also originated this role when you wrote the play, so can I ask for your input on that as well?
Joseph Gallo:Is it scary which part of it there's a reason.
Joseph Gallo:I, you know. You know I will say something. It is a quick story because when I first did it, like I was running a lot, like just off what Michael was talking about, like I had never worked with a vocal coach before I got a vocal coach because I was really concerned about my breathing and my voice. And then I was doing a lot of cardio and I remember there was one I had done two performances on Saturday and it was a Sunday matinee and I got up early on Sunday and I ran five miles and I came. It was like whatever, I don't know, it was a two, three o'clock curtain and I remember after the first scene I was exhausted and I was like oh my God, why did I run five miles?
Joseph Gallo:That was ridiculous. And like I'm having a conversation in my head as this, I'm like I don't know if I'm gonna make it to the end of the show Of course I did, but, um, so, uh, you know, I'll just, you know, reiterate what michael said. Yes, it is a um, you really have to take care of yourself, both vocally and physically, to do it, and um, you know it's uh, uh, I don't know I mean when I did it back.
Joseph Gallo:When I did it, it was, uh, it was a story that I had to tell. And then, in the evolution of it as I was writing it, there was a point where the story was we had originally done it at Penguin Rep up in Stony Point and Joe Brancato directed it up there. He's a great director and you know it got good reviews and we were like, ok, it's going to move off Broadway. And of course, nothing happened and maybe six months had gone by and I was like, all right, that's it. And so a buddy of mine and I we said we're going to go to Europe, we're going to backpack through Europe, we're going to come back home whenever. So that was back when you bought your Euro rail pass in advance and we got all of our Euros and we bought a new backpack. And then, of course, like two weeks before we're about to leave, we got a call from New Haven and they said, hey, we heard you have a great show. It's a solo piece, we'd like to bring it into our theater. And so we're like, oh, what are we going to do? And we decided at that time to get another actor. get. decided, why why don't we get another actor to play me? And so we did. We found another actor who came, Danny Mastrogiorgio. He had just graduated from Juilliard. He went up there and he performed and I was there for, like, I came back for the last couple of performances and watching the play as a member of the audience.
Joseph Gallo:You really, you know it's hard to be a writer and a performer. You know it's at the same time it's hard to write something that you're in because they're really it's very hard to have any kind of perspective, it's very hard to be as open as you need to be in terms of the creative process, getting notes. So you know, I can remember, actually, when we were first doing it, Joe Brincato would go I'm talking to Joe the actor now, and then he would go I'm talking to Joe the actor now, and then he would go I'm talking Joe the writer man, and so that was very hard. So I mean, you know we're uh Charlotte and I are both members of the uh actor studio, playwright and director's workshop and you know the writers are not allowed to be in their pieces and you know, and and it's for a good reason, because you should be able to sit back in the audience and listen so that you can hear how the work is affecting the audience, and that's really an important detail.
Joseph Gallo:So when I sat there and I watched Danny perform it, I realized that the story didn't work. You know, I thought it worked and it didn't work. And that was because the original draft of the play, the original first draft, was all Joseph Gallo, was all me, was my story. But our lives don't play out in three perfect acts. And so I realized that to make this, you know, a well-structured, linear, three-act play, I needed to invent scenes.
Joseph Gallo:That didn't happen. I needed to combine characters. In fact, not only that, I also realized that if my actual relatives had seen the play in that early draft, some of them might have been very mad, they would have been very angry with me. So so there was a real evolution, you know. I guess that's the evolution as a writer as far as the evolution as an actor. I know Michael right now will will be happy to, you know, build on this. It's a lot to hold in your head and you really have to, like, you know, you're constantly thinking about it and the writer in me was already like moving on to work on the next piece.
Joseph Gallo:So so I I gave it over to other actors and I was OK with that. I mean, I still perform solo work new work, but then I tend to move on to the next thing.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Well, I think it's very important that you're able to sit back and see that that changes need to happen, and you mentioned that. You know family members might have been angry had they seen that initial version. But that leads me to ask what are they saying? What have they said since? I'm hoping your family has seen it since?
Joseph Gallo:Of course they have. Yeah, they were all. Yeah, I would say to a person, they were all deeply moved. You know it's unfortunate, but you know there was a debate. You know we still are debating this, maybe Charlotte and I whether this is an older actor, older person looking back or not and I chose that the route is really. You know, the play was in 1997 when my hair was as brown as Michael's and you know so it was a different me who was up there and you know, since that time most of the principal people in the play are no longer alive. So you know, when you ask how the family members now it's their children who have seen the play, you know, and in fact you know I hope there's even yet another generation of younger, you know cousins that might see it for the first time.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Well, I hope so too. Charlotte, I want to ask you when you're coming into this knowing again, it's an autofiction how are you, what are you crafting as a director? How are you approaching the work? That's a very general question. It is.
Charlotte Cohn:Let me try and sound really intelligent answering it. Let me try this. Well, first of all, I love to have especially since I have the writer of the piece with me and it is his story I'm trying to get as much from him as possible, and then I also try to convince him that it's no longer his and now it's moving to its next phase, which is a completely new interpretation by another actor, and that's always hard for playwrights because they wanna hold onto it. But I think, now that the show has been done several times right, joseph, it's had a life that now he's probably more open to it, and I think that's something that Michael and I will discover. We are going to create this together.
Charlotte Cohn:The minute the rehearsals start, we start crafting it around Michael and his tools and what he brings to the table, staying, you know, faithful to the material and telling the story of the material with the actor that we have, because all we have as actors is ourselves, right, and that's the conversation Michael and I met a couple of days ago, where we talked about getting ready vocally and physically and also talked about bringing himself to the material. So it's no one else but him, and so that is really what I'm looking for, and I'm really excited about what Michael can bring to this, like his accents, his behavior drawing from his actual relatives and people that he knows in his life, and his behavior drawing from his actual relatives and people that he knows in his life and his Italian heritage and all that comes with it. It's super exciting, because we never want to imitate, replicate or do what someone else did before us and watch a video and go. I'm going to do exactly that. That's a different style, and I will say, what I'm happy about is that is that this is an interpretation or what did you call it?
Charlotte Cohn:An auto fiction of, of of joseph's life, where you know, if you're just going to repeat what you've done in life, then that's a documentary. I mean, that's not interesting. We always interpret to create a play, to create drama, to create intrigue, and so all of those things is what I'm hoping to work out with Michael in the room. I mean it's going to be a whole new baby, different color eyes, still a baby, though.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:You have successfully sounded. Very intelligent Congratulations. Did I? I'm not sure about that, you definitely did. I appreciate that my mind keeps going back to my Big Fat Greek Wedding. I don't know if you're familiar or not, but I believe that that also started as a one woman show. That, did you know, became. Well, what a trilogy. Now I think there's three of them, but that was, you know, a Greek heritage story, but I related to it as an Italian, and I'm sure that people from every other culture related to it, and that's something about writing small. You know, writing close to home is actually more universal than anything else. So I'm excited, and even your tagline reminded me of that. Sometimes you have to travel far to keep family near, which, by the way, is an amazing tagline. I love that so much. But I want to know I mean briefly, like if each of you could tell me how you would sell this to an audience member who knows nothing about the show. How would you do that in like one minute? How would you sell it to somebody?
Michael Notardonato:I mean, I think audiences are not going to be Italian and we keep talking about that. It is an integral part of the story, but this will resonate with everyone. I'm an immigrant from both parents, but my mom is from Romania. She moved here in her 20s and it's so interesting when I read the show how many of the things I am relating back to her and her family and especially, like Charlotte said, she's very far from her family all my mom's family, except for my grandmother who lived with me my whole life. She passed last summer, but the rest of my mom's family is in Romania and so the character Thomas does travel to Italy my Italy story in the play and so I'm relating all those things.
Michael Notardonato:So people who have family far that they don't see all the time and they still feel like they're such a part of their identity and who they are. That's such an interesting thing to explore. A lot of people don't care about culture, but some people do and I just think audiences are going to see themselves, no matter what their heritage or their cultural background is, in this play, and there's some twists and turns as well that are really interesting. So I'll leave it at that.
Michael Notardonato:I'm very sorry for your loss, but I hope that maybe this is a little bit cathartic for you as well to go through this process when I first read the script and you know the first page literally talks about his grandmother, who's been dead it's much longer than mine, because my grandmother passed last summer. But I was like, wow, something about this show, like I got to do it right now, because her and I were like this you can't see, but I'm crossing my fingers. She was like a second mother to me and my sister, so now I'm really happy to do this for her as well.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:I'm very glad that you can honor her in that way and and thanks to Joseph for writing the piece and and having that connection to it.
Charlotte Cohn:I'm just gonna add to it that, um, just a second, what what Michael said is. This idea of belonging and where you belong is such a big theme in the play and everyone can relate to it in every aspect, not just your family, but your community, your country. Who's with you? You know, and to me that means a lot as a person who's pretty much alone in this country. I am far away from my entire family except for my husband and daughter and dog, away from my entire family except for my husband and daughter and dog. But you know, it's finding who are my people, who aligns with me, who supports me. Um, those are the themes of the play. That's what michael said. Everyone can relate to it and I do think we can all use a feel-good experience in the theater. I do believe that, especially during the dates that this play is running, I think it's really well placed for the audiences to have an opportunity to go into a dark theater and have a really wonderful experience.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:Again, very well said, I agree. I mean, there are a lot of things and it's not just theater, it's film, it's all kinds of art where people tend to broach very heavy subject matter and then we're inundated with the heaviness in our real lives and then also being reflected in art, which is wonderful and it should be there. But sometimes you just need something that's going to, like you said, bring tears of joy. Sometimes you just need something that's going to bring a little bit of levity.
Joseph Gallo:Well, I think, and I hope that the story is timeless and that I think that you know I'm excited for a new audience to see the play. The play was last done in 2009 or 2010. So I'm very excited that a whole new generation can hear this tale.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:My Italy Story will be introducing new audiences to its tale, beginning October 24th through the 27th at Hamilton Stage in Rahway, followed by performances at the Semanski Theatre in Basking Ridge from November 1st through the 3rd. As an added treat, all performances in Rahway will feature music by members of the New Jersey Opera Theatre singing Italian favorites for 30 minutes prior to curtain. For tickets and more information, be sure to visit AmericanTheaterGroup. org. If you liked this episode, be sure to review, subscribe and tell your friends. A transcript of this podcast, links relevant to the story and more about the arts in New Jersey can be found at JerseyArts. com.
Gina Marie Rodriguez:The Jersey Arts Podcast is presented by Art Pride New Jersey, advancing a state of creativity since 1986. The show was co-founded by and currently supported by, funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, with additional support from the National Endowment for the Arts. This episode was hosted, edited and produced by me, Gina Marie Rodriguez. Executive producers are Jim Atkinson and Isaac Serna-Diez, and my thanks to Joseph, michael and Charlotte for speaking with me today. I'm Gina Marie Rodriguez for the Jersey Arts Podcast. Thanks for listening.
