Crazy Dog Audio Theatre – Page 2

Crazy Dog Audio Theatre’s series THE LAST HARBINGE…

SFFaudio News

Crazy Dog Audio Theatre’s series THE LAST HARBINGER will be featured this Friday the 16th on BBC Radio 4’s A World In Your Ear programme just after the main lunchtime news.

Each week the BBC producers and team of researchers of A World In Your Ear select and present samples of what they describe as the ‘world’s best radio’.

In a special space- themed programme, A World In Your Ear hails Crazy Dog Audio Theatre’s THE LAST HARBINGER as; ‘a combination of dark comedy, social critique and riveting radio’, singling out this series as a ‘political satire for our times’.

On-line listeners can hear the programme at their convenience any time next week at the BBC A World In Your Ear page:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/aworldinyourear.shtml

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Roger Gregg and the Crazy Dog Audio Theatre are at…

SFFaudio News

Roger Gregg and the Crazy Dog Audio Theatre are at it again – their latest series, The Last Harbinger starts on Ireland’s RTE Radio One this week. Those not in Ireland can listen online – Episode One is now available. A description of the series:

The people of Moloch are running out of time. Their seas are dead. Their ice caps are gone. Their air is filled with toxins. A twisted civilization that celebrates greed is destroying itself. Can Truth save a world from self destruction? The Last Harbinger is a scathingly satirical allegory which exploits the potential of the audio medium to lampoon a decadent world of hunger, disease and injustice.

This latest ‘audio movie’ production (5 parts) from Ireland’s multi-award winning Crazy Dog Theatre company features an all star cast including Phil Proctor of Rugrats, state-of-the-art location recordings and an original music score.

And don’t forget the Quandary Phase of Hitchhiker’s – Episode One is online this week. Listening now…

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Review of Diabolic Playhouse by Roger Gregg

Diabolic Playhouse
Written, directed, and produced by Roger Gregg
1 MP3-CD – 6 hours [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: Crazy Dog Audio Theatre
Published: 2004
Themes: / Fantasy / Pirates / Wild West / Magic / Ghosts / Dark Comedy / Video games / Poetry /

Where do I start with this? How about here: Crazy Dog’s Diabolic Playhouse is an absolute treasure for fans of audio drama. The scripts are smart, funny, and tightly written. The acting is believable, well-timed, and often hilarious. And it sounds terrific! Each drama included is one hour long, as opposed to the half-hour shows in Crazy Dog’s previous The Apocalypse of Bill Lizard, which allows the Diabolic Playhouse shows a depth that was hinted at in the shorter dramas. Roger Gregg has really stepped onto a different playing field with these productions, and I for one am eager to hear his next project, whatever it might be.

There are six audio dramas here:

Demons of the Deep
A saga of seductive serpents in the salty sea.
First up is “Demons of the Deep”, a farcical comedy that had me laughing out loud. The crew of the ocean-going vessel Sea Nymph head out to Rig 39, where not a survivor survived the evil that lurked. In a particularly hilarious scene, three men take the Detritus 3, a tiny sub, down into the deep. I’ll never again be in a cramped space with two other men without thinking of this scene… not that that occurs with any regularity.

The Irishman: Have Troll Will Travel
A fable of magic and firearms in the wicked wild west.
Another successful comedy in which an Irishman living in the Old West calls on the services of a magical troll whenever he finds trouble. One day, the troll is stolen, and off the Irishman goes to find it.

Bus 13B to Hell
A fantastical fable of desperate dreams and dark desires.
It was while listening to this one that I truly realized how great these dramas really are. The actors are brilliant (including guest Phil Proctor of Firesign Theatre) and the sound of it all showcases the storytelling power of audio drama. Cyril (as performed by Morgan Jones, who appears in all six of the productions) guides the story as memorable characters board Bus 13B, which breaks down. They end up at this place where the Accountant of the Universe shows up, and… are you getting all this?

Press 3
A dialectically demonic dream of constant repetition.
I’m still thinking about this one days later. It’s a moebius strip of a drama where a woman is having difficulty dealing with a totalitarian system. Consumerism, bureaucracy, and color-coded alert systems are all fodder for Gregg and his actors, who completely succeeded pulling me into this place only to make me realize that I already live there.

The Silver Tongued Devil
A documentary of poetry, pretension, and possession.
This entire piece is done like a radio documentary, NPR-style, complete with interviews of average people about the “Silver Tongued Devil”. The actors who did these segments were perfect! If I had listened to this on the radio without knowing that Crazy Dog had done it, I’d have thought it was news. Who is the “Silver Tongued Devil”? He’s an incredibly famous poet from Cork who has the god-like ability to make people swoon with his words. Again, the piece is multi-layered, achieving both hilarity and poignancy.

Gerry in the Dark Passage
A story of a virtual man who lost his virtual way.
Gerry is thirty-something, single, and works in a comic shop. Much to his girlfriend’s chagrin, he plays a lot of video games, often losing track of time. After accepting the challenge of a master gameplayer, Gerry starts losing much more than time in this powerful drama.

Diabolic Playhouse is a must-have collection from Crazy Dog Audio Theatre, who BBC Radio counted among the “most imaginative producers of radio drama in the English speaking world.” You can find this on Crazy Dog’s website, which is based in Ireland. If you are in the United States, you can pick it up at ZBS.

Remarkable!

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

Here are the New Releases for December! AUDIO R…

New Releases

Here are the New Releases for December!

AUDIO RENAISSANCE

The Dragon Reborn, Book Three of The Wheel of Time

By Robert Jordan, Read by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer

Unabridged

The Shadow Rising, Book Four of The Wheel of Time

By Robert Jordan, Read by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer

Unabridged

I’ve listened to Book 2 of this massive (and massively popular) epic fantasy. I enjoyed it, but not so much that I would be eager for all ten (currently) volumes. I do know that Kate Reading and Michael Kramer did a wonderful job with the material, and can be expected to do so again.

Jesse:

Absolutely, Michael Kramer is a truly excellent reader.

Crystal City, Book Six of Alvin Maker

By Orson Scott Card, Read by Stefan Rudnicki, M.E. Willis, and cast

Unabridged

Ender’s Game: Special 20th Anniversary Edition

By Orson Scott Card, Read by Stefan Rudnicki, Harlan Ellison, and cast

Unabridged

Ah, Orson Scott Card. Audio Renaissance is re-releasing some of Fantastic Audio’s old titles, and this version of Ender’s Game is one of the most heard in my collection. I read Crystal City in print and enjoyed it, so the place your bets that the audio is going to be good too, since it’s in the safe hands of Stefan Rudnicki and cast.

Jesse:

That 20th anniversary one may actually make me read an Orson Scott Card novel. I like his short stories but I somehow never read Ender’s Game back in the 1980s.

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BLACKSTONE AUDIO

Citizen of the Galaxy

By Robert A. Heinlein, Read by Lloyd James

Click here for a sample

Unabridged

Who is this Heinlein guy, anyway? :)

Jesse:

Blackstone has made my wish come true! Lloyd James is the definitive voice of Heinlein on Audio and Citizen of the Galaxy is one of Heinlein’s best juvenile novels (juvenile as in starring a teenager not juvenile as in peurile)and the story concept is so fresh and new as to be singularily unreproduced to this day. I remember enjoying the heck out of it when I read it in paperback I expect it will be as good if not better on audio. The original cover art on this one looks amazing too by the way. This will surely be among the best audiobooks released in 2005. Thanks so much Blackstone!

Magic Time: Angelfire

By Marc Scott Zicree and Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff, Read by a full cast

Click here for a sample

Unabridged

This is volume 2 of a new fantasy series that I don’t have a full grasp on yet. I just starting listening to this volume last night, and am hoping it makes sense without hearing volume one, which is also available from Blackstone Audio.

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BOOKS ON TAPE

Fahrenheit 451

By Ray Bradbury, Read by Scott Brick

Unabridged

Fahrenheit 451 read by Scott Brick? Gotta get my hands on a copy of that. Books on Tape is still going through come changes over there – their website says that they won’t be resuming comsumer sales until January 3rd, 2005. I checked Audible.com for this title and it wasn’t there.

Jesse:

I believe BOT has released this title previously with a different narrator but I copuld be wrong. I think this Scott Brick version probably become the definitive edition. I thought that Harper Audio’s version from a couple of years ago, with Ray Bradbury narrating would be it, but I was disappointed in Bradbury’s reading. He’s an excellent author, and 451 is his most enduring novel but his performance didnt

enhance it at all. Scott Brick may bring a freshness that Bradbury couldnt muster.

The Runes of the Earth

By Stephen R. Donaldson, Read by Scott Brick

Unabridged

The return of Thomas Covenant! I have not read any of Stephen Donaldson’s books, so I can’t say anything there, but Scott Brick is a top narrator.

Jesse:

Nice title! Donaldson is almost as merciless with his tortured characters as is George R.R. Martin but I wish they’d release the original novel in the series first. I hate starting in the middle.

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CRAZY DOG AUDIO THEATRE

Diabolic Playhouse

By Roger Gregg, Performed by a full cast

Audio Drama

Roger Gregg and all the lunatics at Crazy Dog Audio Theatre have released a very nice looking MP3-CD containing all 6 episodes of their Diabolic Playhouse drama series, which broadcast on Ireland’s RTE Radio 1 earlier this year. The product is available at their site (based in Ireland) or at the ZBS website if you’re in the USA.

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HARPER AUDIO

The Wee Free Men

By Terry Pratchett, Read by Stephen Briggs

Unabridged

Another Discworld novel from Terry Pratchett!

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PAPERBACK DIGITAL

Reflex

By Steven Gould, Read by Christine Marshall and William Dufris

Unabridged

Nightmares on Congress Street – Part 4

By Rocky Coast Radio Theatre

Audio drama

Paperback Digital cruises along, with two more new releases. Their products are available for download on their own site or on Fictionwise. Hardcopies are available at Amazon.com or at Paperback Digital itself.

Jesse:

I’ve never heard of Gould nor his novel but with the Marshall and Dufris team working together it might be worth a blind buy.

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RECORDED BOOKS

State of Fear

By Michael Crichton, Read by George Wilson

Unabridged

Michael Crichton has stirring up some scientific controversy with this one. If I understand correctly, the environmentalists in this one are the bad guys.

Jesse:

I’ve liked Crichton’s early work, but have been tuning out since Jurassic Park.

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Happy Holidays, everyone! And thanks for reading SFFAudio.

The Crazy Dog Audio Theatre has started a new seri…

SFFaudio Online Audio

The Crazy Dog Audio Theatre has started a new series on Ireland’s RTE Radio 1 called Diabolic Playhouse. The first episode aired on Saturday, September 4th, and can be heard now on the Diabolic Playhouse page on RTE Radio 1’s website. The next show will be broadcast this Saturday at 8:02pm Irish time, or 3 in the afternoon on the U.S. East Coast, 12 noon on the U.S. West Coast, and can be heard live by clicking the “Listen Live” link on RTE Radio 1’s main page.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of The Apocalypse of Bill Lizard by Roger Gregg

The Apocalypse of Bill Lizard
By Roger Gregg; Performed by a full cast
Two CD’s – 2 hours [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: Crazy Dog Audio Theatre
Published: 2002
Themes: / Science Fiction / Audio Drama / Detective / Humor /

Bill Lizard, the maladjusted detective in the two-tone shoes and his partner Cyril the Pooka are hired by the Unspeakable to search the Unknowable to find the Unthinkable. Does the world end? What is after the After Life? Will we need shoes in heaven?

The Crazy Dog Audio Theatre brings you The Apocalypse of Bill Lizard, an audio drama in four half-hour episodes. Roger Gregg wrote, directed, and produced.

If you’re a fan of Firesign Theatre, then this is right up your alley. The script is wacky, full of sound effects, humorous dialogue, odd characters, and a mind-bending plot. The main characters are Bill Lizard, played by Roger Gregg, and Cyril the Pooka (a rabbit-shaped spirit reminiscent of Jimmy Stewart’s Harvey, only we hear him speak ourselves). Bill and Cyril are from the get-go sent on a quest for a mysterious scroll by a mysterious woman whose mysterious name Bill can’t pronounce.

In the liner notes, Gregg credits Thomas Merton’s Cables to the Ace, Chuang Tzu, Dante’s Inferno, Christopher Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus, T.S. Eliot’s The Hollow Men, Basho, Cicero’s The Dream of Scipio, and the Tibetan Bardo Thodal as inspirations for the comedic script. I can no more describe Bill Lizard as I can summarize all those works!

I can say that I enjoyed the energetic performances of the actors. The sound effects and overall production quality is excellent. Like I said earlier, this reminded me of some of Firesign Theatre’s recordings, which often leave me thinking, “What the heck was THAT all about?” Bill Lizard gave me the same feeling. It’s entertaining and funny in parts and pieces, smart, and chaotic.

The Crazy Dog Audio Theatre site offers free download of Episode 1 of Bill Lizard. Find it, along with the hilarious Zombies of Dr. Krell, here.

Posted by Scott D. Danielson