Johnny Bad vs. Jackie True: a ruffian poet and his muse

In a violent and corrupt neighborhood, the ruffian, Johnny Bad chases his dream of becoming a renowned poet.  In Jackie True, he finds the muse he’s looking for.  The romance is complicated by the potential of a family, and the couple must choose between their aspirations and reality.Ryan Colwell’s one-person show Johnny Bad vs. Jackie True provides social exploration of the structure, importance and development of family. Centered around the poet/ruffian Johnny Bad and his enamoring muse Jackie True, the play traces the couple and their friends born into and raised in a neighborhood accursed with violence, impulse and fear.  When the potential of a child arises, Johnny Bad and Jackie True must cut through the passion and daydreams and approach their future with forced maturity.The format of the show is influenced primarily by the early solo performance styles of Lily Tomlin, Beatrice Herford and Ruth Draper in which the intimate point of view, reaction-based delivery allows the monologue to explain itself in time.Ryan Colwell is a playwright, performer and co-artistic director in New York City. As an actor and director, Colwell has worked extensively throughout Chicago and New York. In 2005 he collaborated with peers to form THE NARCISSISTS under which he has performed the Chicago acclaimed solo show Remembering the Future and directed the New York hailed ensemble monologue show C. Commute. Prior acting credits include The Archery Contest (P.S.122); The Boys Next Door (Chicago Dramatists); Hidden In This Picture, The Fortune Tellers (Medicine Show); Antigone (Title:Point); and participation in the residency program at Robert Wilson’s Watermill Center with the Hotel Savant. Since 2007 Colwell has worked with New York’s Toy Box Theatre Company as co-artistic director."Colwell earns points for drawing each character distinctly, with vocal and physical traits that are specific but never artificial. He’s a compelling performer: very funny in the lighter pieces, and truly haunting in some of the darker scenes…" TimeOut ChicagoDirector Samara Naeymi is a New York theatre artist. Naeymi’s professional career has melded styles both classic and experimental in her theatre work. From 2006-2008, Samara worked with New York’s Title:Point Productions as a co-founder, director, producer, writer, performer and designer. Daemon Hatfield (aka Monster-O) is a song writer living in San Francisco. He writes catchy pop and electronica with a wide variety of sounds and instruments. THE NARCISSISTS believe in theatre as a form of therapy for both the audience and the actors. Their goal is for the audience to identify a vice or virtue within themselves and reflect upon that quality.