From "Buffalo Beat" of May 13-May 19, 1999 (p. 32):

The most basic credo in writing may be this: write what you know. If you've ever taken a creative writing course, or even just perused through the Idiot's Guide to Writing, chances are you've been beaten over the head by this overused aphorism. However, anybody who tells you to write what you know is probably giving you good advice. Home really is a good place to write about. Such diverse writers as James Joyce, Eugene O'Neill, Anne Sexton and Toni Morrison openly depicted their home life on paper or on the stage. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. One would be hard pressed to find any fiction writer who has not infused elements of their roots into their work.

Local playwright turned national success Tom Dudzick has gotten a lot of well-deserved mileage from his Polish-catholic upbringing on Buffalo's East Side. His autobiographical play, Over the Tavern , which premiered in 1994, was a smash hit in Buffalo precisely because Dudzick was able to weave personal life experiences into a universal and accurate depiction of Buffalo in the late 1950's. In fact, Dudzick's writing may be more universal in appeal than even he originally intended it to be. Now, just five years after the opening of his play about the Nickel City, Dudzick has seen successful productions of Over the Tavern go up coast to coast.

More recently, Dudzick was commissioned to fashion his kitchen sink comedy about the dysfunctional yet charming Pazinski family into a sequel. After a lot of hard work, he arrived atKing O' the Moon, the second installment in what is to be a trilogy of plays about Buffalo. Produced for the first time last fall,King O' the Moon takes place in 1969, a decade after the action inOver the Tavern.

Now, King O' the Moon is back, by popular demand, for a limited engagement at the studio Arena Theatre. The show opens on May 22. Last week, Buffalo Beat spoke to Mr. Dudzick at Buffalo's popular Broadway Market. Below is an excerpt from our conversation.

Specifically, where did you grow up?

I grew up on Seneca Street, near Saint Patrick's Parish. I've been back to visit the ol' place, but my old home is torn down and my father's tavern is just a parking lot now.

What is the autobiographical basis for Over the Tavern?

The main character is 12 year old Rudy. The play revolves around what Rudy goes through in catholic school with the nuns, and also with his father.There are certain episodes in my real life that I put in the play verbatim. All of the names that are dropped in the play are borrowed from people I knew, or are conglomerations of real people's names. For example, the nun, in the beginning of the play announces who has to stay after school.All of those names are friends or cousins of mine.

Is King O' the Moon equally as autobiographical?

Somewhat. Like Over the Tavern, King O' the Moon reflects my family life. But in Part II, Rudy, who is me in the play, is in the seminary learning to be a priest. That never happened to me. Rudy's older brother Eddie is also in the Army, and he gets shipped off to Vietnam. That never happened in my family. So it was a real good exercise for me to write some fiction. I needed to know that I could do that. If I just write solely about my life, some day I'm gonna run out of things to write about! (laughs.)

How did you get involved in play writing?

Well, I was going to Fredonia. I had a friend there who knew I played the piano and was somewhat theatrically inclined. One day he said to me, "My brother just bought the Buffalo Show Boat, and wants to do dinner theatre. He doesn't want to pay anybody though - so would you do it? (laughs.) I said okay and, in the end, I was asked to be the lead character of the show.

At that time, had you ever studied acting formally?

No. Not at all. But I got experience putting together our first show, which was called Make Your Move with Confidence. It was a silly slap-stick musical that ran for a year. However, the Show Boat soon went bankrupt. But I loved the idea of dinner theatre, so I eventually found a new home at the Packet Inn in North Tonawanda. I did that for about five years.

Then you moved to New York.

Yes, I moved there because it just seemed like the next logical place to go. I went there to try my chances as either a writer or actor or something. Eventually, I decided to go with the writing instead of the acting. I just couldn't do what actors do. They're so dedicated. they pour every minute of their life into auditioning and studying and waiting on tables. That really wasn't for me. So I decided to get a temp job and write at night.

At what point did you feel that you had become a successful writer?

I'll let you know when it happens (laughs.) Actually, it was when I was able to quit my day job, and that was only a year ago.

How many plays have you written?

Not many. Only three. I wrote Greetings, which is a Christmas play. Studio Arena did it. And then, as you know, I wroteOver the Tavern, and King O' the Moon. Greetings was produced off-Broadway at the John Houseman Theatre on 42nd Street. I thought that was going to be my big break. I figured I wouldn't have to work another day in my life. I thought I was going to get movie offers and the like. But, unfortunately, the play ran for only seven weeks. What was I thinking? It was a Christmas play. It's not going to run all year!

Over the years, I've talked to people in the biz who say that theatre is dying ... or is already dead. In general, it seems that many actors and directors are looking more towards film and television, because it reaches more people and there is more money to be had. Recognizing this, do you think that live theatre is a dinosaur of sorts?

Not at all. I don't think that people will ever NOT want to go see a live performance. The nature of theatre will always change. But in New York, for example, people are still flocking to see live performances. I'm not crazy about some of the trends I see, though. It seems that people will only go to see the big spectacle. It does make me wonder what's going to happen to the small play format.

Is there a central theme or message that weaves its way through your plays?

Tolerance. All three plays are about religious tolerance. I think that people should be allowed to believe what they want to believe, and not be forced to believe in something they don't feel.

Is that what motivated you to write these plays then?

Well, I'd say religious intolerance has always bothered me. So, perhaps.

What's on the horizon for you?

Well, I'm working on Part III. Part III takes place ten years after King O' the Moon, in 1979. I realized that I couldn't write three decades of a Buffalo story without including a blizzard. So the action of the play takes place during the made-up blizzard of '79. I will promise you one thing though.

What's that?

I promise not to turn Chet's Bar and Grill into a disco!

From "Buffalo Beat" of May 27- June 2, 1999 (p. 24):

King O' the Moon at Studio Arena"

The lights faded up on a large backyard surrounded by the rear entrance of the Pazinski home. In the middle of the stage stood a large tree house with the words "Keep out" white-washed on the front facade. A jagged fence with oddly sized planks of wood crisscrossed along the perimeter, behind which stood St. Cazimir's steeple, looming in the haze...

It was the summer of 1969. The scene was Buffalo's East Side, and it came alive at Studio Arena Theatre last week. The play was Tom Dudzick's King O' the Moon, which, now in its second run, is attracting even more attention because of Dudzick's ability to capture the comic beauty and political unrest of a bygone era.

Set during the tumult of the late 1960's, the play tracks the Pazinski family - based loosely on the playwright's real family - as it comes of age. The characters we met in Part I of Dudzick's trilogy, entitled Over the Tavern, have now grown older... and more restless. Rudy (Jason Bowcutt) who is Dudzick's semi-fictional double in the play, has now entered the seminary. Rudy's older brother, Eddie (Stephen Kunken) is married, but scheduled soon to be shipped off to Vietnam. Georgie (Gavin Hawk), mentally retarded, has been promoted "from paper bags to cardboard boxes," and Annie (Stacey Lynn Brass) is married to an eccentric recluse who only wants to play with toy trains.

In addition, Chet, the cantankerous father in Over the Tavern, is now deceased. As well, the shrewish nun, Sister Clarissa, has passed away. Now the family matriarch, Ellen (Judith K. Hart), is a widow, but she still likes to dance the Polka with Walter (Stephen Gaines), a local chap who helps out at the bar. And finally, these characters are supplemented by Maureen (Jenn Thompson), Eddie's new outspoken and pregnant wife.

The play begins poignantly, with Paul McCartney's "Golden Slumbers," followed by a radio broadcast from the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. As the play unfolds, we learn that each character has a secret to tell. Georgie has stolen all of the family mail. Annie is planning a divorce. Eddie, beneath his bravado, is afraid to die in battle. Maureen has a licentious past. Rudy has decided to leave the seminary, and Ellen and Walter are gettin' hot-n-heavy.

This leads to some very funny episodes in the play. For instance, when Maureen is stuck in the tree house, a frenetic and clumsy Annie recalls being dubbed "Crisco" in high school. When Annie mentions this nasty nickname, Maureen replies, "Fat in the can." It was a slow burner, but about ten seconds after Maureen's retort, the audience burst into laughter. Despite some very funny moments, King O' the Moon is a message play. Dudzick's writing reflects a disdain for war and religious dogma, and his dialogue is more naturalistic and incisive than in Over the Tavern A dose of dramatic edginess is built into the play's action, best evinced by the bitter fracas between the two older brothers, Eddie and Rudy. Their relationship, complicated by one-up-manship, climaxes to a whack in the jaw for Rudy. But as the play closes, the brothers realize the importance of their family bond. Fearing his own demise in the Vietnam war; Eddie weeps, "find a good husband for my wife ... no bums ... one that likes kids." Rudy reluctantly yet dutifully agrees to honor his brother's wishes, should circumstances demand it.

In another episode, when Annie divulges her feelings to her idealistic brother, Rudy, she inadvertently exposes Rudy's own misgivings about Catholicism. In the end, Annie teaches Rudy that his heart is being choked by rigid and unbending religious fiat, by principles that, ultimately, are anathema to his own.

Finally, as the lunar expedition nears its completion, the family nears its bleakest hour, but Walter's wedding proposal saves the day, making an otherwise gloomy evening into one of festivity. However; we are left still wondering what will become of Annie's marriage, Rudy's religious convictions, or Eddie's impending tour of duty in Vietnam. (Never fear, though; Dudzick is currently working on the final installation in the trilogy of the Pazinski's, which will take place ten years later, in 1979.)

The production was superb. The acting was inspired, especially by Nebraska native Judith K. Hart, whose dry humor kept the play from becoming melodramatic. Studio Arena has, in past productions, suffered grave setbacks due to poor acting. However, casting directors Elissa Myers and Paul Fouquet, to their credit, chose the perfect actors to represent the Pazinski household. In fact, all of the characters came to life with searing realism and stunning, believable performances resulted.

One bone must be picked, however. The play revolves around Chet's Bar & Grill. Yet, in both Over the Tavern and especially King 'O the Moon, there is no real interaction between the characters in the play and the tavern itself. No scenes take place in the tavern, and in King 'O the Moon, the tavern is barely mentioned. One gets the feeling that the bar is always closed, or does not even exist. Why? including scenes in the bar, or at least reference to it, would most surely add more clarity, depth and veracity to the play. Mysteriously, though, the bar remains a silent and still fixture, buried somewhere within each character's subconscious. One would think that the tavern would take on a more integral part in the lives of the characters, since most of them live - or at least grew up - above it. In their reflections of their now deceased father, wouldn't they ever recall an incident in the bar? Chances are, Eddie would be the bartender, like his ol' man. Is he? If not, is there a story behind this?

Suffice to say, one is aware of the bar enough to wonder about it, yet one's curiosity is never allayed. This anomaly in the script, while it does not ruin the play, is simply too conspicuous to ignore. One couldn't help but to think, "why put a picture of Chet's Bar & Grill on the cover of the playbill, if it has no real relationship to the play's action?"