Thurs Feb 26 - Four(play) at Table

We weren't actually at a table again, but rather hanging out in the library of my basement. Which was nice and relaxed, but I admit rehearsing in my basement makes me want to work in jammies. This is not exactly a "dress for success" attitude. I resisted my flannels, but other distractions did pop up, like the magnificent (and allergy inducing, sorry D) Doyle Cat, and the bouncy bebe V. Nevertheless, I was glad people made the trek out east so we didn't lose an evening work.

Once we got down to it, the work was crisp and moved smoothly. Scenes called: 2 - Anna's studio and Scene 11 - hotel. A meeting, and a parting. We did the work in sensible chronological order. That is the logical way to proceed - not only do we find parallels and word echos, there is the very practical consideration of being able to let T out after her scene. It's the best idea. BUT...while I am not a unsettled as I felt after the work-through of scene 12, scene 11 is certainly also a heartbreaker. Making these observations in our first full week makes me think I need some post-rehearsal ritual or something to shake off the emotional drain. Credit to both the playwright and the cast for provoking this reaction, by the way.

In the scenes, there was some nice banter work as well as emotional and physical turmoil. Both scenes are well set to start blocking next week.

An interesting point that came up in Scene 2 is the odd kinship that appears between Alice and Anna when they have time alone. There isn't a clear reason for it. And yet it is always there. I want to think about this some more. What does this dynamic give each character, and how will it manifest in the staging?

On Sunday we start blocking, despite the fact we haven't talked through scenes 4, 7, and 9. I had been getting a bit tense about this, but I've calmed down about it. After all, the work has been going very smoothly and the cast are putting in the work, so it's reasonable to put it on its feet and trust we'll bridge the gaps.

Now: a spagetti sauce sandwich and bed! I hope for better dreams tonight!

Wed Feb 25 - Table (for) Three

How well do we know the people we love?

It's hard to spend an hour on Scene 12 and not have that sticky question bounce around inside your skull. In a pessimistic mood, the question extends to include everyone we encounter. We only know what we are told and what we see. While the observant among us can sherlock our way through deductions to make educated guesses, the fact is we really do not know the heart of anyone, not even ourselves. Especially ourselves? Or is that too simple, too pat an answer, to satisfy the messy monster that lives in the heart of this play?

Think I'm being unnecessarily poetic? I think I am understating the point. Working on the Restaurant scene tonight we came across the line " Be bigger than jealous". But the character can't, he's unable to see past the physical betrayal of his partner. She seems unwilling to take the lumps and guilt for her actions as her motivation was not personal, and she did not seek the experience. Is monogamy a form of control? Is that a bad thing? The monster at the centre of the play is part jealousy, part vengeance, part martyr and part master. This hybrid beast lurks in every scene, waiting to taste blood.

I am both over the moon with the quality of work the cast is bringing and getting annoyed at the clock tick tick tocking away. We were able to get through the restaurant and the park scenes, barely. In hindsight is is hard to end the evening with the park, is is a brutal ending. When it comes at the end of a run it has a warmer ring, since it wraps up so many key elements of the story. Standing alone, it provokes sorrow and difficult questions without the payoff of structural closure.

Not much by way of lighter moments in these two scenes - but we did find a few. Also promising ways to make the betrayal(s) more personal and immediate. I don't want to get into specifics here, but the stakes went up considerably in the restaurant scene and I think the results will crackle onstage.

My head is getting muddled from the late evening, and the nagging questions. Going to sleep to think about the elements of identity that assure us we exist. No biggie there...

(note on picture: I tried to unwind by doing a Facebook meme involving randomly generated words and images. While the result was fun, it feels oddly like the universe wants to keep those questions at the front of my brain)

Tues Feb 24 - Table Day 2

Two couples. Two scenes. One diabolical writer. Result? So many horribly real ways love can go terribly wrong. Why must we be such selfish jerks? And why must our playwright have coded it in all such hideous beauty?

Of course, it is this very quality that draws almost everyone to the play. I've been asking everyone familiar with the play what they like about the script, and almost everyone says a variation on "it's just so real". I know what they mean, but it is that brute force honesty that makes the play so hard to watch. We're staging an emotional car crash, and we have to ensure full impact.

Full Cast Tonight! I am pleased by the generous give-and-take dynamic that is developing. The discussion and readings tonight sounded like a group who had been working together far longer than three rehearsals, both in terms of the general mood of the hall and in the clarity of thought going into the work. The two scenes worked (5 and 6) are the most complicated to block, both in terms of numbers and focus, so getting a clear grounding in the emotional shape of the scenes was my main objective. For bonus, we were able to discuss some key tactics in the breakup sequence.

In scene 5 (Gallery) it is essential that the entanglements seem that they may be carried off without terrible consequence or messy complications. We (the audience) have to like these characters, flawed though they may be, or nothing that follows will matter. There must be the promise of happily-ever-after. Without that lighter touch, the naked emotion of scene 6 (domestic interiors) could come off as a bunch of mean people hurting one another. And who would care enough to see that?

It is clear from the work tonight that the moment-by-moment sense of possibility is playable. There are several sections of 5 that give the actors the opportunity to use their wit and wiles to charm and enchant their scene partner - I think this is going to translate to an irresistable scene sequence overall. I am looking forward to putting it on its feet.

Scene 6. Gulp. This is where the bombing starts, each section brings another barrage of hard emotional truths and convenient self-deceptions. In the end, we're going to have to refocus on the playable, but in order to get there an entire backstory needed to be established and essential questions of character needed to be answered. Again, I felt the cast show excellent critical thinking in establishing these points, and we've made strong progress.

Unfortunately, we only got up to the point of Dan and Alice ending, with no time yet to dig into the raw edges of the last pages with Anna and Larry. On the one hand I am not too concerned - that section bleeds from the gut, and I think we'll explore it better in a physical rehearsal anyway. On the other - I need to watch how far we fall behind our posted schedule. We are now 2 scenes and 2 sections behind where we need to be to keep on track. Adding rehearsal is obviously not an option, and I do not want to rush the process too much when the group and cast dynamic is still gelling. I think I will have to sit down and think through the rest of this week and next to ensure we will cover all the necessary ground.

We had some visitors today - Raizie who will join us for props, and Tina, mistress of marketing both joined us to meet the cast and to get the flavour of the show. Thanks for coming, ladies!

Ahh now to sleep. Hope for no acrimonious messy humiliating break-up dreams. Love the play, but don't want it in my resting head tonight!

Mon Feb 23 - Table Talk Day One

My eyes are bigger than my stomach. Or rather, I knew I was piling too much into one evening, but I couldn't resist. Ah well, the work acheived reflects quality before quantity, and there's nothing there to be sorry for! In the end, we worked 2 1/2 of the 4 scenes called - not a great average if I was keeping stats, and would drive an SM crazy - but since I don't keep score or have an SM yet, I will keep whistling to myself and happily reflect on the progress we made this evening.

I think the achievement of the evening was a good thorough working of Scene 1. In a play where action and reaction are actual themes, it was important to establish the chain of action and to start thinking (collectively as well as in our individual work) about the choices and how those choices fit into the larger patterns. The antagonism between Dan and Larry, for example, manifests clearly in their brief encounter. Not that it would be overstated or given particular emphasis, but it establishes a relationship rhythms that may prove helpful.

This also gave an opportunity to begin the lengthy process of unravelling the mystery of Alice. Working with L to discover the difference between her truths and lies will be great fun. I don't want to push or force choices yet, because there is still so much text to sift. It does feel a bit like panning for gold - patience and repetition will pay off. I think we all need to have more time with both the text and the world to find answers.

I am looking forward to the banter bits we found - I must keep my lantern trained on the script looking for more of them. The lightness (spiritually, not content-wise) of those moment will be crucial to keep the tone of the overall piece inviting. Find the fun, or else!

L was released early, and we had an engaging reading, discussion and evaluation of Scene 3 - the infamous internet chat. On the one hand, hilarity will ensue. On the other, I must continue to contain my personal sense of sympathy for Larry. Both S and D recognize the tremendous fun and risk of the scene - I want to ensure the staging helps them, especially with the projections. I can already foresee this scene becoming a polish priority, in some ways it will run like a dance, once we have nailed down the visual story.

We scratched the surface of the surgery scene (10), but with a tortoiseshell comb, not a diamond cutter. There are so many thrust/parries in that duel we could spend an entire evening just there. But that is not in the cards - instead I focused on the need to elevate the fight and raise the stakes - for the audience, rather than a specific character - by giving Dan permission to struggle up to each point of confrontation. Why does he go to see Larry? Why does he linger when he is so throughly attacked and trounced? I still need to think on it before we revisit. Must say, it was nice to hear Larry win, especially right back to back with Scene 3.

Thanks all for a very thoughtful and productive evening. Stay warm!

First Read

And they're off!

First reads have an odd vibe, don't they? When you are working at a new theatre with new people, the process of sitting down and reading the words together is at once intimate and alienating. I think this is one of the reasons many of us theatre folk band together into small tribes and avoid playing with people we have never done shows with before. When you play with your own gang, there's less risk, more shorthands, less random stress, more history. The downside of that, of course, is that you fall into ruts and do the same show over and over again, changing only the title and perhaps a costume or two. For me, there isn't an old crony in the bunch. Stepping into a new project with a large number of variables puts us outside of our comfort zone.

But then, this play (Closer) lives outside of the comfort zone. It revels in it the outland of emotional gamble. It roars and smashes the comfort zone to shards.

Still, I entered the room to meet a group of talented relative strangers, whose work shone for the brief glimpses they shared during the audition process. There is an internal tension to casting. Experience teaches that this is the part of the showbuilding with the greatest risk for the director. It stretches your imagination, but your imagination has to be grounded in reality. Therefore, the first read becomes a first test of my intuitive and theatrical sense and ability. No pressure.

All that in mind, I done good. (Pat self on back in self-congratulatory fashion). Once the room warmed and we had an opportunity to meet the space (thank you so much Brandon!) and to start setting up the world, the afternoon went by briskly. I was able to enjoy hearing the words with my ears after months of living with voices in my head. As I listened, I heard new things that I swear were never there before, and it was just so exciting to watch actors listen to one another, seeking/breaking connections and trying different approaches. This will never get old.

The read was followed by general discussion and then a scene by scene overview. I tried to give background on the play and playwright as would be helpful rather than a big lecture. This is another pitfall of preparation - by the time you hit the table, information is literally falling out of your ears and eyesockets. (okay, not literally. But it feels like it) I am glad we have a chance to revisit each scene at the table this coming week. The sheer emotional weight of the script needs time to settle and shake off before we can make staging decisions - the company needs to synchronize timeline and the precise story to move forward with clarity.

I want to thank everyone for their work today - actors, producers, designers, all - despite my jitters and first day panic your intelligent work and sense of adventure will make this show sparkle.

Huzzah!

Scene 12 - July 1997

Content Lifted from Wikipedia

July 1 - The United Kingdom hands sovereignty of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China.
July 4 - NASA's Pathfinder space probe lands on the surface of Mars.
July 5 - In Cambodia, Hun Sen of the Cambodian People's Party overthrows Norodom Ranariddh in a coup.
July 7 - The Great Flood begins in southern Poland.
July 8 - Mayo Clinic researchers warn that the dieting drug "fen-phen" can cause severe heart and lung damage.
July 8 - NATO invites the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland to join the alliance in 1999.
July 10 - In London, scientists report their DNA analysis findings from a Neanderthal skeleton, which support the out of Africa theory of human evolution, placing an "African Eve" at 100,000 to 200,000 years ago.
July 10 - Miguel Ángel Blanco is kidnapped in Ermua, Spain and murdered by the ETA.
July 11 - Thailand's worst hotel fire at Pattaya kills 90.
July 13 - The remains of Che Guevara are returned to Cuba for burial, alongside some of his comrades.
July 15 - Spree killer Andrew Cunanan shoots fashion designer Gianni Versace to death outside Versace's Miami, Florida residence.
July 16 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average gains 63.17 to close at 8,038.88. It is the Dow's first close above 8,000. The Dow has doubled its value in 30 months.
July 17 - The F.W. Woolworth Company closes after 117 years in business.
July 21 - The fully restored USS Constitution (aka "Old Ironsides") celebrates her 200th birthday by setting sail for the first time in 116 years.
July 23 - Digital Equipment Corporation files antitrust charges against chipmaker Intel.
July 25 - K.R. Narayanan is sworn in as India's 10th president and the first member of the Dalit caste to hold this office.
July 27 - About 50 are killed in the Si Zerrouk massacre in Algeria.

Scene 11 - January 1997

Content Lifted from Wikipedia

January 9 - Yachtsman Tony Bullimore is found alive, 5 days after his boat capsized in the Southern Ocean.

Bill Clinton, the President of the United States, began his second term on January 20
January 17 - A Delta II rocket carrying a military GPS payload explodes, shortly after liftoff from Cape Canaveral.
January 18 - In northwest Rwanda, Hutu militia members kill 3 Spanish aid workers, 3 soldiers, and seriously wound another.
January 19 - Yasser Arafat returns to Hebron after more than 30 years, and joins celebrations over the handover of the last Israeli-controlled West Bank city.
January 20 - U.S. President Bill Clinton is inaugurated for his second term.
January 21 - Newt Gingrich becomes the first Speaker of the United States House of Representatives to be disciplined internally for ethical misconduct.
January 22 - Madeleine Albright becomes the first female Secretary of State, after confirmation by the United States Senate.
January 23 - Mir Aimal Kasi is sentenced to death for a 1993 assault rifle attack outside CIA headquarters that killed 2 and wounded 3.
January 26 - Super Bowl XXXI: The Green Bay Packers win the NFL Championship for the first time since 1967, defeating the New England Patriots 35-21 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.
January 27 - It is revealed that French museums had nearly 2,000 pieces of art that had been stolen by Nazis.

Scene 10 - December 1996

Content lifted from Wikipedia

December
December 2 - U.S. President Bill Clinton signs the Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments.
December 2 - Widespread student pro-democracy protests are broken up in Burma.
December 5 - Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan gives a speech in which he suggests that "irrational exuberance" may have "unduly escalated asset values".
December 9 - Jerry Rawlings is reelected president of Ghana.
December 10 - South Africa's new post-apartheid constitution is ratified and made law.
December 11 - Tung Chee-hwa is appointed to become the new leader of Hong Kong after it reverts to Chinese rule in 1997.
December 12 - Uday Hussein is seriously injured in an assassination attempt.
December 13 - Kofi Annan is elected by the United Nations Security Council the next Secretary General of the United Nations.
December 17 - The Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement takes 72 hostages in the Japanese Embassy in Lima, Peru.
December 18 - The loi Carrez, or Carrez law governing property transactions was enacted in France[3]
December 20 - Steve Jobs' company NeXT is bought by Apple Computer, the company co-founded by Jobs.
December 26 - The largest strike in South Korean history begins.
December 26 - JonBenét Ramsey, 6, is murdered in the basement of her parents' home in Boulder, Colorado.
December 27 - Taliban forces retake the strategic Bagram air base, which solidifies their buffer zone around Kabul.
December 29 - Guatemala and the leaders of the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Union sign a peace accord that ends a 36-year civil war.
December 30 - In the Indian state of Assam, a passenger train is bombed by Bodo separatists, killing 26.
December 30 - Proposed budget cuts by Benjamin Netanyahu spark protests from 250,000 workers, who shut down services across Israel.
December 31 - The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway is merged with the Burlington Northern Railroad to form the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, making it one of the largest railroad mergers in U.S. history.
December 31 - The Hacienda in Las Vegas is imploded to make way for the Mandalay Bay.

Scene 9 - November 1996

Content Lifted from Wikipedia

Iraq disarmament crisis: UNSCOM inspectors uncover buried prohibited missile parts. Iraq refuses to allow UNSCOM teams to remove remnants of missile engines for analysis outside of the country
November 5 - U.S. presidential election, 1996: Democratic incumbent Bill Clinton defeats Republican challenger Bob Dole to win his second term.
November 5 - Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto's government is dismissed by President Farooq Leghari after widespread allegations of corruption.
November 7 - A devastating category 4 Cyclone strikes Andhra Pradesh, India. The storm surge sweeps fishing villages out to sea, over 2,000 people die. 95 percent of the crops are completely destroyed.
November 7 - NASA launches the Mars Global Surveyor.
November 8 - All 141 people on board a Nigerian-owned Boeing 727 die when the aircraft crashes into the Atlantic Ocean while approaching Lagos airport.
November 12 - Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 747 collides in mid-air with Kazakhstan Airlines Il-76, resulting in the loss of 349 lives.
November 15 - State Street in Chicago is re-opened to pedestrian traffic.
November 16 - Mother Teresa receives honorary U.S. citizenship.
November 17 - A bomb explosion in Kaspiysk, Russia kills 32 people.
November 17 - Emil Constantinescu is elected president of Romania.
November 18 - World-renowned bird expert Tony Silva is sentenced to 7 years in prison without parole, for leading an illegal parrot smuggling ring.
November 18 - Martyn Bryant is sentenced to life imprisonment, 2 weeks after confessing to murdering 35 people in Tasmania earlier this year.
November 18 - Frederick Chiluba is reelected president of Zambia.
November 19 - STS-80: Space Shuttle Columbia conducts the longest mission of the Space Shuttle program.
November 21 - A propane explosion at the Humberto Vidal shoe store and office building in San Juan, Puerto Rico kills 33.
November 21 - Demonstrators in Zagreb demand the survival of Radio 101.
November 22 - Martin Bryant is convicted of the shooting of 35 people in Port Arthur, Tasmania and is given 35 life sentences by a court in Sydney.
November 23 - The Republic of Angola officially joins the World Trade Organization, as Angola.
November 23 - Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 is hijacked, then crashes into the Indian Ocean off the coast of Comoros after running out of fuel, killing 125.
November 25 - An ice storm strikes the U.S., killing 26 directly, hundreds more from accidents. A powerful windstorm blasts Florida; winds gust to 90 mph.
November 25 - The U.S. stock market, especially the Dow Jones Industrial Average, gains at an incredibly fast pace following the 1996 Presidential election. It gains 10 days in a row during the month.
November 25 - The APEC Summit opens in the Philippines.
November 26 - The Sands Hotel in Las Vegas is imploded to make way for the Venetian Hotel.

Scene 8 - October 1996

Content Lifted from WIkipedia

October 2 - The Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments are signed by U.S. President Bill Clinton.
October 2 - The former prime minister of Bulgaria, Andrei Lukanov, is assassinated.
October 2 - An Aeroperu Boeing 757 crashes into the Pacific Ocean when the instruments fail just after takeoff from Lima Airport, killing all 70 on board.
October 6 - The government of New Zealand agrees to paying $130 million dollars worth of compensation for the loss of land suffered by the Maori population between the years of 1844 and 1864.
October 14 - The Dow Jones Industrial Average gains 40.62 to close at 6,010.00, the Dow's first close above 6,000.
October 15 - Several large strikes begin in various industries across Belgium in protest to the dismissal of the magistrate Jean-Marc Connerotte by the Supreme Court.
October 22 - A fire at La Planta prison in southwest Caracas, Venezuela kills 30 prisoners.
October 23 - The O.J. Simpson civil trial begins in Santa Monica, California.
October 30 - Fighting erupts when Banyamulenga Tutsis of Laurent Kabila in Zaire seize Uvira and proceed to kill Hutu refugees.
October 31 - A Brazilian TAM Fokker airliner crashes into a densely populated area of Sao Paulo, killing 103.

Scene 7 - September 1996

Content Lifted from Wikipedia

September 2 - A permanent peace agreement is signed at the Malacañang Palace between the Government of the Philippines and the Moro National Liberation Front.
September 3 - The U.S. launches Operation Desert Strike against Iraq in reaction to the attack on Arbil.
September 4 - The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia attack a military base in Guaviare, Colombia, starting 3 weeks of guerrilla warfare that will claim the lives of at least 130 Colombians.
September 14 - Alija Izetbegovic is elected president of Bosnia-Herzegovina in the country's first election since the Bosnian War.
September 18 - A North Korean Sang-O class submarine runs aground in South Korea. The crew are described as insurgents by the South Korean government and killed by the South Korean military.
September 19 - The scoreboard at Buffalo's $127.5 million dollar HSBC Arena falls to the ice just hours before a National Hockey League game; no one is injured.
September 20 - Leader of Pakistani opposition party Pakistan People's Party Murtaza Bhutto is killed during a gun battle with police.
September 22 - The Panhellenic Socialist Movement under the leadership of Costas Simitis succeeds in the 1996 Greek legislative election.
September 24 - U.S. President Bill Clinton signs the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty at the United Nations.
September 25 - The last of the Magdalen Asylums is closed in Ireland.
September 27 - In Afghanistan, the Taliban capture the capital city of Kabul, after driving out President Burhanuddin Rabbani and executing former leader Mohammad Najibullah.

Scene 6 - June 1996

Content Lifted from Wikipedia

June
Iraq disarmament crisis: As Iraq continues to refuse inspectors access to a number of sites, the U.S. fails in its attempt to build support for military action against Iraq in the UN Security Council.
June 1–3 - The Czech Republic's first general election ends inconclusively. Prime Minister Václav Klaus and his incumbent Civic Democratic Party emerge as the winners, but are unable to form a majority government. President Václav Havel refuses to invite Klaus to form a coalition.
June 4 - The space rocket Ariane 5 explodes 40 seconds after takeoff in French Guiana. The project costs European governments 7.5 billion US dollars over 11 years.
June 6 - Leighton W. Smith, Jr. resigns as NATO commander in the face of increasing criticism.
June 7 - An IRA gang murders Detective Garda Jerry McCabe during a botched armed robbery in Adare, County Limerick.
June 8 - The 10th European Football Championship (UEFA Euro 96) begins in England.
June 8 - Steffi Graf defeats Arantxa Sanchez Vicario in the longest ever women's final at the French Open, to win her 19th Grand Slam title.
June 10 - Peace talks begin in Northern Ireland without Sinn Féin.
June 10 - The Colorado Avalanche wins their first Stanley Cup in their first season based out of Denver, Colorado, defeating the Florida Panthers 4 games to none. Avalanche captain Joe Sakic wins the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
June 11 - An explosion in a Sao Paulo suburban shopping centre kills 44 and injures more than 100.
June 11 - A peace convoy carrying Chechen separatist leaders and international diplomats is targeted by a series of remotely controlled land mines; 8 are killed.
June 12 - In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a panel of federal judges blocks a law against indecency on the internet. The panel says that the 1996 Communications Decency Act would infringe upon the free speech rights of adults.
June 13 - An 81-day standoff between the Montana Freemen and FBI agents ends with their surrender in Montana.
June 15 - In Manchester, UK, a massive IRA bomb injures over 200 people and devastates a large part of the city centre.
June 16 - The Chicago Bulls win their fourth NBA Championship by defeating the Seattle SuperSonics in the best-of-7 series 4 games to 2.
June 19 - Boris Yeltsin emerges as the winner in Russia's first round of presidential elections.
June 20 - Thousands of Megawati Sukarnoputri supporters clash with police in Jakarta.
June 23 - The Nintendo 64 video game system is released in Japan.
June 23 - Archbishop Desmond Tutu is given an official farewell at his retirement service in St George's Cathedral.
June 25 - The Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia kills 19 U.S. servicemen.
June 26 - Journalist Veronica Guerin is shot and killed in her car just outside Dublin.
June 28 - A new government is formed in Turkey, with Necmettin Erbakan of Refah Partisi becoming prime minister of the coalition government, and deputy and foreign minister Tansu Ciller of the True Path Party succeeding him after two years.
June 29 - The Prince's Trust concert is held in Hyde Park, London, and is attended by 150,000 people. The Who headlines the event in their first performance since 1989.
June 29 - An explosion in a firecrackers factory in Sichuan Province, China kills at least 36 people and injures another 52.
June 30 - Costas Simitis is elected President of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement of Greece.
June 30 - Germany beats the Czech Republic to win Euro 96.
June 30 - Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic reliquishes power to his deputy, Biljana Plavsic.

Scene 5 - June 1995

Content Lifted from Wikipedia

June 1 - The busiest hurricane season in 62 years begins.
June 2 - United States Air Force Captain Scott O'Grady's F-16 is shot down over Bosnia and Herzegovina, while patrolling the NATO no-fly zone.
June 2 - SS Captain Erich Priebke is extradited from Argentina to Italy.
June 6 - U.S. astronaut Norman Thagard breaks NASA's space endurance record of 14 days, 1 hour and 16 minutes, aboard the Russian space station Mir.
June 8 - Downed U.S. Air Force pilot Captain Scott O'Grady is rescued by U.S. Marines in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
June 13 - French President Jacques Chirac announces the resumption of nuclear tests in French Polynesia.
June 15 - During his murder trial, O.J. Simpson puts on a pair of gloves that were presumably worn by the person who murdered his ex-wife and her friend Ron Goldman.
June 15 - A powerful earthquake, registering a moment magnitude of 6.2, hits the city of Egion, Greece, resulting in several deaths and significant damage to many buildings.
June 20 - Oil multinational Royal Dutch Shell caves in to international pressure and abandons plans to dump the Brent Spar oil rig at sea.
June 22 - Japanese police rescue 365 hostages from a hijacked All Nippon Airways Flight 857 (Boeing 747-200) at Hakodate airport. The hijacker was armed with a knife and demanded the release of Shoko Asahara.
Atlantis docked to Mir for the first time on June 29, 1995.
June 24 - The New Jersey Devils sweep the heavily favored Detroit Red Wings to win their first Stanley Cup in the lock-out shortened season.
June 24 - South Africa wins the Rugby World Cup.
June 29 - Lisa Clayton completes her 10-month solo circumnavigation from the Northern Hemisphere.
June 29 - STS-71: Space Shuttle Atlantis docks with the Russian Mir space station for the first time.
June 29 - The Sampoong Department Store collapses in the Seocho-gu district of Seoul, South Korea, killing 501 and injuring 937.
June 29 - Iraq disarmament crisis: According to UNSCOM, the unity of the UN Security Council begins to fray, as a few countries, particularly France and Russia, become more interested in making financial deals with Iraq than in disarming the country.

Scene 3 & 4 - January 1995

Content lifted from Wikipedia:

January
January 1 - Austria, Finland and Sweden enter the European Union.
January 1 - The World Trade Organization is established to replace the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT).
January 1 - The Draupner wave in the North Sea in Norway is detected, confirming the existence of freak waves.
January 4 - The 104th Congress, the first controlled by Republicans in both houses since 1953, convenes.
January 6–7 - A chemical fire occurs in an apartment complex in Manila, Philippines. Policemen led by watch commander Aida Fariscal and investigators find a bomb factory and a laptop computer and disks that contain plans for Project Bojinka, a mass-terrorist attack. The mastermind, Ramzi Yousef, is arrested 1 month later.
January 9 - Valeri Polyakov completes 366 days in space while aboard the Mir space station, breaking a duration record.
January 16 - An avalanche hits the village Súðavík in Iceland, killing 14 people.
January 17 - A magnitude 7.3 earthquake called the "Great Hanshin earthquake" occurs near Kobe, Japan, causing great property damage and killing 6,434 people.
January 25 - Norwegian rocket incident: A rocket launched from the space exploration centre at Andøya, Norway is briefly interpreted by the Russians as an incoming attack.
January 29 - Super Bowl XXIX: The San Francisco 49ers become the first National Football League franchise to win 5 Super Bowls, as they defeat the San Diego Chargers at Joe Robbie Stadium in Miami, Florida.
January 30 - John Howard becomes leader of the Liberal Party of Australia to challenge Paul Keating for the 1996 Federal Election and the position of Prime Minister of Australia.
January 31 - U.S. President Bill Clinton invokes emergency powers, to extend a $20 billion loan to help Mexico avert financial collapse.

Scene 2 - June 1994

More content lifted from Wikipedia

June 6 - June 8 – Ceasefire negotiations for the Yugoslav War begin in Geneva; they agree to a 1-month cessation of hostilities (which does not last more than a few days).
June 12 - Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman are murdered outside the Simpson home in Los Angeles, California. O.J. Simpson is later acquitted of the killings, but is held liable in a civil suit.
June 14 - Hacker Kevin Poulsen pleads guilty to 7 counts of mail fraud, wire and computer fraud, money laundering, and obstruction of justice.
June 14 - The New York Rangers defeat the Vancouver Canucks at Madison Square Garden, New York in Game 7 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, winning their first Stanley Cup Championship in 54 years and ending the Curse of 1940.
June 15 - Israel and the Vatican establish full diplomatic relations.
June 17 - NFL star O.J. Simpson and his friend Al Cowlings flee from police in his white Ford Bronco. The low-speed chase ends at Simpson's Brentwood, Los Angeles, California mansion, where he surrenders.
June 17 - The 1994 FIFA World Cup begins in the United States.
June 22 - The Houston Rockets defeat the New York Knicks at The Summit in Texas in Game 7 of the 1993–94 NBA season, to win their first NBA Championship.
June 23 - The International Olympic Committee celebrates their first centennial.
June 24 - U.S. Air Force pilot Bud Holland crashes a B-52 in Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington as a result of pilot error.
June 28 - Members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult release a sarin gas attack at Matsumoto, Japan, killing 7 and injuring 660.

ALSO IN 1994: Kurt Cobain commits suicide, Schindler's List wins Best Picture, Tony Blair becomes leader of the Labour Party

Scene 1 - January 1993

Content Lifted Directly from Wikipedia:

January 1 - Dissolution of Czechoslovakia: Slovakia and the Czech Republic separate in the so-called Velvet Divorce.
January 1 - The European Community eliminates trade barriers and creates a European single market.
January 1 - EuroNews is launched in Europe.
January 1 - ITV companies GMTV, Carlton Television, Meridian Broadcasting and Westcountry Television start broadcasting, replacing TV-am, Thames Television, TVS and TSW respectively.
January 3 - In Moscow, George H. W. Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.
January 5 - The state of Washington executes Westley Allan Dodd by hanging (the first legal hanging in America since 1965).

Bill Clinton inaugurated as President of the United States.
January 5 - $7.4 million USD is stolen from Brinks Armored Car Depot in Rochester, New York in the 5th largest robbery in U.S. history. Four men, Samuel Millar, Father Patrick Moloney, former Rochester Police officer Thomas O'Connor, and Charles McCormick, all of whom have ties to the Provisional Irish Republican Army, are accused.
January 5 - M/V Braer, a Liberian oil tanker, runs aground off the Scottish island of Mainland, causing a massive oil spill.
January 6 - Douglas Hurd is the first high-ranking British official to visit Argentina since the Falklands War.
January 7 - The Fourth Republic of Ghana is inaugurated, with Jerry Rawlings as president.
January 14 - The Polish ferry M/S Jan Heweliusz sinks off the coast of Rügen in the Baltic Sea, killing 54 people.
January 15 - Salvatore Riina, the Mafia boss known as 'The Beast', is arrested in Palermo, Sicily after 23 years as a fugitive.
January 19 - IBM announces a $4.97 billion loss for 1992, the largest single-year corporate loss in United States history to date.
January 19 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraq refuses to allow UNSCOM inspectors to use its own aircraft to fly into Iraq, and begins military operations in the demilitarized zone between Iraq and Kuwait, and the northern Iraqi no-fly zones. U.S. forces fire approximately 40 Tomahawk cruise missiles at Baghdad factories linked to Iraq's illegal nuclear weapons program. Iraq then informs UNSCOM that it will be able to resume its flights.
January 20 - Bill Clinton succeeds George H.W. Bush as the 42nd President of the United States.
January 24 - In Turkey, thousands protest the murder of journalist Uğur Mumcu.
January 25 - Mir Aimal Kasi fires a rifle and kills 2 employees outside CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.
January 25 - Social democrat Poul Nyrup Rasmussen succeeds conervative Poul Schlüter as Prime Minister of Denmark.
January 26 - Václav Havel is elected President of the Czech Republic.
January 31 - Super Bowl XXVII: The Buffalo Bills become the first team to lose 3 consecutive Super Bowls as they are defeated by the Dallas Cowboys, 52-17.