Local play tells you How to Not Get Laid

By Rachel Woodward, August 4 2016 —

In 2012, Matt Dewald took the stage at the Calgary Fringe Festival to co-star in his play, How to Not Get Laid, an hour-long, side-by-side analysis of male and female endeavours to find a partner. The play stole the show and will return to the Calgary stage this month due to popular demand.

“It was a Fringe show in 2012, and it ended up selling out. It was a big hit. People really loved it. Ever since then, people have been telling me to do the show again,” says Dewald. “It’s written as two one-person shows happening simultaneously.”

Dewald says each character tells a story of their pursuit with the opposite sex, and the trials associated with it.

“There’s two characters, so the guy will come out and speak and they alternate the whole show and they don’t have a scene together until the end,” Dewald says.

Dewald wrote the play in 2012 and says it’s the most vulnerable work of his theatre career to date.

“I’ve been doing theatre for 23 years now. That show I did in 2012 was easily the most vulnerable I’ve ever been in the theatre,” he says. “It is a very honest piece. All the stories are true, and I’ve written it in a way that it’s
still theatrical, but it’s based on real life.”

The production will return as a stand-alone show playing August 5, 6, 12 and 13 at the Loose Moose Theatre. Dewald will direct the show in his directorial debut.

“What’s different this time is I’m still vulnerable, it’s still very honest and I have more of a passion for directing than I do for acting — I want to direct professionally. It’s a lot of fun. It’s still me being vulnerable but just in a different way,” Dewald says.

The show will star Chris Bugg and Caitlynn Medrek.

Also returning this year from the 2012 production is a partnership with the Calgary Sexual Health Centre. The organization will set up a booth in the lobby of the theatre to provide information about available resources.

Dewald feels the partnership is perfect, given the show’s subject matter.

“Their agenda is to share and provide Calgarians with information about sex and sexual health. They have a centre in Calgary just off 14th Street, and they provide free counselling, condoms [and] pregnancy tests. They are a resource and counselling center for Calgarians,” he says. “Since we are talking about the theme of sex, the partnership made sense. We can help spread the word that they’re around.”

The Calgary Sexual Health Center will also provide “love kits” containing condoms, lubricant, a business card and show info to the audience.

“Everyone is handing out handbills for their shows and we are handing out condoms. It’s a cool partnership,” Dewald says.

How to Not Get Laid runs on August 5, 6, 12 and 3 at the Loose Moose Theatre.

For more information, visit brownpapertickets.com