Pounding Nails In The Floor With My Forehead

Eric Bogosiam was born April 24, 1953 in Woburn Massachusetts. He started out as a performer in theatre, but is most famous for his play Talk Radio, and 1988, it was made into a movie. he graduated from Oberlin College located in Ohio, and then moved to New York. When writing his plays, he focused on social realism and dark comedy. Acting in the screen play Born in Flames was where he made his first appearance on-screen. it was a documentary that addressed sexism and was made in 1983. Shows Bogosian acted in consisted of: Special Effects, Miami Vice, and Arena Brains. He was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Talk Radio. He became very popular for his role of Satan in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot. He also recieved the Berlin Film Festival Silver Bear Award. Between 1980 and 2000, he performed six solo performances Off-Boadway which he won three Obie Awards for. These plays were: Men Inside; Fun House; Drinking in America; Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll; Pounding Nails In The Floor With my Forehead; and Wake Up And Smell The Coffee. Bogosian also stared in Law and Order: Criminal Intent on NBC.

Pounding Nails In The Floor With My Forehead is a one-man show. A one-man show is obviously a solo theatre piece that is meant to show the abilities of a single performer. These shows are designed to fully explore characters. This type of theatre originated in the 18th Century. Solo entertainers would perform one-man shows that featured songs, sketches and impersonations. Now solo performers also use the style of a one man show to investigate controversal cultural events. Some shows can be personal and autobiographical. Others can be central themed.

Pounding Nails In The Floor With My Forehead premiered January, 1994 at the Minetta Cane Theatre in New York City.

1. In America, who is the man with him in his nightmare, and where are they?

2.What message does Bogosian try to get across in The Messenger?

3. What does the man do at the end of Blow Me?

4. What is the setting in Art?

5. Name three people that reappear thorought this solo performance.

6. What is the last line of the play?

7. Which piece did you think was the strongest? Explain.

8. Which piece spoke to you the most and why?