A Midsummer Night's Dream opened to a enthusiastic almot full house in the Strayer-Wood Theatre this past Thursday evening. Performances of both Midsummer and Cloud 9 throughout the weekend have been well received by audiences and Cloud 9 received a glowing review from the Waterloo Courier earlier in the week. I am so proud of the work that everyone involved has done this semester on these two productions. Although it has been exhausting to produce two shows of a large scale at the same time with somewhat limited resources, I believe we have do so with great success.
Although there is another week of performances, work has already begun on Theatre UNI's next two productions, The Crucible and Death of a Salesman. Designs are due Friday for The Crucible, an opera version of Arthur Miller's play of the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthy hearings of the 1950s. The scenic designer, Leonard Curtis, is designing a simple, stark, yet breath-taking set that supports the emotional landscape of the opera beautifully. And Amy RohrBerg's working designs for the costuming contrast nicely to place the characters in the appropriate time-frame while not hendering the story's timeless theme.
There are also several student projects in the works, produced by UNISTA, the UNI Student Theatre Association. Best of Broadway, a musical revue, is already in rehearsal with performances scheduled for the first weekend of December in the Strayer-Wood. A workshop production of LUV will open just days before Broadway in the Acting Practice Room. Watch for more information about both productions. On November 10, UNISTA will present the stand-up comedy of guest Josh Fitkin and Tim Cahill, a senior theatre major. TAP, the department's service fraternity, will host a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show on November 10 in Lang Hall. This has become a fairly successful annual event for the organization.
The first round of auditions for Death of a Salesman will begin Thursday, November 8. Because Salesman is to be directed by alum Larry Paulsen, who is currently performing in Denver, Colorado, and therefore able to return to UNI for only one day in December for auditions, the first round will be taped and sent to Larry. Students have been asked to prepare a monologue in the style and period of the show and identify which character or characters for which they wish to be considered. Larry will identify those students he wishes to "call back," or see audition a second time, on Sunday, December 2. While this is not the way in which we traditionally have auditions for main stage productions, the experience of creating a recorded audition will be a good one for our students and one they may well experience several times throughout a career in performance.
Classes also continue with plans being made for final projects and portfolio reviews not far off. Theatre majors will have an opportunity to take the Department's level II reading exam next month that will test their knowledge of a set of plays and other theatre related literature that the faculty feel those studying theatre should be familiar with. In the newest curriculum requirements, a passing score on the level II exam is necessary in order for a student to declare an emphasis area of study within the theatre program.
Two weeks ago, I happened to remember that I had reached an anniversary at Theatre UNI. I have been here for 12 years. This may not seem like a very important anniversary, except for the fact that when I arrived here in October of 1995, during the week between performances of Praying Mantis, it was for a 9 month temporary job. And since then, I have been almost constantly looking forward to the next job, the next move, and wondering where I would be in another year or two. During this past year, my personal life has changed in a way that will now allow me to settle down here at UNI and in Cedar Falls if I so desire. There is no "next" move on the horizen if I don't want there to be. I've got a big decision to make now, but fortunately, no deadline to be concerned with.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Opening Night
It's opening night of Cloud 9 and for Theatre UNI's 2007/08 anniversary season at the Strayer-Wood. We have a sold out crowd in the Bertha Martin Theatre, 140 people. The majority of the crowd seem to be students, many of whom probably have to see it for a class (this guess is based on the number of notebooks that I saw). Intermission comments were quite positive. I think it's a show for all involved to be proud of.
This is always a wonderful reward after the long process of rehearsals and building. The past week has been a busy one. In addition to the dress rehearsals for Cloud 9 and finishing touches on scenery, costumes, lights and sound, we began technical rehearsals for A Midsummer Night's Dream, which opens next Thursday evening. We are a little behind where we should be and would like to be just seven days before opening, due mostly to the fact that we've been producing two shows in the same time period. However, great progress has been made in the past couple of days and we've made a few adjustments to the schedule to allow more time for painting, the writing of light cues, and the sewing of costumes. Now that Cloud 9 has opened, the attention of some of us can turn fully to Midsummer to make it's opening as successfull.
Design meetings have begun for our February production of the opera version of Arthur Miller's The Crucible. Designs are due in just two weeks and the build will begin the following Monday. Because we open less than four weeks after the holiday break, much of the build will happen prior, as well as many rehearsals. The music for the orchestra arrived earlier this week and Sandra Walden, the director, has begun rehearsals. I haven't had an opportunity yet to listen to the music from the show but I've been told by many colleagues that it is quite beautiful. I love good opera.
This is always a wonderful reward after the long process of rehearsals and building. The past week has been a busy one. In addition to the dress rehearsals for Cloud 9 and finishing touches on scenery, costumes, lights and sound, we began technical rehearsals for A Midsummer Night's Dream, which opens next Thursday evening. We are a little behind where we should be and would like to be just seven days before opening, due mostly to the fact that we've been producing two shows in the same time period. However, great progress has been made in the past couple of days and we've made a few adjustments to the schedule to allow more time for painting, the writing of light cues, and the sewing of costumes. Now that Cloud 9 has opened, the attention of some of us can turn fully to Midsummer to make it's opening as successfull.
Design meetings have begun for our February production of the opera version of Arthur Miller's The Crucible. Designs are due in just two weeks and the build will begin the following Monday. Because we open less than four weeks after the holiday break, much of the build will happen prior, as well as many rehearsals. The music for the orchestra arrived earlier this week and Sandra Walden, the director, has begun rehearsals. I haven't had an opportunity yet to listen to the music from the show but I've been told by many colleagues that it is quite beautiful. I love good opera.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
First Tech for Cloud 9
Tonight is the first technical rehearsal for Cloud 9. I've just stepped out after watching almost an hour. Cynthia, the director, has decided to run this first one as a cue-to-cue. It seems to be going smoothly. Meanwhile, A Midsummer Night's Dream is rehearsing across the hall on the Strayer-Wood stage. Now we are entering a time when all involved must be aware of the needs of the other show as well as their own and point out any potential conflicts or problems in the shared spaces.
Rep prep week has been going well. I've heard reports from both the costume and scenic studios that much has been accomplished. I've stopped in the studios numerous times throughout the week and have witnessed the heightened level of activity. Electrics and paint work has been successfully scheduled on the stages right along side the scenery construction work. I mentioned in the last post that an alum, Eugenia, had showed up on our door step Monday afternoon. Many thanks to Eugenia as she has spent the last four days helping with the painting of Cloud 9 and plastering walls for Midsummer. The paint charge for the shows, Jenny, has been excited to work with her.
I've spent the last three days putting together the program for the show, despite two days of computer problems. But that's a whole other story. While typing the lists of students (and faculty volunteers) who have worked on scenic and costume construction, I've noticed that several students have moved beyond the roles they have usually put themselves in and helped in other areas. The teaching philosophy of the UNI Department of Theatre has long included an emphasis on training a well-rounded student, exposing all majors to various areas of study within the program. It's nice to see that so many of the students are willing to make the choice themselves to expand their horizens.
Rep prep week has been going well. I've heard reports from both the costume and scenic studios that much has been accomplished. I've stopped in the studios numerous times throughout the week and have witnessed the heightened level of activity. Electrics and paint work has been successfully scheduled on the stages right along side the scenery construction work. I mentioned in the last post that an alum, Eugenia, had showed up on our door step Monday afternoon. Many thanks to Eugenia as she has spent the last four days helping with the painting of Cloud 9 and plastering walls for Midsummer. The paint charge for the shows, Jenny, has been excited to work with her.
I've spent the last three days putting together the program for the show, despite two days of computer problems. But that's a whole other story. While typing the lists of students (and faculty volunteers) who have worked on scenic and costume construction, I've noticed that several students have moved beyond the roles they have usually put themselves in and helped in other areas. The teaching philosophy of the UNI Department of Theatre has long included an emphasis on training a well-rounded student, exposing all majors to various areas of study within the program. It's nice to see that so many of the students are willing to make the choice themselves to expand their horizens.
Monday, October 8, 2007
Rep Prep Week
Rep Prep week has begun. Over the weekend, electrics crew for both Cloud 9 and A Midsummer Night's Dream spent several hours hanging and focusing lighting instruments in the Bertha Martin and Strayer-Wood Theatres. Work continued on the hexagon platforms for Midsummer and the costume studio had a second work call of the semester.
We had a wonderful surprise this afternoon when an alum, Eugenia Furneaux-Ahrends, stopped by to say hi. She's in town for a few days while traveling back home from the East coast. Eugenia graduated three years ago and went on to earn an M.F.A. in scenic design. So we immediately take her up on her offer to help paint scenery this afternoon.
Photos from work calls and rehearsals can be found on the Theatre UNI web site.
We had a wonderful surprise this afternoon when an alum, Eugenia Furneaux-Ahrends, stopped by to say hi. She's in town for a few days while traveling back home from the East coast. Eugenia graduated three years ago and went on to earn an M.F.A. in scenic design. So we immediately take her up on her offer to help paint scenery this afternoon.
Photos from work calls and rehearsals can be found on the Theatre UNI web site.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Start of another week
Mondays are a day of meetings for me. We begin with design meetings for The Crucible, an opera version of the Arthur Miller play, that we are co-producing with the UNI School of Music. The production opens just four weeks after the beginning of winter semester, therefore the necessity to begin production this semester. Amy RohrBerg is designing the costumes, Leonard Curtis, the scenery, and Ron Koinzan, the lighting. Sandra Walden is directing and Rebecca Burkhardt is the musical director and conductor.
Two hours later, a design & production committee meeting. The design & production committee is made up of the faculty and staff in this area at Theatre UNI. Agenda items included a discussion of the Death of a Salesman meeting that we had yesterday afternoon with the guest designers and director, class preparations (the d&p committee is team teaching Theatrical Arts & Society this semester), budget updates (always a fun subject), and the alumni/faculty retrospective that will be on exhibit through the season in the Strayer-Wood Theatre lobby.
During the 4:00 p.m. production meeting for A Midsummer Night's Dream, the scenic/blocking challenge of getting Puck down to the stage from above was discussed at length. I don't want to give away too much so that's all I'll say about that. A child has been cast and met with Amy, the costume designer, for measurements earlier this afternoon. Midsummer is one of my favorite plays and I'm very excited about this production.
The day concluded with a STAGE Inc board meeting. STAGE Inc is the friends organization for Theatre UNI and the Department of Theatre. The board is a passionate group of people from the community who are always willing to help however they can. During this meeting, they offered to pay for a lunch time cook-out for the students on Wednesday during rep prep week. And I'm sure that we'll get some of the best cookies for the event as well.
Looking back at yesterday for a moment, the first design meeting for Death of a Salesman. The director Larry Paulsen, scenic designer Steve Gilliam and lighting designer Richard Devin arrived in town shortly after 3:30 p.m. and the production team met for almost three hours. What an exciting meeting! Larry shared his vision of the production and numerous research photos. I found his energy and enthusiasm for the project infectious and look forward to working with him.
As I'm writing this at nearly 10:30 p.m., I'm contemplating the fact that I've been working on my laptop computer now for over three hours. That in itself is not unusual. What is unusual is that I am now able to access my office computer from home. While it was wonderful to get some additional work completed this evening that I was unable to finish earlier in the day and really needed to. Yet I worry that I'll become even more of a workaholic now. Guess I'll find out.
Two hours later, a design & production committee meeting. The design & production committee is made up of the faculty and staff in this area at Theatre UNI. Agenda items included a discussion of the Death of a Salesman meeting that we had yesterday afternoon with the guest designers and director, class preparations (the d&p committee is team teaching Theatrical Arts & Society this semester), budget updates (always a fun subject), and the alumni/faculty retrospective that will be on exhibit through the season in the Strayer-Wood Theatre lobby.
During the 4:00 p.m. production meeting for A Midsummer Night's Dream, the scenic/blocking challenge of getting Puck down to the stage from above was discussed at length. I don't want to give away too much so that's all I'll say about that. A child has been cast and met with Amy, the costume designer, for measurements earlier this afternoon. Midsummer is one of my favorite plays and I'm very excited about this production.
The day concluded with a STAGE Inc board meeting. STAGE Inc is the friends organization for Theatre UNI and the Department of Theatre. The board is a passionate group of people from the community who are always willing to help however they can. During this meeting, they offered to pay for a lunch time cook-out for the students on Wednesday during rep prep week. And I'm sure that we'll get some of the best cookies for the event as well.
Looking back at yesterday for a moment, the first design meeting for Death of a Salesman. The director Larry Paulsen, scenic designer Steve Gilliam and lighting designer Richard Devin arrived in town shortly after 3:30 p.m. and the production team met for almost three hours. What an exciting meeting! Larry shared his vision of the production and numerous research photos. I found his energy and enthusiasm for the project infectious and look forward to working with him.
As I'm writing this at nearly 10:30 p.m., I'm contemplating the fact that I've been working on my laptop computer now for over three hours. That in itself is not unusual. What is unusual is that I am now able to access my office computer from home. While it was wonderful to get some additional work completed this evening that I was unable to finish earlier in the day and really needed to. Yet I worry that I'll become even more of a workaholic now. Guess I'll find out.
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