Ghosts and reviving

I was much more disappointed and depressed than I anticipated when my teaching appointment for Intro to Theater was revoked last semester.

So I am delighted and excited that this semester, in about 2 weeks, I will begin teaching TWO classes of Intro to Theater! I am working on the syllabus this week and cleaning out my files.

Tonight I will be hosting the White Frosting Awards. We will be celebrating the past year and years of our work as a youth theater troupe. We will recognize the work of current youth, alumni and adult supporters.

Then I will begin preparing for our next two shows: Ghosts by Ibsen going into rehearsal in March for end-of-April/beginning of May performance, and Taming of the Shrew for summer performance.

We will also be announcing our first annual Youth Playwriting Competition tonight.

Plenty to work on!

echoing theater magic

My daughter has written both a moving blog about the magic of theater, and a more light-hearted blog about theater magic past and present. Both are beautiful and have reminded me powerfully of those transformative experiences that theater can provide.

There is something magical about theater. We speak of the willing suspension of disbelief, the magical contract between artists and audience that we will set the ordinary rules of life aside for this brief time, and let ourselves transcend our lives, our very selves.

It is spiritual, moving, powerful.

And it's fun.

This time around, I have written a spoof of the Twilight vampire series that is the current rage for teens and tweens.

It is terrifying to write comedy, and also, when successful, immensely satisfying.

Immensely satisfying because, when the audience laughs you know the script works. You know you have brought enjoyment, amusement, smiles and laughter to a world that certainly needs more of all of these.

Terrifying, because if the audience doesn't laugh, you SUCK. No place to hide with comedy.

About two weeks from opening, I was terrified. My teen actors of our troupe were stumbling over lines, unable to make the timing work, missing the point and the punch of gags.

ARGHHH!! I thought. I have written CRAP. I SUCK.

And costumes weren't quite what I envisioned. Scenic design almost non-existent. The sound track hugely complicated.

And my actors were taking turns being sick, or out of town, or absent due to choir rehearsal.

ARGHH!! I thought. I have written CRAP. I SUCK. The play will SUCK. I will have to leave town and change my name.

And then...

Theater magic.

The sound track lifted and supported the gags. The actors started to hit their marks. We had a pizza party.

We still had actors out with the flu, but fortunately we were double-cast, so "twins" stepped in.

We added the final ingredient: an appreciative audience.

And opening night was wonderful. In the tiny theater, the 60 + people were a full house. The audience roared with laughter. The music and the make up, the actors and the action all worked brilliantly.

AHHH!! I thought. I have written COMEDY! We ROCK!

choosing scripts

It has been said that 80%-- or 90%, depending on who is speaking-- of directing is casting the play. I would agree that a great percentage of good directing is selecting the right actor for the role AND the right combination of actors for the production.



However, even before casting, the director must consider the script. Most of the time I have had the luxury of choosing my own scripts. Most directors have at the very least the option to accept or decline the assignment of directing a particular script.



I prefer to work with excellent scripts. Of course, who doesn't? It is more fun and more rewarding to work with great material. However, I think we often overlook another reason: much of the directing work is done for you by a great playwright. Characters are rich, conflicts are strong.



I am most interested in theater as a collaborative art. I believe in the excellence of ensemble over salesmanship of star power. This also influences my selection of scripts.



When I am looking at scripts for a relatively large cast-- 10, 15 or more-- I look for meaty roles for all characters. This is one reason I often choose Shakespeare: even relatively small roles are often rich and juicy.



With a large cast with a number of newer actors, I will often look for a play that has a group of characters that work together. This might be the Elders of Thebes of the Chorus in Antigone, or the street urchins of Oliver Twist. This strategy allows newer actors to get up there on the stage, while still providing the safety of being one of the crowd. In these character groups, however, it is important that the group has action. Being part of a group that are essentially stage decorations does not give the new actors a chance to develop character, goals and focus.

For me, a good script has a great story, strong conflict, engaging characters.

write, right?

One lesson I have learned from my professors is:

The write ones remain.

Especially in this profession, this art, we only know/ learn from/ remember the directors who write, or those about whom articles and reviews are written.

Directing is the most ephemeral of arts: directing is the selecting, the seeing, the process, the forging of relationships.

It is the process, and only partly reflected in the product-- and, in theater, the product is also ephemeral.

So, it is only right that I write about these rites.

Right?

director's concept

I am working/struggling with this term. Maybe a better term for me is "director's vision"-- I often begin with an image, a feeling, a mood.

Around this seed the production forms.

theater magic

There is a marvelous recurring phrase in the movie Shakespeare in Love. It's an exchange of dialogue.

Philip Henslowe: Mr. Fennyman, allow me to explain about the theatre business. The natural condition is one of insurmountable obstacles on the road to imminent disaster.
Hugh Fennyman: So what do we do?
Philip Henslowe: Nothing. Strangely enough, it all turns out well.
Hugh Fennyman: How?
Philip Henslowe: I don't know. It's a mystery

This exchange caused me great mirth when I first saw the movie because it is so true. I can absolutely imagine the real Henslowe saying something very much like this, because I have said something much like this both before I saw the movie, and after.

In working on the Scottish play in 2008, I sent up prayers for the intervention of theater magic. And, in spite of numerous insurmountable obstacles and clear sightings of imminent disaster during this famously "unlucky" play, it, strangely enough, turned out well.

And again, when working on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, insurmountable obstacles of serious illness and mishap in my own family seemed to place the play directly on the road to imminent disaster. Strangely enough, it turned out well.

Then, working on Twelfth Night, set in the 1890s, more insurmountable obstacles, and again, strangely, it all turned out well.

Why? As the man said, ultimately, it is a mystery. We call it theater magic. We know some of the ingredients: passion, commitment to each other and to the play.

Somewhere in the recipe there is fear as the opening night approaches; excitement as costumes, set and props are added.

I am convinced that food-- pizza or pot-luck, it doesn't matter-- the sharing of a meal together in the midst of the work-- this is also a critical ingredient.

But the process, the means by which all of these come together to solve the unsolvable, heal the unhealable, surmount the insurmountable--

Well, it's a mystery.

A mystery to which I am grateful, once again.

Casting

Casting is one of the most difficult of the director's tasks. Getting the right actor into the right role is a critical decision for the success of the production. In fact, one old saw has it that "80% of good directing is good casting."

So how do you do it?

Because I work in youth theater, and because
-process
-learning
-freedom to create
-empowering young people

are all high values, I often invite input from the soon-to-be actors on the audition sheet. I ask the auditioners to list their top 3 choices, if they could be ANYONE in the play. I state that while there are no guarantees, I will take their interests into consideration.

In more recent years, I have given the option to just list "small, medium or large" part. I have also started including a question allowing actors to note parts they would NOT want to play.

This has been very helpful for me. Often, the young people have a far more keen insight than one might expect into what they are ready for or will fit for them.

Still, since I often direct Shakespeare, where there are about 6 or 7 male parts for every female part, and because I am directing youth actors where there are 4 or 5 female actors for every male actor, I still have my challenges.

Even though I ask for the top THREE choices, I will still get auditioners filling out forms that say 1. Kate 2. Kate 3. Kate.

I agonize over casting. I spend a long time over it. Lately I've taken to creating a spread sheet of all the characters, then listing under each character the actors who would like to play it.

At least then I can get a visual.

AND I also, more often than not, have two complete casts per production. Double the rehearsals, double the fun...

This helps a bit more than it impedes the casting process.

So:

I have a list of characters; I have a list of actors who want to play the characters. I also have my "feel" for each of the characters. Orlando should be taller than Rosalind. Rosalind should be playful and witty.

At some point, I have to bite the bullet. Letting all the above information roll around in my head and my heart, I then write out the cast(s) that work for me and with my group. Then I double/triple/quadruple check, to make sure that I haven't cast brother and sister in roles where they have to kiss each other, to make sure that I haven't cast someone in THE ONE ROLE THEY WILL NOT DO, to make sure that I have respected scheduling conflicts to the best of my ability.

I take a deep breath.

And I send it out.

Almost invariably, by a few weeks into rehearsal, no one can imagine the play being cast any other way. Each actor comes to love his or her role.

ALMOST invariably.

Yet, every time, it is a struggle.

So, when you see the role you've been cast in, and it isn't your top choice, take a moment to realize in many, many places, there are those who aren't cast at all. And, for a caring director, this casting process was a difficult one, invested with love, care and artistic vision-- and a bit of pain and worry, too!

audition / orientation

I am overwhelmed! Close to forty kids showed up for our audition/orientation. About 10 were coming in via Class Act 4-H, the younger ones. Then the other 30 or so were MYT age. There were perhaps 10 who were brand new.

Casting will be a bear; I'm not even going to look at it until tomorrow, AFTER teaching. Too much!

audition/orientation

The announcements have gone out.

They look like this:

It's time!
Time to kick off the MYT 2009 season with our spring production of
Shakespeare's
Twelfth Night!
Rehearsals: March & April Performances: April 30, May 1 & 2
Audition/Orientation:Monday March 2
4:30 - 5:30 OR 6:00-7:00Holly Academy School820 Academy Road Holly, MI. Pick one session or the other to try out for the show.
Mandatory meeting:
Wednesday, Mar 46:00 pm- 8:00 pmMandatory all company meeting. If you want to be in the show, show up! Bring a parent and all your paperwork and fees. There will be design presentation and sign up for production tasks-- and snacks, of course!
Cast list will be posted Thursday, March 4. ALL PAPERWORK AND FEES DUE BY WEDNESDAY. You will not be cast if the necessary paperwork is not turned in.
First read through:
Saturday, Mar 711:00 am- 2:00 pmRead through script; measurements taken; and snacks, of course!
MYT membership dues: $25. Show fee: $40. Discounts available for multiple family members. Financial aid forms available. Please email me at lisajhk@comcast.net if you have any questions

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Here is where I trust the universe to send me what I need, or at least what I can work with.

new direction

I'm about to begin my newest project. I will be directing Twelfth Night. This is my third time directing Shakespeare's comedy.

In my recently completed doctoral studies, I have learned the importance of writing it down. History is quite literally written by those who write.

So I will be writing from the beginning with this project.