For the past eighteen years, I have been directing plays. Most of the casts I have directed have been young theater artists, from ages four to nineteen. In the past several years, I have been working with teens and young adults. The favorite playwright of these theater troupes?
Shakespeare.
I am not surprised by this. Shakespeare has been my favorite playwright since I was eleven years old. While many who meet the Immortal Bard in high school lit classes may think of Shakespeare as difficult, boring and irrelevant, those of us who do Shakespeare—experience Shakespeare in production—find excitement, challenge and timely and timeless themes.
Shakespeare’s genius is above all theatrical genius. Shakespeare’s plays, in his own time, were great commercial successes. The plays brought in audiences and kept them coming back. Because of Shakespeare’s genius, audiences continue to be enchanted, challenged and touched by these plays. The young lovers of Midsummer Night’s Dream or of Romeo and Juliet, frustrated by parents and society, are easily recognized by young lovers of any era. Macbeth’s ambition—do the ends justify the means?—or Brutus’ struggle with divided loyalty—is my loyalty to my friend or to my country?—are as timely today as they were four hundred years ago.
Most people will agree that Shakespeare’s plays are some of the greatest in the English language. Many people will also agree that his texts are among the most challenging. Why should anyone attempt such difficult plays with young actors? For me, there are several answers to this question.
Young people deserve the best, and Shakespeare is the best. Any theatrical production requires many hours of practice, design work, set construction. Hundreds of hours are required to mount a production. In my opinion, these hours are better spent on a great script than a mediocre script. Working with one of Shakespeare’s classics, you know you have a script that can succeed – because it has succeeded with audiences for hundreds of years.
These scripts can succeed with young actors. While it is true that Shakespeare’s plays have a reputation for challenging both scholars and actors today, it is also true that many of the roles were written for adolescent apprentices, boys ranging in age from ten to seventeen or eighteen. The scripts are “playable”.
In producing and performing in one of Shakespeare’s plays, young people are learning by doing. It is obvious—and confirmed by numerous studies—that young people performing Shakespeare increase their vocabularies. The richness and quality of Shakespeare’s language not only enrich vocabulary but also encourage complexity of thought. Many studies also show that students engaged in drama improve academic performance in Language Arts and Humanities.
When my troupes have produced one of Shakespeare’s plays, we have learned much more than the lines of that particular script. We have set Shakespeare’s plays in different time periods. As a result, when working on Hamlet set in the Victorian era, we have learned not only about Elizabethan England, but also about the music and mores of Queen Victoria’s time. Setting Julius Caesar in Caesar’s Rome, we learned about costume, superstition and politics. Setting As You Like It in the 1920s, we learned about flappers, flivvers and dancing the Charleston.
Perhaps more important, although more difficult to measure, are the affective benefits of performing Shakespeare. I have seen the young people in my theater troupes grow and mature in many ways. They have grown in poise and self-expression. They have also increased their self-esteem, by undertaking a task that is acknowledged by all to be challenging and succeeding in that task. By working long hours on this task with a group all committed to the same goals, young people learn team work. They learn that the whole is greater than the sum of the individual parts; that everyone is needed and makes a contribution. In addition, young people seeking to test their limits and find a thrilling challenge can find a positive venue for this in performing Shakespeare. Performing in front of an audience is a challenge, a thrill and excitement. Performing Shakespeare can be a positive way for young people to challenge themselves to excel.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
the darkest hour
I'm THERE with this play. EVERY process of play production seems to have it: the point where it all is so horrible you can barely stand it.
The actors are struggling with lines.
As one costume problem is solved, another lighting problem arises.
There are key props that simply don't seem to exist.
And opening night seems just moments away.
This, I always tell my team, is just before it all comes together! Theater magic! Don't give up hope!
And this time, I am praying and telling this to myself as well!
The actors are struggling with lines.
As one costume problem is solved, another lighting problem arises.
There are key props that simply don't seem to exist.
And opening night seems just moments away.
This, I always tell my team, is just before it all comes together! Theater magic! Don't give up hope!
And this time, I am praying and telling this to myself as well!
Thursday, April 8, 2010
serious as a heart attack
I have recently been reminded how everything in our lives effects our work as artists.
I am approaching the mid-point in directing Ghosts.
And, suddenly, I learn my mother is being rushed to the hospital. She is having a heart attack.
Drop everything and rush to the hospital. Cancel rehearsal that night and the next-- we had a 3 day break scheduled after that, so we could wait and see . . .
At the hospital, helping my mom fill out in take paperwork-- although do we call it paper work any more? It's all on the computer.
We are asked about her advanced directive, or living will, or durable power of attorney for health care? Which she has, and she tells me where to find it, and I go the next day and find it.
The first person listed as holding this durable power of attorney for health care is my mom's significant other, now deceased. The nurse asks me to cross out his name, write "deceased" and initial.
Which I do.
I am now the person named to hold the durable power of attorney for health care. I am the one to speak for my mother, to see that her wishes are known, if she cannot speak for herself.
The nurse takes the copy I have given her and adds it to my mother's chart.
A few minutes later, as my mom is trying to nap, the nurse asks me to come into the hall. I do. She draws my attention to the section on "DNR"- Do Not Resuscitate. Under certain conditions, it is my mother's wish is that no extreme measures be taken to extend her life. If her condition were to be one where there was no reasonable hope of recovery -- this is all carefully defined-- then, my mother's wish is that she be allowed to die.
The nurse says that there are specific papers that are usually drawn up in this case and added to the chart. She asks, should she draw up these papers?
I say, let me think a minute.
And I go and think.
I ask her to wait, please. My brother is in Oregon, stuck on a business trip. I don't want to complete the paper work while my brother is so far away.
Nothing is imminent. (In fact, the good news for this episode is that a week later, my mom is back home.) We can wait.
But I know, in future, this is quite possibly a decision I will have to face.
And, suddenly, Helen Alving's pain and wrenching decision at the end of Ghosts is a little less melodramatic. It is much more serious.
As serious as a heart attack.
I am approaching the mid-point in directing Ghosts.
And, suddenly, I learn my mother is being rushed to the hospital. She is having a heart attack.
Drop everything and rush to the hospital. Cancel rehearsal that night and the next-- we had a 3 day break scheduled after that, so we could wait and see . . .
At the hospital, helping my mom fill out in take paperwork-- although do we call it paper work any more? It's all on the computer.
We are asked about her advanced directive, or living will, or durable power of attorney for health care? Which she has, and she tells me where to find it, and I go the next day and find it.
The first person listed as holding this durable power of attorney for health care is my mom's significant other, now deceased. The nurse asks me to cross out his name, write "deceased" and initial.
Which I do.
I am now the person named to hold the durable power of attorney for health care. I am the one to speak for my mother, to see that her wishes are known, if she cannot speak for herself.
The nurse takes the copy I have given her and adds it to my mother's chart.
A few minutes later, as my mom is trying to nap, the nurse asks me to come into the hall. I do. She draws my attention to the section on "DNR"- Do Not Resuscitate. Under certain conditions, it is my mother's wish is that no extreme measures be taken to extend her life. If her condition were to be one where there was no reasonable hope of recovery -- this is all carefully defined-- then, my mother's wish is that she be allowed to die.
The nurse says that there are specific papers that are usually drawn up in this case and added to the chart. She asks, should she draw up these papers?
I say, let me think a minute.
And I go and think.
I ask her to wait, please. My brother is in Oregon, stuck on a business trip. I don't want to complete the paper work while my brother is so far away.
Nothing is imminent. (In fact, the good news for this episode is that a week later, my mom is back home.) We can wait.
But I know, in future, this is quite possibly a decision I will have to face.
And, suddenly, Helen Alving's pain and wrenching decision at the end of Ghosts is a little less melodramatic. It is much more serious.
As serious as a heart attack.
Friday, March 19, 2010
dramaturg
The position of dramaturg was unfamiliar to me until I returned to college for my PhD.
A dramaturg is a researcher and reporter. A dramaturg researches a play, a playwright, a time period or any combination of these, to report back to the production. Sometimes the research is directly applied to the production, influencing the design of costumes, set or props; sometimes the research is shared with the audience in a lobby display or program notes. Sometimes the research is shared with the cast and crew to give a richer, deeper appreciation of the play's setting or characters.
This in depth research is a part of my preparation and process in directing.
At present, for Ghosts, I am researching:
- Norway
- the 1880s
- Bohemian Paris
- the status of women at the end of the 19th century
- Ibsen
- meerschaum pipes
- orphanages
that's for a start.
A dramaturg is a researcher and reporter. A dramaturg researches a play, a playwright, a time period or any combination of these, to report back to the production. Sometimes the research is directly applied to the production, influencing the design of costumes, set or props; sometimes the research is shared with the audience in a lobby display or program notes. Sometimes the research is shared with the cast and crew to give a richer, deeper appreciation of the play's setting or characters.
This in depth research is a part of my preparation and process in directing.
At present, for Ghosts, I am researching:
- Norway
- the 1880s
- Bohemian Paris
- the status of women at the end of the 19th century
- Ibsen
- meerschaum pipes
- orphanages
that's for a start.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Playwriting workshop!
What:
MYT Playwriting workshop!
Who:
For Creative People ages 12 - 19!
By Instructors Playwrights Beth Kander and Megan Donahue
When:
Who:
For Creative People ages 12 - 19!
By Instructors Playwrights Beth Kander and Megan Donahue
When:
Saturday, March 10, 2010. 10 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Where:
Where:
Old Town Hall, 486 Mill Street, Ortonville, MI 48462
Learn techniques, tools and tips, formats and formulae- and FUN! for creating great scripts for theater from professional playwrights Beth Kander and Megan Donahue. More info about the playwrights is available at http://www.michiganyouththeater.org/ (click on "Workshops" on the left).
Includes: Improvisation for dialogue, developing characters and conflict, scripting for success and more. This workshop includes follow-up work with instructors via email and online journaling with instructors.
Learn techniques, tools and tips, formats and formulae- and FUN! for creating great scripts for theater from professional playwrights Beth Kander and Megan Donahue. More info about the playwrights is available at http://www.michiganyouththeater.org/ (click on "Workshops" on the left).
Includes: Improvisation for dialogue, developing characters and conflict, scripting for success and more. This workshop includes follow-up work with instructors via email and online journaling with instructors.
Cost: Only $75 if postmarked by March 16 ($85 after). Lunch is included: cheese pizza, fruit and water. Registration also includes registration in Michigan Youth Theater's Playwriting Competition!
To register: download registration form at www.michiganyouththeater.org
(Click on "Workshops" on the left). Mail form and payment to MYT, 2122 Houser Rd, Holly, MI 48442.
Please make check or money order payable to Michigan Youth Theater.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
criticism
In teaching acting, or in giving workshops, I also teach feedback, or specific criticism.
In the Intro to Theater class I teach, the students are required to attend three plays and write reviews of these plays.
My instructions are to choose an aspect of the production, such as acting, directing, scenic design or costume design, and write about how that aspect aided or did not aid in that production's realizing the vision/message of the play.
Each semester, I find ways to further refine instructions to guide students to seeing and evaluating the performer's art.
I am trying to get closer to providing a template for meaningful criticism of the production, not the play; of these particular actors' performances, not the characters.
I try to guide students to choose an aspect of the production, such as scenic design or costume design, where choice of line, color, texture, pattern are easier to distinguish. Do color and shape set a mood of light-heartedness or shadow? Does the costume tell you where the play is, in time and space? Do the setting and costumes work together to tell you if the play is striving for realism, abstraction, or fantasy?
It is easy to get drawn in by the acting, but harder to critique the actor's work. Like the director's work, the actor's work is ephemeral, hard to describe, hard to find that specific moment and describe what made it work.
For me, the best criticism gives the theater artist constructive information about what is suceeding and about what needs improvement in the creative work. While it is nice to hear "You were great!" such grand, vague comments give one no more to build on than a general negative comment.
In the Intro to Theater class I teach, the students are required to attend three plays and write reviews of these plays.
My instructions are to choose an aspect of the production, such as acting, directing, scenic design or costume design, and write about how that aspect aided or did not aid in that production's realizing the vision/message of the play.
Each semester, I find ways to further refine instructions to guide students to seeing and evaluating the performer's art.
I am trying to get closer to providing a template for meaningful criticism of the production, not the play; of these particular actors' performances, not the characters.
I try to guide students to choose an aspect of the production, such as scenic design or costume design, where choice of line, color, texture, pattern are easier to distinguish. Do color and shape set a mood of light-heartedness or shadow? Does the costume tell you where the play is, in time and space? Do the setting and costumes work together to tell you if the play is striving for realism, abstraction, or fantasy?
It is easy to get drawn in by the acting, but harder to critique the actor's work. Like the director's work, the actor's work is ephemeral, hard to describe, hard to find that specific moment and describe what made it work.
For me, the best criticism gives the theater artist constructive information about what is suceeding and about what needs improvement in the creative work. While it is nice to hear "You were great!" such grand, vague comments give one no more to build on than a general negative comment.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Ghosts
My youth theater troupe is about to embark on our latest production: Ghosts by Henrik Ibsen, translated by Lanford Wilson.
The small cast, realistic style and incredibly timely themes make this an excellent work for intense acting development and development of ensemble.
Ibsen shocked the world with this play in the late 19th century. In an era notorious for repressing all matters sexual, Ibsen wrote candidly about adultery, syphilis, incest and mental illness. He wrote complex characters struggling with society's stated values of fidelity and loyalty and self-sacrifice-- and the realities of infidelity, pyschological cruelty and betrayal of trust.
I am excited to work with Wilson's translation. Lanford Wilson is an outstanding playwright on his own merits, winning the New York Drama Critic's Circle Award, the Obie Award and the Pulitzer Prize in Playwrighting. One of Wilson's great strength is his wonderful ear for dialogue.
I am planning significant work on actor development and ensemble development during the rehearsal process.
The small cast, realistic style and incredibly timely themes make this an excellent work for intense acting development and development of ensemble.
Ibsen shocked the world with this play in the late 19th century. In an era notorious for repressing all matters sexual, Ibsen wrote candidly about adultery, syphilis, incest and mental illness. He wrote complex characters struggling with society's stated values of fidelity and loyalty and self-sacrifice-- and the realities of infidelity, pyschological cruelty and betrayal of trust.
I am excited to work with Wilson's translation. Lanford Wilson is an outstanding playwright on his own merits, winning the New York Drama Critic's Circle Award, the Obie Award and the Pulitzer Prize in Playwrighting. One of Wilson's great strength is his wonderful ear for dialogue.
I am planning significant work on actor development and ensemble development during the rehearsal process.
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