And Happy Ever After

Photo courtesy of royalcourttheatre.com

If anybody is interested in auditioning for the next show, "The Nether" directed by Sharon Sullivan, auditions will be held Monday, November 30 from 4:00-5:00pm or 5:00-6:00pm. Sign up for an audition time in the theatre office in Garvey 133.

You can find a description of the show here. A PDF version of the script is available here.

Into the Woods

I'm relatively familiar with "Into the Woods." I've watched the Broadway production multiple times. I watched the movie. I read the script multiple times before I saw the show, so I knew what I was getting myself into when I bought my ticket.

I have to say I was partial to the set. The way the trees were moved to signify transitions was extremely unique because they were moved during the scenes, rather than between them. It made for very smooth transitions between the scenes, and shaved several minutes off the total production time.

The costumes were pretty much what I would have expected, had I not spent several weeks working on them before the show opened. Traditionally, fairy tales are set in a medieval/Renaissance looking era, and Washburn's production held true.

Photo courtesy of Washburn Theatre

The costumes were as effective for the show. I was confused by the Wolf's costume. He was dressed as a sort of Russian palace guard, which did not make sense with the rest of the show.

I really enjoyed the blocking and choreography, except in one scene. Towards the end of Act Two, the Baker's Wife comes back from the dead for a moment to help her husband learn to take care of their infant child. They sing a moving duet, and it's one of the most tender scenes in the show. However, the blocking put Cinderella, Red, and Jack downstage center right in front of the audience. The three characters turn around to watch the show with the audience, which would be cool. The problem was, all I could see was the butts of these characters. I was sitting in the front row, and I couldn't see any of the action on the stage. I missed the duet because I was too busy trying not to giggle at the butts in front of me, as immature as that may be.

Overall, however, I think the show was good. The cast worked well together, the costumes were appropriate. There were no major technical difficulties (or tornadoes, which happened during one of the "Mauritius" shows). Altogether, I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Do You Have a Basket?

There are a few terms you should know, if you are writing a paper over a show.

House left (the left side of the stage when you are looking at it) is referred to as Stage Right (SR).

House right is Stage Left (SL).

The front of the stage is referred to as Downstage (DS).

The back of the stage is referred to as Upstage (US).

This is because in Greek threatre, the audience was on a level field, and the stage was on a hill, so when the audience went away from the audience, they were literally going up the stage. I don't have a historical explanation for SL and SR, except that having universal directions allows directions (referred to as blocking) to be given without complications.

In costuming, Washburn has something that we refer to as "stage perfect." This is when a garment may not actually be perfect, but the audience won't be able to tell that. If there is a blemish on a garment that the audience won't be able to see, you would say "The audience won't be able to read it."

House lights refer to the lights above the audience. Stage lights are above/shining onto the stage. A spot light shines on a specific character, usually during a solo or monologue. 

The set refers to the backdrop, floor, or panels used in the show. Props are any items used. A chair would be a set piece, a basket would be a prop.

Break-a-way or Tear-a-way objects are made to be broken or torn on stage and repaired easily, or cheap enough to replace.

I Know Things Now

Photo courtesy of Washburn Theatre

Okay so there's a fantastic shot of my floor, colors and all.

Photo courtesy of Washburn Theatre

This picture just makes me feel good. I contributed to this shot, (and more importantly, the show) even though I wasn't cast. There's a certain joy in providing so much anonymous help to the show. I'm the man behind the curtain, and the fact of the matter is I've only scratched the surface of what I can learn about theatre tech. There's still lighting and stagecraft to learn at all, not to mention practicing my skills in the areas I've already studied.

As pure as...

I only have a rudimentary knowledge of sewing, but since I am in the costume design class this semester, I was recruited to help. I sewed a lot of snaps/buttons, fixed some hems, and shortened the straps on Red's dress. One of my biggest projects was painting Cinderella's ball gown.

Photo by Jamie Schartz

Yes, you read that right. Sharon (Sullivan, the costume director) bought a white wedding gown, and Corey Perkins and I spent several hours painting it Cinderella blue with special fabric paint.

Personally, I am one who likes to get my hands dirty when I'm working on a big project, so this happened to me:

Photo courtesy of Lynn Wilson

My entire arm was blue, but after about 10 minutes of scrubbing, I got most of it washed off my hands. Lynn stopped me on my way out to snap this picture, and I'm glad she did.

Better Stop and Take Stock

Photo courtesy of i.ytimg.com

Okay, I know this post is about three weeks late, but I want to give you guys a quick run down on behavior that is acceptable in theatre.

First of all, don't talk. I know this is the oldest rule in the book, and I am probably one of the most frequent breakers of this rule, however, it is still true.

Next, no photography, unless approved by the house manager or other appropriate member of crew. A lot of work went into putting the show together (I've only touched on the backstage stuff), and unauthorized distribution of photographs means all the artists involved lose their artistic license. Seriously, no theatre, whether on Broadway or a local theatre allows photography. If they do allow photography, they will make sure you know.

Finally, and most important, because about half the audience left every night, stay for the entire show. "Into the Woods" is two acts. TWO ACTS. Anybody who tried to write a paper about the show after just seeing act one is going to have a rough time. In Act Two, everybody dies.

On the flip side, laughter is highly encouraged. If you are amused by something in the show, let the actors know. They feed off the energy the audience provides. It sounds weird, but it's true. If a scene is meant to be funny, it's reassuring to hear that it is coming off that way.

Applause is also highly acceptable. Actors like to know they're appreciated. There's more to acting than just memorizing lines. You have to build a background for your character. If somebody asks a question about them, you need to be able to answer as easily as you could about yourself.

No Less Than Five Pounds

Many people don't realize how much money goes into mounting a musical. According to the Artsbeat blog of the New York Times, most Broadway musicals today cost upwards of $2.5 million. To put that in numeric terms, that would be $2,500,000. For comparison, the poverty line for a four person family, according to aspe.hhs.gov, is $24,250.  

To stress this even more, $2.5 million is just the baseline. "Next to Normal," which was nominated for the Tony for Best Musical in 2009, cost $4 million. "The Book of Mormon" (a Broadway sensation currently on tour) cost $9 million, and "Spider-Man: The Muscial," one of the greatest Broadway flops of all time, cost $75 million. 

All of this really puts Washburn's little production into perspective. According to Paul Prece, the director, the total budget for the production was over $10,000. This includes sets, costumes, lighting, props, tickets, ads, royalties, musicians, musical director, choreographer, and rehearsal accompanist. 

Breaking that down, approx. $3000 went to royalties and rental of orchestration and scripts. This was based on the number of performances (seven), ticket prices ($6 with student ID, $12 without) and the number of seats in the theatre (330).

Costumes had a budget of about $4000. I know that sounds like a lot, but that had to be divided by 21 cast members. Of those 21, most of them needed multiple costumes. This means that each character has a budget of $190.46. This would be enough for a killer night-on-the-town dress, but most of the girls needed a ballgown, which costs between $150-$350. This is why sewing is so important. Quite a few of the costumes were handmade, or hand-altered. The fabric was purchased at JoAnn's Fabrics or online. 

Others May Deceive You

Photo courtesy of Lynn Wilson

When I wasn't working on painting the floor, there were plenty of other set pieces to be working on. In an early version of the set, the trees and circles were all on one platform. I traced them, using a projector and sharpie.

These trees did not make it into the final show, but neither did the colored circles, either. Paul, the director, made a technical choice to only show the black sides of the circles.

Photo courtesy of Lynn Wilson

It was an interesting experience. I saw three versions of trees get scrapped before the final version. Those three were only the ones that the director (Paul Prece) and sceneographer (Tony Naylor) agreed were worth trying. Tony spent all summer coming up with concepts for the show.

Photo courtesy of Marissa Meis

Notice the trees in the background, and compare them to the trees I'm tracing in the two top pictures.

Silver and Gold?

As we got closer to the show time, there were more and more things that needed to be done. One of the big ones was costuming. Costume design, like everything else in theatre, has a process.

1. A theme for the costumes must be chosen and approved by director/producer/costume designer/powers that be.

2. The show must be cast.

3. Measurements are taken for all actors.

4. Costume pieces are pulled (found in the costume shop), purchased, or made. Typically two or three options are pulled for each actor/character.

5. Actors come in to try on costumes. The best are set aside.

6. Alterations, repairs, and other changes are made to the costumes.

7. Everyone prays nothing awful happens to the costumes between the dress rehearsals and final curtain call.

I only have a rudimentary knowledge of sewing, but since I am in the costume design class this semester, I was recruited to help. I sewed a lot of snaps/buttons, fixed some hems, and shortened the straps on Red's dress. One of my biggest projects was painting Cinderella's ball gown.

Photo by Jamie Schartz

Yes, you read that right. Sharon (Sullivan, the costume director) bought a white wedding gown, and Corey Perkins and I spent several hours painting it Cinderella blue with special fabric paint.

Personally, I am one who likes to get my hands dirty when I'm working on a big project, so this happened to me:

Photo courtesy of Lynn Wilson

My entire arm was blue, but after about 10 minutes of scrubbing, I got most of it washed off my hands. Lynn stopped me on my way out to snap this picture, and I'm glad she did.

And You Look Below

Photo by Jamie Schartz

Circles. So many circles.

Photo by Jamie Schartz

I started with the colors on the background pieces: red, blue, yellow, and green. I'm sorry the picture is so washed out. The stage lights don't make for good photography.

Photo by Jamie Schartz

This still isn't the best picture, but you can see more of the colors. There's some pinks and purples. I also mixed some oranges, some different shades of green and one brown. 

Also notice how the background has changed. In the last post it was circles on bars, which are still visible in the very back. More prominent now, (and more used through the show) are the black tree silhouettes. 

Children Will Listen

Photo by Jamie Schartz

So, when I started painting the floor, it was just a bunch of white circles. Forty-one, to be exact. I got to choose where they would go (I was roughly following a picture) and how big they were (they were roughly to scale of the picture).

It seems self explanatory, but colors get laid down one at a time. I started with the center black one, then added the blue "moon" around it. Notice the scenery is still skeletal.

Photo by Jamie Schartz

I Wish to go to the Festival

Photo courtesy of Washburn Theatre Department

Into the Woods opened on Friday, November 6.

This week it plays on 

12 Thursday 7:30

13 Friday 7:30

14 Saturday 7:30

15 Sunday 2:00

Tickets are $6 for Washburn students with an ID