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4th Wall Dramaturgy

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Choreography from Campus to Curtain Call

By Shelley Graham
May 30, 2025 01:53 PM
Recent BYU grads in Music Dance Theatre show off their choreography skills
4 Min Read
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High School Musical Study Guide

By Audree Wells
May 27, 2025 09:47 AM
Take a Look Behind the Scenes
1 Min Read
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Get Your Head in the Play

By Audree Wells
May 22, 2025 09:26 AM
BYU Theatre's High School Musical on Social Media
1 Min Read
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The Formula for Phenomenal

By Rylie Graham
May 08, 2025 10:50 AM
How High School Musical Redefined Disney Channel Original Movies
1 Min Read
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Hale Center Theatre Performing Arts Students Visit BYU

By Audree Wells
May 02, 2025 11:39 AM
A Wildcat Welcome to Students Meeting the High School Musical Cast
2 Min Read
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What Makes a Classic?

By Aislin Dyer
April 22, 2025 06:56 PM
On any list of “must-read classics” you will find Great Expectations. Since its publication in 1861, this novel has inspired numerous adaptations, including at least 28 films and TV series and more than 11 different plays.
1 Min Read
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Fed UP!

By Shelley Graham
April 10, 2025 01:41 PM
An exciting new musical by recent BYU graduate Joseph Phillips, directed by current BYU student Lydia Cox
8 Min Read
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All in This Together

By Audree Wells
March 31, 2025 09:39 AM
For many, High School Musical is a nostalgic film that brings back memories of our days in high school, of struggling to fit in, figuring out who we are, and developing friendships that shape and change us. It teaches us that “we are all in this together,” a theme we’ve embraced throughout this production.
1 Min Read
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The Comedy-Tragedy Debate in The Cherry Orchard

By Shelley Graham
March 27, 2025 09:44 PM
The debate over whether The Cherry Orchard is a comedy or a tragedy began with Chekhov himself and his director (and sometimes friend) Konstantin Stanislavsky.
1 Min Read
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Contextual Resources for The Cherry Orchard

By Shelley Graham
March 27, 2025 09:29 PM
The creative team began working on this production a little more than a year ago. In my role as production dramaturg, I was happy to create a website of resources first for the creative team, and then when we went into rehearsals, for the cast. And now that we are opening the show, the resources offer valuable perspectives to our audiences as well.
1 Min Read
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Moving to the Cherry Orchard

By Shelley Graham
March 20, 2025 08:14 PM
After months of rehearsing on a taped cement floor with acting blocks in place of benches and frames in place of doors, the company finally moves to the theatre space, to a stage with levels and furniture, working doors and chairs out in the audience. The beloved cherry orchard feels so much more real now.
1 Min Read
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“That’s How Things Are”: The Weight of Waiting in The Cherry Orchard

By Shelley Graham
March 20, 2025 03:10 PM
Near the end of his life, Anton Chekhov who had suffered from tuberculosis and depression throughout his life, decided to move to the seaside town of Yalta in order to heal. On January 18, 1904, he wrote to his wife, the actress Olga Knipper, “I’m writing The Cherry Orchard very slowly. Sometimes I feel it’s a success, sometimes a failure…It’s all very ordinary, but that’s how things are, unfortunately.”
2 Min Read
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The Story Behind Alabama Story

By Isaac Moss
February 26, 2025 03:14 PM
Alabama Story, playwright Kenneth Jones’ six-actor, one-set drama about censorship, book banning, Civil Rights and American characters in “the Deep South of the imagination,” had its world premiere by Pioneer Theatre Company in Salt Lake City, Utah in January of 2015.
1 Min Read
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Ten Interesting Facts about The Cherry Orchard

By Shelley Graham
February 25, 2025 07:50 PM
One of the wonderful things about being a dramaturg is discovering interesting bits of information here and there about the play and the playwright. These are often things that never make themselves visible in the production, but offer fascinating insights nonetheless. Here are ten of those interesting facts we've learned about Chekhov and The Cherry Orchard.
2 Min Read
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Alabama Story: Educational Resources

By Shelley Graham
February 25, 2025 01:55 PM
As part of the Contemporary Voices Play Festival at BYU, Alabama Story is an example of an award winning playwright whose work we want our audiences and students to know. This play presents an opportunity to think deeply about censorship, racism, political power, and the importance of standing up for intellectual freedom.
1 Min Read
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Book of Will: Educational Resources

By Shelley Graham
February 25, 2025 01:29 PM
The Contemporary Voices Play Festival at BYU celebrates award winning plays and playwrights whose work we think our audiences and students should know. These plays present an opportunity to think deeply and explore the art and the language of theatre.
1 Min Read
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Shadow Puppetry Tips and Tricks

By Andrew Elijah Schindler
February 10, 2025 05:36 PM
In this production of Henry V we use shadow puppets to help us illustrate things like the Siege of Harfleur and the Battle of Agincourt.
3 Min Read
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Interview with the Playwright(s)

By Andrew Elijah Schindler
February 10, 2025 04:54 PM
We have had the special privilege of interviewing Andrew-Elijah Schindler, one of the writers behind BYU Young Company’s production of Henry V.
3 Min Read
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