Gone Missing

by Ariel Mitchell, Dramaturg After an amazing performance Thursday night, two of our actors gladly welcomed the audience down to ask members of the cast and crew questions about the production and participate in what we call a post show discussion. As the dramaturg, I helped to mediate as many actors jumped in eagerly to answer questions about making real people into characters that they could perform every night and the process of writing and devising a piece of theater. I think the audience members who stayed appreciated the insight and context that was given by the actors who finally were able to fill in the story behind the stories that were told on stage. The process is almost as interesting as the product! I'm glad we had a chance (even in a small way) to help contextualize this performance. If you didn't have a chance to come to the post show discussion I encourage you to read the previous blog posts or comment on this post with any questions you may have and we will be glad to discuss them! If you have not yet seen the show (or want to see it again), tickets are still being sold online and at the BYU arts ticket office in the HFAC.

by Ariel Mitchell, dramaturg For a couple weeks now there has been a flurry of excitement as projections were added and aligned, music was perfected, and actors prepared to perform in front of an audience for the first time on Wednesday (2/27). We hope you are as excited as we are and we want to give you a few tips to have the greatest night possible at Gone Missing and The Cleverest Thief. Things you can do to get the most out of the play: 1. Make a poster As a part of our lobby display, you can make a lost or found poster for something you've lost or found! 2. Post to facebook Like our page on facebook ("Your Stories for the Cleverest Thief") and tell us your story about loss. 3. Check out the interviews we cut on youtube: BYUCleverestThief: Here's just one... 4. Check out the other blog posts 5. Sit back relax and enjoy the show!

by Ariel Mitchell, dramaturg “Devised theatre is a personal stretch for me. I didn't choose my major because I love theatre, necessarily, but I do love the creativity that devising gives to the discipline. Building a play moment by moment is challenging and at times frustrating. The creative process for some people is very individual, but this type of creativity feeds on collaboration. I suppose that is the part I like best is the push towards creative collaboration.” -Chelsey Roberts, costume designer and performance writer One of the main goals we had for Gone Missing and The Cleverest Thief, was to incorporate new media with the traditional in a new way. So obviously costumes can’t just be costumes right? Chelsey Roberts, our costume designer, decided that a trendy but monochromatic palate would be the way to go for actors who would have to play multiple characters in both New York and Provo. Most of the changes with be accomplished by adding accessories and changing physicality and vocal quality. [caption id="attachment_1242" align="aligncenter" width="300"] An idea for what our ensemble might look like (just the girls that is)[/caption] Most of our costumes will be pulled (meaning taken from what the costume shop has stored), but there might be a few special pieces created just for our mediated moments. The cool thing about white jackets or skirts is that they can easily transform into a ready-made projection screen. Here are some examples of Chelsey’s inspiration… So if you see a white piece of clothing… chances are it could become something incredible. I’d keep my eye on it. Things aren't always what they seem.

by Ariel Mitchell, dramaturg Winter semester has been a time of transition with masses of students going on missions and juggling new class schedules. Gone Missing has not gone without a few casualties. January 16, 2013, one and a half months before opening night, I walked into a crowded Pardoe Lobby full of actors reciting lines to themselves or at walls or chairs, practicing cold reading. In another corner, our actor/performance writers reunited with laughter and loud chatter, patiently waiting for our first rehearsal to begin. Rehearsals are now in full swing and we are happy to welcome Adam White, James Lyon, Annalee Hickman, and James Luciano to our cast!

An essential part of The Civilians’ process is the inclusion of media. The Civilians outline their mission as “…tackling complex and under-explored subjects, enabling artists to enrich their processes through in-depth interaction with their topics, diversifying artistic voices and audiences, and integrating theater with new media.” Since we are following their process we are looking for a fun new way to include media into our production as well.