by Janine Sobeck, BYU Dramaturgy Specialist
Every semester the TYA production tours to schools in Utah, Salt Lake and Nebo counties. The BYU students dedicate their Tuesdays and Thursdays to the show in order to travel to the various schools, performing and offering different workshops.
In the middle of the semester, they add to their crazy touring schedule with a two week run on the BYU campus. Traveling around Utah by day and in the BYU theatre at night, this is a time where the lives of the actors seem to be consumed by the show in an incredible and amazing way. This period of immersion also gives a great testament as to how the production, which has been carefully crafted for the young, school-level audiences, has the ability to delight the families, college students and others who see it during the BYU run.
For The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, it is that special time of the semester. The company has spent the last week and a half performing in BYU's Margetts theatre, bringing this spooky tale to campus right in time for Halloween. The audiences have been a great mix of young and old, with all groups getting pulled in by the interactive nature of the show. When I personally saw the show, I saw everyone from little kids, to parents, to students, to our older generation stand up and dance, sing and ride the occasional "horse." I made a window with the little girl across the aisle, created a "river" with the the students sitting across the stage, and held a "baby" when the actors were called elsewhere. It was a great reminder of how much FUN theatre that is heavy on imagination can be.
There's only a few days left in the BYU run, but The Legend of Sleepy Hollow will continue its traveling production through the beginning of December.
Simple is Best [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Indeed.[/caption] by Adam White, dramaturg I write this blog post on the day of final dress rehearsal, on the eve of opening night! Everyone involved in this production of A Man for All Seasons has done marvelous work; the set and costuming and make up are all beautiful, and the cast is eager to put their performance in front of a live audience. I guess one could wonder if a dramaturg would give anything but a glowing report of their play that's about to go up, but quite truthfully: I'm eager for you to see this play! On the subject of wanting you to see our production of A Man For All Seasons, I want to relay to you an interesting experience I had just two day ago. Every BYUarts theatre production gets a promotional video, and I was asked by the video makers in charge of the promotional video to be interviewed for the piece on A Man for All Seasons. I accepted, and when I was in the interview, they had two questions for me: 1.) What is A Man for All Seasons about? 2.) Why should people go see A Man for All Seasons? As a dramaturg, I had a great answer for number one. Summarizing the events of this play in an interesting way was no problem. But that second question? That question gave me the hardest time! In the interview moment I was so flustered by my lack of an a concise answer. I quickly babbled out some gibberish to the camera man, after which I apologized and told him if he needed something more intelligible he shouldn't hesitate to call me back. Needless to say I was pretty embarrassed after the experience. Here's the thing: I'm the dramaturgy for this show. I should have some insight as to why people should go see this play (and I do). As I've thought about this experience and about my work as a dramaturg, I've come to the realize that in this situation what I needed was simplicity. Simple is best. See, during that brief interview with the promotional video guys, I was trying to make up a reason for people to see this show that sounded meaningful, or at least scholarly. That wasn't the right attitude for me at all because it meant that I was reaching beyond the play, maybe for selfish reasons, to lend what I deemed to be credibility to a piece of art that, maybe, doesn't need to be legitimized at all. I was being long-winded and downright silly. What the play really needed was for me to speak its simple 'truth.' To redeem myself a little bit and to put my new motto for dramaturgy into practice, I will tell you why I think people should see A Man for All Seasons. I firmly believe, in the words of Oscar Wilde, that "Life imitates art far more than art imitates Life." This play, this conflict between Thomas More, his family, and King Henry VIII, informs our understanding of what it means to have a conscience. Bolt challenges us to explore what it means to have an integrity and what having integrity means in our most intimate relationships. Also revealed in this play is the corrupting influence of political power. I think that every person grapples with these themes, experiences, and issues.A Man for All Seasons is an important play for people to see. The promotional video guys didn't end up using my interview for the promotional video. Frankly, I feel so relieved; it was awful. May you forego the trappings of intelligent-sounding language the next time you are in an interview. Enjoy the show!
[caption id="attachment_4573" align="alignleft" width="222"] Mother Courage Counsels her children to "be careful," in the war.[/caption] Hello all you 4th Wall Fans! Mother Courage and Her Children opened on Friday to a major success. Tickets are still available for other showings, but they are going fast. You can buy them online by visiting this link: http://bit.ly/1WTCpMW See you soon!
By Kristen Leinbach, Dramaturg As we continue to move through the rehearsal process, it still amazes how much we are learning from this show. Rachelle Elbert and Jack Shapiro, members of the ensemble, shared the following about their experiences with the show... "The Light in the Piazza has been an escape for me (Rachelle Elbert). Being surrounded by beautiful music, passionate characters and actors, and the vivacity of the Italian culture has provided an insight into a whole new world that soothes the heart and soul. I have had the chance to experience both the bold Italian life and the sweet southern innocence as an ensemble member and Clara's understudy. As I've discovered who Clara is, her light and purity has slowly peeled away the layers and walls that I've built up throughout my own life. I feel a new light in my life, a new found appreciation for the unknown, and find beauty and sympathy in the strangest of places. I have become more comfortable with vulnerability and free expression and it's literally the greatest feeling in the world. Being apart of the beautiful production Light in the Piazza has been emotionally and spiritually fulfilling, and has opened my eyes to a realm of theater I never knew before." [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="576"] Piazza Rehearsal - Right to Left