Auditions for Putnam County Spelling Bee were held on Monday and Tuesday of this week and a terrific cast of performers was posted this morning. Rehearsals begin next Monday for the September show.
Each morning this week rehearsals have been going on for The Environmental Show summer musical drama camp. The kids have approx. 8 rehearsals and present a short musical on Friday July 22. Along with the rehearsals the kids received classes on technical theatre and special effects. Tomorrow they will rehearse for part of the morning and then work on creating set pieces for their show. These shows are always amazing to me in how much can be accomplished in such a short time. In my past experience with professional theatre in Kansas City adult performers would come in and rehearse for 2 weeks for 8-10 hours a day for 2 weeks before opening the full length show. Granted these camp shows are only about 20-25 minutes long but they have lots of choreography and music and are being performed by elementary school kids, some of them in their first show, and not seasoned performers.
Marsha Cash is working hard to get all the season ticket orders completed before the end of the week. She has been trying to contact ticket buyers who had changes in their orders and new season ticket holders over the past couple of weeks. We are almost 3 weeks ahead of where we were last season with processing orders.
This past week with the extreme heat the theatre saw temperatures and air conditioning pushed to the max. At auditions in the main theatre on the hottest days of the week even with the air conditioning on max the temperature didn't drop below 80 degrees. With the storm that came through Tuesday night we finally dropped into normal temperatures.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Monday, June 27, 2011
6-27-2011
We are in the last week of our fiscal year. We are still having rehearsals and performances right down to the end. Last Friday and Saturday the 101 Dalmatians Kids camp put on a performance of their show. With only 8 rehearsals the cast did a great job of bringing the 30 minute musical to life. Saturday's performance was also a benefit for the Project Hope No Kill Animal Shelter. Audience members brought in large bags of dog food, cat food, and cleaning supplies. In addition they made financial donations of $140 for the shelter. Some of the pets that were up for adoption were brought to the studio theatre and after the show both cast and audience members visited the real animals.
Sunday afternoon the Story Theatre cast of Little Red Riding Hood rehearsed in the main theatre in preparation for 6 performances this week at the McCracken County Library Tuesday and Wednesday with performances each day at 10 am, 1 pm, and 3 pm.
This Friday, July 1, the ballet class will be putting on their performance of Sleeping Beauty in the studio theatre for parents. That performance marks the first one of our next season.
Staff members are already taking some vacation days this week as we try to get recharged for another season. In addition we are doing some major maintenance on some of the buildings the theatre owns. With all the rain we have lots of water damage from this past spring that needs repair. We recently just completed tuck pointing the studio theatre and the administrative office building parapets along with the base of the back wall behind the studio theatre. Water had eroded the bricks over the past few years and was starting to do structural damage. We turn now to repairing the roofs on the three buildings. After those are repaired we can then repair the damage to ceilings and walls inside the buildings. MHT budgets over $15,000 a year to maintain the buildings. While we don't own the main Market House building the theatre is responsible for all the maintenance inside our portion of the building and on all the heating and cooling units. All of the buildings are on the national historic register. They need constant care and repair.
One week from the end or our current fiscal year it is looking very positive that we will end the fiscal year in the black for the second consecutive year, even with a down economy. The theatre continues to grow its programming and increase the number of participants we serve. The board of directors has done a great job of fundraising and the Curtain Call committee led by Valerie Pollard did an outstanding job of raising funds. Additional income from the Walking Ghost Tours and big box office shows with great performances from the casts of Alice in Wonderland and Annie boosted single ticket income above budgeted goals. In addition the theatre staff has worked extremely hard to keep costs low and work with small budgets. Those extra funds will help cover the cost of some of the repairs that I mentioned above.
As we say goodbye to our 47th season we are well into planning and evaluating programming and operations well beyond our 48th season. We completed an organizational assessment in January of 2011 and hope to begin the second phase of a facility assessment this summer. This assessment will look at existing facilities and evaluate support and market demand for possible expansion of those existing facilities.
Sunday afternoon the Story Theatre cast of Little Red Riding Hood rehearsed in the main theatre in preparation for 6 performances this week at the McCracken County Library Tuesday and Wednesday with performances each day at 10 am, 1 pm, and 3 pm.
This Friday, July 1, the ballet class will be putting on their performance of Sleeping Beauty in the studio theatre for parents. That performance marks the first one of our next season.
Staff members are already taking some vacation days this week as we try to get recharged for another season. In addition we are doing some major maintenance on some of the buildings the theatre owns. With all the rain we have lots of water damage from this past spring that needs repair. We recently just completed tuck pointing the studio theatre and the administrative office building parapets along with the base of the back wall behind the studio theatre. Water had eroded the bricks over the past few years and was starting to do structural damage. We turn now to repairing the roofs on the three buildings. After those are repaired we can then repair the damage to ceilings and walls inside the buildings. MHT budgets over $15,000 a year to maintain the buildings. While we don't own the main Market House building the theatre is responsible for all the maintenance inside our portion of the building and on all the heating and cooling units. All of the buildings are on the national historic register. They need constant care and repair.
One week from the end or our current fiscal year it is looking very positive that we will end the fiscal year in the black for the second consecutive year, even with a down economy. The theatre continues to grow its programming and increase the number of participants we serve. The board of directors has done a great job of fundraising and the Curtain Call committee led by Valerie Pollard did an outstanding job of raising funds. Additional income from the Walking Ghost Tours and big box office shows with great performances from the casts of Alice in Wonderland and Annie boosted single ticket income above budgeted goals. In addition the theatre staff has worked extremely hard to keep costs low and work with small budgets. Those extra funds will help cover the cost of some of the repairs that I mentioned above.
As we say goodbye to our 47th season we are well into planning and evaluating programming and operations well beyond our 48th season. We completed an organizational assessment in January of 2011 and hope to begin the second phase of a facility assessment this summer. This assessment will look at existing facilities and evaluate support and market demand for possible expansion of those existing facilities.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
June 4, 2011
As we headed into the final push for the season everything that didn't fit within the 7 day, 14 hour a day work schedule got put in the to do stack. Unfortunately one of those things was my blog. I looked back today and realized it had been 3 weeks since my last blog. My apologies to those who read this blog. I'll try to do better in the future.
ANNIE. Wow! We have over 50 talented people working on this production. Chanyng Floyd as Annie has been a real joy to work with. This is her first show as an actress after lots of time in front of audiences as a dancer with the AMPA dance company. Chanyng like so many others has a lot of innate talent with singing and acting that she had never used before. Her mom told me just last night that before the show she didn't know Chanyng could sing. During the rehearsals musical director Doug Arnold has worked with her to develop those natural talents and I think audiences will be very impressed by her musical ability. In addition Chanyng has to play a tough optimistic kid who boldly searches for her parents and yet has vulnerable moments when she finds out the truth about why they left her. It is a credit to Chanyng that she is able to pull off the optimistic tough kid who threatens the older bigger kids with "do you want to sleep with your teeth inside or outside of your mouth" while retaining the vulnerability of an 11 year old alone who desperately wants to have a mom and dad in the song MAYBE.
Amy Perdue who plays Grace (Warbuck's personal secretary) in the show along with Landon Baker who plays Officer Ward and Drake (Warbuck's head butler) also do an outstanding job in what I think are difficult roles. Both have to be prim and proper and also exude a real sense of comedy and emotional connection to Annie that is not easy to pull off. Tom Dolan as Warbucks gives us a terrific portrayal of the loud commanding billionaire tycoon whose heart melts after spending time with Annie. It's easy to play that role as 2 dimensional always yelling, but takes a lot more talent and work to give us the feeling Daddy Warbucks character that Annie turns to as a father. Kelly Ann Rathunde as Miss Hannigan gives us a wacky version of the head of the orphanage and one of the chief villains. Between menacing the kids and being ditzy, Kelly, pulls off the role with lots of fun. Kelly along with Scott Salchli as Rooster and Mary Dorr as Lily provide a nice blend of comedy and their rendition of the song EASY STREET is really fun. Dorr in particular has a wonderful comic laugh that audiences loved.
I can't say enough about Katy Miller and Analiese Jones. They choreographed the big dance numbers HARD KNOCK LIFE, EASY STREET, I THINK I'M GONNA LIKE IT HERE, NYC, YOUR NEVER FULLY DRESSED (orphan's dance), and ANYTHING BUT YOU. Many of the adult actors at first thought they would never be able to dance some of the complex choreography. But after working really hard they pull them off and make them look effortless. There is so much going on with the choreography in layers on the stage that you almost have to see it twice to watch all the wonderful dance moments that happen. Analiese also deserves a huge pat on the back for the way she has shepherded the orphans in their performances. Taking the notes I've given the orphan actors and working with them while they are offstage constantly improving their performance and keeping them focused (which is no small task!)
The chorus of the show is filled with company members who play so many roles. If you look closely in the Hooverville scene and the big dance number NYC you will see almost the entire company disguised and costumed as people on the street of New York. It's fun to see Chuck Wilkins, who plays a homeless guy, rant about former president Herbert Hoover and later on see him as the President FDR in the wheelchair. Roy Hensel, Scott Salchli, Mary Dorr, Diane Byrd and Chip Bohle all play three to four different roles in the show. The chorus of homeless people, pedestrians in New York, and servants and radio performers make this show sparkle and so much fun to watch.
Denise Bristol keeps everybody on task in her role as stage manager calling light sound and technical cues for the show and Jim Keeney keeps the scene changes flowing with 3 stage crew and the help of the actors. Musical Director, Doug Arnold, has done a terrific job of bringing together a talented orchestra and getting a great vocal sound from the performers on stage. Sally Moore of Lodi Kennels tells me that Ashes, the yellow lab, who plays Sandy runs to the door and barks when it is time to go to the show because she is so excited. Sally does an outstanding job with training and is so easy to work with. I can't say enough good things about her abilities and I think she is just as good as any of the dog trainers I've seen on television on Animal plantet.
Finally the ten girls who play the orphans completely knock the audiences socks off! From the youngest Addie Beth Franklin to the oldest Leiren Jackson they have worked so hard and do such a great job in the show. The youngest Addie Beth, who plays Molly, holds her own with all the others in the choreography and singing and steals the show in some scenes.
WC Fields used to say never work with animals or kids because they always steal the show. Fortunately there are lots of talented adults in ANNIE who are able to hold their own against those odds although the kids and the animals really do give them a run for their money. I wouldn't hesitate to work with this talented bunch again.
Monday night while the actors are taking some well deserved time off will be the first rehearsal of the Curtain Call performance cameo cast. They will get to step on stage for the first time and learn where to walk and a little bit of the choreography for their big night on the final Saturday night performance of ANNIE June 18.
This has been a very successful season and the production of ANNIE wraps up the year with a beautiful red bow to top it off. I hope that everyone gets a chance to come see it.
ANNIE. Wow! We have over 50 talented people working on this production. Chanyng Floyd as Annie has been a real joy to work with. This is her first show as an actress after lots of time in front of audiences as a dancer with the AMPA dance company. Chanyng like so many others has a lot of innate talent with singing and acting that she had never used before. Her mom told me just last night that before the show she didn't know Chanyng could sing. During the rehearsals musical director Doug Arnold has worked with her to develop those natural talents and I think audiences will be very impressed by her musical ability. In addition Chanyng has to play a tough optimistic kid who boldly searches for her parents and yet has vulnerable moments when she finds out the truth about why they left her. It is a credit to Chanyng that she is able to pull off the optimistic tough kid who threatens the older bigger kids with "do you want to sleep with your teeth inside or outside of your mouth" while retaining the vulnerability of an 11 year old alone who desperately wants to have a mom and dad in the song MAYBE.
Amy Perdue who plays Grace (Warbuck's personal secretary) in the show along with Landon Baker who plays Officer Ward and Drake (Warbuck's head butler) also do an outstanding job in what I think are difficult roles. Both have to be prim and proper and also exude a real sense of comedy and emotional connection to Annie that is not easy to pull off. Tom Dolan as Warbucks gives us a terrific portrayal of the loud commanding billionaire tycoon whose heart melts after spending time with Annie. It's easy to play that role as 2 dimensional always yelling, but takes a lot more talent and work to give us the feeling Daddy Warbucks character that Annie turns to as a father. Kelly Ann Rathunde as Miss Hannigan gives us a wacky version of the head of the orphanage and one of the chief villains. Between menacing the kids and being ditzy, Kelly, pulls off the role with lots of fun. Kelly along with Scott Salchli as Rooster and Mary Dorr as Lily provide a nice blend of comedy and their rendition of the song EASY STREET is really fun. Dorr in particular has a wonderful comic laugh that audiences loved.
I can't say enough about Katy Miller and Analiese Jones. They choreographed the big dance numbers HARD KNOCK LIFE, EASY STREET, I THINK I'M GONNA LIKE IT HERE, NYC, YOUR NEVER FULLY DRESSED (orphan's dance), and ANYTHING BUT YOU. Many of the adult actors at first thought they would never be able to dance some of the complex choreography. But after working really hard they pull them off and make them look effortless. There is so much going on with the choreography in layers on the stage that you almost have to see it twice to watch all the wonderful dance moments that happen. Analiese also deserves a huge pat on the back for the way she has shepherded the orphans in their performances. Taking the notes I've given the orphan actors and working with them while they are offstage constantly improving their performance and keeping them focused (which is no small task!)
The chorus of the show is filled with company members who play so many roles. If you look closely in the Hooverville scene and the big dance number NYC you will see almost the entire company disguised and costumed as people on the street of New York. It's fun to see Chuck Wilkins, who plays a homeless guy, rant about former president Herbert Hoover and later on see him as the President FDR in the wheelchair. Roy Hensel, Scott Salchli, Mary Dorr, Diane Byrd and Chip Bohle all play three to four different roles in the show. The chorus of homeless people, pedestrians in New York, and servants and radio performers make this show sparkle and so much fun to watch.
Denise Bristol keeps everybody on task in her role as stage manager calling light sound and technical cues for the show and Jim Keeney keeps the scene changes flowing with 3 stage crew and the help of the actors. Musical Director, Doug Arnold, has done a terrific job of bringing together a talented orchestra and getting a great vocal sound from the performers on stage. Sally Moore of Lodi Kennels tells me that Ashes, the yellow lab, who plays Sandy runs to the door and barks when it is time to go to the show because she is so excited. Sally does an outstanding job with training and is so easy to work with. I can't say enough good things about her abilities and I think she is just as good as any of the dog trainers I've seen on television on Animal plantet.
Finally the ten girls who play the orphans completely knock the audiences socks off! From the youngest Addie Beth Franklin to the oldest Leiren Jackson they have worked so hard and do such a great job in the show. The youngest Addie Beth, who plays Molly, holds her own with all the others in the choreography and singing and steals the show in some scenes.
WC Fields used to say never work with animals or kids because they always steal the show. Fortunately there are lots of talented adults in ANNIE who are able to hold their own against those odds although the kids and the animals really do give them a run for their money. I wouldn't hesitate to work with this talented bunch again.
Monday night while the actors are taking some well deserved time off will be the first rehearsal of the Curtain Call performance cameo cast. They will get to step on stage for the first time and learn where to walk and a little bit of the choreography for their big night on the final Saturday night performance of ANNIE June 18.
This has been a very successful season and the production of ANNIE wraps up the year with a beautiful red bow to top it off. I hope that everyone gets a chance to come see it.
Monday, May 2, 2011
5-2-2011
Yesterday the theatre wrapped up a very successful run of the Dixie Swim Club. Director Lisa Humphrey and cast members Marsha Cash, Sue Fletcher, Victoria Parrish, Cat Tilker, and Sandra Wilson wowed audiences with great performances and received standing ovations throughout the run. The final weekend played to most sold out audiences. Crew members Kris, Debbie, Keirstyn, and Thomas did a great job of making things flow smoothly. TD Jim Keeney filled in on the stage crew helping with some of the changes as well. The cast had lots of fun "live theatre" moments with the show on the final weekend. Saturday afternoon Marsha Cash's blouse zipper came apart in the middle during a fast change and she did the entire scene trying to keep her blouse from falling off her. Most of the audience wouldn't have really noticed because she did such a great job, but the cast discovered the costume trauma when she walked onstage and sat down on the settee. Cast members did their best to "hang on" to the back of her blouse to help her out whenever they were standing by her.
I got a voicemail message last week from one of the playwrights congratulating us on our run and wishing us lots of success. We've had more and more playwrights reach out and connect to us over the past couple of years. With the internet and facebook playwrights are more connected than ever to theatres doing their plays.
Story Theatre is still out on tour however last Friday's show scheduled for Sikeston MO. was postponed to the end of May since the bridge access in and out of Cairo was closed due to flooding. It would have taken us more than 2 hours to drive there one way. This morning we were scheduled for Unity Elementary but Massac Unit 1 schools are closed due to the flooding. Hopefully it will stop raining and our region can dry out a little in the next couple of days to help all the communities struggling with rising water.
We've had several people call us to ask if the theatre is flooded. So far (knock on wood) the city's floodwall is holding just fine and we hope to escape without any damage. We've had audience members who have been unable to come to the Dixie Swim Club because of blocked roads. Our crew members from Livingston County Debbie and her granddaughter Keirstyn didn't make it in last Thursday when Smithland was shutdown.
Today Jim Keeney and I will transport all the Dixie scenery pieces back to our warehouse and bring platforms and scenery pieces back for Annie which rehearses onstage tonight at 6:30. EAT which is rehearsing in the studio theatre goes into technical rehearsals next Sunday for its opening the following week. We are still putting together the scenery and props for that show.
The dog trainer from Lodi Kennels stopped by Saturday and we talked about her dog Ashes which will play Sandy for the play ANNIE. Unfortunately Ashes is in heat for the next two weeks so she won't be able to start working with the show until after that. I will say in 30 years of directing this is the first time an "actor" couldn't make rehearsals because they were in heat.
On a funny note we had a season ticket holder call who had received her season ticket renewal order for next season. She was very concerned and wasn't sure if she would be able to renew here tickets because of one of the shows announced. She wanted to know if we were going to have the actors in Hairspray wear clothes. She apparently got the musicals Hair and Hairspray confused. After we assured here that yes the actors were going to remain fully clothed in the production she happily renewed her season tickets.
Monday, April 18, 2011
4-18-2 2011
The Theatre sends it's condolences and prayers to the Keeney family on the passing of Jim's Grandmother. Services were held Saturday in Benton.
Three Little Pigs Story Theatre Tour presented 3 productions last week and Dixie Swim Club had it's Technical Rehearsal yesterday. Just before we started the rehearsal yesterday I told the cast and the crew that we would work to get our costume and set changes down to 30-45 seconds. That is the longest an audience will sit during a scene change without losing energy from the previous scene. The cast and crew started to protest that wasn't going to be possible. As we got to the first scene change at 45 seconds I had the lighting person bring up the lights and we discussed what had happened and how close we were to finishing the changes. We worked through scene change issues making the movements more economical so that the crew person did things in an order that allowed them to not have to go offstage with removed items and then return. They brought items on and placed them and then took the other items off. The cast discovered who could help each other with changes and then we ran it again. By the third time we were ready to go at about 40 seconds. By the time we finish the run of the show I expect to have that time down to 25 seconds. It really is amazing what can be accomplished in 30 seconds when you are focused.
The cast for Dixie Swim did a great job yesterday working with costumes and props. Victoria who pours martinis throughout the first scene of the play ran out half way through the scene and then pretended to pour. She realized that she was going to have to make twice as much as she originally thought. On the other hand Lisa Humphrey who filled one of the martini glasses with milk for the one character who doesn't drink put way to much in and the actors had to be very careful not to spill the mill as they walked and talked. I programmed telephone rings into the sound cues and realize I had too many rings in for the amount of time it takes the actress to get off stage to answer the phone so I removed some of those rings. We had a pregnant padding for one of the actresses. Unfortunately it made her look ridiculous so today we will take some of that padding out. In another scene a dress that was supposed to look ridiculous didn't look that way so we will find another that looks even worse. Today will be spent hanging some additional lights and refocusing others to eliminate some of the dark spots that I noticed yesterday during the tech rehearsal. That's the process for this week. You create something you think will work and then you test it during the rehearsal that night. What doesn't work gets reworked the next day.
The board of directors held a planning meeting at First Presbyterian Church on Saturday afternoon and we worked through several items that needed longer time than our regular board meetings. Lots of progress was made in several areas and we hope to have some exciting announcements coming up in the next few months concerning fundraising events. The board also tackled several tough facility questions and we will move forward on the repairs for some big items we had been struggling with. One of those items is the water drainage behind the studio theatre that has been flooding our back hallway during heavy rains. We hope to have that corrected by the end of June.
On today's schedule are rehearsals for Eat, Dixie Swim Club, and Annie.
Three Little Pigs Story Theatre Tour presented 3 productions last week and Dixie Swim Club had it's Technical Rehearsal yesterday. Just before we started the rehearsal yesterday I told the cast and the crew that we would work to get our costume and set changes down to 30-45 seconds. That is the longest an audience will sit during a scene change without losing energy from the previous scene. The cast and crew started to protest that wasn't going to be possible. As we got to the first scene change at 45 seconds I had the lighting person bring up the lights and we discussed what had happened and how close we were to finishing the changes. We worked through scene change issues making the movements more economical so that the crew person did things in an order that allowed them to not have to go offstage with removed items and then return. They brought items on and placed them and then took the other items off. The cast discovered who could help each other with changes and then we ran it again. By the third time we were ready to go at about 40 seconds. By the time we finish the run of the show I expect to have that time down to 25 seconds. It really is amazing what can be accomplished in 30 seconds when you are focused.
The cast for Dixie Swim did a great job yesterday working with costumes and props. Victoria who pours martinis throughout the first scene of the play ran out half way through the scene and then pretended to pour. She realized that she was going to have to make twice as much as she originally thought. On the other hand Lisa Humphrey who filled one of the martini glasses with milk for the one character who doesn't drink put way to much in and the actors had to be very careful not to spill the mill as they walked and talked. I programmed telephone rings into the sound cues and realize I had too many rings in for the amount of time it takes the actress to get off stage to answer the phone so I removed some of those rings. We had a pregnant padding for one of the actresses. Unfortunately it made her look ridiculous so today we will take some of that padding out. In another scene a dress that was supposed to look ridiculous didn't look that way so we will find another that looks even worse. Today will be spent hanging some additional lights and refocusing others to eliminate some of the dark spots that I noticed yesterday during the tech rehearsal. That's the process for this week. You create something you think will work and then you test it during the rehearsal that night. What doesn't work gets reworked the next day.
The board of directors held a planning meeting at First Presbyterian Church on Saturday afternoon and we worked through several items that needed longer time than our regular board meetings. Lots of progress was made in several areas and we hope to have some exciting announcements coming up in the next few months concerning fundraising events. The board also tackled several tough facility questions and we will move forward on the repairs for some big items we had been struggling with. One of those items is the water drainage behind the studio theatre that has been flooding our back hallway during heavy rains. We hope to have that corrected by the end of June.
On today's schedule are rehearsals for Eat, Dixie Swim Club, and Annie.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
3-22-2011
Phantom of the Market House Theatre had a successful weekend with an almost capacity audience on Friday night and over 2/3 full on Saturday. A great deal of thanks goes to the Cast- Renie Barger, Fowler Black on followspot, Chip Bohle, April Cochran, Tom Dolan, Audra Hall, Roy Hensel, Steve Schwetman, and Host for the weekend Valerie Pollard. We performed the same show the first Saturday in March at Caldwell County HS as a fundraiser for their Junior Class. If you missed out on seeing Phantom of the Market House Theatre you still have one more chance. The LATA group has booked the the Murder For Hire Troupe to perform Phantom on Friday April 1 at the Robert Cherry Civic Center as a fundraiser for Relay for Life. You can contact Audra Hall at audra.hall@lataky.com about tickets.
Another big thanks goes to Don & Renie Barger, Audra Hall, Steve and Kristy Schwetman,Fowler Black, Chip Bohle, Emily Yocum, and Luke Wilkins who stayed after the Saturday night performance of Phantom and helped us move the tables and chairs out and the put the theatre seats back in! Jim Keeney and I are extremely grateful for the help!
Footlights rehearsals moved onstage Monday in preparation for their troupe performances this weekend. The Dixie Swim Club had a run through of Act One last night in the classroom/rehearsal space which I attended. They are eager for their chance to get onstage after the Footlights performances with 4 weeks until they open.
EAT starts staging the first scenes of their show tonight in the Studio Theatre. This morning I'm taping out their set. The April Newsletter is in process and trying to get to the printer with the information about our next season along with Dixie Swim Club and a new session of Footlights that starts April 9.
March came in like a lion and seems to be going out the same way! See you at the theatre.
Another big thanks goes to Don & Renie Barger, Audra Hall, Steve and Kristy Schwetman,Fowler Black, Chip Bohle, Emily Yocum, and Luke Wilkins who stayed after the Saturday night performance of Phantom and helped us move the tables and chairs out and the put the theatre seats back in! Jim Keeney and I are extremely grateful for the help!
Footlights rehearsals moved onstage Monday in preparation for their troupe performances this weekend. The Dixie Swim Club had a run through of Act One last night in the classroom/rehearsal space which I attended. They are eager for their chance to get onstage after the Footlights performances with 4 weeks until they open.
EAT starts staging the first scenes of their show tonight in the Studio Theatre. This morning I'm taping out their set. The April Newsletter is in process and trying to get to the printer with the information about our next season along with Dixie Swim Club and a new session of Footlights that starts April 9.
March came in like a lion and seems to be going out the same way! See you at the theatre.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
3-13-2011 Winning and Losing
I had several people comment in person and post on my personal page about a status of seeing Wizard of Oz last night. This is one of those things that I have to be really careful about when I post something because I don't want to give people the wrong idea. I just got back from attending the regional Odessy of the Mind competition for Middle Schools yesterday and I watched the 6th grade Lone Oak Middle School team (of which Jade is a member) compete for a spot at the state competitions. There were several good friends of hers competing for Paducah Middle School at the same time and the kids were all cheering each other on and hoping that both teams would go on to state. As each team got their scores some were elated and some were depressed. They immediately wanted to compare their scores to the other schools scores. Who was better and who was worse. Who won and who lost.
Our culture is so focused on winning that if you don't place first many people feel like they lost. I've seen personally time and again at American Association of Community theatre competitions with 10 completely different kinds of shows competing that the 9 who didn't win feel like they failed, in casting shows that the 75 people who didn't get cast for 10 parts feel like they failed, even with shows that the Carson Center and the Market House Theatre or WKCTC produce that, that our nature is to want to declare a winner and a loser, one better than the other. This is really frustrating for me because every production, every audition, every creative endeavor is filled with personal challenges that we should be cheering on. There were great moments last night in the Wizard of Oz at the Carson Center, there were great moments in the Market House production of Wizard of Oz. Even 15 years ago at what was then PCC when they did Wizard of Oz there were some great moments. For the kids from Paducah who performed last night in Wizard of Oz at Carson Center, that was a really great moment. To perform in front of over a thousand people for each of 3 performances. That is really great. To take the risk of going out onstage and doing all the dance steps and singing with only a few rehearsals and to have the audience and parents cheer them does something magical for a person. That's what MHT does as its mission every single day. For the professionals in the show last night they have to be willing to go onstage and give it their all and risk doing a bad show in order to create something really magical. There reaches a point in the life of any show where the actors just start going through the motions. They start feeling like they don't have to go out and prove themselves every time they take the stage. The truly great performers are ones who really work at creating something new everytime they are on stage. Having said that I also have to say that just because you step onstage doesn't mean you should get a standing ovation every time. Some performances really create that synergy between performer and audience member and there is an electricity that makes a performance truly incredible. Some performances things just don't work out or the actors aren't really connecting and you are left with just an okay performance. We still applaud the effort for some really great moments, but we don't have to give a standing ovation every time.
I heard a great interview on Fresh Air the other day with the well known actor Alan Arkin, who talked about his time at Second City in Chicago. Each night they would go onstage and collect ideas from the audience and then take 10-15 minutes and create a play based on that audience's suggestions. They knew that each night a significant portion of what they created was going to fail. Sometimes miserably! But other moments might be pure genius. It is the most liberating and personal character building experience there is to put yourself into a a situation where the chance for failure is not only high but in some ways expected. It allows you to create something that is much better than you ever could have done if every thing you had to do was to succeed. Each mistake in the process is a building block that makes the final product better. Alan Arkin doesn't do Broadway shows anymore because it is so difficult to go out night after night and try to do exactly the same performance without making a mistake which is what the producers expect. The Spiderman show on Broadway is in previews. I personally think it is a mistake to charge audiences high ticket prices for shows that are still in process and to have every single performance minutely critiqued when you are trying to be creative. That doesn't seem to be a positive environment to create in. Audiences can be great partners at the right time in the creative process for feedback but if they are involved too early it kills the neccessary process of trial and error to create something better.
I can't tell you how many times we try something on stage that doesn't work. How many sets I've painted and designed that had to be redesigned or repainted after I saw how they worked and often didn't work. But I didn't have an audience watching me make those mistakes. If you want to be truly creative you have to fail in order to get better. The musical performer Sting talked recently about many musical efforts he does that fail in between the successes. He doesn't release every single thing he works on to the public to buy. One of my favorite writers once wrote that if anyone ever saw her first drafts they would believe that she was totally psychotic, without talent and must have stolen all her work from someone else because she could never be capable of creating anything of value. When casting a show we make the best decisions we can and sometimes we make mistakes. The process at Market House of having everyone watch auditions is probably the worst for both the actors and the directors. Many theatres do not allow spectators or other actors into the audition process because it puts a lot of pressure on both the person auditioning and the director. Everyone then becomes the judge of who they think should have got the part or how someone else did compared to someone else. It makes the director hesitant to try different things with different actors during the audition because the audience will think not everyone got to do exactly the same thing. Even though the director might be able to get a better audition out of each person. The audition spectators tend to pick winners and losers. If MHT had a bigger lobby we probably would do private auditions with just small groups at a time to eliminate some of that pressure on the performers and the directors. Private audtions also help that everyone gets to do a scene or dance for the first time without those who go last having the advantage of seeing how everyone else did theirs and correcting for others mistakes.
I guess my point in all this is that the Carson Center, WKCTC, MHT and all of the groups that are producing shows in our area should be proud of their work. When I see a Carson Center show it makes me proud of the many talented people who perform at MHT without taking anything away from the professional performers and when I see an incredible show at MHT it doesn't take anything away from the Carson Center shows. We need to go to plays and celebrate or commiserate with the performers when things go really well or things fail. We need to take pride in what we do and continue to strive to make it better while at the same time accepting failure without assigning winners and losers.
Creating something is incredibly rewarding, if we are willing to work hard at it and learn from our mistakes and make it better each time we perform it. Every show at MHT should be better than the last show because hopefully we have learned from the mistakes we made in the last show. Every performance should be better than the last performance. At MHT we are striving towards getting just a little better with each show and with each season. For the individual performer it means that with each audition you strive to get a little better and keep trying to improve yourself to get that call back or get cast in that show. Don't give up after the first time you don't get cast. Also just because you got cast doesn't mean you don't have to work at it. My favorite moment as a director was when I cast a young man in the lead in the first show he auditioned for. He just happened to be at the right place at the right time and the others who auditioned fit into other parts. In the next show he auditioned he got cast as a non speaking rock. His father later came up to me and thanked me saying it was the best thing that ever happened to his son. In another instance a local adult auditioned and got the lead in his first show which required a certain look and certain kind of accent. He never got another lead while here at MHT because his accent was too strong and he didn't work on changing it and his appearance tended to work against all the roles he wanted. That actor has since gone to L.A. and lost his accent and made some changes to his appearance. He is getting work as an extra with a few lines or small recurring characters on some television series. He is still waiting for his big break over 20 years after that first lead role at MHT, but he is happy acting in the roles in which his looks and voice work well for.
Even though both April and I have been in theatre for over 30 years we still have to go out and prove ourselves every time that curtain goes up. We still are working to create something very special with each performance and risking failure every time. So congratulations to the Carson Center on Wizard of Oz. I'm looking forward to seeing Nunsense at WKCTC in April. Here at MHT we are working hard to create a great performance of Phantom of the Market House Theatre on March 18 & 19, The footlights shows on March 26 & 27, Dixie Swim Club the last two weeks of April, EAT in May and ANNIE in June.
I'm also excited for my daughter and her LOMS Odessy of the Mind team. Even though the team placed 3rd in their competition, they get to go to the state competition and try again to create something special with their orginal Odessy of the Mind presentation. I haven't heard yet, but I hope the kids from Paducah Middle School made it to the state competition too! We can wish success to both of them, just as we do with the Carson Center, MHT, and WKCTC!
.
Our culture is so focused on winning that if you don't place first many people feel like they lost. I've seen personally time and again at American Association of Community theatre competitions with 10 completely different kinds of shows competing that the 9 who didn't win feel like they failed, in casting shows that the 75 people who didn't get cast for 10 parts feel like they failed, even with shows that the Carson Center and the Market House Theatre or WKCTC produce that, that our nature is to want to declare a winner and a loser, one better than the other. This is really frustrating for me because every production, every audition, every creative endeavor is filled with personal challenges that we should be cheering on. There were great moments last night in the Wizard of Oz at the Carson Center, there were great moments in the Market House production of Wizard of Oz. Even 15 years ago at what was then PCC when they did Wizard of Oz there were some great moments. For the kids from Paducah who performed last night in Wizard of Oz at Carson Center, that was a really great moment. To perform in front of over a thousand people for each of 3 performances. That is really great. To take the risk of going out onstage and doing all the dance steps and singing with only a few rehearsals and to have the audience and parents cheer them does something magical for a person. That's what MHT does as its mission every single day. For the professionals in the show last night they have to be willing to go onstage and give it their all and risk doing a bad show in order to create something really magical. There reaches a point in the life of any show where the actors just start going through the motions. They start feeling like they don't have to go out and prove themselves every time they take the stage. The truly great performers are ones who really work at creating something new everytime they are on stage. Having said that I also have to say that just because you step onstage doesn't mean you should get a standing ovation every time. Some performances really create that synergy between performer and audience member and there is an electricity that makes a performance truly incredible. Some performances things just don't work out or the actors aren't really connecting and you are left with just an okay performance. We still applaud the effort for some really great moments, but we don't have to give a standing ovation every time.
I heard a great interview on Fresh Air the other day with the well known actor Alan Arkin, who talked about his time at Second City in Chicago. Each night they would go onstage and collect ideas from the audience and then take 10-15 minutes and create a play based on that audience's suggestions. They knew that each night a significant portion of what they created was going to fail. Sometimes miserably! But other moments might be pure genius. It is the most liberating and personal character building experience there is to put yourself into a a situation where the chance for failure is not only high but in some ways expected. It allows you to create something that is much better than you ever could have done if every thing you had to do was to succeed. Each mistake in the process is a building block that makes the final product better. Alan Arkin doesn't do Broadway shows anymore because it is so difficult to go out night after night and try to do exactly the same performance without making a mistake which is what the producers expect. The Spiderman show on Broadway is in previews. I personally think it is a mistake to charge audiences high ticket prices for shows that are still in process and to have every single performance minutely critiqued when you are trying to be creative. That doesn't seem to be a positive environment to create in. Audiences can be great partners at the right time in the creative process for feedback but if they are involved too early it kills the neccessary process of trial and error to create something better.
I can't tell you how many times we try something on stage that doesn't work. How many sets I've painted and designed that had to be redesigned or repainted after I saw how they worked and often didn't work. But I didn't have an audience watching me make those mistakes. If you want to be truly creative you have to fail in order to get better. The musical performer Sting talked recently about many musical efforts he does that fail in between the successes. He doesn't release every single thing he works on to the public to buy. One of my favorite writers once wrote that if anyone ever saw her first drafts they would believe that she was totally psychotic, without talent and must have stolen all her work from someone else because she could never be capable of creating anything of value. When casting a show we make the best decisions we can and sometimes we make mistakes. The process at Market House of having everyone watch auditions is probably the worst for both the actors and the directors. Many theatres do not allow spectators or other actors into the audition process because it puts a lot of pressure on both the person auditioning and the director. Everyone then becomes the judge of who they think should have got the part or how someone else did compared to someone else. It makes the director hesitant to try different things with different actors during the audition because the audience will think not everyone got to do exactly the same thing. Even though the director might be able to get a better audition out of each person. The audition spectators tend to pick winners and losers. If MHT had a bigger lobby we probably would do private auditions with just small groups at a time to eliminate some of that pressure on the performers and the directors. Private audtions also help that everyone gets to do a scene or dance for the first time without those who go last having the advantage of seeing how everyone else did theirs and correcting for others mistakes.
I guess my point in all this is that the Carson Center, WKCTC, MHT and all of the groups that are producing shows in our area should be proud of their work. When I see a Carson Center show it makes me proud of the many talented people who perform at MHT without taking anything away from the professional performers and when I see an incredible show at MHT it doesn't take anything away from the Carson Center shows. We need to go to plays and celebrate or commiserate with the performers when things go really well or things fail. We need to take pride in what we do and continue to strive to make it better while at the same time accepting failure without assigning winners and losers.
Creating something is incredibly rewarding, if we are willing to work hard at it and learn from our mistakes and make it better each time we perform it. Every show at MHT should be better than the last show because hopefully we have learned from the mistakes we made in the last show. Every performance should be better than the last performance. At MHT we are striving towards getting just a little better with each show and with each season. For the individual performer it means that with each audition you strive to get a little better and keep trying to improve yourself to get that call back or get cast in that show. Don't give up after the first time you don't get cast. Also just because you got cast doesn't mean you don't have to work at it. My favorite moment as a director was when I cast a young man in the lead in the first show he auditioned for. He just happened to be at the right place at the right time and the others who auditioned fit into other parts. In the next show he auditioned he got cast as a non speaking rock. His father later came up to me and thanked me saying it was the best thing that ever happened to his son. In another instance a local adult auditioned and got the lead in his first show which required a certain look and certain kind of accent. He never got another lead while here at MHT because his accent was too strong and he didn't work on changing it and his appearance tended to work against all the roles he wanted. That actor has since gone to L.A. and lost his accent and made some changes to his appearance. He is getting work as an extra with a few lines or small recurring characters on some television series. He is still waiting for his big break over 20 years after that first lead role at MHT, but he is happy acting in the roles in which his looks and voice work well for.
Even though both April and I have been in theatre for over 30 years we still have to go out and prove ourselves every time that curtain goes up. We still are working to create something very special with each performance and risking failure every time. So congratulations to the Carson Center on Wizard of Oz. I'm looking forward to seeing Nunsense at WKCTC in April. Here at MHT we are working hard to create a great performance of Phantom of the Market House Theatre on March 18 & 19, The footlights shows on March 26 & 27, Dixie Swim Club the last two weeks of April, EAT in May and ANNIE in June.
I'm also excited for my daughter and her LOMS Odessy of the Mind team. Even though the team placed 3rd in their competition, they get to go to the state competition and try again to create something special with their orginal Odessy of the Mind presentation. I haven't heard yet, but I hope the kids from Paducah Middle School made it to the state competition too! We can wish success to both of them, just as we do with the Carson Center, MHT, and WKCTC!
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