theater blog post

Makeup artistry-------- Makeup is a huge part of any production. Simply day to day, it is a significant part of our culture. In theater, makeup has a tremendous impact on any scene. It can be used to age a person, to make them look younger. It can make someone look inhuman, or severely injured. Makeup is one of the finishing touches on a show that really accentuates the themes and makes them intense. Makeup is one of the few parts of a production that transmit the history to the audience. The audience will be able to tell a lot about a character just based on how they look. While this can be accomplished with clever costuming, as we learned from Robin this week, makeup does it much more effectively because people don’t easily change their faces. People change their cloths often, but something like worry lines or a scar don’t go away. Makeup can accent and emphasize various lines on someone’s face to produce effects like making them seem happy, creepy, or angry.------------ Makeup is also one of the areas of theater where it is really taking steps forward technologically. Means of making costumes has not changed recently, and while lights and sound are starting to take steps into the 21st century most theaters still cater to old school philosophies. Makeup on the other hand is continually leaping forward. New glues and prosthetics allow for much more exciting and realistic makeup. Techniques utilizing this new technology go far beyond just making scars and worry lines, they can actually turn people into aliens! Currently, there is an entire show devoted to sci-fi style makeup and most of what is thought of is spectacular. Makeup can do so much for a production, in a lot of ways it can be the most important part of the production (assuming a lot of makeup is required for the show).

These are two characters from cirque du soliel's ka. in the show, there was a lot of makup used, and for ever character, you could tell if they were good or evil based on their makeup. these two were evil minions

This is one of the makeup designs completed on the show "face off" it really shows how much can be done with makeup.

Theater Blog Camino

What did you think about the Camino Real Rehearsal? The Camino Real rehearsal was really interesting to watch, especially since the show is in its initial stages of development. As a technician, I usually don’t start attending rehearsals until the show is all put together. I tend to see the runs of the show and even though it is still subject to change, there is less stopping to change or look at blocking as there are in these stages of rehearsal. During the rehearsal, I felt like Maize was really letting the actors take part in the blocking. He said in class that he lets the actors sort of improv their blocking to some extent based on what they think their characters would do. In the rehearsal I saw a lot of debate and conversation between the director and actors which was really refreshing.

first picture i took. shows jermy asking jimmi about his blocking while the rest of the cast stands by.

jimmi demonstrating how he wants the female actor to be during the moment that they just worked.

Jimmi is watching the choreographed lights in the set. Jeremy is watching Jimmi. Eli is twirling his cane.

Maize is talking to the cast about they light show. Jeremy is listening and so is Eli. other Jeremy is looking at the pensively pondering his role in the show.

Theater Blog lights

What do you think about stage lighting? ---------------- I have always loved stage lighting. The talks and work we did in class only affirmed that love. In my high school, I was the chief tech person. For my junior and senior year I was the sound designer, the light designer, and the master electrician (of sorts). As you can probably tell, that department was painfully small and there was never really anyone above me who I could receive training from. So it is very refreshing to be able to listen to an actual professional light designer talk about his work. Working with Seth was an absolutely amazing experience, mostly because I got to hear him talk about why he did certain things. It was also interesting to talk to him during the runs of Shooting Simone. He was on headset and I was able to ask him questions about what he thought about lighting stuff; specifically, I asked him about his thoughts on projector use. I rarely actually like the use of a projector in shows (Shooting Simone is an exception), this did not really change throughout the conversation with Seth, but it was still really cool to hear what he thought about all the new technology and its place in technical theater.------------- Stage lighting is, in my opinion, one of the most important parts of theater. I mean, without lights, you have a lot of actors stumbling around in the dark. But even still, I think that lights do far more than just light the actors. The lights convey the scene, mood, everything subliminal. What I always told the designer I trained to replace me at my high school was that “It’s the light’s job to be the most predominant force on stage steering the audience, but the lights are noticed by the audience (other than black outs) then you’ve done it wrong. It’s the light’s job to immerse the audience in the show and make them truly feel the emotions conveyed by the actors; however, the lights can in no way take any attention from the actors (because they are still telling the story). You use lights to create and mold the world that is on stage. To me, when the lights are good I don’t always notice them, but if they’re sloppy I always do.------------- My dad was a light designer, my sister is a light designer, and I’m looking to be one. I’ve always loved being able to create the world on stage with light.

Thoughts on Directing

I have never directed. I have the utmost respect for directors though. In my high school theater, I was responsible for the lighting and sound design, and it was a hefty responsibility; however, I know that the work that a director puts into a show utterly dwarfs what I have to do. The only aspects I have ever been really familiar with is the blocking, casting and the coordination with designers about if he wants anything specific. With the interviews with Nancy Simon and Jimmy Maze, I now see that I again have grossly underestimated the amount of work that directors do for a show. It was really interesting to see exactly what the directors put into their shows and how they get through it all. ---- I found it especially interesting to listen to Mr. Maize’s process, simply because of how it contrasted with my original view of the directors job. He said that he tries to funnel all the creative energies of each person involved in the show, including the actors. While I always saw that the characters in a show become more and more authentic with each performance and in a way, the characters themselves grow and adapt to the show. But according to Maze, the actors have initial input on their own blocking. He said that he tells the actors the situation and then asks them to do what they think their character would do. He said that his directing is built through a series of improvisational sequences. This could be just his method and Maize could be completely unique in this fashion, but it was still incredibly interesting to listen too. ----- Another thing that I found surprising was how much influence the directors actually have over the material of the show that they’re directing. The first example of this influence that Maize gave was of differing renditions of Shakespeare. Even though I have seen mush Shakespeare and they are never the same, and hardly ever set in the same time-frame, I never gave much thought to deciding who was responsible for these decisions. I am sure that I would have come to this conclusion on my own, but hearing from Maize that this decision is part of the vision of the director, still managed to come as a surprise. (Not an actual surprise, just one that was more: short surprise quickly followed by “oh, that makes sense).--- My final thoughts about directing haven’t changed much. I still have the utmost respect for directors and the many sleepless nights they put into show… I would even say I have significantly more respect for them now.

Theater Blog Post

What surprised you about seeing Noises Off rather than reading it? There were many differences between the reading of Noises Off vs. the seeing it. I got to see the show before I read it, so I definitely wasn’t surprised by the text. In fact, when I listened to other people reading the script I would hear the actor/actress say the line again with their accent. It made for quite an enjoyable experience whilst reading the first act. The comedy was not really a surprise when I read the play, but it definitely came across a lot better when it was acted out on stage. I could tell that the play was funny, however, there were numerous moments that I didn’t find funny while reading but turned out to be hilarious while watching. Even the moments that were entertaining in the reading turned out to be much better when acted on stage. I was also surprised by how well the doors, sardines, and set flowed together. In the script, all of those things seemed to be confusing and nonsensical. Through the directing and intuition of the actors the confusion ceased. The entrances and exits flowed together flawlessly and added hilarity to the show.

Noises Off Blog

What were your impressions of Noises Off? Noises off is a fantastically hilarious show. I had no idea what the show was about until I got to the cue-to-cue a week before the show. As I worked soundboard operator, I got to see the show every night as well as the rehearsal run-throughs that took place the week before. In almost every show I’ve worked, by the end of the run, it has lost some of its quality; however, with Noises Off I has laughing every night. Every time the show started I knew the actors were going to pull something out and added a whole new level to the show. In some cases, the hilarity was caused by a mistake in the show that the actors had to cover for. But generally the actors didn’t need such aids to keep the show fresh. --Although the show was overall hilariously fantastic, there were some moments that I was not so fond of in each run. The first area is most of the first act. It is the longest and by far the slowest. Nothing’s On is definitely not a show I would enjoy more than once, if the first act is anything to go by. I had a total of 4 cues the entire act and so it dragged by each night with only sparse moments of laughable comedy. The other area that I was not as fond of was the last 5 minutes or so. Everything in the third act it fantastic until the Lloyd gets stage fright and starts randomly bringing objects to the front of the stage. It’s not that I didn’t like it, I just found it painfully awkward and it didn’t seem to measure up the hilarity that had already ensued. --Hands down my favorite section of the show is from the beginning of the “show” in act 2 all the way to the point where the Lloyd gets stage fright. The beginning of the third act is particularly funny to me because I have literally had nightmares about a show going that wrong. Nothing is where it is suppose to be and despite their best efforts, the actors cant keep the show going. I feel like the phone ringing 3 times is particularly funny to the stage crew because it is exactly what a befuddled SM and board op would do in such a situation. --Although I was not particularly partial to act one, each act still had lines and moments that were always funny. That moment in the third act is the second time Freddie is on stage (trying to give the “proceedings in court” speech); Garry and Brooke are on the second floor in a different part of the play and Freddie’s only words are “sorry.” This moment always got laughs from both the audience and me alike. Act two’s moment where Brooke comes back on stage from missing her line “why did I lock the door, why did you lock the door?” Watching Nick scramble back along the flat and out of the bedroom door was dependably fantastic. In spite of its overall dryness, act 1 contained my favorite line of the entire show. It is one of the few moments that were always funny in that act and was Lloyd’s line “and God said ‘where the fuck was Tim’ [Tim enters] and there the fuck was Tim.”

theater blog post

Experience in shop This week the class worked in the scene shop in preparation for the performance, Noises Off. Although I did not actually work in the shop with the class, I still have plenty of experience with working on Noises off. I work as a general electrician for the theater as well as the sound board operator for the show. With that experience, I can honestly say that I love working in the theater; all aspects, not just sound and electrics (although those are my preference). My preference toward those to areas are nothing against the other two, I just don’t have the attention for detail required by Props/Costuming, and I take issue with carpentry. My issue with carpentry is quite simple: spinning blades and I don’t get along. It’s not the blade part that gets me, because I’ve trained with sharp blades in my martial arts, it’s the spinning part. Imagine this, if you will: you are cutting some wood, say… a two by four… when suddenly the axle snaps and the blade catches on the table. The saw blade is then propelled out, toward you. Now because you do not possess super powers you are unable to get out of the way of the blade, which is then lodged in your chest. You stagger, two cut pieces of 2-4 in your hands and a saw in your chest cavity. Statistics say there is little chance you can survive this event. the end..... Now I take no issue with screwing, bolting, hammering, or holding. It’s just the spinning blade part that is of distaste. Also, it’s not like a can’t operate these machines --I can-- I just greatly prefer electrics.

Theater Blog Post

Playwriting, what was your experience like this time? Playwriting has always been something that I’ve wanted to be able to do. I like the idea of being able to create one’s own world where I could play out scenarios or make the imaginary come to life. Alas, I have never successfully committed myself to this endeavor. Each time I try I reassess my ideas and find them to be not worth writing, or I simply loose interest. For the assigned scene, I really wanted to write something great and I worked on it for quite some time; however, when I tried to write the scene I couldn’t figure out how to end it other than with the relationship in pieces. Initially I didn’t mind this but once I’d started to write I reached this endgame relatively quickly. I found myself unable to add anything else. I really felt like my scene lacked context and proper character development. Every time I tried to add something akin to context it didn’t seem to fit in the scene and thus I didn’t think the scene I wrote was sufficient. I thought that the experience was actually pretty stressful, because I wanted to turn in well-crafted work but I was inhibited by what felt write in the context of the scene. During the performance of the scene I was actually really happy. I thought I’d turned in a mediocre script and the actors did a good job with it. No one noticed the length difference and I thought it turned out fine. So over all, I really enjoyed the experience but it was fantastically stressful considering it was only a scene.

Theater Blog entry

Journal: Thoughts about production management and technical direction. I found it very interesting to find out exactly how the upper management of a theater happened. Although I have been involved in theater my entire life, I’ve always either been on the technical crew or an actor. While I imagined that there was a significant amount of work to do behind the “behind the scenes” of a performance, I could never actually put words to their specific work. The theater by my house was poorly run (from a management perspective) so I’ve heard about how it was being done wrong. I guess I’ve heard a lot about what the directors and managers are suppose to do but it was never thoroughly explained to me. With these lectures, I really feel like a have a better understanding of the monumental task of running a theater, or even a theater department. I use to think managing was something that flowed together, but I see now that I was wrong. To some degree the pieces do fit, but it still seems to be quite hectic. I am really happy that these lectures happened. I feel like because I know how much more work the upper brass has to do, I feel like my work is less time-consuming. After hearing about what they have to do to keep theaters running, I am really glad that I’m an electrician.

Theater Blog week 4

Audience relationships Live theater has the unique ability to enthrall its audience with genuine connections to the actors and actresses. Performances are rarely the same twice and each time both the audience and the performers take part in a the same adventure. This gives the audience an incredibly intimate relationship with the actors. Regardless of the influence that the audience has on a performer, the show will ceaselessly turn out different. The audience’s role in the script can also vary the nature of the relationship. It is hardly uncommon for an audience to be acknowledged as some mitigating body or confidante spectating events to the actors and is then actively included and clued in to the working of the show. Other times, the audience is perceived to be invisible by the characters and the audience is left to its own devises when it comes to deriving meaning from the performance. In either case the audience is positioned into an intimate setting with regards to the characters. This relationship is fostered by theater’s tendency of being clever, mentally stimulating and engaging for the prospective audiences. Each audience member walks away from the performance with a new relationship and intimate understanding of the characters' lives.

Blog entry 3 Thoughts on playwriting and how did It feel to perform your own work. Through talking to the various playwrights in class, I have gained a huge appreciation for their work. I never really thought about it, but I guess I thought the process was simpler than how it was explained. I never thought that it would take years for a play to make it from page to stage. I knew more about the writing process, as I’ve had to write creative pieces for English classes in high school; so, that came as less of a surprise. Performing my own work was actually surprisingly gratifying. While I wouldn’t have minded handing off the performance two people who were more skilled actors, it was nice to be able to control exactly what we envisioned upon the creation of the work. As both the performers and the creators, I feel like we were happier with the final outcome then if other people had performed.v

Film and Theater

What is your experience with film and theater?

I’ve never really been involved in film productions.  Many of my friends have used that medium for school projects and I’ve even acted in a few of them, but I never really got into it.  I don’t mean I dislike movies, I’ve just never really enjoyed being part of the production of one.  So my experience is quite pithy, I enjoy watching quality films and can sort the good from the bad; however, I’ve never really been involved in any film that’s anything more than a school project.
Theater has always been something that I’ve always enjoyed doing.  Ever since I was little I was constantly involved in some sort of production.  Even my earliest memories are of ones backstage of various shows watching my dad stage manage from just off stage right.  Admittedly, I was hardly involved in anything other than watching back then, but I still immensely enjoyed watching it; so, once I was old enough I started to help out as a stage hand as often as I could.  As I was home schooled up until the 8th grade, I had little interaction with technical theater other than with the local high school.  Once I was at actually attending a school, I got involved with the theater as soon as I could, becoming a soundboard operator.  This soon turned into sound design and from there I became the head technician at my school by my Junior year.  From that point I took on all the electrical duties (design, operation, etc) as well as training someone to replace me once I graduated.  I have always held a special place for theater.  There’s nothing quite like it, no entertainment quite as intimate, simply ineffable.  I spend a lot of time tech-thing shows just waiting for something to go wrong; even in shows where I’m simply an audience member, I always want to catch everything.  Seeing shows live is, somehow, as spectacular as the blockbuster hits of the film industry.  Even without the fancy CGI of Hollywood, live theater still has the ability to enthrall their audiences with mysterious illusions.

Theatre week 1

I've visited Harper Joy Theater before this past week and have always admired the space. Compared to my high school, grand totaling 40 circuits, Harper Joy is a divine residence.  I immensely enjoyed touring the theater; while i have been in the new black box (last year), there were many nooks and crannies that i hadn't gotten around to seeing yet.  It was really great to get a feel for the lay out of the building and i'm excited to get the opportunity to work in it this semester.