Professional Theatre Vs School-Based Theater

The past four years, I have breathed, slept, eaten, thought and immersed myself in all thing pertaining to theatre. This is where I discovered to truly work in a team, where I could be without fear of being something I am not, and where I have found peace in the maddening swirl of day to day life, ironic in the fact that theatre is a hectic world. This world is where I have made my best friends and found people I know I can count on and that I insist can depend on me. If I have learned one thing from my experiences in theatre, it is to strive and achieve

Standing on an empty stage brings a different feeling to an actor than it would have to the audience. The midnight curtains swaying from the soft breeze through the holes in the ceiling, and the vast open space that can immediately be turned into another world carrying you away from reality. For me, being an actor, brings a sense of home and peacefulness. It's where I belong. But it didn’t start off this way. I entered my junior year with my sights on engaging in theatre more but was sadly hindered from continuing. I had all my classes set, but theatre hadn't managed to fit into it. How could I grow as an actor when the only knowledge I was getting were constructing sets and being in shows? I wasn’t getting the experience to learn about the history of theatre or techniques that would allow me to grow as an actor. So I sat back, riding my way through junior year anxiously waiting till my second semester to change my classes and anticipating the annual musical auditions. I will never forget the day the cast list for the musical came in. I was lying on my bed around

Many can imagine a show done by a High School may lack in many ways compared to a similar version displayed at another theatre like the REP for example. However, there is always a potential that it could be a very proficient piece of art. Personally before even going to the play I had made up my mind that I would not like it at all since I didn’t like the movie at all and the only reason for me going was to accompany friends.

My involvement with the Adams City High School Theatre program throughout my high school career and my post graduation gap year was mutually beneficial.

The heat of the light was burning down on me, and I felt much too warm in my costume. I remember thinking that I would pass out any minute, though whether that be from the blinding heat or my body-wracking nerves, I did not know. I performed my heart out that day. We all did. We acted as one, every scream, every laugh, and every action was done in the most seamless way possible. In those 30 minutes, we were all parts of the machine that was our play. As the play went on, my fear disappeared. I do not recall feeling anything other than joy on that stage. The knots in my stomach slowly unraveled, and in their place came an unbreakable confidence. I walked across that stage as if there was nothing in the world that could possibly tear me down, and my cast mates held a demeanor in themselves similar to my own. There was a magic on our stage that day. I felt a warmth spreading through me, an elation like nothing I had ever felt. As the lights dimmed out and we waltzed off of the stage, the sounds of applause had erupted throughout the hall. Our last show of the season had been our best, and I could not have been more satisfied. Ms. Carraher, our director, and Mama Jack, our assistant director, had always told us that when our show had reached it’s peak, there was a sparkle on the stage. I knew there was a sparkle on our stage that day. And the only thing that could diminish that sparkle, would be not

Three days after the cast list came out there was a first readthrough of the script. When i first showed up my drama teacher, Mrs. Carrie Jo Vincent, said something that sent shivers running down my spine. “Dylan, can I talk to you for a second?” One of the single scariest phrases to ever hear from a teacher, mind you. What follows was one of the most humbling moments I have ever experienced. Mrs. Vincent did not spare my feelings in the slightest. “How dare you think you are that important,” and “You got one lead, you are not entitled to anything.” I couldn’t help but leave that conversation with my tail between my legs. Mrs. Vincent had effectively destroyed this ego that I had let myself build up, and thoroughly showed me that I was not more important than anyone

In ‘How to manage the transition from the rehearsal room to the theatre for the actors,’ Mitchell points out that the negotiation on the transition from the rehearsal room to the theatre must be deliberate and unhurried (200). Here, she warns that the actors would feel anxious and unconfident, so she suggests four ways to “reduce” the actors’ fear:

I had to practice audition songs and study my monologues relentlessly. I remember the first time that he really pushed me out of my comfort zone when I was cast as Ellerd in The Foreigner my freshman year. My director sat me down and had a candid talk with me, “Hey, this is a big role for a little person like you. I’m going to be hard on you because if you want these kinds of roles, this is where it will begin.” This was an instant wake up call. Opening night reared its ugly head, and everyone was going through their pre-show routine. As I was getting miced up, my director found me and had another one of his famous talks, “This is a big night for you, your first big role. I want you to know that I’m going to be your biggest cheerleader out there tonight. But these past few weeks rehearsing and practicing are finally going to pay off. And I want you to know that your performance tonight will show me if you are ready for the big leagues next year. So don’t be nervous, you’ll do great.” As I was entranced by his words, it finally hit me: he wants me to be in the future productions. He must really see me as an asset to the theater department. Maybe the stage is where I belong. Maybe I’ll really blow his mind with this performance, and that's exactly what I did. I nailed every line, the dialogue flowing out of me, almost like there was no script. As we finished our curtain call, we all stumbled off the stage to meet our audience for autographs and the occasional picture, but as I was leaving to greet my fans, my director stopped me with the biggest grin on his face. He explained how proud he was. I showed him exactly what he wanted.. Because of that performance, Mr. Nesseth saw me in a whole new way that gave me confidence and the foundation for greater

Magic carpet rides and genies have never seemed realistic to show “a whole new world.” Never would I think a children’s Disney production would help me realize how my talents and interests can change the world; however, when children are involved, their joyful innocence enlighten me to be a positive influence.

To better prepare for the tasks ahead I scheduled a meeting with my assistant Deb Carrarro, the costume coordinator Mona Bryden, and the artistic director Elizabeth Van Doorne. Each of the women had experience with similar roles in previous years, making their knowledge vital to the success of this production. After the meeting held on September 5th I put together the information discussed and came up with the following:

The book goes on to talk about theaters that are a part of “ …League of Resident Theatre (LORT) theatres, non-LORT theaters operating under special agreements, and other notable professional theaters throughout the United States.”(Voltz, 143). The chapter starts by explaining what LORT is and how a theatre becomes a member. After that, the book breaks down the theatre and talks about the general employment, casting, script submission, and internships for each theatre. Just like any other job there are going to be stressful times, but the book gives tips on how to reduce ones stress as much as possible. The final piece of advice is to write down the ones own experiences. So someday future generations can be inspired by advice that can be given from those experiences.

In the 1980s, the cost of staging a Broadway show soared so high that major shows have to run for more than two years to break even (showtime, 604). The strong-willed individualistic producers were replaced by “artistic director, a general manager and various multi-producers.(showtime 604)” The latter were made up by businessman and theater owners whose priority is to sell tickets rather than create art. What’s more, the producers were less willing to take risks both financially and artistically, which made Broadway productions bleaker(showtime 604). As for the production of Rent and The Phantom of the Opera, the producers used different tactics to cope with the staggering cost. The rent cut cost on stage setting and location.They abandoned the expensive curtains and fancy settings and used sculptures of “junk, wire and Christmas-tree lights” to symbolize different sites(Wollman, 170).

Of the many theatre experiences that I have had in New York City, by far the most memorable of them was when I was afforded the chance to see the iconic play Wicked with my friends. Having never seen a Broadway show live before, we found that our excursion proved very worthwhile. Though many aspects make up the whole of the wonderful time we spent going to see the show, by far what struck us as the most important were the venue, the service, and the high level quality of the production, which all proved to be the most defining components of our adventure through Wicked’s land of Oz.

With resounding consistency, every reference to The Theatrical Syndicate begins with the same anecdotal tale: “One day in 1896, six theatre businessmen met for lunch at the Holland House Hotel.” The gentlemen gathered that day where in a consensus about a few things, but the greatest of which being the state of the American theatre and its institutional need for centralization. (Mroczka) The aim of the following discussion is to contextualize this organization within American theatre history while illustrating the positive and negative impacts of The Theatrical Syndicate on the theatre community.