Volume LXI Number 2 • Spring 2020 • $8.00
SETC 2020: INSPIRATION FOR TRYING TIMES NC Black Repertory: Sharing the Gospel of Black Theatre
Matthew Aaron Stern: Stage Management Can Change the World
Ashlee Latimer: Building Connections Is Key in Social Media and Career
The sky is not the limit. It’s just the beginning.
Michael Clossey in Theatre UCF’s black box theatre during tech for Water by the Spoonful. Michael was the scenic designer.
Michael Clossey, pictured above during tech of his final academic project at the University of Central Florida, is a 2019 graduate with a BFA in Theatre: Design and Technology. UCF is an SETC member school.
More to the point, though, it’s important to show the students how their learning translates to real jobs throughout the industry.”
When speaking of his real-world experience at IA Stage, Clossey Our participation at Born and raised in Orlando, says, “I’ve really been able to SETC each year is Michael interned at IA Stage put the things they teach in my with the project management degree into perspective. As an investment in our department while completing his with any degree, a concept is a future as a company. studies at UCF. concept is a concept, but when you get to apply those skills IA Stage is a regular supporter of SETC and during an installation or in the fabrication stage, exhibits at the conference each year. Company those concepts become whole.” president and owner, Mark T. Black says, “We see the time and money we devote to SETC each SETC’s mission statement is “Connecting You to year as an investment in our future as a company Opportunities in Theatre Nationwide.” IA Stage and in the entertainment industry as a whole. intends to support that mission for as long as Yes, it’s important to showcase your product. there are students ready to enter the industry.
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UNIVERSITY OF WEST GEORGIA
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• Access to professional theatre artists • Access to industry standard software in theatrical sound, lighting, costume, and scenic design • Performance and design opportunities starting in freshman year • Design lab, lighting lab, sound recording studio, large scene shop, and new costume shop • Internship programs (local, national, international) • Practical experience in all facets of theatrical production • Student scripts from playwriting course are produced in regular season • Student-directed and designed theatre productions
NAST Accredited Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theatre
• Conference participation and travel opportunities • Strong alumni contacts
FOR MORE INFORMATION 678-839-4700 or theatre@westga.edu westga.edu/theatre
Courtesy of National Black Theatre Festival
Contents
Volume LXI Number 2 l Spring 2020 l Southern Theatre – Quarterly Magazine of the Southeastern Theatre Conference
Features
8 NC Black Repertory Company
Departments 4 Hot off the Press
Plays Featuring Large Casts by Zackary Ross
6 Outside the Box: Design/Tech Solutions
From Sawdust to Sky: Creating Clouds on a Backdrop by Christopher Crews
Producers of the National Black Theatre Festival Sharing the Gospel of Black Theatre by J. K. Curry
18 Celebrating SETC’s 71st in Louisville Photos by Mark Mahan
20 Matthew Aaron Stern
How Stage Management Can Change the World
by Laura King
26 Ashlee Latimer
Building Connections Is Key in Social Media and Career
by Amy Cuomo
Cover
31 John E.R. ‘Jerf’ Friedenberg Receives SETC’s 2020 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award
Lauryn Jones appears in Prideland, a dance adaptation of The Lion King, at the 2019 National Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem, NC. The show was presented by The Pointe! Studio of Dance, located in Greensboro, NC. (Photo by Toni Shaw; Photoshop work by Garland Gooden; cover design by Deanna Thompson)
Presentation by Jeff Gibson
32 Moment Work
Embracing a ‘Tectonic Shift’ in the Creation of Theatre
by Gaye Jeffers
36 2020 SETC Young Scholars Award Winners Abstracts by Teresa Simone and Falan Buie-Madden
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 3
Plays Featuring Large Casts by Zackary Ross
W
ith the current theatre season on hold due to the COVID-19 crisis, those of us who work in academic theatre have an opportunity to look ahead to our next season and find dramatic material that addresses our perennial challenge: finding shows that offer
numerous roles for our students. When I am planning shows at my school, I don’t always have the financial or human resources to stage a musical. Here, I offer a handful of straight plays featuring large casts, each of which was published in the past year by a major play publisher. Following each description, you’ll find information about the cast breakdown and a referral to the publisher who holds the rights. Airness, by Chelsea Marcantel
Publisher: Playscripts, Inc.
but also between fiction and reality itself
Set against the hard-core, quirky world
www.playscripts.com
as the romantic stories of the past collide
of air guitar competitions, Airness is the
with modern ideas of love and courtship.
coming- of-age story of Nina, a charismatic
Lost Girl, by Kimberly Belflower
Cast breakdown: 7 females; 7 males
and overly confident musician who thinks
After her incredible adventures in Never-
Publisher: Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
her skills with a real guitar make winning
land, Wendy Darling returns to her quiet
www.dramatists.com
a sure thing. Following a disastrous first
life at home but finds herself unable to let
performance, Nina finds herself immersed
go of the memory of Peter and the adven-
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, based on
in a group of misfits who have escaped
ture they shared. Despite insisting that she
the novel by Haruki Murakami, conceived
the real world to lose themselves in the
only gives herself eight minutes a day to
by Stephen Earnhart, written by Greg
fantasy world they create on stage. Joyful
indulge in her fantastic memories, it’s clear
Pierce and Stephen Earnhart
and full of high-octane energy, the play is
that Wendy’s thoughts turn back to Peter
Based on the international best-selling
a wonderfully welcome take on the classic
at every turn, making it impossible for her
novel of the same name, the play follows
underdog story.
to move on and open her heart up to new
Toru Okada as he abandons his mundane
Cast breakdown: 2-10 females; 4-13 males
experiences. Ultimately, she must decide to
existence in Tokyo and descends into the
Publisher: Playscripts, Inc.
find Peter again, reclaim the kiss she gave
unknown in search of his missing wife.
www.playscripts.com
him and write a story all her own.
Equal parts marital drama, detective story
Cast breakdown: 6 females; 6 males
and hallucinatory thriller, the play is styled
Badger, by Don Zolidis
Publisher: Concord Theatricals
in surrealism and artfully incorporates
Set in 1944 during the bleakest days of
www.concordtheatricals.com
multimedia elements, bunraku puppets
World War II, Badger explores the intercon-
and all manner of theatrical devices to
nected lives of the women of the Badger
You on the Moors Now, by Jaclyn Backhaus
create an astounding sensory experience.
Ordnance Works munitions factory in
Four favorite literary heroines – Jo March
Cast breakdown: 6 females; 8 males
Baraboo, WI. These women, many of
from Little Women, Elizabeth Bennet from
Publisher: Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
whom have entered the workforce for the
Pride and Prejudice, Cathy from Wuthering
www.dramatists.com n
first time, form lasting friendships in the
Heights and the eponymous Jane Eyre – flee
face of workplace dangers, sexual harass-
from their marriage proposals and further
ment, homophobia, domestic violence and
buck the restrictive social codes of their
heartbreak in this wonderfully evocative
respective stories. This imaginative play
ensemble drama.
bridges the gaps not only between the
Cast breakdown: 9-40 females; 5-36 males
fictional worlds of the four literary classics,
4 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
Zackary Ross, an assistant professor of theatre at Bellarmine University in Louisville, KY, also works regularly as a director and a dramaturg.
Theatre s o u t h e r n
EDITOR
Deanna Thompson
SETC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Susie Prueter SETC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR EMERITUS
Betsey Horth ADVERTISING
Clay Thornton, clay@setc.org BUSINESS & ADVERTISING OFFICE
Southeastern Theatre Conference 1175 Revolution Mill Drive, Studio 14 Greensboro, NC 27405 336-272-3645 PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE
J. K. Curry, Chair, Wake Forest University (NC) Gaye Jeffers, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Laura King, Gordon State College (GA) Scott Phillips, Auburn University (AL) Derrick Vanmeter, Clayton State University (GA) EDITORIAL BOARD
Tom Alsip, Oklahoma State University Lamont Clegg, Osceola County School for the Arts (FL) Amy Cuomo, University of West Georgia F. Randy deCelle, University of Alabama Kristopher Geddie, Venice Theatre (FL) Bill Gelber, Texas Tech University David Glenn, Samford University (AL) Scott Hayes, Liberty University (VA) Edward Journey, Alabama A&M University Stefanie Maiya Lehmann, Lincoln Center (NY) Tiffany Dupont Novak, Lexington Children's Theatre (KY) Richard St. Peter, Northwestern State University (LA) Jonathon Taylor, East Tennessee State University Student Member: Laura Falcione, Liberty University (VA) PROOFREADERS
Chris Bailey, SETC Communications Specialist Denise Halbach, Independent Theatre Artist (MS) Clay Thornton, SETC Marketing Manager PRINTING
Clinton Press, Greensboro, NC NOTE ON SUBMISSIONS
Southern Theatre welcomes submissions of articles pertaining to all aspects of theatre. Preference will be given to subject matter linked to theatre activity in the Southeastern United States. Articles are evaluated by the editor and members of the Editorial Board. Criteria for evaluation include: suitability, clarity, significance, depth of treatment and accuracy. Please query the editor via email before sending articles. Stories should not exceed 3,000 words. Color photos (300 dpi in jpeg or tiff format) and a brief identification of the author should accompany all articles. Send queries and stories to: deanna@setc.org. Southern Theatre (ISSNL: 0584-4738) is published quarterly by the Southeastern Theatre Conference, Inc., a nonprofit organization, for its membership and others interested in theatre. Copyright © 2020 by Southeastern Theatre Conference, Inc., 1175 Revolution Mill Drive, Studio 14, Greensboro, NC 27405. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without permission is prohibited. Subscription rates: $24.50 per year, U.S.; $30.50 per year, Canada; $188 per year, International. Single copies: $8, plus shipping.
From the SETC President
W
We are living in challenging times, and no one could have foreseen this shock to our theatrical systems when we met for the SETC Convention in February. But I am heartened by the fact that theatre has survived for generations, and the stories we share about our common experiences will allow our art form to survive the COVID-19 pandemic. That power of theatre is found in the inspirational stories shared by our 2020 keynotes in this issue of Southern Theatre. We start with the “marvtastic” story of the North Carolina Black Repertory Company, producers of the National Black Theatre Festival, and SETC’s 2020 Distinguished Career Award winner. Join J. K. Curry as she explores how founder Larry Leon Hamlin created an event that attracts folks from around the world – and how others, including Saturday keynote Jackie Alexander, have carried his dream forward. Friday keynote Matthew Aaron COVID-19 Stern had a message for all of RESOURCES us: Stage managers are the calm, SETC has compiled a resource motivated leaders that everyone needs offstage. Laura King outlines list to help our members navigate Stern’s perspective on how little the coronavirus crisis. To view the things the stage manager does resources or to add a listing that can have big results, changing the may be helpful to others, visit world for a person – or an audience. www.setc.org/covid-resources. Connect with others, be kind, follow your dreams – all of these are inspiring words and part of the story of Thursday keynote Ashlee Latimer. Amy Cuomo provides advice from Latimer, a brand strategist and Tony Award winner, on achieving success via social media and in your career. This year’s SETC Teachers Institute featuring Tectonic Theater Project’s Moment Work gave inspiration to educators eager to share stories. Gaye Jeffers, a professor who took part, shares key components and takeaways from the interactive presentation. Also in this issue, we celebrate the 2020 winner of the Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award, John E.R. “Jerf” Friedenberg. We provide new play options with large casts in our regular “Hot Off the Press” column. And we outline an innovative way to create clouds using sawdust in the “Outside the Box” column. Finally, we share abstracts from the winners of SETC’s Young Scholars Award. As you enjoy the wisdom shared in these pages, I hope you take heart in the knowledge that – whether we are meeting at the convention or engaging in theatre individually – all of us who are involved in SETC are here for each other. One community, standing strong together.
Maegan McNerney Azar, SETC President Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 5
outside
the box DESIGN/ TECH SOLUTIONS
From Sawdust to Sky
Creating Clouds on a Backdrop
by Christopher Crews
W
hen scenic artists need to create clouds, they often turn to airbrush-
ing, a technique that can replicate the wispy and soft qualities that make clouds appear realistic. However, most shops are not equipped to attempt airbrushing on the scale necessary for a full-stage sky drop. Faced with this challenge on a recent production of Ella Enchanted at Samford University, I decided to try a method shared by a friend. His simple solution for painting the clouds utilized a familiar and easily accessible substance – sawdust – and gave me a great deal of control over the shape of the clouds I was painting. I was able to finish the large backdrop in a short amount of time. Getting started
The sky backdrop for Ella Enchanted, presented in October 2019 at Samford University in Birmingham, AL, was created using this sawdust technique.
You will need a seamless, bleached-
project are the high-pigment acrylic paint,
provided just the hue we were trying to
white soft good for the backdrop. This
Argo brand sizing, carpet tack strips and a
achieve. The concentrated pigment in the
type of cloth makes the clouds “pop” when
high-quality pump sprayer. The final and
Super Saturate paint thins down well to
backlit and provides a natural diffusion of
most crucial component is probably found
keep the drop light and translucent. If the
light and color.
in great quantities around your shop –
cloud drop does become a stock inventory
For our production, I was able to use
sawdust. The sawdust, in combination with
item, the thin paint job will also allow the
an older cyclorama curtain that had been
a steady hand holding a pump sprayer, is
soft good to be folded and re-hung with
retired a few years earlier. If you need to
what creates the feather-like edges and
minimal wrinkling.
purchase one, the size of the venue and the
voids that make the clouds appear light
necessary size of the backdrop needed for
and delicate.
be of high quality and in good working
it will directly affect the cost of the piece,
For our sawdust, we used a mix of
condition. A sprayer that leaves drips or
with larger venues paying a great deal
small particles from a table saw and larger
large blobs will potentially ruin the cloud
more for a suitable backdrop. However,
sawdust debris from a router. The sawdust
drop. Buying a new sprayer specifically
a well-made cloud drop can be re-used
will block some of the paint spray and also
for this project will add minimal expense
several times over the life of the muslin.
will absorb some of the paint. This helps to
and ensure the best possible results. I
Also, as a stock or inventory investment,
soften the edges of the clouds as the blue
purchased a Chapin industrial sprayer for
the initial cost is easier to justify, and
sky is being painted around them.
$149 from Amazon.
a well-executed cloud drop can even
Painting the backdrop
Laying out the muslin drop
recoup its cost with income generated as a
For the Ella Enchanted cloud drop,
rental good. The cost of a white seamless
we used the Rosco Super Saturate color
tack strips to the dimensions of the finished
backdrop varies, but a reasonable estimate
Cerulean Blue to tint the sky. Some scenic
good. This allowed the drop to be stretched
is as follows:
artists may prefer to add additional blues
evenly and guaranteed that the painted
20’ x 40’ = $1,500 - $1,700
for depth, gradient or texture. However, we
piece would be perfectly square when
30’ x 58’ = $3,900 - $4,200
found that spraying the drop with an even
completed. The tack strips hold the muslin
mist of a very watered-down Cerulean Blue
continuously around the edge, which
The other costs associated with this 6 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
The sprayer used on this project must
The crew started by nailing down carpet
eliminates the scalloping that can occur
CREATING THE CLOUDS
Step 4:
on a drop that has been stapled. When the
Step 1:
Hang the soft good, and light the backdrop
drop is ready to come off the floor, it lifts
Stretch the soft good to the tack strips and
to complement the production.
easily off the tack strips without the labor
size with starch.
typically needed to remove staples on a large project like this one. The tack strips can then be quickly removed with a flat pry bar and a hammer.
After attaching the backdrop to the tack
strips, we starched the piece with a mixture of hot water and Argo laundry starch using an older pump sprayer. Heating multiple gallons of water can be tricky, but starching
Step 5:
the muslin is an important step that will
The finished Ella Enchanted backdrop
help the finished piece hold its shape. Argo
is shown with different lighting effects
brand starch recommends that you let the
Step 2:
starch mixture cool before straining it and
Apply the sawdust to create the shape and
spraying it onto a drop that is expected to
density of the clouds. Spray with thinned-
be translucent.
down, high-pigment blue paint.
below and on opposite page.
Creating clouds with sawdust
Once the canvas is stretched and sized,
the shaping of the clouds with the sawdust can begin. This step requires an artistic eye and the ability to visualize the negative space that will eventually be the blue sky.
Christopher Crews, the owner of Specialty Props, Inc., is also a scenic artist and an adjunct instructor at Samford University in Birmingham, AL.
After shaking the sawdust thickly where the clouds need to be the fullest, the scenic artist can drag or even blow the edges to soften the fringes of the clouds. The paint will find its way through the thinned-out
Materials
sawdust, giving the clouds a feather-like
Step 3:
quality.
Adjust the sawdust and add other nec-
essary masking to create the shadowed
For 20’ x 40’ cloud backdrop
undersides of the clouds.
Pre-sewn 20’ x 40’ seamless bleached muslin drop $1,700 Rosco Super Saturated Cerulean Blue (2 pints at $40/each) 80 Argo brand starch (2 boxes at $4/each) 8 Carpet tack strips (1 box) 27 Chapin industrial sprayer 149 Sawdust 0 Total $1,964
The final painting detail before hanging
the drop is the shading of the underside of the clouds to give them depth. At this point, the sawdust can be moved around, creating negative space around the areas that need to be shaded. Laying down drop cloths or paper to help mask the blue sky will allow the painter to focus on individual clouds and shade the darker underbelly of them, giving them depth and realism.
After you clean off any sawdust residue,
the drop is ready to go into the air. The lighting designer can begin creating dynamic looks by lighting the seamless piece from the front and behind. The crispness of the bleached-white muslin and the translucence of the blue paint will create a bright, beautiful sky backdrop. n
Do you have a design/tech solution that would make a great Outside the Box column?
Send a brief summary of your idea to Outside the Box Editor David Glenn at djglenn@samford.edu. Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 7
NC BLACK REPERTORY COMPANY Producers Of The National Black Theatre Festival
Sharing the Gospel of Black Theatre
Mark Mahan
Jackie Alexander, NC Black Rep artistic director, delivers the Saturday keynote at the 2020 SETC Convention as Sylvia Sprinkle-Hamlin listens.
A
by J. K. Curry
A little over 40 years ago, Larry Leon Hamlin returned to his home state of North Carolina from the Northeast and was disappointed by what he saw: a lack of theatre about, and created by, African Americans. Taking matters into his own hands, he started the North Carolina Black Repertory Company – North Carolina’s first professional black theatre – in 1979 in Winston-Salem. Ten years later, he took another giant step, creating the first National Black Theatre Festival (NBTF).
8 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
SETC Distinguished Career Award
Although Hamlin passed away in 2007, both organizations survive today – and the NBTF has become a must-attend event, attracting more than
COVID-19 Update
60,000 people every two years from around the
As Southern Theatre went to press, the
country to what has become known as “Black Theatre
North Carolina Black Repertory Company
Holy Ground.”
announced it would be rescheduling the
“The great thing about the festival is that it brings
world premiere of Cynthia Robinson’s
theatre people from all over to one town,” said Ted
Freedom Summer, originally planned for
Lange, an actor best known for his portrayal of Isaac
March 2020, to its 2020-2021 season and
Washington on the television show The Love Boat, who
pushing back the world premiere of Nambi
has attended every NBTF since its inception. “If you
‘The great thing
Kelley’s Phenomenal Woman: Maya Angelou to
can’t get to New York or Houston or L.A., you can get
about the festival
to Winston-Salem and see what black theatre artists
Aug. 1-16, 2020. Plans for the next National
are doing. It’s a crossroads of black ideas, black artists
Black Theatre Festival, which is scheduled for
is that it brings
and black execution.”
Aug. 2-7, 2021, remain unchanged.
theatre people
As the producer of the NBTF, NC Black Rep has
from all over
steered the festival for 30 years, in addition to produc-
to one town. If
ing its own season for 40 years – an accomplishment that earned the company SETC’s Distinguished
Hamlin invited further community involve-
Career Award at the 2020 SETC Convention in Louis-
ment and financial support through the formation
ville, KY.
in 1981 of the NC Black Rep Theatre Guild, made
up of supporters who paid a fee to join and were
Jackie Alexander, artistic director of NC Black Rep,
shared the organization’s story in a Saturday keynote at the SETC Convention, followed by a Q&A session that included Sylvia Sprinkle-Hamlin, the founder’s widow and current executive producer of the NBTF. Hamlin sees a need and never looks back
“I’m here today to spread the gospel of NC Black
Rep,” Alexander announced, in opening his keynote. He detailed the company’s remarkable history, its recent initiatives and future plans, and invited everyone to attend the next National Black Theatre Festival in 2021. When the late Larry Leon Hamlin started NC Black Rep, he called on a background that included training in business and theatre. He earned a business degree at Johnson and Wales University in Rhode Island before going on to study theatre with the Rites and Reasons Theatre at Brown University. NC Black Rep’s first three years were the most crucial, Hamlin has said, because they were its formative
expected to sell tickets and encourage others to become members. Additional support came in 1984, when NC Black Rep was the first African American group to become a funded member of the Winston-
you can’t get to New York or Houston or L.A., you can get to Winston-Salem
Salem/Forsyth County Arts Council (founded in
and see what
1949).
black theatre
“The company would prosper in the coming years
producing classic plays like For Colored Girls, The
artists are doing.
Amen Corner, Day of Absence, A Soldier’s Play, Ceremo-
It’s a crossroads
nies in Dark Old Men and Home, to name a few, all to sold-out houses and an adoring and appreciative
of black ideas,
African American community,” Alexander said. “You
black artists and
see, Mr. Hamlin was telling their stories. No one had bothered to do that before.”
black execution.’
- Ted Lange,
It took a great deal of effort to establish NC Black
Rep, but the energetic and determined Hamlin did not stop there. He realized that African American
actor/director
theatre companies across the country were struggling to survive. “[Hamlin’s] answer to the problem, his dream,
years. To involve people in the new theatre, Hamlin
was an event where companies would be able to
created a project he called Living Room Theatre.
perform before the general public, troubleshoot
“The program had two objectives: introduce the
challenges faced by all, share resources, and raise
public to the company and expose disadvantaged
awareness of the quality and importance of their
families to theatre,” Alexander said. “For $150, NC
work, a National Black Theatre Festival,” Alexander
Black Rep would perform for 90 minutes at the host
said.
home and then do another free performance at a disadvantaged home.”
The inaugural festival was held in Winston-Salem,
NC, on August 14 -20, 1989. Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 9
An idea becomes a hit
up the hotels, the restaurants, and so people started
seeing that. They started seeing the dollars, and they
Raising funds for the initial festival was challeng-
ing, and community support was initially limited,
said, ‘Well, hmm, this festival is not so bad after all.’”
due in part to negative racial stereotypes.
Much of the festival’s success can be traced to
“I’m told that when Mr. Hamlin started the festival
Hamlin’s vision. For the first event in 1989, with a
in 1989, there was a large portion of the Winston-
theme of “A Celebration and Reunion of Spirit,”
Salem community that was very concerned with that
Hamlin enlisted the support of the renowned writer
many black people descending on the city all at one
Maya Angelou, then Reynolds Professor of American
time: ‘Wouldn’t there be fights, crimes, drugs?’” Alex-
Studies at Wake Forest University and a resident of
ander said. “Thirty years later, it seems that every
Winston-Salem. Angelou not only agreed to serve as
resident of Winston-Salem I encounter, regardless of
the chairperson of the festival but also tapped her
race, speaks of the festival with an infectious pride.
friends to join her in Winston-Salem. Soon, major
Why? Because the festival so beautifully redefined
celebrities from Broadway, television and film were
a false narrative.”
lining up to attend the first National Black Theatre
The economic impact of the festival also influ-
Festival.
enced local perception. According to Alexander,
the NBTF “has generated over $230 million to the
the 1989 festival. “A time when we can show each
economy of Winston-Salem.” Hamlin’s widow, Sylvia
other the new projects we are daring to dream, and
Sprinkle-Hamlin, notes that the festival’s visitors “fill
a time to dream even greater dreams.”
“This is a time of great joy,” Angelou wrote about
North Carolina Black Repertory Company: History and Highlights TIMELINE:
Mark Mahan
1979: Larry Leon Hamlin founds North Carolina Black Repertory Company. 1989: Hamlin’s dream of a National Black Theatre Festival comes to fruition, as NC Black Rep produces the first festival in Winston- Salem, NC, on August 14-20, with writer Maya Angelou as chair. Those attending include Oprah Winfrey and playwright August Wilson. 2007: Hamlin, the dynamic founder and face of the festival, passes away, but others, including his wife Sylvia Sprinkle-Hamlin, step up to keep the festival and the theatre going. Mabel Robinson is named artistic director. 2016: Jackie Alexander, former artistic director of the Billie Holiday Theatre in NYC, becomes NC Black Rep’s artistic director. 2019: The 16th biennial National Black Theatre Festival attracts an estimated 64,000 people.
CELEBRITY HONOREES AT NBTF: Those who have chaired or have been honored at the festival include: Actors - Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, Denzel Washington, Esther Rolle, Beah Richards, Danny Glover, Sidney Poitier, Billy Dee Williams, Debbie Allen, Leslie Uggams, André DeShields, Louis Gossett Jr., Harry Belafonte, Della Reese, Hattie Wilson, Melba Moore, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Ted Lange and Tonya Pinkins. Playwrights - August Wilson, George C. Wolfe, Laurence Holder, Amiri Baraka, Lynn Nottage, Katori Hall and Dominique Morisseau. Directors - Lloyd Richards, Kenny Leon, Seret Scott, Lou Bellamy and Ed Smith. Producers - Woodie King Jr., Ashton Springer, Barbara Ann Teer, Marjorie Moon, Jackie Taylor and Eileen J. Morris. More info: ncblackrep.org
10 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
Above: Sylvia SprinkleHamlin and Jackie Alexander accept SETC’s Distinguished Career Award. Left: Larry Leon Hamlin, the late founder of the North Carolina Black Repertory Company and the National Black Theatre Festival.
Oprah Winfrey and August Wilson were guests of
honor at the opening gala, which was followed by the NC Black Rep performance of Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope. Angelou, who had starred in a highly successful off-Broadway production of Jean Genet’s The Blacks in 1961, also invited co-stars from that production to the festival, including James Earl Jones, Cicely Tyson, Courtesy of National Black Theatre Festival
Roscoe Lee Browne and Lou Gossett Jr. All of these prominent figures were honored at post-performance receptions on different nights of the festival, as were Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis. In addition to NC Black Rep, 16 other professional theatres were selected to present shows at the first NBTF, including such notable companies as Crossroads Theatre (New Jersey), Negro Ensemble Company (New York), Penumbra Theatre (Minnesota), Carpetbag Theatre (Tennessee), Just Us Theatre (Georgia) and the Philadelphia Freedom Theatre. Representatives from other black theatres and independent theatre artists traveled to WinstonSalem in 1989 to take advantage of the opportunity
Beah Richards and Danny Glover. The use of celeb-
to see a large number of black theatre productions
rity chairs or co-chairs to attract public interest has
in one week, as well as to network, share advice and
continued through the years. Celebrity chairs for later
gain inspiration. Venues throughout Winston-Salem
festivals included well-known names from theatre
were pressed into service, including theatres at
and film such as Sidney Poitier, Billy Dee Williams,
Winston-Salem State University, the North Carolina
Debbie Allen, Harry Belafonte, Della Reese, Hal
School of the Arts and Wake Forest University. Local
Williams, Leslie Uggams, André De Shields, Hattie
audiences also turned out for the festival, drawn by
Wilson, Melba Moore, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Ted
the opportunity to see celebrities and to view perfor-
Lange and Tonya Pinkins.
mances by companies from around the country.
Major media organizations, including The New
country were – and remain today – the centerpiece of
York Times, covered the first NBTF. Wilson, the Pulit-
the NBTF, but the event also provides an opportunity
zer Prize-winning author of Fences, raved about the
for attendees to make professional connections and
event in a Times story published Aug. 17, 1989.
take inspiration, noted Lange, who has been involved
‘’This is the kind of thing that I’ve sat around
in the festival as an actor, a playwright and a director.
for the last 10 years saying should happen,’’ Wilson
“At the festival, you can go see 10 or 15 plays,”
Professional theatre productions from around the
told the Times. ‘’That all the people involved in black
Lange said. “You can see so many black actors,
theatre in America should get together, simply to
playwrights, directors, etc. You go to matinees and to
understand that we’re not working in a vacuum, that
evening performances and then back to the Marriott
there are other companies out there and that they’re
for networking late at night. It gives you heart. You
doing the same thing you’re doing. And out of that,
know you are in the right game.”
gradually, should evolve some artistic agenda of
where black theatre should be going.’’
include many components in addition to professional
The first National Black Theatre Festival was such
productions. In 1991, a Reader’s Theatre series of New
a big hit that plans were made immediately to repeat
Plays was added. Later additions included a New
the event two years later.
Performance in Black Theatre series, NBTF Fringe
Festival takes root and grows
(showcasing college theatre productions), the Larry
For the second NBTF in 1991, actors Ruby Dee and
Leon Hamlin Solo Performance series, a Hip Hop
Ossie Davis served as chairpersons, with celebrity
Theatre series, a film festival, a youth talent showcase,
honorees including Denzel Washington, Esther Rolle,
a storytelling festival, a midnight poetry jam and
Roz White and Enoch King appear in Anne and Emmett, a play by Janet Langhart Cohen that was presented at the 2019 National Black Theatre Festival. The play focuses on an imaginary conversation between Emmett Till, the African American boy whose brutal murder in Mississippi helped ignite the civil rights movement, and Anne Frank, the young Jewish girl whose diary explored life during the Holocaust.
Over the years, the festival has grown in scope to
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 11
Courtesy of NBTF
an international vendor’s market. The Black Theatre
Courtesy of Ted Lange
Writer Maya Angelou, who passed away in 2014, helped make the first National Black Theatre Festival in 1989 a success, serving as chair of the event and recruiting many of her friends from film and theatre to attend.
Actor/director Ted Lange has attended every National Black Theatre Festival since its inception. At the 2019 NBTF, he directed Twelfth Night, or What You Will, Mon, his adaptation of the play set in Jamaica, as part of a new program, Shakespeare at Sunset, presented free to the public outdoors.
away on June 6, 2007, and the NBTF was held as
Network, a scholarly association, and Winston-Salem
scheduled on July 30 through August 4 of that year.
State University regularly co-host an International
Sprinkle-Hamlin is credited with providing
Colloquium with the NBTF. A conference theme of
important guidance to both NC Black Rep and the
“Black Theatre: Holy Ground” was introduced in
NBTF over the years before and since then. She is
2001 and continues to be associated with the NBTF.
“the one constant for all of NC Black Rep’s 40-year
The NBTF also presents a number of awards
and NBTF’s 30-year existence,” Alexander said. He
recognizing outstanding artists. At the 1991 festival,
noted the she was “a woman who, after the death
George C. Wolfe was honored as the first recipient of
of her husband … picked up the reins and was
the Garland Anderson Playwright Award (renamed
determined to take NC Black Rep and NBTF to even
the August Wilson Playwright Award in 1997). Other
greater heights, no matter the sacrifice, a woman who
awards added to the festival over the years include
has the sweetest, most genteel voice you will ever
the Sidney Poitier Lifelong Achievement Award
hear but possesses an iron will that will not accept
(first recipient Sidney Poitier), the Lloyd Richards
failure, a woman who is the single most important
Director’s Award (first recipient Lloyd Richards), the
reason both the company and the festival are thriving
Larry Leon Hamlin Producer’s Award (first recipients
today.”
Woodie King Jr. and Ashton Springer). Starting in
1991, the NBTF began a tradition of honoring “living
of the board of directors of NC Black Rep, as well
legends,” men and women who had made significant
as executive producer of the NBTF. For more than a
contributions to African American theatre. Nearly
decade after her husband’s death, her contributions
100 living legends have been recognized by the NBTF.
to the NBTF came on top of her challenging day job
“Other institutions don’t honor black artists,”
as director of the Forsyth County Public Library, a
Lange said. “The awards for a lifetime of work in
position she retired from at the end of 2019.
theatre are important. These go to artists who might
not be recognized by the Tony Awards or the Obie
going on top of her full-time job, Sprinkle-Hamlin
Awards.”
said, “I realized how hard he (her husband) worked
Recognizing successful black theatre artists is
to get to 2007. Then he was dealing with his illness,
important not just for the legendary recipients but
and he still kept pushing it. He had worked too hard.
also for the younger people in attendance, Lange said.
We couldn’t let the festival die.”
“It’s inspirational for younger artists to meet the old-
Sprinkle-Hamlin was quick to point out that
timers,” he said. “They see how they might make a
many other people helped to make sure the NBTF
life in the theatre. They might pick up a tidbit here
would survive and flourish. That includes Hamlin’s
and there about making it as an artist.”
mother, Annie Hamlin Johnson, a supporter of NC
Crisis of Hamlin’s illness and passing
Black Rep from the beginning, and the artistic direc-
As the NBTF became a well-established event
tors who followed in Hamlin’s footsteps. In October
attracting thousands of attendees to Winston-
2007, Mabel Robinson, who had choreographed
Salem (and offers from other cities to relocate), it
and directed many productions for NC Black Rep
continued to be closely associated with its dynamic
following her Broadway career, took on the role of
founder Larry Leon Hamlin. Known for his striking
artistic director. Following Robinson’s retirement,
purple and black wardrobe and for enthusiastically
Jackie Alexander – who had directed productions at
declaring events “marvtastic” (a combination of the
the NBTF and was the former artistic director of the
words marvelous and fantastic), Hamlin could be
Billie Holiday Theatre in New York City – became
seen everywhere, attending so much of the festival
NC Black Rep’s artistic director in 2016.
that he appeared not to sleep at all. When Hamlin
became seriously ill late in 2006, many wondered if
an army of volunteers, including a large number
the NBTF could survive without him.
who return year after year. Many of the hundreds
Sprinkle-Hamlin continues to serve as president
Asked what gave her the drive to keep the festival
Also key to the festival’s continued success is
A board member, Cheryl Oliver, was appointed as
of volunteers are local but some come from other
interim executive director of the NC Black Rep to help
states, including Ohio and New York. Sprinkle-
produce the 2007 festival, with Sprinkle-Hamlin as
Hamlin reported that the festival relies on “60
the festival’s interim artistic director. Hamlin passed
assistant coordinators of volunteers in various
12 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
and state arts councils, the city of Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, the National Endowment for the Arts and individual donations. The NBTF’s attendance remained strong in 2019 at an estimated 64,000.
“As our slogan says, the National Black Theatre
Festival is an international celebration and reunion of spirit,” Alexander said. “People come for the theatre, but they also come to visit with old friends who have become family over the years. I think this is the key Owens Daniels
to the festival’s consistently strong attendance.” He says that NC Black Rep has faced more of a challenge when it comes to attracting audiences.
“Over the past few years, we’ve worked to forge a
similar bond between audiences and NC Black Rep Actress/singer Leslie Uggums (left) receives the Sidney Poitier Lifetime Achievement Award from 2019 Tony Award winner André De Shields at the 2019 NBTF.
areas – ushers, transportation, vendors, etc.” Volun-
that audiences share with the NBTF,” Alexander said.
teer training begins in May before the festival,
“In short, we’ve reached out, inviting audiences to be
with remote training for out-of-town volunteers.
a part of the NC Black Rep family by giving back to
Alexander recalled meeting a volunteer during his
the community.”
first year at the festival. The man, who was driving
Harkening back to the Living Room Theatre
people to the airport, said he used his one week of
Hamlin created, NC Black Rep has started producing
annual vacation to volunteer every festival year.
staged readings of plays in locations around Winston-
Looking ahead: Outreach, new initiatives
Salem, such as libraries and parks.
Today, the NBTF operates on a $2-million budget,
“We choose plays that address issues such as
with funding provided by local corporations, local
voting rights, the Black Lives Matter movement,
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14 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
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veterans’ benefits, LGBTQ rights, teen parenting and the right to choose, in hopes of sparking debate and allowing diverse viewpoints on these hot-button topics,” Alexander said. “The readings are free to the public and target underserved members of the community, such as the elderly, low-income residents and others who might not otherwise have access or the means to enjoy live theatre and whose stories are often marginalized by society.” Owens Daniels
Resources and services are often provided in conjunction with the readings, such as “voter registration drives, a veterans’ benefits fair, and a talkback with the mayor, police officers and a mental health expert on community policing and social justice,” Alexander said. Other community events have
breast cancer death, included post-show discus-
included free mammogram screenings for low-
sions with a panel of oncologists. A production of
income residents and a yearly Martin Luther King
Maid’s Door by Cheryl Davis included talkbacks with
Jr. birthday celebration that doubles as a local talent
members of the Wake Forest University Sticht Center
show and food drive for the local food bank.
for Aging and Alzheimer’s Awareness.
NC Black Rep has developed similar community
“I believe our responsibility as artistic leaders is
partnerships in conjunction with many of its fully
not only to entertain but to engage and enrich the
staged productions. For example, at the 2017 NBTF,
lives of our audience members and community,”
NC Black Rep’s production of Angelica Chari’s The
Alexander said. “Engage, enrich, entertain – those
Sting of White Roses, about a family dealing with a
three words have become a mantra at NC Black Rep
LG Williams, Sidney Wilson, Asha Duniani, Dewitt Fleming Jr., Brandon Woods, Jontavious Johnson and J. Andrew Speas appear in Jelly’s Last Jam, the opening production at the 2019 NBTF, presented by NC Black Rep and directed by Jackie Alexander.
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theatre classic that had been previously performed at the festival,” Alexander said. “Over a 48-hour period, the plays were cast, rehearsed and produced as an evening of shorts.” Black theatre is for everyone
Across NC Black Rep, from its outreach programs
to its production of the NBTF, Alexander sees a common purpose. “Using theatre to introduce audiences to people, places and stories they didn’t know and may even fear has served as a bridge to bring the community residents together,” Alexander said.
He went on to share a story from his own child-
Larente Hamlin
hood growing up in a small town outside of New Orleans. His town did not have any Jewish residents, and he fell into the trap of defining the Jewish community based on the words and opinions of others. That all changed when, at age 12 or 13, he saw NC Black Rep has worked to develop stronger connections with audiences by providing resources in conjunction with performances and staged readings. Above, Perri Gaffney and Brandon Jones appear in a production of Angelica Chari’s The Sting of White Roses, about a family dealing with a breast cancer death, which included post-show discussions with a panel of oncologists.
that define what I believe to be a very honorable
a production of The Diary of Anne Frank.
mission as an artist.”
“That’s what the arts can do: it can remove the fear
NC Black Rep is also focused on producing work
of the unknown, instill the desire to learn, remind
that catches the attention of the theatre world on a
us of the shared struggles we face, and introduce us
national level, Alexander said, noting as an example
to people and places we may never encounter in our
the theatre’s upcoming world premiere production of
daily lives,” Alexander said. “And in a world that is
Phenomenal Woman: Maya Angelou by Nambi Kelley.
seemingly becoming more intolerant by the day, a
The play was commissioned by NC Black Rep and
lesson that we must all learn to accept is that engag-
inspired by the life of Angelou, who passed away
ing in the arts is not only crucial to our community
in 2014. Originally scheduled to open at NC Black
but to the world at large.”
Rep in April 2020, the play has been pushed back to
Aug. 1-16, 2020, due to the COVID-19 virus.
crew was there to shoot footage for a new initiative at
The play will have a national rollout following
NC Black Rep: a documentary film about the festival,
its premiere at NC Black Rep, as a result of receiving
Holy Ground: The Legacy of the National Black Theatre
the inaugural Sylvia Sprinkle-Hamlin Rolling World
Festival. For his SETC audience, Alexander screened
Premiere Award, an initiative unveiled at the 2019
a trailer of the film, which will preview at the 2021
NBTF that is designed to promote new voices.
festival. The goal is for it to have a wider distribution
that will attract more people to the festival.
“This award will be presented at each festival and
While Alexander was at the SETC Convention, a
guarantees the winning playwright at least three
regional premieres over the two years following the
festival. … They should get to Winston-Salem every
festival,” Alexander said.
other year,” said Lange. “It will lead to more work and
In addition to NC Black Rep, Hattiloo Theatre
to being informed and literate about black theatre.”
in Memphis and The Ensemble Theatre in Houston
will present productions of Phenomenal Woman: Maya
artist to attend. As Sprinkle-Hamlin noted, “Black
Angelou.
theatre is for everyone to come and enjoy.” The next
NBTF will be held in Winston-Salem in August 2021,
Another new addition to the festival in 2019 was
48 Hours in...™ Holy Ground, produced with the OBIE
“Young black theatre artists really need to get to the
Of course, you do not have to be a black theatre
and you are invited. n
Award-winning Harlem9, which provided playwrights with writing opportunities and gave young actors attending the festival a chance to perform in sold-out performances. “We invited six playwrights to each write one 15-minute play reimagining an African American 16 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
J. K. Curry is an associate professor of theatre at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC, and the chair of SETC’s Publications Committee.
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 17
Celebrating SETC’s Jeff Gibson, the outgoing SETC president, presents the traditional gavel and Robert’s Rules of Order (above) to the new president, Maegan McNerney Azar, during the Saturday business meeting at the 2020 SETC Convention. On these pages, we revisit scenes from the 71st annual convention in attended by more than 4,500 theatre artists, managers, teachers, students and volunteers. The convention provided members with an opportunity to audition, find a job, perform, hear keynote speakers, learn new techniques, network, view exhibits, hire employees, watch top-notch theatre and much more. Photos by Mark Mahan 18 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
David Hawkins
Louisville, KY, which was
71st in Louisville
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 19
MATTHEW AARON STERN How Stage Management Can Change the World
Mark Mahan
T
by Laura King
To the rocking sounds of Queen’s song “One Vision,” Matthew Aaron Stern took the stage at SETC 2020 to
Above: Matthew Aaron Stern holds a headphonewearing duck from the Stage Managers’ Association’s “Adopt a Duck” program as he speaks to a Friday keynote audience at the 2020 SETC Convention in Louisville, KY.
share his vision of the important and wide-ranging role that stage managers play in the world of theatre. Enthusiastic and energetic, Stern offered the audience a glimpse of his career as a Broadway and corporate stage manager and founder of the Broadway Stage Management Symposium. He reminded the audience that 2020 has been designated the year of the stage manager because, 100 years ago, Actors’ Equity Association approved a change in its contractual language to include stage managers and assistant stage managers.
Throughout his Friday keynote, Stern encouraged his audience to expand their image of the stage manager
beyond the stereotype of a person wearing a headset, calling cues and creating paperwork. “That’s just the 10 percent that you see; there’s 90 percent that you don’t see,” he said. “And that 90 percent, that’s the really, really important stuff.” The main job of the stage manager, he said, is communication: “We work with members of the company, we support them, we communicate information.”
As a stage manager, he said, “You can change the world of the people that you’re working with, and that
goes on and on, and it creates ripples. The little things that you do, that little puddle that you drop, those 20 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
SETC Friday Keynote Speaker
ripples expand and expand and grow and grow and
He earned his Actors’ Equity Association card
change people in ways you don’t even know.”
working on Randy Newman’s Faust at La Jolla Play-
From actor to stage manager
house. After a detour to the Midwest, where he served
Like many in the field, Stern didn’t set out to be
as the resident stage manager for Ballet Iowa, Stern
a stage manager. Born in Brooklyn in the 1970s, he
returned to San Diego to work on a new musical, Play
moved to the San Fernando Valley/Los Angeles area
On! When Play On! transferred to Broadway, Stern
as a preschooler. He likens his upbringing to the film
moved to New York City as a production assistant
Fast Times at Ridgemont High; during his teen years,
with the show, thus launching his Broadway career.
he spent time at the same movie theatres and food
Since then, Stern has worked on more than 20 Broad-
courts featured in the iconic movie. He went on to
way productions.
study theatre at the University of California, San
Small things, big results
manager,
Diego (UCSD).
‘You can change
he said, is to be a leader, supporting the company and
“ I started college as an actor, as many people do,”
One of the stage manager’s most important roles,
Stern said in an interview. “That was all I knew.”
proactively solving problems. The small things the
Soon, he discovered there was much more to
stage manager does can have a major impact, he said.
theatre. While in college, he worked as a lightboard
operator for school projects, as a stage manager for a
Stern said. “It’s about actively listening and figuring
small local theatre and then as an electrician for La
out what does this person need me to do to take care
Jolla Playhouse, which shares facilities with UCSD.
of them?”
“Then La Jolla Playhouse asked me if I wanted
What they need doesn’t always fall under the
to be an assistant lighting designer on an upcoming
umbrella of a stage manager’s traditional responsi-
show, or a production assistant,” he said. “I chose the
bilities. One evening, when Stern was working as a
PA job and that set me on the path towards a career
production stage manager on An Evening with Patti
and a life in stage management.”
LuPone and Mandy Patinkin, LuPone became frustrated
“It’s not just about anticipating someone’s needs,”
As a stage
the world of the people that you’re working with, and that goes on and on, and it creates ripples. The little things that you do, that
MATTHEW AARON STERN: Bio and Career Highlights
little puddle that you drop, those
EDUCATION: BA, Theatre, University of California, San Diego SELECTED BROADWAY CREDITS: Finding Neverland, Stage Manager Doctor Zhivago, Assistant Stage Manager Side Show, Stage Manager On the Town, Production Stage Manager Hands on a Hardbody, Stage Manager Death of a Salesman, Stage Manager An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin, Production Stage Manager Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, Assistant Stage Manager Baby It’s You!, Stage Manager The Little Mermaid, Assistant Stage Manager Fiddler on the Roof, Assistant Stage Manager Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All, Stage Manager Wicked, Assistant Stage Manager Enchanted April, Stage Manager
The Full Monty, Assistant Stage Manager Play On!, Stage Manager Grease, Assistant Stage Manager
ripples expand
SELECTED CORPORATE STAGE MANAGEMENT CLIENTS: Google Samsung Facebook Lenovo Lexus Volkswagen
grow and grow
and expand and
and change people in ways you don’t even know.’ - Matthew
TEACHING CREDITS/MEMBERSHIPS: SUNY Purchase, Instructor Broadway Stage Management Symposium, Founder Stage Managers’ Association USA, Board Member Actors’ Equity Association, Member American Guild of Variety Artists, Member
Aaron Stern
More information: www.broadwaysymposium.com/about
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 21
22 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
with the audience for leaving playbills
(the understudy of the ensemble) would
onstage and complained to Stern. His quick
come into the show. This gave ensemble
response: “I’ll call the house manager.
members a chance to reconnect with the
We’ll take care of it right away.”
show as audience members and gave the
When Stern worked on Finding Never-
swings a chance to perform.
land, there were strict rules about which
When Stern was working on The Full
understudies were allowed to perform.
Monty, the production stage manager,
However, one of the emergency understud-
Nancy Harrington, bought 50 boxes of Girl
ies was working hard and performing well
Scout cookies and then distributed them
in understudy rehearsals, so the produc-
sporadically as treats to keep energy up
tion stage manager went to bat for her
and keep the team excited.
by scheduling a rehearsal where director
During Fiddler on the Roof, the produc-
Diane Paulus could see her perform. After
tion team decided to have a Seder for the
the run-through, Paulus gave approval for
members of the company, Jewish or not,
the understudy to go on, and the performer
in the lobby of the Minskoff Theatre. So,
eventually became the primary under-
between shows on Passover, they ordered
study.
chicken and matzo and had a potluck
“That opportunity never would have
dinner, which valued not only the tradi-
happened without the stage manager going
tions represented in the show but also the
to bat, not just following the rules,” Stern
members of the company.
said. “Now she gets seen by more people.
This tradition of breaking bread and
… That could change the trajectory of her
sharing experiences has been a part of
career, right? Small thing, big results.”
many of the shows Stern has worked on.
A similar situation occurred with The
In addition, most Broadway shows partake
Little Mermaid. The show had been running
in SNOB (Saturday Night on Broadway),
a while, actors were coming and going,
a social media event in which company
and the production team was figuring out
members celebrate their shows from back-
coverages and leaves of absence. The show
stage or the dressing rooms.
needed a new Prince Eric understudy, and
Avoiding, responding to accidents
the production team liked one of the actors
Along with making the workplace an
who was working as a swing. Although
enjoyable environment, stage managers are
swings don’t traditionally serve as under-
responsible for protecting the physical and
studies because they have to be available
mental states of the company members.
to cover for the ensemble, the production
When Stern was working on the revival
team decided that the policy should be
of Fiddler on the Roof, Sally Murphy, the
changed to give this actor an opportunity.
actress playing Tzeitel, was nervous about
“We did that, and he went on and he
having to fly 40 feet in the air in the dream
was great,” Stern said “So, again, going to
sequence. Stern and the production team
bat, figuring out a creative solution. Small
worked to build Murphy’s confidence.
things make big things.”
While working on Spider-Man: Turn Off
Creating engagement
the Dark, Stern was told by the production
Noting that working on a long-running
stage manager that there was so much
show can take its toll, Stern highlighted
complicated technology in the show
some ways that stage managers can make
that it wasn’t a question of what to do if
the long days more enjoyable for everyone.
something goes wrong but rather what
While Stern was on the successful tour of
to do when something goes wrong and
Les Misérables, the production team instated
minimizing the consequences of that:
something called “swing outs” in which
“Unfortunately, with Spider-Man, there
members of the ensemble would sit in the
were some serious accidents, none of them
house and watch the show and the swing
when I was there, just for the record.”
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Stern’s worst day at work ever, he said,
defibrillate her in front of the audience.
Small things can make a difference for
occurred during The Little Mermaid, when
Once the woman was revived and taken to
stage managers, just as they can for the rest
an actor fell 30 feet right before curtain.
the hospital, the show was set to begin, but
of the cast and crew, he noted, giving an
After the actor was rushed to the hospital,
Annie Golden, the actress playing Georgie
example from the high-stress environment
the company had to decide what to do next.
Bukatinsky, was distraught and at a loss for
of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.
“This is a moment, as a stage manager,
how to start the show. Stern gave Golden
when I ask, ‘Do I step up and say, “The
the time she needed to compose herself,
the building goes into laser focus,” he said.
show must go on. This is what we have
while reminding her that she would serve
“Everyone in the building knows that every
to do”?’ That’s an option. But … in this
the audience by letting them escape into
second for the next three and a half minutes
instance what was successful was just step-
the show and share what the company had
has to be done exactly the way it’s designed
ping back, taking the time, not rushing the
created on stage.
to be done or everything falls apart and bad
company, letting everyone be together, and
“It took some time for her to breathe and
things happen. So, in the stage manager’s
letting one of the acting members of the
feel that way, but being there, supporting
office, they had a little hula doll that shook
company step up [and make the decision
her, understanding the challenges she was
its hips and played music, and when things
to proceed]. Allowing ourselves to step
going through and how to communicate
got really stressful, they’d turn it on. Every-
back and not charge through it was the best
them well to her was really important to
one in the stage manager’s office would be
thing for that company, to be able to take
be able to launch the show with the right
dancing just to blow off steam and let it out.
a moment to collect themselves, reconnect,
energy and passion that Jack O’Brien [the
This was a great way for us to detox a little
and let them lead us. Sometimes just doing
director] wanted,” Stern said.
bit.”
that little thing makes a big difference.”
Taking care of yourself
This need for self-care is one of the
Stern also worked on the entire run of
Much of the stage manager’s time is
reasons Stern founded the Broadway
The Full Monty on Broadway. One evening,
spent tending to the needs of others, but
Stage Management Symposium. While
a woman in the front row had a cardiac
Stern emphasized that stage managers
he applauds organizations such as SETC
event. The EMTs were called and had to
need to take care of themselves as well.
and the United States Institute for Theatre
“There are a couple of sequences where
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24 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
Technology (USITT) for creating space for stage managers, he also believes that stage managers benefit from gathering together as a group. The Broadway Stage Management Symposium is a yearly weekend gathering of Broadway stage managers that offers panels, seminars and lectures by professional stage managers from all over the world. Stern likens the event to a gym.
“This is where we can exercise,” he said.
“We can do our reps. We can build those muscles. Because that’s what we need.”
Stage managers need to keep their skills
sharp, and the Broadway Stage Management Symposium offers them the chance to do that, he said. More information about the symposium can be found at www. broadwaysymposium.com. Artists, as well as managers
Stern strongly believes that stage managers play an important role in the overall creative vision of the show. More than just facilitators managing time, resources and people, they are also part of the artistic team, supporting the welfare of the company. A happier company, he believes, leads to a better production.
“Whether they’re actors or stagehands,
whether they’re the musicians in the building [or] the front house staff, by creating this engagement, people like being at work,” Stern said.
COVID-19 Update Matthew Aaron Stern’s next Broadway Stage Management Symposium, scheduled for May 30-31, 2020, in New York City, will proceed as scheduled but will move to an online format, he announced as Southern Theatre went to press. “We’re partnering with a great event company to create a highly interactive and robust experience online,” Stern said. More info: www.broadwaysymposium.com
He reminded his keynote audience that
most people in theatre have worked on
can move to the 10 percent of the job that
shows they couldn’t wait to end.
requires facilitation. That’s when you put
“How would you like to never have to
on the headset, call the show and facilitate
feel that way again and for all the people
the production. That’s when everyone
in your company to never have to feel that
comes together – the actors, the musi-
way again, to feel appreciated, supported,
cians, the stagehands, the stage manager
which in turn affects their lives?” he asked.
and the audience – to create the world of
Stern then outlined simple ways that
the play. That artistic creation then offers
stage managers can create that environ-
a transformative experience to everyone
ment: Go visit dressing rooms, build
involved. And that, Stern said, is how stage
personal connections, be proactive about
management can change the world. n
helping people. All of these things, these “soft skills,” the part of your job that involves communication, support and empathy, constitute the 90 percent of what stage managers do, Stern
Laura King is a professional playwright, a member of the SETC Publications Committee and the chair of the SETC Playwriting Committee.
said. After you’ve accomplished them, you Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 25
ASHLEE LATIMER Building Connections Is Key in Social Media and Career
Mark Mahan
W
by Amy Cuomo
When Ashlee Latimer arrived at the SETC Convention in 2013, she had no idea that a connection she would make at this event would start her on the path to becoming a social media strategist and Tony Award-winning producer. Latimer – then a student looking for work, who had originally planned to attend the entire 2013 convention in Louisville, KY – was just glad to have made it to the convention before it ended.
“Through a series of unfortunate events, including a semi-truck catching fire on the highway, I didn’t get
here until the last 45 minutes of the job fair on Saturday,” Latimer told her keynote audience at the 2020 SETC Above: Ashlee Latimer delivers the Thursday keynote during the 2020 SETC Convention.
Convention, also in Louisville. “And then I found out that my professor hadn’t signed my paperwork correctly. So, I literally pleaded my way in, and I thought, “I have 40 minutes, and I have to get a job this summer.”
Many people would have given up at that point, but Latimer strategically revised her game plan.
“I saw that there was one theatre that had the longest line, and I [thought] well, if it’s like a restaurant that
means it’s probably the best place to work, so I’ll just hop in line there,” she said. “I was the last person to get in line for the Berkshire Theatre Group, and I ended up working in their marketing department that summer, which is how I first started working on social media. … Basically every career move that I’ve made since then can kind of be traced back to that first stab that I got at social media.”
26 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
SETC Thursday Keynote Speaker
From the Berkshires to Broadway, Ashlee Latim-
corner and listen to opera and read. … As I got older,
er’s success can be attributed to the same grit, deter-
she was very supportive but also very ‘Can we just
mination and willingness to seize opportunities that
throw you in a pool?’ – in a positive way. And so I
she exhibited at the 2013 SETC Convention. Still in her
quickly learned that I was going to need to forge my
20s, she has already achieved remarkable success. Her
own path.”
recent projects include co-producing The Inheritance,
Be More Chill and the popular revival of Once on This
year and found a job at the Knoxville Children’s
Island, for which she won a Tony Award, becoming
Theatre. She worked on numerous productions there
the first gender-fluid person to win the prestigious
before beginning college at Pellissippi State Commu-
honor. Latimer was also the brand strategist for The
nity College and then moving on to the University of
Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical. While work-
Tennessee, Knoxville. As she studied directing, she
ing on that show, she cultivated more than 50,000
realized she would need New York connections to
Twitter fans under the handle Mx. Thief.
pursue her dreams. Knowing that she wouldn’t be
I acquired a
In a Thursday keynote and a Wednesday master-
able to make a lot of trips to, or spend a lot of time
class for high school students at the 2020 SETC
in, New York, she had to “figure out a way to make
producing
Convention, she emphasized the importance of
connections in a different way. So I started getting
partner, my dear friend Jenna
After high school, Latimer decided to take a gap
‘In six weeks,
making connections and building relationships.
involved with social media. My best friend actually
A circuitous road
talked me into getting Twitter.”
Ashlee Latimer’s path to successful social media
While working at the Berkshire Theatre Group
Ushkowitz,
brand strategist and Broadway producer started
in the summer of 2013, she dabbled in social media,
and we raised
in her hometown of Knoxville, TN. Nothing in her
producing content such as “did-you-know fun facts
background there would suggest a theatre career
about BTG history.”
could be a viable option.
“I come from a long line of homemakers and coal
jump-start her career through Twitter. A fan of the
miners and waitresses, a couple teachers and one
show Smash, she began following a Twitter group,
engineer,” she said. “And my mom was a jock in high
Annoying Actor Friend, that parodied Broadway and
school; she ran track and swam. So, when she got me,
the theatre industry, and posted recaps of Smash.
she wondered, ‘What do we do?’ Because I was like
“One day, as a joke, I tweeted, ‘Career goals:
a pet rock two-year-old who just wanted to sit in the
interning for Annoying Actor Friend.’“ To her
Later, Latimer got an unexpected opportunity to
$100,000, even though neither of us had ever raised money before, and we became co-producers
Ashlee Latimer: Bio and Career Highlights
[for Once on This Island].
EDUCATION: BA, Theatre, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2016 BROADWAY CREDITS: Brand Strategist, Martian Entertainment and TheaterWorks USA, The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical (January 2017 – January 2020) Co-producer (with Jenna Ushkowitz), Once on This Island (Dec. 3, 2017 – Jan. 6, 2019)
And it all started on Twitter.’ - Ashlee Latimer
Co-producer (with Jenna Ushkowitz), Be More Chill (March 10, 2019 – Aug. 11, 2019) Co-producer, The Inheritance (Nov. 17, 2019 – March 15, 2020) WEST END CREDITS: Co-producer, The Jungle (May 2018 – December 2018) AWARDS: 2018 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical, Once on This Island (first openly gender-fluid person to win a Tony Award) More Info: www.linkedin.com/in/ashlee-latimer
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 27
28 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
surprise, they not on ly replied but
working with children. This will be fun,’”
also gave her an assignment: “Your first task
Latimer said.
as a potential intern, should you accept it, is
Then the tweets back to her account
to create a Wikipedia page for us.”
streamed in: “We hate you. Go away. We
Latimer overcame several hurdles to
didn’t ask for a musical.”
post that page, including teaching herself
to code, but she accomplished her mission.
them know “we can’t do business as usual.
As a result, Annoying Actor Friend pro-
We have to create a space that lets the fans
vided her with an intern account called
know we are on their side, we also were
“Blessedterns.” Here, she created an anony-
disappointed in the movies, we have read
mous character that, she says, “was also a
the books, and we’re here for them. … That
loving parody of Broadway fan and intern
was and continues to be a pretty atypical
culture.” Her experience at Annoying
approach to traditional marketing.”
Actor Friends proved to be pivotal: “What
Instead of working toward filling the
that gave me the opportunity to do was to
show’s seats by hard-selling the musi-
start building relationships with people in
cal, Latimer created a community. She
Latimer went to the producers and let
the community.”
described it as “this space where kids
Creating connections
logged on every day not just to see memes
The relationships Latimer built via
… but also to encourage each other and to
social media linked her with others work-
build friendships with one another and to
ing in theatre in New York – and eventually
learn about current events.”
she moved there at a contact’s urging. Soon
Rather than focusing on immediate
she had a position as brand strategist for
profits, she concentrated on creating a
the Broadway musical The Lightning Thief:
community. Her tweets were not, “Come to
The Percy Jackson Musical. Her experience
the show and then we forget who you are.”
there provides a glimpse into her approach
Instead she focused on learning about Mx.
to social media.
Thief’s Twitter followers and providing
“Social media is one of those aspects of
them with helpful content. They responded
the industry that feels so confusing and so
in kind. When two college students set out
big, and I want to try to demystify it a little
to raise money for people who had tweeted
bit for you,” she said.
they couldn’t afford to see the show, fans
Successful social media, she said, is
all over the world helped. After another
about creating connections and relation-
Twitter follower revealed her daughter
ships – as illustrated by her work for Percy
was bullied at school, hundreds of Percy
Jackson.
Jackson fans sent words of encouragement.
“If you’re not familiar with Percy Jackson,
Then, when they discovered mother and
it’s a series of middle-grade books that are
daughter had never seen a musical, they
modernizations of Greek myths, and it’s
raised money to buy plane tickets for them
got a huge fan base,” Latimer said, “ranging
to see the show. Latimer believes these acts
from people who are in sixth grade now, up
of kindness occurred “because we put
to people who are in their 30s, who were in
relationship over data.”
sixth grade when the books first came out.”
From strategist to producer
Broadway was not the first to capitalize on
these popular books, which Latimer soon
Latimer’s social media campaign for Percy
found was a hurdle to success with her
Jackson, they also have been an important
own efforts. Fans had not liked the movie
factor in her career success. Today, in addi-
adaptations of the series and were skeptical
tion to her work in social media, she also
of a musical as well.
handles creative development for TBD
“So, my first experience of starting the
Theatricals, the production company of
account – I was, ‘Oh, great, children! I love
Tony Award-winning producer Hunter
Just as relationships were the focus in
Joan Marcus
Ashlee Latimer (right) holds the Tony Award she received as co-producer of the revival of Once on This Island on Broadway (above).
Casey Perfetto via Knoxville Style Magazine
Arnold. Her work as a Broadway producer came through UpLift, which is Arnold’s under-represented producers initiative. Social media was the key to opening that door, Latimer said. While working as a brand strategist, she realized she missed being involved in the shows themselves. Conversations with a colleague on Twitter led to a gig producing a concert at 54 Below, a cabaret venue. While there, she met an intern who was working for the venue. “Then, a few months later, she was interning in Hunter Arnold’s office, and he was getting ready to start this new produc-
shared the 2018 Tony Award for Best Musi-
ing initiative to help increase the number
cal Revival with Arnold and Ken Daven-
of under-represented producers,” Latimer
port, the lead producers.
said. “And she told them to put my name on
Be kind as you follow your dreams
a list for people to reach out to because she
The key to successful networking via
was like, ‘She was nice to me when I was an
social media, Latimer said, is to deter-
intern.’ So always be nice to the interns.”
mine the type of community you want
Latimer was brought in for a meeting
to build and then to find ways to engage
about Once on This Island and was offered
with people in that community. It’s not
the opportunity.
important which social media platform
“So, in six weeks, I acquired a producing
you use, but rather that you choose one
partner, my dear friend Jenna Ushkow-
that you like to use and on which you can
itz, and we raised $100,000, even though
post consistent content. Similarly, it’s not
neither of us had ever raised money before,
the number of followers you have, but the
and we became co-producers. And it all
type of followers that you cultivate that’s
started on Twitter.”
critical, she said.
Latimer and Ushkowitz were among
20 Once on This Island co-producers who
excited about and start following them and
“If you find people whose work you’re
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 29
engaging with them, that can turn into a
… say, ‘No!’ And sometimes that negative
person or you’re poor or you’re disabled
long-term relationship,” Latimer said.
self-talk is so strong that I have to actively
or you live at an intersection of two or
In addition to connections, Latimer
say, ‘No!’”
more of those things,” Latimer said. “It
places a strong emphasis on kindness,
But these strategies aren’t always
can be so hard to stick with it, but I hope
which allows her to envision a new model
enough, she said. Sometimes thinking of
that you know that every single minute
for a successful career, one that is caring
others is the secret ingredient that helps
that you choose to stay in the industry
and personal and emphasizes our common
you build confidence.
and keep working on your craft, whether
humanity. Sometimes, we can lose sight
“I ask myself, what if there’s someone
it is full-time or after your kids have gone
of the fact that we’re working with indi-
out there who really needs today to see
to sleep, or in the early Saturday morning
viduals who have their own wants, dreams,
a queer, fat person, who grew up poor,
hours before you go clock in at Starbucks,
desires and struggles. Latimer suggests
living vibrantly, and I’m their only chance
that is one minute closer for someone else
that acknowledging other people’s accom-
to see that? What if somebody needs to see
who really needs to see your story getting
plishments – such as a simple email
me doing this because they’re feeling that
to see themselves reflected in you.” n
saying, “This is so exciting for you; keep
they’re alone too?”
on keeping on” – goes a long way when
developing relationships. Establishing
– but them as well – to succeed, she said.
long-term connections with people takes
“This industry is so joyful but it is so
time. Latimer encouraged her audience to
tough, especially if you are a person of
“play the long game, keep it focused on
color or you’re a woman or an LGBTQ
Amy Cuomo is a professor of theatre at the University of West Georgia. Her short plays have been produced in several states and her play Happy was a finalist for the Heideman Award.
Thinking of others can help not just you
treating people like people.” At the same time, she recommended that people not be afraid to ask for what
Advice for High School Students from Ashlee Latimer
they want: “I truly don’t know what my
On Wednesday of convention week,
life would look like right now if I hadn’t
Ashlee Latimer presented a master-
tweeted, ‘Career goals: interning for
class for high school students (left).
Annoying Actor Friend.’”
Below are highlights from the advice
Urging her audience to put their dreams
she shared:
out there, Latimer told the story of Matthew
You Are the Now
Cherry, who, eight years ago, tweeted,
What you think, what you believe in,
’One day I’m going to be nominated for
what you are working on right now
an Oscar.” He “just put that out into the
matters. You can post mini-reviews
universe,” she said. “And I’m sure that,
right now of plays that you’ve seen.
at the time, there were probably people
Even when no one is paying attention,
who were thinking, ‘Okay, Matthew.’”
you can keep making art. You’re going
Fast forward to February 2020. Matthew
to forge your own path, and where you
Cherry won an Academy Award for his
are right now is part of that path.
short animated film Hair Love.
You Deserve to Get Paid
In closing her keynote, Latimer recount-
Internships and entry-level positions
ed a question that a student asked the
need to be paid. Even if the internship
previous evening at her masterclass for
is advertised as unpaid, you can ask to
high school students: “How do you build
be paid. It’s time to shift the narrative!
up confidence?” She shared several strat-
Understand that there’s no shame in
egies that have worked for her. One is to
working a 9-5 job while you’re pursuing
adopt a “superhero stance” so you will feel
your own creative work! (Remember
more confident.
that Lin-Manuel Miranda was a sub-
A second is to sternly banish negative
self-talk when it pops up: “I think of it like when you see a kid, reaching out to touch a hot stove. And you’re not thinking, ‘Well, if they burn their fingers, it’s on them.’ You 30 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
stitute teacher!) Find Your People
Putting yourself out there is scary. You get to decide who to take notes from. Some advice isn’t helpful, so don’t listen to everyone’s opinion.
Photos by Mark Mahan
John E.R. “Jerf” Friedenberg peeks out from behind the curtain at the Secondary School Theatre Festival during the 2020 SETC Convention (left) as past President Tiza Garland approaches to help present SETC’s Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award to him (center). At right, Friedenberg holds the Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award after President Jeff Gibson announced him as the 2020 winner. Heavily involved in SETC for many years, Friedenberg is a life member and served on the SETC Board of Directors from 2011 to 2019.
John E.R. Friedenberg Receives SETC’s 2020 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award This award is traditionally presented at the SETC Awards Banquet. When this year’s exceptionally modest and introverted recipient could not be tricked or cajoled into attending the Awards Banquet, outgoing President Jeff Gibson and past President Tiza Garland surprised him where he was working – at the SETC Secondary School Theatre Festival. Following are Gibson’s remarks.
T
he Suzan ne M. Davis Memorial
the boards of several other theatre and arts
ence, he has organized and run the under-
Award was established to honor
organizations, and he is an adjudicator
graduate and graduate school auditions.
one individual for distinguished service
for Kennedy Center American College
He also served for many years as the North
to SETC over a number of years and
Theatre Festival and for state and thespian
Carolina representative to SETC. And now
is presented during the annual SETC
organizations.
he assists in coordinating the Secondary
Convention. It is recognized as one of
School Theatre Festival.
SETC’s highest honors.
theatre and associate teaching professor
Please join me in recognizing the
at Wake Forest University, where he has
2020 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award
dedicated himself to SETC for many years
taught for over 25 years.
recipient – Mr. John E.R. Friedenberg,
and in many ways. He has also served on
For the Southeastern Theatre Confer-
known to most of us as “Jerf.” n
This year’s award recipient has certainly
In his daily life, he works as director of
RESPONSE FROM ‘JERF’ FRIEDENBERG I’m not quite sure what I said upon receiving this award. I think it was something along the line of, “If I had known about this, I would have arranged a family emergency!” I am an introvert who can be “on” when necessary, but being the center of attention is not my cup of tea. I’m the one who hangs out at the sound mixer at a concert or with the caterers at a party. I have volunteered at many things, but none have approached the scope and length of my involvement with SETC. I have long felt that theatre is an ideal liberal art, as its lessons are about people and relationships, and perception and truth. I have always felt that using theatre as a vehicle for education can help each individual become a capable, aware, thinking contributor to life and society. I am happy to have had (and to still have!) the opportunity to contribute to this through SETC. I thank you for this honor and especially for giving up on your efforts to get me to the banquet!
ABOUT THE AWARD This prestigious award was established following the death in 1964 of SETC member Suzanne M. Davis, costume designer for Unto These Hills and wife of SETC’s 10th president, Harry Davis. Alvin Cohen, then owner of Paramount Theatrical Supplies in New York, approached the SETC president and said he wanted to sponsor an annual award in Suzanne’s name to honor her, as well as an individual who had given outstanding service to SETC. The board accepted the offer, and the Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award was born. Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 31
MOMENT WORK Embracing a ‘Tectonic Shift’ in the Creation of Theatre
Chris Bailey
B
by Gaye Jeffers
Before the hustle and bustle of the 2020 SETC Convention got into full swing, a group of educators gathered for the 15th annual Teachers Institute, featuring Tectonic Theater Project’s Moment Work training. Led by company members Barbara Pitts McAdams and Grant James Varjas, the Moment Work Level 1 session welcomed participants ranging from middle school teachers, to college students majoring in education, to professors.
Several remarked that productions of Tectonic’s play, The Laramie Project, were break-through moments in
their theatre programs for both students and audience members, in terms of form and content. The techniques used to create the play – about the town of Laramie, WY, in the aftermath of the murder of Matthew Shepard – remained both a topic of conversation and an example that helped provide an introduction to Moment Work training.
Founded in 1991 by Moises Kaufman and Jeffrey LaHoste, Tectonic Theater Project is a New York-based
company whose work focuses on the development of new plays. Tectonic’s perspective on devising is centered Instructors lead participants in Moment Work at the 2020 SETC Teachers Institute in Louisville, KY.
on what Kaufman calls “writing performance as opposed to writing text.” The idea that a play script is only one element of theatre makes space for other theatrical elements to bring narrative possibilities into the rehearsal room. Moment Work can help theatre move “beyond language” as the first step in creating theatrical narratives, McAdams said. From script to organic development
Inspired by Samuel Beckett’s statement that “form is content,” Tectonic created devising processes in plays
such as The Laramie Project and Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde that were later codified into a method known as Moment Work. 32 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
SETC Teachers Institute
McAdams described Moment Work as a “tectonic
shift” away from creating theatre with a dependence on the written word – instead embracing other theatrical elements, such as props, sound, acting, lighting, costumes and scenic design, as equal partners with text. Without a script to define how a rehearsal process will begin or what the end result will be, the origin of a play becomes a more open and organic process. Inviting designers, stage managers and technicians into the creative process from day
‘We choose
one, instead of just before technical rehearsals, is an opportunity to use props, costumes and other design elements as inspiration to explore theatricality in different ways.
when the
Barbara Pitts McAdams (left) and Grant James Varjas of Tectonic Theater Project led the Moment Work training at the 2020 SETC Teachers Institute in Louisville, KY.
audience begins an experience,
Moment Work was defined by McAdams as “theatrical units of time instead of literal moments
Institute participants were asked to bring the
of time passing.” Moments are improvisations with
following items to the Teachers Institute: a small
theatrical elements that build blocks of ideas instead
prop, a piece of clothing, something that makes
of obeying ticks from a clock. Rehearsals become
sound, and a portable light source. In the workshop,
laboratories of experimentation instead of sessions
participants gave these common items new signifi-
of interpretation.
cance, not by assigning these objects meaning, but by
“We make our own moments, because we decide
looking first at their structure and how each might
when time begins and when it ends by simply stating:
be used outside of purpose or function to create
I begin. Something happens. I end,” McAdams said.
moments.
“We choose when the audience begins an experi-
ence, what they experience and when the experience
and factually in front of you before laying narrative
ends.”
or emotional layers on top,” Varjas instructed
participants. “We are defining a difference between
The two phrases, “I begin” and “I end” and what
“Start Moment Work by seeing what is actually
structural analysis and interpretive analysis.”
Moment Work. This framing device can be used as
See the space with no interpretation
a rehearsal technique, addressing questions in the
Beginning with what McAdams described as
creative process by providing a method to experi-
“architecture moments,” the group explored the
ment and examine all theatrical elements in search
room, looking for corners, patterns, structures in the
of narrative.
space that are not usually used or seen. Participants
TEACHER
Takeaways
happens between them, is the central construct of
what they experience and when the experience ends.’ - Barbara Pitts McAdams
“I thought the way they built the instruction was particularly helpful – starting with small simple activities and building to more complex ones.”
“I was able to implement Moment Work with light sources directly into my middle school Jr. Director class.”
“I love the fact that Moment Work engages actors as active collaborators in the devising/creation of performance. I will be integrating Moment Work into my classroom through scene work.”
- Melanie Leach, Theatre Instructor Paideia Academy Knoxville, TN
- Matthew Belopavlovich Theatre Department Artistic Director Patel Conservatory @ Straz Center, Tampa, FL
- Anne K. Swedberg, Assistant Professor University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Chattanooga, TN
Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 33
noticed patterns in the carpet, a hidden
the air, twisted to create an eddy, used as
Moments are created, shaped
niche in a wall of folding panels and the
a tug-of-war rope, and utilized as a woven
placement of lights in the ceiling. As they
filter for light to creep through – became
wall, moments were created, given a title
ignited the tool of observation, the space
moments that participants noted and
and written down. Documenting ideas that
itself began to speak, offering ideas based
named.
have been explored allows the process to
in fact, before a story begins. Redefining
“Create structure and let metaphor
build as more moments are created. As
the space in terms of structure versus
emerge,“ Varjas urged participants. This
Moment Work starts, everyone is explor-
interpreting the space in terms of mean-
phrase became a guiding mantra for the
ing and everyone is contributing. When
ing challenged the participants to see the
training.
McAdams was asked about the hierarchy
space without story or metaphor. These
By using the “I begin/I end” frame-
of this type of devising, she responded
“architecture moments” moved quickly
work, participants created moments
with the image of a funnel.
into improvisation with the props, costume
that were focused on analysis based in
“In the beginning of the process, all
pieces, items that create sound, and light
structure and not interpretation. This
ideas are welcome, but as we funnel the
sources they had brought with them.
method can be adapted for use in a vari-
ideas through the process, the pathway gets
Using butcherblock paper taped to the
Choosing a prop or a costume piece and
ety of scenarios, ranging from interviews
smaller, meaning that fewer people have
exploring it in terms of its qualities and its
with people, as in The Laramie Project, to
input,” she said. “At the end of the rehearsal
structure without regard for use or func-
look i ng at h istor ical docu ments or
process, when the funnel narrows, one
tion created moments that were inspired
objects. Letting interaction occur between
person becomes the decision maker,
and surprising. Setting a goal to discover
whatever source material is being explored
allowing only a few moments to make it
the structure of the object and not its
and the collaborators can often bring a
through the small end. Moment Work is
story is the opposite of how theatre artists
more organic and personal response to
not a democratic system. In the end there
usually respond in the creative process.
what McAdams calls the “organizing
is one decision maker. Some devised work
Exploring a scarf in terms of its ability to
principle” of a performance in develop-
is so democratic it’s unwatchable. We work
be used in different ways – thrown into
ment.
with one person who shapes the final piece
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November 5-8, 2020 | Crowne Plaza Hotel Atlanta-Airport low cost registration | one convenient location
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setc.org/link & usitt.org/link online registration opens August, 2020
34 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
TEACHER
Takeaways
Work can be used for any problem you have “[My favorite takeaway is] the reminder that we can take the same processes and apply them to various levels of understanding or age/ grade group and allow a student to create. Creating doesn’t get ‘old,’ and having the chance to create with fellow educators spurs new possibilities for teachers with their students.” - Jane Dewey Director of Arts Education Danville Independent School District, Danville, KY
“Moment Work perfectly goes hand in hand with the curiosity of my middle school students. They’re in that stage where they can still find the wonder and magic by focusing on the individual moment. It engages that wonder but also teaches them how to start devising and creating.”
in the theatre.,”McAdams said. “Often we
- Kyle Dusina, Theatre Teacher Johnnie R. Carr Middle School Montgomery, AL
Tectonic utilizes protocols and exercises
are trained to be interpretive theatre artists. As actors, we work to develop a neutral body and speak with “received pronunciation” instead of our native dialect. This is a passive approach. We can’t forget who we are. We can be more generative. Sometimes the work can be the healing.”
and community. A return to an experience that serves and replenishes both the artist and the audience. In a climate that often places product above process, the work of that encourage research and creativity that is spontaneous and personal. n
and brings selected moments together to
philosophy is more inclusive and chal-
create the performance.”
lenges the traditional notion that theatre
is created by one writer alone in a room.
Moment Work creates a more egalitar-
Moment Work is a reminder of theatre’s
ancient beginnings – in ritual, storytelling
ian theatre process because more minds
Because it opens the process to more
contribute in the rehearsal room. This
voices and more idea-makers, “Moment
Gaye Jeffers is a professor of directing, theatre history and playwriting at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She has worked with the Goodman Theatre, Chicago Dramatists and Victory Gardens Theatre.
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Spring 2020 x Southern Theatre x 35
2020 SETC Young Scholars Award Winners GRADUATE WINNER: TERESA SIMONE Performing Monkeys in Rococo France Teresa Simone is a
about Arlecchino giving birth to a baby
second-year PhD
monkey. There were several similar
student in theatre
figurines made, all linking Arlecchino
at F lor id a St at e
to mon keys. W hat creates t he l i n k
University. She is
between Arlecchino and monkeys? It
a graduate of the
was fashionable to depict performing and
Dell’Arte Interna-
performative monkeys in art. For example,
tional School for
there are paintings from the time period
Physical Theat re
that depict monkeys walking tightrope.
and has an MA in gender studies with a
Singerie was a trend in décor of painting
concentration in performance studies from
monkeys in clothing, “aping” human
the University of Arizona. She has trained
behaviors. These art representations
with Augusto Boal, the San Francisco
illustrated the fact that in populist theatre,
Mime Troupe and Cornerstone Theatre.
performing monkeys were very popular.
Abstract: This essay looks at art objects
I compare the representations to art
to examine representations of performing
evidence documenting Turco, a very
and performative monkeys in Rococo-era
popular performing monkey from the
France. I begin looking at a chinoiserie
time period. I discuss how these visual
figurine of Arlecchino, holding a baby
representations of performing monkeys
monkey. The figurine alludes to a story
exhibit Orientalist aesthetics. n
UNDERGRADUATE WINNER: FALAN BUIE-MADDEN Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief, Materialist Feminism and Female Spaces
36 x Southern Theatre x Spring 2020
Falan Buie-Madden
context and the original text Othello, we
i s a s e n ior BFA
can trace the progression of how female-
mu s i c a l t h e at r e
only spaces are regarded. The materialist
student at Auburn
feminist lens accentuates the role social
Un i ve r s it y w h o
status and class play within such a liminal
plans to pursue a
space and faults the pervasiveness of
master’s degree in
masculine tendencies for much of the
directing or applied
conflict within the piece. We are given
theatre studies this
an insider look to a new part of Cyprus,
fall. Her current projects include Ladies
without ever forgetting the reason these
Room, a devised piece based on the
women cannot always behave this way.
intricacies of social interaction within
Class tensions and violence seep through
public female restrooms, and Sex Education,
the walls of what, to them, is a sacred space.
a solo performance art piece about the
Meanwhile, this “back room” is likely
failings and fallacies of sex education
not well regarded to the rest of the castle.
curriculums, particularly in the South.
Desdemona, with the help of materialist
A b s t r a c t : T h is paper ser ves as a
feminism, shows the value of narrative
materialist feminist analysis of Paula
through female spaces – how they add to
Vogel’s Desdemona and the semantics
or completely change an existing story and
behind the portrayal and perception of
how, most times, they add their own new
female inhabited spaces. Using historical
story altogether. n
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