Witches Aftermath

Witches of Eastwick was a success!  While the first show felt a little more like a warmup than an actual performance, the second show went off without a hitch.  This production felt a little more like an actual stage reading.  The show required a lot of props and technical elements that we weren’t able to pull off without some fudging, and that’s the way stage readings feel a lot of the time.  I was surprised by how willing the audience was to accept the discrepancies and enjoy the show anyway.

Here’s a video from one of the show’s ensemble numbers, “Dirty Laundry.” It’s a little crazy.

Add a comment April 15, 2009

Witches of Eastwick Staged Reading

The junior MTPs second staged reading, The Witches of Eastwick, based on the novel by the same name, will be performed tomorrow, April 13, at 6 and 9 pm.  Be there or we’ll have to Chapter 7 you (now you’ll have to come, just so you can learn what it means to Chapter 7 someone).

Add a comment April 12, 2009

Spelling Bee Videos!

Thanks to the beautiful Sue-Yenn Ng, we have a few video clips from our staged reading of Spelling Bee!!!  I hope you enjoy.

“The I Love You Song” featuring Cait Ryan as Olive, Tiffany McLaughlin as Olive’s Mom, and Ahren Rehmel as Olive’s Dad.

“Pandemonium” featuring the entire cast.

“I’m Not That Smart” featuring Billy Casey as Leaf Coneybear.

Add a comment February 28, 2009

Spelling Bee Staged Reading

The Full Cast!!

Last night was the opening and closing night of the junior MTP‘s staged reading of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.  For all of you who saw it, thanks again for coming!  For those of you who didn’t, make sure you see our staged reading of The Witches of Eastwick later this semester.  A brief overview: this was the first of two staged readings the class will put on this semester as a part of THEA 4950 – Studies in Staged Readings.  The purpose of the class is to prepare WMU’s MTPs for participation in professional staged readings around the country.  WMU, is actually one of only two universities in the entire country to offer a course in this important performance medium.

Anyway, the night went incredibly well.  We initially set up about 30 chairs in the York Arena Theatre.  For the first performance at 7 we ended up needing over a hundred chairs, and even then some audience members still ended up sitting on the floor on the floor!  While there wasn’t quite as large of a turnout for the later performance, there were still over 50 people there.

Yesterday was our first night in the actual performance space.  All previous rehearsals had been held in the much larger MMR (Multimedia Room) in the Dalton Center.  To be completely honest, it was quite a shock at first to jump into a new performance space right before the first performance.  Because of its size, York Arena has incredibly different accoustics from the MMR.  It’s also a lot drier.  Fortunately, everyone was able to adjust quickly and both performances went off without a hitch.  We were definitely grateful for the water bottles located under our chairs.  Since no one gets to leave the stage during spelling bee unless they’re “eliminated,” it was crucial to have enough water on hand to keep us going through the end of the performance.

Add a comment February 24, 2009