SURVIVOR: TECH WEEKEND

I am happy to report that the cast and crew of IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE have survived tech weekend. We are moving forward into tech week with Monday and Tuesday the last remaining days before we have an audience. Come Wednesday, our final dress rehearsal, we have people in the seats ready to see the story come to life.

With Thanksgiving Day off, we lose one day of tech rehearsal. (Tech rehearsal? What’s that?) The week before an opening of the show is when all those pieces finally come together. The set is built (or nearly finished), we run the show with all of our costume/wig changes, use real props, real furniture, the lights change, there are sounds effects, music is playing, the whole shebang. One week. And then we’re off and running! We’ve got to be absolutely solid on lines, entrance cues, because a lot of new sights, sounds and costumes will be thrown at us, and the show must go on!

Tech weekend is for tech – not necessarily for actors. The actors have to be at beck and call for running cue lines and scene changes. The orchestration of these scene changes can be complex. Actor A and K are moving upstage panel to gray while Actors F, G, and H are rotating the platform and Actors J, B and L move the furniture. I am most proud of our young actors who have been patient, quiet and focused. It is difficult enough for us adults to stay on task.

It is this weekend that most beautifully showcases the collaborative nature of the art of theatre. There are a myriad of individual who collaborate to put on a show. Everyone is given a specific task and responsibility to help tell the story:

• Actors have lines and physical movement to portray the character of the story
• Costumers dress the actors appropriately staying true to the time period of the show
• Scene designers gives the story a physical space
• Technical crew builds, paints and decorates the set
• Lighting designers makes sure to light the set with appropriate colors and intensities
• Sound designers give us music and make sure our telephone rings
• Props masters (or mistresses) give actors the necessary objects to use onstage
• Stage managers makes sure everything happens at the correct time
• And the director makes sure we’re all telling the same story :-)

Obviously there is much more work that goes into each of these roles that simply could not fit in this limited space. Hundreds of VOLUNTEER hours (you read that right, volunteer cast, crew, costumes, props...) have been logged for IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE.

Maybe it's your favorite movie, maybe it's not, but I hope that each you reading this entry makes time to come and enjoy the story that we have been working diligently on for the past four weeks. Yyou have 19 opportunities to see the show – no excuses :-)

It really is a beautiful story of struggles, hope, and friendship. Personally, this story reminds me that no mater what choices you make in life, no matter what circumstances you find yourself in, your friends and family are worth so much more. Even if you don't feel like you've made a difference, you definitely have impacted the lives around you in ways you might not even know. A simple hug can mean more than thousands of words; simply saying "hi" to a stranger can make the world of difference; a "Thank you" can brighten someone's day. And sometimes it is in adversity that we can truly see what a Wonderful Life it is.

I hope to see you soon. Have a great Thanksgiving!

-Sarah T (Violet Peterson)

Wonderful Life, Part Two

“Hasn’t Sunset done It’s a Wonderful Life before?”

Ah, how quickly they forget! I’ve been getting this question, or some version of it for weeks now, and the answer is YES. Sunset Playhouse previously produced Wonderful Life in 2008, under the direction of Howard Bashinski, and it was a fine production. Like every show I’ve ever worked on, though, there were certain aspects of the show that I loved, certain aspects of the show that I felt were just OK, and certain aspects that I’d rather forget.

What’s really interesting for me is that after 70+ productions at Sunset Playhouse over the last 9 years, this is the first time that I’ve had to re-design a show. We’ve come close a few times. Escanaba in Love was the prequel to Escanaba in da Moonlight, and was set in the same hunting cabin only 40 years earlier. Both of those were directed by Sunset Artistic Director Mark Salentine, and we were both happy with keeping the same design but simply making it newer-looking with older furnishings.

A few years ago, we produced Oscar and Felix, which is Neil Simon’s modern re-telling of The Odd Couple. Sunset’s 2001 production of The Odd Couple, directed by former Artistic Director Michael Duncan, was my first design for Sunset, and I chose to re-create the design with only minor modern updates for Oscar and Felix.

Our 2010 production of It’s a Wonderful Life is a completely new production, directed by Mark Salentine, with a different concept and therefore different designs throughout. The holidays are all about tradition, and one could say that tradition is basically doing the same thing with just a few differences year after year after year. We hope you’ll come see what we hope will become a new tradition for us!

As a bonus for those of you that remember the last production of It’s a Wonderful Life, here are two behind the scenes photos of our new production for your enjoyment.

J. Michael Desper

Resident Scene Designer/ Technical Director

Lessons from a Frog and Two Witches

As the Administrative Assistant at Sunset, I do a little bit of this and that for almost all of our productions, so I feel some ownership for all of our shows. That said, I do play favorites: as a mom, I find that I most enjoy my experiences through the School for the Arts. Over the summer, my daughter attended our summer camp for two weeks, and she loved every second of it. Our whole family got a kick out of seeing her on stage for the first time, barking like a dog, in the camp’s final production, and she can’t wait to go back next year. As a parent, I was impressed by how much fun all of the kids had, while still learning a little about the theatre experience; as a staff member, I enjoyed hearing the kids chatting throughout the day.

Besides the School, we also have a series of interactive childrens shows called bug in a rug. All of the bug in a rug shows are originals, from the genius of Erika Navin, our School of the Arts director. This weekend we premiered SWITCH WITCH, the story of an unlikely friendship between a good witch and a bad witch. The show was also about something all kids need to hear and re-hear: that being yourself is the best way to be, even if being yourself makes you different. As a parent, I appreciate being able to take my children to see a show where they will laugh and help cast silly spells and still come away with an important lesson. Especially when the lesson is taught to them by a frog and two witches.

So as a mom, and as a staff member, I just have to say: to the SWITCH WITCH cast and crew, to Erika Navin, and to all the staff and volunteers who help behind the scenes and with craft time, thank you for creating such a fun show and for reminding all of us that being different is just fine, and for reminding our children- and us parents, too- that we should value ourselves, no matter how different we may be.

Michelle Tucker

Administrative Assistant

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR ACTOR

Take a person, give them all the words they need to say, tell them when they need to say the words, then tell them where they need to move, put them on a stage and what happens? They forget how to be human. Movements are rigid, almost robotic; words come out but are not convincing; people walk into furniture, into walls, even walk backwards up stairs. Or my favorite, the phenomena that occurs in group scenes where the actors somehow end up shoulder to shoulder in a straight line across the stage rather than clumping together. (this mysterious force is often lovingly referred to as a chorus line, kick line, or dummy line).

The actor’s job is equally tough: take instructions from the director on where to move and how to say a line, and make them seem real. Sometime actors are given a place to move to and the freedom to figure out how and why their character will move. This can be a wonderful, creative endeavor – or a creative nightmare:

“Sarah you need to counter-cross down stage right when he says that.”

“Okay! Um, why would my character move over there? That doesn’t make sense to me.”

“Good question. Well, we need to move your character down by the settee, so figure out some sort of motivation and make it work.”

“Okay so I could decide to get a book and read?”

“Sure”

“Or I could decide to look at the vase of flowers”

“That’s fine”

“Or could I look out the window?”

“There won’t be a physical window there, but if you want to pretend, sure”

“Ooo what If I realize that my forbidden feelings for him are too strong and that even looking at him causes me excruciating pain?! I could stumble towards the bench, in agony because he doesn’t know I love him, then look longingly out the window reaching towards the heavens asking my dead mother to give me strength to carry on as I have a single tear run down my cheek right before I pass out. ”

“Uh…No. I think reading a book will be just fine.”

No question the director’s job is a tough one: guide and train actors to take the playwright’s words and the pre-planned movements and have them perform it all in a spontaneous, realistic manner. An effective and most trusted method director use to help actors overcome the “I’m-going-to-walk-to-this-spot-turn-45-degrees-towards-the-audience-wait-politely-for-the-other-person-to-stop-speaking-and-then-deliver-my-line” syndrome, is repetition. If you repeat it enough, muscle memory steps in to make the words and movements seem to flow naturally.

Another unrealistic, but potentially effective method, would be to put up electric fences. The director could zap the actors when they step too far upstage, come on too early, miss a line, or when groups of actors form the forbidden dummy-line. This practice would most assuredly be frowned upon.

The earlier the actor memorizes his lines, the more he/she can practice with the props and “explore his character” (fancy theatre term for trying out a variety of ways to say the same thing and picking which is best). The first few weeks of rehearsal are always the most interesting. Actors are studying their lines at home and trying to get memorized enough to actually hold props during a scene. However, with a script in hand it’s rather difficult and almost comical. Imagine trying to answer the phone, while holding your purse, bags of groceries and a child all while trying to read your lines from the script you have wedged between your elbow and the sack of potatoes.

So, for now, we’ll set the props aside (until we are "off book"), work on memorizing our lines and stick with repetition, repetition, repetition. Working, re-working, adjusting here, tweaking there, try again, go back to the top of the page, to the top of the scene, to the top, act over and over and over again so that this carefully orchestrated masterpiece will be audience ready in as little as four weeks.

Cheers!

- Sarah T (aka: Violet in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE)

Switch Witch and the Meaning of Friendship

Get ready for the first show of our bug in a rug children’s theater series, Switch Witch! The bug in a rug crew is getting so excited for this weekend! Take a look at this video taken during rehearsal…and then make sure to buy your tickets.

This is our third season of bug in a rug children’s theatre at Sunset. And it’s so hard for me to believe that this dream is a reality. It all started from reading Love, Ruby Valentine with my daughter and saying “wouldn’t this be a cute play.” February of 2009 was our first bug in a rug production of “Love, Ruby Valentine.” And is has been an amazing journey ever since.

Someone asked me the other day – where do you come up with your ideas for your plays? Well, we are lucky enough to get the rights to some great children’s books, and a lot of times I take a cue from an old fairy tale, but often it comes from a lesson I am trying to instill in my children. As my daughter finished kindergarten and started first grade I found us talking a lot about friends and friendship. I was answering questions like: "What is a best friend mom?" "Can I have more than one best friend?" "How do you know who is your real friend?" Of course I tried to give all the perfect mother answers and even joked that my definition of a real friend is someone who can walk into your kitchen and open your refrigerator without asking (and I do believe that).

In all these conversations, we somehow ended up talking about how a good friend is someone who you can just be with no matter what – good/bad, happy/sad, tired/giddy, whatever the day may bring. Of course, she immediately responded by giving an example of how she and her best friend can not agree on something, but she always knows that the next day they will be friends again, or how she can just tell her best friend she wants to read alone and she goes away and then comes back again later to play. I figured these are great first grade examples of what a true friend is. More than that I hope that she is learning something about herself and building her own self- confidence and realizing that people we call friends are people who, as the quote says, “know all about you but like you anyway.”

As we put together Switch Witch, I thought about how a good witch and a bad witch could become true friends – by accepting who they each are individually and as a friend. And of course I tried to find the humor in it, so that we can all enjoy a good story with a little lesson and a lot of fun!

Put on your jammies, head on over to Sunset bug in a rug theatre, and snuggle in to laugh, participate, learn a little about friendship, and being true to yourself. Besides those great lessons, you also get to introduce your little one to the awesomeness of live theater. See you at the Playhouse!

Recipe for a Wonderful Life

Take 19 adults of various ages and 12 kids from ages 7 to 17; work out over 100 conflicts for the 31 potential days of rehearsal; mix everyone well with a classic story told live and on stage, and you've got the makings for a great holiday show!

We had a read-through of "It's a Wonderful Life" and our first rehearsal on our feet. Considering that Ruth Arnell, our Mary Bailey, cried at 7-year-old Evelyn Barta's speaking of Zuzu's immortal angel lines, we've got a guaranteed heart-tugging hit on our hands! Don't miss it!

-Mark Salentine
Artistic Director

A Summer Stars Camp Performance!

Picture me, dressed in my lime green camp shirt, anxiously awaiting the first arrivals of summer camp, wondering what this summer with bring. Well, I knew it was going to be a GREAT summer camp season when on the first day a little boy says to me (standing tall, big toothless smile, swinging his lunch box) “Will there be singing and dancing?” To which I reply, “Of course there will be lots of singing and dancing!” “Good,” he says, “because I have been practicing.” He then busts into full singing and choreography to “It’s a Hard Knock Life!” right in the lobby of the theater.

This is why I love summer camp season at Sunset School for the Arts.

This year marked our FIFTH summer camp season at Sunset School for the Arts. And what a great summer it has been! We had our first ever summer camp for students ages 4 – 5, where they brought famous paintings (Monet, Picasso, Kahlo, Seurat, etc.) to life through acting, pantomime, storytelling, singing, dancing and, of course, painting. It all wrapped up with a great production of “A Sunny Sunday in the Park” where students each became a person from the famous Seurat painting. They told a story, sang and danced in front of a backdrop of their own huge copy of Seurat’s painting (done with sponge dots, of course).

Next, our Summer Stars, ages 6 – 15, joined us for two weeks of acting, singing, dancing, writing and having a ton of fun. Highlights included a well-executed scene from Midsummer Night’s Dream, some HILARIOUS original commercials, twenty 6-8 year olds dancing to One, clever improvisations, original characters of queens, r2n2, and killer cats, and a great finale with all 54 kids performing “We Go Together” from Grease. More than 200 parents, family members, and friends had a great time watching all of the fabulous performances on Saturday.

These talented kids should all be proud of their hard work (the talented and patient instructors, too). Thank you to all the kids, parents, instructors and volunteers that make these weeks possible.

It truly is my favorite time of year at the theater. As one parent said, it is amazing to see the progression and range of confidence and ability when watching six year olds and 15 year olds on the same stage. I feel the same way—I love it—especially when I get to know the six year olds and watch them grow through the years.

I’ve known some of these kids since they started in their first Creative Drama class at age 2 and it’s a great feeling to then have some summer camp graduates working backstage and assisting in classes. I cherish the fact that the performing arts have become a part of these kid’s lives through participation and appreciation. And I feel even better knowing that Sunset had a role in their new-found passion.

See you in the fall!

Erika Navin


Take a look at some of the best moments from this exciting performance:

The greatest thing I've heard all day and the greatest thing I've seen all day

Jonathan West here. Managing Director, and all.

Okay, so, Friday afternoon at The Playhouse. Hum drum, right? Oh, no. Far from it.

First of all, allow me to present you with this tale. Sarah our Box Office Manager just walked into the office and told me an unbelievable story about the sale of 26 Subscriptions she just took. Believe me, I call any sale of 26 Subscriptions an unbelievable story, but this one takes the cake.
A lady came to our Box Office today to buy the 26 Subscriptions. She and her co-workers had just been sacked, down sized, laid off, shown the door. It was a sad day for the whole lot of them.

But these downsized workers all looked at each other and said, "Hey, we all really like each other, let's keep doing stuff together." So they pooled their money (yes, some of it from their separation packages) and decided that the fun thing they would do together in the coming year was to go to plays at The Playhouse. I mean, seriously,a story like this could make a fella cry.

So, to the All State Alumni Group (LOVE THE NAME!) I say, "We salute you!"

Continuing with the show portion of SHOW AND TELL, my Aussie friend Andrew Bednall from the Mayfair Rotary Club shot me an e-mail today. The Mayfair Rotary Club has bought out the July 31st performance of HAIR for a fundraiser and in the spirit of "getting their groove on", some of the members were recently caught promoting in a fairly cool, not decidedly traditional Rotarian way. Here for your viewing pleasure are our Rotarian friends.


Pretty glad I didn't play hooky today, I must say.

The Audience - Bless Them!

Oh my!…. what a weekend!! We knew this show would make audiences laugh, but we were not prepared for wave after wave of almost hysterical laughter! We were bouncing with glee backstage to hear it!

Opening night was unbelievable, with probably the most receptive audience that I have ever heard. They joined in on the moose call, applauded spontaneously in the middle of several scenes, and audibly and without volition voiced their approval and/or disapproval of several of the characters with "oohs" and "ahs". BLESS THEM! It was just plain fun!

All actors realize that the audience reaction is what spurs them to better performances… and our cast rose to the occasion with a super performance. It was as though an electrical charge was passing between the audience and the stage and moving both the audience and the actors to greater intensity in their actions and reactions. It was a wonderful exchange with everyone benefiting.

The other three audiences and hence, performances of the weekend were a tiny bit more low key… but still thoroughly satisfactory. A good time was had by all. The lesson here? If you are in the audience and have the urge to laugh or cry or react emotionally … it's okay. It is even more than okay - it will add to the experience for everyone!

Click here to read our first review of LEADING LADIES from Russ Bickerstaff on expressmilwaukee.com (it's a really nice one).

Here's some pictures from the show to let you in on some of the fun.

Unsung Heroes Backstage

In theatre, there are always unsung heroes, who get very little public credit. Two on this show, among others, are husband and wife, Scott and Merry Jaeger. In the program, they are simply listed as props coordinators. In reality, they are an indispensable part of the team. Besides gathering and preparing the necessary props, they are also serving as stage hands, moving furniture, and opening and closing the curtain. (They can be seen for a few minutes in dim light setting up the party scene as "caterers".)

So instead of working three to six performances per show, as is usual for props crew members at the Sunset, this requires them to be there for every performance. And best of all, they do it responsibly and cheerfully! A rousing round of applause for Scott and Merry and for all backstage volunteers in theaters everywhere!

Check out the video featuring Scott and our props shelves.

Elm Grove Memorial Day Parade...we were louder than the bag pipes!

We marched in the Elm Grove Memorial Day Parade on Monday, and we had a ball! (Fueled by many Krispy Kreme donuts, mind you.) We were positioned between the Friends of The Elm Grove Library which featured a lady dressed like a book (clever) and a group of bag pipers (we were much louder). When asked if they knew any show tunes, the bag pipers kind of shrugged their shoulders. Someone get those lads and lassies in kilts the original cast recording of BRIGADOON!

Here's some photos of our spirited crew for your viewing pleasure.

It Takes a Village to put on a Play

Lots of cleaning up of scenes at Tuesday night's rehearsals… taking care of details… adjusting blocking… finding our way to spots for curtain calls …tangoing (tangoing? dancing the tango!)… pretty basic stuff done at a steady pace. And specifically for me, learning to hit someone with a cane without causing undue pain! Need to work at that.

In other areas work went on as well. Upstairs, work was progressing on the set, and the costume shop which is directly next to the rehearsal hall was busy! Rey Dobeck, our guest designer, who has worked at the Milwaukee Rep for many years, was having actors try on costume pieces, checking for needed alterations, and making notes about what still needs to be done, while Pat Boeck and Paula Kroening were busily sewing and hemming. Pat, who has been our resident volunteer costume person for a number of years, is stepping back from being the leader but continues to help out. Paula has come on board over the past few years and has become a regular. Take a peek at this busy threesome! Couldn't get them to say much though, especially Pat, maybe because she had a mouthful of pins!

When Did This Turn Into Dancing With the Stars?

Monday's rehearsal was spent learning the tango scene from Act II. Now when I read the script, I knew there was a dancing scene, and I figured, "Hey, no problem. I can dance a tango." But I didn't realize this was going to be a choreographed production number! I am afraid I will end up looking like Kate Gosselin (let's take a look at Kate performing some of her better moves, shall we)!


So, we begin. We have all had one rehearsal already to learn the basics, and now we are going to put it all together. Well... mostly together. Well... some of us more together than others. Melissa Bloch - Meier , our choreographer is patient, persistent and… well… KIND.

I am paired with Duncan (Jeff Anderson); Butch (Dan Myers) and Audrey (Chelsey Peterson) are a couple, and Doc (Gene Schuldt) and Stephanie (Matthew Patten) make up the third unique combination. We dance, we laugh, we discuss, we laugh, we dance some more, and by the end of the rehearsal, some of us ache. But we accomplish what we set out to do! Here is a peek at some of the process.

Irony

Hmmmm...we are actors who love what we do, here "slaving" night after night in rehearsals in order to turn out something which will entertain our audiences, and WHAT does one of our characters have to say about theatre? Watch the rehearsal video clip as the Reverend Duncan Wooley (Jeff Anderson with Jacqueline Gosz) says.....

More Than Just Learning Lines!

To actors, "blocking"has nothing to do with football; it means deciding where you are going to be when you say a line, and where you will move to during a scene and everything to do with your actions on stage. Sometimes that's easy to figure out and sometimes it's not, especially when a large prop is involved. Last Saturday's rehearsal was a case in point. The scene takes place in a small train compartment and involves a large suitcase which is necessary to the plot. After a rather lengthy discussion of where to put the suitcase - and when - and a few trial runs, this tentative blocking was the result. No guarantee that this will work on stage when the time comes.... but a good start. Watch the footwork from Matthew Patten (the dark haired actor) and Spence Mather (the light haired actor)!

Trying to Confuse an Old Lady?

I have a relatively small part in this show so spend a lot of time just observing, even though our director Mark Salentine has thoughtfully arranged the schedule so none of us have to spend a whole evening at rehearsal if we are only needed for part of it. But, even with the script in hand, I can get confused. Our dynamic duo, Matthew Patten and Spence Mather, change back and forth from "Jack" to "Stephanie" and from "Leo" to Maxine" at a furious rate. Would be easy on TV or in a movie, but here it is surprising and amazing... one of the joys of live theatre... and just wait until it involves costumes!

Also had the rare pleasure tonight of watching Gene Schuldt attempting to seduce Mathew... or was it the other way around? And exactly what was going on behind that screen? Stay tuned!

Read Through of LEADING LADIES

There is always that feeling of excited anticipation and a little apprehension before the first read through. How will it turn out? As people introduce themselves, I listen intently and speculate. It looks like a good mix, but since Mark Salentine (our director) runs partially closed auditions, you only get to hear the people with whom you audition. There is still the question, will this cast "play nicely" together?

I have been on stage before with Matthew Patten and Gene Schuldt, I have seen Jeff Anderson, Jacque Gosz and Spence Mather perform, and the two newcomers to the Sunset, Dan Myers and Chelsey Peterson, look eager and pleased to be here. When, fueled with pretzels and Twizzlers, we start reading, it becomes clear... okay! If good acting can make a show, then we have a winner! Hmm, scary thought...I may be the weak spot here - will have to step it up to everyone else's level, but that's a good thing!

I leave you with one last question to consider. Why was Rey Dobeck, our costume designer, checking to see if Mathew has chest hair?

Expectation-LEADING LADIES

Introducing our guest blogger for our upcoming production of LEADING LADIES, Inge Adams (she's the one in the chair with the nice "smile"). Here's what Inge has to say today:

First read-through for LEADING LADIES is Sunday afternoon... finally! Auditions were the second week in March.. and that seems like a lo-o-o-ng time ago. Looking forward to rehearsals, because from the people I know in the cast they should be lively! I hope to blog my way through until the show opens and maybe past.... so stick with me.

My part, besides being official blogger for the show, is that of the crochety old lady...again! But this old lady is rich, on her feet (rather than in a wheelchair) and in full possession of her faculties. That's a step in the right direction! So stick with me and I will keep you posted on our progress.

Sharing Time: 50th Anniversary Gala

Okay, a little catch up.

On March 10th we had a 50th Anniversary Gala at The Wisconsin Club. This was pretty significant because it marked the start, 50 years to the day, of The Sunset Playhouse. (Though it must be noted that legend and lore has the idea of The Sunset Playhouse starting in any number of Elm Grove living rooms over some smart highballs back in the late 50s--oh, the drinks and chatter must have been something back then!)

In any event, here are some pics (from our Playhouse official shutterbug Mark Frohna of FroPhoto) that give you a glimpse into all the good times had by the gang at this lovely affair.

Dames, Dolls, Divas, and Who Let Him In?

Did you know there’s a whole website devoted to divas? Divasthesite.com lets you hear from all kinds of glorious women in their own words--everyone from those Hepburn gals, Audrey and Katherine, to Eva Peron and Cleopatra. Which begs the question of who sets the standards for diva-hood. But the cast of Sunset's next Musical Mainstage DAMES, DOLLS & DIVAS checked any diva attitudes at the door when they began rehearsals Tuesday night. Rana Roman, Becky Spice, Linda Stieber, Eric Nelson, and Rising Star Ellen Jenders had a great time getting their vamp on. With Paula Foley Tillen at the keys, the cast had some serious fun working out their parts for some dame-good medleys. Here's just a sample of what's in store...

How do you think we should use our Troupes Blog?

Hey Playhouse fans--give us some help! We created this TROUPES BLOG a long time ago, but as you can see from the dearth of posts, we haven't done too much with it. So, help us out. What do you want to see here?

Some possibilities are:

• Behind the scenes pictures
• Video posts
• Witty stories from the world of The Playhouse
• Mentions of good thing happening in our world

Let us know. We want to make this a fun and active place to have some dialogue. We can really use your help.

Shoot any e-mail thoughts to Managing Director Jonathan West at jwest@sunsetplayhouse.com.

Looking forward to all your good thoughts!