As week three begins, Wendy (Hall) and the students are doing ballet technique to Bon Jovi, while I am in reverie about the process-rich format of our program here at Summer Studio. When we came together as a faculty last summer, we agreed it was very important to pass on some of the skills in performing arts that would make for happy, healthy performers in the future. To that end, we teach technique exercises in dance, acting, and voice that we hope to be in each student's personal "bag of warm-ups" in their personal practice. We have regular "check-ins" about the work of the students; just this morning, one student shared her method of memorizing lyrics with the others. As many of us know, the performing arts can feel very competitive for a young performer; when that competition is removed, as our theory went, the student is more willing to take risks and grow. So far, it's also amazing to see the swell of generosity and trust that each student shows the group.
Speaking of creating a competition-free zone: a word about our showcase! The idea behind this informal showing (July 30th at 7:30pm! Free of charge!) is to highlight the students' work in acting, singing, and dance. Each student will have a solo piece in the showcase, which we hand-picked to show off the student's personality and range. We don't do auditions, but pick material based on our observations when building the all-cast numbers. No stress, no muss, no fuss, no tears. We will do some audition technique workshops in the final week, but our philosophy so far is to treat auditions as something that happens outside of this experience. Our job is to build up students for the tests they will face outside Summer Studio. (And, I might add, they each sound fantastic!) On Tuesday, each student will receive personalized vocal coaching from Ben (Rauhala), and I will work with each to transfer our monologue skills to song. Based on our very early work on playwriting, students are writing introductions, transition scenes, and short monologues to educate the audience on the "page to stage" connections. They are a hard-working bunch, and I couldn't be more proud of their work!
OK, ok, enough philosophy -- let's talk about STAGE COMBAT! Our own Chris Webb led us in an afternoon of kicking and hair-pulling that highlighted technique and safety. It was fun to watch -- and occasionally practice with Chris -- some really convincing and stomach-turning moves. (Don't be surprised if there's, oh, say, a CAT fight in the show.... Meow!) Thanks, Chris!
-Liz Fenstermaker, on behalf of the Summer Studio Team
Monday, July 20, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
Summer Studio Week 2
Hi, everyone!
Liz here again. We had a great first week with our strong group of students at Summer Studio. There are so many highlights, I'm not sure where to begin. One piece that was especially exciting for the group to work on was "Mama Who Bore Me" from Spring Awakening. At one point, Ben (New Rep Summer Studio, Musical Director) referred to them as a "choir of angels" singing -- which was an apt comparison. The group is also interested in looking at some of the original Bill T Jones choreography, so Wendy (New Rep Summer Studio, Choreographer) is looking into recreating some of his signature swirly moves. We also worked on "Invocation and Instructions to the Audience" from Frogs, which stretches our comic acting skills. Our facial muscle isolations and work on focal points are coming in handy -- and the group is seeing that Nathan Lane was not built in a day!
On Friday, we worked on monologues, which can be daunting and intense, especially on a sunny Friday summer afternoon. They dove right in, analyzing text for salient words, establishing objectives, and creating a physical life for their characters. It truly wowed me that their early work was so rich and their readings so expressive and natural. (On a practical note, I'm glad they'll be able to rock upcoming auditions with this new material.)
Oh, and how could I forget our new best friend Maurice Parent?! Part of the New Rep’s cast of Ragtime, Wild Party, and Cabaret, funny and charming Maurice came to chat with us about his life as a working actor and creating the role of black in Wild Party, whose music and original text we had sampled earlier in the day.
This morning, I'm watching Wendy give a technique class, and wishing more schools would have formal dance instruction as part of their arts curriculum so teens could have great teachers like Wendy. (There, I said it. Write your school boards!) Later today, each student will show a piece of their own choreography they created this weekend as "homework." One student told me this morning that she's done a production number and we each have a part. I guess I'd better go stretch!
Liz here again. We had a great first week with our strong group of students at Summer Studio. There are so many highlights, I'm not sure where to begin. One piece that was especially exciting for the group to work on was "Mama Who Bore Me" from Spring Awakening. At one point, Ben (New Rep Summer Studio, Musical Director) referred to them as a "choir of angels" singing -- which was an apt comparison. The group is also interested in looking at some of the original Bill T Jones choreography, so Wendy (New Rep Summer Studio, Choreographer) is looking into recreating some of his signature swirly moves. We also worked on "Invocation and Instructions to the Audience" from Frogs, which stretches our comic acting skills. Our facial muscle isolations and work on focal points are coming in handy -- and the group is seeing that Nathan Lane was not built in a day!
On Friday, we worked on monologues, which can be daunting and intense, especially on a sunny Friday summer afternoon. They dove right in, analyzing text for salient words, establishing objectives, and creating a physical life for their characters. It truly wowed me that their early work was so rich and their readings so expressive and natural. (On a practical note, I'm glad they'll be able to rock upcoming auditions with this new material.)
Oh, and how could I forget our new best friend Maurice Parent?! Part of the New Rep’s cast of Ragtime, Wild Party, and Cabaret, funny and charming Maurice came to chat with us about his life as a working actor and creating the role of black in Wild Party, whose music and original text we had sampled earlier in the day.
This morning, I'm watching Wendy give a technique class, and wishing more schools would have formal dance instruction as part of their arts curriculum so teens could have great teachers like Wendy. (There, I said it. Write your school boards!) Later today, each student will show a piece of their own choreography they created this weekend as "homework." One student told me this morning that she's done a production number and we each have a part. I guess I'd better go stretch!
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
Summer Studio is Sizzling!
Hi, New Rep fans!
I'm Liz, director of this year's Summer Studio: "Page to Stage." Over the next few weeks, we will be exploring the connections between some of our favorite musicals (like Frogs, Oliver, Applause, Damn Yankees, and Wicked) and the works of literature that inspired them. (Our awesome education intern, Jason Simon, is busy amassing a research library for us!)
Today was our first day, and the group of teen performers is truly fabulous! Wendy Hall, choreographer extraordinaire, gave a great dance technique class this morning and taught a fun 1980s dance combination. In the afternoon, our new best friend and music director Ben Rauhala busted out some of the company numbers for our Showcase (July 30, 7pm, in the Mosesian Theatre). The group was singing in three-part harmony by the end of the afternoon, which is a huge accomplishment on the first day! Best of all, everyone seemed to be having a good time, and the group went off to lunch break chatting like old friends.
A new component of this year's studio is the inclusion of workshops that will encourage these young artists to take on the creative roles of choreographer, playwright, and director. Keep reading to see what this group can do!
Liz Fenstermaker
on behalf of the Summer Studio team
I'm Liz, director of this year's Summer Studio: "Page to Stage." Over the next few weeks, we will be exploring the connections between some of our favorite musicals (like Frogs, Oliver, Applause, Damn Yankees, and Wicked) and the works of literature that inspired them. (Our awesome education intern, Jason Simon, is busy amassing a research library for us!)
Today was our first day, and the group of teen performers is truly fabulous! Wendy Hall, choreographer extraordinaire, gave a great dance technique class this morning and taught a fun 1980s dance combination. In the afternoon, our new best friend and music director Ben Rauhala busted out some of the company numbers for our Showcase (July 30, 7pm, in the Mosesian Theatre). The group was singing in three-part harmony by the end of the afternoon, which is a huge accomplishment on the first day! Best of all, everyone seemed to be having a good time, and the group went off to lunch break chatting like old friends.
A new component of this year's studio is the inclusion of workshops that will encourage these young artists to take on the creative roles of choreographer, playwright, and director. Keep reading to see what this group can do!
Liz Fenstermaker
on behalf of the Summer Studio team
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