Technical Theatre Archives - BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications

Cast and Crew Members Share Lessons Learned from BYU’s Cancelled ‘Wendy & Peter Pan’

Martha Duzett — Fri, 05 Jun 2020 19:17:57 +0000

The theatre department is currently working to reschedule the production — which was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns — for the Fall 2020 semester On March 12, life in the Department of Theatre and Media Arts was turned upside down as rehearsals ground to a halt, performances were cancelled and students were instructed to return home due to COVID-19 concerns — all just a week before mainstage production “Wendy & Peter Pan” was set to open. Despite their disappointment after months of preparation, members of the cast and technical crew of playwright Ella Hickson’s retelling of the J.M. Barrie classic look back on the rehearsal process as a formative experience and highlight of their BYU education, audience or no audience. “I was really excited to be one of the ones creating the magic, since Neverland is such a vivid location for so many people,” said student set designer Elisabeth Goulding. “The challenge of bringing a beloved story to stage is always one of managing expectations. You’ve got to find a balance between creating a distinct Neverland that’s unique to the needs of this production but still has a spark of the familiar Neverland that we already know and love. I wanted to help capture the same sense of wonder and excitement that I remember feeling when reading about Wendy and Peter’s adventures.” For theatre education major Skyler Denfeld, who played Slightly, one of the most impactful parts of working on “Wendy & Peter Pan” was watching director Kris Jennings Peterson unite the cast in common goals for what they needed to convey in their performance and develop as actors. “Kris asked us to really think about the play’s exploration of light and dark,” said Denfeld. “We talked a lot about the light in our lives and the shadows that we all have, and how we deal with the contrast that the light and the dark create. We also talked about learning to fight the shadows and accept the light.” Read the full story at the Department of Theatre and Media Arts website.

The post Cast and Crew Members Share Lessons Learned from BYU’s Cancelled ‘Wendy & Peter Pan’ appeared first on BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications.

Share Your Story: #CFACGrad Cameron Cox

admin — Wed, 15 Apr 2020 19:32:45 +0000

Graduating theatre student Cameron Cox reflects on his time at BYU What I appreciate most about having a major centered in the arts is that I can point to specific projects and performances that have shaped who I am as a theatre maker and what each performance taught me. I am disappointed to have the last year of my undergraduate cut short, but am happy to comply with responsible social distancing measures advised. Given my lack of a formal graduation and the opportunity provided by the College of Fine Arts and Communications #CFACGrad campaign, I would like to pay tribute to the academic opportunities my BYU experience has given me. My first BYU production was stage managing a student Mask Club production of Sarah Ruhl’s “Dead Man’s Cell Phone.” I was young and eager, and definitely had a learning curve realizing all of the different responsibilities that I would have to adopt as a part of this job. But the text was beautiful and introduced me to a subspecies of less mainstream theatre to discover. Working on this also provided me with the contacts to become a resident stage manager of the Nelke Experimental Theatre. That job has been the catalyst for my volunteer work on so many different Mask Club projects including stage managing a production of “The Little Prince,” which to this day may be the most successful concept execution of a student performance I have ever seen. This also allowed me to jump into the world of lighting design by working on a production of “Finding Nemo: The Musical” and “Lord of the Flies,” most recently. I was then somewhat thrown into the world of new play development, becoming the third stage manager in as many months of an original work entitled “happysadness.” This script tackled the difficult subjects of anxiety, depression and suicide with the stark juxtaposition of bright colors and puppetry. It may be the most powerful text I have been able to help bring to life. Anyone who worked on the project will agree that on several levels there were organizational shortcomings along with misunderstandings on every level. But I was taught the important lesson that shows that have the most obstacles put in front of them often have the messages that need to be heard the most. I was also later able to take my experiences working with a new work on tour as stage manager of “Romeo y Julieta.” My junior year I began to expand my interests. I continued to stage manage, starting with work on the production of “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.” But my close work with directors and dramaturgs on my previous productions led me to explore directing and dramaturgy as well. I found myself in the position of taking directing classes during the day and watching those principles at work in the evening. This process also helped me develop one of the skills I most treasure: the ability to make myself enjoy whatever I am working on. I will be the first to admit that absurdism is not my favorite genre, and I really struggled with “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern” at first. But prolonged exposure offered me the choice to either be miserable or expand my horizons. I chose the latter and developed a love of the text and the show we were creating, even if I still won’t be going out of my way to watch another absurdist piece. Concurrent to my work on “Rosencrantz” was my introduction to dramaturgy through Mask Clubs “The Twilight Zone’s The Monsters are Due on Maple Street” and “Weirder Things.” I am captivated by the flexibility of its scope and its potential to reach out so directly to audiences as well as to the rest of the production team. I packed my senior year with projects, and while at times I certainly felt overwhelmed, I could not be prouder of the work that I produced in this period. I stage managed the opera “The Magic Flute,” was assistant director on “Much Ado About Nothing,” lead dramaturg on BYU’s “Little Shop of Horrors” and directed a 35-minute Mask Club adaptation of the film “What’s Up Doc?” This year was a culmination of all of my experiences up to this point. Assistant directing “Much Ado About Nothing” was probably the most fun I have had in a rehearsal room ever. Watching my professor and peers put together this show was so informative. The love and sense of community that this cast was able to foster with one another epitomizes what I love about what live performance can do. The final product was also so good. This was the first time where the show I worked on did not require my physical presence for every performance, but I couldn’t stay away because I just wanted to see how the audience was going to react every night. “Little Shop of Horrors” is the most ironic project I worked on in my college career. As lead dramaturg, I was able to dive into a research hole about the history of the story and its various adaptations. I also had a really fun time exploring the history of science fiction as a genre and creating articles about it for the BYU dramaturgy website and an engaging study guide. I also created fun lobby displays that highlighted everything I love about dramaturgy. The irony is that despite all the work I put in, I never actually got to watch the show with an audience due to social distancing. I am very happy with the work I have done at BYU but the most rewarding project I did in my time here was the directing capstone Mask Club production of “What’s Up Doc?” that I staged in February. The idea of adapting that text for the stage came to me when I was in high school. Through my years working on projects at BYU, I compiled a list of what I think makes the most successful work. From that, I cast, rehearsed and mounted the show. I am so proud of what my cast was able to create and the final product that came together. This idea — five years in the making — was only possible because of the forum provided to me by the department and the experiences, also provided by the [...]

The post Share Your Story: #CFACGrad Cameron Cox appeared first on BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications.

China Spectacular Technicians Learn to Adapt, ‘Lift Where You Stand’ On Tour

Martha Duzett — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 19:59:09 +0000

Assistant stage manager Susan Kupferer discusses lessons learned on tour Behind 160 student performers, eight performing groups and an anniversary celebration 40 years in the making was a small — but resilient — crew of technicians. BYU’s China Spectacular wrapped on June 3 after six performances in Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai. Though BYU is known for its international reach and well-traveled ensembles, a tour of this scale was unprecedented for the university. For now-graduated theatre student Susan Kupferer and her husband Matthew, the tour also meant an unprecedented chance to grow as technicians. “We decided that it would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Kupferer, who served as the show’s assistant stage manager under theatre professor Jennifer Reed. “Everyone was talking about the collaboration involved and the celebration of 40 years of friendship between BYU and China, and we knew that we wanted to be a part of it.” Kupferer was no stranger to BYU tours — having worked behind-the-scenes for the Ballroom Dance Company the year before — but the China Spectacular presented her with many new experiences and challenges, including the task of packing and repacking hundreds of costumes to meet the 50-pound luggage limit for air travel. After countless hours of production meetings, rehearsals and painstaking technical preparation, Kupferer and the rest of the crew felt they had covered their bases. BYU was ready to take on China. Only there was a hitch. While the technicians, performers and supporting staff safely made the trip, many of the show’s technical elements failed to arrive with them — including the majority of the sound equipment, key lighting equipment, projectors and irreplaceable puppets that had been crafted specifically for the Cougarettes’ collaboration with Vocal Point — forcing both cast and crew to adapt, and adapt quickly. Though Kupferer’s duties as assistant stage manager were less affected than other technical roles, she felt compelled to step up and help those who were essentially starting over from scratch. “It was a major adjustment for everyone,” she said. “It was just one of those ‘lift where you stand’ times to try to help those people who were struggling to make the show happen. The equipment delay was stressful and complicated, but our production team was so awesome, so experienced and so talented.” Kupferer gives special credit to the problem-solving and perseverance of technical director Travis Coyne. Under his leadership, the crew rented all the equipment that could be replaced and worked to recreate the programming they had practiced in their campus performances. While their last-minute efforts were universally deemed worthy to be called a China Spectacular — and their original equipment did eventually arrive for the final two performances — Kupferer acknowledged that it was difficult to know what the show could have been. “We had planned and prayed about this show,” said Kupferer. “We made this show for these people, so why didn’t our equipment come through? Why couldn’t we give them the show that we planned?” In the end, the setback provided Kupferer with some of the most important career and life lessons that she will take from her time at BYU. “I think it’s so important to be able to recognize your potential, but it’s sometimes frustrating that you can’t be there quite yet,” said Kupferer. “This experience taught me that you have to work toward your potential — that’s what we’re all here to do. Heavenly Father requires a lot of hard things of us, but sometimes those things are put in our path so that we can learn from them. It’s our job to overcome them prayerfully and be able to learn and grow from them.” From a lesson in persistence to hiking the Great Wall to seeing friendships blossom across disciplines, Kupferer feels that the China tour truly was the trip of a lifetime she had hoped for. “I think people don’t realize how unique it was and how big of a difference it made to people over there,” she said. “You become family with the people you’re touring with, and we were there with 200 people. It was so cool to see everyone collaborate, share and connect. I learned how to be a support to others, to really bear each other’s burden and what it means to do that. One of my favorite things was to see the joy that we can find in each other.”

The post China Spectacular Technicians Learn to Adapt, ‘Lift Where You Stand’ On Tour appeared first on BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications.

Nauvoo Performing Missions Uplift BYU Students and Help Them Prepare for Future Careers

Mason Graham — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 18:03:16 +0000

Brendon French, Megan Holbrook, Dayne Joyner and Sarah Broyles share their experiences serving and performing in historic Nauvoo. BYU students use the summer months in a variety of ways. Some leave campus for study abroad programs and internships. Some return home to work. Others stay at BYU to take spring and summer classes. A small percentage, however, depart for Nauvoo , Illinois to serve a few months as a Nauvoo Young Performing Missionary, or YPM. YPMs live in Nauvoo for the course of the summer. Since YPMs are full-time church service missionaries, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints provides them with the same housing and resources as they do full-time proselytizing missionaries. The defining difference between YPMs and proselytizing missionaries is that YPMs are called to spend nearly all of their time preaching through the performing arts for the people visiting Nauvoo. “It gets pretty hectic,” said Brendon French, who served as a stage YPM during the summer of 2018. “There are three phases of a YPM mission. There’s the rehearsal phase, where we have rehearsals from morning until night with short breaks to eat and rest. Then we go into the regular pre-pageant summer swing. Once the pageants start, we stick the pageant performances onto the end of our day and do rehearsals in the morning before the day’s performances start.” “It’s pretty draining,” said Dayne Joyner, a BYU student who has served as a YPM twice. “It’s really important to take care of yourself physically and emotionally so you can withstand the trials and the long days.” The constant workload isn’t exclusive to the stage missionaries, who are called to act, sing and dance onstage during the shows. The tech missionaries, who help prepare and maintain the sets, run sound and lights during shows and assist with programming. Band missionaries play in daily concerts, perform on a traveling bandwagon and accompany the stage and tech missionaries in other shows. “It’s pretty rigorous, just for different reasons,” said Megan Holbrook, who has served as a band missionary twice. “When you’re playing instruments, your mouth can only do so much. We would practice and perform all day long.” Tech missionaries have to deal with their own unique struggles as well, performing in a number of shows in addition to routine technical duties. Sarah Broyles, who served as a tech missionary this last year, said: “It can be really demanding running around from show to show. I struggled at thebeginning with finding my purpose as a missionary. I never had time to talk to people, I never really had time with the missionaries and that was so hard for me. How am I supposed to serve the Lord if I can’t serve the people?” Though the YPMs are honest about the specific struggles and strains the mission put them through, they’re also emphatic about thedservice they provide to others and the blessings they received while volunteering. “While the rehearsals and the performances were intense and rigorous, the experience really helped me prepare for my career,” said Joyner. “A lot of performances and theatre companies give you short rehearsal times and expect you to be on your game, on your mark, with little time to spare. I attribute a lot to Nauvoo. It helped improve my talents and helped me in a different way than I expected.” “One of the unique things about the relationships you develop is that they actually last,” added French. “There hasn’t been a day that we haven’t talked and chatted and just caught up. We see each other on campus and we call each other and we text.” Broyles said, “I learned to love those I served with. I love every single one of the missionaries because we spend all of our time together. It creates this family unit,and it’s amazing.” “If anyone’s ever thinking about auditioning, just do it,” said French. “The Lord will use you where he wants to, but you have to make yourself available. The worst that will happen is the Lord has a different plan for you, and that’s not even a bad thing. That’s a good thing.” The call process begins with auditions, which open each year from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30, for the following summer. More information about the program itself and applications can be found online on the Historic Nauvoo website.

The post Nauvoo Performing Missions Uplift BYU Students and Help Them Prepare for Future Careers appeared first on BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications.

Hannah Kroff: Designing Sets For Theatre And Film

Beto Gonzalez — Sat, 09 Aug 2014 01:14:52 +0000

Photo by Jocelyn Horne. Hundreds of students graduate from BYU’s Department of Theatre and Media Arts every year, prepared to bring their technical and artistic skills into the worlds of theatre, education, television or film. But Hannah Kroff hasn’t let that stop her from becoming more marketable upon her graduation from the College of Fine Arts and Communications this August. Kroff is the exception to the rule graduating with a major in theatre and a minor in film, embracing similarities and learning differences in the disciplines. It’s uncommon to major and minor in fields that are part of the same department, or where there are a lot of commonalities. Kroff grew up in a small town near Joplin, Missouri, spending most of her extracurricular time acting in plays and participating in local productions. “When I graduated high school, I thought, ‘Oh dang. All I’ve done is perform,’” Kroff said. “I didn’t know what else to do, so I came to BYU and started as a pre-acting major, which eventually led me to directing, making props and doing other behind the scenes work.” Eventually acting wasn’t enough to fulfill her particular artistic needs, so she began to work for BYU’s prop shop, the place where set pieces are designed, made and gathered. Nestled in a corner of the second floor of the HFAC, it’s home to thousands of props which have been used in dozens of BYU theatrical productions. In order to challenge herself, Kroff helped work on a film student’s capstone project, where she worked as part of the art and camera crews. The film, Weeping, became a hit at the 2014 BYU Final Cut Film Festival, winning “Best of Fest.” “While working on Weeping, I fell in love with film,” Kroff said. “My jaw just dropped when I saw all these students building the set, and accomplishing other challenging technical and artistic tasks.” After her experience working on set, she decided she wanted to learn more about film. Taking a few classes here and there wouldn’t be good enough, so Kroff decided to minor in film. She considers herself blessed, because although the decision put back her graduation a few semesters, she has found more enjoyment in her work. “Everything in film and theatre feels worth it when it’s about the people,” Kroff said. “I make most of my friends through work.” Kroff plans to get a job making videos as part of a creative team for businesses, while her husband continues his employment at the Utah Music Conservatory. She is thankful for her experiences at BYU, which opened doors for her she never thought possible. “I’ve traveled to Philadelphia, New York and California for competitions and with professors for projects,” Kroff said. “Trips like these helped me build my confidence and realize that I can go out and succeed in the real world.” For information about the August convocation ceremonies, click here.

The post Hannah Kroff: Designing Sets For Theatre And Film appeared first on BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications.