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Updates from March, 2009 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Cat 9:19 pm on March 31, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), Donating, Generosity   

  Generosity 

  We’ve been working on the listing of our donors for CRT’s 2009 program. We’re checking and re-checking the list, making sure we haven’t misspelled a name or missed a donor. In the midst of it, it feels tedious and time-consuming. And yet now, with all the papers and cross-checking lists set aside, I’m considering the overwhelming generosity of individuals.

  We received a gift today from Steve and Marta, with a note that said “Hope this helps!” It was written in Marta’s lively handwriting, and because both Steve and Marta have twinkly eyes, the letter felt magical in my hands. The dollars help tremendously – in costumes, lumber for sets, and salaries for our actors. But, so does knowing that they want to help make this year, this season a success.

  We received another gift today. This one was from Margaret and it was a gift given in memory of Jimmy and the original OMI Express band. I’m always overwhelmed by memorial gifts and the sentiment behind them. Dedicating a gift to Jimmy and his band, like Margaret did today, brings alive all the rich memories that each of us holds for that lost individual. I can think of no better or truly more touching way to honor the life and legacy of an individual.

  I admit, I get excited to pick up the mail every day. I like getting envelopes from our friends all over the country. I wonder what made them think about the CRT that day, what made them mail a check and a letter of well wishes our way. Why this day? What memory was so compelling? Who was it that enriched their experience?

  My curiosity and appreciation has yet to wane when it comes to generosity. I believe I have one of the most privileged positions in any nonprofit, for I get to see people at their very best. When they share what they have, when they are excited about their ability to give, when they believe their support makes a difference – it is the human spirit at its truest, most genuine and beautiful!

  So, to all of you who donate to your favorite cause, thank you! You are what keeps us going, amidst the tedium of day-to-day. For it is your generosity, your support, your belief and optimism, that encourages us to provide you with the very finest.
   

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  jonathandallsup 4:32 pm on March 29, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: 150 Plays, 30 Rock, Boulder Dinner Theatre, Colorado ( 10 ), Colorado Arts ( 4 ), Colorado Theatre, creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), CRT ( 8 ), Curious Theatre, Denver Center Theatre Company, Maurice LaMee ( 6 ), plays, Ski Resorts, stage management, theater ( 8 ), Theatre ( 11 ), workshop   

  The person who sees 150 Shows per year! 

  I taught a stage management workshop this past week. It was a small number of people. Usually that’s easier. I can really get to know the people to whom I am teaching and understand how they see theatre; what perspective they are coming from. A gentleman at my workshop this past week had seen a few more years than most of my typical workshop attendees. For the purposes of this blog and to protect his privacy we’ll call him Gerry. When I asked Gerry about his experiences in theatre, he took a good 5 minutes walking us through a history of being in and seeing plays that dated back to 1945. He recounted his first play seen and his first role onstage and offstage. He walked us through his experiences in both High School “Drama” and College “skits” as well as his incredible theatrical attendance record. He claimed (and I have no reason to doubt him) to have seen at least 150 shows per year every year for the past 10 years! That’s amazing. That’s 1,500 performances since he’d retired!
  When I think of what we do at CRT (around 160 performances of 8 different productions in around 120 days) I stagger a bit in my calculations. This seems impossible. We’re all certainly tired enough on September 30th to make this a very true assessment, but really? Well, yes, but it hardly holds a candle to the number of shows that Gerry has seen. After all, I can’t think of a single person in the CRT Company who sees all 160 CRT performances.
  When I lived in Chicago and was granted almost constant free admission to any show in the city, I was hardly able to see one show a week. Gerry must see almost 3 per week.
  Now I live in Creede, Colorado; a bit more remote than Chicago. I get around seeing shows at local colleges, university, community theatres. I make it to Denver every 6 weeks or so and see whatever is playing at the Denver Center, Curious, Arvada Center, Boulder Dinner Theater, and anywhere else that I can. I read a lot of plays (not nearly as many as Maurice LaMee, CRT’s Executive and Artistic Director). But even a rough count of plays in my head can’t produce a number higher than 30 in the last year and this year to-date I can only think of 8. Gerry has already seen 50 this year and it’s not even April yet. He’s anticipating an above-average year.
  And this next point is even more staggering to me. Gerry has a TV with cable. He lives in a town with a movie theatre and near towns with even more movie theatres. He lives 30 miles from a well-know ski resort. Gerry has responsibilities in many organizations and is onstage himself for 3-4 shows per year. He doesn’t live anywhere near a major city. He has every distraction and reason in the world to not see as many live performances as he does. Gerry sees all of these factors not as excuses to be distracted, but as reasons to see more. He informed all of us at the workshop that he makes an annual, excuse me, bi-annual trek to Ashland, OR to see their complete season. He fell in love with that theatre over 25 years ago and know goes every year. When they expanded their season a few years ago, no longer enabling a patron to see the entire line up in a single trip, Gerry saw his only recourse to begin attending twice a year!
  Gerry was inspiring to me. I begin every workshop by saying “Today I’m going to talk a little bit about stage management. Perhaps these will be things you already know and can help me affirm in my own work. Perhaps these will be new ideas for you. Today you’re going to tell me about yourselves and your experiences in theatre. Perhaps these will be things I’m familiar with, but more than likely I’m going to learn from you today too, and I’m excited about that possibility. This will be a conversation between you and me.” Well, last week I learned from Gerry. He inspired me. Maybe I don’t have a lot of money to see a lot of shows. Maybe I don’t have the time. Maybe it’s easier to watch web-isodes of “30 Rock” or go skiing or sit at home and read. And all those are fun, entertaining, worth-while activities and I won’t stop doing them. But maybe I can see a few more shows this year.
  Here’s to Gerry and all the patrons of live theatre and the variety of forms they take and geographic locations they live in. Cheers!
   
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  reneestynchula 3:17 pm on March 26, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

  INSPIRING! 

  http://www.onceuponaschool.org
   
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  Jessica Jackson 9:52 am on March 26, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), crt songbook, musical theatre ( 2 ), Theatre ( 11 )   

  Sweetness and Light 

  “What’s wrong with sweetness and light? It’s been around quite awhile.”
  -Richard Rodgers, American Composer

  Below is the program description for the upcoming CRT Songbook:

  “CRT Songbook is an utterly elegant and joyous celebration of a uniquely American entertainment – Musical Theatre.  You’ll hear some of your favorite songs (and some that will soon be your favorites, too) performed in concert by the most musically talented CRT acting company in 44 years – and one of the country’s brightest young pianists.  With an ever-changing selection of soaring ballads, toe-tapping tunes, and roll-in-the-aisle comedy classics, you’ll want to join us night after night.  So, please, grab a glass of wine, leave your cares at the door, and imagine a place where when mere words fail us – we sing.”

  CRT Songbook is going to be quite different from anything this theatre has done recently.  It’s essentially a trip through the world of musical theatre.  Although, at its most basic level, CRT Songbook is a concert, I have a hunch that some of the season’s best performances will come out of this little show.   The most exciting aspect for me is this: I get to be surprised.  I know these actors so well.  When I talk to my friends in New York and Boston, I realize how rare it is to work with the same group of actors year after year.  That sort of company is rare in this country.  I know that this company has hidden gems in their repertoires and I will see these people I’ve worked with, in some cases for six years, in a new light.  If you saw Drood last year, you saw the entre’ act – in which many of the performers you’ll see in Songbook busted out some hidden talents.  However, Songbook is not music hall or vaudeville.  I seriously doubt anyone will be walking on their hands in Songbook (although this show is about musical theatre, so you never know), but thinking back on it makes me even more excited to see the amazing musical performances hidden inside my colleagues.

  

  

  

  

  

  Photo credits: John Gary Brown
   
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  Cat 1:52 pm on March 24, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Creede ( 18 ), creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), Mary Oliver, Russ and Daughters   

  There is so much I can’t live without. 

  We read poetry here; Renee introduced us to Mary Oliver.

  and it was lovely, oh,

  I don’t want to argue anymore

  about all the things

  I thought I could not

  live without

  We take hikes together.

  

  And, once a year, we get lox and bagels shipped in from New York City.

  http://www.russanddaughters.com

  I need all of this. Not just bagels and hikes and poetry, but optimism, too. I need to believe in the profound connections that exist in this community. I need these mountains and the river and the curves of a trail. I need the stories and the songs of this theatre. I need all the discoveries still untold. Oh, there is so much I can’t live without!
   
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  creederep 10:31 am on March 22, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: 2nd Stage Theatre, Construction, Construction Update, creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), CRT ( 8 ), New Theatre, Semple Brown Design   

  What’s going on at CRT’s new Theatre? 

  Here are some pictures of what CRT’s new theatre (temporarily deamed the “2nd Stage Theatre”) will look like in 2010.  (Architect Semple Brown Design) Construction is well underway and here are some pictures from the demolition and concrete work that has already been accomplished.  Stay tuned to the blog and our website http://www.creederep.org to keep updated on the progress of the theatre and our upcoming 2009 Season!

  

  

  

  Natty Fro and avery are discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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    avery 4:11 pm on March 22, 2009 Permalink | Reply

    Ahhh progress. This facility is going to be so great for CRT and kudos to the architect for designing a building that is going to be such an addition to the streetscape of Creede.

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    Natty Fro 2:17 am on April 15, 2009 Permalink | Reply

    yeah, it is really happening—–that makes me excited. more than anything though–I miss the hell out of the CRT and more importantly Creede. see you june 1..

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  Jessica Jackson 11:06 am on March 20, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Benedict Arnold, Boomtown ( 2 ), creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), Inappropriate humor, John Wilkes Booth, Program, Ted Bundy   

  Bundy: SCARY; Booth: FUNNY 

  Yesterday, I finished penning my coach’s notes (sort of like director’s notes, only less informative and more self-indulgent) for the Boomtown page in the Program.  As with many things I write, I find that it’s useful to run it by people who’s dads never dressed in drag and who’s moms weren’t giddily enthusiastic when it was time for sex ed.  I have discovered that these people have something inside them (let’s call it a conscience) that can tell when something will offend our audience.  These people saved me yesterday and I want to share what I learned.

  The following references are not appropriate for the CRT Program:

  • Any reference to Chris Brown
  • Masked men in flame-retardent robes
  • Ted Bundy
  • Children with long-term disabilities

  References that are appropriate and made the cut:

  • John Wilkes Booth (it’s been a while, I guess)
  • Scarecrow and Mrs. King
  • Benedict Arnold
  • Robots
  • Illiterate children
  • Rickets

  It’s actually quite a relief to have a group of friends who appreciate my questionable sense of humor, but who are also looking out for me.  In the end, I think it made my coach’s notes better and more concise.  Brevity is the soul of wit.  Or in my case, brevity is fewer opportunities to write something horrible.

  Dacia Panama is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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    Dacia Panama 12:14 am on February 4, 2010 Permalink | Reply

    Thank you very much for your help, this has been a great respite from the books,

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  reneestynchula 10:40 am on March 13, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

  Why I love the Circus. 

  Each year, the Shriners bring a CIRCUS to the San Luis Valley!  Awesome.

  They perform at the open air Ski-Hi Rodeo Arena in Monte Vista, CO.  The audience sits in bleachers under a raised roof that protects us from the elements.  The performers are out in the open — their stage floor is dirt.

  Last year, I saw a team of clowns from Argentina, 10 performing poodles (these dogs were stunning….really….), a contortionist who could do crazy things with hoolahoops, a man and woman team of trapeze artists from Romania, Elephants, Aerial Ballet artists, Dancing Bears, and a high wire walker.

  The energy in the arena during the circus was so wonderfully wild.  There were kids running around screaming; vendors walking up and down the aisles with peanuts, cotton candy, and bizarre toys; people coming and going as they chose — and through all of this hubbub, the performers were accomplishing feats of strength and concentration that are at the height of what a human body can do.  AND, because of the three-ring nature of the circus, the performers were also competing with at least two other acts that were happening at the very same time. 

  During intermission, there were Elephant rides and vendors selling food.  I bought some nachos from a little trailor type hut. When I stepped up to the counter, I realized I was face to face with the female Romanian trapeze artist.  She sold me the nachos, and I thanked her.  She was wearing a set of black clothes and a black ball cap that were designed to cover her performance clothes.  Her face was still very made up.  I watched for a while, and most people didn’t realize or care that a brilliant trapeze artist was selling them soda and junk food.   I couldn’t tell how she was feeling.

  I love the circus because no where else in the world of performance do I find such a stunning combination of whimsy, risk, innocence, and wildness.  And I love circus performers because throughout history, they have been determined enough to  carve out a place for themselves in a world of cynicism, destruction, and grief.  To me, circus artists are working against all odds to stand up for what I feel is the most important thing in life:  astonishment.  The moment of “Gasp.”  The feeling that reality holds important and beautiful surprises. 

  So, thank you nacho-selling trapeze artist woman.  I know that it can’t be easy traveling all over the country with smelly people and performing for crowds who often aren’t listening.  Please know:  I was listening.  I was watching.  I was completely enthralled by you.
   
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  mauricelamee 9:28 pm on March 11, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: American Idol, audition, casting ( 4 ), fishing ( 2 ), lousy simile   

  The Art of the Cast: Part 2

   

  I spend more time in the winter doing what I’d like to do more of in the summer, casting. In my, by now, well-established annual routine, winter casting is about hiring for our season. It usually takes place in some airless room in a cold gray city in February.

   

  I wish I could take more credit for casting plays well, but casting for a play or musical is not particularly complicated. Generally speaking it’s easy to spot the most talented people. Millions of Americans do it every week on American Idol and I would say for the most part they pick the right talent to move on from week to week. Sorry, Simon.

   

  It also isn’t that hard to evaluate which actors have the technical skills to work as an actor. Do they have good pitch, do they have good speech and are they facile and quick, can they move or dance well, can they handle verse? Requiring a bit more experience, but essential to the evaluation of an actor, I also pay particular attention to intention and whether actors know how to play it and play with it. Many younger actors are very earnest but tend to sound one note because they don’t try more than one way to get what they want. Other young actors want to impress with their range, by showing how emotive they can be. While other actors fall for the trap of trying to amuse by doing monologues that are little more than stand-up routines. None of these tricks are can hide whether an actor knows his craft from a modestly discerning director.

   

  Where casting becomes a bit more compelling as a pursuit is determining whether an actor suits a particular role for the story one wants to tell. Can she move a play from the pedestrian to the poetic, to the transcendent?

   

  Now, if you’re an actor, this is where you will probably want to skip to someone else’s post. Jess Jackson’s song I Always Wanted to Live in a Tree is lovely, Jonathan’s post on naming the blog is entertaining and/or Cat has some great information about arts and economic development. Actors, I hate to do this, but I have to compare you to fish. It’s the only way to tie my flimsy comparison of casting for fish to the casting of plays.

   

  In a river or stream a brown trout is sneaky and tends to hide away in difficult, deep or hard to reach places. Really good actors don’t always audition well. Some fabulous actors are shy, and rather vague in life, but explosive, surprising and potent on stage. Other actors audition beautifully and, like the bright big rainbow spotted in the deep pool, rise with quick determination to the proffered fly.

   

  The art of great casting is to catch them both.

   

  Find out how 101 ways to do so in, The Art of the Cast: Part 3
   
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  Jessica Jackson 2:35 pm on March 11, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: chad afanador ( 3 ), Colorado ( 10 ), Creede ( 18 ), creede repertory theatre ( 40 ), ryan prince, Theatre ( 11 )   

  Self-Obsessed? Well, yeah, a little, but do you blame us? 

  We write a lot about this town.  Click on ‘The 81130′ category and you’ll see several paeans to the beauty of Creede, it’s mystery and weirdness, the strange hold it has over all of us.  If you’re reading this and you’ve never been to Creede, you might think we are shills for the tourism board.  It’s just that the fate of this town and the destiny of this theatre are completely intertwined.  Many of the artists who keep coming back to work at CRT year after year understand this, as well.  I’ve been pumping out copy like a…pump that squirts out…er…words…for our big, glossy, sexy program for 2009.  We are profiling a few company members who have been working here for 5-6 years.  Here’s what a couple of them said about Creede, CO, USA:

  “Creede is like a powerful drug. I think the most important thing about Creede is community. People know each other and are accountable for their actions. People in Creede actually do unto others as they would have done unto themselves. It attracts people who care about living in the present and are not motivated by money. From the day I arrived, I felt I was in a place where the @#%&$! jerks I saw at every audition in NYC would never visit. Time is also a gift we receive in Creede – all the hours you gain by not commuting, not fighting for parking at the grocery. In Creede, we are able to enjoy the nuts and bolts of life, the errands are fun and you always get to talk to friends along the way.” – CHAD AFANADOR

  “I am an Artist with little interest in the urban Art World. I have always been more comfortable in smaller, more rural towns. My trajectory since high school has been to pursue my love for living creatively in smaller communities. For some reason Creede has a tremendous amount of truly creative people who all love the spectacular isolated environment around them. A combination for which I’ve been searching for a long time.” – RYAN PRINCE

  “CRT is for people who love theatre, view it as joyous work, and are not in it for selfish reasons. To work as many hours as the CRT asks, you must be able to set aside your ego. I feel this attracts people who are drawn to the arts for the same reasons I am.” – CHAD AFANADOR