Rider University - Shadow Yearbook (Lawrenceville, NJ)

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fl The Rebirth Cf Homecoming

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From Implementation To Production ln Eight Easy CPD Weeks With Theatre '59 by Paul E. Lakeman The curtain comes down for the last time, and the cast breathes a sign of relief. And of remorse. Finally, after two months of work, all that is left to show that anything had been accomplished is the scenery on a dark stage. A waste, you say. Hardly. If you knew the work and effort and, of course, pride that went into the production, you wouldn't say it. For example take two months before when it all started. There in the theatre sat the director listening to person after person read a part of the .script at an audi- tion. Some of the readers are pretty good. Some take courage to listen to. But for the sake of the production and Theatre '59, the task continues, often for as many as three days. General appearance, voice qualities and de- gree of talent are given a close scrutinization. At long last, auditions end and the task of taking the best of what's available and fitting it to the roles that have to be filled begins. This having been done, the cast meets for its first rehearsal. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, the designer goes to work fitting the stage to the play and using every inch of that stage effectively. And this is not as easy as it sounds, especially when much of the stage is in front of the curtain. Improvisation must obviously take place, and it takes a clever mind to make the best out of the situ- ation. Back on stage, the actors are just getting into their roles. lf they are not on stage, they're off somewhere get- ting measured for costumes. Oh, yes something we for- got. Costumes. Costumes must be chosen to fit the roles to be played. Actors have to be fitted and the costumes sent for. ln some cases, the costumes are made. But in the interim, the play begins to take form. -'fl 'C-sf' Bit by bit the actors begin to feel their parts and be- come more comfortable with them. One single part be- comes interrelated to another and to still another. It all begins to come together but wait, it is still a long road to opening night. As the parts come together, so do the scenes and then the acts. A rhythm and balance begin to emerge on a very basic level. The show begins to take a very elemen- tary form and the directors can begin to see where the rhythm and balance are not yet together. While this is going on down on the stage, the lighting crew is busy creating the best possible lighting effect for each part of the play. A spotlight on stage right during scene 3. A softer effect for the middle of scene 4. Lights, without them the play dies. In stagecraft class, the scenery begins to take shape. The front porch, the bedroom furniture, the backdrop are all placed on the stage. At last the actors have something to back them up. The room suddenly takes on the aura of atheatre. The costumes arrive and suddenly things take more definite shape. But wait, a snag develops with the cost- umes. Some of them don't fit exactly right. Othe-rs have 46