Since the beginning of this school year, theatre has been planning and brainstorming creative virtual events to hold in lieu of in-person plays, Theatre Director Kaila Schwartz said in a Zoom interview.
Coordinating time to rehearse and plan events has been tricky, not only because of the differences in everyone’s schedules, but also because of screen time, Schwartz said. Since classes and other club meetings are all online, theatre is trying to remain cognizant of screen time and ensure no one gets overwhelmed, she added.
“Traditionally, my theatre workshop class for the last 11 years has created a haunted house in our theater, and they would write the scripts and create the props,” Schwartz said. “Since that couldn’t happen this year, this past semester, for Halloween, we created a completely original murder mystery escape room on Zoom. And, it was really fun; they did a great job with it.”
For the event, there was a murder in the theater department, and the participants were detectives who were trying to figure out who committed the crime, Thespian Troupe Vice President Paige Hutchison said in a Zoom interview. For the upcoming semester, theatre might revive the event, she added.
“Additionally, last semester, I gathered a group of students to create an original production for the fall, but because of screen time, I put it on hold because, honestly, I feel it’s something that can be better pursued in person,” Schwartz said. “However, I am almost finished with what I am now calling our winter production, which will be an on-demand video.”
For the winter production auditions, theatre mainly did casting within the Thespian group, a club for dedicated theatre students, Hutchison said. However, for the spring play, they will be holding auditions, she added.
“For the spring production, I’m going to post monologues, and then, anybody who is interested in auditioning will rehearse and record the monologues and submit them,” Schwartz said. “After reviewing the submitted monologues, I will host Zoom callbacks.”
The winter production consists of five short one-acts that theatre has been rehearsing and recording, Schwartz said. The acts were written over 100 years apart from each other, but they are all thematically connected and deal with specific interpersonal issues such as societal stresses, Schwartz added.
“We’ve held Zoom rehearsals, and one of the biggest barriers is learning how to use this space (Zoom) without falling into the temptation of sitting the entire time,” Schwartz said. “For one scene, the actors are recording their scenes individually, but for the rest of them, I’m recording them on Zoom and then editing them through Adobe Premiere Pro.”
For the play, students will be using virtual backgrounds for some scenes, and for others, they will be using a plain background that will be replaced with a scene when editing, Schwartz said. Additionally, they are still using sound effects and props to keep the production value high, she added.
“For the spring play, we have some major obstacles because it will be very physically demanding, but it’s going to be a really fun problem to solve,” Schwartz said. “A couple of the characters wrestle each other, and one of the actors will need to reach and grab the other.”
Beyond production value, operating virtually poses acting challenges since it requires actors to look at the camera and ignore the face on the screen, Schwartz said. The process has been a huge learning curve because the camera becomes such an important tool, she said.
“When we’re on stage, a lot of the acting comes from feeding off of what your scene partner or the other person is giving you,” Hutchison said. “So if they’re giving you a certain energy, you want to mirror it or work off of it, which is a lot harder over the screen, especially with all the extra tech issues that we have to work out like if somebody’s WiFi isn’t working well.”
Despite all of the challenges, there have been some positives to come out of the virtual setting. For example, the online format has opened a lot of doors for theatre, such as the Halloween event, and they’re looking forward to doing more of that this semester, Hutchison said.
“One major benefit is that actors can invite relatives from all over the world, and they can watch the performances where they couldn’t before,” Schwartz said. “Moving forward, I am hoping to be able to include live streaming tickets, especially when we move into our new theater in a few years.”
Additionally, performing online encourages the actors to fill the screens emotionally rather than physically, Hutchison said. There’s more emphasis placed on the story of the play, and it becomes more meaningful, Hutchison added.
“When it comes to viewing the play, we have a host website, so you will need to purchase a ticket to watch the play,” Schwartz said. “I’m hoping we’ll be able to have the first night with a social group watch with the actors there so that the cast can get feedback.”
Theatre has been preparing for their variety show, held on Feb 5th and 6th, as well as planning their winter production, spring production, and other events like another escape room this semester, Hutchison said. The school and student body’s support throughout the pandemic has allowed theatre to keep going, and they are excited to see what this semester brings, she added.