Volume LXIV Number 2 • Spring-Summer 2023 • $8.00
SETC 2023
An Invigorating Gathering Drs. Carlton & Barbara Molette A Partnership & Life in the Theatre 2023 Distinguished Career Award
Pearl Cleage A Tribute to Carlton Molette
Dr. Indira Etwaroo A Visionary ‘Born to a Time of Fire’
Skylar Fox Making moments of magic in performance
Embrace who you are. Become the artist you can be. 2 Year Professional Workshop 4 Year Circle/Eckerd BFA 2 Week Professional Summer Intensive
www.circlesquare.org
Where Art, Community, and Inclusion Meet. Hosted by: Christine Toy Johnson
4
Season
Season 4 guests include (left to right): Stephen Flaherty, Lisa Kron, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Rona Siddiqui, Amanda Green, Lynn Ahrens, Michael R. Jackson, John Weidman, and Charlayne Woodard.
Skylar Fox worked on special effects for the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Story, p. 26. Photo by Matthew Murphy.
Departments 4 Hot off the Press Plays by Latine Playwrights by Zackary Ross
6 Outside the Box: Design/Tech Solutions Performer-Controlled Lights by Kendra Wiley
48 Words, Words, Words … Review of Hamilton and the New Revolution: Broadway Musicals in the 21st Century, by Scott Miller review by Joe Stollenwerk
Contents
Volume LXIV Number 2 l Spring-Summer 2023 l Southern Theatre – Magazine of the Southeastern Theatre Conference
Features
8 Carlton Molette
‘You Can’t be Human by Yourself’ by Ricky Ramón
14 A Tribute to Dr. Molette
‘Love at the Heart of Everything’ by Pearl Cleage
20 Indira Etwaroo
A Visionary Arts Leader by Kyla Kazuschyk
26 Skylar Fox
‘You Are the Actual Magic’ by Caroline Jane Davis
34 Ideas to Implementation
Lighting & Event Design with Vectorworks Spotlight
Cover Drs. Carlton and Barbara Molette are this year’s Distinguished Career Award recipients. See story on page 8. (Portrait by Gary Gruby.) Production photos from some of the Molettes’ theatre productions, clockwise from top-left: Prudence Crandall, 2006; The Sale, 1972; Day of Absence, 1967; Rosalee Pritchett, 1971; Doctor B.S. Black: A Farcical Musical, 1973 (two photos); A Raisin in the Sun, 1964; God is a N, 1971; The King and I, 1959; Fortunes of the Moor, 1997; The Crucible, 1968.
by Thomas Rodman
40 Creating the New Normal
Advice from the 2023 SETC Design Keynotes on Returning to Work in a Reframed Theatre World by Jonathon Taylor
46 2023 SETC Young Scholars Award Winner Paris Aguilar, Brenau University
47 Maegan McNerney Azar wins SETC’s 2023 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award Presentation by Tiza Garland
Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 3
Plays by Latine Playwrights Our regular column on plays that have recently become available for licensing focuses in this issue on works by playwrights of Latine heritage. by Zackary Ross
W
hen selecting plays for this column, one of the things I’m always conscious of is choosing plays by writers who challenge the white male dominance that is typical in the publishing field. Thankfully, this task has been getting easier as publishing companies
have been increasingly investing in a more diverse body of playwrights than ever before. When I was inspired to focus on plays by Latine playwrights for this issue, I was thrilled to find a number of excellent options. To develop the following list of suggested titles, I surveyed major play publishers’ offerings during the last few months. Following each description, you’ll find information about the cast breakdown and a referral to the publisher who holds the rights.
Destiny, by Edwin Sánchez
Dream Hou$e, by Eliana Pipes
Extraordinary EB-1: The Title Run of
Destiny’s father Andy is dying of cancer
Patricia and Julia are estranged sisters who
Edgar Bolaños, by Franky D. Gonzalez
and hir mother, Sonia, is already struggling
have come together to fix up their family
Driven by his mother’s dreams of a better
with maintaining the family’s status quo.
home for sale in its newly gentrified neigh-
life in the United States, Edgar is an
When Destiny’s trans identity threatens
borhood. As the two begin their work, they
undocumented boxer seeking the glory
to upend the family dynamic, each of the
grapple with their differing views on their
of a title fight and the opportunity for a
characters must come to terms with change
family’s history and what the house really
visa. As his successes move him closer
and the things that exist between them that
means to them.
to his goal, memories of his past and the
remain the same.
Cast brea kdow n: 3 women (Lat i ne
trials of his present begin to weigh on him,
Cast brea kdow n: 2 women (Lat i ne
descent); 2 any gender (Latine descent)
threatening everything he has worked for.
descent); 2 men (1 white/European descent,
Publisher: Concord Theatricals
Cast brea kdow n: 1 woma n (Lat i ne
1 Latine descent); 1 any; 1 Latine descent
www.concordtheatricals.com
descent); 6 men (1 white/European descent, 5 Latine descent), doubling
Publisher: Broadway Play Publishing, Inc. www.broadwayplaypub.com
The House of Bernarda Alba,
Publisher: Broadway Play Publishing, Inc.
by Nelly E. Cuellar-Garcia
www.broadwayplaypub.com n
Mojada, by Luis Alfaro
Seeking to protect her daughters when her
Based on Euripides’ Medea, Mojada
husband passes, Bernarda Alba retreats
reveals the struggle of Medea and
with her children into the family home to
Jason after their perilous journey across
mourn for eight years. The matriarch sees
the Mexican-American border as they
the house as a shelter from the evils of the
begin to make a life as undocumented
world, but her daughters feel trapped and
immigrants in a country often hostile to
long to escape through marriage.
foreigners.
Cast brea kdow n: 5 women (Lat i ne
Cast breakdown: 4 women (Latine
descent); ensemble of women (Latine
descent); 2 men (Latine descent)
descent); 2 musicians
Publisher: Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
Publisher: Playscripts, Inc.
www.dramatists.com
www.playscripts.com.
4 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Zackary Ross (he/him) is an associate professor of theatre and the arts administration program director at Bellarmine University in Louisville, KY. He is a member of the Southern Theatre Editorial Board.
Theatre s o u t h e r n
INCOMING
From the SETC President
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Sharrell D. Luckett, PhD
SETC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Toni Simmons Henson
SETC EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR EMERITUS
Betsey Horth
ADVERTISING Thomas Pinckney, thomas@setc.org BUSINESS & ADVERTISING OFFICE Southeastern Theatre Conference 5710 W. Gate City Blvd., Suite K, Box 186 Greensboro, NC 27407 336-265-6148 PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE Becky Becker, Clemson University (SC) Gaye Jeffers, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Ricky Ramón, Howard University (DC) EDITORIAL BOARD Tom Alsip, University of New Hampshire Keith Arthur Bolden, Spelman College (GA) Amy Cuomo, University of West Georgia Caroline Jane Davis, Furman University (SC) F. Randy deCelle, University of Alabama Kristopher Geddie, Venice Theatre (FL) David Glenn, Samford University (AL) Scott Hayes, Liberty University (VA) Kyla Kazuschyk, Louisiana State University Sarah McCarroll, Georgia Southern University Tiffany Dupont Novak, Actors Theatre of Louisville (KY) Thomas Rodman, Alabama State University Zackary Ross, Bellarmine University (KY) Jonathon Taylor, East Tennessee State University Chalethia Williams, Miles College (AL) Student Member: John Bingaman, Centre College (KY) LAYOUT EDITOR Scott Snyder, Muhlenberg College (PA) ASSISTANT TO THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Nikki Baldwin PRINTING Craftmaster Printers, Auburn, AL NOTE ON SUBMISSIONS Southern Theatre welcomes submissions of articles pertaining to all aspects of theatre. Preference will be given to subject matter linked to theatre activity in the Southeastern United States. Articles are evaluated by the editor and members of the Editorial Board. Criteria for evaluation include: suitability, clarity, significance, depth of treatment and accuracy. Please query the editor via email before sending articles. Stories should not exceed 3,000 words. Color photos (300 dpi in .jpeg or .tiff format) and a brief identification of the author should accompany all articles. Send queries and stories to: nikki@setc.org. Southern Theatre (ISSNL: 0584-4738) is published two times a year by the Southeastern Theatre Conference, Inc., a nonprofit organization, for its membership and others interested in theatre. Copyright © 2023 by Southeastern Theatre Conference, Inc., 5710 W. Gate City Blvd., Suite K, Box 186, Greensboro, NC 27407. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without permission is prohibited. Subscription rates: $24.50 per year, U.S.; $30.50 per year, Canada; $188 per year, International. Single copies: $8, plus shipping.
i
I am excited to welcome in the new SETC year. There is so much to share and much to recognize as we lean into the work and offerings of all things SETC. The 2023 SETC Convention in Lexington, KY was a wonderful gathering of SETC members, organizations, and professional artists. With an eye towards the future of theatre, attendees participated in several events that enlivened their artistic passions and gave them the opportunity to engage with diverse perspectives that might help to shape their current theatre practices and goals. In this issue we spotlight the convention’s three keynote speakers: Dr. Indira Etwaroo, Skylar Fox, and Drs. Carlton & Barbara Molette. During Friday’s keynote, Dr. Etwaroo discussed her journey to become the inaugural director of the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple headquarters in California. She also discussed the importance of funding parity and using art to eliminate racial injustice. Theatre Illusionist Skylar Fox encouraged convention goers to lean into their uniqueness. He wrapped up Thursday’s keynote reminding the audience that “you are the actual magic.” Saturday’s keynote unfolded in a discussion style fashion between SETC’s Distinguished Career Awardee, Dr. Carlton Molette, and SETC’s Executive Director, Toni Simmons Henson. Dr. Molette discussed the importance of Afrocentric Theatre and offered advice to young theatre makers. The late Dr. Barbara Molette also posthumously received this award. The Teachers Institute at the Convention featured a fantastic presentation about Vectorworks Spotlight 2023 software. In this story Thomas Rodman shares how Brandon Eckstorm, Vectorworks’ product marketing manager, demonstrated to students and teachers how they can generate clear and detailed lighting designs using the Vectorworks software. At the Convention, attendees were also able to learn from three design keynotes. In this article, Jonathon Taylor shares advice from Mary Louise Geiger, Harlan Penn, and Marianne Custer. The three designers discussed topics ranging from empathetic collaboration to how to work with directors. Our regular columns feature a step-by-step process on performer-controlled lights, descriptions of five published plays by playwrights of Latine heritage, and a book review of Hamilton and the New Revolution: Broadway Musicals in the 21st Century, by Scott Miller. Finally, we feature Maegan NcNerney Azar and Paris Aguilar. Azar was honored with the 2023 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award, while Aguilar is the 2023 Undergraduate Winner of the Young Scholars’ Award. Thank you all for your help and support. SETC is only as strong as our membership. And together we are SETC.
Ginger Poole (she/her), SETC President Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 5
outside
the box DESIGN/ TECH SOLUTIONS
PERFORMER-CONTROLLED LIGHTS Integrating lighting control into live performance
by Kendra Wiley
I
n the current world of virtual performance, virtual reality and augmented reality,
the need to incorporate interactive technology into live performance is more vital than ever. For my lighting design MFA thesis performance, ERROR 404: Gender Not Found (a non-binary dance), I wanted to use remote lighting control to embody both lighting designer and dance performer at the same time onstage, incorporating performer control for every technical element of the 20-minute Bill Rios
dance solo. My biggest hurdle in doing this successfully was finding a way to marry the light board operator, who usually hunches over a desk in the dark, with the well-lit performer
Wiley appears in a production photo from their performance Error 404: Gender Not Found with colorful, performer controlled lights.
dancing across the stage. To solve this problem, I transformed myself into a cyborg by
for Open Sound Control, a MIDI (Musical
Hog4 consoles, two commonly used profes-
wearing interactive technology on my body.
Instrument Digital Interface) alternative
sional theatrical light boards. For the ETC Eos
A Vive video game VR system allowed an
intended to share music performance data.
layout, you can find downloadable layouts
automated follow-spot effect, an OSC remote
However, theatrical lighting designers have
on github.com/ETCLabs/OSCLayouts. These
on my arm triggered the cue lighting stack,
also found OSC useful in controlling light for
layouts are unofficial, spare-time creations
and a MIDI connection from the light board to
live performance.
by ETC employees that are not supported by
the sound computer triggered all audio cues from the light cue input.
Step 1: Purchase the TouchOSC app made by Hexler LLC.
ETC software professionals, so use your best discretion. On etcconnect.com, you can find
For this article, I’ll focus on the OSC remote
The app costs about $10 but can be shared
the official guide to setting up TouchOSC
technology, as it is the most user-friendly and
across multiple devices registered to the
with your Hog4 console, including High End’s
widely applicable. I’ll also share information
same user. It is available on both Android
official, downloadable TouchOSC templates.
on another program I used when I was hired
and Apple cell phones, and I’ve successfully
to design an interactive lighting system for an
used it on both as well as on an iPod and an
improvised virtual dance performance, In The
iPad. The only connection needed for it to
First, connect your device and the lighting
Ether, in 2021 by ARCOS Dance. In The Ether
work is Wi-Fi, so a cell phone used for OSC
console to the same Wi-Fi network. If there is
had different requirements but used the same
control does not need to be connected to
no network available in the venue for this, use
OSC system, along with another program,
cellular service.
a dedicated Wi-Fi router. Next, follow High
Step 3: Set up the OSC connection and pair the devices.
TouchDesigner, that allowed the light board
Note: Make sure to download TouchOSC
End’s official TouchOSC guide mentioned
to receive input from multiple devices as if
and not TouchOSC Mk1, the original program.
previously to set up a Hog4 console. For ETC,
they were the same.
Mk1 has the same functionality but lacks the
exit to the shell of the light board and input
Part 1: Running a lighting cue list via
ability to edit the layout natively within the
the IP address of your OSC device into the
TouchOSC
application.
console. In your OSC app, input the IP address
In this section, I’ll discuss how to use TouchOSC to control lighting cue stacks
Step 2: Download layouts for your TouchOSC app.
of the lighting console. Then, set the outgoing port to 1001 and incoming port to 1000 on Eos,
and effects with High End or Eos consoles
In my experience, TouchOSC works
and input the same numbers in the opposite
(or a laptop with a DMX key). OSC stands
equally well with ETC Eos and High End
spots in the OSC app. Port numbers can be
6 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Set the Port (outgoing) to 7002. Set the Port (incoming) to 7001. Optional: Set ZeroConf Name to desired device name. The Local IP Address listed under OSC Settings is the address needed for the TouchDesigner OSC In CHOP associated with each Client. Copy a nd paste t he CHOP pair i n TouchDesigner for as many devices as you wish to connect. Repeat the steps to set up TouchOSC on each device, and adjust the IP Step 1: Purchase TouchOSC in the App Store.
Step 2: Download layouts.
Step 3: Set up the OSC connection.
Step 4: Edit the interface layout.
address in the OSC In CHOP so that there is an OSC pathway in TouchDesigner corresponding with each device. I recommend
changed, but the ingoing and outgoing ports
plot. Any dancer with an OSC device could
naming or numbering the devices and adding
must be the same numbers from the first
change the color at any time. On a stationary
text DATs to TouchDesigner to keep yourself
device in reversed positions on the second.
iPad, different lighting zones were available
organized. Test the connection of each device
The IP addresses and port numbers will allow
to turn on or off using a different page of the
to ensure they can all communicate with
the two devices to send and receive data from
same original layout.
Hog 4 PC. In the Hog4 board, click the Setup key
one another. Finally, test the connection by tapping “Go” on the OSC device and see if
Part 2: Using TouchDesigner to
on the virtual keyboard. On the primary
it fires a cue from the light board correctly. If
duplicate control interface
Hog screen, select Network from the soft
it does, the power of the spotlights is now in
If you want to use multiple devices at
buttons along the bottom of the window. In
once to send OSC data to the light board,
the Network window, select Console and
Step 4: Edit the layout of TouchOSC
as I did with In The Ether, you’ll find the
then Settings (or right-click console and select
for ease of use. The following section will
free program TouchDesigner is the answer.
Settings from the dropdown menu). Choose
explain how.
You can use TouchDesigner to “trick” the
the Open Sound Control tab in the Console
For live control by performers, having
lighting console into thinking the signals are
Settings window. Set the Input Port to 7002
the full hardware layout of the light board
all coming from the same device. For In The
and click OSC In to enable signal. Set the
is unnecessary and even confusing. The full
Ether, I used Hog4 PC running on the same
Output Port to 7001 and click OSC Out to
hardware layout is best for electricians who
laptop as TouchDesigner. If TouchDesigner
enable. Input the IP address 127.0.0.1. Make
need remote access to all the light board’s
is running on a separate computer from the
sure UDP is selected from the dropdown
functions. As an interactive interface, it’s
lighting console software, the two must be
menu.
best to simplify. To do this, use the layouts
connected somehow.
In conclusion, if your theatre is experi-
provided by High End or ETC to determine
Here are the steps:
menting with interactive performance, the
the OSC command package for the buttons
In TouchDesigner, Create an OSC In and
TouchOSC app and the TouchDesigner
you wish to include in your custom layout.
OSC Out CHOP pair for the TouchOSC Client
program are worth exploring. They offer an
For example, the “Go” button I used for my
in the network. Connect the CHOPs to each
effective and inexpensive method for provid-
thesis was the command /hog/hardware/go/6.
other. Set the Network Port for the OSC In
ing live, performer-controlled or interactive
You can then replicate any button available in
CHOP to 8001. Set the Local Address to the
audience effects. n
the existing layouts in your own file.
same IP address as the TouchOSC Client. In
the palm of your hand.
For my thesis performance, I included
the Network Address and Local Address
one “Go” button for the main cue list, a
fields of the OSC Out CHOP, input 127.0.0.1.
“Flash” button that triggered a separate cue
Set the Network Port to 6600. Set the Data
list containing a single flash effect, “Back”
Format to Sample.
buttons for both cue lists just in case, and
In each OSC device, set the Host IP address
the “Choose” button for each in case it was
to the TouchDesigner computer’s IP address.
Kendra Wiley (they/them) is a non-binary, interdisciplinary theatre designer, dancer and choreographer. They currently work as an adjunct professor and technical director at Concordia University Texas in Austin.
needed for cue editing during technical rehearsals. For In The Ether, I created color palettes that could be called up with the press of a button and affect all the LED lights in the
Do you have a design/tech solution that would make a great Outside the Box column? Send a brief summary of your idea to Outside the Box Editor David Glenn at djglenn@samford.edu. Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 7
CARLTON MOLETTE ‘What makes you human is the presence of other humans. You can’t be human by yourself.’ Nykieria Chaney
SETC Distinguished Career Award
P
by Ricky Ramón
Professor Carlton Molette, PhD, reminds me of my own father. I could sit on our front porch and listen to my father’s stories for hours. Molette knows a Photo courtesy of Carlton Molette
lot — A LOT! — about topics ranging from famous actors (and yes, I’m talking about his most famous student – Samuel L. Jackson!) to the Spanish Golden Age dramas. I wish there had been more time to listen to all the stories Molette wanted to share with the audience attending his Saturday keynote at the 2023 SETC Convention and with me in an interview that followed. SETC Executive Director Toni Simmons Henson was smiling ear to ear as she welcomed Molette, the recipient along with wife Barbara (posthumously) of SETC’s 2023 Distinguished Career Award. In her
They soon realized that not only did they make
introduction, Henson turned to Molette and shared,
a great husband-and-wife team, but they also made
“I don’t know if you realize how much you mean
a great theatre team. In addition to acting and
to me.” A quiver in her voice turned into a bit of a
directing, they also worked on shows as design-
chuckle as she took a seat across from Molette and
ers — Molette designed scenery, lighting and
began the hour-long Q&A session.
sound while Barbara designed costumes, makeup
Beginning a career in theatre
and masks. While Molette was working on his
Molette was born in 1939 in Pine Bluff, AR.
doctoral degree and Barbara was working on her
His parents met while worki ng at Arka nsas
MFA at Florida State, they both picked writing as
Agricultural, Mechanical and Normal University
their minor. Barbara focused on playwriting while
for Negroes, now the University of Arkansas at
Molette wrote for radio and television.
Pine Bluff. After his parents divorced, he moved to Kansas City with his mother.
Fortunes of The Moor, 1998, by Barbara and Carlton Molette, directed by Anthony Hill, at Ohio State University.
By 1970, they had begun a playwriting collaboration that would last throughout most of their
Molette, having excelled in high school, earned
careers. Their first play was Rosalee Pritchett, which
early admission to Morehouse College, a Black
premiered in 1970 at Atlanta’s Morehouse-Spelman
men’s college, through a Ford Foundation program.
Players and went on to be produced in New York
When he was a junior at Morehouse, he met the
by the Negro Ensemble Company in 1971 and in
person who would change the trajectory of his
2017 for its 50th anniversary season. Published by
life: a freshman named Barbara Roseburr, one of
Dramatists Play Service, Rosalee Pritchett also was
his fellow students in a Spanish class at Spelman,
included in the anthology Black Writers of America.
a Black women’s college literally across the street
Their play Prudence received the Connecticut
from Morehouse. Historically, Morehouse and
Commission on Culture and Tourism’s Playwright’s
Spelman students have been able to take courses
Award in 2005. Dramatists Guild members since
at both institutions. Barbara expressed an interest
1971, the Molettes produced a body of work that
in theatre, which Molette also shared, although he
includes more than 20 full-length and short plays.
was a political science major. With the encourage-
While they were both teaching at Spelman, he
ment of Barbara and his theatre professor, Baldwin
realized that theatre history classes were being
Burroughs, Molette changed his career plans from
taught from a Eurocentric lens - from a perceived
becoming a lawyer to working in theatre.
reality where Europe is centered. Molette began
That change made his goals “mine rather than
teaching a class that was one of the first college
those that other people around me were telling me
courses that focused exclusively on Black theatre
my career aspirations ought to be,” Molette recalled.
in the United States.
Three years later, Molette and Barbara married as
Teaching African-American theatre thus became
he began teaching theatre at Tuskegee University.
t he i mpet us for h is a nd Ba rba ra’s academ ic
Opposite page: Distinguished Career Award recipient Carlton Molette addressed attendees of the 2023 SETC Convention.
Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 9
book — first titled Black Theatre: Premise
than realism, but it’s all about how did we
& Presentation, t hen later becom i ng
get to realism? Anything that doesn’t help
Afrocentric Theatre. And here’s where the
you understand how you get to realism,
master class in theatre history begins.
it’s just not included.”
Premise & Presentation
He recalled that there “used to be
What are Premise and Presentation?
required reading in that History of the
According to Molette, a lot of theatre
Theatre class, when plays out of the
historians and theatre makers talk about
Golden Age of Spanish drama were part
presentation, but very few talk about
of the required reading. I defy you to find
premise. The premise “deals with [the
a book, a theatre history book, the play
idea], as most people who study any art
reading anthologies — I defy you to tell
form come to understand, that art grows
me about one that is still being published
out of culture. So, then you have to ask
that includes the plays from the Golden
the question, ‘What is culture?’” Molette
Age of Spanish drama. You can’t. It’s too
said, adding that premise is what makes
African. That’s why it’s not there.”
African American culture different from
Afrocentric Theatre
so-called standard American culture.
W h at i s A f r o c e nt r ic T h e at r e?
In understanding African American
According to Molette, a play “is not
culture, Molette challenged his audience
Afrocentric just because it was written
to think about how far back in history
by a Black person — that does not make
their family lineage goes. “Everybody
it in and of itself Afrocentric theatre.”
comes from Africa, it’s just how long
However, most plays by Black people
have you been gone?” he said. “That’s
do turn out to be Afrocentric theatre, he
the difference.”
said. Molette emphasized that ultimately
Molette went on to explain that what
“Black people have to tell their stories.”
was being taught as “the history of the
He makes a greater distinction here,
theatre” was “actually European realism
though, stating that “[Black people] have
and how we got there. It goes back earlier
to tell our stories our way, because our
CARLTON MOLETTE, PhD: Bio and Career Highlights EDUCATION: BA, Morehouse College MA, University of Iowa PhD, Florida State University
PUBLISHED WORKS with his wife, Dr. Barbara Molette (deceased in 2017): Academic works: Black Theatre: Premise & Presentation Afrocentric Theatre Plays/Musicals: Ada’s Husband Passed Booji Doctor B.S. Black: A Farcical Musical Fortunes of the Moor Legacy: A Comedy of Southern Manners Noah’s Ark
Our Short Stay Presidential Timber Prudence Rosalee Pritchett They Don’t Take Long: Ten Short Plays
AWARDS: 2005, Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism’s Playwright’s Award for Prudence 2012, the Black Theatre Network’s Lifetime Membership Award 2013, National Black Theatre Festival’s Living Legend Award and the Ethel Woolson Award for Legacy 2016, Atlanta Black Theatre Festival’s Legend Award
More Info: afrocentrictheatre.com 10 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Photo courtesy of Carlton Molette
The Negro Ensemble Company production of Rosalee Pritchett, by Carlton and Barbara Molette, 1971. Pictured here are Anita Wilson, Frances Foster, Esther Rolle, Roxie Roker and Clarice Taylor.
way is often different from the standard
is truly African American culture from
Eurocentric realism.”
what African Americans do in response to
So, what is the difference between
oppression.” He then shared an example
Black Theatre and Afrocentric Theatre?
that brings it into perspective: “There are
Afrocentric Theatre contains elements
certain African American foods that are
that are “what young, white Americans
a result of oppression. They don’t exist
now consider part of American culture,
because Black people in America thought,
because Afrocentric music and Afrocentric
‘Oh, it’ll be a good idea to cook up some
art in general has become so integral to
hog intestines.’ It’s because that’s the part
the American experience. Therefore, it
of the hog that the white people didn’t
becomes more and more difficult to say
want, and so the slaves were entitled
‘that’s Afrocentric,’ because everybody
to take it and make of it whatever they
does that.”
could. And I’m not saying therefore, you
According to Molette, there is a need
shouldn’t eat chitlins. If you want to eat
to endorse and promote Afrocentric
chitlins, that’s your business. But that’s
culture in a positive way. “There is a lot
not something Black people decided to
of material out there, some of it written
do of their own free will. And so I think
by Black people, that does the opposite;
it ’s important to try to separate out
not only does it not condone Afrocentric
what Black people do of their own free
culture, it diminishes it. And that is done
will from what Black people do because
by promoting stereotypes that do not
they’re trapped in a box and whatever you
promote what Africans in America are
do has to take place in that box.”
and do and [how they] behave. There
Importance of history
are negative things that exist among
Molette emphasized that by under-
African American people that are there
standing one’s history, one can get a
in response to oppression.”
better understanding of one’s culture.
Molette brought light to the diffi-
“One of the things that is true in a lot
c u lt y of deter m i n i ng what i s t r u ly
of those Golden Age of Spanish drama
Afrocentric by reminding his audience
plays is what in South Africa is called
that it “becomes tricky to separate what
ubuntu,” Molette said. “And it’s one of Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 11
the most important concepts of African life — what makes you human is the presence of other humans. You can’t be human by yourself.” Molet te a lso noted t hat i n ma ny Golden Age of Spanish drama plays, the protagonist is a group. “It’s not an individualistic individual, and that’s Photo courtesy of Carlton Molette
again, one of the important differences in the notion of how you tell a story in an African context. You understand that you’re not trying to separate out an individual from the other individuals in this group, which is why one of our plays — Fortunes of the Moor — takes the Othello character and gives Othello a family, even though it’s after Othello is dead. But Shakespeare’s Othello has no family. He’s just out there in the universe all alone. Nobody in Africa thinks of anybody as
Carlton Molette’s first directorial credit: If Men Played Cards as Women Do, by George S. Kaufman, in spring 1957.
being out there in the universe all alone.”
“And they want to make sure you don’t
Advice to Black theatre makers
get hurt unnecessarily. So, they will tell
Molette also said students should
After the keynote concluded, I was
you to avoid things that existed 10, 15, 50
realize that while making theatre is and
lucky enough to get an extra hour with
years ago that maybe have been overcome
should be fun, it also requires hard work
Molette.
since they came along and got slapped
if they are to be successful.
I asked if he had any advice to share with Black students of today trying to
down by it.” A lesson from a famous student
Theatre is fun — and hard work
“They decide this theatre thing is fun because they see a bunch of people having
make it in the performing arts industry.
During his many years as a professor,
fun,” he said. “And they say, ‘Oh! I wanna
He responded that students need to
Molette touched the lives of thousands of
go hang out with the people having fun!’
understand that there is a “stereotype”
students, including some who went on
And they don’t realize that the people
phenomenon.
to achieve fame, such as actor LaTanya
having fun are working very hard but they
“If you fit one of these stereotypes, you
Richardson Jackson, New Professional
enjoy what they are doing. This is another
have to understand and appreciate that
Theatre founder Sheila K. Davis, the late
lesson I learned from Samuel. There were
— you have to confront this,” he said. “I
actor Bill Nunn, actor Horace Rogers,
many of his classmates that were just as
used to say to people many years ago, ‘I’m
writer Pearl Cleage (see sidebar, Page 14)
talented as Sam. But they didn’t want to
not Frank Silvera.’ Frank Silvera earned a
and, as mentioned earlier, actor Samuel
work hard. Sam worked hard and kept
living playing roles that were not consid-
L. Jackson.
getting better and better and better.”
ered Black or white. Frank Silvera was
Molette chuckled as he related how
As our time together ended, Molette
African American. Frank Silvera played
he often tells students not to listen to
offered these final words of advice for
Italians, Sicilians and Mexicans. He was
his advice because of the guidance he
students: “You have to understand what
too light to play a Black person but dark
once shared with his student Samuel L.
it is you are working towards, you have
enough to play a Mexican! Racism is not
Jackson. He recommended that Jackson
to be careful who you listen to, and you
rational.”
not go to Hollywood, in an attempt to
have to learn how to pivot when it is time to move on to the next adventure.” n
He also said students need to take
save him from the harms of Hollywood.
charge of their own careers. “The number
Jackson didn’t listen and ended up having
one thing I tell students is first you have
a successful Hollywood career. The point
to figure out what success means to you,
in sharing this story, Molette said, was to
because there will be a lot of people and
show students that sometimes the harms
some of these people are people who love
one has experienced in the past no longer
you and you love them,” Molette said.
are a threat.
12 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Ricky Ramón (he/him) is a lecturer of theatre arts at Howard University. He is the Vice President of Equity & Inclusion on the SETC Board of Directors and a member of SETC’s Publications Committee.
A TRIBUTE TO CARLTON MOLETTE by Pearl Cleage
A
advice and their example were invaluable to me
was fortunate to study with some great play-
But there was another kind of lesson waiting
wrights who were also great teachers. Owen
for me when I transferred to Spelman and became
Dodson, a flesh-and-blood connection to the
a student of Carlton and Barbara Molette. Not only
Harlem Renaissance, showed me that Oedipus
were they playwrights who were deeply rooted
Rex was as relevant to my life as LeRoi Jones.
in and consciously reflective of the same Black
Ted Shine showed me that the one-act play was
Arts Movement that was shaping my plays and
a form worthy of consideration, and Paul Carter
defining my creative life, they were complicated
Harrison showed me that being avant-garde
individuals and complementary human beings,
didn’t mean being obscure. They challenged and
a rare and wonderful thing to behold. I learned
encouraged and rewarded my efforts and they
that they had met when she was studying acting at
held me to the same high standards they set for
Spelman and he was a Morehouse student figur-
themselves. They taught me about discipline and
ing out how to be a director. Carlton describes
craft and the responsibility that comes with the
their meeting as “a turning point” in his life.
seductive power of writing for the stage. Their
Barbara seems to have shared that feeling. The
s a you ng play w r ight, f irst at Howard University and later at Spelman College, I
as a young writer.
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two made a joint decision to build a life for themselves in the theatre, and that’s exactly what they did. In addition to their work as dedicated teachers and tireless mentors, their list Photo courtesy of Carlton Molette
of writing credits is lengthy and impressive. From Dr. B.S. Black to Fortunes of the Moor, they looked at history, contemporary and ancient, through a lens that could find lessons to be learned in laughter as much as in tears. They worked on hundreds of productions together as producers, directors, playwrights, set and costume designers. In all those areas, they showed me how to do it, and how to do it right and I am grateful, but the most important lesson they taught me was a deeper, more spiritual lesson.
Pearl Cleage’s first Atlanta production, The Sale, was directed by Carlton Molette and featured Samuel L. Jackson (center) and LaTanya Richardson Jackson (left).
They showed me that you can have a passionate life in the theatre, and still
you. They showed me what love looks
have a house full of love and laughter
like between true collaborators who
and good food on the stove with enough
make each other’s work better and make
to share even if they weren’t expecting
each other’s lives the best.
The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical
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theatre.nku.edu | sota.nku.edu 16 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Annual Dance Concerts
The African Company Presents Richard III
Noah Taylor
I remember being at their house once
with beauty and grace. They reminded
when their daughters were young. I had
me that even though we were radical
finished Spelman by then and we were
Black artists, we were allowed to experi-
no longer defined by student and teach-
ence joy.
er roles but by a friendship based on a shared passion for theatre, and, I think
Wow, I remember thinking. Maybe they’re right.
now, a shared belief that having love
Of course, t hey were. And t heir
at the heart of everything makes it all
shared journey remains in my mind a
that much better. And not just romantic
love story for the ages; a lesson to be
love, but love of family, of community, of
learned and relearned like a favorite
friends. On this particular night, I was
passage from a play that became a turn-
feeling pretty cynical about the possibil-
ing point in your life. Carlton Molette
ity of achieving anything resembling a
knows a thing or two about that kind
real love/work balance in my life.
of moment. And if you don’t believe it,
But as I sat there in Carlton and
just ask him. n
Barbara’s kitchen watching them cooking dinner, talking to the girls about their day, working out a kink in the script they were collaborating on and regularly refilling my wine glass without even breaking a sweat, it dawned on me that what I was looking at was the proof that it could be done. And done
18 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Pearl Cleage (she/her) is an Atlanta-based writer and the Distinguished Artist in Residence at the Alliance Theatre. Her most recent work is Something Moving: A Meditation on Maynard.
Nykieria Chaney
INDIRA ETWAROO
A Visionary Arts Leader
A
by Kyla Kazuschyk
Above: Producer, director and arts leader Indira Etwaroo talks about growth, art and racial justice in a Friday keynote address at the 2023 SETC Convention in Lexington, Kentucky.
Award-winning producer, director and arts leader Indira Etwaroo, PhD, shared an inspirational message with her Friday keynote audience at the 2023 SETC Convention. In introducing Etwaroo (she/her), SETC Executive Director Toni Simmons Henson noted Etwaroo’s groundbreaking work in developing multi-platform venues and content that represents the diversity of the globe and explores the complex intersections between stories that matter and the topics of our time. Currently the first-ever director of the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple headquarters in California, Etwaroo previously has served in numerous roles, including founding executive producer of NPR Presents, a global multi-platform live events initiative, and executive artistic director of the Billie Holiday Theatre in Brooklyn, where she achieved radical growth, more than doubling the audience, increasing revenue by 212% and producing groundbreaking content. During her tenure, the theatre was awarded the Presidential National Medal of Arts for its social justice work. She began her address by noting that the American theatre stands at a precipice. “As a global pandemic impacted every human being on the planet and while the world was on pause, the murder of a Black man happened in the streets of Minneapolis, Minnesota, by the very system that was meant to protect him,” she
20 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
SETC Convention Keynote Speaker
said. “A knee on the neck for over nine minutes that took George Floyd’s life. And so here we are again convened, recovered, conferencing, and we are faced with an opportunity to see the world anew, or perhaps to be and to become a new world.” She posed a question to her audience: “What do we need to see and who do we need to be or to become as the American theatre, in all of its parts and purposes, in order to build a world, as [the late writer and activist] Audre Lorde stated, in which all people can flourish?” In recounting the story of her early life, Etwaroo said she was “born to a time of fire,” using words spoken by Boy Willie in Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson. Etwaroo’s mother and father met when he attended Howard University, and she grew up in southeast Washington, DC, in a time of racial unrest. Though her parents sometimes struggled to make ends meet raising five children, there was music, dancing and storytelling in their home, she said. Her parents “instilled in us values of honoring the humanity of all people, regardless of race, nationality, gender, sexual orientation or faith, a value of the arts and creative expression, a core of democratic ideals, and a value to believe in something bigger than ourselves.” In grade school, Etwaroo and her siblings were part of the American experiment of desegregation, which bused primarily Black children to schools that were located very far away in white neighborhoods. They had to wake up hours earlier than their white counterparts to catch their buses, and she watched her mother take several city buses to attend school events, only to be scolded by school officials if she
courtesy of Indira Etwaroo
Born to a time of fire
was a few minutes late. “The lesson: it is critical to remember for those of us who are in positions of change, that diversity brings diverse voices into the theatre ecosystem,” Etwaroo said. “Inclusion gives them a voice. But belonging ensures that those voices are heard.” In third grade, Etwaroo discovered that she liked running and that she was good at it. She could run faster than all the children in her class, and she felt free and confident. One day, her gym teacher told her to take a step back from the starting line for a race. So, she did, and she still won. The gym teacher made her start another step back, and then another, and still she won every race, even starting behind everyone else. And then, after taking four steps back, she started to lose.
Indira Etwaroo taught a community dance class with young people in 2004 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where she served as a Fulbright Scholar.
INDIRA ETWAROO, PhD: Bio and Career Highlights EDUCATION: BA, Music, Longwood University MEd, Dance, Temple University PhD, Cultural Studies, Temple University
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: Founding Executive Producer, The Greene Space, NYC Founding Executive Producer, NPR Presents Executive Produced the American Broadcast Premiere of the 75th Anniversary of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Executive Produced first-ever audio recordings and video broadcasts of August Wilson’s entire American Century Cycle
Executive Artistic Director of the Billie Holiday Theater, Brooklyn — awarded the Presidential National Medal of Arts Professor of graduate studies, Temple University and NYU Inaugural Director of the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple in California
AWARDS: “40 under 40” of national leaders, The Network Journal Larry Leon Hamlin Legacy Award, Black Theatre Network Larry Leon Hamlin Producer’s Award, National Black Theatre Festival Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 21
She began to doubt her ability and lose her confidence. Her third grade teacher saw what was happening and stepped in, loudly and directly telling the gym teacher, “Let Indira start at the same line as everybody else.” Etwaroo didn’t have the vocabulary for it at the time, but later she realized, “This was an early example of allyship. A person who recognizes their own privilege and uses it to influence inclusion and call out or challenge behaviors perpetuating systematic oppression based on race, gender, religion, sexual orientation and ability.” That story prompted another question to her audience: “What is our role as theatre practitioners, educators, artists to disrupt centuries-old lesson plans and to teach new lessons?” In middle school, Etwaroo learned to play the flute. She excelled at music throughout high school and earned a music scholarship to attend college by submitting a blind audition through cassette tape. “The lesson I took from this was how invisibility often oscillates between being an asset and a detriment,” she said. When Etwaroo was preparing to leave home for college, her father received a phone call from the financial aid office. He remained calm but she could sense his frustration as he repeated himself over and over again until finally handing the phone over to her. The caller from financial aid said, “Thank God! I couldn’t understand a word he was saying.” “My father, who shared the hybrid of a charming Guyanese and Southern accent, looked at me with eyes that pleaded for me to not get angry, which was my normal response to any injustice or ignorance at that age in my life,” Etwaroo said. “The lesson: Change often requires civility and grace, a remembrance that the moral arc of the universe is long, longer than many of us would like in our earlier years, but it always bends toward justice, as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reminded us.” Learning can come from anywhere
While working on her master’s degree in dance, Etwaroo traveled to Ethiopia as a Fulbright Scholar to work with refugee Somali women who fled Mogadishu during the 1991 civil conflict. “They survived a civil conflict, rape, 22 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
children being killed by soldiers and lions,” Etwaroo said. “Days, weeks and months of walking to flee another country with only their babies on their backs and children in tow. And they became cultural conduits, bringing with them their songs and dances, music, poetry and history.” Etwaroo’s time there and her interactions with these women changed her entire perspective of the world. “The lesson for me is how learning can come from anyone and anywhere if we remain open, curious to the new when we are in unknown spaces,” she said. “Take the hand of the new and see where it can take us.”. Making funding parity a priority
One of Etwaroo’s concerns is the huge disparity in how white-led and Black-led arts organizations are funded. She shared statistics, noting that the Helicon study that analyzed funding trends across the country in 2017 found that, out of 41,000 cultural groups, just 2% received 58% of all contributed income. “That’s income from private foundations, public sources and individuals,” she said. “Those that focus on Western European arts and serve upper-income, predominantly white audiences were that 2%.” The other 98 percent of organizations were left to split the remaining 42% of funding, she said. “Persistent disinvestment and marginalization have left arts organizations of color fragile,” Etwaroo said. “87% of the African-American theatres founded in the 1960s and beyond went out of business by the mid-1990s — 87%. Yet these organizations were essential to providing access to arts education for low-income and marginalized communities and children, promoting accurate cultural representation and preserving the unique cultural heritage of those spaces.” Creating funding parity is critical not just for the artists and the institutions, but for the people and the communities eager to experience their art, she said. “I believe that we can ensure the fundamental right to arts for all people, especially the most vulnerable in our society,” Etwaroo said. “The absence of art and thriving cultural institutions to stand on the front lines with all people and all communities is not just a
side effect of poverty. Not having that, that’s an integral part of what it means to be poor.” Using art to make a statement
Etwaroo also talked about the power of art to make a difference, noting that she was involved in helping to create New York state’s first street-sized Black Lives Matter mural in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood in Central Brooklyn in 2020. The mural features 20 large rectangles representing the year 2020 and a row of caskets with the names of victims of police brutality and racially motivated killings in this country, from Emmett Till to Martin Luther King Jr. to Eric Hawkins to Trayvon Martin, to Breonna Taylor to George Floyd, to the killings of two Black trans women, Riah Milton and Dominique Fells. “The list grew and grew until we had over 160 names, names that were a drop in the bucket of blood that has been shed on American soil in the name of racial injustice and violence against Black children, women and men — our fellow Americans,” Etwaroo said. Working on that project had a profound effect on her, Etwaroo said. “This mural remains the most powerful artistic project that I have ever produced because it was truly of the people, by the people, and for the people,” she said. “And it was forged in a radical love for a people, a community, a justice.” The importance of a vision
Following her speech, Etwaroo answered questions from the audience and a moderator, Erich McMillan-McCall, founder of Project1VOICE, a national nonprofit for performing arts service organizations that advocates on issues affecting African American theatre. The organization’s mission is to increase the organizational capacity of member theatres, to cultivate and celebrate the artistic talent and achievements of African Americans, as well as other people of color, and to promote a larger public understanding and appreciation for African American theatre and playwrights. One of McMillan-McCall’s questions for Etwaroo was about the idea of radical love that she mentioned in connection with the Bedford-Stuyvesant mural. “What are you radically in love with?” he asked. Etwaroo answered: “I’m radically in love
with things that don’t exist in the world, but they exist in my heart and my mind.” Having a vision of what you want to accomplish in your heart and mind is essential, she said, noting that she sometimes uses sports metaphors to motivate her team to see that necessity: “Don’t take the shot unless you see the shot. If you don’t see the ball going in the net, don’t take the shot… Don’t build the institute unless you see the institution. Don’t build whatever it is, the artwork, unless you can see it… There’s something really powerful about having a vision and a purpose and a North Star.” McMillan-McCall asked Etwaroo to discuss how her work at the Steve Jobs Theater helps fulfill her vision. “The Steve Jobs Theater sits at the highest point of Apple Park and, in many ways, it sits there as aspiration,” Etwaroo responded. “We as a corporation believe in making the best products in the world, but that everything we do is rooted in values of diversity, inclusivity, accessibility, the environment and sustainability, privacy, etc. So, it is a corporation that walks the walk that it talks. And so I get to work on events that are about our products, but also about our values.” Showing up and finishing
A student in the audience asked, “What advice would you have for being able to still come out on equal ground from everyone else, even though you started from behind?” “This is a moment I get to honor my parents,” Etwaroo said. “Because whether I am to run a race in middle school or I am directing the Steve Jobs Theater at Apple, the core values that they gave me have served me.” She credited her Dad with instilling the value of showing up every day to school, not missing days unless you were really sick. And her mother taught her and her siblings to respect each other and apologize when they hurt each other. “Those are tools that have served me my entire life, the tool of believing in something bigger than myself and a tool of ‘you don’t get to not finish,’” Etwaroo said. “If you start it, you finish it.” Ripping off the Band-Aids
Asked by an audience member about education systems in the United States Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 23
and their potential to change or improve, Etwaroo took the opportunity to offer an insightful perspective on education and on change in general. “I think it comes down to a cultural ethos,” she said. “We as a culture are riddled with cultural amnesia. Something happens, we get stirred, we protest and then we return to wherever we were before, whatever that consciousness was.” People forget, and many fear change. Reforming broken systems may not be enough, Etwaroo noted, saying entirely new ecosystems may need to be built. “I’ve learned to say, ‘If you want someone to change the color on the walls or the curtains, I’m not your person. I’m going to tear down walls. I’m going to dig up foundations. We’re going to start over where we need to.’” Etwaroo also spoke of the importance of storytelling and representation, invoking the John Henrik Clarke quote: “Slavery ended and left its false images of Black people intact.” Representation is vital, she said, to help people of color envision what can be.
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24 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Responding to a student who asked for advice about how to push the envelope further with representation, Etwaroo said, “America is still working with its consciousness. People are still working through these residuals of slavery. America is still dealing with this consciousness. I think of this often as we think about the trauma that we experience as people of former enslaved Africans. We were not slaves. We were enslaved Africans. What does it mean for us to carry the trauma as the children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren of those who were enslaved in America? What does it mean to have trauma, to come from generations who enslaved?” She noted that much work needs to be done, and conversations must be held. “The Band-Aids that we put on America and its racial strife do not fix it,” she said. “We’ve got to start ripping these Band-Aids off and go in and start doing some surgery. And it is going to be painful, and it is going to hurt. And there may not be anesthesia. And there’s going to be a recovery period
until we can get to a better place. But up until this point, when I look at the arc of history, that moral arc that is bending towards justice, it is full of so many BandAids that are covering wounds that are not healing. I do think that something much more radical is going to be required.” Etwaroo ended her keynote by thanking the audience for engaging in conversation with her. “I am so heartened to be in a room with people from all walks of life where we can have this kind of open and transparent conversation,” she said. “I like to think that we’re having difficult dialogues with dignity as a people and that we’re fundamentally building a civilization — and it happens one tough conversation at a time.” n
Kyla Kazuschyk (she/her) teaches costume technology at Louisiana State University and is a member of the Southern Theatre Editorial Board. Her book, Creating Costumes for Devised Theatre, is available from Routledge Press.
Nykieria Chaney
SKYLAR FOX
‘You Are the Actual Magic’
S
by Caroline Jane Davis
Skylar Fox (he/him) is a theatre artist who defies labels and challenges the status quo. The illusions and magic associate for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child “cares about making wildly theatrical plays and musicals
Above: Theatre illusionist Skylar Fox was the Thursday keynote speaker for the 2023 SETC Convention in Lexington, Kentucky.
that push the boundaries of what theatre can do to tell demandingly vulnerable stories powerfully.” But Fox quickly made it clear that he was not the only boundary pusher at the 2023 SETC Convention: “I’m excited to be speaking to you today. Because you are going to make the theatre that I get to see that breaks my brain for the rest of my life and expands what I think is possible,” he told the young artists in the audience. The Thursday convention keynote speaker gave an impassioned speech on the future of theatre, embracing limitations, and leading with your “why.” ‘Do not give up any of the things that make you interesting.’
Perhaps best known for his spellbinding illusion design work, Fox has always been passionate about performance. At age four, he received a magic kit for his birthday, popped in the kit’s accompanying instructional VHS tape, and “was hooked.” By age eight, he was asking his parents for a street performing
26 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
SETC Convention Keynote Speaker
license (to which they somehow, perhaps magically, agreed). As a young adult, Fox was actively involved in his public high school theatre program, self-producing a variety of projects while assisting friends with their creative work. But the parallel paths of magic and theatre did not fully intersect for Fox until years into his professional career. While mounting highly ambitious productions like Sunday in the Park with George, Caligula and Twilight: Los Angeles as Matthew Murphy
a teenager, Fox realized how much he enjoyed creating in collaboration with others. Around this time, he felt compelled to concentrate on theatre as his professional focus at the expense of his work on magic, “something you fundamentally do alone.” Fox acknowledged to his audience that he
Always send the email
never truly abandoned magic in his art, but he
After receiving a BA in Theatre Arts and
shared advice: “Do not give up any of the things
Performance Studies from Brown University,
that make you interesting or specific or different...
Fox began incorporating magic and illusions
Those things are going to lead you to the most
into his theatrical work as co-artistic director of
meaningful things you do in your life,” he said.
Nightdrive, a theatre company known for making
“And if there are spaces that are asking you to be
“rigorously irreverent, demandingly vulnerable,
less of who you are to fit into them, those are not
borderline-impossible plays.”
good spaces to work in.”
Over the next several years with Nightdrive, Fox
SKYLAR FOX: Bio and Career Highlights EDUCATION: BA, Theatre Arts and Performance Studies, Brown University BROADWAY CREDITS: Illusions & Magic Associate, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Associate Illusions Designer, A Beautiful Noise Illusions Designer, Fat Ham (Broadway, The Public Theater and National Black Theatre) OTHER ILLUSION DESIGN CREDITS: Wicked (Teatro Santander, São Paulo) You Will Get Sick (Roundabout) Dracula (Maltz Jupiter Theater) Damn Yankees (Shaw Festival) Consultant for The Tonight Show, The Tony Awards, and San Diego Comic Con
Skylar Fox worked on the magical effects for the Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, including magical candy effects (above), spell-casting, transformations, and time travel.
SELECT DIRECTING/WRITING CREDITS The Grown-Ups (Nightdrive) Alien Nation (Paradise Factory) Providence, RI (The Tank) Thank You Sorry (Ars Nova) The Annotated History of the American Muskrat (The New Ohio, Boston Center for the Arts) Apathy Boy (The Brick & Ars Nova) SELECT AWARDS & NOMINATIONS: 2023, Special Obie Citation, Fat Ham 2019, Relentless Award Semifinalist, Society 2017, Relentless Award Winner, Pussy Sludge 2015, Finalist, Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center’s National Playwrights Conference, Apathy Boy 2014, Runner-Up, Gaffney Playwriting Prize, La Jolla Playhouse/UCSD, The Last of the Living Jeffersons 2013, Nomination for Best Director, IRNE Awards, Passion Play
More Info: skylarfox.com or nightdrive.org Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 27
continued to embrace highly experimental staging, launching projects ranging from an immersive alien movie to a haunted rock concert. But it was a serendipitous email that led to the biggest break in his career. In his keynote, Fox explained that he had been a longtime admirer of Scottish theatre company Vox Motus, known Matthew Murphy
for t heir i n novat ive work i n v isual storytelling. One day, Fox discovered their co-artistic director, Jamie Harrison, was listed as the creator of magic and illusions for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway. Fox sent an email to Harrison introducing himself: “I said, ‘Hey, you’re not going to believe me because I know you’re working on Harry Potter, but I’ve been following you forever. I had no idea you did magic. This is something I do, too. Can we talk?’” They met a few days later on Skype and discovered they shared similar pathways as magicians who fell in love with theatre. At the end of the call, Fox described a bizarre twist in the conversation: “[Harrison] asked, ‘Who told you to reach out to me?’ I said, ‘I have to be honest, no one.’” Much to Fox’s surprise, Harrison had recently been tasked with finding an illusionist to join the Harry Potter team. The timing of the Skype call was almost too perfect. After six months of interviews, Fox got the job. Fox aga i n add r e s s e d t h e you ng artists in the audience: “I wouldn’t have con nected with this person who’s a mentor and a dear friend had I not sent the email. Be fearless about reaching out to the people you admire,” he said. “Everyone who’s in a position like me has been in your position… and it feels good to be asked for help.” Though his prior theatrical work always included elements of magic, the
apsu.edu/theatredance
call with Harrison led to a major shift in Fox’s career. The multi-hyphenate’s resume now boasts an array of major illusion-for-theatre credits, including magic and illusions designer for the
28 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Stage effects depict Dementors in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
current non-replica production of Wicked in Brazil and illusions designer for Fat Ham on Broadway. Solving impossible problems by embracing limitations
“I want to talk about something really important, something that I think is going to fundamentally change all of our lives,” Fox told the convention attendees, “and this thing is the ABBA hologram show.” He went on to explain that a producer friend of his had seen ABBA Voyage in a specially-built arena outside London’s city center. “[My friend] said that he saw it and he wept. Because, and these are his words, ‘You think you know what a hologram is going to look like. But it feels like they’re there with you.’ And for a second I got nervous… because I think ‘What does that mean for theatre?’’’ “The fundamental truth is, things like this — moments of innovation like this — force us to look in the mirror and think, ‘How are we going to innovate this field and push the limits of what we can do? How are we going to justify why we’re needed to make live theatre?’” he said. “This is going to matter. It matters right now.” Fox argued that the solution lies, at least in part, in continuing to create new
INNOVATE. EXCITE. TRANSFORM. We can only shape art if we understand and embrace the community around us. In the School of Theatre & Dance, experiential education programs like WildWind Performance Lab and The Marfa Intensive amplify a diversity of identities, perspectives, and histories to encourage transformation.
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magical moments in theatre by embrac-
“When you think about those five to ten
ing limitations and shattering assump-
things you don’t think about the whole
tions about what humans can do on stage.
[play], you think of moments. So these
“I bet you’ve a l l made mag ic i n
are the impactful moments we’re trying
theatre,” he said. “Because magic is
to find [in the script.]” He cited Emily’s
just solving impossible problems… the
monologue bidding goodbye to Grover’s
currency of theatre is surprise.”
Corners in Our Town as a moment that
To create surprise for the audience,
3) How could a moment of magic
tions of live performance, Fox explained.
make these moments feel more
“In theatre, we have to actually be in the
like they feel to us? “How could we
same room at the same time,” he said.
communicate a non-tactile feeling more
“We know we’re sharing the same laws
powerfully with magic?” Returning to
of physics. There can’t be a green screen
his Our Town example, Fox asked, “What
that can be edited later.”
if [the other characters in the play] just
“Think about your limits as your friends. Your limitations are what breed
BA/BS Theatre BA/BS Theatre/Film BA/BS Musical Theatre Murraystate.edu/theatre 30 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
speaks to his “why.”
you must begin by celebrating the limita-
dissolved in front of [Emily] as she was saying goodbye?”
creativity,” he said. “We’re showing off
4) How would I do that? Only once
a limitation in order to break through
you’ve tackled the first three questions
assumptions.”
should you ask yourself how a moment
Four questions for making magic
can physically be accomplished, Fox said.
When setting out to design a magical
“We can’t do impossible things alone. You
moment in theatre, Fox shared the four
need to band together and learn how to
questions he always asks himself:
create deeply collaborative art… it means
1) Why are we doing this play? “Is
us getting in a room and getting in touch
there something vulnerable and mushy
with our ‘whys’ together so we can build
that I’m trying to explore about myself?”
something new, something genuinely
he asked. “What’s something challenging
innovative, where we don’t use the limits
about being a person that I don’t know
of our own creativity to stop us before we
how to deal with through words so I have
get started.”
to deal with it through other people in
The challenge of magic
space?” He used Our Town as an example.
Fox hu mor ou sly a r t ic u l ate d t he
For him, the play presents a “seemingly
dangers of attempting illusion work
impossible balance: Can we live our
on stage to his audience: “With magic,
lives fully and appreciate our lives at the
failure is public and obvious. You don’t
same time?” While the play itself seems
know when someone ‘goes up’ on a line
to argue that no, we cannot do both, Fox
unless you’ve memorized the play. But if a
shared that the conventions of theatre
magic trick goes wrong, we know. When
allow for the audience to do just that:
you’re really putting yourself out there,
“We’re given the opportunity to actually
when you’re being vulnerable, when
do those things: live inside a feeling and
you’re leading with a ‘why’ and trying to
watch that feeling at the same time.” That
do something new and impossible, you’re
balance is Fox’s “why” for Our Town.
going to mess up.”
2) What are moments in the play
The difficulty, however, is what makes
that most speak to those feelings?
things worth it to Fox: “Trying to do
“You probably love theatre because
something impossible actually makes
you’ve seen five or ten things in your life
the effort mean something,” he said. “At
that broke your brain and changed your
its best, magic is able to take the private,
life. We’re going to spend the rest of our
quiet things we feel and show us the
lives trying to make those plays,” he said.
world not as it is but how we feel it to
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WHO SHOULD JOIN? • Individuals • Service Providers • Organizations • Businesses
be… how validating and meaningful to be able to create that on stage.” Making magic accessible
involved in magic.” “If someone comes up to you after a show and asks, ‘How did you do that?’
During the Q&A period, an audience
what I hear is ‘What you did brings joy
member asked Fox for his opinion on
to me. It had an impact on me. All the
pushing boundaries for all audiences,
work and care you put into making that
including those with disabilities: “As a
moment gave me something.’ And I don’t
blind artist, I am consistently looking for
want to be the person who takes that
ways to break convention and to create
away from them,” he said.
art with a visual disability. As a blind
“To me, the accessibility and wonder
consumer of art, I wonder... are there
of it is in holding the secret part of it with
other ways to appeal to senses so that
a certain amount of humility. It’s not
someone who can’t see the magic gets to
about knowing more than you know, it’s
experience that as well?”
about the fact that I built this thing with
“That is such a good question,” Fox
a sense of vulnerability while taking a
replied. “I’ve made a couple of shows
risk. That thing now exists in the world,
recently with Nightdrive that are made
and the way we each interact with it is
specifically with a visually-impaired
different, but the ability of it to exist
audience i n mi nd because t hey are
meaningfully for other people is in their
• Protocol, ESTA’s quarterly industry journal
largely performed very close to you, and
not knowing how we did it.”
most of the magic that is happening is
A message on a poker chip
participatory and mental. Magic is not
As a f irst-t ime SETC Convent ion
Join today to help us realize our vision of a thriving, inclusive industry strengthened by standards, safety, and shared knowledge!
limited to a visual language. Think about
attendee, Fox expressed excitement about
things like mentalism, for example. We’re
his convention experience: “It feels so
dealing with the way we share thoughts.
thrilling to be in a space like SETC where
That is a space that’s wildly accessible,
young people who really love this, and
and it hasn’t been tapped a lot in theatre
educators who really care about those
even though it’s really exciting. I think
people, and professionals who care about
the limit is only our imagination as we
the future of our industry are all actually
think about how we can make pieces of
looking forward.”
MEMBERSHIP IN ESTA SUPPORTS: • Standards • Certification • Your industry initiatives
magic that are radically accessible.” Keeping the secrets
Later in the Q&A, Fox shared that his
that on the first day of rehearsals with
favorite trick in Harry Potter and the Cursed
a new Harry Potter team, his first magic
Child is the Polyjuice Potion trick.
lesson is on how to make a poker chip
“I love Polyjuice because every set
Find ESTA members at my.esta.org
Fox left his audience with a reminder to continue looking forward. He shared
disappear.
of actors who do it do it differently,”
“It’s a silly piece of sleight-of-hand
he said. “It’s very personal. We get to
that helps them think about what magic
make it all over the world with different
does,” he said. “And on opening night,
c o m b i n a t i o n s o f p e o p l e… t h e r e ’s
I always give everyone in the cast a
something lively and joyful about it.”
poker chip that says the last thing I
But if you want to know how it’s done,
want to say to you, because it’s true...
you’ll have to do that homework on your
Always remember that you are the actual
own. When asked after the keynote about
magic.” n
“keeping the secrets” of his magical
Join us:
Follow us:
work, Fox explained, “All of the stuff is out there. There are books at your free library, and it’s all online. So, if you want to learn, your interest and dedication are the key determinants for you to get
32 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Caroline Jane Davis (she/her) is a visiting assistant professor of theatre arts at Furman University. She is a member of the Southern Theatre Editorial Board.
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Elizabeth Watkins
IDEAS TO IMPLEMENTATION Lighting & Event Design with Vectorworks Spotlight
i
by Thomas Rodman
In today’s technological and fast-paced theatre and event scene, the key to success is understanding that time is money. So, having the right tools and finding the most efficient workflow is paramount. At the 2023
Above: Vectorworks product marketing manager Brandon Eckstorm works with workshop participants at SETC’s Teachers Institute.
SETC Teachers Institute during the SETC Convention, Brandon Eckstorm, Vectorworks’ product marketing manager, showed participants how Vectorworks Spotlight 2023 can help them quickly take their ideas and create implementable designs. Eckstorm shared workflow tips for the software – which is available free to students and teachers through
educational licenses – and took the participants through some of the built-in automated tools that can help maximize their time and help them create functional, clear drawings and reports quickly. The stated learning objectives for the day were to: • Discover the basic elements in creating a simple “room” for a live event. • Learn how to place rigging elements in Spotlight. • Create detailed lighting designs and worksheets using Vectorworks Spotlight.
34 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
SETC Teachers Institute Getting Started: Understanding the tools
“Conventionals,” “Led Lights,” “Moving Lights,”
The session started with an overview of the
“Atmospherics,” “Hardware,” and “Hanging
overall UI (user Interface) which included the basic
Positions.” A “Scenery” design layer could be split
program menus and the various palettes and tool sets
into “Act I,” “Act II,” etc.
used to create, edit and view objects. Of note were
Both layers and classes can be assigned colors
the Navigation and Resource palettes.
so that their information “pops” in relation to other
Navigation Palette
information visible. Layers and classes can also be set
The navigation palette is where the drawing is
to be visible/invisible/grayed out. This is important
organized, and organization is everything. There are
in the creative process but also comes into play later
six tabs to the palette: Design Layers, Classes, Sheet
when you are ready to publish your design.
Layers, Viewports, Saved Views, and References. Design Layers. Think of them like departments.
So, you could have a “Venue” layer that shows the
Sheet Layers — The end product. A fully
architecture and layout of the venue, be it a theatre,
customizable page that contains one or more
conference hall or other location. You could then
viewports of your project, a border and title block
create separate layers for each major element of the
suitable for publishing as a PDF or printed document.
project such as “Light plot,” “Scenery,” “Video,”
Saved Views — You can take a look at your
“Sound,” etc. It was stressed that it is important to
rendered project from a particular set of viewpoints
keep track of how you stack your layers. The objects
and then switch back to your working view.
on each layer will cover the objects on the layer below.
References — These are files such as images
These layers can be reorganized as needed during
or PDFs that are a part of your drawing but are not
the creative process.
embedded in the drawing file itself to save on file size.
Classes. These are about making things more
1
3
Viewports — Think custom views of your
project — plan, section, isometric, etc.
Resource Manager Palette
granular. Instead of departments, this would be
The Resource Manager contains all the prebuilt
sub objects in the departments. For instance, on
elements that can be used in your drawing: 2D, 3D
your “Light Plot” design layer, you can use classes
or hybrid symbols of physical objects that you can
to organize the objects on the layer into groups of
grab and drop into your drawing, such as lighting
like items that make sense for the project such as
instruments, accessories, microphone stands,
2
Image 1: The basic printed scale drawing of the venue which has a sketched idea for an event setup. Image courtesy of Brandon Eckstorm Image 2: A Plan or Top View of the venue showing the stage, masking, lighting, sound and video elements created based on the rough sketch and rigging points which were previously imported. Image courtesy of Tom Rodman Image 3: A rendered front view (Preview) of the venue and setup which shows an accurate representation of the stage, masking, lighting, sound, and video elements as they would appear. Image courtesy of Tom Rodman
Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 35
speakers and chairs — to name a few. There
up a basic file with your layers, classes,
are also gobo images, textures, hatches, text
and even the base venue in place, and
styles, line types and gradients.
save it as a template. Creating one and
Eckstorm demonstrated how to create
maintaining it allows you to jump right
custom objects and styles. The stock
into a project with everything you need
plug-in symbol objects, as well as many
at your disposal and ensures that you
of the objects created with the built-in
will be working with the most up-to-
tools, can be customized and saved as
date details of the location. This is an
custom symbols or style instances if they
enormous time saver.
are specific variations you use all the time.
Getting our hands dirty:
TIPS:
Bringing ideas to life
• When 3D modeling, it is best to keep
After learning about the various tool
things simple when at all possible.
sets and palettes, participants delved
Textures (and imported images) can be
into a theoretical project and learned
applied to all kinds of objects such as
some of the practical techniques that can
planes, surfaces, cylinders or spheres.
help accelerate the drafting and creative
• Don’t 3D model anything if you can
workflow. The first step was to learn to
instead get away with just using an
import and scale a PDF of a hand-drawn
image. The example given was a chain
image onto a design layer. [See Image 1]
link fence. Don’t model it — rather,
The next step involved importing a
create a surface and apply the image of
DWG file with rigging points into another
a chain link fence to the surface.
design layer, and making sure it, too, was
• If there is a particular venue or work-
scaled correctly.
flow that you will be doing often, set
Eckstorm then showed two different
THEATRE & DANCE in the Nation’s Capital STUDY ACTING, DANCE AND PRODUCTION DESIGN WITH A BACHELOR OF ARTS IN THEATRE OR DANCE 36 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
202.994.8072 WASHINGTON, DC ctad@gwu.edu
methods for creating the 3D wall and door
• Import a DWG file with rigging points.
elements of a basic venue space using the
• Quickly draft in the room walls, stage,
tools from the Event Design menu and the
and doors.
Building Shell tools palette: Create Room,
• Add in custom soft goods.
Wall Tool, Door Tool. Using the imported
• Add in customized projection screens,
drawing as a reference, the venue space with customized walls, doors, floor, stage and soft goods was quickly completed. With the venue taking shape, the next task was to add some standard event equipment such as speakers, a camera, projectors and screens using the Event Design Toolset. Working with the imported rigging points, lighting pipes and truss were added
projectors, speakers and stands. • Add in a custom camera object and stand. • Work with rigging points to add in lighting pipes and truss objects. • Add lighting instruments, focus points and create custom label legends. • Focus the lights and add color. • See their work rendered in 3D. • Create a plan view and front elevation
to the space. A basic set of lights and focus
views.
points were then inserted. The lights were
A Few Notes
assigned to the focus points, and with a
• There is a learning curve. This presenta-
click, the beams were drawn which would
tion was just an overview of how the
show an approximation of what the light
tools work.
coverage would look like. By adjusting the
• Start off working in 3D modeling with
location of the focus points, it was possible
the built-in tools early on. It is harder to
to ensure that they overlapped correctly,
transition to 3D if you cement yourself
which should give a clean wash of the
in working in 2D exclusively. With
stage. [See Image 2]
the built-in tools that streamline your
Likewise, it is also possible to look at and customize the other items, such as the
workflow, there really isn’t any reason not to start in 3D right away.
screens, projectors, camera and speakers
• Practice! You will forget how to do
to plan how they will look and how they
things unless you keep working with
would best accomplish their task. For
the program and your workflow. n
instance, in the settings for the speakers, one can choose the make and model, how it is mounted, and at what height. If instructed, Vectorworks will model the coverage area of the speaker based on manufacturer specs already loaded into the symbol. Likewise, the camera body and lens were selected based on what was appropriate for the distance and desired view of the stage. With all of the built-in functionality and options available, it is quite easy to model a satisfactory preview of what the actual venue and event should look like.
Getting the free software Interested students and instructors can download a free educational license of Vectorworks Design Suite software, which includes all the capabilities of Spotlight, Architec t and L andmark. For students and instructors in the entertainment industry, the Braceworks, ConnectCAD, and Vision add-ons are also available. Visit vec tor works.net /educ ation to apply for a free educational license or request software for your school’s lab.
[See Image 3] Conclusion
At the end of the day, the participants had learned about and could accomplish the following basic tasks: • Import a PDF hand drawing and scale it. 38 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
Thomas Rodman (he/him) is a professional lighting designer and an assistant professor of lighting and sound at Alabama State University in Montgomery. He is a member of the Southern Theatre Editorial Board.
Photo courtesy of Mary Louise Geiger
CREATING THE NEW NORMAL Advice from the 2023 SETC Design Keynotes b y J o n a t h o n Ta y l o r
The slate of design keynotes at the 2023 SETC Convention in Lexington, Kentucky included three distinguished designers from the areas of scenic, lighting and costume design. Each of the designers shared highlights from their work, insights into the industry and career building, and, of course, advice for students who are about to enter the profession. Whether it was speaking in an impromptu Q&A session during the annual Design Competition, sharing the stage with award-winning design students, or discussing work and approaches to process during the series of keynote addresses on Thursday evening, each of the designers offered insight and tips for early career and soon-to-be professional designers and technicians.
SETC Convention Design Keynotes
M
ary Louise Geiger (she/her) is a lighting designer whose work ranges from
MARY LOUISE GEIGER Lighting Designer
devised pieces to opera, musical theatre, dance and straight plays. She earned her MFA from the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale and is a faculty member in the Department of Design for Stage and Film at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Geiger wasted no time in offering
students some direct advice, wrapped in a touch of humor. “First,” she says, “wear sunscreen. Second, be curious. Third, work piece of advice, Geiger adds, “Everybody knows everybody — so keep that in mind.” She rounds out her advice by stressing the importance of resilience, particularly in the early stages of a young designer’s career — a quality many discovered in themselves during the pandemic. “I don’t mea n t hat I’m happy t he pandemic happened,” she said. “I just think
Above: Mary Louise Geiger adjudicates an entry in the Design Competition at the 2023 SETC Convention. Opposite page: Mary Louise Geiger created the lighting design for this production of Becomes A Woman by Betty Smith, staged Feb. 7 – March 18, 2023, at the Mint Theater Company, New York City. Actor: Emma Pfitzer Price. Set Designer: Vicki Davis. Costume Designer: Emilee McVey-Lee.
it’s good to discover you’re resilient. It’s good
“A truly great development since 2020
to discover there are things you like to do
is that the version of a director standing in
that are not just theatre.”
the back of the room yelling at everybody is
“I think there are tons of opportunities
Changes in rehearsal
really not cool,” she said. “I’ve found that most
and lots of things that are about to open up
While discussing her work on Jen
rooms have become more open, which, for me,
for everybody,” she said. “It’s worth really
Silverman’s Witch, Geiger noted a positive
is a much more interesting way of working.
considering that our drama training — our
experience with some recent changes in
The opportunity for everyone to contribute
training in theatre — makes us very nimble
the industry.
more vocally to our collaborative work is both
and very able to apply our skills to a lot of
“It’s the first time we’re working [after
freeing and artistically engaging.”
In her address, Geiger emphasized the benefits of theatre training.
different things.”
the pause], and we did it with no 10 out of
Geiger suggested that this newfound
12,” Geiger said, adding that despite the
opportunity to openly offer insight or ask
When asked during the Q&A about how
challenges presented by the play, “We got it
questions or express opinions about the work
empathy informs collaborative efforts, the
done with eight-hour days, and everything
of other designers or the work in general is
three keynote designers paused before Geiger
was just fine.”
both freeing and artistically engaging.
jumped in to address the question head on.
Being open to finding your place
“Every weird, interesting thing I know
Initiated during the pandemic, the push
Empathetic collaboration
for “no more 10 out of 12s” has reached new
Noting her own path to a career in design,
is from doing some play,” Geiger said. “You
heights as the industry pushed for more
Geiger stressed the importance of being open
can learn – it’s probably a tiny amount –
equitable and fair working conditions, and in
to opportunities and following one’s instincts
about a lot of different things, but it does
response, a number of theatres have changed
in order to find their place in the work.
open your eyes to a lot of different facets of
their practices to embrace a less physically
“I’ve been a theatre person (as opposed
life. … I do think putting yourself into the
and mentally taxing tech rehearsal schedule.
to a lighting person) for most of my life,” she
play, into the mind of the characters, helps
The website nomore10outof12s.com also cites
said. “In college I wanted to be a director, but
you to be empathetic to a situation and to
statistics and anecdotal evidence that frames
after taking a lighting class, I realized I didn’t
learn to work and play well with others.”
this shift away from longer rehearsal days
really have instincts about how to help the
For Geiger, the fun and collaborative
as more equitable for BIPOC artists, theatre
actors get better — but I had a lot of thoughts
nature of theatre is what keeps her coming
artists with disabilities, and caregivers.
about the overall experience and what it
back, project after project. “I like the puzzle
should look like. I’ve ended up as a lighting
of creating something with a group and
designer, which has been very fulfilling.”
telling a story,” she said.
Later, during the keynote Q&A, Geiger continued pondering recent changes.
Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 41
Nykieria Chaney
and play well with others.” To this latter
Nykieria Chaney
HARLAN D. PENN Scenic Designer
Harlan D. Penn adjudicates an entry in the Design Competition at the 2023 SETC Convention.
H
arlan D. Penn (he/him) is a scenic
sional organizations. “Young designers
de s ig n e r who s e work s pa n s
should also prepare to take the union
off-Broadway, television, regional theatre
exam.”
and educational theatre. He has also
Experiencing the new normal
served as art director or assistant art
Discussing both the return to work
director for film and television, working
after the pandemic pause and the future of
on projects for Netflix, ABC, Disney
the industry, Penn said he sees “an honest
and CBS, among others. Penn currently
effort taking place” to be more inclusive
teaches at York College in Jamaica,
of BIPOC designers, noting that “I have
Queens, New York, and he earned his
personally been contacted by many
MFA from the Universit y of North
theatre companies and educational insti-
Carolina School of the Arts.
tutions within the last year and a half.”
“Pace yourself,” Penn said, offering
Penn acknowledged that “not all
sage advice for young designers. “Young
contacts have resulted in work,” but he
designers often overload themselves
is certain that theatre has an enduring
by taking on too many projects. Young
future. At the same time, he encouraged
designers should plan their life like they
early career designers to broaden their
would plan designing a show. [They]
approach to work beyond the theatre.
should consider budgeting, taking care of
“I believe that commercial theatre
themselves – mind, body, and soul – and
will always have a place in the USA,” he
setting special time aside for loved ones
said. “However, young designers should
and family members.”
consider other options, such as film and
Roundi ng out t h is advice, Pen n emphasized the importance of profes42 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
TV, because streaming media is the future of entertainment.”
Embracing technology
promoted and encouraged. Sketching is a
That last piece of advice should be no
big part of my design process as I sculpt
surprise coming from Penn, who offered,
3D space in my imagination. Model
“there came a point where [I] had to
making is not my strength.”
choose to move forward or remain in the Stone Ages.”
In his keynote, Penn’s inclusion of this self-assessment provided a basis for
“Embrace technology,” Penn said,
an excellent piece of advice for young
while admitting he was “afraid to take the
designers: “Discover what you are good
leap” to CAD and Photoshop. “I would
at.”
examine drafting and designs done in
“Determine what sets you apart from
CAD that were exceptional, to say the
other designers and develop those skills,
least, and those designs intimidated me.”
but most importantly, develop your own
Although Penn seems to lament not
style,” Penn advised. “If you are good at
having “touched a drafting table” in over
creating multiple ways to move scenery
a decade, he is clearly happy with the
or to make scenery turn around and
benefits of relying on computer-aided
disappear, consider designing musicals.
drafting and modeling software to
If you’re a lighting designer and you
convey design ideas, and he encourages
like music, and color is a big part of your
students to embrace changes in practice
emotional psyche and the way you think,
that can more easily communicate their
consider lighting for dance.”
work over distances and save valuable
Skills he looks for in collaborators
time and energy in the design process.
Penn said strong organizational skills
Designer, know thyself
are the top attribute he looks for when hiring assistant or associate designers,
to draw and paint,” Penn said, describing
but he also prizes “a love of history, good
himself as “coming from a family with
craftsmanship [and] an overall good
an artistic background” where “art was
attitude and work ethic.”
Photo courtesy of Harlan D. Penn
“I’ve always taken pride in my ability
Harlan D. Penn provided scenic design for August Wilson’s Jitney, directed by Jacqueline Springfield, Nov. 11-16, 2022, at Kennesaw State University. Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 43
Nykieria Chaney
MARIANNE CUSTER Costume Designer
Marianne Custer adjudicates a costume entry in the Design Competition at the 2023 SETC Convention.
M
a r ia n ne Cu ster (she/ her) h a s
Practicing art on a professional level
academic career with a full career as a
was expected of her and other designers
working designer. She has designed on
and artists working in academic positions
Broadway, off-Broadway, and at theatres
who were on the tenure track or in tenured
in the US, Germany, Hungary, Turkey and
positions. “It was [akin to] publication, and
France. She is a Professor Emeritus from
so you had to do it,” she said.
the University of Tennessee, Knoxville,
Although being forced to stay relevant
where she taught costume design until
helped, Custer attributed her success to
2018.
the company she kept during her long
Custer advises young designers to “take
dual career.
chances. Aim high, but at the same time, do
“I think that the students help keep you
not get yourself into debt.” It may be neces-
relevant,” she said. “The students keep you
sary to sacrifice “pleasures and comforts”
on your toes. They’re not messing around.”
early on while building a network, which,
The engaged students “challenge you.”
Custer said, “is vital.”
Custer said.
“Develop relationships with interesting
“I was very proud of the program I
directors of your generation,” she said.
worked in because we provided a kind of
“Keep in touch. Be in the room as projects
enrichment […] that very few programs can
are developed.”
afford to do,” Custer said. “[My students]
Staying relevant
were doing shows and we were taking
In the Q&A period following the
44 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
“you had to do it. It was part of the job.”
successfully balanced her long
them to New York.”
design keynote, Custer responded to a
Custer stressed the importance of
question about staying relevant while
having a variety of theatre experiences in
essentially balancing two careers. Custer
order to broaden the palate, particularly
acknowledged that she had no choice but to
for early career designers.
maintain a highly productive professional
“We were taking them to foreign coun-
career while also teaching, noting that
tries, introducing them to a different kind
of design and different kinds of designers,” she said. “So, it was a program that was
about you than about the play.” This may be appropriate for other art
keeping us all relevant.”
forms, says Custer, but not for theatre.
Rely on your team
Working with directors
Custer also said it is important to
“I’ve experienced so many shows where
remember that theatre is a team sport. The
the director just wants to meet with the set
design team and the director work together
designer,” Custer said. “They want to …
to create the look of a production, and this
get the whole space worked out, and then
collaborative spirit carries over into other
they’ll talk about costumes.”
areas of Custer’s work.
Custer encourages designers to work
Custer’s colleagues taught their students
with the director to involve the entire
as a team, which allowed her to pursue
production team from the beginning of
professional opportunities as they arose.
the process. Insisting on a collaborative
Having reliable colleagues who worked
approach invites a process in which
well as a team “made it possible for my
ideas from each design area can grow in
colleagues and me to go out” and pursue
parallel, instead of forcing a hierarchy of
work.
development.
“Every designer going off into his
“I guess the times that [the direc-
corner doesn’t necessarily make it easy for
tor-designer process] has worked most
people,” she said.
successfully, from my point of view, is for
What designers do
me to come up with the idea first and sell
Custer reminded young designers of their role with some clear advice.
@techtheatredept
the director,” Custer says with a smile. “That can work really well.” n
“When we’re designing plays, we are interpreters of that play, and I think that each of us as a designer brings our aesthetic to it,” she said. Early career designers need to be aware that “in some cases you can bring too much of yourself to it, to the point
Photo courtesy of Marianne Custer
that it obscures the play and becomes more
Jonathon Taylor (he/him) is an assistant professor at East Tennessee State University, where he teaches scenic and costume design, stage management and theatre design basics. He is a member of the Southern Theatre Editorial Board.
Marianne Custer designed costumes for A Midsummer Night’s Dream — including Titania’s lavish ensemble, pictured here — in the Clarence Brown Theatre at the University of Tennessee, 2015. Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 45
2023 SETC Young Scholars Award UNDERGRADUATE WINNER: PARIS AGUILAR What in the White People: How Fiddler on the Roof Serves to Support the Civil Rights Act of 1964 Paris Aguilar (she/ h e r) i s a j u n i o r theatre major with a history minor at Brenau University, where she studies lighting design and technology, dramaturgy, and performance. Paris’s research interests involve the influences between theatre and politics. Paris has worked with the Gainesville Theatre Alliance in various productions with roles ranging from Head Electrician and Dramaturg to Swing. Abstract: This paper serves as an analysis of the support Joseph Stein’s Fiddler on the Roof gives to the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act (CRA). The musical opened five months after the Act’s passage, 19 years after World
46 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
War II, with the sympathy for European Jews still fresh in American minds. When looking at the historical context between 1960s America and the production of the musical, one can infer that Stein’s message of equality can be linked to his support for the civil rights movement. By breaking down the titles in the CRA, one can uncover direct correlations between the treatment of Jewish characters in Fiddler and the African-American community, in areas of public segregation and education, civil rights, appellate review and community relations. Seeing the struggles Tevye and his family face, compared to the injustices people of color faced during the civil rights movement, creates an argument that if one can sympathize and seek change for a marginalized group that is whitecomplected, they should seek the same for the people of color they live alongside. n
Photos by Nykieria Chaney
Three-term SETC president Maegan McNerney Azar (middle) was the surprise recipient of the 2023 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award. Tiza Garland (left) presented the award at the 2023 SETC Conference. Right: Azar and Garland with McNerney’s husband, Thomas Azar.
Maegan Azar Honored with SETC’s 2023 Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award E d i t e d Ve r s i o n o f P r e s e n t a t i o n by T i z a G a r l a n d a t t h e a n n u a l S E T C Awa r d s B a n q u e t
T
he Suzanne M. Davis Memorial Award was created in memory of Suzie Davis, wife of Harry Davis, one of the founders of SETC and its 10th president. The award recognizes an individual who, over an extended number of years, has been outstanding in service to SETC. It is the highest award that SETC can bestow upon one of its own members. Traditionally, the name of the recipient is kept secret until the final recognition ceremony on the closing evening of the convention. Many of you, undoubtedly, will recognize the honoree nearly immediately as the impressive list of accomplishments and service they have willingly and passionately volunteered to this organization is presented. The words that can be used to describe this person include change-maker, innovator, human-centered, strategic, empathetic, great listener, activist, organizer, as well as artist and teacher. The recipient began their relationship with SETC attending as an undergraduate. They are proud to recognize SETC as the place where they were offered their first professional contract, found their grad school, and where they were connected to
get their first full-time academic teaching job. Adrienne Maree Brown wrote, “Change is constant. Be like water.” This person embodies the concept of being like water. Recognizing when to buoy someone up and when to move quickly and let the terrain or context teach them to rapidly roll, or take a moment to calmly sit. They served as SETC’s secretary and served two years as Vice President of Administration, and this afternoon completed their 3rd year as President of SETC. They had the distinct place in history to take on leadership of this organization when we entered into a time that emphasized how constant change is – we were in a global pandemic, soon followed by a national and global call to confront racism and fight for social justice. Be like water. “We move at t he speed of t r ust.” — Adrienne Maree Brown When this person became president of SETC they promised to “bring an equitable and inclusive vision for SETC to fruition.” They delivered on this promise. It is under their leadership that the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Access Task Force was convened and months later a new Executive Committee position of Vice-President
of Equity & Inclusion was established, along with an Advisory Council. This happened very quickly — at the speed of trust. Tonight’s recipient has recently adopted a philosophy from Adrienne Maree Brown: “This is all the miracle.” Wondrous moments of success are exceptionally celebrated by this person. They have adopted a philosophy of finding the miracles in the moments of challenges, in the hurdles, and in the seeming catastrophies. They are, as our new Executive Director, Toni Simmons Henson, has said, everyone’s best cheerleader. Adrienne Marie Brown also wrote, “what we pay attention to grows.” This person has paid attention to SETC and it has grown. From being a dedicated and passionate and empathetic faculty member at Furman University, to being an active and innovative independent artist, to making sure that there is pizza on pizza night with her family, this person models generosity of spirit, caretaking, and using their voice and power to uplift those around them. It was said this afternoon by our incoming president Ginger Poole, that there is no one finer than this person. This year’s Suzanne M. Davis Award recipient is Maegan Azar. n Spring-Summer 2023 | Southern Theatre | 47
WORDS, WORDS, WORDS . . . Editor: Sarah McCarroll
Words, words, words … [Hamlet II,ii] reviews books on theatre that have a connection to the Southeast or may be of special interest to SETC members. Sarah McCarroll (she/her), an associate professor of theatre at Georgia Southern University, edits this regular column. If you have a book for review, please send to: SETC, Book Editor, 5710 W. Gate City Blvd., Suite K, Box 186, Greensboro, NC 27407. Hamilton and the New Revolution: Broadway Musicals in the 21st Century by Scott Miller 2021; independently published; available at Amazon.com ISBN: 979-8539423100; Pages: 213 Price: $19.95 (paperback)
at the time of this book’s publication (due to
by Joe Stollenwerk
unlike in the other chapters, here he does not
I
the pandemic), but its 2019 Off-Broadway production had already won the Pulitzer Prize. Perhaps because of this, Miller provides narrative description of the show and some insight into writer-composer Michael R. Jackson’s impetus to write the show, but provide analysis of the text.
n his latest book, Scott Miller examines
The chapter on Hamilton completes the
eight American musicals that (more or less)
book. In it, Miller combines a close reading
premiered between 2010 and 2019. Miller, in
with discussion of its creation, reception
addition to being a prolific writer and director
and cultural impact. His analysis of rhyming
of musicals for 40 years, has previously
in Hamilton is particularly effective, with
published a dozen books on the history and
the exception of the odd comparison of
creation of musical theatre.
Stephen Sondheim’s lyrics to greeting cards.
Hamilton and the New Revolution serves as
Less effective and more petulant is his
a companion to his 2020 book Idiots, Heathers,
antagonistic rebuke of the criticisms of three scholars of color who have written about the
and Squips, which examines musicals of the prior decade. Together, they help fill a gap
song by song, in Bonnie and Clyde he provides
shortcomings of Hamilton’s race and gender
in musical theatre scholarship, which tends
extensive close readings of the lyrics. He also
dynamics.
to focus on earlier time periods. Miller sees
goes into detail outlining the changes that
Independently published, the book would
the developments made in the 1990s to music
were made between the show’s 2009 La Jolla
have benefited from a stronger editorial
and television — specifically indie “alt-pop”
Playhouse premiere and its 2011 Broadway
hand. It suffers from repetition, long lists,
and the edgy shows on HBO and other cable
opening. In this chapter and the next on Hands
awkward transitions, occasional typos and
networks — as having paved the way for
on a Hardbody, however, Miller draws frequent
an overreliance on long block quotes from the
a revolution in American musical theatre.
parallels to songs from much earlier musicals.
shows’ creators, reviews and other sources.
These developments shattered old notions of
The chapters on Hands on a Hardbody and Dear
However, for anyone interested in studying,
whose stories get to be told, what musical and
Evan Hansen are dominated by close readings.
or especially teaching, contemporary musical
theatrical conventions are used to tell these
Miller next discusses the creation and
theatre, Miller provides insight into how each
stories, and — sometimes — who gets to do
reception of the original 2006 production of
musical looked, sounded and felt, and the
the actual telling.
The Color Purple, putting it in context with
meaning each created. Directors will benefit
The book comprises eight chapters
the John Doyle directed 2015 revival. Miller
from his close readings and discussion of
following a brief Overture, with each
shows how the revival’s more intimate and
potential pitfalls to avoid. His examinations
chapter focused on a different musical. In The
less showbiz-y approach created a stronger
of how musicals are created and revised are
Scottsboro Boys, Miller examines the usage of
piece of theatre. He also spends some time
the strongest component of the book. n
the minstrel show to tell “the hideous, true
analyzing the musical and its source novel
story” of racism and violence in America.
as fairy tales. In his chapter on Hadestown,
Miller also connects how John Kander
Miller highlights the creative process of its
(music) and Fred Ebb (lyrics) used metaphors
writer-composer Anais Mitchell. He also
for theatrical forms in Cabaret and Chicago.
discusses other versions of the Orpheus and
Whereas in this chapter Miller primarily
Eurydice myth.
provides narrative description of the show, 48 | Southern Theatre | Spring-Summer 2023
A Strange Loop had not opened on Broadway
Joe Stollenwerk (he/they) is a director, scholar, playwright and actor. He received a PhD in theatre and drama from Indiana University. He is the author of the book Today in History: Musicals.
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