WHO’S WHO

Zachary Payne he/him (Costume Designer) is an MFA Costume Design student from Asheville, NC. He recieved his BFA in Theatre Production Design from Belmont University. His previous work at FSU includes Newsies (Associate Costume Designer) and Cinderella (Assistant Costume Designer). Previous costume design credits include Prefers Bright Indirect Light (FSU), Nina Variations (Belmont University), Argonautika (Verge Theatre), and The House at Pooh Corner (Belmont University). He would like to thank his parents, family, and friends for their continuous love and support.

Caitlyn Primous (Music Director) is a sophomore BM Music Theatre major from Marietta, GA. Previous credits include Something Rotten! (Conductor Intern/Music Director Intern) and Last Stop on Market Street (Tattooed Woman). She thanks Rouba Palmer for the opportunity and Tom Ossowski.

Todd Wren (Lighting Designer) received his MFA from Carnegie Mellon University and is a vested member of United Scenic Artists, local #829, and active member of USITT, SETC, and SCTA. World premiere designs include The Sabbath Girl directed by Joe Brancato; Stand by Your Man with Grammy-Award winning Jim Lauderdale and directed by Gabriel Barre; Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland conceived and choreographed by Chase Brock; Turned Funny directed by Fred Chappell; and the NYC premieres of The Fall to Earth directed by Joe Brancato. Todd’s regional credits include The Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach, Cleveland Playhouse, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, The Rubicon Theatre, Goodspeed Musicals, Charlotte Repertory Theatre, Coconut Grove Playhouse, Florida Repertory Theatre, Flat Rock Playhouse, Penguin Repertory, South Carolina Children’s Theatre, Paramount Productions, and Nickelodeon.

DIRECTOR'S NOTE

Once upon a time there was a little girl who watched intently as a butterfly was breaking out of its cocoon. As she observed the struggle, she wanted to help, so she began gently picking away at the chrysalis shell until the butterfly was released. However, much to her dismay, the butterfly flopped out of its cocoon and died prematurely because it was unable to fly. Unfortunately, the little girl’s act of seeming kindness had robbed the butterfly the chance to develop its wings. For it was only through the struggle that its wings could acquire their strength.

The Secret in the Wings is a coming-of-age play that deals with themes of transformation, hardship, and parent/child relationships. We journey through fragmented, lesser-known fairytales that are darker than usual and that are presented using a variety of different theatrical conventions. Song, dance, mime, and transformational acting reveal that the secret behind the wings is found in the struggle that occurs as a child transitions into adulthood. In order to achieve this metamorphosis, Zimmerman encourages us to embrace what is scary and difficult, because as is quoted in the play, “perhaps everything that frightens us, is in its deepest essence, something helpless that wants our love.”

The children argue whether their shadows are real or just an ogre that is hiding in the wings, emphasizing the idea that we each have a hidden part of ourselves that we want to keep concealed. However, unless we expose it and deal with our shadow-selves, we can never truly move on and grow. The structure of the play, one that fans out (like a wing), also speaks to an arrested metamorphosis, with stories hanging suspended, dangling in time before they can be resolved later on, a transformation in progress.

It is our hope in the telling of these intricate tales, that every audience member is not only entertained, but also challenged. Although the darkness threatens to overwhelm us, we can choose to face it rather than run from it, and by exposing the secrets that hide in the shadowy areas of our soul, we may find that we gain a new sense of freedom and strength.

A caterpillar inside a cocoon is in the dark, and it is only in these deep and painful recesses that it can fully develop into all it was meant to be. So that one day, once its wings are fully grown, it can break out of its chrysalis cage and fly into the light.