And my new best friend...

...my script. She's pretty.

The fantastic cast of Elephant's Graveyard! Cast pictures of In Your Eyes coming soon!

Words of the Wise

Philosophy to ponder over the weekend:

"We all know how to love... but we don't all know how to antelope." - Samuel "Hap" Nardi

End of Week One

Today was the end of our first week at SOS, and as I left towards the parking garage with fellow SOS actress Alyssa Whatton,  I told her, "Uhm, I really don't even want this weekend break. Want to just show up to rehearsal in the morning?" She agreed. Breaks from SOS suck.

My week was phenomenal. I have never been in an environment that made me feel completely comfortable, while simultaneously challenging me and pushing me beyond my limits. I know that every person participating in this program, adults and kids alike, can look back at this week and give themselves a high five; collaboratively and individually, an enormous amount of work has been successfully accomplished. I am constantly awed by the amount of talent, dedication, and joy that surrounds me every day I step foot in the studio. When I decided to join this program, I predicted that I would have a fantastic time with great people. Now, with this first week completed, I predict that SOS will make my summer the most remarkable vacation of my life. 

SOS 2013 Cast Lists!

Elephant's Graveyard 
(In order of appearance)

Narrator- Danielle Brockman
Hungry Townsperson- Jalon Jackson
Ballet Girl- Anastasia Wrenn
Ringmaster- Sierra Lindsay
Steamshovel Operator- Patrick Lumia
Engineer- Alex Weil
Young Townsperson- Marissa Rodriguez
Tour Manager- Olivia Knuhtsen
Strongman- Aaron Cohen
Muddy Townsperson- Kaitlin Burke
Preacher- James Gangi
Trainer- Jeremy Jason
Clown 1- Mary Klein
Clown 2- Rudy Perez
Clown 3- Melissa Arnaud
Clown 4- Sarah Ottley
Clown 5- Sydney Harper
Marshal- Laura Leader

In Your Eyes 
(in alphabetical order)

Ethan- Alec Coles (Hey, who's that stud)
Hunter- Christopher Fernandez
Darcy- Alyssa Furtado
Taylor- Leah Harris
Spencer- Ben Klinkenberg
Barbara- Christina Kroell
Chad- Samuel "Hap" Nardi
Brad- Jesse Rubin
Riley- Taylor Schlicht 
Benny- Noam Shahar
Mary Jane- Alyssa Whatton
Jack- Hayden Wilson
Counselor (Principal Voice, Bullhorn Voice, Police Officer, Drunk Dad)- Noah Woods

Wheedle: A Definition

Verb. To employ endearments or flattery to persuade someone to do something or give one something. You're welcome.

Selfie courtesy of guest writer Sierra Lindsay, read her perspective of the dreaded SOS Audition Day below!

SOS Student Guest Writer: Sierra Lindsay

The monologues are prepped, thighs are on fire from hours of dance rehearsal, and the music is so interwoven into brains that forgetting seems almost impossible. It’s audition day at Arizona Theatre Company’s Summer on Stage! 

As a newbie to the dynamic of the five-week theatre camp, the audition process was more than daunting. The prospect of performing a monologue, a song, and a choreographed dance in front of a long line of judges (though the wonderful people in charge here at SOS refuse to refer to themselves as such) was terrifying, especially coming in as an amateur, with no vocal or dance training to speak of. These anxieties were coming from myself, however, as everyone, staff and student alike, were completely dedicated to making the whole group feel at home and comfortable in their own skin, and they quickly soothed any fears with a few kind words or a high-five that spoke just as much. It’s only been four days, but the camaraderie in this band of theatre enthusiasts is quickly becoming stronger and stronger (maybe it was the tossing game with four balls going at once!). 

The day started promptly at 8:30 with some body warm ups (not kidding about the fire in the thighs - there were songs written and sung about it over the course of the day) and jumped right into vocal auditions. I was the most stressed about this audition, for reasons including but not limited to: being unable to hit any of the notes, getting the timing wrong, sounding like a pterodactyl, or forgetting to say my own name. Called out in numerical and alphabetical order, we waited our turn in groups of five in the standby seats, jittery and humming tunes under our breath, hearing different voices through the closed doors, and I just kept thinking about how there was no way I could raise that bar, not with the amount of talent in our class of 31. But hey, that was no way to think. I turned my thoughts for the positive and waited to be called in. What was the worst that could happen?

Well, I forgot how to introduce myself. Don’t follow in my footsteps, kiddos. It was a bad time for everyone involved. Despite my momentary brain-crash, I made my way through the song. I was asked to do it once more, and this time really embody the character - Taylor, a cliche “dumb blonde” with some secrets to hide - as I sung, and I forgot about looking stupid, or sounding awful; I went with the character, and finished feeling excited and energized, pumped full of happy adrenaline. It didn’t really matter whether or not I hit every note - what mattered was that I enjoyed myself, and that it was such a positive learning curve for me. 

In the downtime between vocal and dance auditions, the classroom across the hall became a dance studio. We tripped and fumbled our way through our audition piece (“Anger Management”) a good five or six times, moaning about our sore thighs and cheering each other on when we all got the right move on beat. A quick note in advance: I have about as much dance coordination as a rhinoceros. Things get ugly. Luckily enough, we got to audition in groups of four according to our assigned numbers, so if I was doing really badly, there would always be someone else to steal the spotlight while I adjusted myself. We practiced and practiced until, finally, my group was called out on deck, and we gave last-minute critiques and help before we were sent in (the change of alignment from facing the mirror to facing away from the mirror was a bigger problem than anyone anticipated). For all the trips and missed moves, it was fun. Sweaty, embarrassing - on my end, at least - but the only harsh judges there were ourselves. Everyone in charge has provided such a safe environment for us to express ourselves that there was never any fear or being looked down on or perceived as stupid; everything we bring in they already love, and whatever else we try they will love even more, as assured by Amber during morning yoga on Wednesday. 

Finally, to wrap up a long day of nerves, triumph, bonding over lunch, costume fitting, and lots and lots of humming the songs from the musical, we were randomly assigned to groups to read the sides from In Your Eyes. Probably one of my favorite parts of the whole day - in just maybe an hour, our little group of five rehearsed different characterizations, interpretations, and just plain ridiculous ways to perform the scene, with lots of bonus touching and exaggerations. It was amazing to get to go so over the top with a group of people I’ve only known for a few days, and feel comfortable and happy doing so. 

At this point, we’d been in and out of the audition room so many times it felt routine, and waiting in the wings we finished up our blocking and let off some steam with some quality twerking in the hallway. We breezed our way through the short scene with only a few holdups, all of which were adorable and no-sweat. Returning as successful auditionees, we tried our hands at mask-making, which included the sharing of too-few scissors and glue and bemoaning our lack of art skills. I mean, hey! We’re actors, right? Who expected a crash course in proper eye-hole cutting technique? 

It was such a positive and exciting day, and I can only imagine how much closer this group of kids will get over the next four weeks of the camp, if this mere four days is any indication. I’m already regretting not being involved the past three years I could have been! Today pushed me out of my comfort zone in so many ways, which is exactly why I chose to enroll. I sung and danced in front of people for the first time, made some new friends, even made a mask and got a surprise ride home from two lovely SOS pros. Tomorrow will be our first day in our casted roles, our new ensembles, and I, for one, can’t wait to see what our brilliant directors have up their sleeves. It’s going to be one hell of a time.

Pic o' the Day

"Today, be adventurous. Everything you bring in here we already love. Whatever else you try, we're going to love even more." -Amber Tibbits. Photo courtesty of https://www.facebook.com/atc.ed?fref=ts

Day 3

Yesterday and today were spent learning and rehearsing audition material for both the straight play and musical. Alongside Amber and Katherine, we've been soaking in the knowledge of Music Director Sarah Ross (my personal high school choir director, it's funny and slightly disturbing hearing her sing In Your Eyes lyrics about wearing dresses that will compliment the ass) and SOS Choreographer Dan Uroff to prepare ourselves for vocal, dance, and acting auditions. I don't know if it's Dan's sweat inducing audition choreography, or if it's the daily required yoga, but I'm not going to lie, my thighs are a little sore. 

And, okay, it just hit me: AUDITIONS ARE TOMORROW. 

There are thirty one students involved in SOS. I would be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated by the amount of talent in one studio. On top of being the nicest, most genuine people I have met, everyone, and I mean everyone, was born for theatre performance...as if the directors weren't enough to get me a little anxious about auditions.

However, our teachers don't just teach us to hone in on our talents. For the past three days, they have been instilling self belief and confidence in us, and teaching us to be aware of not only our talent, but of our body and its capabilities. The thing that put me most at ease, and completely sums up the atmosphere that I have been surrounded by these three days, is a quote directly from the genius of Amber Tibbits, our second British genius, just as we were finishing our morning yoga:

"Today, be adventurous. Everything you bring in here we already love. Whatever else you try, we're going to love even more."

Namaste. 


 

Pic o' the Day

Reading the script of Elephant's Graveyard with Summer Backstage student and one of my best friends,  Adrianna Cota. Photo courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/atc.ed?fref=ts. And yea that's comfortable.

Day 1

We were standing in little circles in the lobby of the University of Arizona's Tornabene Theater, all casually chattering, greeting familiar faces we had seen at Thespian Conference, introducing ourselves to people we had never met, and it all just felt right. Everyone was friendly. Everyone was kind. Kind of quite too, yes, which is extremely unlike theatre kids, but that would be short lived.

April Jackson, SOS Program Director, stood on a chair and said, "Hello, and welcome to ATC Summer On Stage!" She had what she would later refer to as a "big goofy smile" on, and she would proudly wear that sunbeam smile all day. In fact, the entire SOS Team did. Every adult involved in SOS was excited and happy, and I could tell they all wanted to be there. It made me excited and happy. I knew it was going to be a good day, and I was right. To kick start the camp, we played a variety of ice breaking games. I met an outstanding array of people, all different, all special, and all so beautiful. Most importantly, they were all hilarious too. We all clicked immediately, and I could already feel a bond forging between us as friendships were established. 

Other than games, we were introduced to the scripts we would be bringing to life this summer; Amber Tibbits, the director of the SOS musical, announced half of us would be performing the world premiere of In Your Eyes, a musical by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey, while Katherine Monberg, director of the SOS straight play, announced the other half would be performing the play Elephant's Graveyard by George Brant. After reading both scripts, I was blown away. The level of artistic freedom, and the content of the scripts, instantly gave me a feel for how this summer's work would be, that is: a lot of it, a lot of it being painstakingly hard, but all of it being entirely rewarding. It's work I wouldn't be able to experience in a high school setting. And to me, that's the most exciting part of this program so far. 

Oh, and I can't write a post without mentioning Stephen Wrentmore, the Artistic Director of Summer On Stage. He's brilliant, he's inspiring, he's hilarious, and he's British. 'Nuff said.

Introduction

Hello! My name is Alec Coles. I am currently a Senior at Marana High School, and I am participating in the Summer On Stage program through the Arizona Theater Company. Sycophancy aside, the Arizona Theater Company is the most impressive theater I have ever attended. I have seen four shows at the theater, and each show has entranced me with is caliber of production excellence and showcase of talent. Believe it or not, I'm not even being paid to say this. I had heard about SOS through my good friends and SOS alumni Cassidy Ray and Alyssa Whatton, and I was immediately interested. Theatre is my passion. There is no comparison to the invigorating feeling that overcomes me through acting, singing, dancing, or a combination of all three. SOS provides an outlet for high school students who share my interest in theatre to showcase their own talents and to grow as artists. I invite you to follow my journey with ATC. This summer should be truly unforgettable.