January 2015 ~ From the Classroom

Friday, January 23, 2015

In With the Interns: Kristen LaCherra

11:12 AM Signature Education No comments

Name: Kristen LaCherra

Long-Term Goals: I would like to work in the marketing and community outreach fields of theatre arts management, in either the DC-Metro area or New York City.

Favorite Musicals: Sunday in the Park with George, Next to Normal, Into the Woods, The Last Five Years

Favorite Plays: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee, August: Osage County by Tracy Letts

Favorite Movie: The Princess Bride

Internship Start Date: January 21, 2015

Internship Duties: Assisting with the Signature in the Schools program, social media, general administrative tasks for the Education Department

Favorite Things About Signature: I love Signature’s willingness to take on new and exciting work, and how they can make any sized show an intimate experience for the audience.

Favorite Things About D.C.: I love the theatre scene down here, as well as the variety of great non-profit arts organizations.

General Cool Things About You: I have two different colored eyes and a hardcore love of Chipotle.

If you could be a superhero or supervillain, what would your superpower / ability be and what would your greatest weakness be? Could my superpower be the ability to make Chipotle burritos both free and healthy? A bit self-serving, but that would be a great service to society. My greatest weakness would be impatience (those lines would be crazy).

Abby - New to Some, Familiar to Others

11:44 AM Signature Education No comments

Abby and Kerry improvise a scene in rehearsal.

Let's jump back to the acting side of things of Veni, Vidi, Vici with Abby who joins the cast and crew of Signature in the Schools for the first time.

"In the past year, Signature in the Schools has become such an important part of my life. I met David (Director), Matt (Dramaturg) and Karl (actor) during Anne and Emmett in the fall and knew several of the cast from the Fine Arts Apprentice Program, but I was still a newcomer to this particular part of the program. It was a little intimidating. But, from day one, I realized I had found a place where I could feel safe. It is a program incredibly centered on trust, so even on the first day I felt comfortable and respected. Everyone was there to learn and have fun, and that was a really exciting environment to be in.

Karl and Abby in Anne and Emmett

One of the unique parts of the Signature in the Schools program is “Boot Camp”. Boot Camp is basically three weeks of extremely intense dramaturgy, acting technique, and bonding to train as an ensemble for the show we will put on in March. The tech and actors come for dramaturgy days and only actors go for the acting technique days.

This year the theme is Imperialism, which is essentially the history of the world. I have never really liked learning about history. And that’s what the dramaturgy days were—learning about history. But the subject matter (Imperialism) is taught in a way that personalizes the information. It helped me realize why knowing how people acted five thousand years ago may be relevant now. It’s crazy that after so many years of learning history in school, I finally have discovered how to become passionate about it.

Abby and Karl are back together in
Signature in the Schools

Acting days are less focused on Imperialism and more focused on basics of acting and trust as a group. Everyone takes the exercises we do very seriously (not to say they’re all serious, they range from intense to hysterical) which allows for some pretty incredible things to happen. It’s pretty amazing what a group of teenagers can do together if they listen to one another and focus. I remember saying that I wish every teenager could have the chance to do some of the exercises we do and have a place where they feel comfortable expressing their ideas and themselves because I have not just bettered my acting skills, but I have learned about myself and the world. You simply can’t find that kind of experience just anywhere.

Abby was a student of Signature's 2014 Stage One program
this past summer.

Last Monday, the day we got our script, my cast mate Brandi and I were texting each other the entire day at school counting down the minutes until we would get to Signature. That sums up my feeling every day now. I always want to be there. And since everyone, actors and tech, learn and grow together, as an ensemble, Boot Camp has made me positive we will all work our butts off to produce an awesome show!"

Be sure to check back in the coming weeks to hear more from the amazing 20th Anniversary cast and crew of Signature in the Schools. For more information on the program be sure to check out our web page. Tickets for this year's production will be available soon through the Signature Theatre Box Office at 703 820 9771.

Jake - Techin' Up a Storm

2:06 PM Signature Education No comments

Jake (left) looks on fellow Signature in the Schools cast and crew
as they film a series of videos during boot camp.

Moving over to the technical side of things with the Veni, Vidi, Vici team, we have our Assistant Sound Designer and Operator Jake. A very knowledgeable and diversely talented young man, Jake brings with him a plethora of experience and enthusiasm to the MAX Theatre stage.

"I am a senior at Wakefield High School and have been doing theater for three years now. Acting in Wakefield’s numerous productions of West Side Story as Diesel, Rebel Without a Cause as Mr. Brown, and then my favorite roles as Lancelot and the Knight of Ni in Wakefield’s production of Spamalot. I used to think in my grungy awkward middle school years that being an actor was easy work. And it is if you are aiming for an okay show. But if you want a passionate compelling show you need to work for it. You need to find your connections with your character and their idiosyncrasies. You memorize your lines like your life depends on it. If you’re doing a musical then you have to put in sweat and frustration to get the choreography and songs right. It's not as easy as people perceive it and it has truly changed the way I look at myself and others around me.

Abby and Jake film a scene in Shirlington.

I will always love acting but it isn’t my preferred method of expression in theater. What I really love about theater is being a part of the technical crew. It's a passion I can see myself doing in the future and am applying to colleges for it at this very moment. I started to help make the set on West Side Story but didn’t have a huge hand in the actual crafting of sets until I worked with Encore Stage and Studio. I have had a hand with every set of Wakefield's productions ever since my first show. Even if I am acting in a show I really want to help with the set because without it the atmosphere of any performance will be dull.

Building the Rolls Royce for Wakefield's production of The Great Gatsby is what solidified this passion for me. My father, who is a master carpenter, and I built the body of the car in my backyard. It took around 25 hours to complete the whole construction process of the car. Once it was done being built, we had to paint it. So we took it to our set shop in Wakefield and I taught the other crew members how to grind, prime and paint.

I am confident that being a part of a crew is what I want to pursue and am really thankful that I am in Signature in the Schools because it truly is a wonderful opportunity. I am learning about sound (which is something I have rarely dabbled with) so I am pretty pumped about the 20th anniversary of Signature in the Schools because I know it's going to be a good show."

Julia - A New Actor Appears

2:32 PM Signature Education No comments

Julia instructs and molds fellow actors from afar in a boot camp exercise.

Up next from the Veni, Vidi, Vici team we hear from one of our newest members, Julia. A very talented and brilliant young actor, Julia talks to us about her experience with Signature in the Schools so far and what excites her about the future of this world premiere project.

"When I found out that I was accepted to be an actress in the Signature in the Schools program I was thrilled. I could not wait to start working with everybody! But I was also a little intimidated. I had heard such wonderful things about the program, like how professional the environment was and how much the actors grew as performers, and I was nervous about how I would fit into everything.

Julia looks on as fellow actor Max discusses the exercise.

Flash forward to boot camp (a three week intensive before the first read through of the script where cast and crew work on connecting to the theme of the show and becoming an ensemble) and all of my doubts are erased. Everyone is not only incredibly talented but also warm and welcoming. The professional atmosphere is not intimidating at all but energizing and empowering. The focused, passionate energy radiating inside of the rehearsal room is contagious. I find myself impatiently counting down the hours during the school day until I can go back to Signature."