Preparing JURY for Out-of-Town Show
by Anna Fay William, composer/lyricist
As the writers of the musical, The Jury, (www.thejurymusical.com) we were excited when our show was selected for The Minnesota Fringe in 2005. But the prospect of putting on an out-of-town show caused us some second thoughts.
In Houston, we had six weeks for rehearsals for the February-March 2004 productions at the Country Playhouse. We knew the acting community in Houston but we didn’t know what to expect in Minneapolis. Our budget also limited the amount of time we could spend in rehearsals.
But we were lucky in one big respect—the same director, John Garret, signed on with us. We greatly respected his talent and judgment in putting up the show. Those at the Minnesota Fringe offices assured us that we would find a wonderful talent pool in the Twin Cities. We were also fortunate in having Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Minneapolis provide us with audition and rehearsal space. This was one of the keys in our ability to stage this production with limited funding. So while we had some concerns we were optimistic!
We advertised our auditions for almost two months before the show in the Twin Cities classifieds. We had 10 actors sign up for auditions. One of our first finds was Lindsey Ingles who already had experience as a stage manager in the Twin Cities. We knew quickly that we would need someone like her who was familiar with the theaters. We were also fortunate in locating a musical director Kyle Nelson, who was well recommended for his shows.
At our Minneapolis auditions we found a group of singers with remarkable voices. Isaiah Waid, probably a little young for his role but still within the age boundaries for our ambitious newscaster. Gizelle, (Debbie Erickson) had studied acting and movement with the best pantomime artists and had a voice with a sharp dynamic appropriate for an aggressive female stockbroker (Alexandria). Elana Gravitz would make an idea Cuban-American single mother with her dark curly hair and vibrant voice. Joel Liestman, an Equity actor/singer, was an ideal Officer Thompson in looks and voice. Thomasina Petrus, a well-known jazz singer and Equity performer in the Twin Cities on her way to sing at a wedding, knocked our socks off with her rendition of “Swing Low Sweet Chariot.” She would be a perfect Della, an important role in our show. We were elated with the talent we found—even in casting two non-singing roles as officers of the court with Stephen Jahn, a University of Minnesota drama major, and Jerry Seifert, who has many years under his belt in Twin Cities community theater.
BUT we still had not cast two major parts—an Asian American convenience store owner and a rapper. There were only a few weeks before rehearsals would begin and we had to return to Houston. We asked our musical director to assist us in auditioning others. We were then fortunate to line-up Sherwin Resurreccion for the Asian-American role upon the recommendations of several musical directors. Several cast members had recommendations for the rapper and we were able to locate a singer who would eventually leave the cast creating a crisis. (Fortunately, Ron Collier was able to step into the role within a few days before the opening.) Our casting was completed only a few days before rehearsals—not unusual but a real nail-chewing exercise for us.
After casting, John Garrett provided us with a schedule for the three and one-half week rehearsal period. With such a short time, we would be rehearsing six days a week. On the first three days our musical director would rehearse the cast around the piano. During the next two evenings, our director would take them through the blocking and the scenes without music. On Saturdays everything would be pulled together—both singing and scenes. The schedule accommodated our musical director and several actors who were just finishing other shows. Just one of the concessions that small shows must make when they want to talented actors and directors.
It would remain to be seen just how quickly we could pull our show together. We had a lot of good wishes from friends there but we still had to make it happen. (For more pictures and information on THE JURY see our website--www.thejurymusical.com.)
Originally post on www.showgab.blogspot, February 20, 2006.
by Anna Fay William, composer/lyricist
As the writers of the musical, The Jury, (www.thejurymusical.com) we were excited when our show was selected for The Minnesota Fringe in 2005. But the prospect of putting on an out-of-town show caused us some second thoughts.
In Houston, we had six weeks for rehearsals for the February-March 2004 productions at the Country Playhouse. We knew the acting community in Houston but we didn’t know what to expect in Minneapolis. Our budget also limited the amount of time we could spend in rehearsals.
But we were lucky in one big respect—the same director, John Garret, signed on with us. We greatly respected his talent and judgment in putting up the show. Those at the Minnesota Fringe offices assured us that we would find a wonderful talent pool in the Twin Cities. We were also fortunate in having Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Minneapolis provide us with audition and rehearsal space. This was one of the keys in our ability to stage this production with limited funding. So while we had some concerns we were optimistic!
We advertised our auditions for almost two months before the show in the Twin Cities classifieds. We had 10 actors sign up for auditions. One of our first finds was Lindsey Ingles who already had experience as a stage manager in the Twin Cities. We knew quickly that we would need someone like her who was familiar with the theaters. We were also fortunate in locating a musical director Kyle Nelson, who was well recommended for his shows.
At our Minneapolis auditions we found a group of singers with remarkable voices. Isaiah Waid, probably a little young for his role but still within the age boundaries for our ambitious newscaster. Gizelle, (Debbie Erickson) had studied acting and movement with the best pantomime artists and had a voice with a sharp dynamic appropriate for an aggressive female stockbroker (Alexandria). Elana Gravitz would make an idea Cuban-American single mother with her dark curly hair and vibrant voice. Joel Liestman, an Equity actor/singer, was an ideal Officer Thompson in looks and voice. Thomasina Petrus, a well-known jazz singer and Equity performer in the Twin Cities on her way to sing at a wedding, knocked our socks off with her rendition of “Swing Low Sweet Chariot.” She would be a perfect Della, an important role in our show. We were elated with the talent we found—even in casting two non-singing roles as officers of the court with Stephen Jahn, a University of Minnesota drama major, and Jerry Seifert, who has many years under his belt in Twin Cities community theater.
BUT we still had not cast two major parts—an Asian American convenience store owner and a rapper. There were only a few weeks before rehearsals would begin and we had to return to Houston. We asked our musical director to assist us in auditioning others. We were then fortunate to line-up Sherwin Resurreccion for the Asian-American role upon the recommendations of several musical directors. Several cast members had recommendations for the rapper and we were able to locate a singer who would eventually leave the cast creating a crisis. (Fortunately, Ron Collier was able to step into the role within a few days before the opening.) Our casting was completed only a few days before rehearsals—not unusual but a real nail-chewing exercise for us.
After casting, John Garrett provided us with a schedule for the three and one-half week rehearsal period. With such a short time, we would be rehearsing six days a week. On the first three days our musical director would rehearse the cast around the piano. During the next two evenings, our director would take them through the blocking and the scenes without music. On Saturdays everything would be pulled together—both singing and scenes. The schedule accommodated our musical director and several actors who were just finishing other shows. Just one of the concessions that small shows must make when they want to talented actors and directors.
It would remain to be seen just how quickly we could pull our show together. We had a lot of good wishes from friends there but we still had to make it happen. (For more pictures and information on THE JURY see our website--www.thejurymusical.com.)
Originally post on www.showgab.blogspot, February 20, 2006.
posted by Anna Williams at 5:14 AM
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