Here’s the stage manager’s performance report from this morning’s show, along with some production photos:

Animal vs. Animal
By Steve Yockey
Directed by Josh Costello
Marin Theatre Company
Performance REPORT #2
Friday, February 26, 2010

PERFORMANCE #2

Friday, February 26, 2010

GENERAL:

Location: Mary Silveira Elemtary School

Scheduled Curtain: 8:30a
Pre-show speech (Megan Sada): 8:29a
Act I – up: 8:29:55a; down: 9:11:05p; total: 42:10

GENERAL RUN NOTES:

Today’s performance went fabulously! The stage was a perfect space for our show at Silveira Elementary, and there was enough lighting for the actors, and actor friendly entrances from the wings and outside of the theatre as well. The actors had great energy going into the show and had time to do a full line through beforehand, while I set up. The principal was very nice and we gave her permission to take a couple of photos for the school paper before the show started.
The audience was very responsive. There were several teachers and parents in the audience that were able to laugh at the adult directed jokes, and the kids laughed, cheered and loved the show, too. The actors were able to get into the audience easier at this school and did so often, as blocked. The students tried to wake up the Hare, but when they couldn’t and the Tortoise won, the all cheered for the Tortoise. When the Capri Sun part came, a lone student started chanting “BET! BET! BET!,” soon to be joined by the rest of the school, and Mr. Jones egged them on. It was a great, lively audience, but it was all in control and in context.
After the show, the Principal told us that the lessons in the show were directly related to their “No Bully” program, their readings about two second grade students who make up their own fables, and the school’s Life Skill of the Month – Honesty. She was very grateful for the show and the morals it taught. After the performance, another teacher came backstage to take more photos, but we had to remind them that we couldn’t (the actors were tired and sweaty) because of the AEA rules, but encouraged them to contact Josh Costello for some of our production photos.
Overall, it was a great show and a great day! Thanks!

PRODUCTION NOTES:

Props – I painted the Fox’s inner ear white today.

Costumes – I did the laundry today and the costumes are back in the car.

Production – Nothing to note. Thank you!

ATTENDANCE/COMPANY:

Nothing to note. Thank you!

Thank you,

Megan Sada, SM

Each submitted play was read by at least three members of the Teen Advisory Board, and the process was blinded — the readers did not know the playwright’s name or school. After the first round of voting and discussions, we determined that there were well more than eight plays that deserved to be finalists. To narrow it down to eight, and to ensure that no more than two finalists would be chosen from any one school, we read some plays aloud, went through several rounds of voting, and held a heated debate. Finally, a consensus was reached. Here are the finalists, in alphabetical order:

A Different Sort of Art by Gwen Hicks, Marin School of the Arts

A Locked Door by Chris Madera, Redwood High

A Love Hate Relationship by Lauren DeBiasio, Sam Maher, and Emelliano Salas, San Marin High

Death of a Barista by Sam Stecklow, Marin School of the Arts

I Did the Washing and Tidying Up by Cindy Diaz and Bonnie Kate Wolf, San Rafael High

Lost Play by Keira Sullivan, Redwood High

Mr. Goodyshins and His Numerous Dinner Guests Find A Murderer Under the Sea In Their Polka-Dot Submarine by Sander Lutz, Tamalpais High

Toby by Jasper Hirose, Terra Linda High

The eight finalists will be performed at MTC in the Marin Young Playwrights Festival at 7pm on Monday, February 1, 2010. The cast for each play will be either members of the Teen Advisory Board or students from the playwright’s high school, as decided by the playwright. This event will be open to the public. MTC’s Artistic Staff will serve as judges, and will select one winning script.

The winning script will be presented as a staged reading with professional actors and a professional director at MTC, in conjunction with MTC’s New Works Series, on February 11 at 7pm.

Patricia is the Executive Director of Marin Brain Injury Network, a rehabilitation and support organization for traumatic brain injury survivors and their families, serving Marin and Sonoma counties since 1983.

During the rehearsal process, Patricia was kind enough to invite the actors and the director, Jasson Minadakis, to the center to learn about the effects of a traumatic brain injury in very practical terms, and were invited to meet and interact with some of the participants. This research was vital to the creative process, informing the character of Ceci and the characters around Ceci who would participate in her therapy and rehabilitation.

Her point of view was an incredible opportunity for the audience to understand the play from a different angle, and to learn a little more about one aspect of the show.

For more information about the Marin Brain Injury Network, please click here.

Please consider joining us for future Perspectives lectures before the Thursday matinee. Call the box office for more details.

The show is also performing at schools around Marin County and the Bay Area. Here are a couple of responses from teachers:

“Thank you for arranging the performance of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at our school. It was WONDERFUL! The children were enthralled, as was I. It was the best in-school performance I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been teaching a long time! Thank you, so much, for making it possible for our fourth-sixth graders to see this thoroughly engaging piece.”

“I just wanted to take this time to tell you how wonderful the show was today. The students and staff were so impressed with the actors and the production design. They were just such a pleasure to watch. You guys are such a great addition to the Marin County theatre scene, especially your support and service to educators. I look forward to your next offering.”

In the last three weeks, I traveled 291 miles and dropped in on 12 schools and taught 15 classes. Some days I went to one high school, other days I went to four (yes, four) different high schools. The classes ranged from 7th graders to Seniors, and as few as 12 and as many as 80 kids in a class who were students of History, English, Drama, Dramatic Literature, and Social Studies.

It was a big challenge for me. I don’t typically have any problem talking in front of groups of people, but there is something intimidating about high school, when you’re there and long after you’ve gone. My respect and admiration for teachers has grown exponentially as I have stared down teenagers talking, drifting, fidgeting, eye-rolling, and groaning. As I said to Josh and Brooke, the amazing Expanded Programs team, it can be the difference between seeing one bee (not scary) and seeing a swarm of bees (terrifying). One teen is fine, easy to relate to, even inspiring, but a mass of them can be daunting.

Each class had done a different amount of preparation with their teacher before I arrived. Some had read the play, some had studied the conditions of apartheid, some had done nothing at all. My visits were a combination of exercises and activities done with the class to illustrate the concepts of apartheid, discussions of the characters and the design elements of the play, conversations about the playwright, and sometimes heated debates about the relevance of this play to their lives.

I hope at least some of what I tried to teach them sunk in. It might not have made an impact until they saw the show and heard something familiar in what the actors were saying. It might have made a difference in how much they enjoyed the production of My Children! My Africa!, but if we’re able to introduce the theater to a new generation of audience, then we’re able to sustain what we’re doing in the long run, which is an important part of our mission at MTC.

For the most part, the students, teachers, and schools I visited were very inviting and incredibly appreciative of the opportunity to come see the play. For that, I thank them all, and I hope that they will continue to attend theater, not only when it is a requirement, but also when it is elective.