Making Tech Happen

Me and the Endstation baby

We are now in tech for our first production, The Bluest Water. This process would not be possible with out our incredible production team. This includes our TD Drew Becker, our Sound Designer Bryce Page, our Scenic Designer Krista Franco, our Stage Manager Maria Hayden, our Costume Designer Sally Southall, our Lighting Designer Dan Gallagher, and the Endstation baby. 

TD Drew Becker

Sound Designer Bryce Page

Scenic Designer Krista Franco

This tireless group of folks are the back bone of the company. These are the people that make this festival happen. I am so thankful to have such an incredible group of people around me. 

Stage Manager Maria Hayden

Lighting Designer Dan Gallagher 

Costume Designer Sally Southall

This tech has been interesting because we are returning to familiar territory.  We have teched a "version" of this show before, but this is a new production with some new scenes, some new staging, and some new design ideas. It has been a pretty smooth process but also filled with new challenges (like, what the hell was it that we did last year?!). 

I want to take this time to thank all these incredible people. I love you all. Here's to year two. 

Geoffrey Kershner

Artistic Director

We are the BRSTF... and that ain't no BULL!

I feel like we just got here the other day but I glanced at a calendar today and was hugely surprised that we are into June already. Time flies when you're having fun, or uh, extremely busy. Needless to say the folks involved with the festival are all running around getting things done; but we still try to have a little fun.

ash updating ticket sales (left),
drew & brian discussing load in (center),
dan designing custom lighting templates (right)

We have many new faces added to the festival this year and I have the pleasure on the production end of things to be working with 5 spirited young individuals... our interns. They came to us through many different means. The pictures are to come because believe it or not, I forgot to get pictures of us working this week because, well, WE WERE WORKING. So stay tuned for them in a few days. We are headed into tech for The Bluest Water so things should slow down a bit. Ha! I'm such a funny girl.

There's Melissa. She is a student at Lynchburg College and is doing various tasks for us this summer. She is Stage Managing My Brother's Knife, coming into the shop a few times a week to help with build, prep costumes, pull props, and paint. You will also see her onstage in Midsummer. She is staying on campus which helps with the odd schedule she has hopping from one show to the next. I don't know how she keeps her head attached... might need her to give me some pointers.

Then we have Hillarie. Hillarie goes to Christopher Newport University. She is stronger than any of us, and quite frankly puts the boys to shame. Go girl! You can trust her with any tool and any project. If there is something she doesn't already know, she picks it up really quickly. We are pretty lucky to have her around.

Dana is also a new addition to the team. She is a student at Longwood and lives right down the road in Lynchburg. She will be helping us out a lot this summer, 150 hours to be exact. She's been working on many projects, anything from painting and props, to marketing and publicity for ticket sales. You may also run into her in the lobby where she'll be taking tickets and handing you your program. One thing is for sure, she'll be smiling as she is all the time.

We also have Tania. Tania is a Sweet Briar girl who is here this summer doing research for an original play she is writing. She is our Scenic Art intern and she has assisted me in painting many of Sweet Briar Theatre productions during her regular academic year. In addition to her behind the scenes role, you will see her on stage in Midsummer. I am so happy to have her with us this summer!

And last but not least, Greg. Funny thing is we have yet to meet Greg. He starts this week. He will be attending William & Mary in the fall and is interested in lighting and sound design/tech; he also has an interest in film. Greg will also be spending one rehearsal per week with one of our directors to observe and assist. Although, we haven't been formally introduced, all agree he sounds pretty cool from his emails. See you Monday Greg!


Look how much we’ve gotten done this week…

progress continues on The Bluest Water

The production team is thrilled to have not one or two, but five extra sets of hands helping us put up the shows this year. It really makes a huge difference at the end of each day when we see how much more we accomplished with their help. Thanks guys!

When we are not working for a saucy second, let’s see how the gang blows off a little steam…

some of the gang at Bull Branch

All the Old Familiar Places ...

When it was announced at the end of 2008's inaugural Blue Ridge Summer Theatre Festival that "The Bluest Water" would be re-mounted as part of this year's festival, I think there are two things that escaped the expectations of many of those involved. First, I don't think anyone foresaw that the ENTIRE CAST would be able to return, as would most of the crew. Second, for many who have come back, the chance to return to a role is a new experience and has brought some interesting twists.

Such is the case for me personally. Even now it seems hard to believe that almost a year has passed since I first stepped into the shoes of Young Emory McCullough. Just as last year's festival provided me my first opportunity to originate a role, this year's sees my first time reprising one.

From the very first meeting/read-through, it was a surreal experience. It was amazing how many of the words on the page were still fairly easily-accessible in memory! All of our characters were still there within us, and they re-presented themselves like a family reunion, full of lots of laughs and lots of fond memories.

As the time to begin working on the show approached, I wondered whether it would be strange ... or would be like seeing an old friend again. Interestingly, it was a mix of the two.

I reviewed the new script for the first time during

our initial cast meeting and read-through.

But the process this year has not been simple. After only two weeks of rehearsal, we are preparing to head into the final stretch and open in under a week. While much of the production is identical, there have been changes both major and minor (often for clarity, correct chronology, or adherence to accuracy/protocol). At least one of the scenes (Young Emory and the HAM radio operators, of which I'm a part) got an entire re-write and actually required new memorization of both lines and blocking. It was awkward being one of the few who had to have a script in-hand, although everyone understood!

The scene which has changed the most in the entire play is the HAM Radio scene.

The minor edits, on the other hand, have been an even more interesting challenge. When lines that have been so ingrained for a year change slightly, it's still habit to say them as they originally were! I quickly found it was an interesting challenge replacing one rote with another. We have had to stop frequently for "no, you don't say that anymore"s, "that's in a different order"s and "that line belongs to [so-and-so] now"s! As with others in the cast who have experienced the same: while I know it's for the benefit of the production, sometimes it's painful to have lost lines of which I was particularly fond! [I have frequently been reminded of what film editors and directors say about the sometimes heart-wrenching decisions that have to be made in the editing room to take out things that simply aren't needed.]

The Young Emory / Neddy "ABC" scene did not change

drastically, but it was trimmed down quite a bit.

Nevertheless, despite minor hiccups the rehearsals are rolling right along and we are already days from our opening. While some aspects have been a little alien, the familiarity far outweighs them. Still with us are the powerful images, the touching subject matter, the heart and soul of the production, and rekindled friendships.

Of my scenes, the one that changed the least was that

in the helicopter, but it was not without its edits.

Now, last year's production feels to have served much like the 'previews' with which professional productions often open in other cities before moving, for example, to New York City. With audience reaction, feedback, and a scrutinizing staff, they are allowed the chance to revise and refine the production. This is true for us too. In our case the venue is the same, but for the re-mounting of this show (which corresponds even more appropriately with the 40th anniversary of Hurricane Camille), we have a slightly different library of tools with which to tell our story.

I look forward to seeing how this "2nd Edition" plays out when we open June 12! Will you be there to "re-experience" it with us?

Jared M Anderson
Endstation Blogger and "The Bluest Water" Cast Member

The First before the Final

We have just wrapped up week two of the summer festival and it has been a good one. All three shows have been running rehearsals and we are continuing to move ahead, as our first opening night approaches. This evening we had our first full run of The Bluest Water, and it went pretty well. There are several changes that are being worked into the story this year, and the entire cast seems to be handling them very well. We will be heading into our tech week beginning this coming Sunday afternoon, and at that point it is full speed ahead until we open next Friday evening (June 12th) - hurry and reserve your tickets now- you will not want to miss this!!



It has been interesting to watch the actors work through their process as the show has "gotten up on it's feet". Now that they are pretty much off book (ie. know their lines), they can continue to explore their characters and dive deeper into the emotion and essence of what their character is feeling during a particular scene. Geoff (Director), Ken, and Sally (aka: Jared and Liz) were discussing this very thing last night at rehearsal. Throughout the show the audience gets to experience the journey of these characters and in certain spots actually see memories of specific characters. It is really neat how the playwright worked these special moments into the script. I don't want to give too much away, however this year the memories are a bit more in focus, and Geoff was communicating to Ken and Sally how they should really use them to continue to propel their character development further.


As I was listening to the conversation, I was struck by the humanity of this particular story. This play is very special and personal to the local community since Hurricane Camille affected the entire area forty years ago. There are specific lines that are straight from accounts that survivors of the flood communicated to Jason (playwright). Therefore it is all the more real for the actors when they realize that they are expressing and communicating someone's personal story. It is an important responsibility and I know that every single cast and crew member recognizes this fact, and are honored to be able to be part of the show.


I think we have all have expressed at one point or another during this rehearsal period how grateful we are to have a second chance to put on this play. We have been able to take a second look at the story, and find both large and small changes that only add and improve to what this piece already is. I believe individuals that saw the show last year will return and be touched again in a special way, unique to the previous experience. As well as those folks who are seeing the show for the first time.


I think all of us are still amazed at how quick this rehearsal period was, and almost have to pinch ourselves as the anticipation heightens with opening night drawing near. The Bluest Water is a very special story, and a real tribute to those individuals who experienced the hurricane and flood of 1969. I hope that you will plan to join us for a performance either for the second time around, or for the first. I promise that you will not be disappointed, and can take part in something truly unique, and very special.

Cheers,
Maria Hayden
Company Manager

YOU GLEEKING DEWBERRY!!

The actors have moved in. Director has arrived. Lighting and Sets are being built and hung. Meetings are in progress. Softball has been played. And rehearsals for all three shows have begun. It feels like we are truly getting started now. It has been wonderful getting to know what these shows are going to turn into and to start playing. 

Amongst all these beginnings, Michael Stablein, Kirin McCrory and myself had the opportunity to visit some high schools in the area and give workshops. At first, I have to admit the idea of having full auditoriums/ theatres of kids-- actors, english students, and the rest-- listening to us talk about Shakespeare seemed overwhelming to say the least. But each high school surprised us with their enthusiasm and we ended up having a blast every time. We went to Heritage, Nelson County, EC Glass, and Amherst County High Schools. Spending the day sometimes in several classes and sometimes in big auditoriums talking about Shakespeare, showcasing a scene from Midsummer Night's Dream, doing some Stage Combat (which is always a hit, pardon the pun) and ending with the Shakespearean Insult Yo Mamma Showdown. I send applause to everyone who got up and participated. You guys were amazing. 

The following video was put together by our own David McElwee from clips collected during the week. Hope you enjoy. And remember 5 dollar tickets for students. Woot woot!

-Natalie Caruncho

actor

Working on the "Working On"

And so I return to the blog. Old hat, been-here-done-it, I-could-write-this-with-my-eyes-closed. But fortunately, my summers are not any sort of Bill Murray movie, but especially not "Groundhog Day" (maybe "What About Bob?," but even that's stretching it). This summer, Endstation itself is repeating the process of throwing a brand new original work on its feet, but thankfully, it's a process that will never be the same process, and even more thankfully, it's a process that I, the wizened, jaded blogger, have never participated in.

"My Brother's Knife: A Madison Heights Odyssey" is on its second day of rehearsal with the playwright, Joshua Mikel, sitting in/working on what will be the "table work" period of MBK--which will be lasting about two weeks, if not more. For me, this process is incredibly exciting because I've never worked on a totally new, never been done before, original work. To get to participate in the creation and premier of a work allows my input as an actor to have a different effect. Instead of this being just my "take" on a character, essentially, my thoughts on and my dealings with this character have the potential to make her a new character, not just a version of an old character. It is a weighty weight to weigh.

I'm literally in the midst of discussions right now, and the rapport flows freely in the conference room. Back and forths, questions, statements, here's what I thinks, why do you think thats. We're all just here trying to figure things out because we're all working on this together. Minus Michael Stablein, who apparently will be "sitting in" on MBK rehearsals all summer; I had no idea that Geoff's penchant for aesthetic beauty carried over even into the rehearsal room (re: glorified eye candy)!

Right now, our day-to-day process is very up in the air. Sometimes we'll have things to read, sometimes we'll have things to talk about. I can't imagine what an accomplishment it'll be to see this show up on its feet entirely by the end of the summer. And hopefully, by then, I'll have remembered to go home and get my camera, so that my blog entries don't rely on solely on my well-defined literary voice and excruciatingly clever wit.

Kirin McCrory

Humble Actor

Summer Camp!

Dear Mom and Dad,
    Summer camp is great! I’ve been making all kinds of new friends here at Cabin 5. Plus I got a bunch of old friends here I haven’t seen in FOREVER! There’s Mikey Stablein who was here last summer so he showed me around camp (he really knows where all the cool places to hang out are!) And there’s Natalie and Dave who live upstairs and are going steady (they’re ALWAYS smooching and driving the rest of us crazy!) And there’s Wally, he’s funny and is always telling jokes and cracking us up. And there’s Brian who brought his TV and Xbox (I think I’ll be hanging out in his room the most!) And finally there’s Ryan who’s directing one of the plays I’m in. Ryan is REALLY smart and knows a lot of stuff about theatre. There are two new people who I don’t know: Kirin and Melissa. They seem really nice. Kirin has kooky pink sunglasses and Melissa likes to knit scarves for puppy dogs. I think we’re all going to get along great.

But boy, do I miss home! Mostly on account that I seem to be allergic to the entire state of Virginia. I found this out on Saturday when everyone in our camp played softball against two other camps. I couldn’t play on account of my drip-drip nose. So I just watched until I got so sick I had to go to my bunk. I slept for 16 hours! When I awoke Mikey told me we lost. Twice. Wally said they really could have used my power hitting. I felt just crumby.

Sunday was a way better day. We had the first read-through of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. This really neat play by this guy Bill Shakespeare. I play Bottom. I’m so excited about this play but I’m also kinda scared. On account that I sure do have a lot of speeches… Everyone else is gonna be great though. I can tell. I think this is one of the best cast and crew I’ve ever played with.

Well I gotta get going Geoff (my other director) says we gotta go work on his play now. I promise I’ll write every chance I get if you promise to keep sending me your chocolate chip cookies!

Love,
Sergio

PS.
Tell Liz and Pamis to keep their mitts off my stuff.