Stephanie's Weekly Spotlight: My Summer with The Rep

It is truly incredible how fast time can pass when you are having fun. I feel as though it was just last Monday that I arrived at Temple for our first weekly management team meeting. In reality, it has been 10 weeks since that initial gathering. This week is a very bittersweet one, as we are in the final stretch of our season. This coming Wednesday, I leave for my first real vacation of the summer, but before that happens, I will have cleaned out my desk and house managed my final show for the 2014 season. Before we move forward into the final days of summer, I look back at what the season has given me. Here are my top five favorite experiences from my first year with Nebraska Rep.

5. Jazz in June
Every Tuesday in June, members of our management team took turns working at the NRT table at Lincoln's Jazz in June festival. It hardly ever felt like work, though! We were being paid to do what we love, while enjoying the beautiful (for the most part) weather, delicious food, and the vibrant sounds of jazz. It doesn't get much better than that!

4. The Company Party
From the planning to the actual party, everything about this event was a blast. You can't go wrong with a tropical barbeque theme and custom flavored ice cream from Ivanna Cone! A huge thanks to our Executive Director Paul Steger, and his wife Sara for hosting the party at their beautiful home.

Grill Master, Brad Buffum

3. Office time shenanigans
Our management team is made up of successful, dedicated, and organized people. We love what we do, and we do it well. But when you put four undergrads and a graduate in one office for extended periods of time, crazy things are bound to happen.

Bryan Howard wins for Most Photogenic. 

Desiree's attempt at being the "little n" for an "n-r-t" group photo

2. Meeting the Guest Artists
Working with new actors, actresses, and technicians was like a breath of fresh air. I have been involved in school and community theatre programs in Lincoln from age 13, so I've been around the same group of students and adults for nearly my entire theatre career. While we've grown and learned together, nothing beats working with a fresh group of strangers. I've listened to countless stories about their theatrical experiences in every city from New York to Los Angeles, to even Beatrice, Nebraska. I am thankful for the valuable advice each of them has given me, and for the time I was able to spend with them as friends.

"Barrymore's is closed?! On to the next!" Post-Circle Mirror opening, a night out with the company.

1. Opening Nights
Opening nights are what you live for as a company member. The set is complete, the cast is ready, and the management team is…cooking? Yes, for the post-show reception of course! Nothing beats the atmosphere of these celebratory gatherings. Food and drinks and delightful conversation. The lobby is abuzz with chatter about the show. The company members are content, yet proud. And finally, we breathe easy and relax, because we opened another successful show.

Our first and second opening nights.

It's been a pretty wonderful ride, and I couldn't have asked for a better first-year experience at the Nebraska Rep. Thanks for the memories!

Stephanie's Weekly Spotlight: On the Set of Circle Mirror Transformation

You still have four more chances to see Circle Mirror Transformation before we close our season on August 10th! If the charmingly humorous plot and appearances by guest artists aren't enough to convince you, perhaps the unique set design is.

Circle Mirror is performed in our studio theater, with a thrust seating arrangement. Such an intimate playing space can be both a blessing and a curse to directors and designers. How do you convey all that you want to with limited room?

"When set designer, Michaela Stein, and I first met in April, we decided that Circle Mirror Transformation takes place in a space designed and loved by Marty," says Director Virginia Smith of her collaboration with Stein. "Marty is the main teacher at the art center and she is committed to awakening the creative spirit of each person who enters her space. Because most of her students are children, we wanted to fill the space with art projects and supplies, bold colors, and an invitation to play. We wanted to make a safe space for these individuals to see themselves more clearly."

Circle Mirror stage

Special touches help to engage the audience, such as this community center bulletin board in the entrance way to the theater.

Fellow Assistant General Manager, Bryan Howard, and I channeled our inner child when we explored the set last week. 

You can join in on the fun here at Nebraska Rep by getting your tickets to one of these final Circle Mirror Transformation performances: 

July 30, 31 at 7:30pm

August 9 at 7:30pm

and 

August 3 at 2:00pm

We'll see you there!

Stephanie's Weekly Spotlight: Catching Up With Kristie

Although our last production, Unnecessary Farce, opens this Wednesday, our season is far from over. You still have eight more opportunities to see either of our other shows, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, and Circle Mirror Transformation. And should you choose to see one (or both!), you will be introduced to the lovely Kristie Berger. 

Berger plays Masha in Vanya and Marty in Circle Mirror. 

Kristie is one of several guest artists in our company this season; she traveled here from Chicago. She has worked in such theaters as The Goodman, Steppenwolf, Victory Gardens, Touchstone, and Center Theater. She is no stranger to the Rep, however. She joined the company for the first time in 2005, where she played Grace in Bus Stop and Priscilla in Resident Alien. We are thrilled to have her with us again! Check out my interview with her below. We discuss the challenges of repertory theatre, and she gives advice to aspiring actors.

SK: What projects have you completed at home in Chicago since you were last with the Nebraska Rep?
KB: Hmm.....let's see. I did a couple of shows, a myriad of staged readings, worked in commercials, voiceovers, industrials, print ads, and did an independent film. I started my own business so I could work from home and have a flexible schedule so I can control the "feast or famine" part of being an actor.

SK: What do you do to prepare before going onstage?
KB: I'm going to answer that as if you mean before a curtain goes up as opposed to all the work I do preparing for a role. I'm anal about checking my props and walking the stage, so I make sure I walk every inch of the stage, open and close every door I go through, sit on every piece of furniture I sit on in the show, check my personal props and make sure everything is where it needs to be prop-wise. I make sure I stretch my body so I'm limber enough to move the way I want. I warm up vocally, usually starting with humming and then singing and hit all the notes I can hit. I like to dance a little to get the blood flowing and my energy up. I also try to yawn quite a bit before going on stage to open up my voice and chest and feel relaxed.

SK: What's the biggest challenge of performing in a repertory setting?
KB: Making sure you're giving 100% to each show, keeping your energy up and committing fully to every rehearsal. Being prepared for each show by knowing your lines, your blocking, and making sure you're the least of the director's problems. And for me, getting enough sleep is always an issue because I replay each scene in my head when I'm trying to go to sleep, trying to figure out how to make moments work that didn't seem to work in rehearsal or performance.

SK: What's the best thing about repertory theatre?
KB: There's no one best thing, but I love the challenge, especially this summer, of working on two such different roles. I love working with all the wonderfully talented and creative actors, directors, designers, stage managers, crew, and all of us coming together and creating this living, breathing show that we get to share with an audience who then adds the energy that makes it all come together. There's nothing like doing shows in rep. It's exciting, challenging, exhausting, exhilarating, and such a treat for an actor to be a part of.

SK: If you weren't an actress, what do you think you would be doing?
KB: I love photography and I would love to drive from coast to coast across the USA, taking side roads and state roads and taking pictures of people, places, and whatever caught my eye, so being a photojournalist is something that really appeals to me -- being a mixture of Margaret Bourke-White and Ansel Adams. At one time, I also thought I'd like to be a forest ranger because I love being outdoors.

SK: Could you share some advice for aspiring actors?
KB: Read and see plays, see movies, watch TV, listen to commercials on the radio, take classes, read books. Take care of yourself -- eat well, exercise, get enough sleep. Don't be on time to auditions or rehearsals -- be early. Be nice to everybody you meet along the way -- interns, production assistants, secretaries, crew. Everyone involved on the job or at an audition is important. This is a small community and word spreads fast about you. If you have to have a day job, try to think of other skills you have that are marketable so that you can support yourself the way you want to. Being an actor can be a difficult way of life. A good support group -- friends, family -- who believe in you who you can turn to when you need them is vital. Research the places where you want to work and the directors you want to work with. Knowledge is power. And don't be afraid to fail. That's the only way to succeed.

Don't miss your chance to see Kristie onstage! Get your tickets to the following performances:

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike

August 1 and 8 at 7:30pm

July 27 at 2:00pm

Circle Mirror Transformation

July 25, 30, and 31 at 7:30pm

August 9 at 7:30pm

August 3 at 2:00pm

Stephanie's Weekly Spotlight: Fridays are for Art!

Coming to a show here at the Rep is a guaranteed-good time any night of the week. But if you enjoy live music and local art, Friday nights are the night for you. Our Director of Audience Development, Joshua Waterstone has been working hard all season, coordinating with local artists of all facets to create what we call Fine Arts Fridays. Every Friday night, a new set of artists will display their work in the lobby from 6:30pm to 7:30pm, when the show starts. Musicians will play for the full hour, and artwork will be displayed all evening.


Our first Fine Arts Friday was great success, as we welcomed displays from Metro Art Gallery, and a performance by musician Evan Bartels (featured below).

Our line up for the coming weeks is as follows: 

July 11th (Performance: Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike):

Musician: Country Road

Gallery: Capital City Carvers

July 18th (Performance: Circle Mirror Transformation):

Musician: Country Road

Gallery: Woodworking art by Richard Duba and Friends

August 1st (Performance: Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike):

Musician: Sean Grosshans

Gallery: Metro Art Gallery

August 8th (Performance: Closing night of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike):

Musician: Anthony Slattery

Gallery: Iron Tail Gallery

For a memorable and relaxing evening of art, be sure to get your tickets to one of these four performances! We can't wait to see you there!

Stephanie's Weekly Spotlight: It's Opening Week!

The countdown to opening night is quickly dwindling! On Thursday night at 7:30pm, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike will officially kick off the Rep Summer 2014 season. However, there is still much to be done! Our management team is busy pulling decorations and organizing catering for the post show reception.

We aren't the only ones pushing forward, though. Our crew is still hard at work building the set, props, and costumes for our next show, Circle Mirror Transformation, which opens June 17th. The constant flow of new projects is simply one of many things that make repertory theatre so much fun!

Bryan Ruhs installs foam sheeting on the stage platform, to reduce sound from actor movement. 

Circle Mirror Transformation will be performed in the studio theatre, with a thrust seating arrangement. 

Be sure to get your tickets for this week's opening night of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, as well as next Thursday's opening night of Circle Mirror Transformation, with receptions in the lobby following both performances. See you there! 

Stephanie's Weekly Spotlight: The Fantastic World of Farce

Yesterday marked the start of week two for the cast and crew of Unnecessary Farce, a hilarious slapstick comedy about a police sting set up in a cheap motel. With two cops, three crooks, eight doors, and an accountant who can't seem to keep her clothes on, chaos ensues as police try to expose the mayor's dishonest behavior via videotape.

Does this sound crazy? It is! As the title states, the play is a farce. Farce is a type of comedy that entertains the audience through highly exaggerated and extravagant situations. Plot twists galore, combined with lots of physical comedy keep audiences pleasantly confused and entertained. One quality that makes farce a unique genre is that audiences are actually encouraged to not follow the plot too closely, as to not confuse themselves further. The joy of watching a farce is being surprised with each turn the plot takes!

A 2011 production of Unnecessary Farce, presented by the Norris Community Theatre in Naples, FL

The term farce was first used in 15th century France, to describe the use of clowning, acrobatics, caricature, and indecency together in a single work of art. Farce quickly spread through Europe where it influenced famous playwrights, such as Shakespeare and Molière. The genre survived through the 19th and 20th centuries with plays such as Charlie's Aunt (1892), and entertainers including the Marx Brothers and Charlie Chaplin. A more modern example is the classic television show I Love Lucy, which aired from 1951 to 1957. 

One of the most well-known episodes of I Love Lucy, "Job Switching", 1952.

You won't want to miss your chance at seeing this delightfully hilarious style played out on Howell Stage. Unnecessary Farce opens July 23rd. Get your tickets today!

Welcome to NRT 2014: A Summer of Transformation

Hello, and welcome to "Nebraska Repertory Theatre: Behind the Curtain," the blog that gives readers an inside view of all things Nebraska Rep 2014. Throughout the summer, check in with us to hear about our transforming season; it's sure to be one that won't disappoint! 

Though our management has been in the offices since last week, we welcome our crews into the shops today. In addition to the crews, we also welcome our first blogger of the season, Virginia Smith!

Virginia Smith is the Artistic Director of the Nebraska Rep and is also the director of Circle Mirror Transformation. You'll be hearing from her every Monday to learn how the productions are unfolding and transforming week by week:

I will be blogging every Monday this season with news from the rehearsal halls and the dressing rooms. Since none of the shows are in rehearsal yet, it may seem that nothing much is going on....wrong! All the designs are in and being built, props are being gathered, light plots are being hung, all without the guest directors having met the actors!
So, being one of the directors, I'm nervous. Have I planned expansively enough to express the play that the actors and I will discover in the rehearsal process? How much should I prepare? Shall I calculate every move, or let all of it emerge organically from the actors.

I'm not sleeping that well and think about the play day and night. But I know the actors, some of whom I've met only briefly, are much more nervous. Will I be a tyrant? Will I hate everything they've been thinking about the character? It's always a nervous moment when we meet for the first rehearsal and actually see what we've all been thinking about in the first read through.

Because I cast all the shows, every first read through is a very anxious time for me, because that is when I first hear and see the whole casts together. "Together" before this has only occurred in my brain, and now, everyone looks to see if they agree. My fervent prayer is that the guest director agrees with my vision. Yikes!

Doug and Alan are reading the play over and over, creating what they envision, and making notes to share with the actors. I am reading the script over and over and trying not to do the same "normal" preparation, which generally makes me a little less nervous at the first rehearsal. The play I'm directing has much more improvisation, and I believe that it should come from my cast as they interact in the rehearsal process. Some of our best work in the theatre comes from just jumping off the cliff. But that doesn't happen without stress.

Right now, the actors are getting ready to spend an enormous amount of time away from home and families, memorizing, absorbing, creating, sweating (it is summer in Nebraska after all) and ultimately becoming agents in the world of these plays. They might be even more nervous than I am, and I'm feeling like the earth is moving under my feet.

Follow us daily here on the blog, and keep up-to-date on updates through our social media accounts. Check out the sidebar to find links and feeds that keep you connected with NRT's 

transforming summer!