![]() Thompson said the comedy aspect of “The Drowsy Chaperone” is a fitting escape for what can be a stressful time for many people. Most of the cast, she said, comes from the area – Daytona Beach, Port Orange, Ormond Beach and Palm Coast. The director and the musical director are paid positions. Most of the actors and people behind the scenes are volunteers, though Thompson said they pay a “very small stipend” to the actors and crew to cover small expenses they may incur, such as the costs of gas or makeup. They’re so creative I almost have to put a lid on them – and I don’t.” “This is not a stand-around-and-talk kind of show," he said. Mills said his approach to directing is to teach the actors how to stage themselves artistically and show them how their emotions drive them to move, resulting in a very lively show. “In the spring of 2021 people started coming back to the audience, but I feel we truly reopened this September with ‘Godspell,’” Thompson said. The theater closed in March 2020 and reopened in March 2021, using social distancing for safety, which reduced their audience size from around 240 to about 60. “Since the pandemic we’ve just shied away from sad plays.” “We try to do comedies and romantic comedies,” she said. Auditions begin five to six weeks before the play opens, and for a musical, she said, rehearsals take place five days a week. Once the director is hired, it takes another six to seven weeks for production meetings, including the set builder, the lighting designer, costumer and props. “A musical takes months of planning in advance,” she said, adding that she approached Mills in April 2021 about directing the play.įirst the play-reading committee makes recommendations to the Playhouse board, then the board votes on what plays will be performed during a season, which usually consists of six shows from September to May. Thompson said they began working on the play almost a year ago. He has even written three books, two of which have been published, about stress-free directing and coaching pre-Broadway actors.įoo Fighters: Foo Fighters cancel tour, including Welcome to Rockville, after Taylor Hawkins' death Play selection process While there, he performed in community theater, worked with children’s theaters and was involved in puppetry, a skill he continues. As a retired educator, he moved to Florida 10 years ago after teaching and performing as a guidance counselor and principal in Maine. “Kids in our community seemed so lost and needed a home,” she said. ![]() ![]() ![]() She also conducts a children’s theater program every summer, which she continued during the pandemic. Thompson, who has a background in theater, said she now spends more time directing than she does on stage. “There’s nothing like the power of a live orchestra,” Mills said. “It’s incredible the difference it makes.” “Our patrons love the idea that we use live music,” Thompson said. One of the factors that enhances the theater experience, she said, is that the Daytona Playhouse is the only theater in the area that uses a live orchestra. “It really has a cast of crazy characters.” “The Man in the Chair sits to the side of the stage and narrates the play,” Thompson said. The story is about a showgirl who wants to marry an oil tycoon, but complications arise involving gangsters, a lothario, a butler and the bride’s “drowsy chaperone.” A winner of five Tony awards, the play centers around the Man in the Chair, who listens to a recording as he does, the characters come to life in his apartment.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |