Summer Spotlight: Eliana Tate

    Our final student summer spotlight is Eliana Tate (she/her, ‘24), who attended the National Stage Combat Workshop this summer in Ruston, Louisiana! This year, Eliana was accepted into the Advanced Actor Combatant Workshop after four years of training with the Society of American Fight Directors. Over the course of this three-week intensive, Eliana was able to renew three of her weapon certifications, take the theatrical firearms certification course again, receive 30 hours of training in four different weapon disciplines, and then at the end of the workshop, test and receive certifications in those four weapons.

    This was Eliana’s third time attending the NSCW and she says she keeps going back for “the incredible people you get to train with. You make so many new friends from all over the place who love creating the same art as you. Then, you get the chance to play and explore together for three weeks which makes for a simply incredible experience. This year, the AACW had sixteen students and it was the best cohort I could’ve asked for. We also had the privilege of having two Fight Masters as our instructors, Geoffrey Kent and Robert Westley. They brought an atmosphere of graciousness, patience, and humor, not to mention decades of professional knowledge and skill, to class which made our very long days zany and constructive.”

Having a cohesive and energetic group of people to learn from and train with made the stressful elements of the workshop, mainly rapid renewals and multiple tests, far more enjoyable and worthwhile. In reflection, Eliana has realized that “while receiving multiple certifications in such a short amount of time was rewarding and fulfilling, the friendships and connections, memories, professional knowledge, training, and the opportunity to grow as a performer were what made this experience especially valuable.”

If you’d like to explore more of Eliana’s stage combat work and training, you can do so here!

Summer Spotlight: Brian Bond

     Our next student spotlight is Brian Bond! Over the summer break, Brian (he/him, ‘23) produced and directed a ten-minute play entitled Post-Audition. If this title sounds familiar to you, that’s because it was written by Brian and performed at Bloomsburg University during the Fall 2020 showcase of The Screen Plays! The Screen Plays were all written to be performed in a virtual setting, so producing this piece live required significant edits to the script. Additionally, Brian served as the director and producer in this iteration of his play which brought on new responsibilities and challenges, such as finding sponsors, casting actors, advertising, arranging a venue, editing the script, and budgeting both time and financial resources.

Though independently producing a play can be tedious, Brian found the experience to be fulfilling and worthwhile. His favorite thing about the project was “being able to work with my cast and crew. We had people who had very little theatre experience to people who've been doing it since elementary school. It was a pleasure hearing everyone's thoughts and inputs about the script and letting everyone help each other in their own unique ways to better our goal.” As for a specific favorite moment throughout the process, Brian recalls two events in particular, the first was during a rehearsal where “it began downpouring rain, and since it was an outside venue, we had nowhere to hide really. However, through lightning and water, we kept on rehearsing, with everyone's consent. Secondly, on the day of the show, I came out to do the opening speech and I instantly noticed four individuals from Bloomsburg University, professors and friends, and seeing them made me feel very good as I was not expecting them, and it showed me how strong of a bond I have with my BU family.”

            If you’d like to check out Brian’s work, you can view the BU Players performance of Post-Audition here!

Summer Spotlight: Johanna Gelbs

As the fall semester is getting underway, we’d like to take some time to share and celebrate some of our theatre students who spent their summers honing their theatrical skills. In the coming days, we’ll be highlighting their experiences and what they learned during them!

Up first is Johanna Gelbs! Over the summer, Johanna (she/her, ‘24) played “Ermengarde” in The Shawnee Playhouse's production of Hello, Dolly! Johanna has been performing at Shawnee since she was twelve, so she was quite excited to return to that stage after Covid led to a temporary sixteen-month halt of performances. Her favorite part about this project was “by far the people. In every aspect. This show is so special and getting to do it with people who cared so deeply about this process inspired me to do the exact same. Seeing the audiences’ faces after not seeing theatre for over a year will be something I will never forget. The energy was palpable and getting to create something that positively impacted so many people for the first time in so long is something I am so appreciative of… It is honestly so impossible to pick a favorite moment during this process. I enjoyed every second I got to tell this story. If I had to pick though, it would be the insanely strong connections between my castmates. They are family now!!! Isn't theatre the coolest?”

Johanna is a sophomore theatre major with a concentration in performance, so this project allowed her to stretch her in-person performance muscles after performing in several virtual BU Players productions her freshman year. Johanna is also an active member of both the Bloomsburg University Concert Choir and The Leading Tones and loves intersecting her love of music and theatre. We are very proud to have had Johanna represent the BU Theatre Program this summer!

Photo credits: Kenneth Card

How does an actor prepare to audition on Zoom?

In a continuing series about auditioning, we prepare to audition for The Screen Plays, a virtual festival of new plays by students. To read the series on auditioning. 

If you are an actor interested in auditioning for The Screen Plays, you will sign up for an audition time, complete the audition form, then select one of the monologues from one of the new, student-written plays. (All the details of how to audition are posted on the BU Players auditions page.) Once you have taken those steps, you are ready to prepare the monologue for the audition.

How do I prepare a monologue?

• Read the play.
• Based on your reading of the play, understand who this character is, what their given circumstances are, and what they want in the play.
• For the monologue itself, understand who they are talking to and their specific relationship to this other character, what they want from or to do to the other character (their objective), why they want this (motivation), why they want this right now (urgency), and what happened before the monologue that prompted them to pursue what they want (moment before).
• Read the play again and again to be sure that your understanding of these elements is clear.
• Memorize the monologue by working through it out loud as many times as you need to so that you don’t just know the words but are deeply connected to the character and to the pursuit of what they want. 

How do I perform a monologue in an audition setting?

• First introduce yourself, the name of the piece that you will be performing in the character you’ll be performing. For example, “Hello, my name is Carrie Winship and today I will be performing a monologue from Hamlet by William Shakespeare, playing the part of Polonius.”
• Next, take a moment to transition to finding a focal point that is not directly at the director. This is the imagined other person. Take a moment to respond to that imagined other, then speak the first line of the monologue.
• At the end of the monologue take a moment to see the impact this had on the imagined other character. Then transition back to looking at the director and end with a simple “Thank you.”
• The director may ask you questions or to explore the monologue again with a new piece of direction.

How do I perform a monologue on Zoom?

• For a performance on zoom, the focal point for the person you were talking to should be just to the left or just to the right of the camera. Don’t put them to far off screen so that the directors can still see your face. 
• There are several technical aspects to consider when preparing your audition on zoom as well. They include:

• Lighting - Lighting should come from the front of you, not behind you. Natural light, at least in part, is best. There should be enough light so you are seen, but not so much light that you are washed out. 
• Background - The background should be as neutral or plain as possible. Limit distractions. 
• Framing - You should be standing during the audition. The camera should be about eye level with you. The distance between you and the camera should be such that the frame starts just below your armpits at the bottom and a few inches above your head at the top.   

For a video tutorial one best practices for "self tapes" check out this video. 

How do I dress for an audition? 

Dress professionally, but with the ability to move comfortably.  

 

Do you have questions about the process? 

Please contact Professor Miller (dmiller at bloomu.edu).

 

Professor David A. Miller teaches acting, directing, and playwriting at Bloomsburg University. He regularly directs productions for BU Players (Everybody, The Arsonists, Macbeth, The Nosemakers Apprentice: Chronicles of a Plastic Surgeon) and professionally (Amphibian Stage Productions, The Artful Conspirators). 

How does an actor find the right monologue for an audition? (Auditioning, Part III)

This is the next post in a series about auditioning. (Read the series.) In this installment we ask Professor David A. Miller—who teaches all levels of acting at BU and will direct this spring’s production of Harvey—about where actors find great monologues for auditions.

When asked to participate in the general audition for a season of plays, actors are often asked to prepare one or two monologues. In the previous post on monologues, we explored what a monologue is and how to prepare it for an audition. In this post we will go further into how to find a great monologue.

Where do actors find monologues? 

1. The best place to find great monologues is in great plays! Read lots of them. Start with your favorite playwright. Read their plays and be on the lookout for great monologues. See plays and listen for those great monologues, then get a copy of that play to read it.

2. Another helpful resource for finding monologues is books of monologues from plays. That's right, others have done some preliminary research for you. The editors of these books Have read a lot of great plays and have compiled monologues for you. One of my favorite series of monologue books is In Performance: Contemporary Monologues for Men and Women Late Teens-20sby JV Mercanti.  Not only are there fantastic monologues from new plays, but Mr. Mercanti is a smart director, casting director and acting coach who includes helpful tips on auditioning and questions about the plays for actors to answer on their own. 

If you are a current university student, there are many monologue books on 2-hour reserve at the circulation desk of the Andruss Library. These include the aforementioned In Performance series. Also on reserve are specialized monologue books such as Playwrights’ Center Monologues for Men, Playwrights’ Center Monologues for Women, and Monologues for Actors of Color (an electronic book, so students can access if from any computer). To see the full list, go to http://guides.library.bloomu.edu/HarveyAndrussLibrary, click on the “Find” tab, click on Reserve Readings (on the left side of the page) and select Miller, David / Theatre / Theatre 112: Fundamentals of Acting.

3. Another great resource for finding monologues is your fellow actors. In your search for monologues, you are going to come across monologues that are great but not right for you. You may wish to swap these monologues with other actors.

Is there anything I should avoid?

Avoid any monologue that comes from a book of monologues written simply to be audition monologues. They don't tend to be as rich as those from a full length play. Also, it’s recommended that you avoid any monologue that comes from the internet and not from a published play. There are potentially some good ones out there, but it’s more likely to be found through more reputable sources.

How do actors find monologues tailored to a specific audition? 

If you are auditioning for a specific play, as opposed to a general audition for a season or festival of plays, you may be asked to prepare a piece by Shakespeare, or a verse selection or something that is aligned with the play. Generally, it is not recommended to do a monologue from the play itself. Instead, you might choose something similar to that play.

If you are auditioning for Harvey by Mary Chase, for example, you might do some research about the play itself then select a monologue that seems similar to the world of that play. The first thing to do is to read the play. By reading the play you will learn that Harvey is a comedy, but it’s a specific type of comedy. It’s not a farce, for example. You may want to find a monologue that showcases your comic sensibilities.  

Harvey was written and is set in the 1940s. You may consider finding a monologue from a play from that era. Harvey won the Pulitzer Prize in 1945. The year before the winner was The Skin of Our Teeth, a fantastic play by Thornton Wilder. Another comedy of the era, You Can't Take It With You by Kaufman and Hart, won in 1937. (A list of other Pulitzer winners.) These plays are examples of great comedies from the era that might have great audition monologues in them. Other playwrights from the era include Lillian Hellman, Arthur Miller and Maxwell Anderson.

Professor David A. Miller teaches acting, directing, devised theatre, and playwriting at Bloomsburg University. He regularly directs productions for BU Players (Macbeth, The Nosemakers Apprentice: Chronicles of a Plastic Surgeon) and professionally (Amphibian Stage Productions, The Artful Conspirators). 

Let's Get to Know the Faculty: David A. Miller

We’re interested in getting to know the faculty of the Division of Theatre and Dance a little better, so we asked them a few questions. Here’s what we learned from Professor David A. Miller who teaches acting, directing and scriptwriting at Bloomsburg University.

The Robot Inventor (Then)

What first got you interested in theatre?

My first experience seems to be acting in skits in Cub Scouts. I recently rediscovered a photo of one of those. In the skit I played a Robot Inventor. Like all Cub Scout skits, it was a comedy. As my colleagues and students can attest, my interest in comedy has not diminished since that fateful Pack Meeting performance oh so many years ago.

What made you want to teach theatre?

I have always loved working with young people in a teaching or mentoring capacity. From an early age I was a babysitter. In Scouts I was regularly a leader. In grade school I wanted to be either a teacher or a professional soccer player. By the time I reached undergraduate I had dreams of teaching theatre at the college level. But there was something particularly special that happened during undergrad: When searching for a summer job I saw a posting for a part time teacher to teach visual arts and drama to 8 to 11 year old students. I was amazed at the prospect of teaching arts to young people. I don't know that I believed before that moment that I might be able to create a career teaching theatre and visual art. That was turning point for me in my marrying of my two passions of teaching and the arts.

What is your most memorable theatre experience?

Perhaps my most memorable experiences, or at least the most unique, was when I served as an understudy for a professional production in Seattle. As an actor, the job of being an understudy is fascinating and potentially nerve wracking. The understudy is the "back up" for a role or for multiple roles. The actor has to learn those roles—the lines, the stage business—and be ready to go on at a moments notice if the actor in the role cannot, for whatever reason, perform. 

 

For this production, Kenny's Window at Seattle Children's Theatre, it was unlikely that I was going to be called to perform. The actors I was understudying were notoriously sturdy in their health and work ethic. However, I got the call on a Sunday afternoon. (Actually, I got the page, then called back, as this was in the pre-cell phone era.) It was 20 minutes before the matinee was to begin and stage management could not get a hold of one of the actors and they could not get a hold of his understudy. I grabbed my script and ran to the theatre which was thankfully only blocks from my apartment. While wardrobe fitted the Soldier's costume to my body I rehearsed lines with the other Soldier and talked through how he would help me while we were on stage. I had seen these scenes in rehearsal, but I had never rehearsed them myself. We performed the first act with a script in my hands and my fellow Soldier whispering directions to me ("Stay here." "Sit on the bed.") By intermission the other understudy had been contacted, so I got out of the costume and he got into it to perform the second act. We came out together for the curtain call.

What is one show you would love to work on?

There are so many great plays and musicals out there... These days I am thinking a lot about the plays of Eugene O'Neill. Pig Farm by Greg Kotis is on my list. Some day I would love to direct the play Spring Awakening. There's a slew of playwrights creating new work with whom I would love to collaborate, including Brenda Withers, Erin Mallon, Catherine Weingarten.

Now

Who would you love to work with?

There are several directors who I would love to assist. They include Ivo Van Hove, Katie Mitchell and Arin Arbus. Their work is always so clear and so compelling. I would love to be part of their process to learn more about how they approach a play script and how they work with actors and designers.

David A. Miller is a professional director, playwright and educator. He is Resident Director at Amphibian Stage Productions (Fort Worth, TX), a member of Stillwater Writers (New York, NY) and former Artistic Director of The Artful Conspirators (Brooklyn, NY). mrdavidamiller.com

Portrait of an Artist as a Theatre Minor (or, Five Questions for Sarah Shuren)

We wanted to get to know more about our Theatre Minors, so we are asking them each five questions. We asked student Sarah Shuren the questions and here’s what she told us.

What do you love about theatre? I’ve been involved in all sorts of art forms since I was a kid, and theatre pulls together a bunch of different aspects from all these other forms of art and combines them into a separate entity. I love being able to work with all these different art forms at once as well as experiencing the atmosphere around theatre. Every time I went to see a play or performed in one I was always so invested in the experience, it was always so moving and I could always relate to what was going on in some way. Theatre is a way to get a bunch of people together and reach out to others and help change lives, and I love getting to be a part of it

What's one show you would love to be a part of one day?One show I would love to be a part of would be HAIR. It’s my favorite musical, I’ve gone to see it multiple times. The music is one of my favorite part of the show, the costumes are another. The hippie generation is something I’ve always felt very passionate about and I’ve always loved learning about it. Being a part of a musical that was written then to make a point about how the country was going in the height of a war that was so controversial is something I would just love to do.

Sarah Shuren, fourth from left, in her senior play.

What inspired you to become a Theatre Minor?
I had been in my high school’s theatre department for six years, and when I went to college I missed it (in the photo I am in my last play senior year at my high school. My arms are crossed and I'm making a face as my character has seen a ghost and no one believes her). I decided to take a few theatre classes my second semester at Bloomsburg to get myself back into it. After another semester I decided to add theatre on as a minor instead of a second major so I could still graduate on time while still being able to be involved in the whole process.

What is your major? What made you first interested in it? My major is Mass Communications, and I originally picked it because I thought I wanted to be involved with radio. But as I got taking more and more classes I found that I enjoyed video editing more. Getting to go through a whole mess of footage and finding the best shots and arranging them all to tell a story is a lot of fun. It’s also very rewarding to see the final product of spending hours on end editing together a short clip.

If you were a fruit or vegetable, what would you be? If I were a fruit of vegetable I would probably be a strawberry. Strawberries are more of a spring/early summer fruit, and that’s my favorite time of year. It’s just starting to get warm and everything starts turning green, it’s just so beautiful that time of year. Strawberries are also my favorite fruit, so there’s some bias there.

To read about other Theatre Minors.