Actors Bowman Wright, Adrienne Nelson and Shannon Dorsey, all covered in paper streamers from the previous scene, come out of one of the four exits at Arena Stage’s Fichandler theater and into the arms of three dressers.
Friday, April 22, 2016
At Arena Stage’s ‘All the Way,’ it’s a different show backstage
Actors Bowman Wright, Adrienne Nelson and Shannon Dorsey, all covered in paper streamers from the previous scene, come out of one of the four exits at Arena Stage’s Fichandler theater and into the arms of three dressers.
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3 comments:
I think this article explains a great example of how all the parts of theatre are a performance. Everyone has their roles and cues and everyone has to execute their part in order for the show to be a success. I love hearing about seemingly impossible things happens because of those who work in our industry and those that believe in and strive for the impossible. I am also very excited to learn about organized chaos (my favorite kind!). Its as if the quick changes are a choreographed tap dance, everyone has to be in step with one another and when they are they make a flawless performance. The amount of attention to detail that goes into each step of the process honestly never ceases to amaze and excite me! I love how the people in this industry take so much care into their work to make spreadsheets full of earrings and watches and meticulous things like this that can be so crucial to the play! I think that this is a great example of the kind of passion many of the people in this industry have.
I think this article does a great example of demonstrating all the ways that the backstage aspects of theatre must be planned out and carefully choreographed—making a sort of show backstage as Nessa said. On a busy show, the action backstage really is a whole separate performance, with a soundtrack narrated by the stage manager. I appreciate how this author took the time to detail the multiple dressers necessary and the forethought put into the costume construction to include magnets for a lighting fast quick change. Something that needs to appear seamless to the audience can require tons of planning.
This play sounds pretty incredible in its own right: 17 actors for 60 roles? That’s crazy. And 17 is a pretty big cast to start. The article does a good job of pointing out how an actor uses a costume to change from one character to the next in their body language. I think it is great to see an article with this much detail and accuracy about what goes on back stage published in a mainstream news outlet like the Washington Post. And honestly, I think this article made me more interested in seeing the play than a normal marketing piece would!
This article is great. It really shows how hard the wardrobe crew has to work for this show. I have gone to Arena Stage all of my life, so I know how big the stage is, and running a mile within the first act is no easy feat. The show also sounds really interesting. This article makes me wonder if the script was written in a way that only has 17 actors or if it was a directorial decision. Whatever the case, I think it is amazing how many costume pieces were needed for the show and how many quick changes were needed. I would have loved to be backstage, just watching all of the controlled chaos that must have gone on during the show. It is also quite impressive how the wardrobe crew has memorized the preset list of 23 pages in just two weeks. I guess that that's pretty normal in the professional word, but that is still amazing.
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