Editor’s Note: With the business world all topsy, turvy these days, nobody can be quite sure where the costuming is headed. Hearing from NCA members is one way we try to keep our finger on the pulse of the industry. Here, NCA board member Gene Flaharty— the education, theatrical and retail support specialist for Mehron Makeup in Chestnut Ridge, New York—offers a first-person account about what he is seeing and hearing from the theatre educators with whom he works.
Theatre or No Theatre . . .
That is the question. As Mehron’s education, theatrical and retail support specialist, and a member of and educator for the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), I wanted to share some thoughts. I participate in EdTA’s daily online open forum, during which high school teachers express their ideas and concerns and ask for help from each other. This summer the site has been loaded with doubt, concerns about coming back to school, and how to have theatre without an audience.
Well, have no fear! The creative theatre teachers have been working hard sharing ideas and scripts, working with publishers, and learning how to live stream so they can offer some kind of theatre experience for their students.
What it comes down to is this: There will be theatre productions, but they will look different. There will be smaller casts (no big musicals, wait ‘til spring). There will be scripts with story-telling monologues to keep the actors apart. But most of all, there will be mostly streamed productions.
The teachers are having students record their parts at home, then editing them together and streaming the finished piece. Some teachers are actually recording the actors on stage at different times after school. One teacher is taking her production on the road and recording actors on real locations throughout her town. And some schools are taking their productions outside to have an audience (weather permitting).
I have seen one show that was written by students called “How to Audition during a Quarantine.” They recorded it all on their phones and each actor played several characters, changing clothes, hair and personalities. It was a very funny show!
Teachers are looking back to old original radio scripts or writing scripts in that format. Here is a short list of the different scripts being recommended:
- Waiting for Godot
- 13 Ways to Screw up Your College Interview
- Silent Sky
- The Orphan Train
- Dracula (the original play)
- Heartland
- The Laramie Project
- How to Survive Being in a Shakespeare Play
- The 1940’s Radio Hour
How does this effect the costume business? Well, it will be smaller because of the small casts—but most of the scripts that are being talked about are period pieces. If the students are doing their recording from home, they may need hats, wigs, costume pieces and makeup to look the part. So, stay in touch with all your schools and teachers to see what they are planning and how they are planning the production. Think accessories, not full costumes. Pam Hickman from Costume Holiday House (with two locations in Ohio) has had two schools do productions this summer. I’ve had other stores tell me that they have heard from their schools and that they have this same strategy. They also are planning ahead, as several schools have started reversing scripts for next spring.
So, don’t despair…and get ready for the shows this fall. The show must go on!
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