Ophelia Pre-Show at Fringe Art Space

Mallory Sabetodos Vance founded Phoenix Tears Productions, a local acting troupe that experiments with interactive theater. I have been sketching their quirky shows for years. They are now staging Ophelia, an original musical about Hamlets amore.

It was pouring as Pam and I drove to the theater. We honestly thought we might be the only people willing to go out in such insane weather. We got to the theater an hour early to be able to see the pre-show in the lobby of the new Fringe Art Space. Sure enough we were the only people in the lobby.

Mallory came out and explained that the show would be starting late because of the weather. Apparently the drummer could not get off from work. With time to kill Pam and I looked around. The show has a well designed and illustrated poster. The poster artist also had her thick impasto floral paintings on display outside the bathrooms.

Originally I had not planned to sketch the pre-show but with an hour and a half to kill I decided there was plenty of time to get a sketch done of the lobby and ensuing frivolity.

The actresses began to trickle out and interact with the gathering crowd. Combine,  in a peach colored dress (Emily Sheetz) kept dusting all the surfaces in the room. She asked the couple next to us to get up so she could dust their seats. Thankfully she left me to sketch in peace. Violet, (Carson Holley), in a light purple dress came over. welcomed us and offered her hand which I delicately shook. In Hamlet’s day a gentleman would have stood and kissed her hand, but I was busy sketching.

There was an Ophelia backdrop where people could have their pictures taken. Violet was gleefully encouraging people to pose. In contrast, Rue (Lex Bently) lurked nearby all in black exuding her goth menace. Fennel (Ashley Vogt) in her bright pink stippers outfit and fabulous white leather boots with massive heels, made her way into the sketch.

A Halloween Carol Workshop

I was honored to sketch at the world premiere of A Halloween Carol musical written and composed by local playwright Tracey Jane. I had sketched at a prior rehearsal so I knew several songs from this unique spooky musical but this would be the first time I could experience the whole tale. I arrive at the artist’s call time at the stage door. I helped the musical director (Billy Williams)  move a few folding chairs into the theater and then considered what my best angle might be to sketch the circular stage.

Tracey suggested I sketch from a wooden balcony that had been set up and that was indeed the best vantage point. At first all the actors sat on the circular stage but then the musical director asked for all the actors who were not wearing a mic to stand in front of the stage. This was how they rehearsed until the house opened. However for the final performance they all returned to the stage. This made for a challenging sketch opportunity.

The show as a delightful retelling of Charles Dickens Christmas Story. This story however took place in the present in a high school. Carol Cratchit (Alessia Preda) was visited by her BFF Marley Jacobs who had left for Idaho. As a song put it, she didn’t die, you know; she moved to I-DA-HO!” The show is about facing ones fears and indeed Carol is visited by 3 ghosts, the Ghost of Halloween Past, The Ghost of Halloween Present, and in a tense verb twist, The Ghost of Halloween Past Perfect.

Past Perfect (Carson Holly) gave a particularly memorable performance that left the audience stunned for a moment. Another amazing performance was by Alessia Preda as she sang “Electricity” about her crush Evan Neezer (Jacob Steele). Barnaby (Stephen Lewis) had everyone including Alessia in stitches as he performed as a happy hamster who loved life but unexpectedly passed away. In the talk back after the show, Tracey explained that her family got a hamster during the pandemic but hamsters only live 2 years, so he did not live to see the possible end of the pandemic. He lay on his back with his feet in the air and the cast sang “Barnaby’s Eulogy”. His foot twitched ever so slightly from the effort. Tracy gave him wings and a halo and he hilariously walked his way up the blood soaked staircase, disappearing into the greenroom.

I don’t think I will unveil the ghoulish plot twist that is at the core of this macabre tale. This workshop which showcased the 26 or so songs, is just the beginning of this show’s evolution. The rich orchestrations by Christopher Robinason were pared down for this workshop to just piano and percussion. The music will truly shine when performed by a full orchestra. The soundtrack will be available for sale and the hope is to raise enough through patrons and sales to fully stage the production in 2023.

 

A Halloween Carol Rehearsal

During the pandemic, Tracy Jane wrote the book, music and lyrics to a frightful new musical called A Halloween Carol. Orchestrations were done by Christopher Robinson. I have seen Tracy’s work on stage before so I was excited to see what she had in store. Tracy is like Orlando’s Nora Ephron, writing stories for stage productions with heart and humor.

I had some difficulty finding the rehearsal space on the Seminole State College campus. I finally had to ask someone for directions. It turns out that I asked Nicole Ponce (Marley Jacobs) for directions and I was right outside the building I was looking for. I wandered the halls and some classes were in session and I could see the occasional masked student through glass door panels. There was a ruckus behind one of the classroom doors and I decided the noise had to be the excitement of actors just prior to rehearsal. I was right. Stephen Lewis (Barnaby) offered me advice for a sketching angle.

There was blue tape on the floor to mark the size of the circular stage of the Renaissance Theater. Chairs were arranged inside the circle. Tracy explained the difficulty of getting an entire cast to learn the range of songs. Orchestrations were still being changed on the fly from one rehearsal to the next. A piano accompanist was brought in for this rehearsal. His ability to stop and start and offer feedback helped solidify the music as it evolved.

Actors sat on the floor shuffling and arranging sheet music. The sheet music must be evolving from rehearsal to rehearsal. At one point a pile of sheet music avalanched off of a chair. She offered to pick up the pile but was rushed on stage. Rehearsal started, and the actors quickly scrambled into their seats. That is when sketching began in earnest.

The first song the cast rehearsed started with the lyrics, “look at me.” It seemed appropriate since I was deeply engaged in looking at each cast member in turn trying to capture their delight and humor. Carson Holly (Ghost of Halloween Past Perfect) in a skull patterned sweater, impressed me with her professionalism. She asked for notes and joked with her co-star Alessia Preda (Carol Cratchit). They gave each other high fives when the music hit the mark. At one point Carson stepped on the leg of her fragile music stand and it snapped and tumbled over. She handled the setback with delightful humor. Luckily it happened right before a break. Her stand was replaced with a solid steel behemoth for the second half of rehearsal. I smiled behind my mask overjoyed to see this young cast stretching their incredible talents. Another song, Past Perfect, had me bobbing my head as I sketched.

Music director Billy Williamson encouraged the cast and kept them on point while keeping to the tight rehearsal schedule. At times Tracy had to help get the music back on track and she would hum a few bars to set the record straight. She explained that she had written pretty simple songs, but the rich and layered orchestrations took some practice to learn. Carson used her phone to record important passages she needed to further rehearse. During a 10 minute break, actors got to ask the pianist to go over certain passages.

There will be an exclusive Orlando preview workshop of A Halloween Carol on October 26, 2022 at the Seminole College Library at 7PM.  Donations are accepted for the performance. All proceeds and donations from this event will benefit both the school’s library and the show’s cast, to be shared equitably among cast members. You can be among the very first treat-seekers to preview the frightful new musical. The hope is that will be further developed into a full staged production if the stars align.

I am told the Renaissance Theater performance on Halloween Eve (October 30, 2022) will sell out. Here is a link, just in case you are lucky enough to get in.