|
||
|
Disclaimer:
The reviewers' opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of TheatreLouisville.org. |
Articles Behind the Scenes at Youth Performing Arts School: By Christopher Hancock Entire contents are copyright © 2009 Christopher Hancock. All rights reserved.
Georgette Kleier is beginning her sixth year at Youth Performing Arts School (YPAS), where she serves as Chair of the Theatre Department and teaches Directing, Exploring Theatre and Acting. Kleier has spent the last twenty five years working as an actor, director, playwright and as an Adjunct Faculty member at University of Louisville, Indiana University Southeast and Jefferson Community College. While living in New York City, she worked/studied at The Manhattan Class Company and the Ensemble Studio Theatre. Locally, she has worked for The Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, Derby Dinner Playhouse, Music Theatre Louisville and Pandora Productions. She holds an MFA from U of L and is a member of AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) VASTA (Voice and Speech Trainers Association) and The Dramatists Guild. She lives in New Albany with her husband, Michael Hottois, son, Miguel, and their two dogs, Shelby and Max. I recently had the opportunity to interview her about her current directing project, Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, at YPAS. As I walked into YPAS' Blackbox Experimental Theatre, I was stopped by the sight of a giant red and gold Victorian proscenium arch that framed the 3 foot tall stage. Since the set was in the early stages of being built, I didn't really see, ultimately, the use of the large proscenium. But ultimately my questions were answered. Chris Hancock: How, as a director, did you prepare for this piece? Georgette Kleier: Well, I was already pretty familiar with Oscar Wilde and his works, especially Earnest, before this so I could've just jumped into it, but I wanted to make sure that I didn't gloss over any important details. I read several biographies on Oscar Wilde, watched the DVD "Wilde", and I extensively researched the Victorian era: the clothing, the stances, the manners, the role of each person in society, etc. I guess I could've done more but I feel pretty comfortable. CH: As a director, what in your opinion are some particularly innovative or creative elements that will set this production of Earnest apart from other productions of the same play? GK: Well, I'm having both "Earnests" get dressed in front of the audience at the beginning. This is to represent how these two men are more concerned with their looks than anything else, thus the line, "Style not sincerity is the vital thing." Hmm, let's see. I'm also using more asides in this production than are written to create a stronger bond between the audience and the characters in the scene. And, yes, asides lead back to the Restoration time period of theatre but unlike in Restoration, plays written in the Victorian era are much less sexual and the acting is less broad. So it's kind of like a Restoration play with a Victorian sentimentality. And I'm also not honoring the period in which it was written which, in my mind, is innovative and new to this production. CH: What is your seed statement or initial concept for this production? GK: It's a "Contemporary view of a Victorian Valentine." So, as I said before, I'm not honoring the period and I am infusing very contemporary elements into it. It's how we as a contemporary society view the Victorian Age. For example the costumes: in an original paper valentine from the Victorian era, there was, of course, lace but there were light pink and grays; very "romantic" of the time. So when you see the costumes, there will be no black, dark blues, etc like they would've worn during the Victorian age. The costumes will reflect the valentines with pinks instead of dark reds, and grays instead of blacks. I've also asked my actors to be more internal and be more motivated in their acting and in the forming of their characters, which is not what the actors of that time would've done. Another "innovative and creative" thing that I'm doing set-wise with this production that is very contemporary is the set is suggestive. The back wall will be filled with a window here and a shutter there and vines growing over there. It's almost like a collage of things that represent an actual set without actually having a conventional set. CH: How did you prepare your young actors for this, most often, adult oriented comedy? GK: Well, I first gave them a dialect CD to work on over the summer so that they come to rehearsal with a solid Standard British accent. Then we went over period style: movement, posture, diction, etc. Even though I wanted the internal acting process to be contemporary, I still wanted the external part of these characters to be in the style. But the challenge for me, as a director, on this piece was and still is to get these actors to buy into this world that they are in. They are too focused on "being real" on stage that they don't seem to be processing the style of the acting. The fact that it's very presentational is throwing a lot of them off because it takes them out of their comfort zone. CH: How do you think audiences, especially during matinees when it's all students, are going to react to this production? GK: I honestly think they are going to love it because Oscar Wilde uses high comedy and farce in his writing anyway; mistaken identity, word play, extravagant and improbable situations, satirizing genteel society are all examples of high comedy and farcical elements. So, to appeal to all ages, I am playing up the farcical elements quite a bit. So even if the younger audiences don't understand the Victorian English, they will still understand the situation and be amused as well. I'm basically playing up the farcical elements to make it more funny for contemporary audiences. CH: Thank you very much for allowing us to take a sneak peek at your production of The Importance of Being Earnest. GK: Oh, no! It was no problem! There you have it! A look inside the Youth Performing Arts School's production of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The production runs from September 25 through October 3 at the Youth Performing Arts School, 1517 South Second Street. For more information about the show, see TheatreLouisville's Coming Attractions listing here. Posted September 7, 2009
|
|