Beginnings in the Middle

Hello blogosphere!

I feel like I should introduce myself, since you’ll be hearing from me once a week for the rest of the year.  I’m Aislinn Frantz (kind of like the lion, if you say it really fast), I’m a senior, and I’m a BTA (Bachlor in Theatre Arts).  I’m concentrating in dramaturgy (I’m sure I’ll devote a blog post to trying to define that field), playwriting, and new play development.  I think that’s all you need to know for now.

Being a theatre student is different than many other fields, because there is always something new beginning.  As we finish up fall break, which more or less marks the middle of the semester, my semester is getting a breath of fresh air.  This is the time that many students begin to get bored or frustrated, but tomorrow will be one of the more exciting days of my semester: a first rehearsal.

I will be 2nd assistant stage managing the University Productions mainstage show The Beaux’ Stratagem.  The show goes up in mid-December, and tomorrow will be the first day that we all get together and read the script.  First rehearsals are always exciting for me.  It’s a little bit like the first day of school.  You’re not sure exactly what to expect.  It usually consists of some paperwork for the actors, a design presentation, and a read-through of the script, but there are no givens when it comes to first rehearsals.

Each first rehearsal is different.  Why?  Because each cast is different.  Each crew is different.  Each director is different. Each show is different. And that is why those of us who choose to spend our lives in theatre love it so much.  Each show is a new experience.  There are a few things I know about this process going in, but the rest of it I will learn as I go along.  The give and take of theatre is the best part.  The way that everyone involved works together influences how rehearsals will run.  I don’t know how many times I’ve heard the word collaboration since I’ve been at this university.  There’s a good reason for that.
I, like many of my colleagues, am a very independent person.  I hate group projects, I was never very good at team sports, and I am a writer, which means much of my work is done in solitary, in front of a computer screen.  However, I am also an incredibly social person, and there is a dependency at work there.  I depend on my friends, and I like being able to depend on other members of a production team.  I thrive on the input of other people.  Theatre is so interactive.  It isn’t like a group project where everyone has ideas to further their own means.  Everyone is working together for the same goal, and when the overall vision is executed well by everyone, the results are stunning.  Each job is done alone, but the real fun comes when everything is put together.  Theatre is a creative art.  We are creating something.  For Beaux’ Stratagem, tomorrow will be the beginning of this creation.  And I can’t wait.