UW Whitewater Theatre/Dance Department

Now that groundplans for “Yankee Tavern,” and “The Tangled Skirt” are off the drafting table, it’s time to work on “On the Verge.” The director (Angela Iannone) came to the first production meeting with some very specific visuals, and like the other two shows, we’re doing it in the corner of the Hicklin Theatre. Here are photos of the 1/4 scale experimental model in progress:

That’s Gertrude Bell, from a 1909 photo, standing in for the actors.

It’s strange to think that it’s halfway through the Spring semester and we’ve got five shows in the pipeline.

Yesterday I got the groundplan and elevation of “Yankee Tavern” rolling:

And worked up a preliminary sketch of “On the Verge” based off the director’s early notes and doodles:

She responded well to the sketch, so today I will be working out a groundplan for it.

I pushed yesterday to get the groundplan and elevation of “The Tangled Skirt” done:

So I could start in on the groundplan and elevation of “Yankee Tavern” today.

Then, I have to get rolling on “On the Verge.”

We’re about two weeks out from tech for “A Midsummer’s Night Dream,” and things are coming together in the Hicklin Theatre. Here’s a shot from the booth showing the freshly painted stage perimeter and about half of the risers in position. This afternoon we start painting facing and begin building the slopes.

Now that preliminary designs for this summer’s “The Tangled Skirt” and “Yankee Tavern” have been approved, I’m also working on the groundplan for “The Tangled Skirt.”

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to post, as things have once again swung into high gear. Over Spring Break, Tracey Lyons and I raced to finish the book; today is the deadline and we’re tracking down a last handful of students whose permission slips for being in photos went AWOL. In the meantime, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” has gone forward. Here’s a pic of the stage this morning. Facilities management was kind enough to drop by with all the branches they’ve been trimming around campus.

We also just had meetings for “On the Verge,” which is the first show of the Fall, and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” which the second show of the Fall.

Here’s a preliminary sketch for “The Tangled Skirt:”

and one for “Yankee Tavern:”

. . . both of which are our summer shows.

Oh, did I mention we’re in the middle of a search for a new TD?

While the rest of the department is hip-deep in the dance concert, I’ve been plugging away at Midsummer’s. Today was about attaching rock facing, after having glued down farbic to represent the spirit of the carpet sections. . .

And as the model gets finalized, the drafting begins to settle. Here are the groundplan and section, ready to get scanned and distributed.

We had a production meeting today, and I got to present my partial model to Lenny (our director) via Skype. He liked what he saw.

Now that “Sweeney Todd” is open, it’s time to turn to “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Our director, Lenny, works with Titan Theatre out of New York, and sent along his thoughts. We’re doing it in the round, and he would like a sort of skatepark/wedding cake of platforms with a fringe of tree branches (there’s more of course, but. . . ). Here’s the groundplan in the drafting table:

And then a pause for platform building as I consider the sizes and placement of the platform tiers:

On my way into the building this morning, I stopped and stuffed a bag full of twigs so I could start putting together mini-branch fringey things:

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And a shot suggesting how it might all look eventually. . .

“Sweeney Todd” is open and running, and it’s time to get back to other work, like revising the book for the April 1 deadline and getting “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” moving along.

Did I mention that we’re also in the middle of reading all the departmental self-studies generated for the Audit and Review Committee?