Advertising and Rehearsals - Less than 2 weeks left

Al here, giving the producer's update.  This week we were fortunate enough to receive support from the Stanford Graduate Student Council to help cover the costs of lighting and sound.  This was a major relief, as these tend to be costy items, both to rent and to run.  Kudos to the GSC!

With less than two weeks left before opening night, publicity is becoming an increasingly pressing concern.  Foivos, the director, suggested a poster themed after publicity images for HBO's "The Wire".  A stylized black and white saturated with yellow and marked by rubric, it made a striking image.  Taking photos at Wednesday night's rehearsal and combining them with an shot of a street fair in Kansas and a shot of the Capitol Building from Google Images created the perfect Main-Street-meets-Washington milieu.  Justin Cittee, the protagonist, stands front center, flanked by Captain America, an Envoy, two Russian "little-kittens" and Mr. Talibaloneys.  Only one Acharnian, played by C.J., made it into the picture.

With the poster designed and website now up (http://scit.stanford.edu; thanks Jason for the prime web address), we're ready to take our campaign to the streets and facebook.

Rehearsals are proceeding apace, and perhaps the most entertaining (if time-consuming) aspect has become choreography.  Nikita, a Classics undergrad and member of an award-winning dance team, has produced stunning on-the-spot choreography for our musical interludes.  Half of our cast (myself included), however, seem to have two left feet, and this is a chance for the undergraduates to really show the grads up.  Foivos and I discussed how satisfying a well-choreographed scene is.  We hope our production may open eyes and minds to the immeasurable (because unknown!) effect of dancing and singing in the original performance.

James has been a master of his many lines.  Matt has yelled himself nearly hoarse as Rumsfeld.  Eleri's Parisian is outrageous, Maxine and Alice are, well, wonderful sports.  Bianca and CJ are masters of the line-dance, and everyone's putting in a ton of time and effort as the rehearsals become increasingly demanding.

So, for the next two weeks, props will be a major concern (in Zana's capable hands), as will be organizing the hitherto-neglected technical side of the production.

See you at the production!

-Al