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Producing Tennessee Williams' a Streetcar Named Desire, a Process

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Producing Tennessee Williams' a Streetcar Named Desire, a Process THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY SCHREYER HONORS COLLEGE SCHOOL OF THEATRE PRODUCING TENNESSEE WILLIAMS’ A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, A PROCESS FOR DIRECTING A PLAY WITH NO REFUND THEATRE J. SAMUEL HORVATH Spring, 2010 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a baccalaureate degree in Finance with honors in Theatre Reviewed and approved* by the following: Matthew Toronto Assistant Professor of Theatre Thesis Supervisor Annette McGregor Professor of Theatre Honors Adviser * Signatures are on file in the Schreyer Honors College. ABSTRACT This document chronicles the No Refund Theatre production of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire. A non-profit, student organization, No Refund Theatre produces a show nearly every weekend of the academic year. Streetcar was performed February 25th, 26th, and 27th, 2010 and met with positive feedback. This thesis is both a study of Streetcar as a play, and a guide for directing a play with No Refund. It is divided into three sections. First, there is an analysis Tennessee Williams’ play, including a performance history, textual analysis, and character analyses. Second, there is a detailed description of the process by which I created the show. And finally, the appendices include documentation and notes from all stages of the production, and are essentially my directorial promptbook for Streetcar. Most importantly, embedded in this document is a video recording of our production of Streetcar, divided into three “acts.” I hope that this document will serve as a road-map for future directors in No Refund Theatre, and provide a template for how to approach directing a show. i 9-8263-1476 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………………...i Acknowledgement…………………………………………………………………………………iii Background…………………………………………………………………………………………1 No Refund Theatre……………………………………………………….………………..2 Tennessee Williams……………………………………………………………………….4 A Streetcar Named Desire Analysis……………………………………………...…………………5 Production History……………………………………………………..………………….6 Textual Analysis…………………………………………………..………………………9 Character Analyses………………………………………………………………………22 Vision……………………………………………………………………………………………...31 Process………………………………………………………………….………………………….33 Proposal……………………………………………………….………………………….34 Auditions/Casting………………………………………………………………………..36 Budget……………………………………………………………………………………36 Set Design………………………………………………………………………………..37 Rehearsal Process………………………………………………….……………………..37 Lighting Design…………………………………………………...……………………..39 Sound Design…………………………………………………………………………….41 Promotion……………………………………………………….………………………..44 Production Stills……………………………………………….…………………………47 Retrospective………………………………………………………………………………………53 Appendices………………………………………………………………………………………..57 Appendix A: Budget……………………….………………………..………………58 Appendix B: Props and Costumes Lists……………………………………....…….61 Appendix C: Set Design……………………………..…………...…………………65 Appendix D: Rehearsal Schedule………………………………..………………….67 Appendix E: Program and Poster…………………………………………….……..69 Appendix F: Set Change Schedule………………………………………………….72 Bibliography Academic Vita ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Streetcar has been a defining moment in my theatrical career. Indeed, it was my directorial debut, but more than that, it carried with it a newfound appreciation for the art. Studying Tennessee Williams and pouring over a script as I never had before rejuvenated my love for theatre, as a spectator or participant. Of course, theatre is a labor of love, and a truly collaborative effort. This entire process, (and in fact my graduating with honors from the Pennsylvania State University) would not have been possible without the help from a network of faculty, students, friends and family. Special thanks go out to Prof. Annie McGregor, who helped me decide on a topic and direction for my thesis project, Prof. Pat Trimble, who encouraged me to take on a piece like Streetcar, and who has helped keep a place for student run theatre at Penn State, and Prof. Matt Toronto, who acted as my supervisor on this production. Matt, you helped give me a process for reading a script, planning a show, and attended rehearsals providing notes and feedback both on the show itself and my directorial technique. I owe the success of my maiden voyage in large part to following your lead. A special thanks to Johnna Scrabis, who allowed me to Assistant Direct under her, and who has made four years of theatre a pleasure and a privilege. Thanks also to the No Refund Theatre Show Selection Committee, for granting me the chance to produce this show, and giving me such an ideal time-slot. Perhaps most importantly, thank you to the cast and crew of Streetcar. Juliann, Matt, Johnna, and Jason, you guys were tremendous in approaching your roles and rehearsals professionally, and you each put a stamp of your own on the characters and made them truthful. I couldn’t be prouder. Sincere thank you also to Locutus of Borg, my love for you will never diminish or subside. And lastly, Mom and Dad, thanks for your support in my theatrical endeavors since I donned the yellow stockings of Malevolio in 6th grade. With every production I’ve done, seeing the pride in your eyes has made me strive to do more, and has been the driving force behind my endless journey into this art. iii BACKGROUND 1 No Refund Theatre No Refund Theatre is a student organization at the Pennsylvania State University. It is a club which produces between 15 and 20 plays per academic year, or nearly one every weekend that school is in session. Shows are free to attend, though donations from patrons are encouraged. Each show generally performs three times, on a Thursday, Friday and Saturday. For three performances, the average show will attract approximately 250 to 400 audience members through the weekend. The shows are performed out of the lecture hall 111 Forum, which seats 363 students. Each director is granted one to two weeks in room 111 to rehearse immediately preceding his or her show. Every show uses the same flats, lighting equipment, and major props (such as furniture pieces). It is therefore one of the main challenges of every director to differentiate his or her set from other shows that the club has produced. Speaking of Challenges… Differentiation is not the only challenge an No Refund director faces. Because the club puts all shows up for free, there are strict budgetary restrictions. The club depends mostly on funding from the University Park Allocation Committee, or UPAC, here at Penn State. UPAC scrutinizes the proposed budgets from the club closely before ever granting funds. Beyond that, a production must store its entire set and lighting rig in a storage closet in the basement of the Forum building every night. The closet is approximately 7 feet wide and 20 feet deep. With such spatial limitations, a director cannot have a large and complicated set, unless it is able to be dismantled and stacked in an orderly fashion each night. Finally, because No Refund is a student run club whose main membership comes from undergraduate, non- theatre majors, who are interested in acting, the club does not have a large tech-crew. Many students would prefer to act, and rarely volunteer to help set up and tear down each night. This problem is compounded by the limited tech equipment we have. Most students interested in the technical side of theatre do not take an interest in No Refund because our set up is so basic and does not give them much variety or experience with new equipment. Requirements for Directing In order to direct with No Refund Theatre, a student must first be an active member of the club, which means attending one general or director’s meeting that semester, and being involved in at least one production. The member must then Assistant Direct one show, and crew one show, to gain experience of how a No Refund show works. Finally, the potential director must complete a tech-training session to learn the club’s equipment. Once these tasks are completed, a director need only propose a show, and be granted a weekend. During the semester of a director’s show, he or she is required to attend all weekly director’s meetings, or face losing slush funding. General Flow of a Show Once a director has selected a cast from the No Refund auditions (a process described in more detail later), the production begins rehearsals. Usually within a week or two of casting, the director gathers with the cast to hold a table-read of the script, to acquaint all the actors with the dialogue, the plot, and each other. After the read-through, rehearsals begin in earnest with blocking rehearsals, followed by full runs of the acts or the entire show. These rehearsals, along with the table read, are generally held in the Willard Building. As mentioned above, due to No Refund’s busy schedule, a director usually only gets to spend the week of his or her show in Forum. Because Willard has large classrooms with movable desks, a No Refund play grabs a room and arranges a make-shift set for rehearsal purposes. When the week of the show finally arrives, the production moves in to Forum. Holding load-in on Sunday, the production takes the props and furniture needed from the club’s larger storage space in Atherton Hall and moves them to the closet in Forum. Sunday is usually designated as the one day for set-building as well. The cast re-paints the flats, and builds any props or set-pieces necessary for the show. 2 Often no rehearsing takes place on Sunday, except for perhaps a line-through. The rest of the week’s technical rehearsals, “hell-week” as No Refund-ers
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