News

This week has been a jam-packed one over here in the world of East o’ West o’!  It’s wild to think that just two Thursdays ago, the cast and musicians performed five songs and two scenes after just a week of rehearsal (I have to give serious kudos to my music director, Kevin Lawkins, who came up with truly moving arrangements to the songs in just a few days!).  It was exhilarating to show work to an audience so early in the process, but Alison Pincus (our fearless directress) reminded me that it was certainly no time to rest on my laurels, and that a lot of work still had to be done before opening night on March 8th.

This past week was a long one, where the cast and Elena Faverio (librettist extraordinaire) and I sat down to do a little thing called table work to finesse out the kinks in the script.  We did a lot of talking, discussing, dreaming, postulating, line-changing, and scene-shifting, until finally, this Saturday, the script was finished.  Elena has been working so hard, making edits everyday, supporting me through song struggles, taking in input and comments and suggestions from all sides and putting down a cohesive story on the page that is now a part of all of us.  I cannot express enough how much she and the actors/singers/beautiful people that make up the cast of this show have illuminated the story and brought it to life for me.  They have shed light into the nooks and crannies where writers fear to tread (a lot of big why and how questions lie in those dark places…), they have breathed new life into the characters, and they have been unafraid to critique and question, which is everything I could have asked for. I learn new things everyday as I trust the ensemble and invest in the collaborative process.

Away from the table, the music writing process this week has been a beautiful/difficult/incredible/frustrating/fulfilling journey.  Days pass full of music, other days nothing comes.  As I sit and hum to myself and write, it’s a constant mixture of spontaneous inspiration and hard editing—the worst times are when there are pages and pages of lyrics and possible directions for a song but no structure.  Tension builds up in my neck and back so easily when I have melodies and no words… But when the parts all mesh together and a song finally crystallizes and I write it out, well, I would say that’s a good feeling but the true fulfillment comes from listening to the actors try them out for the first time… that will be happening a lot in this next week!

The most essential part of my writing ritual this time around has definitely been the space in which I write.  The first few lines of music came to me in November as I was sitting on the Eye statues (you know, the ones between the entrance to the WCMA and Fayerweather Hall), looking out at the hills.  I’ve tried writing in harshly lit, windowless, soulless rooms in the music building but to no avail.  When it comes to writing, I’m like a plant: I need water and good sunlight and earth (or, at least, a view onto an earthy spot).  Well-lit living rooms, chilly hikes and snowy rambles have continued to nourish and strengthen my creative self as I’ve been writing music about long journeys across the miles of hills and valleys, seas and dunes.

This developmental process has been a rewarding, challenging and encouraging one for me—and it’s not over yet!  In about two months, a dynamic team of cast, crew and musicians will have made a tiny seed of an idea blossom into a musical!   Don’t miss the show, March 8-10 in the Directing Studio!

Dear Cap and Ballers (as well as anyone else who may have stumbled upon this blog),

For those of you who I haven’t met, I’m Sarah; if you’ve stalked this website, you’ll know that I’m the Publicity Manager for Cap & Bells, responsible for providing you with all of our lovely posters, programs, Facebook invitations, and Tweets (we have a Twitter! We do! It’s Cap_and_Bells!)- you’re welcome.

I’m seizing this moment to start a NEW CAP & BELLS TRADITION: WEEKLY blog posts on this, our new web site! Someone from the Cap & Bells universe will post a new blog post here each week, so you can get a more flavorful taste of what Cap & Bells is like between shows. We want to be the next big bad blog sensation, so please, support us in this endeavor (you may do this by writing “I READ THE C&B BLOG. DO YOU?” in lipstick all over your person).

So to begin, I’m going to talk about what’s going on in the world of “East o’ West o’,” the ORIGINAL musical we’re currently working on developing and adapting from the Norwegian folk tale “East of the Sun, West of the Moon,” in which I play a troll. Obvi.

Though the pink decorations, the “‘amour” wafting through the air, and the fact that my Pandora station is currently set to “Love Songs Radio” might make you  think it’s Valentine’s Day season, in the muzackal land that lies East of the Sun, West of the Moon, I’m just not getting any love. This is because (and ONLY because) in the land that lies East of the Sun, West of the Moon, I play a troll. Now, I am a troll who sings some sultry songs,  and my name is Ambrozia, which is pretty fierce, but, still, trolls don’t get much love. This is because, however, in our production of “East o’ West o’,” trolls don’t understand the concept of love- it’s not something that exists in their world. And I, Sarah, as an actor involved in the production, got some say in deciding how that worked and was going to manifest itself in the show! A big part of the development process of “East o’ West o’” has involved the cast sitting down with Michelle Rodriguez ’12, who’s writing the music and lyrics, and Elena Faverio ’15, who’s writing the book, and just talking through stuff: reading edits of the script, talking about what changes we like, what’s confusing, what the rules of the world of the musical are, which lines get the best laughs, etc… It’s a really exciting process to be a part of, and undeniably satisfying to know that I’m getting to have a direct effect on the show in which I’m acting and trolling. And Elena and Michelle have been very patient in explaining to me why I am a troll, and not an enchantress or witch or something- in case anyone’s interested, it has to do with their moral code: trolls are not inherently evil beings, but they do like mischief, and if they see an opportunity to make trouble, they will take it.

So that’s what I’m thinking this Valentine’s Day Eve. I hope that it’s now what you’re thinking about.

And keep checking back here for updates and more posts about what’s happening with Cap & Bells! Welcome to our new life as a blogging theatre company!

The Cap & Bells Board is thrilled to be announcing one of our Winter Study Projects: The 10-minute Play-off. Instead of the usual one-acts, we hope to produce 6 ten-minute (or less!) plays at the end of Winter Study. We’re excited about this project because it’ll give aspiring directors and performers the chance to work with Cap & Bells in a low-stress environment.

Until December 27th the Board will be looking for proposals from interested directors. Easy and simple, find a ten-minute play you’re excited about and direct it. Email cap.and.bells1898@gmail.com for a play proposal form. Your proposal should include: the title of your ten-minute play, a brief summary, and the number of actors you’ll need. If you are a writer and have a ten-minute play you’ve written, you can propose your play–if you are willing to direct it yourself–or find an interested director to work on it with you. If you’re interested in directing, please get in touch with Noah as soon as possible, he can direct you to some great anthologies of ten-minute plays and suggest a few that would be great to work on specifically. Before we return to campus, the Board will announce the 6 selected pieces and set an audition time in the beginning of Winter Study. The plays will rehearse for the next two weeks and perform in the final week of winter study, exact date TBD.

The most important thing is that we need directors! Please get involved, take a chance and try something new, or, if you’re a returning director, hone your skills even more. The plays will be performed either in the Directing Studio or Greylock Dinning on a shoe-string budget–Recession Sessions style–and they will be awesomesauce.

In our first slot, Cap & Bells is thrilled to be commissioning a new musical, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, adapted from the folk stories, by Michelle Rodriguez ’12, that will be performed as a staged reading March 8-10. This is an exciting new step for Cap & Bells. We’re thrilled to be returning to creating original student work and look forward to the series of workshop performances that will culminate in the final performance (and recording session) led by Michelle and featuring the student musicians, actors, singers, and directors who will be developing the musical alongside her. A complete schedule for this process is forthcoming, but keep your heads up for auditions which may be happening soon! Also, this project has a number of artistic and production positions that still need to be filled, so stay tuned for more information about how you can get involved!

In our second slot, we are very excited about the Massachusetts premier of a  startlingly new comedy, Tigers Be Still by Kim Rosenstock directed by Lily Riopelle ’14 that will go up in the AMT in May. Lily is still putting together a complete design team, so stay alert if you’re looking to get involved in any capacity. Auditions will be happening sometime in the spring semester.

Thanks to everyone who was a part of our proposal and selection process. We are incredibly impressed by the amount of talent in our community and look forward to these plays and the coming seasons that will hopefully feature more new and original student work and exciting student-led productions!

Dear Cap & Bells,

Thanks to everyone who suggested 23 plays for our spring season! We had a wonderful mix of plays proposed and are excited to announce the seven potential plays for our upcoming spring season and invite directors to propose productions for the following works. We couldn’t be more excited about these projects and look forward to hearing creative, imaginative, and exciting ideas from our directors. Ultimately we will choose two productions that will join our shows this fall and the Winter Study project to complete the 2011-2012 season.

First Slot (AMT—February 23-25):

1.    Cabaret by Chris Isherwood, John Kander, and Fred Ebb
2.    God by Woody Allen
3.    Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo
4.    The Fantasticks by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones

Second Slot (CST—May 3-5):

1.    East o’ the Sun West o’ the Moon to be adapted by Michelle Rodriguez ‘12
2.    Cabaret by Chris Isherwood, John Kander, and Fred Ebb
3.    Crimes of the Heart by Beth Henley
4.    The Fantasticks by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones
5.    Tigers Be Still by Kim Rosenstock
6.    Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo

If you’re interested in directing, please email cap.and.bells.1898@gmail.com and we will send you a director’s proposal form. All director’s proposal forms are due on Thursday, November 3 by 5:00PM.

The Board will be making all of these plays available to interested directors soon. We encourage you to try to find your own copies through bookshops, or—an excellent free option—the Williams College Interlibrary loan system. If you need help finding a play or have any questions about directing or working with Cap & Bells on one of these shows, please contact Noah at noah.a.schechter@gmail.com.

Note that you are invited to propose to direct as many plays as you like, but ultimately, we’re interested in the one you are the most passionate about. Plays that appear in both slots for the spring semester are being considered for both times and you are invited to direct them in either or both—just indicate your availability to work in your proposal form.

As a general note, here’s what we are looking for in the proposal:
- A strong connection to the piece and vision of the show
- Experience with Cap & Bells, the Theatre Department, or other student theatre organizations in a variety of capacities
- An eagerness to work collaborative with other people’s artistic input
- A strong sense of production (which might include building a designer, stage manager, or just a well thought out plan of attack)

Remember to get your proposals in by November 3rd and to e-mail us with any questions you might have! We can’t wait to hear your ideas.

Love,

Cap & Bells

Hey Cap & Ballers,

We’re so excited to report that we received a stellar twenty-three submissions for potential spring shows! Below is the list of the plays and musicals proposed. If you want to know more about any or all of them (and we hope you do!), please shoot an email to cap.and.bells1898@gmail.com and we’ll send you the document with the full proposal for each show.

The submissions, in the order that we received them, are the following:

1. Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
2. Is He Dead? By Mark Twain, adapted by David Ives
3. Villagers by Colin Killick ‘12
4. Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
5. Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling
6. Lysistrata by Aristophanes
7. Tigers Be Still by  Kim Rosenstock
8. Becky Shaw by Gina Gionfriddo
9. Edges: A Song Cycle by Pasek and Paul
10. The Little Prince: A Musical, Novella by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, to be adapted into a musical, music by  Michelle J. Rodriguez ‘12
11. East o’ the Sun and West o’ the Moon: A Musical, a Norwegian folktale.  To be adapted into a musical, music by Michelle J. Rodriguez  ’12
12. Young Abe: The Musical, to-be-adapted into a musical, music by Michelle J. Rodriguez ‘12
13. Urinetown by Mark Hollmann
14. Assassins by Stephen Sondheim
15. Cabaret by Chris Isherwood
16. God by Woody Allen
17. The Mistakes Madeleine Made by Elizabeth Meriwether
18. The Fantasticks by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones
19. Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine
20. The Credeaux Canvas by Keith Bunin
21. Crimes of the Heart by Beth Henley
22. The Flight of Icarus by Raymond Queneau
23. It’s Only Life by John Bucchino

Once you’ve read over the submissions descriptions, think about which ones you’re most excited about seeing, and more importantly, being involved in. Then e-mail cap.and.bells1898@gmail.com with the ranking of your top 10 favorites and include positions in which you are interested for each play or project. Note that for the musicals we are particularly interested in musical directors and for the plays in interested directors.

Example:

1. Metamorphoses–actor, lighting designer
2. The Pillowman–director
3. Gross Indecency–audience member!
4. Tragedy: a Tragedy–director, actor

Please send us your rankings by as close to Sunday, October 16th, as you can. We won’t be able to consider any rankings sent in after Tuesday, October 18th.

Thanks so much! We’re excited!

Hey everyone,

As those of you who were around last semester remember, Cap & Bells has made some changes to how we propose plays for our season. As we mentioned last year, we’re using this proposal process so that everyone–actors, designers, technicians, and directors–has a say in the new season. We know there was some confusion last year about how this process works, and we’re hoping that with one already under our belts, this might all seem a little less goofy.

The Process:

1) Suggestions: The Board wants to hear suggestions for plays you would like to see produced in the upcoming season. We sent an email asking that you send the Board a list of plays that you would like to see in the Spring to give us an idea of what kind of work students are interested in. To submit a play just fill out the form attached to the email (also found at the end of this post- copy and paste it into an email!) and e-mail us at cap.and.bells.1898@gmail.com! The last day to submit plays you’d like to see is October 9th.
2) Preferences: Once the Board has received all of the suggested plays, we will send out a complete list to the listserv and ask you to rank your preferences for those plays. Rank your favorite (i.e., the play you’d most like to see or be involved in) and also note positions that you might be interested in for each show. Note: These are going to kept anonymous, again, we just wanna see what plays students are interested in. The last day to submit your preferences is October 16.
3) Selection: Based on your preferences and with an eye towards producing the most successful season possible based on a number of factors including the quality of the pieces, their fit for our community, student interest, and available space and resources, the Board will select plays for the next season. We will e-mail out a condensed list of plays on October 20th.
4) Director Applications: Once these plays are announced, the Board will accept applications from directors (or in the case of a musical, music directors) interested in taking on one of these projects. That Directors Proposal Form will go out with that email.
5) Review: Proposals from directors are due on November 3rd. After that, directors will meet with small groups of Board members to discuss their ideas and visions. Directors will also meet with the full Board to go over their proposed production.
6) Decision Time: The Spring Season announced! Date: November 10.

Before you stop reading, two more things. We will be announcing a Winter Study project soon so keep your ears open for that. We also wanna note that folks interested in directing in the Spring or running for the Board for next year should focus on putting in time at some of our upcoming build/light hang and focus calls. We strongly encourage people interested in future leadership roles to put in at least 8 hours of work on our current season–taking a production role would be perfect and to that end we are looking for a Board Op for The Pillowman. If you’re interested please email our PM, Mattie, at mbm1@williams.edu.

We are very excited about these changes and encouraged by the fantastic fall season! If you have any questions or concerns about how this new process will work, please ask any of the board members.

SPRING 2012 SEASON PROPOSAL FORM

2011-2012 Cap and Bells Proposal Form

Full Name:

Email Address:

PLAY 1

Title of Proposed Play/Work:

Author:

Please provide a medium-length summary of the plot and themes of the piece.  Don’t go into too much detail, but we want a good sense of what the show is about:

Why are you excited about seeing this show produced in the spring?

PLAY 2

Title of Proposed Play/Work:

Author:

Please provide a medium-length summary of the plot and themes of the piece.  Don’t go into too much detail, but we want a good sense of what the show is about:

Why are you excited about seeing this show produced in the spring?

PLAY 3

Title of Proposed Play/Work:

Author:

Please provide a medium-length summary of the plot and themes of the piece.  Don’t go into too much detail, but we want a good sense of what the show is about:

Why are you excited about seeing this show produced in the spring?

PLAY 4

Title of Proposed Play/Work:

Author:

Please provide a medium-length summary of the plot and themes of the piece.  Don’t go into too much detail, but we want a good sense of what the show is about:

Why are you excited about seeing this show produced in the spring?

The beginning of the season always flies by, so I suppose I should not be surprised that this year is no different. As we head into production I want to take a moment to thank everyone who showed up this past weekend to audition. I’m thrilled to say that we have 26 actors working in the Fall Season with over a dozen more students involved in design and production work and we’re still looking for people to get involved. The Cap & Bells production teams, actors, and directors are already hard at work with our first production, The Pillowman, just weeks away and with Frosh Revue and Metamorphoses following closely on its heels. To everyone involved in those shows, quit slacking off. There’s work to do, and as always, there’s no time. No time!

Except for pizza. There is always time for pizza. The beginning of the season is also about making new friends, learning new faces, and pretending you remember the name of the person who you just met and have been talking to for the past five minutes. I’ve always worried that Cap & Bells is one of those huge groups in which almost none of the members know one another. I got to know the people in shows that I worked on, but other than that I feel like I’ve never had time to meet the team. Since I’m not involved in a show this semester, I’m feeling this more strongly than ever and I’m more stoked than ever to meet everyone who’s interested in being part of Cap & Bells this year. In order to treat my growing anxiety, the Cap & Bells Board will be hosting a pizza party on Wednesday September 21st at 5pm in the common room of Bryant A3. Because there is always time for pizza.

-Noah

Before getting elected Artistic Director I knew very little about Cap & Bells history, and when I discovered that there was no Vulcan mind meld set to take place with the outgoing A.D.s, I decided to start doing some research. I came across an article written in the Record describing Cap & Bells history, glossed rather quickly over most of the facts—very interesting by the way—and soon got hung up on details about the group’s life during the Great Depression. The number of Williams students was at an all time low, the College’s survival and the future of the country were terribly unsure, and still Cap & Bells continued to produce shows. At the lowest point, the 1929 Cap & Bells budget was $59. I found myself imagining what it must have been like to put on a show in those times, and then I got an idea.

In honor of our current economic hotspot I wanted to propose that we slash the Fall Season budgets to those amounts. I then realized that the directors would probably dress me up as J. Edgar Hoover and burn me in effigy on the Main Stage. So I tried a new idea: “The Recession Sessions.” Here’s a question and a challenge: what kind of project will you create with $59? Respond online, in person, or in e-mail and we’ll see exactly how far $59 and the true grit of Williams theater artists can go.

We’re up and running! Welcome to the newly rebuilt Cap & Bells website. The 2011-2012 season is going to be a fantastic time for Williams Student Theater, so make sure you check back in to the website frequently to see what new events, performances, and projects are on tap. Coming up soon we’ll be having auditions for our fall slate of plays : The Pillowman, Frosh Revue, and Metamorphoses. We will also open proposals for Winter Study projects and Spring productions soon, so get thinking about what you want to see happen this Winter and Spring.

Make sure you come back here as the semester gets going for posts from other students about very exciting subjects. Potential subjects include: the C&B Technical Director’s Guide to Building a Better Beard, what Catholic relic is required to impeach a C&B Board Member, and a new Curious George story following Secretary Frank Pagliaro as a monkey with attention deficit disorder. Until then, come see us at the Purple Key Fair on Thursday September 8th at 7pm and follow us on Twitter and Facebook!