Category: Rehearsals

CYT Sings! A Virtual Concert for the Community

7/20/2020

Even though so much about the arts world is on hold or, as we say in the theater, “dark,” CYT has been shining brightly during these challenging times. We remain more committed than ever to showcasing the talents of our young artists and entertaining and educating the community. We had our hearts set on bringing “Beauty and the Beast” to life as our summer musical this year, but we had to switch to Pandemic Plan B, as have so many others. Instead we’ll be bringing you our first-ever benefit concert, CYT Sings! A Virtual Concert for the Community, live-streamed from the Clayton Center on July 30.

We’re thrilled to have partnered for this benefit with the Clayton Chamber Foundation’s Small Business Grant program, which was created to aid local companies that have suffered because of COVID-19. Half of our net proceeds will go to this new fund in a relationship that fulfills many aspects of CYT’s mission: We are able to give back to local entrepreneurs and merchants who have supported us since our founding in 2007. By engaging our student and alumni artists in the fundraising effort, they are learning about the reciprocal nature of generosity. And through the wheel-reinventing approach of preparing for the hybrid show, our singers are getting unparalleled lessons in creativity, technology and teamwork — not to mention commitment and preparedness.

CYT Director Nikki Dyke says: “The performing arts bring people together, and now more than ever, we need community. When faced with the decision to cancel our summer musical, we realized this was an opportunity to adapt and try something new. In a time when so many are struggling, Carolina Youth Theatre has a role to play and a responsibility to help our community.”

CYT's virtual choir will premiere at the livestream benefit concert on July 30.

The concert format will be like a quilt. The students rehearsed in small groups for a week in early July, while wearing masks in socially distanced arrangements. They also worked on the music at home, using recorded musical tracks and attending virtual rehearsals led by CYT’s music directors. At the end of the week, nearly 40 current CYT students and alumni submitted individual video performances of their parts. A video editor is compiling the individual voices to create a virtual choir that will premiere during the concert. In addition, the livestream will feature seven CYT alumni soloists singing live from the Clayton Center stage with an alumni serving as the host. Because of public health guidelines, there will be no live audience at the Clayton Center.

“There's nothing straightforward about this process,” Nikki explains. “It's an exercise in improvisation and adaptability, but that’s what we do in the theater. Putting this concert together has been incredibly challenging, and the odds haven’t always been in our favor, but every step of the way we’ve managed to navigate, adjust, and ultimately provide a safe performance opportunity for our students, while at the same time giving back to our community.”

In addition to the marquee benefit concert, CYT has also forged ahead this summer with creative versions of its traditional summer camps, thanks to Zoom. Our weeklong Stage Right camp for rising 7th-9th-graders was a success last month, and we’re excited about our popular Backstage Pass series for rising 3rd-6th-graders at the end of July. Instructor Stephanie Benner says she’ll miss being with the students in person but is looking forward to trying something new.

“We will be brainstorming a storyline on the first day of camp with the themes of togetherness and unity,” she said. “I will piece ideas together into a short script, and we will work on acting techniques and how to translate those to an onscreen performance the last day (held through Zoom). Students will test their creative side by curating props and costumes from things in their house!”

Space is still available. The camp will run July 27-31, 9:-10:30 a.m. or 11: a.m. -12:30 p.m.

Join us for:
CYT Sings! A Virtual Concert for the Community
Live-streamed July 30, 7 p.m.

WATCH

And help us reach (or exceed!) our $20,000 fundraising goal!

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"Our Town" Rehearsal Sketch

1/22/2020

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“Our Town” rehearsals are well underway, with the cast learning how to bring the story and their characters to life — in less than two months. Under the guidance of CYT Director Nikki Dyke, the young actors started in early January with costume measurements and a read-through of Thornton Wilder’s script, moving on to blocking and meticulously working through each of the three acts.

Blocking: The choreography of actions on stage that aid the storyline, convey the subtext of dialogue and help to focus the audience’s attention.

Origin of the term: Theater lore says that Victorian dramatists used miniature theater models with squares of wood to represent actors.

Carrying their scripts, the actors have been speaking their lines as they find their way around the Clayton Center stage and each other. Ms. Nikki frequently interrupts to give directions, telling the actors when, how and where to move, and asking them questions.

What can you read into that line? How might you feel about that?

It’s a funny line because — why?

Do you understand what I’m asking?

The cast is appreciating CYT’s professional atmosphere. “We get a lot done in a short amount of time,” said Sydney Jones (Sam Craig). She also noted that Ms. Nikki fosters a positive rehearsal experience, free of offstage drama.

The actors repeat scenes, and repeat them some more, and then repeat them again. They work to incorporate the nuances that Ms. Nikki gives them, as she demonstrates how to fill a line with inflection to convey the appropriate emotion or instructs when two characters should make eye contact for comedic effect.

Set the tone.

Ground your voice.

Find moments of pause.

All along, the actors make notes in their scripts, especially if Ms. Nikki changes a line or stage direction. Typically there is time after the first two hours of a three-hour rehearsal to run through most of or an entire act, but only after working through countless details.

The rehearsal schedule doesn’t necessarily flow in the order of the play, however. Depending on the students’ schedules, the cast may work out of sequence, running through Act 3 before circling back on Act 2. That’s okay, Sydney said, “because you end up putting it together. You learn to work with it.”

For now, the actors are wearing their everyday clothing during rehearsals, and the props are mostly imaginary, although the set for this play is typically quite spartan anyway. Much of the action in “Our Town” relies on pantomiming, so the actors are learning not only how to move in a nonexistent kitchen, for example, but also how to pretend to string green beans, throw a ball in the air and carry bottles of milk.

Pantomime: Using physical gestures and facial expressions, no words, to convey the truth or emotion of a scene.

Mac Mollins (Mr. Webb), who has appeared in three previous CYT shows, says that it’s been interesting to improvise and to try to make “imaginary objects seem real.” The benefit of working with a simple set helps draw viewers to the story and characters, he added. He’s excited to work on his character, a departure from some of his previous “grumpy old men” roles, and appreciates being able to be someone else for a while. “Every person has a story,” he said. Ms. Nikki is coaching the cast members on how to convey those stories and how to be “on” the whole time they’re on stage.

Stay engaged.

Slow down your speech so you don’t trip over your words.

I want you to know what you’re doing and where you’re going.

Sydney also said she enjoys portraying different people and exploring aspects of her personality to see other points of view. The themes of “Our Town” are augmenting that exploration, since the story “dives into the big questions of life,” she said. A real-life fringe benefit of her theater experience is that friends often seek her advice.

As a group, the cast members needed to come to a consensus on their respective viewpoints of the moon from the stage in various scenes. The audience will need to understand that it’s in the same place for each character. (Spoiler alert: It will be in the center of the back wall of the auditorium.)

Ms. Nikki has also coached the actors in how to “throw” their voices to create the sense of distance in the fixed space of the stage. All along, she gives clear and encouraging notes.

This is an exercise in patience. You’re calm and waiting — for what?

This is really hard, just so you know, but you can do it.

And, because it’s “Our Town,” actors may hear a director cheerfully say something like …

All my dead people, come on up!

“Our Town” tickets go on sale Feb. 3. Performances are Feb. 27, 28 and 29 at the Clayton Center. Go to our website, www.carolinayouththeatre.com, for more information.

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