We’ve had a great summer at MoCo Arts. Despite it all, we’ve been able to pull things together for several safe and wonderful weeks of summer dance classes and creative arts summer camps. Most importantly, we’ve been able to keep our students and campers connected to the arts, and to each other, whether it be at MoCo or online in the virtual studio. We’ve learned A LOT and now we’re ready for a great fall semester.
Which brings us to the burning question – What is the theatre department doing this year?? We’ll get to that, but first, a little history.
Summer 2.0
Creative Arts at Keene (C.A.K.E.) Summer Camp was held entirely online this year, and surprisingly enough it was a huge success. We had an awesome summer together. Campers made some beautiful works of art in every imaginable medium. Much of their work is showcased in the Virtual C.A.K.E. Arts Gala on our website. If you haven’t seen it, it’s totally worth checking out.
The theatre classes at Virtual C.A.K.E. were a bit different than past years, moving from the black box to a virtual stage. We produced a virtual One Act Play through Zoom. In doing so, we learned that this medium works really well for straight plays. Musicals, however, are a different story
The Musical selected for Virtual C.A.K.E. was actually designed for Zoom. It quickly became apparent however that with the delays and sound issues we experienced during rehearsals, Zoom is less than ideal for a musical theatre production. So, we did what we always do – we improvised and made it happen!
The musical became a hybrid of in-person and remote performances, filmed with actors socially distant in our black box and at home, edited together for a polished production which we streamed through our website. It was fantastic. DVDs are available if you want to check it out for yourself!
Fast forward… FALL!
MoCo will again offer both straight plays, musical theatre, and theatre workshops during the fall semester which begins on August 31st.
Straight Plays will be taught, rehearsed, and performed virtually. We already know this works REALLY well, and we’ve selected our performance titles based on how we think they’ll translate to a digital format.
Fall Musicals will be rehearsed in the black box at MoCo Arts, with all of the safety protocols in place that we have outlined in our 2020 Programs Family Handbook. We’ve gone to great lengths to ensure that we are following all applicable guidelines issued by the state of New Hampshire to protect our students, families, and staff.
The Improv Workshop will take on a new look this fall as well. We’re super excited to welcome Jonah and Levi to our teaching staff! Jonah and Levi taught the Improv class during Virtual C.A.K.E. and it was definitely the most popular class we had. That and Dungeons & Dragons… which was a surprise to all of us! Jonah and Levi will be staying on to teach the Improv Workshop this fall virtually through Zoom.
The Performance Experience
Both the straight plays and the musicals we produce this fall will be performed virtually. We will pre-record the performances and live-stream them to our audiences online. Unfortunately, we will be unable to open the doors to our black box for a live audience this semester. But as we’ve already seen, though different, the virtual performance experience is incredibly rewarding!
We are still finalizing the performance titles for our musical theatre productions and will announce them no later than August 24. It’s been a bit complicated finding the right shows this fall. Not only do we need to find shows that will work well for streaming, but we need to find shows that will allow us to stream them! Believe it or not, there are still many of them that are not issuing streaming rights. How crazy is that?
On the flip side, our fall straight plays have been confirmed!
The fall High School Play will be “It’s a Wonderful Life: Radio Show.” Directed by Bridget Beirne and Tom Frey, this holiday classic will be performed on Sunday, December 20th, with auditions happening on Wednesday, September 9th.
The fall Middle School Play will be “Brother’s Grimm Spectaculathon,” a silly hodgepodge of fairy tales presented by two narrators who have some pretty wild ideas! Directed by Laura Carbonneau, this hilarious show will be performed on Sunday, December 6th. Auditions are on Thursday, September 10th.
And last but not least, the fall Elementary Play will be “Virtually Ever After,” another venture into some of our most beloved fairy tales. Directed by Shannon Wakefield, this show will be performed on Sunday, November 15th, with auditions taking place on Monday, September 13th.
Let’s do this!
We know things are a little out of sorts these days. But don’t let that stop you from doing something amazing. Join us and be a part of this new and exciting theatre experience!
Fall classes begin on August 31st. And tuition assistance is available. You’ll find the class schedule here. Give us a call at (603) 357-2100, or drop us an email today. You know what they say, the show must go on… LINE!
