There’s an old theater adage that despite any and all difficulties, “the show must go on.” That phrase has taken on a new twist during this pandemic – the show must go online.
Siena’s Stage III theater program was almost in technical rehearsals for Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” when the pandemic sent everyone home. Lines were memorized, costumes were fitted, and sets had been designed and installed. Now, the cast and crew are rehearsing via Zoom, and the light that through yonder window breaks is the glow from laptop screens.
Stage manager Dominic DiCaprio ’22 said the sense of family that comes from mounting a theater production is serving everyone well for now.
“We always joke during the show that we are not just cast and crew, but we are a family. I think these surprising changes are a phenomenal testament to our Romeo and Juliet family's strength and resilience, showing that no matter what happens we can power through it,” said DiCaprio. “If an actor gets sick, a prop breaks or the choreography is off, we are trained to realize and improvise, so why should social distancing change that? Through hard work and determination, coupled with the ‘show must go on’ mentality, I know we will come back together and create something beautiful and amazing, and if that isn't a testament to theater and family, I don't know what is.”
Krysta Dennis, Ph.D., producer of creative arts at Siena, said the production already had a closed performance online, and depending on how the pandemic evolves, they will try to stage it live and in person in Foy Hall’s Beaudoin Theater when restrictions are lifted. She said the irony is not lost on Siena’s cast and crew that Shakespeare’s original Globe Theatre in London often had to close because of the plague – now modern-day theaters around the world are also shut because of a pandemic.
The Siena production is set in America’s Old West, which sounds like a surprising substitute for 14th century Verona, Italy. But Dennis explained that Verona City, Nevada in the late 1800s is a likely setting for an ongoing feud between the Montagues and Capulets.
“’Romeo and Juliet’ is set in a lawless society that has parallels between both eras. Both were a time and place of vigilante justice.”
William Curley ’20 has the role of Romeo, and said contemplating a virtual production “is not the outcome we were expecting in the wildest of imaginations.” Director Dennis Schebetta, an assistant professor at Skidmore College, has been running Zoom rehearsals and one-on-ones with the actors.
“Everyone involved has been just the absolute best. We also owe a lot to the faculty who have kept us in the loop every step of the way - they have worked tirelessly to find solutions for us. We are not going to let our work be in vain. If there is one thing to come out of this, is that we have become even closer as a family, even closer than I thought possible.”
Juliet is being played by Megan Stuart ’22, who seconded Curley’s happiness with the way the Creative Arts department is handling the shutdown.
“We have worked so hard already, so it's nice to know that everyone there is just as passionate about this show as we are, and that they are doing everything they can to make sure it gets an audience. It's an odd experience going online for rehearsals, especially since we are used to creating in person, but the optimism, resilience, patience, and determination shown by everyone throughout this whole process is commendable. It will get us to this fall, ready to put on an incredible show.”
“Romeo and Juliet” isn’t the only Siena creative arts action happening in cyberspace. Tim Reno, D.M.A., associate dean of liberal arts, and Michael Lounello, theater technical manager, are arranging a virtual choral performance of more than thirty people of "I Love You/ What a Wonderful World," which was to be performed at the now-cancelled Spring Cabaret. Lecturer Edward Ticson has set up video so students can see his hands as he teaches drawing.
Creative Arts department chair Scott Nelson Foster, M.F.A., is helping to create a virtual exhibition for capstone students for the upcoming Academic Showcase.
“I'm designing the exhibition space to be compatible with unity-based VR systems, so it should be possible to attend in a VR system, as well as through a web browser.”
To help out students who have limited access to art supplies, he created a short tutorial about making “quarantine ink and pens.”
In Foy Hall in the meantime, a single “ghost light” remains burning on the set of “Romeo and Juliet,” as per theatrical tradition. Dennis said that when a stage is set for a production, a single light is kept burning both for safety purposes, and to keep the ghosts of past productions company.
“All theaters have ghosts,” said Dennis. “In this case, our light is kept on to symbolize that we will be back.”