You Know It's Community Theatre When... — Page 8

One of the productions I worked on had a massive set with a whole upstairs (Rumors). The techies brought a playstation and built this whole little playstation world onstage but under the set. They proceeded to call it Narnia and hang there for hours. You obviously couldn't see it, and it wasn't distracting so it wasn't a big deal at all. It was funny though.

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3 words: Waiting For Guffman

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- you're excited when you have wigs

- "stage make-up" means something different to every actor/actress

- *or* there is designated "boy make-up" that is the standard for male actors, anything else is excess & sexuality will be questioned.

- it's someone's first show (or first show since high school)

- the show was not selected according to what's appropriate to do with the given talent, and it's very evident.

- the ensemble consists of people who didn't get the lead they wanted, and are now trying to get in with the director.

- there are less than five dancers, and everyone's in awe of them.

You choose the show based on which kids are seniors this year.

... the female love interest is overweight, and her being overweight has nothing to do with the plot.

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"... the female love interest is overweight, and her being overweight has nothing to do with the plot."

If she's good, why can't she be overweight? What's wrong with that?

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...your dad makes the lighting effects for the Miss Electra in "Gypsy" because he works for a battery company (Exide/Raovac)

...the ratio of people in the audience to the people on stage is 6 to 1, in favor of the actors!

...you are cast as one of the black children in Showboat and have to use burnt cork as 'Black Face'

...a cast member shows up drunk for the matinee and you have to replace him for the evening show...no notice, no rehearsal, your lines written all over the stage and you have to duck out of a scene early, run around and throw on a tux to come back in the same scene as a different character

...the 10 or so Aggies in "Best Little Whorehouse..." consist of 4 guys, two in their 40's and two in their teens or 20 at most and they put the two out of shape 40 year olds in jocks to prance about awkwardly.

...you are understudying Magaldi in "Evita" and he's suddenly fired, but they haven't had the time to recast you in the chorus, so you have to layer your clothes to be a slaucho dance then run behind a door and pop out as Magaldi, so you have to do Buenos Aires number feeling like the Michelin Tire Man!

Singingbackup, please tell me that blackface one isn't real. Where in the world is that kind of crap still accepted?

Wow.. i must be really lucky with my community theatre? These all sound so horrible.

if you're interested go to www.gaylafoxphoto.com and click on Grand Rapids Civic Theatre for production photos, you'll be surprised i hope

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Amen gypsie, community theatre is the reason why i made it through high school as well. Its a wonderful experience, and soo much fun. I wouldnt be where I am now if it wasnt for community theatre.

... Joseph spins and all the rhinestones go flying off his dreamcoat into the audience.

... the same darned lighting plot is used for every show.

... you are saddled with actresses in A Chorus Line who won't drop the F-bomb or say Jesus Christ

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Hahahaha! Yep! I was one of two narrators in Joseph. It was so dumb.

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Actually, I think a production of Joseph with a 3-person "girl group" of Narrators would work really well.

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