Theatre Company

Skidmore Theater Company

The Skidmore Theater Company is the production arm of the Skidmore College Department of theater. All faculty members, students, and guest artists involved in the making of theater in any given semester are members of the Skidmore Theater Company.

The Theater Company also affords the opportunity for students to receive academic credit for experiential work on productions.

First year students, sophomores, and juniors may register for TH 235 for one semester hour and seniors who have already taken TH 235 may take TH 335 for two semester hours. Both courses are open to both majors and non-majors. TH 235 may be repeated for a maximum of six semester hours and TH 335 may be repeated once for a maximum of four semester hours.

Theater Company meets every Friday afternoon from 2:30pm to 3:30pm for a scheduled Company Meeting. Meetings cover many activities including:

Announcements about Department and related activities
Conceptual presentations by directors, performers and designers of upcoming productions
Critiques of all productions
Open discussions about department plans and policies
Workshops (career planning, auditions, etc.)
Guests
Readings

Each student enrolled in the course is required to work in some capacity on both the seminar production and the studio production. Seniors taking TH 335 will be expected to be doing work at an advanced level on at least one production.

Generally, Theater Company production activities include:

A Studio Production which opens in the Black Box theater about six weeks into the semester
A Thrust Stage production which opens near the end of each semester in the JKB Theater
A series of workshop productions and senior projects spread out over each semester which are usually presented in Studios A and B
A Lab production at the end of the spring semester (this is not cast through general auditions at the start of the semester. A later audition will be held or actors will be invited to join the production. The technical work associated with the lab production is performed by members of the Lab company (the actors and other artists invited to participate).

You do not have to be enrolled in either TH235 or TH335 to be a Company member.

Course Requirements

Students in TH235 and TH335 are expended to attend every company meeting.
Company members must work on both the Black Box and Thrust productions in some capacity. Work on workshops and senior projects do not fulfill this requirement.
NOTE:
- The only way a student can act as part of the requirement is to have been cast in a production through the audition process.
- Other jobs are filled based upon experience and one a first come, first served basis.
- Not all jobs are always available on every production.

Students will fill out a contract with David Yergan which clearly states what work will be done over the course of the semester. Among the many combinations by which students can fulfill their production requirement are:

Work in a Production Area (scenic constructin, lighting crew, sound, properties, costume construction, scenic art, stage management, make-up, wardrobe, etc.) or the Management Staff (box office, publicity, program, visuals, house management, etc.) throughout the semester.
Act in one production and serve on the running crew of the other one.
Act in one production and work in the management area throughout the semester.
Act in one production and serve on a production crew throughout the semester.
Act in more than one production.
Act in one production and work in stage management on the other.
Direct one production and work on the running crew of another.
Design some aspcet of one production (sets, lights, costume, sound) and work in management throughout the semester.
Serve as dramaturg on one production and work in management throughout the semester.
With the permission of the instructor, fulfill a major commitment to a single management or production area throughout the semester.
With the permission of the instructor, design your own combination of activities.
Work on the running crew of one production and work in another production area throughout the semester.

SPRING 2008 SCHEDULE

Date (Friday)	Topic(s)
January 25	Introduction to Course Announcements Presentation for KILLER JOE (Ryan Emmons and company)
February 1	CONTRACTS DUE Announcements Discussion: What is a theater company? What is the Skidmore Theater Company? What should/could the theater company be?
Ferbuary 8	Announcements Presentation OLD SAYBROOK (Trevor Martin and company) Critique/Discussion of KILLER JOE
February 15	Announcements Summer Opportunities & Internships: Guests from a number of summer theatres (generally including Adirondack Theatre Festival, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Lak George Opera Festival, Saratoga Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare & Coompany, and Berkshire Theatre Festival ). Résumés and cover letters.
February 22	Announcements Presentation for THE GOOD WOMAN OF SZETZUAN (Erin Daley and company)
February 29	Announcements Critique/Discussion of OLD SAYBROOK
March 7	Announcements Presentation for AMERICAN DREAM (Rob Hill and company) Presentation for PLAYWRIGHTS' LAB (student playwrights)
March 14	SPRING BREAK
March 21	Announcements Critique/Discussion of THE GOOD WOMAN OF SZETZUAN
March 28	Announcements Presentation for INVESTIGATION (Davey Marcus and company)
April 4	Announcements Presentation for UNDER MILKWOOD (Rob Hill and company)
April 11	Announcements Critique/Discussion of AMERICAN DREAM Presentation for LAB PRODUCTION
April 18	Announcements Critique/Discussion of PLAYWRIGHTS' LAB and INVESTIGATION
April 25	Announcements Critique/Discussion of UNDER MILKWOOD and LAB PRODUCTION

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Janet Kinghorn Bernhard Theatre
Phone: (518) 580-5430 | Fax: (518) 580-5444 | kmendenh@skidmore.edu