5 Ways to Purge the MACBETH Curse With EMU Theatre

If you're a theatre person you know what the one word is that you should never, ever, EVER say in a theater. And if you're not a theatre person and stumbled upon this blog post because you are an English Literature student, or a practicing witch looking for new curses to try - the name you should never say in a theater is Macbeth! 

Our first show of the season is William Shakespeare's MACBETH, so going into the show we did a little investigating amongst #EMUTheatre to find out how one might get rid of the dreaded curse...just in case.

Naturally we first went to the stage manager of MACBETH, Becca Bedell.

Then we decided it might be wise to ask someone with a lot of Shakespeare chops, so we stopped by Terry Heck Seibert's office.

After getting some great prank ideas to use on the MACBETH cast from Terry, she suggested we talk to the man directing the Scottish play, Lee Stille!

Not having found a specific cure for the curse yet - Terry said we should ask the person who knows all the things, our Supervising Stage Manager, Brittney Gillespie! 

After talking to Brittney we realized we forgot to talk to the person in charge of everything, the person with all the answers, the person who made twizzlers a necessity in Quirk, PAM CARDELL!  

There you have it, Give My Regards To Broadway the Pam Cardell-endorsed fix to the curse of Macbeth! But don't let the curse scare you away come see the savage, Shakespearean tragedy of MACBETH running Oct. 21 - Oct. 30 at Eastern Michigan University.

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Welcome to EMU Theatre Molly Price!

  Meet one of our newest EMU Theatre students
Molly Price!

    Molly Price is  a recent graduate of Whitmer High School in Toledo, Ohio and she'll be attending EMU this fall! She'll be majoring in Communications and double minoring in Musical Theatre and Theatre Arts! When asked what she was most looking forward to when it comes to starting college she said, "I am looking forward to making new friends and expanding my education! "

   Molly visited EMU her freshman year of high school and it seems like the rest was history, "I love the atmosphere, the campus, the people, and of course the beautiful building that is Quirk!" She's also already gotten her feet wet in EMU Theatre by attending one of our scholarship auditions, "I loved meeting the other future EMU theatre students as well as the amazing professors!"

   "The thing I like most about theatre is the feeling you get when you perform," Molly's love for performing is inspired by being in front of an audience. She said, "I love being able to take people away from the real world for a couple hours and showing them a new reality. In the words of Lady Gaga- 'I live for the applause, applause, applause.' The feeling you get when you're performing is like none other. And it's the best adrenaline rush you can experience."

Her favorite show is The Rocky Horror Picture Show, "I mean, cmon. Tim Curry in high heels. What more can I say?" Nice choice Molly, we have to agree with you on those heels! Her favorite show that she's done was Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella where she played the title role. "It was seriously the best experience of my life and that show proved to me that dreams really do come true. I can't wait to see what dreams come true for me at EMU and in my future career in theatre!" We can't wait to see what EMU has in store for you either Molly! Have a wonderful rest of your summer!

Welcome to EMU Theatre Rebekah Preiss!

      Meet one of our newest EMU Theatre students
Rebekah Preiss!

    Rebekah Preiss is a recent graduate of Lutheran High School Westland and she'll be attending EMU this fall! She stopped by our office for some summer advising, so naturally we decided to interview her to get to know her a little better. 

   Rebekah will be majoring in Theatre Arts with a musical theatre minor. She decided to come to EMU because, "A lot of my friends were going here and I had also done solo and ensemble for MSVMA (Michigan School Vocal Music Association) here. I went to Drama Day last year and saw Little Shop of Horrors and got to chat with the cast afterward. I really like it here and I got a good vibe from everyone here-not too big and not too small, and the campus is beautiful!" The dance workshop led by our Musical Theatre professor Phil Simmons was her favorite workshop at Drama Day, "Usually I get nervous around groups that I don’t know very well, but I felt so comfortable there.

   She decided to pursue theatre in college because, "I enjoyed doing it in high school. At first I wanted to be a vet, but then I decided against it. I’m really good at this singing and acting thing so I said ‘let’s do it!' I just really enjoy doing this." Rebekah hasn't always been interested in theatre though, "I used to be shy so I hated theatre. I was afraid of making mistakes, but doing theatre made me realize that when you make a mistake it’s okay." Rebekah's favorite show is The Music Man. Her favorite show that she's been a part of is Footloose, which she is rehearsing right now with the Players Guild of Dearborn.  

  When asked what she is most looking forward to in college she said, “Lots of new faces, new people, independence and being responsible. Getting to walk around campus and seeing different people and trying new things every day.” We can't wait to see you in the fall Rebekah! 

 

   

A Lesson for all Generations: "The Piano Lesson"

As Boy Willie pushes forward with his plans, family alliances are challenged and passionate voices are raised loud enough to wake the dead. 

 

 The Piano Lesson , winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, takes audiences back in time to 1930s Pittsburgh. Boy Willie has come up from Mississippi with a truck full of watermelons and a head full of plans. He unexpectedly charges into the home of his Uncle Doaker, sister Berniece and niece Maretha, demanding attention and a drink. Boy Willie attempts to persuade his sister to sell the family piano in order to purchase land back home, where their family were once slaves. Berniece is forced to take a stand to protect the antique piano that depicts the family’s struggle out of slavery through its ornate carvings. 

Meet the cast of The Piano Lesson! Watch this video to get an insider's look at what goes on during rehearsals, the chemistry between cast members and what the show means to them. 

Click here to learn more about the playwright, August Wilson! This blog post takes you through the famous Pittsburgh Cycle, some of his biggest influences as a playwright and some of the direct inspirations for his play
The Piano Lesson!

Written by August Wilson and directed by Lee Stille, The Piano Lesson is a haunting poetic drama that will be performed in the Sponberg Theatre on February 10, 11, 12, 13 at 7pm, and February 13 & 14 at 2pm. Recommended for ages 13+

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August Wilson's Recipe for Success

“Well, actually, I didn’t start out with a grand idea. I wrote a play called Jitney! set in ’77 and a play called Fullerton Street that I set in ’41. Then I wrote Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, which I set in ’27, and it was after I did that I said, ‘I’ve written three plays in three different decades, so why don’t I just continue to do that?’”

 Eastern Michigan University Theatre is gearing up for its next Mainstage production, "The Piano Lesson" by August Wilson. For those of you who don't know, August Wilson is an American playwright most famous for his Pittsburgh Cycle. Wilson was born on April 27, 1945 under the name Frederick August Kittel Jr. in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His Pittsburgh Cycle is a series of ten plays, nine of which are set in Pittsburgh, that chronicle the African American experience throughout each decade of the 20th century. It seems only fitting that he would write a series of plays that majorly focus on life in the city that he grew up in. "The Piano Lesson" fits into the cycle by depicting the African American experience during the 1930s. 

Wilson claimed to have been heavily influenced by the 'four B's.' These 'four B's' included: the blues, Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, playwright Amiri Baraka and artist Romare Bearden. In a 1999 interview with The Paris Review Wilson discussed their influence on his work by saying, "From Borges, those wonderful gaucho stories from which I learned that you can be specific as to a time and place and culture and still have the work resonate with the universal themes of love, honor, duty, betrayal, etc. From Amiri Baraka, I learned that all art is political, although I don’t write political plays. From Romare Bearden I learned that the fullness and richness of everyday life can be rendered without compromise or sentimentality." The image to the right is a collage by Romare Bearden entitled The Piano Lesson and it helped inspire Wilson's play of the same name. 

"The Piano Lesson" was written in 1986. It premiered at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre in 1987 and appeared on Broadway in 1990 at the Walter Kerr Theatre. In 1990 the play was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play and won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. August Wilson has been noted not for writing to a particular audience, but instead writing about the Black experience in America “And contained within that experience, because it is a human experience,” he said, “are all universalities.”

See August Wilson's "The Piano Lesson" come to life at Eastern Michigan University! You can see this powerful show Feb. 10-13 at 7pm and Feb. 13 & 14 at 2pm. 

 

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#MonstersAreComing

"I wish I had a monster that would eat all my peas, then I wouldn't have to. I wish a monster would come and eat this house." –Evan, Scene I

Written by Jonathan Graham
Directed by Patricia Zimmer

 

 Tired of being forced to eat the peas he hates, Evan wishes for a monster to come and eat his family, especially his younger sister Sue who LOVES peas. Eight-year old Evan soon discovers that sometimes even the most wild and unlikely of wishes come true. Evan and Sue join forces to keep Pea, their newly arrived monster, hidden from their technology-addicted parents. Monsters are awfully hard to hide, though, and Mommy & Daddy soon discover the big green, pancake stealing, addition to their household. Will Pea eat up Mommy & Daddy now that he's been discovered? Will he be sent back to Monster World? Is he meant to stay and be a part of the family?

 

 Join us for The Boy Who Loved Monsters and the Girl Who Loved Peas opening THIS FRIDAY, to find out what happens in this hilarious and heartfelt comedy for the whole family.

In partnership with the EMU Autism Collaborative Center, we will offer "Lights Up, Sound Down" performances with accommodations for families with special needs on Sunday, May 31 & June 7 at 2pm. 

Performances Are:

May 29 & 30 and June 5 & 6 at 7p.m.

Lights Up, Sound Down performances: May 31 & June 7 at 7p.m. 

 

 Meet Jake Dailey and Colleen Cartwright!!! They are playing Evan and Pea in the show!Watch this video to find out more about the show! #MonstersAreComing

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