Play reading committee
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Topic: Play reading committee
Posted By: GoldCanyonLady
Subject: Play reading committee
Date Posted: 5/03/07 at 4:40pm
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How does your play reading committee work? How often do they meet and how do they conduct the meeting? Also how many are on the committee? Who picks the plays to read? And how are the season's plays (play) selected. I am just curious as to how other groups do this. Barb ------------- Barb Hofmeister, MountainBrook Village Players, Gold Canyon, Arizona. |
Replies:
Posted By: Nanette
Date Posted: 5/03/07 at 6:32pm
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Right now I am the play reading committee, but in the future I will ask for up to 5 people (3 adults and 2 children ~ we're a children's theatre) to sit on the committee. We will have our "next season" selected before the prior season ends.
All of our plays are literature based. I have asked for suggestions from my actors and try to find scripts based on books they've read and liked. I try and get 2-3 scripts for each title and find the one that best fits our abilities. Sometimes that means we have to put away a script until they've developed more as actors.
We try to do one "boy" play (something that will get more boys into our theatre), a holiday show, and then two others. One show I like to have a large cast, but the rest I'm trying to get smaller casts (about 9) with whom we might be able to develop stronger characters with my more talented actors.
Hope that helps. ------------- In a world of margarine, be butter! |
Posted By: Kathy S
Date Posted: 5/04/07 at 1:52am
| We will periodically schedule a reading of a play that somebody is interested in the group becoming familiar with. Usually it is something that one of the people really likes and thinks we could produce. We will publicize that we are having a reading and invite anybody who wants to come and read a part or just listen. Everybody brings food and its pretty much fun. The last time we did this we had a group of 60-70ish women attend. I think they thought they were just coming to listen, but we didn't have enough people show up to read parts and they were pressed into service. They really enjoyed it and laughed a lot which was how we decided that it was a good choice for us to try -- until then we were hesitant about the play because we didn't know if our typical audience member would find it funny, or find it offensive. It really served our purpose that time. |
Posted By: B-M-D
Date Posted: 5/04/07 at 12:24pm
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We have play reading committee of 5 that's elected by our membership in August. About a month or so before we solicit our membership for play submissions. We usually get 30 to 50 submissions. The play reading committee reads the plays (all have to be read by at least 3 of the 5 members), meet as necessary and cuts the list to 12 to be considered for our 4 show season. In February we have a membership meeting where 10 min scenes are presented from each script followed by 5 min of discussion after each one. The membership then votes for the for shows they'd like to see and the top 4 vote getters comprise the following season. It has to be a balanced season (can't have 4 Neil Simon comedies in one season). There are various contingency rules for ties and determining if the season is balanced but all in all it works well and is a fun and entertaining Sunday afternoon. ------------- BD 
"Dying is easy, comedy is hard." |
Posted By: GoldCanyonLady
Date Posted: 5/07/07 at 9:57am
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Thanks B-M-D. That helped. I can't believe that no one else responded to this question, but I am glad that you did. Barb ------------- Barb Hofmeister, MountainBrook Village Players, Gold Canyon, Arizona. |
Posted By: POB14
Date Posted: 5/07/07 at 2:52pm
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The theatres with which I have been associated have always kept their playreading methods a deep, dark secret, and have never let me sit on such a committee (probably because they know my tastes!), so I can't help. ------------- POB Old Bugger, Curmudgeon, and Antisocial B**tard |
Posted By: Aimee
Date Posted: 5/07/07 at 6:41pm
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Committee?? I am handed the script and told...here this is waht we are doing....now design the set.
As TD I would love to be apart of that process!
I am trying to get the director (who is the committee) to let me see the last few choices before the decision is made (cross my fingers/pray/beg/plead) what ever works! ------------- Aimee |
Posted By: dougb
Date Posted: 5/08/07 at 11:36am
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I decide our season. I usually review it with our board but the final decision is mine. Several times a year I get inquiries from other directors who want to do their favorite play - or want me to direct them in their favorite. About every two years the right combination of play, director, vision come together and I let someone do their own project. I also get a lot of requests for book-ins but if I don't know the people involved, I usually pass on it. Putting the right season together is a lot more than just picking the requisite number of plays. |
Posted By: timokay
Date Posted: 5/08/07 at 2:54pm
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As TD, I made only one request for next season. Please, please, please, no early 1900's period settings. The last five sets I have built have been turn of the century, victorian, period interiors and exteriors. If I have to do one more I will go nuts. I am begging for something medieval, or better yet, outside sets. I wanna build a forest setting, or a castle, or even something contemporary. |
Posted By: pdavis69
Date Posted: 5/16/07 at 11:38am
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Our theatre tried a new technique for our selections this year. Prior to the committe meeting, the chairman polled the entire membership and patrons for suggestions on next season. The committe was open to all playhouse members. In order to be in on the final vote each member had to attend 5 (i think) meetings and report on 5 shows. There were eight meetings held. In the first meeting we whittled the initial list of shows down to about 40 that would be do-able in our house. The final meeting was the vote meeting. We ended up with what I believe is a great season. ------------- Patrick L. Davis Fort Findlay Playhouse |
Posted By: red diva
Date Posted: 5/17/07 at 3:14pm
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I agree with pdavis69....we are members of the same theatre, as is MartyW who came up with the plan. It is a very good system, very non-confrontational, and allows show directors to be on the committee without having undue power to lobby for the shows they are interested in directing (or actors for the shows they want to be in) but still be a contributing member of the committee. And, yes, I also feel that we put together a great season! ------------- "I've worked long and hard to earn the right to be called Diva!" |
Posted By: MartyW
Date Posted: 5/23/07 at 1:35pm
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If anyone is interesting in a copy of our ground rules and the supporting documentation, I will be happy to forward... ------------- Marty W "Till next we trod the boards.." |
Posted By: avcastner
Date Posted: 5/23/07 at 11:41pm
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I am the play-reading committee. I've tried to get my kids involved, but they usually lose the script and never bother reading it. Also, the few who have read them can't see the script "fleshed-out" in their eyes and think everything is boring.
After I pick a play, I might run it by the administration if I think there is a questionable aspect that needs approval. ------------- |