Thank you! To all our blog readers—

It has a been a great summer here at WTF—from opening nights for the Main and Nikos Stages to Workshop shows to the Cabaret—and I hope you’ve enjoyed reading all about it on the Within The Festival blog. We will post occasionally during the off-season, but don’t worry, we’ll get back in the game regularly as soon as the Festival begins again next summer.

If you haven’t had time yet to check out all the posts for the shows this summer or read about your favorite intern or apprentice, you still can! All the posts from this summer will be up year round for your perusal.

And don’t forget to check back for season, alumni and special event announcements throughout the next year.

Thanks again for reading!

-Sarah Slight, Literary Associate

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Behind the Scenes | Technical Staff/Intern Photos

The Williamstown Theatre Festival provides some of the best opportunities for theatre artists, technicians and administrators available in American theatre today.

By providing a vital and supportive atmosphere in which to experience the many challenges of working in the professional theatre industry, WTF offers students educational and career advancement opportunities seldom available elsewhere. WTF offers programs for young actors and directors, as well as opportunities for designers, technicians and administrators.

Training programs for young theatre professionals are a vital a part of WTF's mission. Many alumni maintain close relationships with WTF, and the Festival frequently offers them the chance to return and further hone their skills throughout their careers.

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Photo Retrospective | Fellowship Program

The WTF Fellowship Program is an innovative program which challenges young theatre artists to develop original theatrical material under the aegis of the Williamstown Theatre Festival. The Boris Sagal and Bill Foeller Directing Fellows each create a play or a musical theatre piece over the course of the summer with a playwright or young musical theatre team of their choosing. Collaborating with actors from WTF’s Non-Equity Company, these practitioners walk into a room with just an idea for their project at the beginning of the summer. They then have ten days to workshop and develop their material with their cast which leads to a three-week, off-site incubation period where the creative team prepares a script with which to go into rehearsal. Once they return to WTF, the whole production has three weeks of rehearsal which culminates in four public performances. We truly believe, and have proof positive, that a new young theatre voice can be fostered in this structure; both plays and musicals created in this supportive environment have gone on to be produced at other theatres.

The Fellowship Projects are made possible through the generous support of the Bill Foeller and Boris SagalScholarships.

Please enjoy these photos from this summer's Fellowship productions!

WORKSHOP STAFF

Amanda Charlton | Artistic Associate

Reed Wilkerson | Apprentice Coordinator

Monica Hammond | Workshop Assistant

Becca Euliss | Workshop Intern

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[July 12–13 ’09] AFTER THE REVOLUTION

a new play by AMYHERZOG
directed by Bill Foeller Fellow TAMARA E. FISCH

scenic design DAVID ARSENAULT
costume design JEANETTE LEE PORTER
lighting design WILBURN BONNELL
sound design LEO A. MARTIN, IV
production stage manager MICHAEL BLOCK
production manager CONNOR “MAC ” SMITH

with LAUREN BLUMENFELD, RICH DREHER, DANIEL HARTLEY, ASHTON HEYL, LUCAS KAVNER, IRENE SOFIA LUCIO, JOEL PEREZ, GAYLE RANKIN, DOMINIC SPILLANE

[August 12–13 ’09] GOLDEN GATE

book & lyrics by CHRISTOPHER DIMOND

music by MICHAEL KOOMAN

music directed by CHRISTOPHER D. LITTLEFIELD

directed by boris sagal fellow DAN RIGAZZI

Scenic Design SARAH MUXLOW

Costume Design PAMELA WILCOX

Lighting Design ISABELLA F. BYRD

Sound Design SAMANTHA WELLER

Production Stage Manager FRANCES INES RODRIGUEZ

Production Manager CONNOR "MAC" SMITH

with LAUREN BLUMENFELD, FRANCESCA CHOY-KEE, RICH DREHER, DANIEL HARTLEY, ASHTON HEYL, LUCAS KAVNER, IRENE SOFIA LUCIO, JOEL PEREZ, GAYLE RANKIN, DOMINIC SPILLANE

[all photos] © SAM HOUGH for WTF ’09

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Photo Retrospective | Directing Assistant Projects

Within the WTF Workshop, the Directing Assistantship is the intermediate-level training program for individuals who have chosen a career in directing. Directing Assistants assist a professional director on one of the Main or Nikos Stage productions and also direct the Non-Equity Company in two projects presented to the Festival and the local communities. The 2009 Directing Assistants were Mike Donahue, Adam Knight, and Kate Pines.

The WTF Non-Equity Company is comprised of young artists drawn primarily from the top graduate acting programs in the country. Non-Equity company members supplement the Equity Company in the Main and Nikos Stage productions and take on principal roles in the Free Theatre and Fellowship productions.

In addition to the acting opportunities the Workshop projects provide, the Directing Assistant projects also offer design opportunities for Festival interns and staff from the scenic, costume, lighting, and sound departments.

Please enjoy these pics and credits from the 2009 Directing Assistant Projects!

WORKSHOP STAFF

Amanda Charlton | Artistic Associate

Reed Wilkerson | Apprentice Coordinator

Monica Hammond | Workshop Assistant

Becca Euliss | Workshop Intern

Connor "Mac" Smith | Workshop Production Manager

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[July 16 ’09] WILL YOU PLEASE SHUT UP?

by DAN O’BRIEN

directed by ADAM KNIGHT

scenic design DAVID ARSENAULT

lighting design BEKAH HERNANDEZ

sound design CHET MILLER

with RIGHTOR DOYLE, IRENE SOFIA LUCIO

[July 18 ’09] THE EGG LAYERS

by LAUREN FELDMAN

directed by MIKE DONAHUE

Scenic Design JULIE BARNHARDT

Costume Design CHRISTOPHER METZGER

Lighting Design ROB ROSS

Sound Design AMANDA HOSKING

with LAUREN BLUMENFELD, FRANCESCA CHOY-KEE, DANIEL HARTLEY [pictured], ASHTON HEYL [pictured], GAYLE RANKIN

[July 22 ’09] NICO

by MIRA GIBSON

directed by KATE PINES

Scenic Design SARAH MUXLOW

Costume Design BRIDGET GAVLIN

Lighting Design CHRISTAL BOYD

Sound Design BEN TRUPPING-BROWN

with ANDREA SYGLOWSKI [pictured], HEATHER LIND [pictured], JOHN DOHERTY

[August 1 ’09] CHOPIN'S PRELUDES

by MAT SMART

directed by ADAM KNIGHT

Scenic Design STEPHEN RICKER

Lighting Design STEVE MATURNO

Costume Design JEANETTE LEE PORTER

Sound Design COLLIN BARNUM

with LAUREN BLUMENFELD, FRANCESCA CHOY-KEE [pictured],ADAM LERMAN [pictured]

[August 4 ’09] BULLY TO YOU

by ERICA LIPEZ

directed by MIKE DONAHUE

Scenic Design JULIE BARNHARDT

Costume Design CHRISTOPHER METZGER

Lighting Design MICHAEL CECCHINI

Sound Design AMANDA HOSKING

with RIGHTOR DOYLE [pictured], RICH DREHER, HEATHER LIND [pictured], STEPHEN O’REILLY [pictured], ANDREA SYGLOWSKI [pictured]

[August 7 ’09] THE CONSEQUENCES

Book by KYLE JARROW

Music & Lyrics by NATHAN LEIGH & KYLE JARROW

Musical Direction and Orchestrations by NATHAN LEIGH

Directed by KATE PINES

Scenic Design MARIANNE WARD

Costume Design BRIDGET GAVLIN

Lighting Design MICHAEL MEGLIOLA

Sound Design BEN TRUPPIN-BROWN

with LUCAS KAVNER, GAYLE RANKIN [pictured], DOMINIC SPILLANE

All photos © SAM HOUGH for WTF’09

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