RIT students to get a sneak peek of theater and dance productions
Five upcoming RIT productions seeking students will be discussed
Bailee Strang
Students in the production of “Everybody,” one of last year’s joint theatrical productions using both spoken English and American Sign Language at RIT.
Calling all potential cast members, stage managers, designers, dancers, costumers, theater technicians, and more: RIT’s first “Full Season Audition Debut” is set for 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Aug. 30 in Ingle Auditorium.
That’s where five major productions for this fall and spring semesters will be discussed for anyone who is interested in being onstage or working behind the scenes. Key people for each production will be introduced, and audition dates for each production will be announced.
The productions are from RIT’s School of Performing Arts and RIT’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf. In most productions, a combination of spoken English and American Sign Language will be used simultaneously on stage, often by dual characters.
Production and audition announcements by several RIT student clubs are also planned during the debut.
“This is a way for students to meet the directors and learn about the shows,” said Andy Head, assistant professor with the College of Liberal Arts and NTID’s Department of Performing Arts. “We also hope this will help break the ice for the students that may be nervous or hesitant to join a production.”
No experience is required. A meet-and-greet is planned at the end of the session so students can ask questions or chat with other students or those involved in the productions. Interpreters will be provided.
The five productions are:
- Thy Name is Woman: An adaptation of Hamlet, set in a modern context, focusing on the character of Ophelia.
- AstroDance II: Across the Universe: A multimedia, experiential dance production exploring basic concepts of astrophysics — gravitational waves and the interactions between objects in space — through a series of vignettes performed in dance, ASL and music.
- Ada and the Engine: Jane Austen meets Steve Jobs in this poignant pre-tech romance heralding the computer age. It’s a music-laced story of love, friendship, and the edgiest dreams of the future.
- Immersive Theatre Project: A group of the most brilliant minds in the world create “The Machine.” Audiences will be invited to follow, engage with, and help create this machine as they learn more about the quirky, eccentrically brilliant minds of this generation. The production will be free-roam, allowing the audience to interact with any performer, or to tour the space and find various clues that lead to world-building.
- Deaf Creators Play Festival: The fourth Deaf Creators Play Festival will feature four one-act plays by diverse deaf, hard-of-hearing, and deaf/blind creators. Other festival activities will include panels and workshops. Interested play creators can submit plays for consideration on the NTID Department of Performing Arts webpage.