UNews - Roger Schultz

Searing drama examines indifference to HIV crisis in early 1980s

trevor.kenney — Tue, 08 Oct 2013 20:21:15 +0000

How far does someone need to be pushed to make a change?

The Normal Heart by Larry Kramer takes on this challenging topic, and many others. A searing drama around the public and private indifference to the AIDS epidemic in New York City in the early 1980s and one man’s impassioned fight to inspire meaningful change, The Normal Heart plays on the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre stage Oct. 15-19 at 8 p.m. nightly.

From left, actors Mike Rolfe, Cameron Lomon, Jay Whitehead and Colin Dingwall perform a scene from The Normal Heart.

“Larry Kramer, an important gay activist who led the fight to bring attention to the AIDS epidemic in the gay community, wrote this play in 1985,” says Roger Schultz, director. “The work is largely an autobiographical, thinly-veiled account of that movement.”

Hailed by the Royal National Theatre as one of the 100 greatest plays of the 20th century, The Normal Heart tells the story of writer and gay activist, Ned Weeks, who forms an organization to raise awareness and take on an apathetic government and indifferent society as an unknown disease kills hundreds of gay men in New York City.

“The topics of the play are much bigger than just the HIV crisis,” adds Schultz. “It takes on the indifference and apathy in society in general. It asks, what does it take for someone on the street to be impassioned enough to stand up for a cause and make meaningful change?”

Challenging and relentless, the topics explored in The Normal Heart still resonate today.

“I’ve never worked on a piece of theatre so politically charged like this before. The Normal Heart is so full of heart and passion, and its impact is great because it is also true. Although it was a fascinating time in history, the fight still carries on today,” says Schultz.

Tickets for The Normal Heart, priced at $18 regular, $13 senior/alumni, $12 students, are available at the U of L Box Office (open Monday through Friday, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., or by calling 403-329-2616). Join the cast and crew for a talkback following the Oct. 17 performance. This performance features mature content.

Estuary features big set, big issues

trevor.kenney — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 22:05:20 +0000

An estuary is a body of water where a river's current meets and mixes with the sea. For acclaimed playwright and drama professor, Ron Chambers, his latest work, Estuary, features a troupe of colourful characters' lives that mixes, turns upside down and ultimately joins beneath the roof of a fantastic frat house. Playing Mar. 19-23 at 8 p.m. nightly on the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre stage, Estuary bends the rules of reality and captures the imaginations of its audiences.

Within the walls of an old Victorian house, a series of individual stories stretch the boundaries between reality and the dream world.

"This play is about defining reality," says Chambers. "The characters interact in a setting where there is no fixed reality, where there are questions about what is real or what is imaginary."

Set designer and U of L alumnus Roger Schultz (BFA '89) created an immense set to capture the essence of the play's themes.

"Estuary deals with a big idea, and the size of the set supports that," says Schultz.

Estuary plays Mar. 19-23 in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre.

A fully-fashioned two-story Victorian house has been constructed for the production where the complex relationships of the characters play out.

"I took my cues from the premise of the script, blending reality and dreams, containing elements that are fragmented or odd," he says.

For 20 years, Chambers has taught playwriting in the Department of Theatre and Dramatic Arts. Seven of his plays have been professionally produced across Canada, the United States and in Hong Kong. He has won the Alberta Culture Playwriting Award, the Gwen Pharis Ringwood Award (Writer's Guild of Alberta) and has been nominated for both the Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award and Betty Mitchell Award for best new play.

As both playwright and director for Estuary, Chambers has appreciated the flexibilities of bringing the script to life onstage.

"I wrote Estuary as a big play, with a big cast and a big set," explains Chambers. "Often, the plays I write must be restricted to a limited cast size and to accommodate small sets, but this play is an exception. I also wrote this for students, to allow them to be themselves and play characters that are their ages, dealing with subject matter relevant to their own lives."

Tickets for this final production of the Mainstage Theatre season are available at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Box Office (Monday through Friday, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., or by calling 403-329-2616). Individual tickets are priced at $15 regular, $10 seniors and students. Regular tickets are also available online, www.uleth.ca/tickets.

Guist earns his directing chops with Madonna Painter

trevor.kenney — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:23:26 +0000

Sean Guist, MFA Candidate at the U of L, tells us about his experience as both an undergraduate and graduate student. He is directing the mainstage play The Madonna Painter or the Birth of a Painting by Michel Marc Bouchard, which ran from Mar. 20 - 24, 2012.

"The play takes place in 1918 in rural Quebec, and I did a lot of historical research, which included a trip to Quebec, to understand the period and its religious influences," Guist says. "The play is loosely based on events that happened in Bouchard's home town when he was young, and he wrote the play many years later while living in Florence, Italy. When he returned to Canada, after the play received critical acclaim abroad, he rewrote and translated the play a couple of times. The translation by Linda Gaboriau is the version we are using."

The story begins as World War I is ending and the Spanish flu is taking hold. A young priest, having recently arrived in the small parish, commissions a wandering Italian painter to create a fresco dedicated to the Virgin Mary to ward off the oncoming plague. As he chooses his model between four local virgins – all named Mary – the Madonna painter changes the fate of the entire community.

"Our cast is small, only seven characters," Guist explains. "Every character in the play has their own journey and their own beauty to discover. In turn, each actor has to go on that journey too; to discover their own beauty."

"The audience will experience great contemporary Canadian theatre that comes to life on a stunning set designed by faculty member and alumnus Roger Schultz (BFA '89), with costumes designed by Leslie Robison-Greene. Bouchard said he wanted the audience to leave with one element from the play: an image, a character, a line or a moment. I know this play both provokes and entertains – it's very beautiful, like a great work of art," says Guist.

The Madonna Painter a challenge for small cast

trevor.kenney — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 21:58:50 +0000

Religion, sexuality, death and secrets all collide in the small parish of Lac St-Jean, Quebec when The Madonna Painter or the Birth of a Painting by Governor General Award winning playwright Michel Marc Bouchard unravels its tantalizing tale. Playing Mar. 20-24 at 8 p.m. nightly in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre, The Madonna Painter beautifully caps off a captivating Mainstage season.

"It is a collision of ecstasies, a bouquet of lies disguised as a fable," wrote Bouchard. "The Madonna Painter or The Birth of a Painting is writ in scarlet pigments, in holy wine and haemoglobin, all the shades of red that flow though us, from our sex to our souls."

Conveying the poetic essence of the script and capturing its poignant imagery is the challenge confronting MFA candidate and director, Sean Guist.

The Madonna Painter plays nightly at 8 p.m. in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Theatre.

Tickets for The Madonna Painter are available at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Box Office, Monday through Friday, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. or by calling 403-329-2616. Tickets are $15 regular, $10 for seniors and students.

This story first appeared in the March 2012 issue of the Legend. For a look at the full issue in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Prague experience resonates

trevor.kenney — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 18:05:28 +0000

The Department of Theatre and Dramatic Arts had never previously sent their technical theatre and design majors on an international travel experience. So when the department finally got that opportunity, it made it worth their students' while as they attended the largest performance design event in the world – the Prague Quadrennial (PQ).

"PQ is truly the World's Fair for the technical theatre and design profession," says Roger Schultz, the instructor who instigated and spearheaded the project. "The PQ is an international exposition that highlights and exhibits the art of theatre designers from more than 76 countries spread across five continents."

Every four years since 1967, more than 5,000 registered theatre professionals and students, along with 30,000 visitors, descend on the Czech Republic's capital city. Featuring individual country pavilions, workshops, lectures, discussions and presentations on contemporary work in all theatre design disciplines; the PQ lasts 10 activity-packed days.

Technical theatre and design majors made the most of their Prague excursion.

"Both the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ and our department recognize the value of students obtaining international experiences in their field of study," says Schultz (BFA '89). "This event provided an innovative opportunity for students to witness first-hand the national trends and the work of leading theatre design practitioners from around the world."

The PQ also has a strong student component highlighted by the student pavilions, which were almost as extensive as the main exhibition, and an event called Scenofest, which involved live design/performance and student workshops.

"Our students were excited to take part in one and two-day workshops where they explored sound, light, costume and scenic design under the guidance of a renowned international theatre design artist," says Schultz. "It was also a wonderful forum for meeting and working with their peers from around the world."

The opportunity to visit Prague, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and experience its long history and rich cultural life was an added bonus. As well as being known for such cultural heroes as Mucha, Kafka and Mozart, Prague is renowned for its architecture. With roots stretching back to 900 AD, much of the architecture in this city has survived intact. Pristine examples of Gothic, Romanesque and Renaissance, as well as famous examples of Art Nouveau and Art Deco architecture abound.

"Add to that a culture rich in music, contemporary art museums, the fascinating residue of Communism and a real live castle (with St Vitus Cathedral as the crowning jewel) overlooking the entire city, Prague is a must see destination," enthuses Schultz.

The trip to the PQ was a significant educational opportunity for the students.

"Forums of this sort, specifically focused on their area of specialization, are rare," he says. "The students who participated returned transformed and more aware of their place and connection to a larger global community. As one student put it, "It was wonderful to see that there is so much more out there . . . more than I thought I knew, more than I could have imagined."

This story first appeared in the November issue of the Legend. For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Get ready for a Moveable Feast

trevor.kenney — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 21:25:38 +0000

Pull up a chair and devour an evening of singing and dancing as Moveable Feast takes to the David Spinks Theatre stage.

Movable Feast plays Nov. 22-26 at 8 p.m. nightly, with matinees Nov. 24 at 11 a.m. and Nov. 26 at 2 p.m.

"Moveable Feast is a theatre and dance production themed around food and viewed through a child's eyes," says Lisa Doolittle, director. "As the show opens, the child is not aware of anything beyond her bowl of cereal. As she moves along food chains from local to global, farm to fork, and boardroom to banquet in a series of beautiful, funny and scary scenes, she discovers there's a lot more to food and eating than thought at first bite."

With larger than life characters, juggling, singing, and dancing, Moveable Feast is an eye-popping and thought-provoking creation. Using recent food-studies research, interviews with the community and collaborative discussion between U of L professors in various disciplines, Doolittle and the cast created a script that explores food relationships in both local and global contexts.

From the live music, performed by Dr. Deanna Oye and Faculty of Fine Arts music students, to the outrageous acts, including a jaw-dropping Malaysian Harvest Dance, Moveable Feast is an over-the-top experience for all the senses.

"Local percussionist Cam Girling is composing and performing a soundtrack full of old fashioned sound effects, using a bounty of food items, which recall the radio Foley artists of the 1930s and '40s," says Doolittle. "It's important that the audience feel a part of our party," she adds. "To better connect audiences to our stories, the staging has been designed to make them feel like guests at a huge banquet table."

The set, designed by drama major Kathryn Smith, and with costumes by Roger Schultz, drama faculty and U of L alumni (BFA '89), contribute to an intimate, interactive and exciting theatrical production.

Tickets to Moveable Feast are $15 regular, $10 for seniors/students, and available at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Box Office (Monday to Friday 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., or by calling 403-329-2616).

Prague experience resonates

trevor.kenney — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 21:47:50 +0000

Technical theatre and design majors made the most of their Prague excursion.

The trip to the PQ was a significant educational opportunity for the students.

This story first appeared in the November issue of the Legend. For a look at the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Epp directs impressive cast in The Seagull

trevor.kenney — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 18:24:34 +0000

Within a rural Russian landscape, Anton Chekhov's masterpiece, The Seagull, weaves a touching and often comic story of love, ambition and hopefulness.

Showing Feb. 15-19 (8 p.m. nightly with a Feb. 19, 2 p.m. matinee) in the David Spinks Theatre, the U of L's interpretation of the Seagull is directed by Richard Epp. Written in 1895, The Seagull set a new a standard of realism on the stage.

"By the time Anton Chekhov turned his attention to crafting The Seagull, he was established as an award-winning author of short stories, and a playwright of brief, farcical entertainments," says Epp. "It was The Seagull which assured Chekhov's place as a celebrated Russian playwright and as a most influential figure of 20th century theatre."

The Seagull exposes the complex relationships and conflicts of an eccentric collection of characters visiting a sprawling country estate. Early on, it is apparent that playwright Konstantin loves his mother Irina, but is jealous of her fame as an actress and depressed about his own lack of success. From the moment Konstantin's play is presented to family and friends, everything begins to go wrong.

"In support of The Seagull's interest in generations of writers and actors, our talented cast and crew comprises students and alumni, faculty and staff, young and old, all of whom share a great respect for the play and a love of theatre," remarks Epp.

"The artistic designers of The Seagull, Roger Schultz (set and costumes), James McDowell (lighting) and Kelly Roberts (sound), are alumni of our degree program in Theatre and Dramatic Arts. As students in 1989, all three worked on my production of Chekhov's Three Sisters. It's a pleasure to work with all of them again," Epp says.

Among the talented cast are alumna Dr. Laurin Mann, who returns to campus as Arkadina, and Drama Education associate professor Dr. John Poulsen, who plays the bumbling estate manager, Ilya Shamrayev. Also featured, in a rare performance, is English Professor Emeritus, Dr. Brian Tyson, as the retired court official, Pyotr Sorin.

For a full look at the January issue of the Legend in a flipbook format, follow this link.

UNews - Roger Schultz

Searing drama examines indifference to HIV crisis in early 1980s

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Prague experience resonates

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Get ready for a Moveable Feast

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Epp directs impressive cast in The Seagull

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