Ronn Toebaas on Directing Original Work for the Theatre:

A veteran remarks on the Risks, Revisions, Rehearsals, and Rewards

By Joan McGrath, ITA Professional Division Representative

"I had agreed to direct an original musical called No body's Perfect .  The script was described as a "work in process": neither the music nor the dialogue was fully formed when rehearsals started.  In fact, the playwright and lyricist were completing scenes and songs just a day ahead of our rehearsing them.  The actors didn't know where they were going; I didn't know where we were going - and it became apparent the playwright didn't know where any of it was going.  I vowed NEVER to put myself in that position again."

Worst case scenario directing an untried piece of theatre?  Ronn Toebaas laughs about it now.  But the sophisticated veteran stage director and, recently, playwright, truly embraces working with original material as an invigorating "game of discovery." 

Toebaas' 45-year career features credentials across the theatrical spectrum:  academic theatre (he taught at Chicago's St. Scholastica and Loyola University), community theatre (he was a frequent contributor to North Shore Theater) and professional theatre (artistic director of Theatre of Western Springs, guest director at Light Opera Works, co-founder of Galena's Main Street Players, among many others).  He has directed his share of traditional and audience-vetted plays, but he is especially energized by new work, his own included.

Toebaas recently responded to questions about successfully directing never-before mounted material.

Is there a difference for a director working with established vs. new scripts?

Every script is original at some point.  As a director, if I haven't seen a production of the play and have no preconceived notions, I'm basically starting from scratch.  I'm evaluating both how well written is it and how will it play.  It's possible to get into rehearsal and find a script is not as finely crafted as it appeared - or, conversely, that it offers much more opportunity than was apparent on reading.  Dark of the Moon is a case in point.  The play reads terribly, the mountain dialect is hokey, yet on stage, it's magic, the content haunting; it takes on a life of its own.

In directing a debut production, is it beneficial or distracting to work in tandem with the playwright?

It can be helpful, a wonderful collaboration...or very difficult.  Many playwrights have a set vision of how their work should be played.  But often the author of a play doesn't know what he's written, at least not the full potential of what he's written.  I recently worked with a first time playwright, Ted Williams, on his intriguing script about Welsh miners, Will o' the Wisp.  He saw the play performed without Gaelic accents and with an elaborate set.  But I felt the Welsh references begged for an authentic accent - while evocative lighting and pantomiming going down into the depths of a mine would serve the piece better than a literal set.  Midway through the rehearsal process, Ted said to me approvingly, "I like what we're doing.  But it's way different than what I thought we'd be doing."

Sometimes playwrights use rehearsals to test what they've written - then materially reinvent it.  Tennessee Williams was notorious for this.  It's great to have the option of making revisions in the script - to simplify language, rephrase dialogue to match the way people really talk, to break up lengthy sentences that overburden actors.  But wholesale changes, especially late in the rehearsal process, can jeopardize the performance.  As a director, you have to put your foot down with the playwright in order to provide a firm foundation for your actors.  You have to be in charge of the clarity of image and language.

You've done the mother of challenges: directing your own work.  Is that the most artistically fulfilling experience... or the most dangerous?

Directing your own script is mind boggling.  First because of the length of the process - living day and night with your research and your words.  Then you start all over again with the performance elements.

On the other hand, you tend to direct in your head as your write it - and that can be very illuminating.  I do find, however, that I need a couple of good assistant directors to give me objectivity and a second opinion.  I wrote Peace in Union, a rather complex piece celebrating Thomas Nast's iconic painting of General Robert E. Lee's surrender to Ulysses S. Grant that ended the Civil War.  When we mounted the show in benefit for Galena-Jo Daviess County Historical Society & Museum, I benefitted greatly from the eyes of my A.D.s to give clarity to the three interwoven storylines while seamlessly getting 42 actors on and off stage.

What helps you the most when directing a new project?

Giving myself a healthy "gestation period."  If you'd seen the play before, you would know what to embrace and what to avoid.  With new work (or work that is new to you), you need a good length of time to review choices and make decisions.  What approach makes sense?  What kind of set will work for this story?  Can creative lighting replace stage walls?  Are there other options that serve the piece?  You need a good handle.  It takes time to develop a full, workable concept.

Do you have any other thoughts to share with directors tackling original works?

I'm a big champion of producing new work.  I feel that as a director, it's important to give new voices, new writers, an opportunity to test their material on stage.  It's crucial for new playwrights, because it's only when the script gets to the stage that you know what works.  Besides, for directors, it's dangerous to depend only on tried and true scripts.  It doesn't test your mettle until you're faced with a blank canvas on which to work.  I heartily encourage the educational theatre community in particular to be the forum that incubates and raises up original material.  Playwrights, actors, audiences all are enriched when you undertake the game of discovery.

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If you have any questions for Ronn Toebaas, you're welcome to email him at toebaas@sbcglobal.net.

Ronn's next project is to write and direct the Galena History Museum's 23rd Annual Cemetery Walk.  This includes six scenes featuring costumed actors portraying historically significant individuals at their grave sites.  It is scheduled for June 11 and 12, 2016 at Greenwood Cemetery, Galena, Illinois.

DIYPD

By Annaliisa Ahlman, ITA Member

I don't know about your school these days, but I sometimes find myself wishing I had a glossary to help me comprehend emails from school staff:  Before the C&I SIP meeting in the MOCR, gather reports from your PLC, and get the RTL data from the LMNOPQ coordinator.  What?!  

OK, you caught me, I made up that last acronym.  But with so many things in the alphabet soup of our "must do" lists, it's easy to forget about or push aside the "should" and "want to do" lists.  Attend the theatre?  Observe someone else's rehearsal?  Check out live music, dance, or a gallery opening down the street?  Teach or participate in a workshop?  The activities that sometimes feel like extra special treats can suddenly turn into dreaded obligations when we're feeling overwhelmed, but they are also crucial in our success as theatre educators.  Doing something "extra" feels hard when we are already doing so much, but I challenge you to hold tight and keep some DIYPD on your "must do" list. 

DIYPD - Do It Yourself Professional Development - is a key ingredient for my own continuous growth as an artist, theatre director, teacher, and school leader.  Do It Yourself Professional Development may not always count for CPDUs or fit well into 45-minute Institute Day sessions, but I find that fostering my own network of individuals who challenge me to be a better teacher and artist is just as critical to my own and my students' continued success as collaborating in a more traditional way.  

Among my other routine DIYPD activities, I attend dance class weekly at a local studio.  Most people around me in class spend tens of hours per week at the studio, but sometimes I barely manage my 1.5 hours on the weekends. I find the warm-up physically demanding, the choreography intellectually stimulating, and surrounding myself with dancers better than I am forces me to routinely commit acts of bravery.  This class is great for my endorphins, renews my creative spirit, and reminds me of what it's like to be a student.  Sometimes it's really hard to keep this class on the "must do" list, but I do my best.

Your DIYPD could come in many forms: attending the theatre or other art events with friends, singing in a community choir, comparing notes with theatre teachers at the middle school or university level, seeking performance opportunities of your own, or just taking a class in something that exercises the creative artist within you.  When schools often have just one or two theatre teachers, DIYPD can help connect and inspire you in a myriad of ways that a traditional PLC or PD opportunity may not be able to.  We could all use a little recharge of batteries, and though committing to DIYPD takes some additional effort, the impact on your teaching, artistry, and ultimately on your students, is well worth the time and energy.  

Now I'll meet you in the MOCR in 5.

• Students will identify and develop effective instructional or artistic materials or experiences which fully document a curricular or extracurricular project that will address professional, artistic or educational growth.
• Students will document and explore current curricular or extracurricular practice with the goal of advancing programmatically, artistically, or educationally.
• Students will examine new texts, tactics, or techniques with the goal of incorporating them into the teaching curriculum or artistic practice of their extracurricular programs.
• Students will review current educational or artistic practice and reflect on its effectiveness and continued use.

• Develop a unit for a play/genre you have never taught.
• Explore an era of theatre history that is new and foreign to you and connect it to the new Core Arts Standards and future practice.
• Try Shakespeare/Moliere/Shaw, etc. and document your process and progress.
• Take a stylistic approach in production that is new to you.
• Develop a new stage/auditorium/management manual for your program.
• Document your directing process of a show you are now or will be doing.

• What play have you always wanted to do, yet have not done?
• What are you curious about as far as other people's programs and their artistic and educational process?
• Do you need to develop advocacy materials for your classes or your program?

• Write a detailed outline of your proposed project including research questions to be answered, method of organization in the reporting out of the project, resources used, timeline for completion, etc.  Submit outline in Reggienet to the instructor during the Festival or at least no later than January 22.
• Complete a written and/or pictorial documentation of the chronological process used for the project.
• Select three books that can serve as a point of departure or information for the project.  These books may already be in use in your classroom or professional life (a book on directing, Shakespeare, voice, history, stage management - whatever your focus may be for your project).  Write an annotated bibliography entry for your three books.  These will be shared with the class and be used as a professional bibliography.
• Select four other sources that you used in your research - articles, websites, interviews, observations, etc.  List and annotate these sources as well.
• Turn in a copy of the curriculum, unit, handbook, promptbook, etc., that was developed during the course of your exploration.  Please submit electronically.
• Include a written narrative/reflection of the growth and impact on your current practice resulting from the project.

ITA Member Spotlight: Carmel DeStefano

Submitted by Judy Klingner, ITA Second Vice President

What is your name? 

Carmel DeStefano.  I was named after my grandmother, whose name was Carmella, but she insisted I be called Carmel since I was American.

 

Please tell us about your education/training in theatre. 

I have a BA in Theatre, Speech, and English Ed from State University of New York College at Buffalo (Buff State). We had a very small drama department, but we were fortunate to have instructors who worked on Broadway.  Buff State was a great training ground for directing at a high school level since I delved into every aspect of production.  I then worked in summer stock at the New London Barn Players in New Hampshire where I performed and served as the costumer for nine productions. I then moved to Chicago to attend the Goodman School of Drama that had just moved to DePaul University.  I studied directing and acting for two year. I later finished my MA in theatre and speech at the University of Illinois, Chicago.

What is the best thing about your job? 

Since I am now retired, I'd have to say the memories of those moments when magic happened. With each production we were able to venture beyond and within ourselves.

 

What is the biggest challenge you face related to your work in the theatre? 

Helping students to face their fears and take the chance to discover, create, and step into new worlds.

Under the direction of you and other staff members at Reavis, your school has had a long history of success at the Illinois High School Association's Drama / Group Interpretation Tournament.  Please explain what it is and why you think it's important.  

Although we are one of the few schools in the state who double cast, we have been able to achieve quite a bit of success.  First, I was lucky to work with a very talented staff of directors who instilled a sense of discipline in our performers and technicians.  Our students truly bought into the vision of each show and their crucial role in its success.  Some of my most cherished memories are of how, as a group, we would take a narrative and bring it to life: the flying motor bike in Harry Potter, the trophies in Fault in Our Stars, or the "Communion Debacle" in Chasing Grace.  They were moments of wonder.

 

Of what theatrical accomplishment are you most proud? 

It's hard to pick out just one, there are so many, but I must admit I stood in awe at every moment as the Reavis students brought my childhood favorite, Peter Pan, to life.  You see, I never wanted to grow up, and Reavis Drama helped me stay a kid for many years.

 

Please describe your personal history with the Illinois High School Theatre Festival. 

I have attended the Festival since my first year at Reavis.  I also served on Committee in many capacities: Promotions (oh, those turquoise t-shirts), Auditions, Workshops, and as Secretary. 

 

In what ways are you currently involved with the Illinois High School Theatre Festival? 

I am honored to be the Executive Director of Festival 2016.

 

Describe the most challenging/rewarding parts of being the Executive Director for the Illinois High School Theatre Festival. 

One of my first challenges was getting over my own fears and opening the Committee up to new people and letting those new associates know that I was there to help and support them in accomplishing their objectives.  I've been fortunate to get to know and work with some very creative people, and ... they make me laugh.

 

How can members from ITA divisions other than Secondary get involved in next year's Theatre Festival? 

Present workshops or be on the Festival Committee!