SAArts' longtime goal = creating and nurturing a breeding-ground for community... in art... in each other... in ourselves.
Bloggin' = an open forum of the giving and sharing of information --- specific and random-like.
Seems right for this time... this End of an Era.
SAArts' current (and 28th) production, OUR TOWN, will be the last inside HCC's THEATRE OUTBACK ... SAArts' birthplace. A black box space that's seen thousands of auditions and rehearsals... hundreds upon hundreds of performances...
- Productions
- Open Mic's
- Play Readings
- Original Works
- Improv Shows
- Concerts & Showcases
- ... and all the magic in the in between!
No real surprise we're awash with nostalgia this spring.
We were wondering... how do we SAArts folks pay our final respsects to the OUTBACK? There are a few ideas floatin' about... we promise to keep you posted!
In the meantime -- you're invited to post here any and all of the following... all about the OUTBACK.. we'd love to hear it all:
- Favorite memory(ies) inside the OUTBACK?
- Most memorable performance/s inside the OUTBACK?
- Most memorable production/s inside the OUTBACK?
- Any thoughts, feedback on OUR TOWN... or any SAArts project?
COMING SOON:
More about OUR TOWN... SAArts Images... & CLOSING THE OUTBACK-CHAPTER...
-sgk
p.s. This blog welcomes honesty, but not ick. Thank you.
p.s. This blog welcomes honesty, but not ick. Thank you.
Welcome to our new blog! This is Sue just testing the comment section here. Do we likie?
ReplyDeletehands down my favorite memory...
ReplyDeleteanthony teaching coby how to fall down the stairs for 'ya can't take it with ya'. man, i really want to watch the backstage video right now... coby in her tu-tu. And her boob sweat kleenex. Oh Susie, thanks for the walk down memory lane... :) xox, shannon
A smattering of favorite Outback memories that spring to mind...
ReplyDeleteHearing Sue's laugh as she hides behind the risers during shows.
Ashanti dragging me out of the house to smell her heliotrope in the moonlight.
Darius looking up at the sky and telling me, "No, fine day, it'll burn through."
"My boy Joel, who knew the stars..."
Joey Amaral catching the door as it swung shut by sticking out a broom he was carrying, riding a pure and honest actor's instinct.
Coby's face, and Santina's face, and the magic glowing there during Pippin.
Hearing Padraic laugh offstage and then getting to deliver the line "See? He's just getting it now. Probably by a process of elimination," to Melissa, E, Coleman, and the audience, in that order -- complete with Groucho eyebrows.
Getting to meet Elvis.
Sarah Wiggins thinking it was cute that I'd practiced Einstein's real signature.
Attempting to waltz with Melissa's Suzanne, and getting her to do a drawing for me.
Doing the first few Flavia/Philip moments in Noises Off rehearsal, and getting it dead on funny, the first time out.
Mercutio's rock star swaggering.
Laura's "struggling."
Coleman's "I'm proud of you" smile as he ended the last game of my best YMC show.
And his furious Tybalt calling me "boy" insolently, just before our final duel.
And his "what can ya do?" shrug from Freddie as Einstein's tab is payed by the Countess.
And his warm, inviting greeting at the beginning of Our Town.
And his brokenhearted last look back, as Merrick asked why Mrs. Kendall won't be back.
And his unintentionally Alice-in-Wonderland-like cry of "the Bishop!"
Walking up and down a small set of stairs with Michael Wood, around and around and around, during Romeo and Juliet... and then finding a small set of stairs again during Picasso and repeating the process for old time's sake.
Charles Dabernow Schmendiman, and his "tall pointy cap for dunces."
And our "sheep" that got progressively louder as the shows went on.
Sue pestering me about my availability after a Basic Acting I audition where I had clearly stated I wasn't interested in being in the show, and after she left, Kasi looking back at me with a smile, saying, "she really liked you."
And waiting in the dance studio, hearing the Elephant Man music and sounds, with Adam Grabau's voice cutting through the darkness, before stepping onstage for the first time each night into the fog.
MFA
Manuel and his inebreation...poor guy. YMC in general, couldn’t ask for more laughter for a mere $5.00! Coleman and Avolio switching roles in The Elephant Man, best scene ever.
ReplyDeleteSeeing original works emerging for the first time in that small space and realizing that great things were going to come from those writers and those actors in the future…and it all started there. Definitely Padraic’s delivery of the line “probably by the process of elimination”. I never did figure out if the audience ever really got it or if they were just laughing because we were…
Not that it was really that great but it was definitely hilarious when E stepped out on stage as Picasso with all that makeup on! Wow. That was a LOT of eyeliner.
Sue's laughter could only be drowned out by Bruce's laughter though both are priceless and both were constant!
Padraic didn't deliver that line; I did. And I think the audience laughed because it was the funniest, most outrageous line in the play (and, I think, because of the Groucho eyebrows, if I do say so myself ;) )...
ReplyDeleteColeman and me as Ernie and Bert -- wow. That's an excellent comparison of our relationship, Denise.
I wish I could've seen Charlie Brown live, but what an amazing show even just on video..!
I've only seen two productions in the Outback, but I loved them both. I got to share my first production (Street Car) with my bf and her mom and it was a great afternoon. Tonight, I saw Our Town it was extraordinary. It was great send off for this cozy little space. I can't wait to see more great productions in the VPAA building.
ReplyDeletejulie j.
i remember my first outback experience seeing forum when i was still in high school. dan and coby and anthony. the well on stage. meeting coby for the first time (for some reason i'll always remember that), the of mice and men curtain call with robbie taking his shirt off every night, anthony's corn rows and the ridiculously gorgeous and meticulous set in american buffalo, "have you ever wondered where things go when they die?" (i totally forgot about the YCTIWY dance off until today), getting to destroy the set every night, rayne attempting to blow up balloons, anthony's jungle juice, rayne throwing up in the bushes behind anthony and pia's apartment, denise's brown nova freezing up in the winter, zach kates' imitation of the old jamacian man, matt's charlie brown scene with the bag over his head, teaching summer camp with bruce every summer, all of the pre-teen girls having crushes on mike coleman, denise and i realizing that we were in charge for vagina monologues and being scared out of our minds, memorizing lines with sue over pizza and beer, anthony's beautiful video at the beginning (still my favorite ever), the intricate diorama denise made for vagina monologues complete with jesse's action figures, "the grey flopping arm", being on head set with anthony and street johnn, kara & street's wedding, my kick ass dress as the bearded lady, anthony as the wolf man, mike coleman's beautiful sadness as john.... so very many memories of this incredible space and the amazingly talented people that graced it's doors. new friends, new relationships, weddings, funerals, it all happened in large part because of the outback and the events surrounding it. i've laughed the hardest i've ever laughed in my life there and met some of the best friends that will be always be present in my life. i could go on forever it seems. thank you sue, for all of your time, inspiration, hard work, dedication, and respect. and for paying homage to the memories...
ReplyDeletei need a minute to breathe. after reading that. wow. very hard not to cry.
ReplyDeletei met the outback when i was 17 years old. it was september 1997 and i decided to attend HCC and i decided to pursue theatre and singing.
HCC was soooo good to me. But, it wasn't HCC really. It was SKG. She cast me in the first show I auditioned for and the rest is history. Sue is still to this day my favorite director and I adore her for giving me such a rich life. Like Shannon, I met the people I want to know forever. I laughed and cried and learned so much. And I am eternally grateful to the blackbox theatre known as the Outback and the heart and soul that made it thrive and come to life: Sue.
There are so many faborite memories. MY GOD! I could go on for days!
Santa baby's - made up roles (Sue loves to do that)
Performing with my mother... sometimes AS my mother
Seeing Santina walk down the stairs in the Smith with her coffee - she was the essence on THEATRE
being cast as Philia in Forum - I was secretly freaking out when I calmly told Sue over the phone that I'd accept the role
"I hum alot too"
meeting and getting to know Wil, Randy (and Tara for the summer of '98)
poetry with Wil and what reading between the lines meant to the both of us - my comic soulmate
laughing at everything anthony ever did - wondering about the mystery that is anthony andbeing in complete awe of his talent
being in the original YMC (back when it was 5 of us) - bruce taught me so much
parties... all the time... parties
"playing" the guitar for denise and anthony in lisa's basement
learning how to fall
the excitement i felt when i waited behind the door during YCTIWY and knowing my mother was on the other side
"a book report on peter rabbit"
being a kid again... "happiness"
NOT getting the role in of mice and men and learning from that
dress rehearsal for PIPPIN
kidnapping Jada
the sheep during PIP
watching avolio's brilliance in the elephant man
NOT getting cast in the vagina monlogues and learning even more - ha!
the made up language that all started with randy and i eating crabs and saying "That waitress betra bring me some butra"
music under the moon
being able to be a fool in nobody in particular - sometiems the small parts can be better!
THE HUM - I can actually say I co-wrote a play... but it was way harder than it looked
playing my grandmother in The Hum
swinging on the swing!
autumn! our little bird and cleo!
cartwheels
BOYS as courtesans
a random kongo line!
fosse hands - the manson trio!
aaron broderick as musical director!
OF COURSE hearing Sue crack up behind the risers!
dance studio meetings and warm-ups
making out with Bruce during a YMC performance - "Is it ok for the 'student' to make out with the 'teacher' on stage?"
and sadly missing so many shows since Florida... blah!
I really miss sitting with Sue and friends at Sue's house and talking about the shows.
There are 5,000,000 more memories I could list here - if you want to know what they are just read all the one-liners over the years!!!
I'll list more later.
I love you all!
Coby Kay
Gotta give some love to the open mic coffee-houses. Learned things there that set the stage for the rest of my life. If not for those, I'd be a completly diffrent person now.
ReplyDeleteStumbling across this site and sifting through the entries have made for a very entertaining Friday afternoon. I'm compelled to post, as I feel I owe a lot to that little black box. Being witness to the energy and art that passed through there was a unique blessing. Memories of that magic will remain with me forever. On a personal level, I met my wife there. I heard her voice for the first time in an audition. Our first conversation was a read-through. And yes, our first kiss was scripted during a rehearsal. I agree with Coby in that I could list thousands of memories here. The process of every peice I was fortunate enough to work on was amazing. The people were beautiful and brilliant. So, as I sit back and crack a smile thinking about my lion costume...or shed a tear thinking about an amazing rehearsal where someone just nailed something and went to a place they never thought they could go...I'm thankful for this site for reminding me of those memories. And I think we all owe a lot to that little black box... With much love, Linus, Tony and Snug the Lion
ReplyDeleteAs I wipe back the tears and try to catch my breath from laughing too hard I am compelled to say hello. All of you were wonderful jewels in my life during those few years at HCC. I have to second alot of these memories as my favorites as well. From the boob sweat tissues to the falling lessons, to the backstage video there are way to many to mention and so many that come flooding back that I forgot about. I am blessed to have met all of you for I took a piece of each of you with me when I left and am a better actor thanks to everything I experienced in the black box. The best thing about the blackbox for me is when I first laid eyes on my leading man. That moment forever changed my life and on our wedding day when I recited my vows I remembered that moment and still feel that 8 years later. Those 2 years in the blackbox were a magical time that can never be repeated. I hope all of you are well and I look forward to the day when I will see you again soon. All my love Mrs. Kates!
ReplyDelete(sigh)
ReplyDeleteI need a few minutes...
Once upon a time (in 1996) there was a girl named Santina. She was proud and silly and stubborn. Santina thought that theatre was simply a place to win accolades...until one day she became a student at Howard Community College and met a director named Susan Kramer...
ReplyDeleteeverything changed when Sue introduced Santina to a girl named Abby...
Fond memories to follow