A group of Mitchell High students are getting real-world experience behind the scenes at Richey Suncoast Theater.
By MICHELE MILLER
Published September 3, 2003
NEW PORT RICHEY - Before the grease paint comes the acrylics and all the hard work that goes with setting the scene.
That's what some art and drama students, along with a couple of alumni from Mitchell High School, are finding out as they take on the task of set design for Richey Suncoast Theater's upcoming presentation of The King and I.
Last week students of art teacher Kathleen Sotiaux and drama teacher Beth Arzillo were working on a backdrop of a harbor view of Siam that should be painted in a way that will have the audience sensing a breeze cascading across the shoreline.
There are high expectations and a deadline for the set design crew - a crew withfaces that change daily, depending on who can get a ride to the theater.
The show opens Sept. 11, but the harbor scene backdrop and the painting of a palace scene on the brick back wall must be completed a few days before that, in time for dress rehearsal.
The kids have been donating their time, coming before and after school and on the weekends, said Sotiaux.
It means giving daily instruction on things like brush work, shading and depth perception. That's okay with Sotiaux.
"About a dozen kids show up when they can," she said, while giving drama student RachaelWaters instruction on how to paint a moving sea using a pea green hue. "It shows a real dedication."
This is a great volunteer program for the kids - a way to get them connected with the community and rack up volunteer hours essential in the search for scholarships. And because the curriculum doesn't offer a set design class, it's an opportunity to expose young hopefuls to the art of working on a larger scale.
"It shows how you can make magic by making sets," Sotiaux said. "It gives them the aspect of what goes on behind the scenes."
Mitchell art students have been involved with set design before for their own drama department; for last year's production of Godspell, and before that Guys and Dolls, Sotiaux said. "But this is the first time they have had to climb up on scaffolding. It really gets high up there."
That means stepping back from their work - an 18 by 30-foot canvas - occasionally to the end of the aisle to get the audience's perspective.
"The water needs to look like it's moving," said Sotiaux as she sends them to the back of the auditorium once again.
Students also have to learn to work as a team and feel comfortable with expanding on someone else's work.
Art student Brianna Dougherty has painted a few murals of her own, but this is the first time she has shared the task with others. "If you're doing something of your own it's okay if you mess up, but you don't want to mess up something someone else started." she said.
Still, there is something to be said for watching a work in progress.
Rachel Cusumano, a recent Mitchell High graduate who now attends St. Petersburg College, has volunteered her services nearly every day. She was there from the start, when the backdrop was just a blank canvas.
"It was pretty daunting in the beginning, but we got the sky and mountains done in the first day," she said. "It's amazing to see how much has been done."
While students are garnering good experience and volunteer hours, Richey Suncoast Theater benefits as well.
"It's the last couple of weeks before the show, so it's a little crazy," said Marie Skelton, a volunteer who does "a little bit of everything," including designing the sets. While the kids were working on the harbor backdrop, Skelton was busy working on the king's bed, which she fashioned from a wooden door.
"I always have help - people who can paint something. But not a lot can do the detail work," Skelton said. "This is the first time in a long time I've been able to sit back and let someone else run with it."
Note: Students who volunteered their time are: Megan Brylow,Rachel Waters, Beth Phillips, Chelynn Bell, Teri Esguerra, ReseStewart, Brittany Holl, CaylaHanousek, Victoria Cooper, Krystal Moulton, Charisma Anderson, Brianna Dougherty, Sesstea Martin and Gen Wetherell.
Honorary supervisors (alumnae): Rachel Cusumano and Ashley Cameron.
