Perviews and Tech

This post is from actress Lauren Culpepper. Lauren is a graduate of the UNCSA School of Drama and shows her versatility in the two Open Dream shows; in one she is Katharine Wright, intelligent and supportive sister to the famous Orville and Wilbur, in the other she is a 13-year-old whiz kid on a quest to save Mars.

Yesterday we concluded the bulk of our rehearsal process for Peril on the Red Planet. Its amazing to see the difference between Peril and Dream Machines. We really do have two wonderfully different musicals.
Last week we had two preview performances of Peril for two different schools. The kids loved it! It was so rewarding to feel their avid attention to the show and the connections they made with the play and characters. Our director, Mollye, watched the kids during both performances and said they were absolutely mesmerized to what was going on on stage. This week we'll be teching both shows at the Stevens Center. We're all very excited about finally putting both shows up together! It looks like its going to be quite an exhausting week, but certainly a rewarding one by the end of it all. Personally, I'm really looking forward to meeting these NASA / Imagine Mars folks! Sounds interesting!

Stevens Center performances, Thursday, Sept 3

Today the cast received a make-up tutorial from the amazing Michael Meyer and then prepared the set in the Stevens Center. We are in the Stevens Center all week. From Monday - Wednesday we are tech-ing Dream Machines and Peril on the Red Planet. Both of which will be performed on Thursday, September 3 at 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. respectively. The shows are free and open to the public so make plans to come and spend the evening with us!

Tomorrow we wake very early and return to the Stevens Center for a series of live remotes on the Fox 8 Morning News. Tune in to see us at 6:00, 6:15, 6:45, 7:15, 7:45 and 8:15 a.m.

The Performer and the Audience

This post is from Rose Shields. Rose is a graduate of the UNCSA School of Dance and is a third-year member of Open Dream Ensemble.

We performed Peril on the Red Planet at 2 schools last Friday, and I must say, it's so nice to be doing the show in front of such an attentive audience. There is nothing more rewarding for a performer than to have the audience engaged in the very creation that was made for them. Many people may know that it takes the actors, musicians, and dancers to bring a director/writer's story to life, but after rehearsing for days in a room with just us performers and our director, I realized that that was only half true. Once we took the show to the schools, I was reminded that the other half of the show lies in the presence of an audience, the listeners. What is a book without a reader, and what is a song without someone to hear it? The audience's thoughts and reactions help fashion each performance we do into an exciting and unique experience. It makes all the difference in world when you have not just your art and ideas but also people to share it with. That in mind, I look forward to this week's performances and the touring to come!

On the Go with OREOs

This post is from Joshua Morgan. Joshua is a recent graduate of the UNCSA School of Drama, an excellent car pusher, and enjoys oreos!

We're finishing up our final week of rehearsals and are about to go into tech for both shows for our big opening at the Stevens Center on Thursday. I don't know how I'm remembering both these shows... I'm actually sitting in the back of the van right now coming back from our second performance of the day of "Peril on the Red Planet". Both shows went really really well even though for the second show we had to lose one of our major set pieces (the movable table) as it wouldn't fit through any of the doors at the school. It took some creative planning and some improvisatory staging in the moment. The kids really loved the show and seem to be connecting with the character of Diana. They're lucky to have such a great role model in Lauren Culpepper who plays her. There's actually been a lot of in the moment action lately. Last night on the way back from Newton-Conover, our general manager's (Rebecca Nussbaum) car broke down on the road and there were 7 ODE cast members pushing it off the highway into the nearest gas station. Fun times on the road. Alright, I'm going to go stuff my face with some more oreos : )

photo: Lauren Culpepper, Brian Sutow and Joshua Morgan in a scene from Dream Machines

Dear John..... THANK YOU!

This post is from our wonderful intern, John Dillon. Today was John's last day with the ensemble -- he is moving on to Greensboro where he begins classes on Monday at UNCG. Thanks, John, for the great attitude and willingness to take on any task regardless of how small or how daunting. We would not be where we are today without all of your help since July 6. Have a wonderful year at UNCG and come visit Open Dream when you get the chance!

If i have said this once i have said it a hundred times. This internship has been so much more than i could've ever imagined. I have learned so much and done so many new things that i have never done before. Everything from using a jigsaw to cutting fabric to observing the directing styles of four different directors in such a short period of time have been incredible new experiences. it has really been fascinating to work with so many incredibly multitalented people. This past tuesday we performed our show "Dream Machines" for the Southern Legislators Conference. It was a great way for us all to see how a very large audience outside of the age range we target reacts to our performance. I feel as though it was extremely well perceived and we heard nothing but positive feedback from the audience. I would like to end this entry by saying that this is in fact my last day with the Open Dream Ensemble. it has truly been an incredible experience. I have learned so much and had some great fun at the same time. The experience i got this summer is priceless and i am sure that it will help me so much in my career, education, and every day life. I will miss each and every member of Open Dream, and i wish you all a fun filled successful season.

Southern Legislatures Conference Performance

This post is from Brian Sutow. Brian is a recent graduate of the UNCSA School of Drama and a first-year member of Open Dream Ensemble. He is pictured here in the center as Wilbur Wright. Also in the photo are Lauren Culpepper as Katharine Wright and Joshua Morgan as Orville Wright.

On Tuesday we performed Dream Machines at the the Southern Legislators Conference. All of us were a bit nervous and intimidated - how would this group of governors and legislators respond to our children's theater show at 9 PM after a long day of events?

Fortunately, the show went over incredibly well, further verifying my belief that Dream Machines isn't just good children's theater, it is really good theater. The audience was attentive and engaged throughout. At one point during a song where the Wright Brothers try to figure out where to have their flight trails, my character screams out to the audience, "Can anybody tell us where the heck we should go?" To my shock and amusement, dozens of voices in the room echoed back the correct answer. Later, at a tense momnet in the play when one brother has potentially put the other brother in danger, an outraged voice rose up from the crowd yelling, "it's all your fault."

So Dream Machines seems to be in wonderful shape and Peril on the Red Planet was received very warmly by our first test audience. All in all it looks like a very happy and successful season of Open Dream lies ahead.

Long Weekend (TWO DAYS!)

This post is from Kjerstin Lysne. Kjerstin is second-year Open Dream Ensemble member and graduated from the UNCSA School of Dance. This morning she returned to Open Dream rehearsal after enjoying her first two-consecutive-days-off since July.


It's the end of a long weekend. For ODE, this equals two days: Saturday and Sunday....all to ourselves. We've been working really hard the past two weeks to get "Peril" on its feet, so this was a well deserved break. I took advantage of it by going to visit my family. It's very convenient that my family is living just a 10 min. drive from the Wrightsville Beach these days, so every time O go home, I also go on vacation. I literally just washed the sand and shells out of my hair. Now to check tomorrow's rehearsal schedule and script changes, and then off to bed so that I will be ready to get back to work in the morning....

Musical Workout

This post is from flutist Peter Shanahan. Peter is a second-year member of Open Dream Ensemble and his skills include riding a make-believe bicycle (as seen in the photo).

We have our first long weekend of the season starting today. Long weekends for us are really just two day weekends, but they seem to go on forever. We've made amazing progress on Peril on the Red Planet, our newest show, and many of the cast members are out of town for a day or two now. When we get back, we'll be fine tuning the new show and getting ready for more preview showings.

Peril is quite the musical workout for the cast! We have hundreds of sound effects, at least half a dozen different drums, many cymbals, a violin, trumpet, guitar, and two types of flutes. I get to play a special flute, the alto flute, for a few minutes of the show. It's a larger flute with a deeper sound than normal flutes. The reedy, hollow tone of this flute is especially haunting and magical. But, if you like drums, you won't be disappointed!

We'll be back on Monday for more acting, drumming, dancing and every type of music making. For the cast and everyone else; enjoy your weekend!

Shared Culture

This post from multi-talented cast member and Peril on the Red Planet composer, James Stewart.

A shared culture...

Imagine a group of people from different nations, backgrounds, and experiences coming together to live on another planet.

What language would they speak?
How would they get along?
What would their music sound like?

In most science fiction movies, you hear everyone speaking in English and playing music which sounds like it came out of the orchestral halls and clubs of the United States. It doesn't seem to matter that the action is happening hundreds of years in the future, or long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away. It sounds like America. Why?

I imagine a community of people from all over the world, sharing their talents and culture with one another. Bringing with them a sense of where they came from, allowing that to influence the way they speak and act, to the type of music they would enjoy and create.

The music of "Peril on the Red Planet" is influenced by world music from a variety of cultures and peoples: from Japanese Folk Songs to Middle Eastern Chant, from tribal drumming to "Gilbert and Sullivan", from reggae to straight "four-on-the-floor" rock... there is a little bit of everything. Hopefully creating a sense of a future where humans being not only share space but also their identities and culture.

Ichi Ni San Chi Go!

Patrick the Fight Maker

Peril on the Red Planet is currently rehearsing.

Like all great stories it has hope, sadness, joy, laughter, and good gracious!!!! a fight scene. Not just any fight scene, but one where the four women of the cast are center stage (two as robots) while the four men of the cast provide music and sound effects.

So, just how do you stage a futuristic-Martian-robot-female fight? The answer for us has been to call in the expertise of Patrick Osteen.

Patrick is a current third-year student at the UNCSA School of Drama with some serious stage combat chops. He's been working with the Open Dream women to make the fight scene pop and sizzle. -- And, I must say it is pretty impressive to watch him and Rose in action with their back flips and round offs. Patrick would be a formidable foe, so we are glad to have his fight-making skills on our side.

Thanks for your time, energy, and expertise, Patrick!

Busy But Happy

This post is from the lovely (and busy) Rose Shields. Rose, who graduated from the UNCSA School of Dance, plays a whirling, twirling, flipping, fighting robot in Peril on the Red Planet.

Busy busy busy! We basically have already staged the entire Peril on the Red Planet show; all we have left to stage are the transitions between scenes. We have been flying through these rehearsals each day that before I know it, it's time for bed! I was just realizing how easy it is to get caught up in this work that I sometimes forget there's the outside world! I glimpsed over some newspaper articles today about events going on inside and outside our country. It made me recognize just how much focus, time, and energy has to be invested when helping to get a show off the ground (with 1 show already up and running). Yes, it does get tiring some days, but I love this work and wouldn't have it any other way. I have worked 9-5 jobs, and although they are challenging in their own right, the performing arts challenges me in a way that keeps me coming back for more; it never gets boring. Each day I learn something new that gives more color, more texture to my life which can be shared with others, and I love that.

Jumping In

This post is from Joshua Morgan. Joshua graduated from the UNCSA School of Drama and is active as an actor, vocal coach, musical director, director, and much more! He is certainly not lacking for energy!

Wow. We're already a month in!! We just finished up rehearsals with Matt and Isaac and started rehearsals for Peril on the Red Planet yesterday. It was a bit of a shake up because we've been working on Dream Machines so consistently that to jump from one to another sort
of threw me off. It's probably because we spent a good deal of time yesterday banging on drums in a circle for a very long time. It was fun but loud. Very loud. It also could have been because I tried my first Bikram yoga class on Monday night and felt like I was walking jello (oxymoron?) yesterday. Bikram's hard! I don't think I've ever
sweat so much before in my life. Going back tonight, folks. What we do to trim down our love handles amazes me. Anyway... I spoke with Matt and Isaac briefly yesterday and sent them a lot of love from the cast.

I've been missing NY recently but I think it more has to do with the fact that I was already in Winston-Salem for four years and that it was a bit of a shock to my system to come back and get my Faculty/Staff OneCard!!

With that said, Open Dream has assembled a pretty special cast and the eight of us are really having a fantastic time. All we do is laugh all day. It's going to be a fantastic season.

Invigorated

The following post is from the Lauren Culpepper. Lauren is a versatile actress who holds her college degree in Acting from UNCSA. This is Lauren's first season with Open Dream Ensemble.

Last Thursday, we had our first performance of "Dream Machines" at Benton Heights Elementary School. It was a total blast! Up until that point, we had put up a couple runs for adults and a small group of children, but nothing compares to performing for an auditorium full of kids! The energy we got from the audience of children was incredibly exciting and invigorating. Everyone at the school was so appreciative and kind to us as a group and we were so honored to be able to come.
We've now completed our rehearsal period with directors Matt Cowart and Isaac Klein and will be moving on to "Peril on the Red Planet" rehearsal tomorrow. We met today for a costume/set parade and it all looks pretty awesome. Mars, here we come!!!

Taking Flight

This post is from actor Brian Sutow.

Our rehearsals for "Dream Machines," have officially concluded.
It's been a wonderful month with our directors for this show, Matt Cowart and Isaac Klein, and I feel like the show is definitely ready to fly on its own (excuse the pun). Now that our directors are leaving us, I can't help but recall the ideas we talked about before the show had even started rehearsing. I remember writing Matt and Isaac excitedly after having read through the script for the first time. I was excited because I knew that if the actors were going to
do this show justice there were a couple of big challenges ahead. My biggest question was this: was it possible to bring depth, honesty, and specificity to this script while also providing the sense of magic, whimsy and clarity that is necessary in children's theater?
Well, I couldn't be prouder of our cast or more grateful to our
directors. The answer to that question is a resounding "YES!" I'm excited to see how the show will continue to grow as we continue to perform it, but already it has far exceeded my expectations. After performing at Benton Heights, and for many test audiences, I feel incredibly proud of what we have accomplished, and look forward to
sharing this beautiful story with many audiences to come.

Thank you to everyone who came to our previews and gave ODE the feedback that has helped to make this show what is. Now, it's time to move on...To Mars! "Peril on the Red Planet," rehearsals start Monday.