This is WOODMONT!

Tonight felt as though we had a breakthrough. Finally, we discovered that we are full of passion and INTENSITY. The second half of our rehearsal was killer! Great job on stepping up to the plate and flexing some muscle. I was especially pleased with Ross and the Weird Sisters. You really started to open up to your characters in ways we'd never seen before. It was also great to see a vulnerable side of Banquo. Well done, folks. I can't wait to see where you take it now. Act to WIN!

Poster!

Check it out! What do you think? Designed by JT Helms.

Which Witch is Which?

Amber, Rabecca, and Malorie have been working hard on developing their characters as the Weird Sisters. Each of them will have distinctive personalities and will be associated in some way with thunder, lightning, and rain. I bought these wigs on ebay for them. Match the hair to the sister. Majority rules.

Macbeth Poster?

Here are the poster designs of the school plays I've directed. They are by 3 different designers. The Macbeth poster is being designed by my good friend JT Helms, a graphic designer based in Chicago. If you were designing it, how would it look? Based on the concepts I've shared with you and the few rehearsals we've had, what type of design would best represent this production? Think about it, and leave some thoughtful comments. (JT just might read them.)

Goodbye, hut!

Today I said goodbye to our amazing hut from The Jungle Book, built with precision by the Pittman family. Because we have no storage for such amazing set pieces at Woodmont, we donated it to our new drama friends at Southside High who will be producing A Midsummer Night's Dream. So our favorite hut will have a new life down the road. Hey, look! That little bird is still perched on top. Ha!

The Players

I just got some new pictures delivered today from last year's first Wildcat Players production of The Jungle Book. I thought I'd share some of the good closeups of some of you who will be starring in Macbeth. Some of these characters are strangely similar to the ones you'll be playing. Enjoy . . .

Shawn Simmons as Shere Khan. Shawn will be playing MACBETH.

Matt Coker as Tabaqui. Matt won the first Drama Award last year. He'll be playing MACDUFF.

John King as Akela. John will be playing BANQUO.

Malorie Cunningham as Raksha. She'll be playing a WEIRD SISTER.

Wesley Booker as Baloo. He'll be playing a MURDERER.

What is GOTHIC?

Our production of Macbeth can be described as "gothic". What does that mean to yall? What does it mean to be "gothic" or "goth"? The term has been used to describe all sorts of things for hundreds of years. I'd like to hear from members of the cast. What is GOTHIC?

Banquo's Dracuhler Eyes

This is a picture of me when I played Dracula at the Greenville Little Theatre last year. I relished playing the older, creeper version of Dracula pictured here. My first real connection with Woodmont students was when a few hundred of them came to our final dress rehearsal. That will always be one of my favorite Woodmont memories. In this picture, I'm wearing contacts that turn the irises in your eyes white. It's very frightening and can be seen easily from the audience. This is how I see Banquo's ghost in the banquet scene (except with a lot more blood). John King, a junior and one of my favorite students, is playing Banquo and will have platinum blonde hair and hopefully these "Dracuhler eyes". I know I keep talking about costumes and wigs, but I am naturally drawn to the visual with my art background. What do yall think about this? What could make Banquo even more frightening in the banquet scene?

Lady M's Hair

Hey, kiddos, I just bought this wig for Lady Macbeth on ebay.

Isn't it perfect?

And so it begins . . .

Hey! Check out this new blog! Fancy!

So we've decided to tackle Shakespeare this year with our upcoming production of MACBETH. This will be our most ambitious and challenging experience to date, but I know that we can handle it. We've got a cast of over 40 and yesterday was our first read-through. How did yall think it went? Are you as excited as I am?