鈥淚 spend 30 seconds looking around and taking it all in,鈥� says Jackson, a senior theatre major with a track in design and technology. 鈥淚t鈥檚 probably like a young baseball player going onto the field at Yankee Stadium for the first time. You鈥檙e in awe.鈥�

After a brief time on the stage, Jackson goes behind it. A year鈥檚 worth of work has built up to this: more than 40 shows over the course of 10 days. Jackson is one of 1,700 participants from 麻豆原创 involved in bringing CTA to this point. Many of them will not be taking bows in front of an audience. They are stage managers, company managers, props crew, show crew, light technicians, audio technicians, set designers, costume designers, hair stylists, makeup stylists, and every kind of backstage operative who makes it possible to pull open the curtains for professional-level performances on these world-class stages.

鈥淭his is unique,鈥� says Bert Scott, theater professor and director of production. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know of any other university with a program where students work backstage in a setting like Dr. Phillips Center. It鈥檚 invaluable.鈥�

麻豆原创 has a special arrangement with Dr. Phillips Center that started when the center opened its doors 10 years ago, where students are allowed to work alongside union workers during the festival. None of the backstage work is scripted. It is as real and raw as it is in the world of theater.

鈥淎nywhere else, you would have to choose between working a job in theater or earning a degree,鈥� says Claudia Lynch, associate professor of stage management. 鈥淔or 麻豆原创 students, this is their curriculum. The experience at 麻豆原创 Celebrate the Arts and the classwork go together.鈥�

B Antonetty transferred to 麻豆原创 three years ago after making two discoveries. One, there are a multitude of careers in stage management. And two, 麻豆原创 is the only public university in Florida that offers a theatre Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) with a track in stage management.

鈥淭his is why I came to 麻豆原创,鈥� Antonetty says from a backstage area at Dr. Phillips Center. 鈥淪o much of working backstage is knowing the language and being able to collaborate with people in every facet of theater. We cover as much as possible on campus, and then we come here and have our hands on everything. We work with union workers and find actual solutions as actual problems come up.鈥�

To be clear, 麻豆原创 Celebrates the Arts is not a 10-day theater lesson. The work on the 2024 event started more than a year ago. Dozens of Scott鈥檚 design and technology students have been creating scenery, costumes, and set pieces for nine months. For every week the onstage cast rehearses, the backstage crew puts in two weeks.

鈥淭he barber chair in Sweeney Todd is one example,鈥� Scott says.

The audiences at the four performances of Sweeney Todd will see the centerpiece barber chair transform into a chute, over and over, with actors sliding out of sight. What they won鈥檛 see are the 182 hours Jackson spent researching, designing, constructing, testing, re-constructing, and re-researching how to build the chair to ensure it鈥檚 safe and durable enough to withstand a week of shows.

鈥淲e learn a lot of multidisciplinary skills in the program,鈥� Jackson says. 鈥淚鈥檝e learned electronics, welding, construction and how to research. In this field you have to constantly come up with new ideas, and research is the best way to add to my toolbox and be marketable.鈥�

Networking is another powerful tool for anyone pursuing a career in theater. Lynch energizes 麻豆原创鈥檚 network, having spent 20 years working in New York City.

鈥淥ur faculty connections are strong,鈥� she says, 鈥渂ut we also have an advisory board of working professionals and an influential alumni base in places where these students want to be someday.鈥�

Lauren Koval 鈥�21 is one of those graduates. Koval worked at 麻豆原创 Celebrates the Arts during all four years as a student in stage management. A few months after the final CTA performance of 2021, Koval moved to New York to work backstage on a musical. It became a steppingstone into jobs with HBO Max, a Broadway firm, Showtime, and Netflix. Along the way, Koval invited other 麻豆原创 students and alumni into the growing network.

For these 10 days, however, Koval has chosen to leave New York and come back to work as a production supervisor for CTA, unfazed by the 14-hour days.

鈥淣othing could stop me from contributing to this amazing experience,鈥� Koval says. Koval has worked in iconic Broadway theaters and yet is still in awe of the venues at Dr. Phillips Center.

鈥淭hese spaces are unlike any I鈥檝e seen during my time in New York. And then you add the notion of being hired back by the same people at 麻豆原创 who shaped me and my career, it鈥檚 hard to imagine anything more special than this.鈥�

Students like Jackson and Antonetty are on the verge of starting their own backstage careers. The experience at CTA makes the transition less daunting.

鈥淲orking backstage at CTA makes me feel like I鈥檓 in a dream of where I want to be,鈥� Antonetty says. 鈥淭hese are high-stakes productions, and I鈥檓 working with mentors, classmates, and professionals who have my back to make sure I can鈥檛 fail.鈥�

There will be a lot of emotion when Jackson steps behind the stages of CTA for the final time as a student. Anxiety about the future will not be one of them.

鈥淚鈥檓 excited,鈥� Jackson says. 鈥淭hese shows create the perfect space between being a college student and starting a career. I know I鈥檓 ready.鈥�

Lynch listens to all of the conversations and appears very much at ease for someone with so many plates spinning at the moment.

鈥淭his event is a massive undertaking,鈥� Lynch says. 鈥淏ut every year when we walk in the door of this incredible Dr. Phillips Center, our faculty members look at the stages and we look at the faces of our students. And we say, 鈥榊eah, this is why we do this.鈥欌��

Motion Capture + Acting

Theatre Assistant Professor David Reed, who specializes in stage combat and movement, is 鈥渞outinely looking for projects that will challenge and inspire鈥� his acting students. He reached out to Cheryl Briggs and Rich Grula, animation faculty members from 麻豆原创’s Florida , with his idea: to give his acting students the chance to be involved with motion capture technology, simultaneously providing student animators mocap footage for their projects.

鈥淭he hope is for students to walk away from the process with animation footage samples showcasing their ability, as well as new connections that bridge industries,鈥� says Reed.

Grula and Briggs were on board, and the collaboration was born.

Acting professors Be Boyd and John Shafer joined Reed to take their students to the 麻豆原创 Downtown campus for mocap workshops. Theatre students were given a behind-the-scenes lecture by Briggs before select students developed a performance for mocap. By听wearing听a specially-designed suit that captures the imprint of the performer, the acting students gain storytelling experience they wouldn鈥檛 have had inside the Theatre building.

Briggs, an animation professor, wanted to better prepare her students for the intricacies of the modern animation process. One of her senior character animation classes attended an acting workshop with Boyd where they learned more about the art and intention behind motion. Student Crissy Peters was thrilled to take part.

鈥淭his collaboration is really important for us. It helps to know more about acting and human motion so that we can make our animation more realistic and believable,鈥� Peters says.

Another student, Kenna Hornibrook, agreed.

鈥淭he best way to understand how the body moves and works is to experience it firsthand. It鈥檚 exciting to do things like professionals and see the results.鈥�

To Briggs, collaboration is always a good thing.

鈥淭here are a lot of possibilities. The key is finding a mutual benefit for everyone involved,鈥� Briggs says.

Her students now have mocap footage from actors that can be put in a 鈥渓ibrary of motion鈥� to be used in future projects.

Acting + Film

Boyd saw the opportunity for another collaboration for her Camera Acting and Auditioning classes.

鈥淚 had been looking for practical on-camera experiences beyond our classroom for our acting students.鈥�

She contacted Tim Brown, radio/TV program coordinator at the , and he joined in her enthusiasm.

Students in the acting classes worked with several film and media classes like Narrative Production, Videography and Cinematography lead by faculty members Tim Ritter, Stephanie Rice and听Kevin Smith to develop scripts specifically for student actors. This gave acting students the opportunity to connect with budding directors and script writers, becoming the first readers and performers for exciting scripts in development by film and media students.

Acting student Robbie Toussaint felt he gained several skills from working with film students: from the chance to play a myriad of characters, to working with directors of different styles, to learning how to dub over poor audio. To him, the collaboration better prepared both classes for their future careers: 鈥淲hen we get in the real world, we have a head start on everyone else.鈥�

Rice believes her R/TV students have grown immensely from the crossover. 鈥淚t has been great for the R/TV students to work with professional actors. Their student projects look better than ever because of the theatre involvement.鈥�

Moving Toward the Future

These two collaborations have had profound success, and the hope and potential for similar collaborations in the future is high. The experiences add to the students鈥� resumes and portfolios, providing an edge in competitive fields and building relationships across disciplines that could open doors in the future.

鈥淭his experience was a good test, and I think we should continue to define and shape a collaborative environment between our programs,鈥� says videography faculty Smith. 鈥淚n the professional world, collaboration is the key to success. Much of what we do is rarely an individual endeavor.鈥�

In upcoming semesters, Boyd hopes to develop a specific class in mocap for acting students so both acting and animation students alike have consistent access to collaborative opportunities for their projects.

鈥淭his is a very exciting first step in a relationship that I am sure will continue to grow.听Our acting students have gained听more practical performance experience in听film,听media and animation through these collaborations,鈥� says Boyd. 鈥淭he听film听and听media students will gain a better understanding of听coaching actors through the acting process while on set, as well as utilizing their听performance听skills to enhance their projects. This will听lead to more engaging characters in their film and media projects and ultimately better final products for their portfolios.听It鈥檚 been a wonderful relationship that has benefitted everyone involved in the experience.鈥�

With presentations of ballet, tap, jazz, modern, contemporary, pointe and hip-hop, the program will be a celebration of new dance works created by students, faculty and alumni.

Musical theater senior Ashby Carlos, one of the student choreographers whose routine was chosen for the event, said his dance is about the conflict between Adam and Eve set to a mixture of ballet, African contemporary and Bollywood.

鈥淧ersonally, this has given me an opportunity to do something I鈥檝e never done before. Judi Siegfried [麻豆原创 dance coordinator] has given me permission to expand my horizons,鈥澨鼵arlos said. 鈥淚 never thought I鈥檇 be doing this in front of so many people. It is really significant to me.

鈥淲e all need to express ourselves 鈥� because what else do we have to live for?鈥�

Earl D. Weaver, Theatre 麻豆原创 artistic director, said this year鈥檚 concert is significant.

鈥淚t is the 10th anniversary of our annual spring dance concert, which has presented more than 1,000 dancers and 150 new choreographed works by students, faculty, and alumni over the past 10 years,鈥� he said. 听鈥淗aving the opportunity to showcase the dance works created in our department has been a tremendous boost to the number of students auditioning for our dance minor program.鈥�

More than 70 performers in the concert were selected through an audition process.听

The participants are primarily in the dance minor and Theatre Department major programs, but there are some other students from around the university and alumni who tried out and were cast for the anniversary performance, too, Weaver said.

The competition among choreographers was rigorous this year.

鈥淭here were more pieces auditioned than could be included in the concert,鈥� Weaver said. 鈥淛udi [Siegfried] and I had a very tough time selecting the best student pieces for the concert.鈥�

Each student choreographed an original piece that was performed at their class final, and from there, eight pieces were chosen to appear in the concert. The other 11 pieces were created by faculty members, alumni, and students who have choreographed for听previous concerts.鈥�

鈥淭his year we are inviting our dance minor alumni to come back and听perform in the concert, and we鈥檙e thrilled to welcome old and new faces to the Dr. Phillips Center,鈥� Siegfried said

The student-choreographed works were required to have a story line for the class finals. Some听of the听themes are a mother caring for a child with a later role reversal, a community coming together after a natural disaster, and a discovery of companionship.

Some of the other 鈥渇eel good鈥� presentations will include high-energy tap pieces, romantic ballet and a tribute to Frank Sinatra.

The dance concert is one of the many events that will be presented in this second annual 麻豆原创 Celebrates the Arts which is all free and open to the public.

More than 1,000 university students, 100 faculty members and some collaborative programs with outside partners will showcase theatre, dance, orchestra, choirs, big band, chamber music, cabaret, concert bands, opera, visual arts, studio art, gaming, animation, photography and film.

This is part of a series of stories about the April 8-16 events at 麻豆原创 Celebrates the Arts 2016. All events are free, but tickets are required for performances and entrance into the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, 445 S. Magnolia Ave., Orlando. Ticketing and full schedule details will be posted at in mid-February.

Wood, a 20-year-old theatre studies major, is more at home on stage than anywhere. And after commencement, he鈥檒l move straight into a busy professional life in theater.

鈥淚鈥檓 coming straight out of college and going into a professional theater as a choreographer, which is fantastic,鈥� Wood said. 鈥淢y full-time job for the past 15 or 16 years has been school. As excited as I am to move on to the next step, I had that moment of realization that I鈥檓 changing gears and moving on to the next part of life. It is bittersweet 鈥� I have loved it here.鈥�

For Wood, it was clear that his path to professional theater included 麻豆原创. At a statewide thespian competition, he talked with college theater program representatives. He fell in love with 麻豆原创 and didn鈥檛 apply to any other university.

But 麻豆原创 needed a little convincing. Wood said he was told his SAT scores made him a poor candidate for admittance. So he reapplied until he was admitted.

鈥淲hen somebody tells me I can鈥檛 do something, I take that as a personal challenge,鈥� he said.

He excelled at 麻豆原创 and is expected to graduate magna cum laude. Along the way, he has been involved with five Theatre 麻豆原创 productions: The Music Man, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Arcadia, Nine and, most recently, as assistant director and choreographer of Hair.

Outside 麻豆原创, he鈥檚 performed with professional theater groups and in community theater, on board a Norwegian cruise ship, done some voiceover work and appeared on the television show Burn Notice.

Wood has been hired by Starstruck Academy and Theatre in Stuart, where he鈥檒l be resident choreographer for the professional theatre group. He鈥檒l also serve as the interim director of dance in the children鈥檚 academy, teaching students jazz and ballet.

At the same time, Wood produces, directs and sometimes stars in his own shows. He has a Gershwin revue opening New Year鈥檚 Day at the Barn Theatre in Stuart.

At 麻豆原创, Wood minored in event management through the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, and wrote an Honors in the Major thesis through the Burnett Honors College. He has plenty of drive and perseverance, but credits 麻豆原创 and his professor and mentor, Theatre 麻豆原创 artistic director Earl Weaver, with helping him grow.

鈥淥ne thing I like about 麻豆原创鈥檚 theatre program is the impactful relationships you can create, the mentorships you can develop between professors and students,鈥� Wood said. 鈥淎s large as 麻豆原创 is, the community is so tight and the support is so strong, 60,000 turns into 60.鈥�

鈥淭he celebration was designed to showcase the work of the 麻豆原创 and its partners 鈥� and, boy, did it,鈥� Orlando Sentinel arts writer Matt Palm said听in his review of the April 9-15 event. 鈥淐an’t wait for next year’s celebration.鈥�

More than 13,600 free, advance-ticket reservations were made to see the various performances, said Jeff Moore, director of the 麻豆原创 School of Performing Arts and artistic director of the festival, adding that the event exceeded his expectations. Ten of the events were 鈥渟old out.鈥�

The festival featured more than 1,000 麻豆原创 students and faculty members showcasing studio art, music, theatre, dance, gaming, animation, photography and film at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. All the presentations were put on by听the School of Performing Arts and the School of Visual Arts & Design, both in the College of Arts & Humanities. Some of the events included community arts partners and K-12 students.

鈥淲hen you do something the first time, it feels like you need time to ramp up. But this seemed to hit right out of the box,鈥� Moore said.

This was the first time all the university鈥檚 artistic presentations could be experienced in one place.

听鈥淭here was so much vibrancy,鈥� said Heather Gibson, marketing director for the 麻豆原创 Theatre Department. 鈥淲e in the arts have never felt this much hum going on.鈥�

She said the biggest audiences of the festival attended Icarus at the Edge of Time and Shakespeare Swings!, both of which had people waiting in line to grab any of the seats left open by no-shows in the 2,500-capacity theatre.

Icarus was a multimedia performance by the 麻豆原创 Symphony Orchestra based on a children鈥檚 book by Columbia University physicist Brian Greene and narrated by actress Kate Mulgrew from the Star Trek: Voyager TV series. Shakespeare Swings! featured 麻豆原创鈥檚 Flying Horse Big Band and the Orlando Shakespeare Theater Cabaret Singers.

Moore said he attended every event at the festival and noticed that instead of seeing the same people at each performance, there were different audiences.

鈥淚t was meeting everybody on their own turf,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his was a celebration of the arts, but the arts reach into so many other disciplines. When you walked into the center lobby you were immediately immersed in the arts 鈥� and science, mathematics, literature and computers coming together with art.鈥�

Moore advised marking calendars now for next year鈥檚 festival when 麻豆原创 has the arts center reserved April 4-17, 2016. Next year鈥檚 festival will run during two weekends and the days between, he said.

He hopes to involve more K-12 students through workshops and performance showcases next year, and create more collaborative partnerships with community arts groups.

鈥淭hose were so enjoyable for students and everyone who came,鈥� Moore said.

Perry answered some questions this week between wrestling shows:

How did you become involved with WWE productions?

I started working with WWE in 2001 as a freelance programmer but have been unable to work for this long of a consistent period before this summer. I have a long background with concert and television lighting, and production designer Jason Robinson and I both have a background of theatre training. We had a conversation in Nashville back in 2000 and hit it off, and I have been one of his phone calls to check my availability whenever his standard crew needs a fill-in.

What is your schedule like?

A 12-camera shoot for a live audience of 10,000 requires a large infrastructure. It takes 17 semi-trailers and nine crew buses plus 40 to 60 local stagehands to put together our daily show. The destinations change each week. Last week it was Chicago, Indianapolis and Cincinnati. This week Minneapolis and Green Bay. Next week is Cleveland and Columbus. The week after, I will be in Orlando, Miami and Tampa.

Typically, we fly out on Sunday, start our load-in at 6:45 a.m. Monday and finish the load-in about 1 p.m. We get a lunch break and then focus all of our lights, which takes us right to rehearsal time at 3 p.m.听We do camera lighting听checks and rehearse any of the wrestlers鈥� new entrances from 3 p.m. until we let the public in at 6:30. At 7:30 we start our pre-show that goes to the WWE network, and also have a few non-televised matches. We then go live on USA network from 8 to 11:05 p.m.

After we go off the air, we tape another match or two for the WWE network to air during the week as needed, and we also may do a match or two just for the live audience in the arena. We then start the load-out, which takes three to four hours, pile in our buses and travel to the next city to repeat the cycle for Tuesday. We then are dropped off at the airport and fly home. It鈥檚 a long pair of 20-hour days, and usually on Wednesday I just recover.

How difficult is it to pull this off?

It is an extreme drain and the people I work with are professionals of the highest standards. It is not something most lighting professionals want to take on, let alone repeat the same cycle 52 weeks of the year. WWE does not take breaks and is the longest currently running episodic event on television. This year WWE鈥檚 Raw celebrated its 20th anniversary.

What makes the WWE so marketable to fans?

There are so many factors to the WWE: the production qualities, the responsive nature of evolving to the fans desires, the athleticism of the wrestlers, and the wonder of what will they do next to top what you just saw. The elements of the entire show combine and follow the rules of classic drama.

Were you a wrestling fan before you started working with WWE?

I was always a casual fan in high school and remember the good, old days of Memphis wrestling 鈥� it was broadcast on Saturday mornings on my local station 鈥� and I got caught up in Jerry “The King鈥� Lawler and Jimmy 鈥淭he Mouth of the South鈥� Hart. I hate to admit that, as it shows my age. I remember the explosion of bringing wrestling into the mainstream with Hulkamania.

The first live wrestling event I ever attended was in the fall of 2001 in Salt Lake City, where I went to help build the new Smackdown set that featured a huge 18-foot-long fist that smashed through a 40-foot-wide glass panel. It was the height of the 鈥渁ttitude鈥� era and The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin were packing in the fans and delivering huge ratings.

I was at that time a fan of the production quality and elements. Everyone in the entertainment industry was looking at these wrestling shows and shaking our heads in disbelief as to how huge it was and wondering what in the world could they do to make it bigger next time. But there always was a next time, and the WWE (then WWF) always managed to surprise us.

Do you have a favorite wrestler?

I don鈥檛 interact with the wrestlers that much but there are few of them through the years that stand out. I always love when The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) gets on the mike and starts a promo. You never know what he is going to say and he is so quick-witted that you have to be on your toes. Many times I have turned to my co-workers and asked if he just said what I thought he said. From a production standpoint,听I always have loved the entrances of Triple H. He has some of the most fun sets, and then the icon spits pop in the lighting.

Can you apply techniques you鈥檙e using on the road to the theatre productions at 麻豆原创?

Yes, there are many things. The ability to be flexible and professional in the highest of stress situations. Also, to be solid in the fundamentals both artistically in lighting techniques and paying attention to the storytelling of the event. If you can combine those together, you are prepared for the unfolding of the event as the evening progresses.

At the end of the day, some people don鈥檛 respond well to the pressure and the pace of WWE events. You have to be able to understand that it is live television and there is no second chance. You have to anticipate the needs of the producers and have a backup plan because most times the plan will evolve 鈥� or devolve 鈥� on the fly. You must be a pleasant person to work with and you must also provide the highest artistic work.

I have been able to take some of my students to events in the past and also had two 麻豆原创 theatre students intern at WrestleMania XXX in the New Orleans Superdome this year. I want them to understand that the techniques we use for stage productions are applicable in all forms of entertainment. There are so few jobs on Broadway but there are many ways to earn a good wage in entertainment events.

If you could be a WWE wrestler, what would your wrestling name be?

Mr. Gets Stomped in 20 Seconds and Stays on the Mat.

The fair theme was 鈥溌槎乖� and the Chamber of Majors鈥� and several departments ran with the Harry Potter motif. Three booths were awarded with gift certificates for best d茅cor: Theatre Department, Department of Writing and Rhetoric, and College of Education and Human Performance which took top honors with their Hogwarts-themed booth, including wands, owls, and a student representative dressed as Harry Potter.

Continuing with the theme of the event, two tickets to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando were raffled off at the end of the event. To enter the raffle, student attendees had to complete a 鈥減assport鈥� with facts learned about different majors or academic programs. Freshman Psychology major Maleah McLean was thrilled to have won the tickets to the Wizarding World. Students also had the opportunity to win 鈥淐hamber of Majors鈥� T-shirts by sharing what they had learned at the event.

Members of the 麻豆原创 Theatre faculty and staff consider many productions each year in order to put together a coherent season that meets the needs of the department.

鈥淪electing a performance season is a complex process of meeting the needs of theatre students, the 麻豆原创, and Central Florida audiences,鈥� said Theatre Department chair Christopher Niess.

鈥淲e are pleased to have met current budgetary challenges felt in all areas of higher education, and emerged with a season that includes new, relevant and challenging material, collaborative work that will enhance production, imaginative work in a variety of genre, and well-loved classics of the theatre as well.鈥�

The productions in fall 2013 focus on fun and fantasy. In order to have a production ready at the beginning of the fall semester, one of the summer shows is selected to return. This year the reprised production will be the beloved musical The Fantasticks, directed by Be Boyd. In the past several years, the department has presented a play rather than a musical for the reprise, but the simplicity and small cast of The Fantasticks makes it a show that can be performed during the summer, when fewer students attend classes.

Steve Martin鈥檚 comedy The Underpants will follow in September. Based on a 1910 play about a man whose wife can鈥檛 keep her underwear from falling down, the play is fast-paced, funny, and full of energy. It will be directed by Kate Ingram.

The fall musical is The Drowsy Chaperone, which provides great singing and dancing opportunities for the theatre students, as well as a fun evening for the audience. The songs are styled after 1920s tunes and include the show-stopping number 鈥淪how Off,鈥� where a young starlet sings about being ready to leave the spotlight of show business for marriage, while doing every possible physical stunt to get attention. Director Earl D. Weaver has created a walk-on guest role for each performance that will be filled by a 麻豆原创 or Orlando community member.

In Shipwrecked! An Entertainment. The Amazing Adventures of Louis de Rougemont (as Told by Himself), which will run for the two weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, audience members will relive the fantastical autobiographical tales of Louis de Rougemont, a real-life would-be adventurer, who frequently blurred the line between reality and fiction. Director Mark Brotherton will expand the usual three-person cast to include more actors, providing more performance opportunities for the theatre students.

In the spring semester, the theatre department is focused on collaborations and partnerships. Leveling Up was read in the 2012 Playfest! The Harriett Lake Festival of New Plays. The contemporary play centers around four video gamers, who are recruited by the government to launch remote missiles. This will be the first 麻豆原创 play directed by Mark Routhier, who is the director of new play development at the Orlando Shakes, as well as a faculty member at Theatre 麻豆原创.

鈥淭he Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby is one of those projects whose challenges make it a rare treat when performed,鈥� says Niess of the next production.

鈥淭he play embraces Dickens鈥� ability to give us characters with innocent optimism, through circumstance take us to the brink of despair, and through humor, hope and faith to wind up showing us some of the best sides of humanity.

鈥淲e are excited to participate with the Shakes, not just in bringing this production to a Central Florida audience, but we also embrace the educational value this project has for Theatre 麻豆原创 and its young actors, assistant designers, and stage managers. Jim Helsinger and I are also investigating opportunity for cross-discipline work with other departments at 麻豆原创 as well 鈥� a project such as this one has immense value not only for the 麻豆原创, but for other regional colleges and universities. Nicholas Nickleby is a ripe subject for scholarly scrutiny on a national level as well.鈥�

The collaborations continue as the Theatre and Music Departments join forces for the spring musical, Meredith Willson鈥檚 classic The Music Man. 鈥淭his integrated and cooperative approach to performing affords students the opportunity to work in an interdisciplinary environment, an environment that more closely reflects the world in which they will work as trained professionals,鈥� said Jeffrey Moore, chair of the 麻豆原创 Music Department.听听

鈥淛oint projects like this help provide the students and audience with an outstanding evening of musical theater, while also underscoring the enhanced value that听the new performance spaces will bring to the shared experience.鈥�

The academic season comes to an end with the Annual Dance Concert, which will retain its format of short dance pieces choreographed and danced by students. This event is a showcase for the dance minor program, and includes many students who are majoring in fields outside of theatre. The event is also a showcase for the department鈥檚 design students, with a heavy emphasis on lighting and costumes.

There will be two additional shows in Summer 2014, which are yet to be announced. It is expected that one will be a musical and the other a comedy.

听

The Fantasticks

Book and lyrics by Tom Jones

Music by Harvey Schmidt

Directed by Be Boyd

Remember the days of sweet young love in this romantic charmer of a musical. The Fantasticks is the longest running production in American theatre history for good reason: the intimate and funny poetry of the script, the catchy songs, the nostalgic story鈥veryone in the family will be enchanted.

Aug. 22-Sept. 1

The Underpants

By Steve Martin

Adapted from Carl Sternheim

Directed by Kate Ingram

Much to the dismay of boorish Theo Maske, his wife became a public scandal when she accidentally dropped her undergarments in public. Theo decides to keep her out of public view to avoid future incidents, but chaos ensues when some witnesses to the incident decide they鈥檇 like to see a little more. Steve Martin鈥檚 laugh-out-loud comedy is a retelling of Carl Sternheim鈥檚 1910 play Die Hose.听

鈥淎n ambitious amalgam of comic book and social commentary, made out of sex jokes, slamming doors and sophisticated repartee.鈥� 鈥� New York Times

Sept. 19-Oct. 5

The Drowsy Chaperone

Music & Lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison

Book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar

Directed by Earl D. Weaver

When a die-hard musical-theater fan plays his favorite cast album on his turntable, the 1920s musical literally bursts to life in his living room, telling the rambunctious tale of a brazen Broadway starlet, her boozy chaperone, and a rambunctious crew of wedding guests.听

鈥淗ere is a musical that frankly sets itself up as a short [1 hour 40 minutes], happy exercise in escapism, adorned with just enough postmodern footnotes to make you feel all insiderly. It’s sort of like being able to eat your cake and diet too.鈥� 鈥揘ew York Times

Oct. 17-Nov. 2

Shipwrecked! An Entertainment鈥擳he Amazing Adventures of Louis de Rougemont (As Told by Himself)

Written by Donald Margulies

Directed by Mark Brotherton

An adaptation of the Victorian memoirs of would-be adventurer Louis de Rougemont, Shipwrecked! spins together anecdotes of a man-eating octopus, flying turtles, and pearl-fishing expedition gone mightily awry. Suitable for ages 10 and up.

Nov. 14-24

Nicholas Nickleby

Written by David Edgar

Adapted from Charles Dickens鈥� novel

In collaboration with Orlando Shakespeare Theater

Directed by Jim Helsinger and Christopher Niess

A cast of 30 plays more than 150 characters in this exhilarating two-part play following a virtuous young Nicholas as he meets and masters the challenges of poverty and corruption in Victorian England. Winner of both the Tony Award for Best Play and The Olivier Award for Play of the Year, this epic event has never been produced in Central Florida. The cast is pulling out all the stops to capture Dickens’ genius for combining exuberant characters, theatrical spectacle, and genuine emotion.

Jan. 22-March 9 (Tickets to be sold through the Orlando Shakespeare Theatre box office.)

Leveling Up

Written by Deborah Zoe Laufer

Directed by Mark Routhier

Ian, Zan, and Chuck are two years out of college and playing video games 20 hours a day when the government comes looking for expert gamers to launch remote missiles. And the bombs, the guns, the screams, the victories are eerily similar to the ones on their Xbox.

鈥淟eveling Up couldn鈥檛 be more topical.鈥� 鈥揅incinnati.com 鈥淎rts in Focus鈥�

Jan. 16-26

Meredith Willson鈥檚 The Music Man

Book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson

Story by Meredith Willson and Franklin Lacey

Directed by Lani Harris

Dust off those trombones, we鈥檙e heading to River City, Iowa, where fast-talking salesman Harold Hill is about to have all of his schemes foiled by Marian, that lovely librarian. This long-beloved musical will be a joint production between the Theatre and Music Departments.

Feb. 20-March 2

听听

8th Annual Dance Concert

Directed by Earl Weaver

A perennial favorite! 麻豆原创 dancers, choreographers, and designers showcase their talents.

April 17-19

Subscription pricing is available at theatre.ucf.edu. Single tickets will be available mid-summer.

Box Office Phone: 407-823-1500

Box Office Hours: Monday through Friday:听noon to 6 p.m. and 2 hours before performances

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For more information about Theatre 麻豆原创, visit .

Educational affiliates have at least two faculty members who are certified as course instructors. At 麻豆原创, professor Steven R. Chicurel is a certified course instructor and assistant professor Tara Snyder is a certified master teacher.听

The training program helps singers and speakers find a full range of expression in their voices, while promoting healthy vocal habits. The program was formalized in 1988 by Jo Estill, a classical opera singer who went on to research voice science.

听鈥淪tudents of Estill Voice Training Systems succeed because they learn about identifying problems in singing and speaking and then come up with efficient and permanent 鈥榝ixes,鈥欌�� Chicurel said. 鈥淓still Voice Training provides a unique delivery system at the university level.听Unlike traditional voice programs in music and theatre, where weekly private lessons are the norm from the first semester onward, students at 麻豆原创 take the first two semesters of voice as a class.鈥澨�

The University has joined Motherwell College in Scotland and Mars Hill College in North Carolina as educational affiliates.

A portion of the proceeds from听some online听purchases of the novel 鈥淜ris: The Legend Begins,鈥� authored by former 麻豆原创 professor J.J. Ruscella, will be donated to the 麻豆原创 Alumni Association.

Additional profits will benefit charities that assist orphaned and disadvantaged children.

The novel tells the tale of Kris Kringle, a boy from 16th-century Norway who is the origin of Santa and other gift-giving legends. The story follows him through a difficult early life and shares his search for redemption. Ultimately, Kris became Santa Claus, an inspiring man of joy who has become a timeless international icon.

Ruscella, who was an assistant professor in the 麻豆原创 Theatre Department, also presented his version of the legend of Santa during a reading of his book at the FAIRWINDS Alumni Center earlier this month.

To purchase a book with a portion of the proceeds going to the 麻豆原创 Alumni Association,听go to听听and use听the code SANTA麻豆原创.