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Wednesday, September 26, 2001 @ 8:18 PM
The Interview
HelKat14: kelz! kellie rai: yes? HelKat14: how bout you let me interview you now? kellie rai: I wasn't planning to be online very long... HelKat14: *sad pleading face* HelKat14: i won't take long kellie rai: aite. kellie rai: go ahead. HelKat14: YAY! HelKat14: ok HelKat14: tell me why you got involved in stick and co kellie rai: Well, I had been toying with the idea of starting my own summer theatre company for quite some time. I felt like there weren't any programs around for people like me, who weren't strong singers - other groups seemed to always do musicals. I had never been given a lead role - I felt I had never been given a chance. Then when Josh Weckesser started making plans to start his theatre company, which was then "White Stick Productions," I suggested we "join forces." And the rest is history. HelKat14: :D HelKat14: alright the first show you did was gray matter...did you notice any dramatic (sorry!) differences between that show and school sponsored shows? kellie rai: Well, first of all, Gray Matter was, from auditions to performance, a two week show. So the pressure was really on to get a lot done in a small amount of time - and with the extra added bonus that no one wanted to take us seriously. That's something Stick & Co. still has to deal with. kellie rai: Also, in spite of the time crunch, Josh Weckesser was a more calm and down-to-earth director than I had ever had before. He encouraged us to experiment with character and blocking, as opposed to the style I was more familiar with, which was more of a "stand here for two minutes, then walk to your left" approach. kellie rai: And no matter how stressed he got, he never yelled at us during that show. Which is not to say that he was not in control. When our lead actor in Gray Matter failed to attend three rehearsals in a row, Josh and Emily decided that the only thing to do was to kick him out of the production. kellie rai: So Josh found himself not only directing, but starring in a show that he had also written.
kellie rai: He dealt with the stress remarkably well. For instance, when the actress playing opposite him (Katharyn Brown) was "uncomfortable" kissing him, he spent most of a day with her.kellie rai: He put aside his pride and worked out a perfect "stage kiss" so that their lips would never touch. kellie rai: (Me, I would have been like, "Grow the fuck up!") kellie rai: But Josh was patient with her. I really admired that. kellie rai: Rehearsals for that production were remarkably enjoyable, it was a really great experience for me. It made me realize that theatre wasn't meant to come out of a box or a formula. That show, and the ones that followed, to me exemplified theatre the way it was meant to be. HelKat14: okay now...which show would you said is the most memorable one for you & why kellie rai: Oooooh. Tough one. kellie rai: I'd have to say that, much as I loved acting in Josh's productions, the most memorable show would have to be one I directed, No Exit this past summer. kellie rai: I had the most amazing cast, I was continuously in awe of them. kellie rai: The show was, on a scale from 1 to Stressful, incredibly stressful. kellie rai: The script is about 60 pages of two to four people talking, in one room. kellie rai: It's sort of the director's nightmare, because anything with a small cast and lots of lines - including numerous monologues - is going to be a memorization crisis. kellie rai: I know it was incredibly hard for the actors, and my wonderful Assistant Director/Producer, Megan Hannah, to pull it all together, but we managed, and we had an amazing show. When I finally stopped trying to run around "fixing" things, or trying to tape the show with that cursed camera, and sat in the audience Saturday night, I felt so proud of those people - it was all worth it. HelKat14: what is the best thing about s&cp? kellie rai: Truly? I would say, "That it's mine!" That I'm more a part of it than I am of anything else. I've felt more at home in that organization than I have anywhere else. I belong there, I helped create it, and it's the closest thing I have to a legacy. HelKat14: anything else you wanna tell me b4 i end the interview? kellie rai: Yes. HelKat14: ? kellie rai: If I could say one thing to all of the students reading this, it would be: Even if you've never thought about doing theatre, you should think about giving Stick & Co. a chance. I've seen people get "talked into" auditioning who've blown me away. Theatre is how I've made and kept some of my closest friends, and even if you're sure you never want to act, just being involved can give you a life-altering experience. How many clubs or sports teams can say that? HelKat14: thats fantastic HelKat14: god i hope this story runs HelKat14: well i g2g HelKat14: thanks! kellie rai: bye Kat!
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