Assistant Stage Managing in Central Park
BY AMANDA PENNFIELD
12TH GRADE, WESTHAMPTON BEACH H.S.
This past summer I had an internship with Prospect Theater Company, a professional
theatre group founded by Princeton University graduates. The free, outdoor production
of Shakespeare’s comedy, The Merry Wives of Windsor, was located in Central
Park in a beautiful setting on Cherry Hill, near Bethesda Fountain, overlooking
the lake.
Part of my job was to pre-set the props and costumes for the cast of
twenty and to make sure the actors had their props on time. There was no set,
as the play was performed on the grass and the park itself was the backdrop.
Even with such a large cast it was manageable, because the actors all helped
out.
Performing outdoors, unpredictable things happen. One night several planes flew noisily overhead, and each time the actors had to wait, sometimes turning it into a comic moment. As one of the planes passed by, a puppy chased an actor around the stage while he was reciting his monologue, causing the audience to roar with laughter. The next night an adorable little girl, visiting NY from Kansas, asked me if she could help set the costumes, so I had an unexpected assistant.
Because of the location, we wanted to attract passers-by to the show. Every day I recruited audience members, handing out postcards and programs to hundreds of people and telling everyone I saw how great the show was. I found I was very good at pitching the show. I asked people to sign up for our mailing list and spent time answering questions. I had to adjust what I said to persuade different prospective audience members to see the show. Sometimes, I spoke to international tourists in their languages and convinced them to stay. The director and stage manager applauded my ability to attract a large audience. On most nights, over a hundred people attended the show, depending on the weather.
“Performing
outdoors, unpredictable things happen.”
A permit is required to perform in Central Park. Prospect Theater had a permit to perform for the month of July. One day we received notice that we would not be able to perform on the last Saturday of the show due to a Health Day in the park. I took the initiative on behalf of the company to persuade the Parks Department that we would not interfere with the Health Day and was happy when my effort paid off and we received the permit for that day!
A rewarding experience, I highly recommend getting an internship. My family and I really enjoyed this experience. My father came to see the show every night after work, and he even offered to perform in case any of the actors were sick. It was fun working and interacting with the actors, staff and audience members. I met people in Central Park who were visiting from all over the world, learned much from the experiences they shared with me and really expanded my communication skills. Thanks to the Prospect Theater Company, this past summer was one of the best summers I’ve ever had.
Prospect Theater
shows are wonderful. They expect to perform again in Central Park next summer
and they also have shows during the year. To get more information, visit www.prospecttheater.org