An Inside Scoop On “Silent Sky”

Reported by: Anika Perry

Newberg, Ore. - COVID-19 has definitely changed theatre for both actors and audience members. George Fox University’s (GFU) first production of the 2020-2021 school year, “Silent Sky,” will be performed virtually.

Rhett Luedtke, theatre professor at GFU and director of the production, described the play as “the story of Henrietta Leavitt, a brilliant astronomer who explored the heavens in order to help us understand our place here on earth.”

Luedtke said, “We are developing a virtual platform for our audience so that they can see the show live on their various devices. The university has mandated that all acting on campus must be virtual--both for rehearsals and performances. As such, we are not allowed to meet face-to-face in the rehearsal process or for any live event. So, all of our rehearsals are on Zoom.”

Virtual rehearsals are quite a change. “Zoom works for rehearsals, but is highly problematic for performances. As such, we are creating our own virtual platform for this show,” Luedtke said. “Audience members will be able to access the platform once they purchase a ticket and receive a link to the platform.”

Luedtke said that their designers and technicians will create five virtual performance rooms in five of the music practice rooms in the Ross Center. Luedtke said, “Our five actors will perform the show live from their separate performance rooms. Each room will have a projector and projection screen so that we can unify the scenic world behind the actors.” The rooms will also have two LED stage lights to control the light quality in the room to unify the imaginary worlds they are creating. To set the scene even further, Luedtke said that, “Actors will be costumed in appropriate costumes from 1900-1918 (the time period of the show).”

Luedtke also mentioned that each room will have a camera, a monitor, and the actors will wear hidden mics so that they don't have any delay in sound. All the equipment will be wired through the ceiling in Ross to a central control room.

Auditions also took place virtually over Zoom. Luedtke said that Zoom auditions worked well for this show because it is going to be virtual, though he prefers face-to-face auditions because they “allow an actor to use their whole body to tell a story whereas Zoom limits an actor's work to their shoulders and head.”

Elyse Bradford, who plays Henrietta, took part in the Zoom auditions. Bradford said actors still stuck to the same process of doing a preliminary monologue, followed by two rounds of callbacks. Perhaps the biggest struggle with Zoom auditions is the fact that you can see yourself as you act.

“It's definitely distracting to see yourself on screen at all times-- because we're taught to ‘not watch ourselves,’ but in the Zoom environment, that's really all we can do. It also takes a lot more practice getting timing right, because everyone's internet connection differs and lags at weird paces. So it was a very enigmatic experience, but it was also exciting just to be able to do something experimental,” Bradford said.

Bradford did many things to get into character. To begin, she focused on becoming familiar with Henrietta’s work. “She was this amazing astronomer and says a lot of very specific terms in the play that relate to astronomy,” Bradford said. “I've been diving into the science of stars, light, and space, and it's been fascinating!”

Bradford also mentioned that this is the tightest show schedule that they have ever had for a GFU production. The cast and crew of “Silent Sky” only have four weeks between casting and performance. Bradford said, “It's easy to feel disconnected and stressed and alone in the process, but it's incredible when I remember that so many people are working together on this. There's this line in the show that states we're ‘afar, but not apart,’ and I think that rings true here.”

Bradford is no stranger to the GFU stage. She said, “So much of theater is playing off of the audience, so we're wondering how we can still include viewers in on the experience.” Bradford said she thinks “Silent Sky” is actually a wonderful story to tell virtually. She promises it will not feel like a Zoom class.

Bradford admires the characters in the play. She said, “I think we can learn a lot from these amazing astronomers from the past-- it's a story about looking past ourselves and working hard towards a really brilliant future. And I think that's a really important message, especially for now.”

It will cost students $10 to see the play. Admission for seniors and alumni will be $12 and for adults it will be $15.

If you’re interested, the synopsis for the play and other information can be found here. Don’t forget to check out GFU’s upcoming plays on that website as well!