Theatre Program Celebrates Successful Inaugural Production ‘SUPERHERO & SUPERHERO’
Texas A&M students explored heroism in a contemporary world in “SUPERHERO & SUPERHERO,” the inaugural production by the new Theatre program in the Texas A&M College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts.
The three sold-out shows were held in the Black Box Theater in the Liberal Arts and Arts and Humanities Building Nov. 7-9. The comedic play was devised by the ensemble.
Devised theatre is part of the newly launched Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre. Students and faculty built the performance from the ground up without a prewritten script. Devised theatre focuses on decentering the text in theatrical performance-making, to allow an ensemble to collectively craft a production.
Each of the six cast members explored their superpowers through dance numbers, monologues and audience interactions. Live sound effects were also featured. Rayna Middleton Dexter, interim program director for Theatre and instructional associate professor, said devising requires a level of vulnerability that can be challenging, but this ensemble “heroically offered their authentic selves to the process.”
“They came together with care and respect for each other and over time developed trust and camaraderie,” she said. “You can make theatre without those elements, but I think great performances require them.”
Dr. george mcconnell — who prefers the lowercase version of his name — served as the show’s director and is an associate professor. Helping the students devise their own show was rewarding, he said, as they each developed their own material.
“Whenever I begin a devising process with students, there is always some hesitancy and some trepidation,” he said. “They’ve never done it before. It was great to see them put it all together, to share it with an audience, to know they had made this. It was theirs and they got to share it.”
Creating Superheroes
The cast featured JJ Stevenson, Alessandra Balassa Toussaint, Olivia Moreno, Kylie Brittain, Breanna Loredo-Rayas and Kate Bertagnoli. For part of the opening sequence, an audience member was asked to play “Stan Lee” and wear sunglasses and a gray stick-on mustache to introduce the superheroes.
The performers received their superpowers during the performance. Strings descended from the ceiling clipped with each superpower, each shaped in bubble wrap with a light inside that was crafted by Dexter.
Brittain, a sophomore Performance and Visual Studies student, said mcconnell asked each cast member during rehearsals how they envisioned themselves as superheroes. That helped to decide on their superpowers.
“My superhero was named ‘Amora,’ which is Latin for love,” Brittain said. “As we started writing our monologues for the play, I realized my superpower was love because everything I have ever done is for love.”
Brittain said she hoped the audience was able to experience the authenticity of the show. They weren’t playing characters, she said, but rather “presenting themselves as individuals.”
“This show is original because no one else has made anything like this before,” she said. “It’s our own words and our own feelings — that is what makes it so beautiful and vulnerable to share.”
Breanna Loredo-Rayas, a senior Performance and Visual Studies student, portrayed her character, Leafy Flora, with plant powers that represent the environment and ecosystems that surround everyday life. Her superpower was displayed as a flower-shaped hair clip made out of bubble wrap. Loredo-Rayas said there were elements of the performance that came from the cast sharing remarks during rehearsals.
“We would tell everyone how we felt, and some of those stories made it into the show,” she said. “It was also really nice for all of us to have a section in the show to express our ‘perfect you’ and personality. I felt like that was really special to the show’s originality.”
Kate Bertagnoli, a sophomore Theatre student, played the supervillain who explored mind control. She said she enjoyed her first devised performance.
“With something so beautiful as devised theatre, it’s amazing how the relationships that are created are so special,” she said. “With the faculty in the Theatre major and everybody in the college, we created a beautiful, healthy, happy program that everyone is proud to be a part of at Texas A&M.”
Crew Recognition
Jam Martinez, the college’s production manager, designed the lighting for the show. Jeff Watson, the college’s theatre facility coordinator, constructed the set design. Riti Sachdeva, instructional assistant professor in Theatre, served as the movement consultant.
Logan Clendinnig served as stage manager; Sara Perryman, assistant stage manager; Kyle Briscoe, music composer/performer; Natcha Phaobunjong, music composer/performer; Lluvia Avina, light board operator.
The set build crew included Gabby Evelend, Luke Hill, Christian Kahl, Marjorie Morrison, Hendrix Taylor and Gabe White. Costume build crew included Kate Bertagnoli, Charlie Cooper, Hunter Patrick, Ashleigh Rokey and Hannah Sims. Run crew included Ume Farwa and Rosana Hernandez. Sebastian Campo, Gracie Coon and Callie Ratliff served as ushers.
Dexter said she hopes to develop a culture for the Theatre program that allows students to challenge themselves and “serve as a catalyst for change.”
“This group rose to the occasion and showed us that we can accomplish great things together,” she said. “Saving the world is a group project. Theatre teaches us to imagine new possibilities, express ourselves creatively, work collaboratively, adapt to new and changing conditions, build relationships, handle conflict, manage resources and take risks. I can’t think of a better way to train our heroes.”
Top photo, from left: Alessandra Balassa Toussaint, Kylie Brittain, JJ Stevenson, Kate Bertagnoli, Breanna Loredo-Rayas and Olivia Moreno.
