USM Theatre: Once in a Lifetime

USM Theatre: Once in a Lifetime

PRODUCER'S NOTE     Once in a Lifetime    Cast    Notes    

Production    Faculty and Staff    Partners for the Arts

Producer’s Note

Welcome back to live theatre!

We’ve waited a long time to be back in a room together, with actors on a stage, patrons in seats, the hum of the lighting instruments overhead. If you’re like me, you won’t realize just how much you missed it until that moment when the play begins and you find you’re back home again.

All of us have talked a lot about the past year, about what it took from us. What it’s still taking from us. Who knows what we’ll say when we have enough distance to write the history of that strange period of time? Here at USM Theatre, we persisted, innovated, adapted, and kept going in the only ways we could. And while that was vital and powerful in its own way, it doesn’t come close to the real thing. Now we move forward, back home.

We’re here again in a place where bodies move in spaces. Some tell us stories from the past, but those stories are happening now, right in front of us. The visions of a collective of artists work in sync to create moments in time. And around us, our fellow audience members are there to help each other make sense of it all, to give it breath and meaning. There’s truly nothing like the theatre.

We’ve missed you. Welcome home.

Once in a Lifetime
By George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart

• Director – Louis Rackoff
• Scenic Designer – Bryan Moses
• Costume Designer – Madison Queen
• Hair and Makeup Designer – Olga Goupalova
• Lighting and Sound Designer – Craig Dettman
• Dramaturg – David Coley
• Production Stage Manager – Jameson Tisdale
  
  

“Once in a Lifetime” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc.  concordtheatricals.com

THE VIDEOTAPING OR MAKING OF ELECTRONIC OR OTHER AUDIO AND/OR VISUAL RECORDINGS OF THIS PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTING RECORDINGS OR STREAMS IN ANY MEDIUM, INCLUDING THE INTERNET, IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED, A VIOLATION OF THE AUTHOR(S)’S RIGHTS AND ACTIONABLE UNDER UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT: concordtheatricals.com/resources/protecting-artists

Cast

• George Lewis – Mark Swift
• May Daniels – Tessa Anderson
• Jerry Hyland – Cody Elsensohn
• Helen Hobart – Rakaela Thompson
• Susan Walker – Katherine Borum
• Mrs. Walker – Grace Brauner
• Herman Glogauer – Matt Hogan
• Weisskopf – Michael Harrison
• Meterstein – Jaylon Gooden
• Phyllis Fontaine; Fontaine as Bridesmaid – Natalie Davis
• Florabel Leigh; Leigh as Bridesmaid – Camille Coley
• Miss Chasen – Gracyn Taylor
• Miss Leighton – Camila Salas
• Lawrence Vail - Carter Lishen
• Rudoph Kammerling - Kaleb Teeters

Ensemble

Bell Girl; Page #2; Script Girl – Clare Miceli

Waitress; Young Actress; George’s Secretary – Ryan Tinnon

Assistant to Miss Leigh and Miss Fontaine;

Artie Sullivan (a script writer); Reporter  – Danielle Daye

Ernest; Ollie Fulton (a script writer);

Leading Man (Groom); Biographer – Rajan Chaudhary

Bellboy; Page #1  –  Baxter Evans

Porter; Security Guard; Mr. Flick; Mr. Jackson (Bishop);

Portrait Painter – Devin Stevenson

 

Film Crew on the Set

• Camera people – Emma Goodgion, Chris Russell
• Sound person – Chance Beck
• Hair and Makeup Artist – Rachel Boudreaux
• Wardrobe – Georgia Leming
• Stage Manager – Evan Cochran

The action takes place in New York and Los Angeles, and on a train traveling between the cities, 1927–1928.

There will be one 15-minute intermission.

Understudies

For May Daniels – Gracyn Taylor; for Jerry Hyland – Carter Lishen; for George Lewis – Michael Harrison; for Susan Walker – Clare Miceli; for Mrs. Walker – Camille Colley; for Helen Hobart – Grace Brauner; for Lawrence Vail – Jaylon Gooden; for Herman Glogauer – Kaleb Teeters; for Weisskopf – Rajan Chaudhary; for Meterstein – Baxter Evans; for Kammerling – Devin Stevenson; for Miss Leighton – Danielle Daye; for Phyllis Fontaine, Florabel Leigh, Miss Chasen – Ryan Tinnon; for Ensemble Women – Jordan McClelland; for Ensemble Men – Tate Williams.

Please note: Understudies do not perform unless an announcement is made at the time of the performance.

Please turn off all cell phones prior to the performance. No food or beverages are allowed in the theater. Photography or recording of the performance in any manner is prohibited. Thank you!

Director’s Notes

Once in a Lifetime is a happy, satiric look at Hollywood at the transition from silent films to “talkies.”  Many theatre artists went west to Hollywood in the late 1920’s in search of a future career, just as they do today, and the play offers a fun “touchstone” for a dilemma still facing many. What’s the draw of the film world which is so different from the stage?  Does going to Hollywood lead to success and happiness?

The play’s characters all seem to be seeking happiness in their lives.  For some, this may mean achieving success, fame, or wealth.  For others, it may mean getting a better position, or doing well once employed.  For others, it means finding love, or realizing that is what they were looking for in the first place.

This fast-paced, witty journey seems particularly relevant right now; something we may all need as a freeing experience from the difficulties of the past eighteen months.  Rehearsals have been filled with laughter as we have explored this lovely play.  We hope your experience of Once in a Lifetime will be full of joy, as well!

Dramaturg’s Notes

It was 1932, and Hollywood was nervous. Universal Pictures was about to put out a film version of the Kaufman and Hart-penned Hollywood satire Once in a Lifetime. This was surprising given that the movie lampooned the speed and excess with which Hollywood produced and marketed its products. Now the town found its resources put to use in repeating that critique on the silver screen. The anxiety around this movie prompted an on-screen message from the producer, Carl Laemmle, saying “I pity the man who cannot enjoy a laugh at his own expense.”

The anxiety around this film production was appropriate, given that the play itself is the nexus of the tension and angst surrounding popular entertainment in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The play gives voice to the vaudeville performers who were beginning to see their specialty die out. Many of the most prominent vaudeville acts had already migrated to motion pictures by this point, and the final end of one of the most efficient and widespread entertainment enterprises in American history was not far off.

Meanwhile, the nervousness of the film industry about their legitimacy was palpable. We see characters in the play mention repeatedly that they hope their films will rival the “legitimate” stage. The era of the talkie had brought a new dimension to movies, and the potential to deliver great performances was suddenly realized. In 1927, a group of film executives formed the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, and 1929 brought their first Awards ceremony, which would come to be known as the Oscars. These awards furthered the self-proclaimed notion that Hollywood was capable of producing art that rivaled the stage.

Luckily for us, all these nerves result in a lot of laughs, though we’re not far off from where the humor originated. The studio system that inspired this play may seem long-gone, but it’s on its way back. As long as there are artists who can survive only by working for people who just want to make a buck, this play will resonate.

Production Credits

• Production Manager and Technical Director – Jay Morris
• Vocal Coach – Robin Aronson
• Stage Movement and Combat Consultant – Caitlyn Herzlinger
• Producer  – David Coley
• Costume Shop Supervisor – Kelly James-Penot
• Scene Shop Supervisor  –  Wes Hanson

 

Production Staff and Preparation Crews

• Assistant Director – Mia Taylor
• Assistant Technical Director –  Harrison Lange
• Assistant Stage Managers – Christopher Dlugach, Emmanuel Johnson
• Assistant Vocal Coach – Kevin Rains
• Vocal Captain – Gracyn Taylor
• Assistant Costume Designers – Hagan Harkins, Lydia Hare
• Assistant Lighting and Sound Designer – Shelby Ashley
• Props Supervisor – Aline Toloto
• Props Crew –  Chris Russell, Emma Goodgion
• Deck Crew – Rachel Boudreaux, Georgia Leming, Evan Cochran, Chance Beck
• Live Stream Operators – Harrison Lange
• Livestream Video Director – Jay Morris
• Light Board Operator – Anna Pierce
• Sound Board Operator – Max Marsh
• Wardrobe Supervisor –  Raegan Cantrelle
• Wardrobe Crew –  Jaydan Cryer, Erica Dickens
• Costume Maintenance –  Renee LaCourse

Preparation Crews

Scene Shop

Supervisors: Wes Hanson, Jennifer Glass, Aline Toloto

Staff: De’Cayla Day, Zoi Hales, Taylor Stringfellow, Samantha Endsley, Raegan Cantrelle, Rachel Boudreaux, Georgia Leming, Chris Russell, Chance Beck, Caroline Macon, Ananda Lee, Logan Maxwell

Prop Shop

Supervisor: Aline Toloto

Staff: Emily Rutland, Natalie Bowers, Kenneth Baker, Stephen Carpenter, Sarah Guidroz, Aarion Johnson, Marley Monahan, Kaisa Twilight, Bailey Graves, Ashton Chaney

Paint

Supervisors: Jennifer Glass, Aline Toloto

Staff: R’Kedra Cummings, Vista Su, Bryana Jones, Aarion Johnson, Ashton Chaney, De’Cayla Day, Caroline Macon, Marley Monahan, Jadalynne Riedel, Bailey Graves

Costume Shop

Supervisors: Kelly James-Penot, Taylor Busch, Rebecca Earehart, Madison Queen

Staff: Renee LaCourse, Gregory Weathersby, Haley Thibodeaux, Sarah Haddon, McKenna Fussell, Seth Rodivich, Rashad Crosby

 

Electrics/Sound

Supervisors: Shelby Ashley, Andrew Bledsoe, Tristan King

Staff: Anna Pierce, D’Shea Sheriff, Kenneth Baker, Noah Brown, Max Marsh, Ariana Sanders, Samantha Endsley, Bau Tran

 

Box Office/Front of House

Supervisors: Petron Brown, Detalion Dixon, Camila Salas, Mark Swift

Staff: Sarah Guidroz, Ananda Lee, Natalie Bowers, Noah Brown, R’Kedra Cummings, Jadalynne Riedel, Erica Dickens

Publicity

Supervisors: Mia Taylor, Blake Waters

Staff: Jessica Bradford, Stephen Carpenter, Emma Goodgion, Zoi Hales, Bryana Jones, Logan Maxwell, Faith Rolfes,

Faculty and Staff

Theatre Program

• Robin Aronson – Professor of Voice and Acting
• Theresa Bush – Assistant Professor of Costume Design
  David Coley –Assistant Professor of Theatre, Producer
• Craig Dettman – Associate Professor of Lighting and Sound Design
• Wes Hanson – Scene Shop Supervisor
• Monica Hayes – Professor of Acting, Head of Performance
• Caitlyn Herzlinger – Assistant Professor of Movement and Acting
• Kelly James-Penot – Costume Shop Supervisor; Adjunct Faculty, Costumes
• Jay Morris – Assistant Professor, Production Manager, and Technical Director
• Bryan Moses – Visiting Assistant Professor of Scenic Design
• Louis Rackoff – Professor of Directing, Head of Directing
  
  

School of Performing and Visual Arts

• Jennifer Courts – Interim Director
• Kelly James-Penot – Acting Assistant to the Director
• Caterina Ventura – Administrative Specialist
• Sandra Whittington – Administrative Specialist
  
  

Partners for the Arts

This production was made possible in part by the generous support of PFTA!
Now, more than ever before, THANK YOU to our partners who are leveling up or bringing on a new member to sustain the tradition of excellence in the Arts at Southern Miss and ensure it continues beyond this unprecedented time.

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