'Shifting Ground': UNC Theater Productions Year in Review

This semester, UNC theater organizations have faced unpredicted challenges, such as natural disasters and budget cuts. Yet, despite these odds, productions at UNC are attracting more students and working to become more inclusive in their craft. 

Kenan Theatre Company and LAB! Theatre both produced student-written work that included the KTC's world premiere of "Just Like Now" by junior Gage Tarlton. Lab! Theatre continued its commitment to student work by opening applications for its original works festival that will be performed in February.

Justin Haslett, managing director of PlayMakers Repertory Company, said this year has had a number of challenges for PlayMakers Repertory Company, including sales suffering from all of the natural disasters. He said they had to shut down and cancel several performances of their first show of the season, "Sherwood: The Adventures of Robin Hood," due to Hurricane Florence. 

“This was of course followed by the loss of water issue that also shut us down for a couple more days a few weeks later when we were in the middle of building 'She Loves Me,'” Haslett said. “So, we’ve had some unusual challenges this year that we certainly had no way to prepare for.”

Lauren Toney, director of operations at Company Carolina, said the organization has also faced challenges this semester. Rehearsal rooms used in past years were no longer available this year, so they were forced to perform in venues that cost more money. She said there were some nights the group couldn’t rehearse because the space they had was too small.

Despite these challenges, Toney said she was proud of the productions of "Godspell" and "Our Place," and the new people who have gotten involved this year. 

From "Bonnie & Clyde" to "Rocky Horror Picture Show," Pauper Players has had a successful semester, said William Leitch, executive director of production. 

He said Pauper Players has been able to include more people in their organization this year. 

This semester, in particular, he said they wanted a challenge in terms of how widely known their main show would be. This year, Paupers performed the musical "Bonnie and Clyde" because it was different from their usual shows. 

“We wanted to do something that would be a little bit more hard to market,” Leitch said. “But I think made it more rewarding in the process, and I think that that was a real big change for us.” 

PlayMakers has already had a regional and world premiere for this season with "Sherwood: The Adventures of Robin Hood" and "Temples of Lung and Air." This year is also the beginning of its 100-year celebration of play-making. 

Vivienne Benesch, producing artistic director at PlayMakers Repertory Company, is in her third season at UNC, and said this year stood out because PlayMakers is shifting with the times.

She said they call this year "shifting ground," or theater that moves. 

“I feel like we’re shifting ground and moving from a place where PlayMakers — we have always been a place where great professional theater happens — but now, we’re a place where that happens in the midst of being a hub of conversation for what’s really happening around us,” Benesch said. 

Benesch said PlayMakers is digging deeper roots in the local and national community and forming more authentic engagements. She said she is proud that people are coming out and having a great time as well. 

“Theater, to me, the way you move hearts and change hearts is by being relevant,” Benesch said. “But also transporting your audience, and I feel like we’re accomplishing that in very different ways with each show that we do.”

PlayMakers is also striving for more authentic inclusion in their current and future productions, Benesch said. This year in particular, they accomplished their goals because for the first time in PlayMaker’s history, all of the directors of their main stage shows were female. 

Benesch said PlayMakers is striving for inclusiveness in gender, race and economic realities, while questioning what defines “authentic inclusion” in theater production. 

“I’m not saying we’re perfect yet by a long shot, but we are starting along the right path now, both on stage, behind the scenes and with our audiences — which are all different,” Benesch said. 

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