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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 2017)
en Scheeland, who has served as board president both in the ’80s and now. She became involved with the community theater in 1969, at the age of 23. Cast members of Perfect Wedding rehearsed in the building almost every weeknight last spring. One night in May — three weeks from opening — the cast was deep into the rehearsal process, run- ning the second act. A pale pink and green set, resembling the ornate bridal suite of an English inn, was in place on VLT’s main stage. Scheeland sat in the audience, taking notes, chuckling and sometimes nodding her head. Every so often an actor would shout “Line!” or slip out of his or her Brit- ish accent. Scheeland, who is originally from England and studied at Loughbor- ough University in Leicestershire, would correct the actor, and the run-through DIRECTOR AND VLT BOARD PRESIDENT KAREN SCHEELAND (CENTER) would move on. AND HER PERFECT WEDDING PRODUCTION CREW When the actors finished the scene, ing to her performance, even though it was early on in the they all sat on stage, some perched on chairs from the set, rehearsal process and the cast members weren’t as close yet. others on the stage itself. “I was so touched that they would come out and support me The cast of six comes from a slew of backgrounds and without knowing me very well,” she said. occupations. Some have previous experiences from theater Coming into rehearsal at 5:30 pm, right after work, was in high school and college or are members of VLT, but others challenging at first. “You have your everyday life and what- auditioned for the show without any previous experience in ever you do — class, work — and then suddenly you have to the theater arts. be somebody else.” Diana Sobczynski, a compensation analyst in human re- “I hope that I don’t speed things up. When I perform, I do sources at the University of Oregon, auditioned for Perfect get nervous. I turn that nervousness into energy and I get very Wedding because a colleague from work “dragged” her along. energetic,” Sobczynski said. “I was asked by a friend who has a new motto for the year, Despite the play’s action taking place during her charac- and it’s to try things that scare her a little bit,” Sobczynski ter’s wedding day, Sobczynski wanted to make sure her en- said. She ended up being cast as Rachel, the bride-to-be — ergy level wasn’t too over the top. her first acting role anywhere. Craig Willis, executive director of local professional the- Sobczynski plays in a band in town and mentioned a con- ater company the Oregon Contemporary Theatre, sees the cert of hers to her fellow cast members. They ended up com- Very Little Theatre as a “learning ground” and “community gathering place” for local talent. “As a true community theater, except for a handful of people who are building sets, they are doing it as volunteers,” Willis said. “The nature of [this] community is such that it’s great that people from a whole variety of skill sets have opportunities to be involved — in ways from just volunteering the way they can at Oregon Contemporary Theatre to directing, stage management or acting.” Scheeland says the theater wants to ex- pand out into the community and recruit more volunteers. She wants to bring in a new generation to keep VLT going while still sat- isfying current members’ wants and needs. The theater’s 89th season features some heavy hitters, Scheeland says. She’s particu- larly excited for the winter show, Matthew Lopez’s The Whipping Man, a play about a Jewish man in the post-Civil War South. On June 9, Perfect Wedding opened on VLT’s mainstage. The show ran through June 24. Sobczynski’s nerves held up. Her character’s pointed dia- logue and anxiety about the wedding day was in direct con- trast to Sobczynski’s personality during the interview: She was acting. As the cast came on for their last bow, its members were still in character, some smiling, some grimacing. “You’re thrown into this troupe of people you don’t know,” Sobczynski said later. “You don’t know the director. You don’t know the stage manager. You don’t know your ac- tors, your co-actors and suddenly it’s coming to life. You get to know each other and you build these relationships. Sud- denly you have a performance, and it’s really phenomenal.” ■ To audition for a play or volunteer to help out at Very Little Theatre, go to TheVLT.com/participate.html. BRING Home and Garden Tour Ninth Annual Sunday, September 10, 2017 10 a.m.–4 p.m. The Art of Sustainable Living A self-guided tour of nine homes and gardens Get ideas and inspiration for low-impact living: ☼ Green building ☼ Energy efficiency ☼ Urban agriculture ☼ Outdoor living ☼ Artistic reuse ☼ Aging in place Tickets $10 in advance $14 day of Tour Available at BRING, Down to Earth, Lane Forest Products or online at bringrecycling.org Co-hosted by After Party! Sponsored by GloryBee At Oakway Center 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. Check out our Electric Vehicle Expo! Sponsored by bringrecycling.org | (541) 746-3023 | 4446 Franklin Blvd., Eugene, OR ©2017 BRING Recycling | Photo by Michael Wherley | Design by Annie Vrijmoet eugeneweekly.com • A ugust 31, 2017 13
