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
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