ERHS Theater

Loftie Booing:
-Booing is an (optional)activity where you create a small basket/bucket of Halloween goodies for your fellow Lofties!
-One person starts it off, you are randomly assigned one Loftie and are given their address.
-One night you go to their house, set the goodies down in front of their main door, ring the doorbell, AND THEN RUN AS FAST YOU CAN BECAUSE IT’S A SECRET!!(park far away from their house so that they don’t recognize your car)
-DoNOTtell anyone who you have until after EVERYONE has been Booed. – We will tell you when it’s okay
-Text Meghan H with your name, address, and any allergies if you’d like to participate (309-532-3982)

Club Photos:
-Yearbook club photos are on November 21 (wear Loftie gear!!)
-Sign up for LoftPAC on FeePay or you won’t get a pass to come take the picture

Scholars of Distinction:
-Please tell Mrs. Carlson if interested (max of 6 entries)
DATES: December 17-application due, February 22-portfolio due, April 27 and 29-artistic showcases (qualifying students must be at ONE date), May 18- awards ceremony at Perpich Center

Lettering:
-3 shows
-10 ERHS related points
-10 technical hours

Stage to Screen Movie Night:
-Wednesday October 17
-bring blankets and wear PJs!

Service Project:
-Equal Justice Initiative (works for children in prison, mass incarceration, death penalty, racial justice, wrongly accused)
-our idea: film kids performing monologues from “The Exonerated” and raise money by releasing videos J

Butter Braid Fundraiser:
-DATES: October 5- start date, October 23- end date, October 26- submit order, November 13- delivery
-Group name: The Loft Stage Boosters
-Checks payable to The Loft Stage

Ramsey Middle School Theater Program:
-After school program… starting a theater department!
-We can help by cleaning out costume room and donating old costumes AND traveling to the school to teach theater games and activities
-We need a committee of dedicated students that will commit to kids ALL YEAR…if interested in being on the committee text Meghan H (309-532-3982)

Ticket sales for our fall production of Les Miserables begin THIS FRIDAY!

While the show is fairly well known, the school edition differs a bit from the original production.

So the question remains…

Why Choose the “School Edition” and what does “School Edition” Really Mean?

One of the many questions we received after selecting Les Miserables as our fall production was “why choose the ‘school edition?’” After perusing several scores we landed on Les Miserables as a rich and challenging text for both students and audiences alike. The only issue with doing this show this year is that the touring company of Les Mis will be in Minnesota within the same calendar year, restricting rights for the original production. If we wanted to continue pursuing this show, our only legal option was to apply for school edition rights; and after reviewing the differences between the two versions, we felt the story, characters, conflict, and score were still the right fit for our season.

So the question remains, what does “school edition” actually mean? It’s first important to understand what “school edition” doesn’t mean (ie – censorship). Contrary to the connotation, the school edition of Les Mis does not sanitize language nor does it remove the mature situations on the battlefield or the docks. Instead, the school edition seeks to abridge a lengthy score by removing a few unnecessary musical interludes, namely the counterpoint section of “The Confrontation,” much of “Dog Eats Dog,” and the “Wedding Chorale.” Thankfully, many of the most iconic Les Mis moments are very much in tact in this version, we’ll just be able to end the show at a more reasonable hour!

For families wondering appropriateness of content for young audiences, we definitely leave that decision up to the discretion of parents and guardians; however, the content and language would merit a PG-13 rating. If you have any specific questions about content, feel free to email director Kajsa Jones (kjones@theloftstage.org).

Parents,

Thanks so much for coming to the parent info session last night! As always, it was great to see familiar faces and it was even more wonderful to see some new ones. We love to have the involvement from as many parents as we can, so your interest in and willingness to help keeps our program afloat!

Here is a brief summary of key details from the meeting. The full slideshow can be found here.

1. Please take a few moments to fill out the following google form. We use information from this for future parent contact and for creating volunteer committees.  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeVFvglt11vBUb-XZtzyHtT88pS3Pd_Z9tiT3nz2m7YApl_Kw/viewform
2. Please sign up for the Les Mis Remind – @erlesmis – We will use this form of communication for quick and important announcements. There was a parent request to use this during tech week to inform parents of extended rehearsal times as we tend to run later into the evening the week before opening. We appreciate this request and will do our best to let families know through this channel.
3. The online rehearsal calendar is updated for the next two weeks and can be viewed here:https://theloftstage.org/erhs-theater/public-calendar/
4. Should a student need to miss rehearsal, he or she is responsible for communicating any unexpected absences proactively to both Kajsa Jones (kjones@theloftstage.org) and to me (kcarlson1@sowashco.org).
5. Please register online for the musical via the Activities office FeePay system: https://sowashco.feepay.com/ All musical participants are required to register by Friday, September 14^th.
6. If you haven’t already done so, you can order your Les Mis t-shirt here: https://store.theloftstage.org/
7.  Remember to completely clear your schedules after MEA.
8. Lastly, here are a few more important dates to put on your calendars:

9/12 – Children’s Auditions – encourage those little performers to come audition!

9/21 – Program Photos – if you are not there that day, your photo will be omitted from the program

9/28 – tshirt and makeup kit orders due

9/29 – Poster plaster

MEA Weekend – Set load in (optional but we’d LOVE your help!)

10/25 – First combined rehearsal with orchestra

10/27 – Sound Tech Saturday

11/3 – Tech Saturday

11/9-11 & 11/16-18 – Performances

11/18 – Set Strike

Please let Kajsa Jones, director (kjones@theloftstage.org) and/or Katie Carlson, assistant director (kcarlson@theloftstage.org) know if you have any questions or concerns. Also, don’t be afraid to reach out to our fabulous booster board all of whom have email contacts listed here: https://theloftstage.org/erhs-theater/boosters/

Thanks!

* Officers:
Abby Feuer (President)
Nolan Sherburne (Vice President)
Maggie Barringer (State Thespian Officer)
Elizabeth Avery (Community Outreach)
Meghan Roeser (Community Building)
Meghan Horan (Historian)
Mrs. Carlson (Advisor)

* Join the Remind! Text @loftpac to 81010

* LoftPAC stands for Loft Performing Arts Community and we have meetings the first Friday of every month

* Season at a glance:
Musical: Les Misérables with Director Kajsa Jones (Nov 9-11 and 16-18)
Winter One Act: She Kills Monsters with Director Leah Jensen (District Festival @ WHS Friday Jan 18)
Play in a Day! Hopefully 2 this year! The directors are you:)
Spring Play: Wendy & Peter Pan with Director Mrs Carlson (May 2-5 with middle school matinee and night performance on the 2nd)

* Register for the musical in the activities office by NEXT FRIDAY SEPT 14! Register on Feepay, and if you do not have an account you can create one. Register for LoftPAC as well:) It’s free, but good to get numbers. ALSO, go to set construction! You need a minimum of 10 hours just for the musical…we will be checking! Monday- Thursday is 6pm-9pm and Saturday is 9am-3pm

* Visit https://store.theloftstage.org/ for 10th anniversary tshirts and Les Mis tshirts ($10 each)

We also have jackets, beanies, blankets, and make up kits

* Stage to screen movie night is Friday Sept 14 @7pm in the Loft!! We will be watching The Last Five Years, so wear pajamas! Snacks will be provided, but remember to clean up after yourself 🙂

* Dramatist Book Club just received its newest shipment! Script checkout and library will be in the theater office soon, talk to Mrs. Carlson for details

* ValleyScare is hopefully happening this year, so talk to Nolan or Meghan R if you would be interested in going!!!

* Stage Combat workshop will be in October! A friend of Mrs. Gullick will be helping us perfect our stage combat (some relating to Les Mis and some just in general) All 3 shows this season have stage combat! Don’t miss this great opportunity!

* Shows to see:
Once Upon a Mattress @ WHS this fall
Little Shop of Horrors @ PHS in the spring
Dear Evan Hansen June of 2019
Play that Goes Wrong @ the Orpheum May 7-12 ?

* Scholars of Distinction definition:
“This awards program recognizes excellence in Minnesota’s top theater students. Students who have demonstrated academic excellence as well as theatrical expertise may earn the honor in either their junior or senior year of high school.”

Many categories: Directing, Acting (straight or musical), Lighting, Writing, Sound, Scenic Design, Hybrid (Comprehensive)

Due dates last year:
Portfolio Submission February 23, 2018
Artistic Showcases April 23 & 28, 2018
Awards Ceremony May 12, 2018
Application due December 16 2017

Talk to Mrs. Carlson if interested!

* New York Trip: summer of 2019, cost and registration TBD. More info coming:)

* Thespian points can be logged on our website under LoftPAC and then under Thespian Point System on the right side of the screen. Rack up points for Thespian Society Ranks and lettering! If you have questions talk to Mrs. Carlson or an officer. PS: it is better to log points as you do things vs waiting and forgetting everything!

Tech Crew Presentation

Please complete the following tech interest form so that we know what you are interested in doing once we start assigning crew roles. Please note that only performance crew positions are assigned and production crews are open to anyone who has registered and would like to join.

Tech Crew Interest Form