Young Lady from Rwanda - Now Extended!

Good news, everyone! Young Lady from Rwanda has just been extended until June 29th. The additional dates and times are listed below.

ADDED DATES

Wednesday, June 25th at 7:30pm

Thursday, June 26th at 7:30pm

Friday, June 27th at 8:00pm

Saturday, June 28th at 2:00 & 8:00pm

Sunday, June 29th at 2:00pm

I'm also sticking in some quotes from the reviews we've received--and of course we couldn't be happier about all of the wonderful comments we've heard from people who've already seen the show!

"...a play you simply cannot miss."

Main Line Times

"an open, intimate and beautiful play."

City Paper

Young Lady from Rwanda Journal - Week 4, by Miriam Hyman

Week 4
Well, we are finally open and running until the 29th of June. It has been a tough but very rewarding experience thus far. After we open there aren't any more rehearsals, so with the support of our stage manager we are able to keep the show at a good pace and keep it alive. Our audiences have received the play well as far as I can tell. We, David and I, speak to the audience a lot so it is imperative that we build a genuine relationship with each participant from the beginning or at least with those who are willing, which have been most. It can be odd sometimes when you try to speak to an individual and they look down or away. Some are nervous, some are intrigued, some want to deal with the material, some don't. Nonetheless, my job is to tell Juliette's story and I'm going to do it. Her story, the genocide against the Tutsi Rwandan people, is worth an hour and a half of diligent listening. So I hope you attend and be open to the experience. Till next time.....

Young Lady from Rwanda Journal - Week 3, by Miriam Hyman

Week 3

To start this week off, Elizabeth Pool, our dramaturg for this show, set up a meeting for me to meet with a woman from The Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians, an organization that assists foreigners from many different countries to become permanent PA residents. I was fortunate to have met with a woman from Sierra Leone. I won't share her story but I will say that she gave me much more insight as to what my character was feeling during her troubling times. I incorporated this insight and applied it to my character development. I'm off to learn lines and study blocking.

Young Lady from Rwanda Journal - Week 2, by Miriam Hyman

Week 2

We are up on our feet. This week the director David Bradley will begin to block myself and David Ingram, the other actor in the show. We will begin to understand the space and there is an example of the set sitting on the director's table. We start to form the beginning of the play and slowly work through all the scenes, figuring which blocking is interesting and/or a problem for sight lines. Again, another difficult part of the process because we are performing this piece in a three-quarter stage, meaning that the audience will be on three sides of the stage. So we have to engage all sides at all times.

Young Lady from Rwanda Journal - Week 1, by Miriam Hyman

Week 1

We begin the week of rehearsals by doing table work, reading through the play, discussing characters, and the play’s overall journey and purpose. It's difficult material because of a few reasons: it's based on true events, a horrible one at that, and inspired by real people. My goal for this week is to do a bunch of research about Rwanda itself, the people, their cultures, lifestyles and so on. At rehearsal, the dramaturg and director are kind enough to share several reading materials, such as What Is the What, Life Laid Bare, We Wish to Inform You that Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families, and Left to Tell, just to name a few. During this week I will also watch many films to give me precise images of the horrific disaster of genocide in Rwanda, such as Sometimes in April, Hotel Rwanda, Last King of Scotland and Ghosts of Rwanda. For me it is necessary to see what my character would have seen. I also observe these films to listen for dialect references and natural rhythms of speech. This is a busy week for me because, in addition to all this research, I must constantly learn lines, more lines, and more lines. Luckily, I began learning lines and doing research before I came to People’s Light to begin the rehearsal process for I Have Before Me a Remarkable Document Given to Me by a Young Lady from Rwanda. It is a tough process, but there is no place I would rather be and no other show that I would rather do than what’s in front of me. My mission is to do Juliette's (my character) story justice.

Young Lady from Rwanda Journal - An Introduction by Elizabeth Pool

From our Resident Dramaturg Elizabeth Pool:

This spring we are thrilled to be working on Sonja Linden’s play I Have Before Me a Remarkable Document Given to Me by a Young Lady from Rwanda. The piece explores the horrors of the Rwandan genocide and tells the story of Juliette, a young survivor struggling to find her story and her voice. Miriam Hyman plays Juliette and agreed to give us a glimpse at her process for creating this character and this play. Over the rehearsal period she will check in with us on a weekly basis to blog about her experience. We hope you will enjoy this peek into an actor’s world and will join us for I Have Before Me a Remarkable Document Given to Me by a Young Lady from Rwanda.

Getting Near to Baby Journal - 4/18/08

Opening Night with the cast of GETTING NEAR TO BABY

We were backstage with the young cast members of Getting Near to Baby on opening night. Here they share how they managed the nerves, jitters, and excitement:

Katie Johantgen (Liz Fingers): Opening night was glorious! My mom, dad, little sister, and her friend were there. The house was packed and really friendly so it made it a really fun and exciting show.

Claire Inie-Richards (Willa Jo): I didn’t want my family to be there on opening night because I knew I would be nervous and didn’t think I could handle the pressure. It was really fun though and I felt great about the show - that took a whole lot of the nerves away!

Maggie Fitzgerald (Little Sister): Opening night was thrilling. I had my mom and grandfather there to support me. Opening night always gives me goose bumps and makes me nervous, but I turn all my nervousness into energy!

Getting Near to Baby Podcast, with Willa Jo!

Click here to listen to a podcast interview with Claire Inie-Richards, who is playing Willa Jo in Getting Near to Baby. What would you have asked Claire if you had done the interview? Write us a comment and let us know!

Getting Near to Baby Journal - 3/10/08

Making It Work

The talented young actors in Getting Near to Baby balance quite a bit between school, rehearsals, and other activities. Here they let us in on how they make it all work.

Meg Rose (Cynthia Wainwright): Management of school, rehearsal, and the rest of my life has been surprisingly easy on some days and impossibly difficult others. One of the many things I have learned is to manage my time. Doing everything ahead of when it is due is the key to my easy nights. By everything, I mean memorizing lines and homework. I am in the 8th grade at Westtown School and everyone’s support is what helps me get through the two plus hours of homework after a five hour rehearsal.

Claire Inie-Richards (Willa Jo): I am home schooled, actually it is called cyber school. I do my schoolwork on a computer at home so it doesn’t really get in the way….thankfully!

Katie Johantgen (Liz Fingers): It’s tough! The most important thing is making sure I’m communicating with all of my teachers so they know my schedule and can work with me to keep me up to date with my homework. I also have to do my best to go to bed early so I get enough sleep, but that’s hard too. I would say it stinks being so busy, but I’m doing what I love to do so it’s fun.

Nathaniel Brastow (Isaac Fingers): I have to be very organized and I need to do things when I have time to do them. I have to think ahead.

Maggie Fitzgerald (Little Sister): It is certainly a challenge to balance school and rehearsal. I usually get all of my homework on Monday (our day off) and do it on Monday nights and on breaks during rehearsal. All of my teachers are very supportive of my career and help me keep up.

Getting Near to Baby Journal - 2/29/08

"Finding My Inner Meanie", by cast member Meg Rose, who plays Cynthia Wainwright in the production.

In Getting Near to Baby, the character of Cynthia is a cookie snatching, goodie-two shoes, know-it-all bully who no one likes. Everyone has a Cynthia in their life. In fact, let's admit, everyone has a Cynthia lurking inside. The initial joy I felt when I was cast soon turned to panic when I realized that audiences might hate me. But then I started to think about why she behaves the way she does and I started to feel sorry for her. I started to understand her meanness and hoped the audience would understand her too, so I didn't come off mean. Then I was told that onstage if you play your character as mean as you can you're doing a great job and if people tell you that you were really mean it's a compliment. I realized that Cynthia needs to be in the play, without her, there wouldn't be the "villain." But I hope I wouldn't be mean like Cynthia in real life. That would be rude and "without charm." Besides, my mother would kill me. Onstage it's different. You get to be bad without getting in trouble. But it's not as easy as you may think-- it's a challenge to let my inner meanie be seen in front of people. I don't want to be interpreted as mean, but it took a little while for the thought to sink in, the thought that the audience doesn't see me as mean, but they see Cynthia as mean. Honestly before it feels fun it feels hard. I have to focus on what Cynthia wants and not let any thoughts about what people think get in my way. Then it's pure pleasure.

As an added bonus for you guys, here are some pictures from the rehearsal:

Cast members Nathaniel Brastow, Katie Johantgen, Susan McKey and Meg Rose.

Maggie Fitzgerald and Nathaniel Brastow.

The very crowded rehearsal room!