Ray Bradbury’s Kaleidoscope
Ray Bradbury’s short science fiction play plunges 7 astronauts aboard the Apollo 99 Mission into the depths of space after a meteor strikes their rocket, leaving them with only a fading radio connection and 45 minutes of air. From there, there are a variety of reactions - some angry, some accepting, some humorous - to their inevitable fate.
This production took place in James Madison University’s Studio Theatre, where all productions are student-led. With a budget of $500 and three weeks, our 18-member company delivered eight performances from October 6th-10th.
I choose to stage Kaleidoscope in the round and challenged the actors to connect emotionally to one another without every facing the same direction. Staring into nothing but the black abyss, they were in constant motion over the 45 minute show to create the illusion of “floating” through space. Through movement workshops and lots of experimentation, each actor found a flow that best matched their blocking, stepping up and down off platforms and coordinating their lights turning off with their deaths.
While Kaleidoscope was a passion project of mine, it was also an opportunity to refine my holistic directing style with an emphasis on team welfare and morale. We had many conversations as a company to ensure that nobody felt overworked or overwhelmed by either the demands of the show or the schedule behind it. I do not believe in glamorizing overworking: therefore, the Kaleidoscope rehearsal room promoted student actors and designers taking care of themselves so that they could better focus on the product. Rather than overburden the design team, I gave each member one design challenge to solve and encouraged them to focus their energy on solving that. I advocated for ‘Excellence Through Simplicity’, my philosophy that great work comes not from having thousands of ideas but one or two well-developed ones.
Kaleidoscope, JMU 2022 Production Credits
Directed by Anna Christensen
Stage Manager: Sabrina Simmons
Scenic Design: John Toner
Lighting Design: Carter Lindley
Sound Design: Chloe Banazak & Megan Frigerio
Costume/Props Design: Kathryn Wevley, Ivy Ridenhour
Cast: Jo Shelton, Maddie Miller, Savannah Gravitt, Will Chapman, Sydney Miller, Matt McPherson, Rylan Farey, Malik Jallow, Peyton Meadows
Photography by Alex Tuszynski