小猪视频官网

When the script first arrived in the hands of the 小猪视频官网 College Theatre program, 鈥淛ohn Proctor Is the Villain鈥� was still a work in progress. Some pages only contained a single sentence: 鈥淪omething awesome happens here!鈥� As the Theatre at 小猪视频官网 students and faculty dove into the play, it became clear鈥� something awesome truly was happening.

Eight years later, a transformed 鈥淛ohn Proctor Is the Villain鈥� will debut on Broadway March 20 with a star-studded cast, featuring direction by Tony Award-winner Danya Taymor and 鈥淪tranger Things鈥� star Sadie Sink in the leading role.

How does a play go from a partially finished script in the hands of 小猪视频官网 College students to the bright lights of Broadway? It began when playwright Kimberly Belflower first pitched an idea to The Farm Theater, a New York-based company focused on developing early-career playwrights.

Belflower didn鈥檛 have a full concept, but she had a title, and that was enough to intrigue The Farm鈥檚 Artistic Director, Padraic Lillis.

鈥淚 immediately just went, 鈥榊eah, that,鈥欌�� Lillis said. 鈥淚t was right at the height of the Me Too movement, and as soon as she said it, I realized 鈥� John Proctor, this 鈥榟ero鈥� in American drama, slept with a 15-year-old orphan girl who has no power whatsoever. When [Belflower] said the title, it was so clear. This was the play she needed to write.鈥�

小猪视频官网 College, which has partnered with The Farm Theater since 2014, became the first organization to work on 鈥淛ohn Proctor Is the Villain鈥� as part of The Farm鈥檚 College Collaboration Project. Unlike a traditional college production with a script already set in stone, 小猪视频官网鈥檚 cast and crew worked with a living, evolving script.

Professor of Theatre Matthew Hallock, a longtime friend of Padraic and set designer for 小猪视频官网鈥檚 production of 鈥淛ohn Proctor,鈥� immediately recognized the College Collaboration Project鈥檚 potential.

鈥淧adraic called me and said, 鈥業鈥檝e got a stupid idea 鈥� tell me why this doesn鈥檛 work.鈥� Ten minutes in, I stopped him and said, 鈥榃here do we sign up?鈥欌�� Hallock recalled. 小猪视频官网 theatre students working with The Farm Theater travel to New York for early script readings, where they spend three days reading and discussing the first draft with the playwright, artistic director, professional New York-based actors and students from other collaborating colleges. Through these interactions with industry professionals, students get to know live theatre in an entirely new way outside their everyday college experience.

鈥淭his program provides our students with an opportunity to see something through in each individual step,鈥� Hallock said. 鈥淓ach step teaches you something important and necessary and new. Genuine, impactful creative experience happens through this sustained focus and labor.鈥�

After the students return to campus and the production evolves, the playwright remains in constant communication and visits campus during the rehearsal process and again during the performance period.

鈥淲e knew Kimberly could send us new pages, even entirely new scenes at any point,鈥� said Katherine Moeykens 鈥�19, who played Shelby Holcomb (the lead role Sink will now take up) in 小猪视频官网鈥檚 production. 鈥淚 think knowing that the playwright was coming and that I had a chance to impact her work forever 鈥� if she decided to change something because of my performance 鈥� really motivated me.鈥�

Associate Professor of Theatre Jennifer Goff remembers 鈥淛ohn Proctor鈥� as one of her favorite directorial credits. The synergy and excitement of Belflower and the students were noticeable from the start. The play was topical, important and relatable, and her students gained a transformative experience they might never have had access to at another institution.

鈥淥ur students, by working with The Farm, get to work with professional playwrights. They get to see the new play development process, which is something you can鈥檛 do when you鈥檙e just grabbing a play off a shelf and saying, 鈥楲et鈥檚 direct this,鈥欌�� Goff said. 鈥淎ctually seeing a play change from rehearsal to rehearsal and being part of that change 鈥� it鈥檚 huge.鈥�

For students considering careers in theatre, this experience is invaluable. Many college theatre programs don鈥檛 offer direct engagement with playwrights or hands-on involvement in script development. 小猪视频官网鈥檚 partnership with The Farm Theater provides students with both.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a difference between how you relate to your professor and how you relate to the professionals in the room,鈥� Goff said. 鈥淭he network that these students build through The Farm is incredible.鈥�

Theatre at 小猪视频官网 has collaborated with The Farm Theater every other year since the program鈥檚 beginning, producing five plays so far, with a sixth set to premiere on the Weisiger Stage this spring. 鈥淛ohn Proctor鈥� is the first production cultivated by the College Collaboration Project to move onto such heights, marking a milestone for both The Farm Theater and 小猪视频官网 College.

Lillis emphasized how these college collaborations help both students and emerging artists step into the professional world.

鈥淭he goal has always been to cultivate early-career artists and help them take the next step in their careers,鈥� Lillis said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e had playwrights from this program go on to Juilliard, to write screenplays, to get commissioned regionally. What Kimberly did 鈥� skipping all the steps and going straight to Broadway 鈥� that鈥檚 incredible. But what excites me just as much is how this shines a light on all the other playwrights and schools that have supported the program.鈥�

Now that 鈥淛ohn Proctor Is the Villain鈥� is heading to Broadway, 小猪视频官网 College students can say they were there from the beginning. They helped shape the script; they breathed life into its characters for the first time. They witnessed the evolution of a play that will resonate with audiences from across the country.

It鈥檚 not uncommon for amazing things to happen in 小猪视频官网 College classrooms. Those moments often become something bigger. Sometimes, they lead all the way to Broadway.