Rogue Elephant Productions prepares for more theater at Clary Gardens
Rogue Elephant Productions brought a new approach to theater to Coshocton last summer and is excited to prepare for more outdoor theater in 2022.
The production company presented “I Wish” featuring an all-children cast and “Into the Woods” in August 2021 at Clary Gardens in the amphitheater.
“Both of them were very well received,” Mark Kittel from Rogue Elephant Productions said.
“Into the Woods” ran for two weekends, and “I Wish” ran the second weekend of the adult production.
“Our hope was that people would want to come see it and stay for ‘Into the Woods,’” Kittel said. “We had a lot of patrons stay for both. ‘I Wish’ was the perfect length. It was about 35-40 minutes but still had substance to it. We had a really good cast of kids with a lot of regulars who have been in children’s productions at the Triple Locks Theater, which sadly couldn’t hold productions through 2021 (due to COVID).”
Kittel’s family moved here from Albany, New York, and Rogue Elephant Productions based its vision for the amphitheater off a similar way a theater company worked there.
“They charged admission for chair seating up front, and the amphitheater seating was all free,” he said. “There were nights when they were doing popular musicals that their amphitheater was packed all the way to the back. People would be standing because there was no room to sit.”
Kittel said this approach to seating created accessibility and availability to the arts for everyone.
“For our next performance, the people who sit up front may possibly be part of the show,” he said. “The rest of the seats will still be free for people to come and enjoy the show though.”
To make sure the amphitheater is not too crowded due to continued COVID concerns, patrons will have to reserve their seats online.
The next Rogue Elephant Productions show being planned is “Godspell.” It will be performed Friday through Sunday, July 1-3 and Thursday through Saturday, July 7-9 at Clary Gardens. All shows are evening performances, except July 3, which will be an afternoon performance. Kittel is very thankful for grant funding from the Coshocton Foundation, which is helping make this show possible.
“When we did ‘Into the Woods,’ we didn’t have our 501(c)(3) yet,” he said. “We were just getting started and didn’t have a lot of options for funding at that point. My wife basically fronted the money to cover the licensing cost. We were hoping with ticket and membership payments and donations we could at least break even from the licensing perspective. We won’t have that problem with ‘Godspell,’ thanks to the Coshocton Foundation covering our entire licensing cost. We weren’t expecting them to cover the entire cost. We are very gracious for that.”
Auditions for “Godspell” will be held by appointment Tuesday through Thursday, Feb. 15-17.
“We are still hesitant to do a mass group audition,” Kittel said. “We want to limit exposure to COVID as much as possible.”
Kittel and Amy Jo Burton will do auditions.
“We are looking for people to prepare an upbeat rock tempo song,” Kittel said. “It can be Broadway or contemporary. They also will do a short cold reading. We want to get a sense of how people act. One of the things about ‘Godspell’ is that there is a lot of room for improv and playing around with material. We want to see what people can do on the spot.”
The roll of Jesus is already cast, but they are still looking for five women and four men age 16 and up. Auditions also will be held for musicians to join the live band. To make an appointment, message Kittel on Facebook, email reptheaterohio@gmail.com, message Amy Jo Burton on Facebook or call Kittel at 740-624-2146.
Kittel will be the director of “Godspell,” the music director is Burton, costume design will be by Mary McMullen and set design will be by Amanda Kittel.
“We are really thankful that the community came out and supported our first productions in 2021,” Mark Kittel said. “We hope to pack the house for ‘Godspell.’”
Category: Arts & Entertainment
