MM Vision Meeting

VISION MEETING

MASTER CALENDAR

OUR TEAM COLLABORATION

INDEX

MAMMA MIA! SHOW INFO

THE VISUAL WORLD

PRODUCTION ANALYSIS

STORY

THEMES / IDEAS

WHY IS SET DESIGN ALWAYS AHEAD OF OTHER DESIGNERS?Scenery tells the us and the audience what world they are entering and can reinforce our thoughts about mood, conflicts, and ideas in our show. Directors start with this aspect of the show as it could influence all other aspects of the musical world we are creating. It can also provide designers with visual variety and staging opportunities to express that world cohesively and with a clear relationship to our collective interpretation.

DIRECTOR'S ANALYSIS AND FIRST THOUGHTS – week 0

• Team comes ready to talk and ask questions about the show. At this meeting, the director will share a detailed analysis of the piece, identify major themes, and highlight personal resonances with the text/music.

• For the designers, a list of questions for the director is expected, as well as concrete thoughts about the piece's structure, themes, and meaning.

INTERIM – All designers meet with the director (as individuals or in sub-groups) to further explore the ideas presented in Meeting 1. During these meetings, they will have deeper conversations about the story, basic staging needs, and overall aesthetic, as well as sharing their initial research.

WHAT IS A VISION MEETING?

Meeting 2 – RESEARCH & INITIAL APPROACHES (September 30th, 2023)The expectation for this meeting is that all of the designers will come prepared with a 10-15 minute response to Meeting 1's vision presented by the director. This meeting is predominantly geared toward scenery and costumes; however, lighting and sound designers should be proactive, sharing their ideas and research as well as props and special projects.Presentations can be in whatever format the designer wishes to present their ideas.If possible, these materials will start to be posted on the Trello site (if applicable) as a single file for each designer. Trello will help to oraganize and combines all of their research and ideas, rather than a large collection of individual files. This will immensley help our collaborative efforts.INTERIM – Individually or together, designers meet with the director (a minimum of once; more is recommended) in order to share ideas that move toward a more cohesive design. Each meeting should be set up by the designer to fit best with everyone's schedules.

WHAT IS THE NEXT RESEARCH MEETING?

NEW HIRES!

Aubrey Krepps

Jessica Pugliano

Michael Hertzog

Hi Barbies!

#kenough

#kenough

Crew Chief

Tech Director

New roles!

It all started when ABBA took Eurovision by storm in 1974 with 'Waterloo'!

A JUKEBOX MUSICAL!

What is left to say about a show that has been seen by 60 million people in 40 countries and has been translated into 23 languages?

MAMMA MIA! CONCEPTS

Full Synopsis

Mammia Mia! is the tale of Sophie and her single mom, Donna, who run a taverna on a Greek island. Sophie is getting married to her boyfriend Sky, and she invites to her wedding three men who could be her father, Sam, Harry, and Bill. Each man had a fleeting relationship with Donna about the time when Sophie was conceived. Naturally, confusion abounds, and there are many opportunities for situational and verbal humor, as the three men show up, along with Donna’s backup singers from her musical performing days.

Driven by ABBA songs!

The plot...

The theatre is a sacred space. It invites creativity, collaboration, and connection; it beckons us to be innovative, encouraging, and brave; and we are made better each time we share in the emotion and vulnerability of live storytelling. Theatre is life.

Concept Statement: Mamma Mia! is a story of connection and transition.

From a movement perspective- the most engaging thing to watch is ones’ authentic expression of self. Musicals don’t typically give you that often. Mostly you are met with a glorious synchronicity of stylized dancers. Not to say that those artists aren’t genuine within the confines of what they’re doing; they are. Merely saying, that this art form can sometimes lack a sense of spontaneity and individual representation that one only finds at weddings, parties and... dance parties- a prime outlet for anyone to jump up and live in their own self- expression. With ABBA’s infectious music, MAMMA MIA! offers the opportunity to embrace the freedom of being on an open dance floor, all the while celebrating the enormous influence ABBA has had on pop culture and honoring the spirit of abandonment they imbued in their fans all over the world. When we think about transition, we can envision a high school reunion. Going back to the past realizing you and the others surrounding you are different, yet the same. In our lives, we transition from season to season and must navigate the waters the sometimes force us to make decisions; even decisions of spontaneity. It is through theatre that we find connection. Our audience begs for connection to our stage and to our characters. We hope that what we produce onstage allows them to access tools that they can then take with them as they leave our doors.

Populating the world of this musical as additive characters Emphasizing the power of a groupApplying pressureChorus as the storytellersChorus as spectacleChorus as engagers

PSA: There will be no haunting images of happy villagers standing in the background.

The songs were written primarily for a quartet, so the soloists frequently need backup. This supporting chorus often sings from on stage, but sometimes also emerges eerily from under beds and out of rocks or walls. These songs are the real point of the production and what pushes the plot forward. In it's original Greek meaning, the chorus is a powerful and enormously useful element of musical theatre writing and production. It is what creates dynamic theatre.

No...really!

A GREEK CHORUS

• Cast size : 45 (+/-)

• Crew size : Small (may need to think outside the box on what program to run this year as projects will get done early)

• Director and Chroepgrapher are ONE... Weekly meetings and choreographing now!

• Production team : Present to the cast one week in advance of your tech needs (Examples: Costume Parade, Wet Tech, etc.)
• Tech schedules in the Master Calendar, please find a date that corresponds well with your tech rehearsal and let Tatylor know as soon as possible so we can get that added to the calendar!

Here we go again!

COMPANY NOTES

This is disco music, as was made abundantly clear by the “bows” encore for which the cast appeared in glorious white, flashy, sequined costumes to reprise the three most famous of ABBA hits: “Mamma Mia,” “Dancing Queen,” and “Waterloo.” It's (basically) nonstop and a goal to get the audience on their feet. This will also most likely be our school preview line-up, but more to come later on that.Most production driven bows I ever did see...

Bring on that dancing light show!

BOWS REIMAGINED

Inspiration photos that will drive our production

SIMPLICITY / MINIMALISM

Inspiration photos that will drive our production

THE AEGEAN SEA

Inspiration photos that will drive our production

GREECE LIGHTING

SOPHIE's ROOM

BEACH

DONNA's ROOM

COURTYARD

PROLOGUE

SET DESIGN

Blue (Dads), Purple (Dynamos), Sky blue (sky friends), Pink (sophie's friends), Orange (rando's)

BOWS (Empty stage (added lighting towers ON from wings and 1st electric IN)

WEDDING (Chair placements)

JETTY 2 (Ending scene)

JETTY 1

SET DESIGN

PRODUCTION ANALYSIS

PROPS

CHOREOGRAPHY

SPECIAL PROJECTS

SOUND/MUSIC

LIGHTING

COSTUMES

FLOW CHART

TRELLO

MASTER CALENDAR

Feedback is welcomed on all! Nothing is decided as this structure will be a chain of communication. Please check your calendars and let us know by the next meeting (September 30th) if you have any conflicts!

REDUCE.REUSE.RECYCLE.

video

quote

VISION MEETING

Antione de Saint-Exupery

"Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."

Referred to as a ‘jukebox musical’- a show that features popular songs from a particular or variety of artists - MAMMA MIA left an undeniable impact on modern musical theater history. Between the 1970’s and its debut in 1999, there were only 17 shows that fell into the category of jukebox musical. Post its meteoric splash, there have been over 70 jukebox musicals created - Jersey Boys, We Will Rock You, Rock of Ages, Beautiful, and Escape to Margaritaville, to name a few. MAMMA MIA! trail-blazed an entire genre into popularity and elevated a style that currently dominates Broadway.

THE ADDAMS FAMILY

• Coehsive energy that paralllels story
• Connects multiple groups together
• Allows intellectual and imaginative investigation for the actor
• Produces texture
• Unify a company surrounding challenges and unique abilities

Chorus as engagers

Building upon performances by integrating them into action.

INTO THE WOODS

• periodically moving the story along and reminding the audience that a story is being told, forcing awareness of the theatrical event.
• Redefining in a more overtly theatrical role with far-reaching implications, allowing its members to move scenery in character.

Chorus as storytellers

Functioning as a commentator or storyteller, slipping into and out of the scene as necessary.

PHANTOM OF THE OPERA

• The chorus outnumbers everyone else.
• Telling the audience where to look and provide visual focus.
• Movements and patterns can visually express a change.
• Movements and transitions physically move the scenery to add a larger impact to the emotion or drama of a scene/thought

Chorus as spectacle

A large group of people onstage presents the opportunity to create strong visual impact and focus.

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF

• evolving from broad group identity
• Assigning names, detailed given crcumstances, and relationships
• Creating opportunities useful for the stage
• Meeting dozens of people, having a clear sense of the world without any additional dialgoue added to a scene.

Populating the world of a musical

The more specific we define characters, the more textured and interesting this world can be.

THE DROWSY CHAPERONE

• portrays different levels of society
• puts social pressure on important characters
• provides obstacles to those characters' desires

Applying pressure

Ancient Greek drama: a collective pressure on principal characters to take action, reflect on their past actions, or to consider new options.

ANYTHING GOES

• The chorus should tell us how we should feel.
• Vocal and physical presence helping to conduct the scene.
• Eloquently and efficiently tells a part of the story, helps to create vignettes within an overall action.

Emphasizing the power of a group

Reinforcing important dramatic moments and amplifying the emotional experience of the central characters and the audience.