OCT’s Blog

Earlier this month, “A Wrinkle in Time” closed and we officially concluded our 2010-2011 season.  But before our final goodbye, we have some exciting news to share.

On June 13th, the Portland theater community gathered for the annual Drammy Awards and just one week later on June 20th, they gathered again for the Portland Area Musical Theatre Awards (PAMTA).  OCT is proud to announce that several artists from our 2010-2011 season were honored.

The 2011 Drammy Awards:

• Outstanding Young Performer: Jack Clevenger, “A Wrinkle in Time”
• Two of our Young Professionals, Sydney Dufka and Tyler Parker, received scholarships from the Portland Civic Theatre Guild. (We were particularly tickled when Sydney stood up in front of hundreds of theater professionals and thanked OCT for the training that gave her to confidence to stand up and "own the stage!" She owned the stage, indeed.)

(Photo of Stan Foote accepting Outstanding Director award by David Kinder.)

The 2011 Portland Area Musical Theatre Awards:

• Outstanding Production, “Alice & Wonderland”
• Outstanding Director, Stan Foote, “Alice & Wonderland”
• Outstanding Musical Direction, Darcy White, “Alice & Wonderland”

Big congratulations to all the winners!

In addition, several artists that we’ve worked with won awards for productions at other companies.  We’re thrilled with their achievements and proud to be working with Portland's top theater artists!  

Thus, I present the Awards Recap—Reflected Glory Edition:

• Vin Shambry, who was great in our productions of “Alice & Wonderland” and “How I Became a Pirate” this year, walked away with three Drammy awards: Actor in a Lead Role (“Superior Donuts”); Musical Actor in a Lead Role (“Songs for a New World”); and as a member of Ensemble (“Songs for a New World”).
• Jeff Forbes, who designed lighting for our production “On the Eve of Friday Morning,” won a Drammy for Lighting Design (“A Chorus Line”).
• Sara Catherine Wheatley, who played Alice in “Alice & Wonderland,” won a Drammy for Musical Actor in a Supporting Role (“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”).
• Justin Mark, an OCT Young Professional and Impulse Company Member, received a Drammy for Young Performer (“Last of the Boys”).
• Margaret Louise Chapman, who costume designed for “How I Became a Pirate,” won a PAMTA for Outstanding Costume Design (“The Christmas Revels”).
• Annabel Cantor, an OCT Young Professional, who appeared in OCT’s “Small Steps” won a PAMTA for Outstanding Young Performer (“Annie”).
• Roxanne Stathos, an OCT Young Professional, who appeared in OCT’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Sideways Stories from Wayside School” won a PAMTA for Outstanding Young Performer (“Find Me Beside You”).
• Mark LaPierre, who designed lights and sound for OCT’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” won two PAMTAs for Outstanding Original Music and Outstanding Original Score (“Heart Beatings”).

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Have you seen A Wrinkle in Time? Let us know what you thought! What was your favorite part? How was it different or similar to what you were expecting?

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Eco-challenge week #7 (Feb. 14 - 18): Plastic recycling beyond the bin.

Acting Academy instructor and former OCT employee Sara Kennedy Adams suggested this for our final eco-challenge. We will collect the plastics that cannot be recycled here at our office and take them to Far West Fibers.

Can you commit to doing the same? Maybe take a monthly trip to a recycling center as a household?

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Week #6 (Feb 7 – Feb 11)
Container consciousness challenge. Our offices are downtown and located next to one of the city’s amazing food cart pods! The delicious lunches comes dished up in to-go containers, which can be hard to recycle once contaminated with food, or not recyclable at all! Next time we’re at the food carts, we’ll be brining our own reusable containers! Same for our lunches we bring from home.

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Week #5 (Jan 31 – Feb 4)
Once per week challenge. We have a lot of bike commuters at the office, but for those of us who don’t bike to work, the weekends are also great times to get out of the car. We’re committed to biking or walking to a destination at least once this week.

Maybe that means walking to the grocery store for a few items, or pulling out the bike for a jaunt to Sunday morning breakfast! Just once this week would be a success!

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Week #4 (Jan 24  - Jan 28)

Veg out challenge. Eating less meat has a big impact on the environment. Many of us at OCT already live a vegetarian or semi-vegetarian lifestyle, but we’re making an extra effort this week! For some the challenge might be just one meal per day, for others a whole week might be feasible. Join us, and let us know how you're doing.

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Have you seen Diary of a Worm, a Spider, and a Fly? Let us know what you thought by commenting on this post.

CLICK ON THE COMMENTS LINK BELOW TO READ REVIEWS!

Reviews from Ticketmaster

Posted 02/01/2011
First time at this theatre and seeing a play from the OCT. Great first experience. My 4 yr old son and husband loved it, as did I. The cast, set and music were wonderful. My son was glued to the stage and characters. Would highly recommend seeing this play.

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Steel piping from an unused structure unearthed from Keller Auditorium storage. Repurposed set pieces from Ramona, Miss Nelson is Missing, and Charlotte’s Web.

Shadows cast onto the backdrop show us what things look like from a bug's perspective!

Used bicycle tires and used real estate signs for textured facade.

Cyclorama (backdrop) made from six used vinyl billboards and painted white on the front side. This is a view from backstage.

"Dirt" is made from crumpled up paper!

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THE COSTUMES

Even the costumes are environmentally friendly! Designer Sarah Gahagan selects used clothing, everyday household objects, and natural fibers whenever possible.

• Fly: Wings are made from car headlight covers found at the Manzanita Recycling Center on the coast and a steamer basket from Sarah’s house. The main costume body is made from recycled fleece, natural cottons, and wool. Additionally, the wood buttons are sourced from a friend’s plum tree, and the costume is padded with padding from a mattress pad!
• Worm: The main body of the costume is made from recycled fleece made from pop bottles.
• Spider: The fur on the hood is from a different hooded jacket. The shirt and shorts were found, and then tailored and custom embellished.
• After the show the costumes will go into OCT’s costume stock, which is housed at Portland Community College.

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Week #2 (Jan 10 – Jan 14)
Travel mug challenge. OCT staffers are tea and coffee connoisseurs, and as result there are often many paper cups in the garbage cans. This week we’re committed to using insulated travel mugs to keep caffeinated and keep cups out of the landfill.

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The theater industry has a long history of reusing and repurposing set pieces, props, and costumes. Not only does it save money, but it sparks creativity and ingenuity, often with amazing artistic results!

 ON STAGE

• Giant leaves made from carpet that was used for a former Oregon Governor Barbara Roberts campaign event.
• Used bicycle tires and used real estate signs for textured façade.
• Cyclorama (backdrop) made from six used vinyl billboards and painted white.
• Paint remainders from the set design studio's existing stock.
  • Additional paint purchased by OCT will go to Metro’s Central Hazardous Waste Facility as part of their conditionally exempt generator program.
• Reused Styrofoam for giant acorns and spider egg.
• Reused wood from the set design studio's stock.
• Steel piping from an unused structure unearthed from Keller Auditorium storage.
• Repurposed set pieces from Ramona, Miss Nelson is Missing, and Charlotte’s Web.
• Rented disco ball.
• Borrowed bungee from BodyVox.
• Caster wheels salvaged from old set pieces.
• One moving spotlight as opposed to multiple lights saves money AND energy.
  • Because this a world premeire play, OCT will most likely present it again in the next four to five years, which means that all set pieces and costumes will be stored and used for other plays.

NEXT UP: The Costumes

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In support of our production of Diary of a Worm, a Spider, and a Fly, and in the spirit of new year’s resolutions, the OCT administrative and box office staff are taking a weekly green challenge! We'll be reporting on our progress, and hope you'll join us for a greener 2011.

Week #1 (Jan 3 – Jan 7)

No recyclable left behind. Like all good offices in Portland we recycle a lot of paper, but it can be hard to remember to recycle everything, like plastic yogurt and salsa tubs, milk cartons, etc. This week we’re committed to paying closer attention to what goes into the trash, so that we can keep up the good habits all year long.

Here are some great resources for easy-to-understand information on recycling.

http://www.oregonmetro.gov/index.cfm/go/by.web/id=29041

http://www.oregonmetro.gov/index.cfm/go/by.web/id=20432

Here is a photo of one of our trash cans "before."

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What did you think of the show? Your comments are helpful for others who are considering buying tickets, and we value your opinion!

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Costume design by Sarah Gahagan.

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Photos by Owen Carey

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