Steps To The Stage
Steps To The Stage
STTSIE Riverside Community Players: Unveiling Agatha Christie's Towards Zero
Dive into the fascinating world of forgotten theatrical treasures with our premiere episode of Steps to the Stage Inland Empire! We're pulling back the curtain on Agatha Christie's "Towards Zero," a mystery play with a remarkable history that vanished from the stage for decades after its American debut in the 1940s.
Director Christopher Diehl and cast members Emma Kuhn and Veronique Poutre' take us behind the scenes at Riverside Community Players, now celebrating its astonishing 101st season. Together they unravel the mystery of how this Christie gem disappeared from theatrical history after being commissioned for Broadway during World War II. What makes this production particularly special is its rarity - unlike Christie's well-known works, this play has been performed only a handful of times since its rediscovery.
"Towards Zero" turns the traditional murder mystery formula on its head. Rather than beginning with a murder and following the investigation, it builds methodically toward the crime itself. As one character poignantly observes within the play, "Murder mysteries are done all wrong - the murder should be at the end, not the beginning." This meta-commentary on the genre predates similar self-aware approaches by decades!
The drama unfolds entirely outdoors on a cliffside estate called Gull's Nest, where a famous sportsman has uncomfortably invited both his current wife and his ex-wife for a holiday visit. The tension between these women, portrayed brilliantly by our guest actresses, forms the emotional core of a story filled with atmospheric elements and psychological depth. Staging this outdoor setting in Riverside's intimate theater-in-the-round creates a uniquely immersive experience where audience members sit mere inches from the unfolding mystery.
Whether you're a dedicated Christie enthusiast or simply love discovering hidden theatrical gems, join us for this production running August 29th through September 14th. Experience a side of the Queen of Mystery you've never seen before, and discover why community theater continues to be the beating heart of performing arts in the Inland Empire.
www.riversidecommunityplayers.com
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All righty, we are recording.
Speaker 2:There's no inner peace in this show, so you're totally fine.
Speaker 1:So we've started off properly. Yes, exactly.
Speaker 1:All right, I love this. Welcome to Steps to the Stage Inland Empire, where we talk to the community theater professionals from the vibrant Inland Empire theater community. Welcome to Steps to the Stage. My name is Kirk Lane and I'll be your host today. We'll be talking with the theater professionals you know and love. We're really excited because today is actually our premiere episode of what we're going to be calling Steps to the Stage Inland Empire or Steps to the Stage IE Inland Empire or Steps to the Stage ie.
Speaker 1:As you all know, we primarily have been covering productions at the local theater in Chino 7th Street, but we've also expanded into our drama department. We want to give some more love to the whole theater community in the Inland Empire because it is thriving and has been thriving for long before I came along, and so we're really hoping that now, as we expand into some of the other theaters within the Inland Empire, we can get some more involvement, we can learn some more about theater and really just get people out to see these amazing live productions at multiple different theaters and venues throughout the Inland Empire. So today we're really excited because we are at the Riverside Community Players Venue and we have a really cool. Really cool because I'm just finding out before we got on the air that this is something that really has. It's an Agatha Christie production Towards Zero and it hasn't really been out there.
Speaker 1:That much. Am I getting that correct? You are correct. All right With us. We have Chris who is our director, we have Veronique who is part of the cast, and we have Emma who is part of the cast, and we're going to be talking about this amazing production today as well as a little bit about this theater. Chris, I know you've done some productions here before.
Speaker 2:Why don't you give us a little bit of an intro to the Riverside Theater? Well, I've only been working with the Riverside Community Players for a small fraction of their existence. This is actually the 101st, if you can believe it. 101st, 101. Season, yes, 101st season that they've been here, and it's really quite amazing. They have been a mainstay of the Inland Empire for generations, so I'm so pleased to be able to kick off their next century.
Speaker 1:That is pretty crazy to think, and I know that some of the other local theaters have had a couple of decades of of productions, but to think this is the 101st season is very, very impressive. So well, that's great, and I'm sure we're going to do some more episodes here and we're going to learn more. Maybe we'll do a special episodes with some of the people that that work here directly and that are part of it. We can 100% that's great. So here we are.
Speaker 2:This is Agatha Christie. This is Towards Zero. We want to hear more about it. Well, one of the things, speaking of the theater, that they are known for is they do a lot of Agatha Christie here. They do a lot of murder mysteries in general, but Agatha Christie, of course, is the queen of them, so they have done a lot of her plays over the years, and one thing they wanted to do for their 101st season was to do a season of entirely new shows, at least as far as new shows to their theater, because they repeat shows over their audience favorites and stuff like that.
Speaker 4:Their last season, the 100th season, was a um.
Speaker 2:The last 100th season was a retrospective so this is a kind of a spin on they did shows they've done before. Yeah, they let. So they let their patrons kind of choose.
Speaker 1:That's great, their season of past shows that they've done, but intentional, though. Yes, that's great, and you're paying homage to those that have been here before and then bringing new stuff on now, which is fantastic.
Speaker 2:Yeah, starting a new century, new shows. So they wanted to do a season of that and they know Agatha Christie is popular. But what are they going to do? They've pretty much done everything she's written. But I actually brought this play to one of the board members and I said did you know this play had actually only recently been discovered, in the past decade? And it was.
Speaker 2:I'll try to give a quick history of it because it's rather tortured. Yeah, uh, but uh, the schubert's, uh, the schubert brothers, I think I think they are the famous producers for broadway right, uh, back in the day, uh, this is we're talking the 1940s, so we're talking world war ii era and agatha christie's very, very popular, uh, novelist, and she had had her first Broadway hit, which was and Then there Were None in New York, and it was produced by the Schubert's and they wanted to have a follow-up. So they actually commissioned her to write this script, which was based on her current popular novel Toward Zero. At the time, wow, that was getting a lot of good reviews and very popular. So they commissioned this script and they did a tryout production in Martha's Vineyard.
Speaker 2:So this is actually the only Agatha Christie play to actually make its debut in the United States. Wow, they usually start in England and then they may transfer over to Broadway. Which is what? And then there were none did Right. But this is the first one that actually made its debut here and just strangely it just kind of vanished after its initial production. The Schubert's apparently wanted some tweaks before it went to Broadway. They had asked Agatha Christie to come to America and perhaps work with them. Why it never happened. She never got there. It was the end of the war.
Speaker 1:Okay, could have had a bit of a factor.
Speaker 2:Travel was not easy necessarily at that time, and she was also a very, very popular novelist. So she had so many things going on so it never got produced on Broadway. The script just kind of went back into the archive. Their option lapsed on it so it never got produced by them and it just kind of got lost. And another author years later did an adaptation of his own Towards Zero and that kind of became the standard version of it. If anybody did the show it was his version of it.
Speaker 1:And so when that happened, was Agatha still around? Does she need to approve what was happening?
Speaker 2:Or her foundation or whoever were her, they would have needed to approve that. So it is kind of strange why she didn't say, well, I already have my own script.
Speaker 1:Such a popular name, it's surprising that it doesn't have.
Speaker 2:Yes, and it's funny because this title has actually recently become a bit more known because there's a BBC BritBox series of it that just came out with Angelica Houston and a few more prominent people. And I haven't watched it yet because I kind of want to keep myself pure for this. Sorry, I don't want to be influenced. And I know they padded out because it's like four episodes or something like that, so it's longer, but I believe they keep pretty close to the story. But yeah, we're excited about that Because it really has only just recently been available for theater companies to produce. So there really are very few people that have seen this actual production.
Speaker 1:Definitely it's not been done in the Inland Empire.
Speaker 2:No, not that I know of. I know I think in Long Beach recently they might have done a production of this, but it was not this particular Agatha Christie script, Because one of the things that's interesting about this particular version the other version is set inside in like a drawing room. You know, kind of typical what you think of like British you know, drawing room.
Speaker 2:You know they're drinking tea, somebody drops over dead. But this is set outdoors. The whole play is set outdoors. But this is set outdoors. The whole play is set outdoors. It's on a cliffside, overlooking Easterhead Bay and this hotel across the way. It's called Gull's Nest. Gull's Nest is the name of this big home that's on the cliff, and so it's very evocative, it's very atmospheric. So I'm really hoping that you know one of the things.
Speaker 1:I neglected to say about.
Speaker 2:Riverside Community Players. Is it's in the round? Yeah, so it's one of the few theaters in the area.
Speaker 3:I don't know of any other theaters close by Redlands. Could technically be it, but it's more, that's.
Speaker 2:Footlighters yeah, they have a. They're more of a stadium kind of yeah, set up, but this is completely in the round, so we have we don't have a lot of opportunities for set guys. So you know, we're we're going to try to do as much as we can in other ways. But that is one thing about this theater it's it's in the round and it's very intimate, like if, if, if you sit in in watch one of these shows, you almost feel like you're on stage with the actors. It's not that it shouldn't scare anybody You're not actually on stage with the actors, but it is a very intimate experience. And so if you like kind of theater like that, where you're not like miles away from and you can really see everything and all their expressions and everything like that, it's a great theater.
Speaker 1:Sounds like a wonderful playground for an actor. Speaking of which, why don't we talk with our two friends that are with us here today and get a little bit on their background as well as their involvement on the current production we're discussing towards zero?
Speaker 3:Emma, I don't even know what to say, but with Riverside I wanted to comment that I think it's the most immersive and recently I've been doing a lot of immersive productions. So to have that in the community theater in the Inland Empire, I think it's a great thing to do. And it especially gives the guests a look inside. You know how Chris described it. We don't make a set, but with how this theater is and with how we have the direction and a great crew, we like this place has become so many things.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:But with my background I would say, like I've been doing this for a few years, almost 10. Yeah, actually no 10. I lied, I started 17. And I've actually. My first show here was in Agatha Christie. Okay, appointment with Death was the first one I did, which actually, interestingly enough, I think is kind of brings some similarities to this one which I really enjoy, kind of brings some similarities to this one which I really enjoy. I would tell the audience for this show, come and be really surprised that, you know, even though it may not have the famous Perrault, but it has such great characters and it really she lends each character to their development.
Speaker 2:Okay, and even though it is a Especially with these two that I have here today. They have two of the juiciest parts in the show, because they shared the same man.
Speaker 4:Uh-oh yes.
Speaker 2:Uh-oh.
Speaker 3:Yes, we have, we are technically both strange Technically, but yeah, I should explain technically both strange Technically, but yeah.
Speaker 2:You should explain that perhaps yes, that's their name yes, it's our name.
Speaker 3:I play the character Kay Strange, which I am, the second wife to Neville Strange.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 3:Would you?
Speaker 2:say maybe he was the Tiger Woods of his day.
Speaker 3:There is a little bit of golf in here.
Speaker 2:Juicy, juicy, juicy. He's famous. His character is famous.
Speaker 3:He's a bit of golf.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and perhaps a little bit of cheating.
Speaker 4:Just a womanizer, that may have happened.
Speaker 2:Maybe a little bit of overlap he's, he's, he's a very, uh, he's, he's a rather well-known, okay, sports figure. God you know who, kind of almost all around you know he does all sorts of things, uh, but anyway, he k is his second wife, his second wife and and veronique plays audrey, his first wife, and he's trying to bring them together to be friends Wonderful.
Speaker 4:And why would he want to do that? What?
Speaker 2:Why would anybody want to do?
Speaker 4:that. Why would they?
Speaker 2:Especially with these two, well, kay is. A cat. Talk about Kay a little bit, maybe Emma, because she's interesting.
Speaker 3:Yes, Kay is very interesting. She is very stubborn. She's a strong-headed woman who knows what she wants.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 3:And regardless of whoever is married to her, in charge of her, she will get her way and she knows that. But you get to kind of see in this show a bit of, I would say, a breakdown of all of that. I think what's really interesting about this show again is looking at this from like a psychology point of view. There are, so there's again they're such meaty, juicy characters in that she made them well-rounded. I think a lot of characters sometimes are very one note, this is them and a lot of people can just be like okay, well, she's like the villain or he's the hero.
Speaker 3:This one is very leveled and with Kay, I believe she's young but she's smarter than I think most people think she is Okay and she may put on more of a facade than we give her credit for.
Speaker 3:I really adore this character. She can be a lot of fun but she can be really serious at times, um, but she, she can be caring as well. I think a lot of people when they see the show, I want them to go on the journey with her because there's a lot that she has to grow up and go through. But I think you know, especially back in those times, women, we knew our place or we felt a certain way about who we were and the housewife or this or that. But with, I think, even these two characters you kind of see the heart of them, that I think a lot of people like a lot of characters that I've seen recently in Murder Mysteries you just kind of see, like I said a one note. But Agatha Christie does such a good job in getting to the meaning of these characters and why they're in, like what conflicts are in, and giving them a purpose.
Speaker 2:Beyond, just as suspects.
Speaker 3:Yes, yeah Well.
Speaker 1:I think the character's in good hands, because I've known you for a number of years and I've seen several of your productions, and so I'm very excited to see this production and to see you at a different theater, because all of the times I've seen you have been at the 7th Street.
Speaker 3:And.
Speaker 1:I know you've done work at some of the other theaters as well too.
Speaker 3:I've done. Yes, Technically, my first production was actually at Rialto Community Theater.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 3:It was a production of Little Shop of Horrors. I was ensemble but I loved it and it was so much fun. And then I got into Farce, which was extremely fun.
Speaker 1:Yes, I love. Several of the productions I've seen have been farce that you've been on A little funny, but I know our characters in good hands and I've known you for a while and I appreciate you giving us that insight. But this is our first time that we've been able to meet, so I'd love to hear a little bit about your journey to your character.
Speaker 4:Oh well, boy, my journey to my character. I mean, I've loved acting since I was little and I've started my community theater career in 2017 at this theater with Dracula. That was very fun. I got to be British and that's my heart's content. I've done a few things at Redlands, one at Rialto and mostly here. I really enjoy this round. Everyone asks me about trying film. I don't like film, I don't like the camera, but I do feel like this theater is as close as you can get to being on stage, is what it feels like to be on film, because it is so intimate.
Speaker 1:I love that. I love that description, and so I would love to hear about some of the other characters, or more about a little bit of your history, since I've not had the honor of seeing you perform yet.
Speaker 4:Oh well, I.
Speaker 2:She's a star here. She'd probably be embarrassed for me to say that, but she's been in a lot of shows this year and she's a favorite. I love that. She's spectacular.
Speaker 3:She really dives into each character and works off of like the person who's on stage with them. I feel like a connection is always there when I walk on stage with her.
Speaker 2:Emma, thank you, you're welcome and she's very she's just a very sensitive actress and this part that she's playing is especially sensitive and I knew that I needed somebody that would be able to respond to that and who could handle such a sensitive character with sensitivity I'm saying that word way too much, but still, you know what I mean Like these kind of roles could be done in a crude or, you know, just in a way that, yeah, that's just not fair, or to the character. And, like Emma said, these are not just one note characters and I wanted to make sure that we had people that can find all the layers to it, even if we can't always reveal all the layers all at once, right, but and Audrey is certainly one of the most mysterious characters that you're just kind of wondering- so Audrey Strange.
Speaker 4:Audrey Strange.
Speaker 1:And in in line of wives is she. She's number one, number one Got it?
Speaker 2:Yes, in many ways yes, I think.
Speaker 1:And is were you familiar with this production at all before you auditioned?
Speaker 4:Not at all. I've honestly had a little bit of a lower opinion of Agatha Christie. Okay, because I've never worked on an Agatha.
Speaker 1:Christie, that's going to be my next question, so I'm glad that you shared that with us.
Speaker 4:Last year I assistant directed at Footlighters and I was very sad to not have been on stage. I couldn't believe that I decided to assistant direct instead of audition. Um, and I knew that I would love to work with Chris Steele. Um, he's the King of Agatha I I. I've almost worked with him before and we won't go into that right now, but, um, I'm really grateful to be able to be under his direction. He he has a very in the in the most constructive sense, a very critical eye and he really wants the show to be exactly what his vision is. And it only because he can see it so clearly and then he's able to express that to us and that's amazing as an actor, to know what I'm supposed to be doing. I mean, the text gives you enough, but it's very helpful to know the meaning behind it for the entire show. When you're just looking at your own lines, you're focused on what you're doing, but getting blocked on stage is, I mean, it's been very we're done almost yeah, yeah.
Speaker 4:For the meat of it, we are done.
Speaker 1:And your production doesn't open until the 29th of August.
Speaker 2:Right, so you're in a good spot. They still have to be off book.
Speaker 1:Yes, right.
Speaker 2:So, as you know, that's a journey in itself. Yes, it is. So that's where the real fun begins, and I'm glad to hear you say that, veronique, because sometimes you sit and you're like, should I just let them keep going or should I say something here? Should I stop them? Am I not letting them have enough freedom to explore some of these scenes? And hopefully I feel like I give there's freedom within a framework.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 2:I'm hoping that that's kind of what my goal is that I show them what I want and then within that I kind of let them go, with maybe sometimes pushing them in certain directions at certain times, but I always want it to be a collaboration. I've had directors that have just told me this is what you're doing and if you challenge them, it's almost like they just don't hear you, and I've been in that situation as an actor and I never want to put my actors in that situation. So I try even if they ask me something and I know that it's not what I want I try not to shut them down immediately and always want to work with a compromise, because you don't want your actors to go on stage hating something that they're supposed to do, that you want them to do and they do not want to do it.
Speaker 1:And sometimes in the process. It's nice for them to find that direction there, maybe without from you, and maybe if you know that they're going to get there eventually, it will help them to absorb that during that process. I've had a great experience with Chris. I've only acted a couple of times and you were the director of the first production that I was in, so I appreciate that, and I was an adult, very much older, had never acted I'd been a performer, you know, as a musician but the kids were very involved and so Chris and I had the opportunity to work there and it was a fantastic experience. So I hear what you're saying, because there was a lot of nerves on my part, because I was not a trained actor per se I didn't mind being on stage, things of that nature, but it definitely. I felt like you gave us the opportunity to be a part of that character. While giving us the directions that were needed, you allowed us to give it a little bit of our personality and help us to find those, those, those parts or those characters.
Speaker 2:So that's great.
Speaker 1:I appreciate that you do that and I think being an actor as well has helped.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I can tell you that the nerves never really leave you. With every new production that you're in as an actor, it you feel like you're starting over. You're just on the ground floor again, and and so I know that you know so. Every time I work with people that I've worked with many times, like Emma, you know I'm always amazed that when she seems like she's like it was like, okay, you know, am I doing all right?
Speaker 2:No, like, of course. Like you know, I've worked with you so many times like you're brilliant, you know how did they not know that? But you know, you have to be told these things.
Speaker 1:That's good, though if you know that your actors are feeling that with each time. I mean, I know that as a performer, like if I go out and I don't feel the excitement or the nervousness, something's probably not right. That energy is really what gets us out there. So who else do we have in the cast? How large is the cast, and are there other people you want to mention?
Speaker 2:It is, I believe, 13. Okay, so it's a rather substantial cast for a play, yeah, and especially for this rather small, intimate space. I don't think there's ever a scene where everybody is on stage. I think it's the curtain call. It's basically the first time everybody's on stage at the same time, everybody's on stage at the same time. But we have several people that are kind of mainstays here at Riverside, like Rory Dyer, who I've worked with before and she's wonderful. She plays Lady Tresillian. She's the kind of matriarch of the place that we're at, so it's her home that she's coming to and she's a very home that she's coming to and and she's, she's very, very colorful character, Love her it's perfect because she's the president of Riverside Community.
Speaker 1:Players. Thank you, love it. Thank you for mentioning that. Thank you for bringing that up.
Speaker 2:That's fantastic. Yes, and help, help me out. We have a Mark Anthony Flynn who plays. In fact he was in our if you saw the Poirot double bill here, he was in that, along with Emma also was in that, and he plays Neville. We've already talked about Neville. And who else? Ralph Griffey is playing our Irish butler. We have a lot of accents in this show.
Speaker 1:Typical.
Speaker 2:Agatha Christie. We have Scottish yeah, we have Scottish, we have Irish and we have lots of various English, various English yes, for sure. And we have a few people from that were recently in man of La Mancha.
Speaker 4:Including Rory. She played Sancho, and then we have Marlon Kane, who played Dr Carrasco in man of La Mancha, and then Aaron.
Speaker 2:Ramos. Thank you and.
Speaker 4:Aaron Ramos, who was a very terrifying Inquisition member muleteer. Yes, he had a mask on the entire time and now I get to see his sweet face as the sergeant.
Speaker 1:He's such a dear, I love him, so it sounds like you have a pretty experienced cast.
Speaker 2:Yeah, any newbies or everyone.
Speaker 1:Well.
Speaker 2:Alison Harris. She has, I believe, only done one other show, okay, and it was a murders announced here at Riverside Community Players. So another Agatha Christie. So she's come out and I'm thrilled to have her. She's excited to be back on the stage and Mark Robertson is I don't know if he's ever done a show at Riverside. He's directed Christmas Carol and he had to step in as Cratchit Okay scenes with Audrey, and you know he in fact he's the one that gives the show its title. Kind of the general conceit of the show is Angus's, where he says he thinks murder mysteries are done all wrong, where he says the murder should be at the end instead of the beginning and that the most interesting parts are all the things that lead up to a murder.
Speaker 2:And he's kind of like, you know, scream years later where characters in Scream are talking about the tropes of their own genre that they're in. You know, and that's exactly what Angus is doing you know decades earlier where he's talking about murder mystery tropes and his own theory about murder mysteries and basically setting the audience up for what they're about to see.
Speaker 3:Really, and I would say that with this one, like actually speaking of that, I feel that this one, each of our characters, is very much what I would call a murder mystery trope, but with such detail Because Agatha Christie didn't really. You know, this was years before Scream, this was years before. You know, the prom queen, the Texas.
Speaker 4:Chainsaw Massacre.
Speaker 3:Exactly Like. So I think what she did was she like again we, she is the queen of mystery and murder mystery and what she does with each of the characters. Now, thinking about it, it's very much that she could have given Kay just such a one note. Audrey's such just you're just mysterious, whatever. And then Angus, even like like Angus and Audrey, you can kind of see the mystery between them. But again she delve into it. She delve into her like thought process and really gave us such amazing work to work with.
Speaker 2:And I don't think you know where this is going. Like, I think I feel like in intermission people are going to be like where is?
Speaker 2:this going, Like what's going to happen? It's, it's interesting, but you just don't see, like, like with the typical murder mystery, you think of people, you know, like I said, sitting around drinking tea, somebody dies, an inspector's on the scene, they interrogate everybody and then you have a solution at the end where he gives the big solution. That is not what this is at all. So if that's what you think you're coming to, you'll be pleasantly surprised, I think, Because at a certain point you're just gonna be like, where are these, where is this going? What are these characters? And you really are not sure. And that's what I love about it, one of the things that I love about it.
Speaker 1:What I'm excited about is I wouldn't say that I'm an Agatha Christie aficionado, but I grew up watching various different Poirot movies or series and so you kind of have a you know the popular ones, I guess I'll say that and you kind of have exactly like you say, you know the formula. What I'm excited about this is I know nothing about it and so, like I might have a preconceived notion in that it's Agatha Christie, so I'm going to be looking for those things, but I don't know what happens when I see any other Agatha Christie. I know what happens, so I'm critiqu be looking for those things, but I don't know what happens when I see any other Agatha Christie. I know what happens, so I'm critiquing the performance or the delivery of it. So I'm excited for you guys, in that your audience gets to not only see your wonderful performances but they get to learn about this actual production that doesn't have, say, the popularity as some of the other stuff, the popularity as some of the other stuff.
Speaker 4:So that's got to be fun as actors to kind of know that you have the ability to create that character per se, in that you haven't looked at 15 other adaptations of it, if that makes sense. And even since there are, I mean I tried to watch the Brickbox one and I don't know if we should say that Angus is not in that.
Speaker 3:Yes, there's so much that is actually like they've added too much. What I feel is a little like this one, like how I think chris picked the perfect where it's the amount of characters you want to like invest in. It's not like other little mini stuff that you're like wait, hold on. Where are we?
Speaker 4:going with this, but well yeah, it's, it's not, it's, it is. I think it's beyond a murder mystery. It is that meta kind of I mean, and especially in this space. I mean with all the sound. I know Chris keeps telling us to be louder in rehearsal because we're going to have outdoor sea sounds.
Speaker 2:Yeah, gull sounds. It's called Gull's Nest, so we got to have gulls.
Speaker 1:Well, let's transition into that, because of this is our first episode here and we have not seen a production. That's me Sorry. I would love to know how are you going to accomplish that in the round and how much of the audio and the video and costuming and props and things of that nature are involved to get the story across. Things of that nature are involved to get the story across.
Speaker 2:Well, we're going to do our best. As far as you know, the round goes, we have Patricia Scarborough is right out there. She's working on our wonderful stage floor because that's one of the things that can be.
Speaker 2:A star at Riverside Community Players is a great stage floor because everybody's kind of surrounding it and looking down on it. So we're outside, so we have a little grass, we have some patio, we have the wonderful Carrie Jones, who is a brilliant scenic artist, who does work at UCR and also Rialto Community Players, and she's done stuff for me at Chino Community Theater, but she's wonderful and she's going to help create some of the. There's not a whole lot of places where we can put, kind of you know, a backdrop, right, but we do have one little place that we can show, you know, the water and the hotel across the way that we talk about so much. And then you know Kylie Reeves. So she's done so much with me and I drug her to this show and she's going to work some of her lighting magic and you know, to try to make it.
Speaker 2:As you know, we have one thing we have an impending storm in one scene that I really love. So you know we're going to have a lot of thunder and lightning and so we're going to do our best. You know this is not the sphere, you know. So there's. You know we're a little limited to what we can do in that regard, but we're going to try to do our best as far as to make it as atmospheric as possible and evoke the outdoor setting.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and to go with what Veronique was saying earlier about your direction, like to just kind of give you even more credit. Where you need it is that you have such a critical eye in seeing where we've been too long, because that's the thing. And in the round you have to be consistently moving so everyone can feel and see what that specific character is doing and feeling and going through. And, like we were discussing earlier, you, chris, bring up discussion versus, I think, an argument.
Speaker 3:I think that's a big thing that a lot of directors have a hard time with. It becomes either an argument or a discussion With Chris. It's always a discussion. It's always oh, hey, I just I think we need to move you or we need to do this and you, you have such a great eye for the round and I've just I've I feel so comfortable and I like not only with the actors but with you like it's hard, it is extremely hard, I feel, to be in the round and I think what the best thing is is he will consistently move throughout rehearsals, like one time he'll just be at one spot and then other time like he'll move.
Speaker 1:Become an audience member at each part of the theater to understand how it's being received.
Speaker 2:As an actor, you just like. There are times where I said you know whoever I'm talking to.
Speaker 2:I've seen your back for the last five minutes, you know and it's a beautiful back, but yeah but if you're an actor and you're, you know, kind of in the zone, you're not going to think of those things necessarily, but you do in this theater and you kind of have to drum it into some people's heads that you just always have to. The audience is really part of the show here and you really have to take the audience into account at all times. And it's especially that's true for anything theater, but especially here.
Speaker 1:Your acting is. I mean, you can't hide behind the set. You can't hide behind anything, You're right out there. You're right out there.
Speaker 2:Sometimes they're within inches from you, Like if you're sitting, you know, on a little table on the side of the stage, they could be just an inch from you. And so that's even true of our props. We have to make sure our props, if they're reading a newspaper, it can't be the Daily Bulletin you know, with a pasted headline on. It has to look real and so it challenges you for sure, and thankfully we have a great I have a great crew, that's-.
Speaker 1:Did you mention who's doing costuming?
Speaker 2:Rory is she-.
Speaker 4:Fabulous.
Speaker 2:And she has such an eye for this period too. And in fact, behind you right now is the costume and if you go in there it's almost like it suddenly all pops out.
Speaker 4:It's amazing how much and it's dedicated to her father. Yes, it's the Dyer Costume Library.
Speaker 1:So by your reaction I'm assuming you've worked with her before and you don't really need to say anything to me, because I saw your reaction when you said her name, Chris. But I mean, tell me more about how you've worked with her before and what she's been able to accomplish.
Speaker 4:Well, I first worked with Rory as a costumer and she costumed me in Little Women at Redlands Footlighters back in 2022.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 4:And she was just. I mean, she's lovely and I say this with so much love. She's the most curmudgeonly lovely lady and she is just Got so much on her plate. She cares so much about this theater and does so much for it. Usually she'll come out and she'll do the greeting welcome to everybody, but when she's in a show she will give that up, hopefully, Especially doing this show, being in it and costuming. I've never really seen her do that before. It's either one or the other.
Speaker 2:Well, she doesn't have to worry about blocking for this one. She's in a wheelchair the whole time, so she just gets pushed around.
Speaker 3:That's what you know, younger lover and she, from scratch, sewed this gorgeous dress and I was so obsessed and I was like, is there any way? Any way I could get it.
Speaker 1:And she was so sweet she let me buy it.
Speaker 3:But again, it's just she, like Chris said, she has such an eye for each era and also, very like Chris, gets people who are very critical, just as he is, so that he can get the best of the best. And even the costumes that she has had us try on just recently are perfect, even, like you know, just discussing, she was talking even about the length of some dress. She's like I don't even know about this, is it too long, is it too short? She's very, very particular and even just like, even though she's in the show, she's still seeing like each character for who they are and what they would have.
Speaker 3:Like I would say Kay is very fashion forward. She very much is probably reading every magazine she can get and making sure that she has she's on the trends, like she's. Honestly, she'd probably be an influencer if she was here today, but with Audrey it's a very, you know, different. She's Rory's very particular about making sure every character has their particular style Because it just, you know, sometimes you go into a show and you watch and if the costumes aren't what they are, it's like, well, I'm not involved. And even with props, like you were saying, like if we had like a magazine that said like TMZ. It's like, well, okay, what era are we in?
Speaker 2:It's very easy to get pulled out of the story. You know so. If everything is right, you just don't want to do that. You know I hate this phrase when people say, well, if they're looking at this, then we're doing something wrong. Well, somebody's always looking at that. There's always an eye that's going to something.
Speaker 1:And you're in the round.
Speaker 2:And if you can do it. You know like sometimes your budget. You know you can't always do everything you want to do, but I always like to see that people have tried.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know, and I feel like we try, we at least try.
Speaker 1:And what's amazing for me to hear and you know, being a part of so many different of these episodes but also productions at the 7th Street Theater that community and the people that it takes to make it happen. Just before I came here, I was helping with one of the children's which was just like a week-long camp thing, and then they do a little production at the end. Who knows, one of those 25 kids may be that next superstar actor that's out there, and so you hear these stories at all these community theaters across not only Inland Empire but all over the place in Europe, because we know we have a lot of listeners in Europe. Sorry, I'm doing a real straightforward plug here. Theater to the next level, right, make community community and allow the patron to come in and forget everything that's going on and be immersed in this Agatha Christie production or Seussical or whatever it may be. You want to just forget about that stuff. And so costuming, lighting, audio, set, props, all of those things are so important, so-.
Speaker 2:May I mention a couple people that I have out.
Speaker 1:I was just going to ask you is there other people that we need to talk about?
Speaker 2:Well, we have Philip Kaczynski who's playing Thomas Royd. We love Philip. We have Charlotte McKenzie, who she is another one who's done so many things here and she's Collie. She plays Lady Tresillian's companion. Okay, and she's very funny.
Speaker 4:She's a wonderful board member as well. Love that. Yes, yes.
Speaker 2:And I also have Takira Williams. She's playing Dr Wilson and I think that is it.
Speaker 1:I think I hit everybody else and I apologize to anybody in the cast if I forgot you Cast crew and especially this theater as well, which we're so very excited to have been able to do our first episode here. So you guys open the 19th and you no, no no, no 29th 29th sorry, that's why I probably should have looked down here at my notes and it goes through September 14th and tell us how we can get tickets.
Speaker 2:Well, you can go on the Riverside community players a website. You can also find them on Facebook or Instagram and they and they always have like a QR code that they post on on their social media things. So it'll take you right to be able to purchase the tickets or you can call them, and I'm sure the number is. The number is on that piece of postcard you have there, our box office is area code 951-686-4030.
Speaker 1:Again, that number is 951-686-4030.
Speaker 3:And the times have changed as well.
Speaker 1:Thank you for bringing that up. Yeah, because I'm really appreciative of how much we've been doing it on Facebook and social media. Thank you for bringing that up. Yeah, the 30s panelists let us know what's going on in your country, because we want to learn about community theater outside of the us as well. We want to thank all of our listeners, as always, for tuning in. We want to thank our guests here today for spending some time to give us a little bit more about towards zero, chris, anything you want to leave us with uh, no, uh, except, come to the show.
Speaker 2:It's going to be great. Check out the riversideide Community Theater, riverside Community Players social media account, because they do do. We will be having a video kind of promo of our show. So if you cannot come to see it, if you are one of the European listeners or whatever and you check out the video, you can at least get a little taste of the show and what we're doing.
Speaker 1:Thank you for bringing that up, Ladies. Anything else you want to?
Speaker 4:I do have something real quick. I had a realization last show doing man of a Mancha Um it, it wasn't really my favorite experience. I love that show a lot and as I was going out there to do it, um, I realized we had it was a show full of members Not members, they're season ticket holders.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 4:And I realized, oh, this is like Netflix. What we're doing this is a subscription service. You don't have to watch Netflix for the month that you. You don't have to come to this show, this man of La Mancha but there are people that do. There are people that click on the latest Netflix thing that they're going to see and sometimes it's good, sometimes it is what it is, and I just think it's really interesting to think of what we do at Community Theater as a subscription service to sell, to get an idea, to sell more of that season ticket holder. It's a good deal. Sell more of that season ticket holder it's a it's a good deal. The season tickets, it's like 40, maybe 65 dollars for tickets to five shows which are 20 of pop yeah, I mean, you can't beat that you know, and it's community theater.
Speaker 3:I think the biggest thing for, uh, like I would, my last thing to say is that this is community theater. Please come and support the. This is where most people start, um, and get their passion and their love, and I am so grateful for such an amazing and talented welcoming cast, and thank you, chris, for this opportunity again. Um, and yeah, I think this is a. This is you had said earlier. It is not the formula that agatha usually does.
Speaker 2:So I think to you know, get a fresh take on her, if you may not like formula this is not formula and to enjoy that kind of aspect of her just wanted to give a little plug to community theater in general, because sometimes it gets a bad rap and because it is the place where people start and because it's in perhaps a smaller community or it doesn't get the same funding or budgets that you know professional theaters get. You know the Geffen or wherever Pantages I've seen some of the best theater ever that I've seen. You know. I've seen Broadway. I've seen the West End. I've seen, you know, professional shows in LA. One of the performances here, terranova that they did quite a few years ago was incredible. It was one of the best acted shows I've ever seen and it was just amazing. And I've seen so many amazing community theater productions and that people are shocked that you know this podcast started over in 7th Street and Chino but the other drama departments.
Speaker 1:But seeing all the people that are listening to our episodes all across the country but all across the world. We know there's an audience out there. We know there's a bigger audience that hasn't had the pleasure of experiencing some of these moments. I'm a sports guy, I guess, is what you would say. That's why I grew up right. I didn't start acting until I was in my late 40s, as we mentioned. My children were all involved and that's how I got involved.
Speaker 3:And they're extremely talented.
Speaker 1:Well, I'm biased and I'll receive that, share that with them and appreciate that. And they are talented and I am very proud of that. But I'm proud of all the friends that I've made over the course of this oh, just under 10 years that I've been involved. But I don't see a future that I'm not involved one way or another in community theater. My job is in tech so I get to put on shows all the time, but there's nothing like this morning going in firing up that system and seeing 25 kids probably most of them their first performance ever and their families. They're just absorbing this on this beautiful stage with lights and and in all the number of productions that I've seen. So I thank you so much, chris, for bringing that up, because I think it's so important and I don't think we get as much love as we should on the community theater side. But we're growing and people are telling two friends and telling two more friends and so on and so forth.
Speaker 3:You can find love there too. I mean, I'll say, some people are a result of that.
Speaker 2:We've had some marriages at Chino Community. Theater I don't know if they've had them here, but yeah, it certainly brings people together.
Speaker 1:So thank you everyone. Community Theater brings people together. You're going to see an amazing production here. Thank you so much to our guests. Thank you so much to Riverside for supporting the community theater world and listeners. Come get your tickets, come be a part of this, go to wherever you're from, go support your local theater, community theater at your schools. Go see your kids' plays, enjoy it, support it. Thank you everyone. Have a great day.
Speaker 2:Thank you, Kirk, for letting us be your debut.
Speaker 1:Thanks, kirk, thank you everyone. Have a great day. Thank you, kirk, for letting us be your debut. Thanks, kirk. Thank you. Or visit our website. Steps to the Stage was created by Joey Rice and Kirk Lane. Logo created by Marlee Lane. Original music by Joey Rice. Executive producer, editor and sometimes host, kirk Lane.
