Date of Defense

11-14-2025

Date of Graduation

5-2026

Department

Theatre

First Advisor

Dwandra Lampkin

Abstract

This project represents the culmination of all of my research, preparation, rehearsal work, and energy towards the show ‘The House That Will Not Stand’ by Marcus Gardley, where I played the character Agnès Albans. At its core, this is a visual representation of how the intense process I completed behind the scenes led directly to the on stage result I was able to achieve by the end. Over the course of the process- from the day I was cast until the day we opened the show- I committed myself to text analysis, in-depth research, movement and dance work, vocal and accent training, and character development. This translates directly to the motto I always use in theatre "preparation freedom”. Essentially what this means to me is that rigorous prep work doesn’t make you safe, it allows you to have the freedom to play and breathe life into a character, and have a more nuanced and energetic performance.

The director for this show, Dee Dee Batteast, was extremely specific, and would always ask questions like “how does that line land on your partner” “what’s your intention” “Why did you move there?” etc. This allowed me to utilize a lot of time outside rehearsal to come up with a wide physical range of movement and gestures that Agnès could use, and then specifically implement them in the show and know why  I made those choices, so I always had an answer and could justify my choice. At the same time, Dee Dee also expected us to be alive in the moment, and to bring ourselves to the character. This dual expectation of technical discipline and creative choice was extremely demanding, and required me to dive deep into the character, but also take dozens of detailed notes during rehearsal. And then, I would go back into my character document, or song list, or pictures, and find ways to match the creative side of things to the technical work. One example would be during a fight scene in Act Two, Dee Dee kept giving me the technical notes ‘I need you to be stronger, louder, more fierce.” When I went back to my google drive, I re-read my animal work (Jaguar), and then took a few hours to drop into the physicality of that animal while listening to ‘Backstabber’, one of my character songs. I did the scene again that night in rehearsal remembering that work, and Dee Dee said that fight was the best one I had yet, and what she needed. Again, this shows how the prep/creative work will translate to the technical final product, and ultimately pay off. I saw this again when it came time to complete the final week of tech and have more people than usual in the audience. The whole time, they were responding to and with me, and I could tell my work was landing, which shows that the work I did outside of rehearsal helped me be prepared for when an audience was there.

Overall, this project will set me up for future success- giving me more tools, habits, and work ethic to carry into my next roles and creative processes. While the final product is a polished and engaging show, the process is even more important, because it’s what got me to that point. It’s the behind the scenes of how much detailed work and research it takes to do a show, and the level I intend to hold myself to for all the future roles I receive.

Access Setting

Honors Thesis-Restricted

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