Virginia Tech’s Department of Theatre Arts and Cinema will be kicking off the main stage theater season at the end of February with Thornton Wilder’s “The Skin of Our Teeth.”
I’m letting you know so you can mark your calendar and come to the show. I’ll wave to you from the stage.
My name is Dan Waidelich and I am in a play. I also happen to be a features reporter for the Collegiate Times and if you are a regular reader you might associate my name with articles about theater, music and the fine arts.
When I told my editor about my involvement in the production back in November, the idea of a weekly “inside man” column came up.
The concept is that I will write a column every week through the end of February, detailing the rehearsal and production process of “The Skin of Our Teeth.”
I hope you’re ready for the adventure.
“The Skin of Our Teeth” was first performed in 1942 and Wilder, already a beloved American playwright, won a Pulitzer Prize for coming up with the crazy, darkly comedic story.
“Skin,” as we affectionately call it, focuses on the Antrobus family, who Wilder created to be the symbolic representatives for all of humankind. As the play begins, audiences find the family trying to escape an encroaching ice age by pulling close to the living room fire.
The rest of the play thrusts the Antrobus family forward through time as they struggle with the darker parts of human history.
If that sounds confusing, that’s OK. The play is an allegory.
I received an e-mail about auditions for the show in early November and immediately knew I wanted to try and nab a spot in the cast. I haven’t acted since my drama club days in high school and I would dearly love to replace some of those awkward “Glee”-like memories with some new ones.
With only two weeks to prepare, it was time for the nerve-destroying audition process.
Prospective cast members were asked to prepare a monologue from an American Realism play. At the time, I had no idea what that meant since I’m only a theatre minor and I only take the fun classes. Just kidding. Kind of.
Anyway, after thorough research I found my piece and immediately set about memorizing it. The audition rolled around, and I knew I was ready.
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