LU Moment

LU Moment: Behind the scenes with Caitlin Grammar | S4 Ep. 45

October 30, 2022 Lamar University Season 4 Episode 45
LU Moment
LU Moment: Behind the scenes with Caitlin Grammar | S4 Ep. 45
Show Notes Transcript

This week on the LU Moment, LU alum Caitlin Grammer reflects on her passion for theater and talks about her debut as guest director of LU theatre production "Lost Lake." 

For updates on the latest news and events at Lamar University, visit lamar.edu/news.

Shelbe Rodriguez  0:00  
Welcome to the LU moment where we showcase all the great events, activities, programs and people right here at Lamar University. I'm Shelby Rodriguez, Public Affairs Manager here at LU. And guess what guys? Welcome back to this week's episode of the LU moment all right listen exciting things happening this week right as we exit out of spooky season we're heading into November where the be Department of Theatre and Dance they are gearing up to present last Lake and engrossing and revealing Ooh, we're live at engrossing and engrossing and revealing portrait of two strangers bound together by circumstance. And it was written by David Auburn and directed by LU alum guest artist, Caitlin Grammar, guys, you won't believe it. Of course you will. Yes, you will. I have Caitlin Grammar in the studio with me today. Caitlin, thank you for joining me on the Leu moment this week. Thank you for having me. Alright, so Caitlin, give us a little bit of background. What year did you graduate from LU? What degrees that you earn? Tell us

I graduated from Lamar in fall of 2019. My degree is a Bachelor of Science in theater and dance with an emphasis on acting.

Oh, exciting. So my question to you is when did you first fall in love with theater? You've been at this a long time was a very long time. Yeah.

Probably sometime. Well, I grew up dancing. So I had I had this dance teacher whenever I was growing up who like over the summers, she would put on these very theatrical dance programs. And I participated in those but I did like I joined theater in middle school. Like I took a theater class. Yeah. So pretty early, at least like middle school.

Possibly. Yeah. And so you were in theater at SFA?

Yes. I went to SFA for two years before I ended up transferring to Lamar. Yeah, I was. I was involved in the theater department there. I was a theater major.

And so anytime I have an alum or a student on the show, I always ask why Lamar University? Tell us why did you choose? Well, you

know, fully I chose him. Like I chose Lamar, because I was here. I'm from Port Neches. Oh, perfect. So I moved back home. Um, not too long before Hurricane Harvey hit Wow. Um, I was a college dropout. I knew I wanted to go back. And I didn't know when Yeah. And when the hurricane hit. I remember having a conversation with my husband where we were like, it's now or never like, I need to go back to school. And I met with the one of the professors at Lamar who is now the interim chair, Joel girthy. Yes, I had a conversation with him about like career goals and what I wanted out of going back to school, the types of things I wanted to work on, and he, I don't want to say convinced me, but like, I left that conversation, feeling good and wanting to go to Lamar, so.

Yeah, and you enrolled into how was your experience here at all? You had a great

time. Yeah, I really enjoyed what made it so great. I mean, it was a large combination of like, the professors and the students that I worked with, um, yeah, I, I was nearly done with my core classes when I got here. So I really was only in and around the theater department. Yeah, I didn't live on campus. So I can't speak to those parts of the experience. But I I felt very cared for and supported by all of my professors, all of the support staff that I worked with. I made lifelong friends and I got to do some what I got to make some pretty good theater while I was here, or I think it was pretty good. So Oh, I love

that. That sounds like the dream experience, especially transferring you you never really know what you're gonna get. You're like yeah, right. You know, this seems cool, you know, but once you get there you don't know so I'm glad you had an amazing experience. I'm gonna take a second to read off some of your credentials that I no doubt pulled from your website Miss grammar. Alright guys. So listen, Caitlin Grammer, she's got tons of credentials behind her name. Some of her live theater credits include co choreographing "Spamalot" Ooh, her stage management credits at Lamar University include "The Importance of Being Earnest," I love that plane. And "The vertical Hour," and the "Curious Incident of the Dog in the NightTime." She's also directed gruesome playground injuries and "Permanent Collection" by Thomas Gibbons and "The Boar." He acting credits include Helene in "Ghosts." Oh, I love that one. That's a good one to "The birds," which is my favorite movie of all time. 

It was spooky. Yeah, really little creepy. Oh, so my biggest question for you is what inspired you to direct last Lake?

Um, I mean, realistically, when when it comes down to like, the season selection at either like a university or even like a big theater. That really is kind of like a higher up decision. So Joel and Alan Brinks, I think are the season selectors. So the play was already the players already selected in play and in place and I was brought in later you were brought in? Yeah, so I can't I can't pretend I picked it. But it is a very good play.

I wonder what made them bring you in? Screams Caitlin Graham, I guess, man, and so, but let's get into a little bit of your experience directing this play. How As guests directing this play, maybe differ from guests directing others or directing others in general?

Well, it's every other player that I've directed. I've been a student. So when I directed, permanent collection, for example, I did that my last semester here, I was a student. So it is very different. It's interesting and difficult to be in a leadership position over your peers that are also your friends that like, you have to go to class with and you hang out with them. And but then, like, every night from six to 10, you're in charge of them. Yeah. So it's definitely like that. Dynamic doesn't exist right now. Because like, I'm an adult, not that they're not adults. They're college students, but like, I don't I don't go to school with them. I don't go to class with them. Yeah. I'm definitely like a separate entity. So that would be like the big differences, like the my relationship with the people I'm working with is a little

synthesizer per meter per day production as like, not student but Right. Caitlin's my first time directing director post college, yeah, host college. And so how does that feel? Do you feel the pressure on your shoulders of like, Okay, I gotta get this, right. Like, I'm not in the, you know,

sort of, partially Yes. And partially, no, it's very exciting. I'm really excited. I was, I'm happy to be back at Lamar to like that is. That's really cool that I was invited back after graduating. But it is interesting. When I was a student, something I experienced was like, I wanted everything to be perfect all the time. And because I recognize that, like, once I graduated, that was like my last time to screw up. Like, you know what, I mean? Yeah, once you're getting paid, you can make big mistakes anymore, but Right. So it was definitely like I was I was so focused, and so serious. And now it's, it's easier for me to be like, we can have a good time. And like, it'll be fun. And the play will still be good. And yeah, we don't all have to be mad at each other. And so like, I'm, I'm more relaxed. Yeah. Now, because, like I recognize, especially being in an academic setting that like this play is really for the students. Yeah. So I mean, I'm having a great time. And I'm still very serious. And I still want the play to be good. Yeah, obviously. But I think like, the stakes are just in a different spot,

different spot. And it's probably the fact that you're too busy focusing on the college students trying to bring them out of their shell and get into the character. You're like, Okay, this isn't about me, I don't have time. Here's how we can best do this play and make it work. And so as a director, I'm sure a casting goes along with directing, right? What makes the best cast? Like how do you sit and choose? I'm always so curious, like, do you like what do you do? What's that process?

Um, this time was really interesting, because I didn't know almost all of the students that audition. So in the past, like, I was also a student. So they were people that I worked with. So I knew like, oh, this person's kind of seasonality. This person's hard to work with this person is easy to work with. This time, it was just fully I also was out of town. I moved back to Beaumont, like two months ago. And casting happened before that. So I was like, FaceTimed in Why do an in person audition for So almost everything? I think there was one person that I had worked with before. That was like a student when I was here, that's still here. Everybody else. It was brand new people, new faces. And they did. They did monologues for audition. So I just Yeah, I just watched all your monologues and took notes. And then I had a phone call with the some of the theater professors afterwards, just like asking questions like, tell me about this person? are they responsible? How are they in class? Like, those were some of my questions. Because really, I mean, my opinion on this type of thing is I would rather have someone that's a slightly worse actor. That's really great to work with than somebody that's just like, yeah, the next superstar, but they're like a total diva.

Yeah, you know what, honestly, I didn't even think about that. You're looking at responsibility and like, are they gonna show up to practice? I didn't think I thought like, the number one priority is like, Okay, can you act can write the emotion. Can you cry?

I mean, maybe depending on what the show needs, but sometimes it's not worth it. For the really the best. Sometimes it's your greatest you've ever seen. Yeah, me? Yeah. Cuz if they make rehearsal miserable for everyone else, then,

you know, man, so speaking of that, like, what makes a good scene partner? Like, how do you choose? Because what this play is about a dynamic duo? Right? Who that's like, okay, these two have the chemistry.

So I think, um, if I had been in person and it had been like lengthier audition process, you definitely like you can give them you know, like pages of the script, and have them like cold read them together, and you can switch people out and see who works well together. And who doesn't. Yeah, we didn't really do that with this show, just because we had auditions. And we were casting two shows at once the first show of the season clean house. One and Alan and I were both pulling from like the same. So it was sort of like, I kind of liked this person. Does Allen also kind of like this person, which play would they be better? And there's a lot of that in academic theater. Yeah.

Oh my gosh. And so yeah, that's a lot. There's a lot that goes into directing a play. I Literally, I mean, I think most of us who don't live in that world, right, we just think, Okay, pick the cast out there. And then all right, tell people what to do. But, you know, it's so much more than that. And so let's get into what kind of person is going to love last Lake?

Um, I mean, I think really anyone? I'm in it? Well, it's certainly it's definitely not a comedy. So yeah, I think there's some people that like, they only want to go see a comedy. So everybody bought that person

you want to live the scene to play for maybe not? Maybe, maybe not? Maybe not. But even more importantly, what do you want the audience to be thinking about on the drive home after seeing this play?

I think I want them. I what I would really like is that, while they are here and watching the play, I would really like for them to recognize in each of the characters that like, they know people like those characters, or they are people like those characters. And I think a big part of the show for me is your first impression of someone, and then sort of like subverting that as you get to know them. And really just kind of that idea of like learning how to have empathy for someone when you get to know them.

But when I had Alan in here, Alan talked about because I asked him a question of like, okay, how does this play differ? Because he was telling me Okay, um, clean house has been done time and time again. Right. And so I was like, Alright, so how do you manage to do the play differently from what has been done before? And he's like, Listen, I don't see every play that Oh, yeah. And he's like, I mean, and even just this one production, the audience may laugh at something on Friday that they didn't laugh at on, you know, the one Thursday or something he said, each night is different. Each time the actors take the stage. It's different, like, it's not the same robotic play. But what makes a play good in your eyes? Um,

I think what makes a play good is if the audience is able to really get lost in it, like suspension of disbelief. Yeah. And if they want to talk about it afterwards. Mm hmm. But not about how bad it was.

Anything but that Yeah, man. So what's something that's going to spark conversation? Maybe? Yeah, me and spark conversation, give different perspectives,

I think maybe cause someone to view something differently. I tried to do that a lot. And a lot of the work that I do, yeah,

yeah. And what advice would you give for someone who may be thinking about becoming a producer or producing a play?

I say, Just do it. Everybody wants to? Well, I mean, everybody wants to talk about like, can I? And is it a good idea? And how much time is it going to take? And I don't, I don't know. And like, Just do it? Like, stop? I don't know. Just stop questioning yourself and just go. Like, I I watched this interview with Billy Porter one time, I think about it all the time. And he was saying essentially, like, if you won't just go put on a stupid $100 play in your living room with your friends, then why should you have the responsibility to do like a bigger play somewhere else for more money? And just I think if it's what you want to do, just go do it over and over and over and over again until something sticks?

Yeah, I think maybe, and see, again, I don't live in that world. So I'm just thinking maybe some people feel pressure of like, okay, well, where do I start? Right, right. What do you start with? Okay, fine. You gave me the script. Okay. Yeah. Now what like, ah, who? Like, where do you start? So what do you say to that those people who are who don't know where to start?

I think it's, for starting, it's important to have a good network of people to work with. So that because I mean, realistically, no play is ever just like a single person. Yeah, um, and it's important that, like, you've got that network of people that like, when you start, it's really a group. And at some point, like people take on various roles, whether it's like acting or yeah, having the lights or doing the costumes or directing. But, um, I think you have to have, like, your good idea. And you have to have a core group of people that are willing to like, go on that journey with you otherwise, because you can't just, I can't just wake up and be like, I'm gonna go do a play now. Like, you know what I mean? Yeah. And I do have a great group of friends that if I was like, hey, for real, let's do this. They'd be like, okay, but like, you still have to have you have to build those connections. Yeah, to have that. Yeah.

Build the connections and just do it. You did hear first from Caitlin grammar. Caitlin's premiere as a director, the Caitlin grammar last leg is premiering the premiere. Excuse me Thursday, November 3 at 7:30pm. Friday, November 4, at 7:30pm. Saturday, November 5 at 730. And Sunday, November 6 at 2pm. Tickets are on sale lamar.edu forward slash LUTD you can purchase tickets right there on the site. Caitlin, you looking forward to that play? Yes, I am. Can't wait to see it on the stage. I want to thank you for joining me on the LU Moment this week. Thanks for having me. Yes, ma'am. And as always, be sure to follow us on social media. Listen, you already know the username. It's Lamar University. This is Shelbe Rodriguez, Public Affairs Manager here at LU. The pride of South East Texas.

Didn't you already know the username don't pretend like you don't, but in case you don't, here's a hint. It's Lamar University.

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