#yap2018

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 12

The pressure in on and the nerves are kicking in! Even though we’ve felt it since day 1, the finish line is so much closer. Yesterday was the hardest day for me, creatively. There were ideas in my head, but for some reason I couldn’t put on paper. It was a combination of tiredness and the pressure Aaron and I were putting on ourselves.

Today, we made our way to the warehouse from noon to 3 pm. There was no wasting time. We went straight to accomplishing our tasks. Aaron and I revisited the script from the night before and added some more scenes to strengthen our story and characters. Thanks to Steve’s advice, we could create more relatability with our characters and give them all purpose. Until about 6 pm we were scripting out our scenes. Although there were still weak parts of the script, we wanted to pitch it to Steve to make sure we were going the right direction. We were happy to not hear any drastic flaws with our script, but it was nowhere close to being ready.

Aaron and I decided to split up to accomplish more. I took the notes that Steve gave us and revised the script. Now, it was about piecing everything together. Most of the songs and raps were ready. Celeste did a very good job of infecting my brain with the songs she wrote, which is a good sign. The goal was to get the script done and printed by 9:30 and for the first time we came close to hitting that goal! Unfortunately, we put too much faith into Kinkos for printing our script and that delayed our process.

Steve helped us out greatly by sitting in as a director and as an audience. We went through all the scenes with blocking, while editing the script. By doing this, we all had a better understanding of the story and were rapidly filling in the plot holes we had before. We spent a couple hours doing this and by 5 am we weren’t even halfway done, but Steve decided we’d call it a night, since we had another long day ahead.

In the creative world, feedback is probably the most crucial thing to becoming better and the worst thing to do is take it personally or not seek that advice. While we went through the script with Steve, I learned a lot. He mentioned a lot of things that I’ve heard before and new things that I’d never thought about. Although almost every line of the dialogue written was adjusted, I wasn’t discouraged by it because the intentions of the scene remained. By the end of the session, we had the same story, but with a different approach that I liked a lot more.

This is the last blog I am writing for YAP and it’s very nostalgic. The thought of all of this being over in a few days leaves me with a multitude of emotions. It has been a roller coaster getting to the story we have now, but it’s been worth it. I can’t wait for the audience to experience our story and for the YAP cast to see our hard work come to life. For two weeks, we’ve made this warehouse our home, our office, and our playground. It is going to feel so weird to go back to our normal lives and to have a normal sleep schedule. I forgot how life was when I didn’t see Aaron, Celeste, and Katie every day. We’ve learned so much as a group and I know our inside jokes will live on as well as our friendship outside of the warehouse. Things probably won’t kick in until we take our final bow, so I will brace myself for that. I’m beyond grateful for the experience I’ve had at the Young Artist Project.

Written By: Chalisa Phiboolsook

[youngartistproject]

The cast completed the dreaded Midnight to 8am rehearsal. Check out some photos of their performance that they showed producer, Steve Cisneros. Will they stick with their original story and try to make it work? Or will they scrap everything and start over? Keep checking in to see what’s happening with the Young Artist Project 2018!

Midnight to 8AM Behind the Scenes video coming soon!

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 10

It’s the first time we’re meeting since Midnight Rehearsal and it was kind of difficult for the first part of the day. We all got to the warehouse around 9 am and began to discuss about our next steps. While we still liked our old concept and idea, we thought that it would be a good idea to put it aside for now and see if we can find something better. For the next couple of hours, we were back to square one: the idea board. Ideas were pitched left and right and one stood out enough for us to try and decide where it would go. Hours were spent on this idea until one of us took a step back and said that there isn’t a fire in their heart to tell this story. Ultimately, I was a little bummed out because we’ve spent so much time on this idea and I see all the potential where this idea could go, but no one else did. I was bummed.

            We table that idea and move onto another. The issues that were being voiced about the other storyline, I was beginning to see in the new one we were discussing. So, I voiced my opinions. And then onto a new story line, and another, and another. The most painful thing, for me, was spending so much time on an idea, and seeing all the possible ways it can go, but having someone else in the group to judge it before I can even explain where it’s going. It’s difficult when you’ve dedicated the better part of your college career to looking at stories critically and to see the potential of a good story, and have it be tabled by people who don’t see it through the lens that you do. I was extremely frustrated.

           The day progressed and we were tackling a story line and thought we found a good one. As a group, we thought that it’d be wise to voice what we wanted to contribute to the group, mine being that I wanted to write, as opposed to perform; We came to an agreement as to what our “roles” would be. We walked Steve through our plot map and he spoke to us about how whatever is “good material” will bleed into whichever material we write because it’s good material. He also offered his thoughts on what he liked from our scratched, past idea. The leading thought was that he liked the opening scenes and we all agreed, we did like the opening scene. From a playwright’s perspective, while the opening was good, it served the old story that we were trying to tell, not this one. And when everyone was so quick to jump to including that scene, I was trying to fight them say that there is a better way to do things with this new story line. The midst of arguing and my frustration throughout the whole day, mixed with the feeling of time breathing down our necks, I blatantly said “as the writer…” And in that split second, I knew that I had said incredibly stupid words because now I’m using my power against the group, as opposed to for it. It didn’t even matter what I said after that because it was framed in the worst way possible. I was quickly shut down and I definitely agreed because those words did not come from the heart, but rather out of insecurity. I excused myself afterwards.

           I came back and apologized for what I said, because we are a team that is supposed to tackle this project together. And in that one instant, I acted alone. There is no place for that in this Project. I apologized a good three of four more times after that, but words are not something you can erase once they’ve been said. And while everyone said that they have let the issue go, I haven’t, but rather as a detriment, I’m going to use this negative experience as a means of keeping myself grounded and on the same page as the rest of the team whenever I think that my words are better than someone else’s.

Written By: Aaron Cruz

[youngartistproject]

You’ve been able to see what the cast has been up to through their blogs but here’s a Video of Days 1-5 and the craziness that Young Artist Project is.

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 8

Since the first day of the Young Artist Project, we pointed out the fact that we are all diverse in many ways and because of that, we’d be able to present a show that could speak to a wide audience. As of now, we know this is the only opportunity we have, as a four, to bust out a show for a huge theatre within two weeks. There’s nothing else like this and I think that that is why it is so important to us to write something we can resonate with and that we’d want to go watch. There are a lot of emotions going into today since it is our last hours before the midnight rehearsal. Although we are confident in the story we want to tell, we know that there are a lot of holes to fill and last minute additions that still need tweaking.

We decided to meet at 8:00pm today so we could be well rested through the midnight rehearsal. Aaron and I, however, came in at 2:00 because we had a couple songs and scenes to write that. As artists, we have moments where everything is working out very nicely, so you can imagine the excitement we had when we finished our rock song in one sitting. After we accomplished this goal, we set out on a mission to get boba and when we got back, Celeste and Katie arrived in good timing.

We spent the first hours polishing our scripts and songs. Then we had our first table read ever! Before doing this, it wasn’t as clear as to how everything in our story was connecting. Reading the script all the way through helped us see which parts needed improvement. There was a huge section of the story that I entirely changed yesterday because there wasn’t enough purpose. Even after rewriting and setting new intentions for the scene, I still knew it wasn’t ready, but the message in those scenes were present. There’s always time to edit scenes, but through scrapping it multiple times, it became clear that maybe this part of the story didn’t have a strong base to begin with and it was difficult to keep building up from it. As a writer, this taught me to not force writing just to have something present and the importance of knowing when to let go of an idea.

By midnight we began blocking some of our scenes. Concerns grew at this point because we realized we had spent most of our time writing and never really created stage directions. Although, we overcame our worries knowing we should focus on selling our story rather than our performance for the midnight rehearsal.

We are all so dedicated to this project and we all express how there is never a time when we aren’t thinking about it. The dynamic of our group is indescribable. Sometimes we joke about creating a story based on our actual journey in writing this show for YAP. No matter what notes are given to us at the midnight rehearsal, I will never stop being proud of the things we have accomplished as a team. We grow through constructive criticism and are ready for whatever may come in our way. Stay tuned to hear what happens in the midnight rehearsal!

Written By: Chalisa Phiboolsook

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 7

We came in  later than we typically do. Mostly because We spent a lot of time individually on  separate projects.  We finished a little bit, but around 8:30pm we started writing our final scene. It was difficult. We said we wanted to leave at 11pm, then we changed it to 12am, 1am, and then 2am.  It started going well when we started putting ourselves in our characters. at one point  we just started writing what we where saying. I saw my fellow castmates truly embody their characters. There is some of each of us in this show. This kind of vulnerability is different than what I’m used to. Parts of my life are in this show, I think that’s going to make it a challenge to perform.

When we are alone in the warehouse at 2 am the world is quiet. But we are sitting in the warehouse laughing and creating. It occurred to me that I won’t see these people as much after next Sunday. There have been a couple times this week where I realized that the world is moving on outside without us. I’ve started to miss my fiancé and my puppy. But the intensity of the project keeps my brain turning every minute of the day. Only when I drive home and walk up to my apartment at 3 in the morning do I remember how much I miss them.

I’ve been thinking how much this project has changed my mindset about art. Through this project I realized how much I could put into creativity in the outside world. I’ve never thought I could dedicate this much time to art. Before I did this I wasn’t creating nearly this much. I realized I like being around other artistic people and diving head first into this world we are creating. I think I’m going to make a goal of hanging out with more artistic people. I’m planning on making changes  in order to peruse this story telling more often.

We have our 12-8 rehearsal tomorrow. I hope it goes well. I am so excited and proud of what we are doing.

Written by: Katie Kelly

[youngartistproject]

What is the Young Artist Project?

In case you’re unsure of what The Young Artist Project is and the pressure behind it check out this video from The 2016 Young Artist Project and take a look!

A cast of young artists are selected from a hundreds of applicants. They have just 14 days to create an original, riveting cross-disciplinary performance that is the exciting culmination of intense process for the performers, giving audiences the rare opportunity to not only see a fantastic collection of entertainment, but to get a firsthand glimpse of some of the brightest stars of tomorrow.

[youngartistproject]

Meet the Cast of the 2018 Young Artist Project!

Celeste Butler

Age: 21

Celeste Butler is a Los Angeles-based creative visionary, with a passion for community and culture. As a firm believer in the goodness that exists within humanity, her alluring vocals and impactful lyrics illuminate stages worldwide reminding listeners that they possess everything needed to change the world. While she is a new and exciting find for most, she has already performed at legendary venues like the Hollywood Bowl, Staples Center, and Copley Symphony Hall - combining multidisciplinary and multimedia art with an electrifying stage presence. ​In addition to her talent, the pride she holds for her moral foundation has solidified her presence as an example of work ethic, class, and grace not only for her counterparts, but for people from all walks of life.  This young entertainer, entrepreneur, and advocate has been on a surefire track to global success since she was 10-years old. From writing and recording original songs into her RockBand microphone, to lining up her dolls for motivational speeches, to creating youth programs for other Military children - artistic reinforcement of unity and hope has always been the foundation. Fast-forward a decade, adding theater awards, televised vocal competitions, and performances with Grammy-Award winners like Chaka Khan and Esperanza Spalding, and it’s easy to see why Celeste is such a force to be reckoned with.  Sonically, Celeste is heavily influenced by her gospel roots, yet transitions easily between R&B, Funk, Hip-Hop, EDM, and Pop. Her musical exploration of these diverse genres is coupled with a rigorous collegiate music education. This results in a performance experience that is not only overflowing with soul but lush with technical complexity and precision that is rarely encountered. While a number of songs tackle heavy subject matter, there is an ever-present vocalization of hope floating in the ambition to change the world for the better.  At the very core, Celeste is an innovator and visionary who is willing to take the extra steps necessary to open doors for future artists, women, and youth. While in high school, Celeste founded an online entertainment and lifestyle Radio Show called “Xquisite”, that covered the latest in entertainment news and featured special guests. These broadcasts went on to open doors for her guests, typically between the ages of 14-25, to secure placement on major radio shows, national news stations, and international print media.​ In 2014, Celeste was 1 of 25 freshmen accepted into the University of Southern California’s (USC) Popular Music Program. She became an advocate for arts and culture on campus right away, co-originating the role of Black Student Assembly’s Creative Experience Director and co-coordinating the Performing Arts Committee’s Artist Network. In these roles she passionately worked to cultivate a strong sense of community among student artists, increase cultural awareness, and dispel stereotypes on-campus through art.  While at USC, Celeste has been able to perform for prestigious events such as the Scripter Awards, New Student Convocation, Widney Donor Gala, and many others. ​Her talents have also led her to perform on stages worldwide. In 2015, Celeste was invited to perform at the first ever International Song Festival, held in Yeoju, South Korea, as a representative of the United States. There she shared a stage with young artists from Cameroon, China, France, Malaysia, Britain, and Korea, and was awarded for her inspired rendition of “Electric Lady” by Janelle Monae. The following year, Celeste performed in the New York premiere of concert “Straight to the Heart” - a show that brought together ​“a new generation of gifted voices with celebrity artists to deliver messages of hope and optimism during troubled times, featuring talent from USA, Canada, Turkey, Iran, and Lebanon.” Playing alongside legendary musicians such as Tarikq Akoni (Stevie Wonder, JLO, Josh Groban), Kenny Arnoff (Celine Dion, Avril Lavigne), and Bob Malone (John Fogerty, Al Green), Celeste later performed in the West Coast premiere at the Saban Theater in Hollywood.  As an actress, ​her most recent works include acting in an award-winning satirical short film entitled “Tokenism”, a web-series pilot entitled “Haven”, and a live Theater of the Oppressed piece entitled “Radical Fictions: A Seat at the Table” that debuted at the California African American Museum. She was also given the opportunity to co-create, and perform in, a devised theater piece entitled “Upspoken”, created in collaboration with the California Wellness Foundation. ​The focus of her latest projects have centered on the ideals of inner beauty and confidence, as she strives to help each individual recognize the light that they hold inside. As a result, she has been given opportunities to partner with Los Angeles-based organizations such as Chosen Queens, Women’s Room LA, Black Business Women Rock, Reed for Hope, and many others. Celeste just graduated with her Bachelors of Music from the University of Southern California (USC), and is currently working on a full-length music project, developing an entertainment and fashion company, and preparing to start her Masters of Arts Leadership degree at USC. You can find her on stage singing with Bonnie Fosters Productions throughout the year, and on Bob Malone’s China Tour in the Fall.

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 2

Today was a roller coaster of emotions. We all got to the warehouse at around 11 am and the first thing that I voiced was my concern for the story we had written the night before. Because it was an idea that we had gone home accepting, it was difficult for me to become the antagonist of our ideas again. The next couples of hours would be our arguing over why we think that this story would or wouldn’t work. It was difficult. And in the midst of our fighting, we found it.

About four hours into our rehearsal, we found an idea we liked and are all on board. And just when we thought it was smooth sailing from this point, we hit another stump. The difficulty, in my opinion, with four writers is how we settle our creative differences. We each have ideas on how to tell a story, but it’s hard to see which is better if there’s no outside force to tell us. When arguing, you win some and lose some; losing is the part that’s hard to deal with because it feels like your way is one-hundred percent the right way to do things, but if the group votes otherwise, then you don’t get to keep fighting. It hurts to lose, but as an artist among a group of other veteran artists, you have to be willing to fall and trust that your teammates will be there to save you. You have to believe that your peers are working towards the same goal.

Creating is definitely not going the way I thought it’d be. Coming into this project, I thought I had a perfectly fine method of how to write a musical, but collaborating with these other people have shown me that there are different ways to write stories. And just because one method worked for one story, does not mean it will work for a project that needs to be conceived within two weeks. The show is nowhere near ready for the stage, but it is only day two and I am so excited to keep on working on this, through all the frustration, and see the fruition of all our hard work.

Written by Aaron Cruz

[youngartistproject]

Another year, Another Young Artist Project!! Introducing the Cast of The 2018 Young Artist Project, our smallest case yet! Will that help them? Will that hurt them?

Check in everyday for the next 2 weeks and see an inside scoop to what these Artists are creating. The show is August 4th, 2018 at 1pm. You won’t want to miss it.

https://www.facebook.com/events/671994629661214/

[youngartistproject]

Meet the Cast of 2018 Young Artist Project

Aaron Cruz

Age: 20

Aaron is going to be starting his junior year at Cal State Fullerton in the Fall. Previously a musical theatre performance major, he has decided to switch to playwriting after finding incomparable joy in creating his first original musical called “Tinderella,” which was put on at CSUF’s BA showcase series this past semester. Aaron is a self-taught musician/composer and playwright who spends most of his free time reading books and taking online lessons about music and writing to further his skills. When not sitting in front of his piano, he likes to play volleyball, perform slam poems, and spit some dope freestyles with his boys. Having come to America from the Philippines when he was 6 years old, Aaron strives to accomplish his biggest dreams of:

1. Helping his mom start her own Filipino restaurant

2. Have lunch with Lin-Manuel Miranda at said restaurant.

Aaron is thankful for his family and friends for supporting him through his entire journey. “Thanks fam<3 lol.”

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 11

On  Monday morning I decided to leave the warehouse at about 3:30 in the morning. I drove home feeling excited about getting  into my bed,  scooching my fiancé over and petting my dog. What I came home to was a little different. Every night I come home my dog will run into the living room and expect cuddles.  Not this morning. I came into the room hearing retching noises. Over the course of the next 15 minutes my dog threw up 4 times. I knew something was wrong, so even though I had already been up for about 18 hours. We got into the car and took my dog o the dog hospital.

We stayed a long time, the doctor gave her anti-nausea medicine and put water under her skin for hydration. The had a big bubble under her skin. She looked like the hunch back of Notre dame. So although I was really looking forward to my bed, I ended up seeing the sunrise that morning for the second time that week. We got home at 7:00 I texted the group and let the know about my situation and then went to sleep. My dog went to the doctor the next day. She has a stomach bug that is effecting her lungs. She will be okay but will be a bunch of different medications.

This dog situation effected the next day, and will effect the whole week because I usually take Maddie to day care while im at the ware house, but since she is so sick she’s cannot go to day care, my fiancé and I are getting inventive with how I can still pull off 16 hour days without leaving Maddie for more than a couple hours. I ended up getting to the warehouse on Tuesday at around 5:00pm.

When I arrived we practiced the harmonies for “Loans Loans, Loans” then we blocked the movement for that song, we changed the blocking for “1777 Sycamore”, and rearranged the blocking for the introductory scene. All of this was in preparation for a meeting with Steve that should have been at 8pm but we didn’t do until 9:00pm. We performed all we had for Steve, and did a read through. Steve gave us really helpful advice which the writers went full steam ahead with.

Fast forward a few hours, I went to check in on Aaron and Chalisa, our writers, I realized they were struggling. Aaron said something a little silly and we laughed at him, to which he responded, “Give me a break it’s 4 in the morning.” Even though it was only 11pm. I tried to help them, but I am not a writer. It was only when Steve came in and gave us direction did we Start making more substantial progress. God bless those two. I realized what a slow process writing can be today. Sitting in on their work made my head want to explode. I was scared too when things weren’t going quickly.

They ended up getting a lot done though. While they worked through the outline of the plot. I made a prop list, pulled things from upstairs and around the warehouse. At around 2 o’clock in the morning Aaron said again “woah, y’all common its 4 in the morning.” And we all laughed. But sure enough, time passed,  eventually it was  4 in the morning. Then 5, and 6. Until Chalisa and I looked out the dock over our 4 cars and watched the sunrise.

Written by: Katie Kelly

[youngartistproject]

MEET THE CAST OF THE YOUNG ARTIST PROJECT 2018

Katie Kelly

Age: 23

Katie is thrilled to be involved with the Young Artists Project. Katie was raised in The San Francisco Bay area. She found her love of musical theater at age 8. Soon after she started taking voice lessons. Katie just graduated from California State University, Northridge as a Deaf Studies Major and Musical Theater Minor. She has spent the last five years becoming fluent in American Sign Language and perfecting her craft. Katie considers herself a storyteller. No matter how that story is told, if it is through song or sign, Katie is 100% there for it. Katie would like to thank her family, friends, fiancé and puppy for their support through this journey. She hopes you enjoy this evening of storytelling with her.  

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 4

Day 4 was very productive and organized. Writing out our goals in the morning helped us visualize where we wanted to be by the end of the day. We started our morning by putting our multiple characters through an Eleven Step story structure test to make sure they were each dealing with conflict. By doing so, we realized that we had to go back to the drawing board for most of our characters’ journey since it wasn’t clear what the intentions of each scene were. It was daunting, but when we fleshed it out everything came to fruition.

Today moved more fluidly because we didn’t have differences to decide. Having our 4 individual storylines fit into one overall plot gave each of us each an opportunity to take control of our own characters and put a piece of ourselves into it. What I like about this collaborative effort is that, in the end, there is someone with the final say. We now have characters we love and could all resonate with. Key to our productivity today was breaking off into small groups to accomplish different tasks. For example, I’d collaborate with Aaron on his story structure, while Katie and Celeste would be working on a song. Later, I’d help Celeste with her story while Katie and Aaron continued on theirs. This rotation had us steadily accomplishing our tasks and the road we were taking our story was finally clear.

Personally, my favorite part of the day was at 5:30 pm when we went on our field trip to Denny’s. We spent about two hours there and it was very much needed for me. For the past 4 days, I felt like I haven’t been contributing to society since we are in the warehouse for more than 14 hours a day. Going out to eat and talking to each other in a different environment was really fun and relaxing.

Our next rehearsal will certainly be more about creating music. We’ve written two songs already and they’ve managed to become stuck in my head like an ear worm, but that is also a good sign. We will also need to focus on creating our script. I come from a screenwriting background and it is very fascinating to see how it compares to Aaron’s playwriting format. Essentially, the scripts are all trying to accomplish the same thing, but there are details that are specific to a stage performance rather than something on screen that I learned how to write differently. Everyone has something to contribute in every step of the process and it is always a great experience to learn from others.

Written By: Chalisa Phiboolsook

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog- Day 3

Today we got a lot done.  We finished our opening number, blocked the opening number, finished the second scene, started writing a new song, Finished writing multiple scenes, and made great headway on a few other songs. Pretty Impressive list! I know though that lots of this work was continued from previous days. We are finally starting to see a bit of the fruits of our labor.

 We all started writing our scripts and songs individually at first. I got the concept and a lot of the research done. I started to write my song and until I felt like it was okay, but then I showed it to Aaron and his feedback was so valuable. He gave me really solid strong notes that was going to make my emotional arch much better. However, it was quite difficult for me to take his notes, even though I knew he was right. I felt sad about having to let go of parts of my song, I had to give myself a minute I felt like I was mourning a loss. I copied and pasted my scratched songs into a different word document, then when I found something better to write it was easier for me to let it go. After I created a concept and outline of where I wanted the script to go I worked with Celeste to create the melody. She really helped take my idea and make it a great song.  I am really grateful for both Aaron and Celeste for collaborating with me to take my concept to the next level.

Today is the first day where our fatigue started to hit us pretty hard. Aaron and I left both got headaches. I legit felt like I was gonna die, so I left at around midnight. After I got home I realized that art is about humanity there is no way I am going to create art if I push myself to the point where I don’t feel like a human anymore. Its only day three, if we art going to continue producing art on this level I need to take care of myself. So tomorrow I am going to actually like make lunch for myself and not just eat the random food that is there so I can be my best self.

Every single one of us is growing and learning  everyday. We are all really dedicated to the show. Personally, I have never made art with this much intensity or volume in my life.  I am proud of what we have accomplished I think our show is shaping up to be something great. We have a long way to go, but we are getting there.

Written by: Katie Kelly

[youngartistproject]

2018 Blog - Day 1

Today was extremely productive and exciting, but also challenging. As you can imagine with any “Day 1”, there was a lot of housekeeping materials to cover coupled with actually getting to know each other. While we are the smallest cast in YAP history, there are so many great talents, strengths, and ideas flowing in the midst. Small but MIGHTY is definitely how I’d describe this group. Each person is confident with their experience and gifts, yet still open to adapting and learning from everyone else which will be very helpful during this process. We got to know each other pretty quickly through a combination of basic introductions and more in-depth questioning, that we eventually connected to our project as possible overarching questions/themes.

At the top of our brainstorming session we made a list of possible show types, equipment we’d like to incorporate, and ways we may like to approach the creation of our piece. We could all agree on the lofty ideas, but then when we started to get more critical with the details we kept hitting the same roadblocks. After we had fleshed through numerous ideas (over the course of probably 5 hours), we finally all fell in love with an amazing concept, story, and arch. We were so pumped and motivated to move forward, so we began the development of the idea. There were characters, a plot, three major parts of the show, and it incorporated all of the pieces we wanted to highlight. We were on top of the world! Until one castmate pointed out that the idea actually wasn’t good at all...and we all took a step back and agreed (we would later joke about how bad the idea was lol). Once the unanimous hate of the idea was confirmed, we scrapped the whole thing and found ourselves back at Square One.

This was the most challenging time frame because there were feelings of defeat and disappointment that were subconsciously shining through. We had already gone through so many ideas and were so excited with our last project, only to discover that we all hated it. We knew though, that there was a better story waiting to be told, so we went back to look at the big picture. One tactic of approach that we held true to throughout the brainstorming and selection process, was finding the heart of the piece through posed questions. This was beneficial because it allowed us to look at whatever themes were presented from a bird’s eye view, keeping in mind the journey that the characters in a story would go on. Peeling back the layers of a question and connecting subcategories also helped with idea possibilities and development.

Even with our handy dandy devices, we were still stuck on what our new show would be so we decided to take a break to brainstorm individually and what we brought back to the group meshed into something really beautiful. There is an impactful message wrapped into a strategically presented project, with all of our goals and desires being fulfilled. Because we had already gone through one idea and landed on what did/did not work, it was easier to get to the core of the development with this second idea. As a result, we were able to start building the story line fairly quickly. We left with a very strong outline of the show, despite the gaps that still need to be filled, and are all excited to pick it back up tomorrow. We are hoping we will also get to writing some of the first couple scenes tomorrow as well.

Written by: Celeste Butler