LSTI - Wednesday

From Leighann DeLorenzo, LSTI Director:

Day 8 was a hard one, but that's the way day 8 is supposed to be! :)  The teachers have worked tirelessly to instruct, choreograph and produce, produce, produce!  I am grateful for such an immensely talented and dedicated team. The girls are being asked to ask more of themselves. It is a pretty special thing to witness.

Every production number is completed and ready for tomorrow's refining and for tech rehearsal.  I have told the girls that tech rehearsals are very much a "hurry up and wait" situation. Hurry up and focus, hurry up and restore, hurry up and transition...you get the picture. But that's the magic that completes our journey of turning process into performance.  And it is worth all the exhaustion, critical thinking, problem solving and memorization of the past 9 days.  The girls are whooped. I am whooped. It's a lovely feeling indeed! Don't forget show time is at 4pm on Friday!  

LSTI - Working hard!

From Leighann DeLorenzo, LSTI Director:

Today was a doozy!  The girls spent the morning in acting class working on understanding the "as if" in theater, the importance of making strong choices by choosing amazing and active verbs to enforce their intention, and beating out Somewhere Over the Rainbow for text analysis purposes.

Class work and production work are specifically designed to support the mission of the LSTI program-- that our ensemble gain a deeper understanding of both the actor's instrument as well as rehearsal and theater protocol. Then our girls can go out to their local theaters and other schools in the community, and shine during both in the rehearsal process and in performance.

The morning continued with a production rehearsal with Mr. Gault finishing Singing in the Rain!  With each rehearsal the girls are understanding the musicality, style, flair and grace, that is quintessential Gene Kelly.

Afternoon rehearsal focused on the choreography and staging of Joyful Joyful (From Sister Act) and I was filled with much joy watching Claire Hole gleefully rejoicing and dancing in a Nun's habit! 

We finished the day with plugging in four of the ensemble into Oklahoma's staging and dance breaks and then polishing formations and character gestures for Super! 

Tomorrow I have asked the girls to stay until 4:30pm as the needs of the program dictate extra time on task!  I will stage the opening of the showcase and work transitions at that time so it is important that your actor be present.

I am in awe of the girls enthusiasm and dedication. Camryn O. sustained a toe injury during a work thru of Singing in the Rain and she was more upset by the idea of not being able to perform and continue her journey than she was about her poor injured toe!  Best to you Cam and we hope to have you back tomorrow!

Much love- hydrate, eat, sleep and work on your lyrics! 

LSTI - Welcome to Week 2!

From Leighann DeLorenzo, LSTI Director:

This is the time of the program where all the groundwork that we laid last week comes into play in a big way!  It's an exciting and exhausting time and if the girls can dig in and believe in their abilities and capabilities as we do, they will be super and spectacular!

Students worked on "Joyful" with Miss Treva, auditioned for vocal solos in both "Joyful" and "Dreamgirls", moved on to choreography with Mr. Gault for "Singin' in the Rain", and almost finished "Supercalafragilisticexpialidocious"!

I thanked them all for their effort and enthusiasm and was sure to tell them how proud I am of their growth and determination!  I also gave them a head's up that the next two days are usually the hardest of the program as we approach the finish line and complete each production number so that we are ready for our tech and dress rehearsals for Thursday and Friday.  

 LSTI reserves the right to keep your girls later during tech week and this may be a possibility for Wednesday afternoon. If I choose to do so, I will let the girls know tomorrow. We will not hold them for longer than an additional hour!

Can't wait to see you for our show Friday at 4pm. All are welcome. Admission is free.

LSTI - TGIF!

From Leighann DeLorenzo, LSTI Director:

Today the ensemble cranked out two more production numbers under the direction and choreography of DeLo!  We finished Kiss Me Kate's Another Opening Another Show, as well as finished the title song from Oklahoma!  The girls were so committed to their vocal/physical character work as well as to their intention work with the lyrics.  We laughed, we cried because we laughed, we jumped and twirled and square danced! 

Ms. Offutt spent her class time incorporating Scatting into their vocals for Jungle Book. The girls are thriving in their swing work with Treva and are really enjoying the monkeying around aspects of the movement behavior that is required of them.

The day ended with refining the first half of SUPERCALA with the ensemble as we all pushed through exhaustion and the giggles.  The girls are to rest, work on their lyrics and choreography and get ready for show week!  See you on Monday!

LSTI - Day 4

From Leighann DeLorenzo, LSTI Director:

LSTI Day 4 was jammed pack with swaying and swinging and bopping and hopping!

Students worked on sense memory and  the "as if" in acting class as well as proper breathing technique and improving their breath capacity.  Students continue to work on the Alexander technique and spine awareness to help keep their bodies relaxed and their voices free!

The girls were dreamy because they finished the Dreamgirls number!

They be bopped and jazzed their way through the end of Jungle Book!

They finished out the day with DeLo and that ridiculously long titled production number that is just so much fun to say and starts with Super!

Tomorrow:  Last day of week one!  Wrap ups, finishing touches on the first 3 or 4 numbers!

LSTI - Day 3

From Leighann DeLorenao, LSTI Director:
The voice and movement for the actor work that the girls have been experiencing in acting class is becoming evident in their musicality and character work that they bring to their production number process.  We also worked on the "button"  moment in musical theater using the full range of their characters. 

The morning progressed with guest teacher Mario Clopton sharing his views on the history of the American Musical as well as a music rehearsal of the piece from Dreamgirls.  

I am well on my way to finishing the staging of the opening production number from Kiss Me Kate, and Ms. Offutt and Mr. Gault are putting the finishing touches on the choreography for Jungle Book and Dreamgirls.

Up next: Work on Mary Poppins, Singin in the Rain, and Sister Act!

LSTI - Day 2

From Leighann DeLorenzo, Director of LSTI:

Yet another exciting day for LSTI!

Master acting class with DeLo focused on discovering and creating a character's center and what that means for the actor's movement quality in terms of dynamics and how that shows the physical/emotional behavior of the character!  External characterization exercise and improvisations helped to further develop the distinctive style of each production number.

Ms. Offutt continued morning instruction with swing dance and lindy basics that will be incorporated into her number from Jungle Book. The girls were bopping and back stepping and having a blast!

Afternoon rehearsal picked up with Mr. Gault and choreography for Dreamgirls. It was so much fun watching the girls move with such poise, grace and elegance. Wonderful work!

We then moved into music rehearsal and learned our remaining two selections from Kiss me Kate and The Wizard of Oz. You will be amazed at the arrangement that the girls are learning for Somewhere Over the Rainbow. It is a contemporary arrangement and it is hauntingly lovely.

We finished out the day with me starting to stage "Another Opening, Another Show!"  Stay tuned for Day 3!

LSTI - Day 1!

From Leighann DeLorenzo, LSTI Director:

The first day of LSTI was a spectacular one! The ensemble is made of up of so many dynamic, enthusiastic, and focused performers. The girls are hungry, excited, and ready to put together a wonderful showcase.  The morning acting class focused on taking space with purpose and clarity of intention as students dynamically explored space, levels, and relationships through voice, movement, and character.  Instruction in both acting and music rehearsal highlighted proper breathing technique as well as the eight essential movable and immovable articulators!

The morning and afternoon music rehearsals moved fluidly as girls approached each selection speaking the lyrics in rhythm, singing phrase by phrase,  while focusing on the distinctive style and musicality of each production number.  The girls were able to work thru six of the eight numbers today--an amazing feat!

The day ended with introduction to choreography and style of our selection from Mary Poppins with DeLo! WHOO!

See you tomorrow where Ms. Offutt and Mr. Gault will hold instructional rehearsals for their respective production numbers!

Reminders: Please make sure your LSTI actor has a water bottle, snacks, a sweatshirt and her binder for each day.