David M. Rubenstein Chairman Deborah F. Rutter President Mario R. Rossero Senior Vice President, Education
Watch closely to see how the entire ensemble works together to create the illusion that Superman and Lois are flying.
Additional support for Superman 2050 is provided by The Clark Charitable Foundation; Mr. James V. Kimsey; The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation; Paul M. Angell Family Foundation; and the U.S. Department of Education. Major support for educational programs at the Kennedy Center is provided by David and Alice Rubenstein through the Rubenstein Arts Access Program. Kennedy Center education and related artistic programming is made possible through the generosity of the National Committee for the Performing Arts and the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts.
Ready to Save the Day? A Few Last Things… Watch…how the actors use the full motion of their bodies, plus a range of voices and accents, to change characters—and become objects like buildings and desks, effects like fire and wind, and actions like flying and falling. Particularly notice how they change the sense of scale (distance) to show both far away and close up action. Listen…how the performers use their voices to create all the sounds. You’ll hear the theme song from the Superman movie, sound effects for things like typewriters and elevators, and onomatopoeia (on-uh-mat-uh-PEE-uh)—words pronounced like the sound they describe, like “whoosh” and “boom.” Imagine…the future 35 years from now. What will be different? The same? Share your ideas with a friend. Create…a big story in a small space. Try choosing an epic story or fairy tale and think how you could tell it with only two other people in just a few feet of space. Practice different ways to show one big scene from the story. And remember… You don’t have to be a superhero to be a good audience member—just stay seated and quiet, don’t eat, turn off your “floozle” and other electronics, and remember to watch, listen, and clap at the end.
n a m r e p Su 0 5 0 2
Cuesheet
Sometimes actions and expressions speak louder than words—and that’s the idea behind Theater Unspeakable’s name and the company’s type of physical theater. Founded in 2010, this ensemble explores creative storytelling that focuses on gestures, playfulness, and collaboration.
Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s…
PERFORMANCE GUIDE
About Theater Unspeakable
Presented by
Theater Unspeakable from Chicago
www. artsedge.kennedy-center.org Cuesheets are produced by ARTSEDGE, an education program of the Kennedy Center. Learn more about Education at the Kennedy Center at www.kennedy-center.org/education The contents of this Cuesheet have been developed under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education and do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education. You should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. © 2016 The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
E R O L EXP E! MOR
Go to
KC Connections
on ARTSEDGE
artsedge.kennedy-center.org/ students/kc-connections
Presenting Sponsor of Performances for Young Audiences
e y c r a o p t S S y n i G T I a B on A Creating Things Out of Thin Air
Can you imagine seeing Superman 35 years from now? And his story told with nothing more than seven actors on a wooden platform 7 feet long and 3 feet wide (about the size of a sofa)? Well, hang on tight, because this Superman is ready to send your imagination soaring over tall buildings in a single bound.
Just as Clark Kent can become Superman in a flash, these performers can turn into anyone or anything using only their bodies and voices. This type of performance is called physical theater and features: • minimal costumes, sets, props, or lights • actors playing multiple characters • precise movements and great flexibility
A Superman Story of the Future Welcome to the city of Metropolis in 2050. But faster than you can say “faster than a speeding bullet,” there’s trouble. Supervillain Lex Luthor has evil plans for the city and its high-speed train system. The Daily Planet newspaper’s star reporter Lois Lane is close to discovering what Luthor is up to, which puts her in great danger. The big question is: Can Superman save the day? Meet the Characters Friends and foes from past Superman stories: Superman, the “Man of Steel” Clark Kent, Superman’s everyday disguise as a journalist from Smallville, Kansas Lois Lane, journalist and Clark’s/Superman’s love interest Perry White, the editor-in-chief at The Daily Planet
• mime (communicating silently using expressions and body movements) Lex Luthor tries to defeat Superman so he can achieve his evil ambitions.
A Beloved Superhero Americans first discovered Superman’s story in a comic book in 1938. He came from another planet and was adopted by a Kansas farmer and his wife, who raised him as Clark Kent. Upon discovering his powers—extraordinary strength and speed, plus he could fly!—his parents inspired him to use his incredible gifts for good. And so the man with the blue suit, red cape, and supersized red “S” on his chest became a beloved hero to the American people.
Jimmy Olsen, a young Daily Planet photographer Lex Luthor, Superman’s archenemy Lana Lang, Clark’s high school love interest New characters: Bipsy, Luthor’s girlfriend Mercy, Luthor’s competitor who gets brainwashed Plus reporters, passengers, students, corporate executives, and more
Over the years, many artists have retold or adapted (changed) the story in books, comic books, cartoons, TV series, radio shows, and movies—especially the 1978 hit Superman: The Movie. Superman’s story was just the type of epic adventure the Superman 2050 performers wanted to tell in a new way.
• collaboration (cooperation) among the performers to create and perform scenes and effects
Truth, Justice, and the American Play In theater school, Theater Unspeakable’s founder Marc Frost was challenged to perform a big story in a small rectangular space—think of creating a comic strip with humans! He also wanted to tell an American tale and incorporate his interest in trains. And who better to help Marc than Superman? This superhero began in comics and is more powerful than a locomotive. Plus, not having sets or props meant the performers could create any futuristic effects they could imagine—and even new words, like “floozle” (an electronic tablet of the future).
Speeding Bullet Trains
The play imagines a future with high-speed trains linking the big cities in the middle of the United States—the fictional Metropolis as well as these real cities (look them up on a map): St. Louis, Missouri; Detroit, Michigan; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the Twin Cities (Saint Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota). High-speed or “bullet” trains can travel as fast as 220 miles per hour (mph). Although such trains exist today in many places like China and Europe, America’s fastest passenger train can reach 150 mph but averages The only item or extra only about 65 mph. costume piece you’ll see is a pair of glasses worn only by Clark Kent.
e y c r a o p t S S y n i G T I a B on A Creating Things Out of Thin Air
Can you imagine seeing Superman 35 years from now? And his story told with nothing more than seven actors on a wooden platform 7 feet long and 3 feet wide (about the size of a sofa)? Well, hang on tight, because this Superman is ready to send your imagination soaring over tall buildings in a single bound.
Just as Clark Kent can become Superman in a flash, these performers can turn into anyone or anything using only their bodies and voices. This type of performance is called physical theater and features: • minimal costumes, sets, props, or lights • actors playing multiple characters • precise movements and great flexibility
A Superman Story of the Future Welcome to the city of Metropolis in 2050. But faster than you can say “faster than a speeding bullet,” there’s trouble. Supervillain Lex Luthor has evil plans for the city and its high-speed train system. The Daily Planet newspaper’s star reporter Lois Lane is close to discovering what Luthor is up to, which puts her in great danger. The big question is: Can Superman save the day? Meet the Characters Friends and foes from past Superman stories: Superman, the “Man of Steel” Clark Kent, Superman’s everyday disguise as a journalist from Smallville, Kansas Lois Lane, journalist and Clark’s/Superman’s love interest Perry White, the editor-in-chief at The Daily Planet
• mime (communicating silently using expressions and body movements) Lex Luthor tries to defeat Superman so he can achieve his evil ambitions.
A Beloved Superhero Americans first discovered Superman’s story in a comic book in 1938. He came from another planet and was adopted by a Kansas farmer and his wife, who raised him as Clark Kent. Upon discovering his powers—extraordinary strength and speed, plus he could fly!—his parents inspired him to use his incredible gifts for good. And so the man with the blue suit, red cape, and supersized red “S” on his chest became a beloved hero to the American people.
Jimmy Olsen, a young Daily Planet photographer Lex Luthor, Superman’s archenemy Lana Lang, Clark’s high school love interest New characters: Bipsy, Luthor’s girlfriend Mercy, Luthor’s competitor who gets brainwashed Plus reporters, passengers, students, corporate executives, and more
Over the years, many artists have retold or adapted (changed) the story in books, comic books, cartoons, TV series, radio shows, and movies—especially the 1978 hit Superman: The Movie. Superman’s story was just the type of epic adventure the Superman 2050 performers wanted to tell in a new way.
• collaboration (cooperation) among the performers to create and perform scenes and effects
Truth, Justice, and the American Play In theater school, Theater Unspeakable’s founder Marc Frost was challenged to perform a big story in a small rectangular space—think of creating a comic strip with humans! He also wanted to tell an American tale and incorporate his interest in trains. And who better to help Marc than Superman? This superhero began in comics and is more powerful than a locomotive. Plus, not having sets or props meant the performers could create any futuristic effects they could imagine—and even new words, like “floozle” (an electronic tablet of the future).
Speeding Bullet Trains
The play imagines a future with high-speed trains linking the big cities in the middle of the United States—the fictional Metropolis as well as these real cities (look them up on a map): St. Louis, Missouri; Detroit, Michigan; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and the Twin Cities (Saint Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota). High-speed or “bullet” trains can travel as fast as 220 miles per hour (mph). Although such trains exist today in many places like China and Europe, America’s fastest passenger train can reach 150 mph but averages The only item or extra only about 65 mph. costume piece you’ll see is a pair of glasses worn only by Clark Kent.
David M. Rubenstein Chairman Deborah F. Rutter President Mario R. Rossero Senior Vice President, Education
Watch closely to see how the entire ensemble works together to create the illusion that Superman and Lois are flying.
Additional support for Superman 2050 is provided by The Clark Charitable Foundation; Mr. James V. Kimsey; The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation; Paul M. Angell Family Foundation; and the U.S. Department of Education. Major support for educational programs at the Kennedy Center is provided by David and Alice Rubenstein through the Rubenstein Arts Access Program. Kennedy Center education and related artistic programming is made possible through the generosity of the National Committee for the Performing Arts and the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts.
Ready to Save the Day? A Few Last Things… Watch…how the actors use the full motion of their bodies, plus a range of voices and accents, to change characters—and become objects like buildings and desks, effects like fire and wind, and actions like flying and falling. Particularly notice how they change the sense of scale (distance) to show both far away and close up action. Listen…how the performers use their voices to create all the sounds. You’ll hear the theme song from the Superman movie, sound effects for things like typewriters and elevators, and onomatopoeia (on-uh-mat-uh-PEE-uh)—words pronounced like the sound they describe, like “whoosh” and “boom.” Imagine…the future 35 years from now. What will be different? The same? Share your ideas with a friend. Create…a big story in a small space. Try choosing an epic story or fairy tale and think how you could tell it with only two other people in just a few feet of space. Practice different ways to show one big scene from the story. And remember… You don’t have to be a superhero to be a good audience member—just stay seated and quiet, don’t eat, turn off your “floozle” and other electronics, and remember to watch, listen, and clap at the end.
n a m r e p Su 0 5 0 2
Cuesheet
Sometimes actions and expressions speak louder than words—and that’s the idea behind Theater Unspeakable’s name and the company’s type of physical theater. Founded in 2010, this ensemble explores creative storytelling that focuses on gestures, playfulness, and collaboration.
Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s…
PERFORMANCE GUIDE
About Theater Unspeakable
Presented by
Theater Unspeakable from Chicago
www. artsedge.kennedy-center.org Cuesheets are produced by ARTSEDGE, an education program of the Kennedy Center. Learn more about Education at the Kennedy Center at www.kennedy-center.org/education The contents of this Cuesheet have been developed under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education and do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education. You should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. © 2016 The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
E R O L EXP E! MOR
Go to
KC Connections
on ARTSEDGE
artsedge.kennedy-center.org/ students/kc-connections
Presenting Sponsor of Performances for Young Audiences