A Passion for the Stage

In October, Priscilla Lambis ’25 and FWCD Technical Director Eric Tysinger were hard at work on the Upper School fall play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Outside of school, they were immersed in The Hollow by John Rapson and Jeremy Landon Hays, which premiered on the main stage of the Amphibian Stage Fort Worth (October 12-November 6).

Tysinger got involved in the play after one of his favorite collaborators, Joel Ferrell, was contacted by Jeremy Landon Hays. “Jeremy and I met at FWCD when he came for an interview. Turns out it’s a small world, and one of Jeremy’s mentors was Joel, a long-time collaborator of mine. Joel is like DFW theater royalty. Anyone in DFW in this business knows Joel Ferrell," Tysinger said. “So that started the relationship … then they asked me to join the conversation about the production at Amphibian, and we all just hit it off. In about 20 minutes, we were like let’s do this thing.” Tysinger signed on as a producer and production stage manager.

Lambis said she got a role as an apparition – by sheer happenstance. “I was talking with Mr. Tysinger one day when he told me one of his director friends needed a woman of color to play a ghost. So he took a photo of me and sent it to Mr. Jeremy, and they wanted me,” Lambis said. “In early October, The Hollow crew and a few more actors met in the Martin Center, where they filmed me as the ghost.

“They loved my scream so much, they wanted to use it as well,” Lambis continued. “Mr. Tysinger and Ms. [Erin] Ypya drove me to Amphibian Stage, where I saw the set and recorded my scream.”

In his role at FWCD and with his extensive stage management career, Tysinger is always looking for ways to include students in the opportunities in which he is involved. “There was a specific character mentioned in one of the ghost stories in The Hollow, and one day it just hit me,” Tysinger continued. “Priscilla was this character. I could see her doing this cameo perfectly.”

While not a big role, it allowed her to meet with Broadway stars. “Priscilla’s scream in our first session captivated the creative team, so we brought her back for some sound work. She was a true pro, and when she said to me, ‘This is how it can all start, Mr. T.,’ I couldn’t help but feel proud. Connecting students to the real world, giving them a professional network … that’s what it’s all about!”

Lambis has been involved in every Upper School show since she came to FWCD in eighth grade. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, she played Philostrate. She loves performing for an audience. “It’s terrifying, exciting, it’s also a release of things that you may have been going through. It really is a rush,” she said. “I love presenting a side of me that I don’t show, especially singing. I love it when my face turns red from belting and the feeling of pride. I can always feel the ear-toear grin on my face. That smile isn’t just for me and about me, it’s for the cast working together to create an incredible show.”

Tysinger has been stage managing for 21 years and continues to do so in his “downtime.” His resume reads like a “Who’s Who” of music and theater and includes him working with Joe Mantello, Sting, Alec Baldwin, and on the national tour of Hamilton. One thing he enjoys most is doing new work. “It’s hard to birth a piece of theater from scratch. It needs attention, it’s cranky, it makes you tired. All the analogies are true in working on new works,” Tysinger shared.

The producer part is new for Tysinger. He is one of four producers who fundraised for the show and has an elevated level of input into the creative process. “Stage managers don’t usually have an opinion. We are facilitators only. So this has been a new journey for me, and so far, I’ve enjoyed it,” he said. “You know what they say: with no risk comes no reward.”

Tysinger hopes the next phase for The Hollow is a stint at a larger regional theater. “We need a step between here and New York City. The goal is to get to Off-Broadway in 2024,” he said. “I can’t wait. It’s going to be a wonderful journey.”