The Stage of Austin

Theatre In austIn

By Jonas Klumpp

Photo by Paolo Chiabrando on Unsplash

Hidden behind the thick curtains, only feet away from the blinding spotlights, you can hear the sounds of the audience, and the actors’ voices uncomfortably close. Before you realize, there is a break in the sound.

You don’t feel ready, but you have no choice but to face the bright lights and step onto the stage. Even though you thought you would fail, once you’re on the stage, you fall into the words you have carefully practiced, and you carry on, letting the energy of the crowd give you all the energy you need. I don’t think theatre companies compete with each “ other. The best thing in the world for my theatre company is to have a whole bunch more theater companies surrounding me. That’s gonna make my theater “company better. -Lisa scheps

Theatre is like nothing else, no matter if you’re up on the stage, or operating the lights or the curtains. The electricity of a packed audience is just amazing, and the energy and thrill of a big production is like nothing else, whether it’s experienced as an actor or an audience member. However, more important than any of that in theatre is the community. The group of people that produce a show become very close out of necessity. A show is a collaborative effort, and it is so much easier to perform when you know the people around you and how they act. The theatre scene in Austin is incredibly unique. It is one of the larger ones in America, but it took a significant hit from the COVID-19 pandemic. Many small theaters were being shut down Arts In Austin | 27

or forced to close temporarily, leaving gaps in the culture of Austin theatre that are still recovering today. Theatre is a very expensive fine art, it requires large investments in lighting and sound equipment, and the actual buildings need to be relatively large. Earlier on in the pandemic, most small theaters in Austin were struggling, and they met every week to discuss strategies. This strategy generally helped them stay afloat during the hard times. This has resulted in a more unified community, and in general, better theatre. Theatre in Austin has come a long way from what it was 40 years ago. Theatre in Austin has come a long way from what it was 40 years ago. Ken Webster is the producing artistic director of Hyde Park theater, and 40 years ago, he was one of the pioneers of paying actors in Austin. Before then, it was a community theatre town, and nobody was paid at all. “It was kind of like socialism. However much money we raised above what we spent was divided evenly among everybody who worked on the show,” says Webster. The first show he did, everybody got $19, and it only moved up from there. In Hyde Park Theatre’s most recent 2 shows, all of the actors received $1200. Theatre has truly evolved in Austin, and it’s only improving from here. Lisa Scheps moved to Austin from a successful career in theatre in New York and Chicago. She is very encouraged about theatre in Austin. She describes it compared to New York: “New York has Broadway, Arts In Austin | 28 The amount of theater in town has grown tremendously. It was very rare if there were more than two or three plays on any given night, back in the early days. pre-pandemic, it was not unusual to “ have 11 or 12 shows going on at the same time. -Kem webster

off-Broadway,and off-off Broadway. And when I lived there, the off off Broadway shows were like our shows here in Austin. They were done on a shoestring, they were typically really experimental, they took a lot of chances that you can’t do in commercial theater”. Austin theatre, like all of its other arts, has a special charm to it. It’s a combination of large shows like the plays performed by big theatre companies, and smaller shows that truly bring out the strange, creative side of Austin. This is why small theaters are so important. Although they don’t get as much attention, they carry and develop the culture, making it possible for theatre to advance in Austin. Lisa Scheps has a theater called Ground Floor Theatre. This Theatre focuses on producing shows that focus on underrepresented communities. They have a pay what you can policy, allowing people of any economic status to watch. “My ideal audience would look like the citizens, the population of Austin, Texas,”Scheps says. When you think about theatre, you really only think of acting, and the shows being produced, but there’s a whole other side to the affair, the actual management of the business. Jamie Herlich Mclalwain is the new

Photo Courtesy of Hyde Park Theatre

managing director at Zach Scott Theatre. She looks at the finances of the theatre, which is a hard job right now, as the nation is recovering from a pandemic. “From a business standpoint, we stopped…the business. We had some critical players still staffed, but we weren’t producing shows for a year and a half. [We’re]starting to do that again, with brand new teams and having to hire new people. I’m responsible for all of that,” Herlich Mclalwain says. There are also many practicalities to maintaining a theatre that many people don’t think about. Simply maintaining the landscaping, the parking, and all of the facilities in the theatre is a hard task. Going forward, she will have to work on rebuilding the team at

ZACH, and slowly transferring back to in- person work, as it’s “

theater [in austin] is positioned to be more fun and interactive, at least here at Zach, than I think it is in some other cities. I think in some other cities. It can be a little more buttoned up... . And I think here, it’s a lot more democratized. And yeah, it feels more fun and engaging and interactive. -Jamie herlich Mclalwain “

very necessary for work in the theater to continue. Herlich Mclalwain has just recently arrived in Austin for this job, and she has a fresh perspective on theatre in Austin, saying “Theater here is positioned to be more fun, and interactive, at least here at Zach, than I think it is in some other cities. I think in some other cities, It can be a little more buttoned up, and it aligns more with a symphony experience or an opera experience, and I think here, it’s a lot more democratized, and yeah, it feels more fun and engaging and interactive”. Theatre here is an incredible thing, and every day it get better, encapsulating the spirit of Austin more Arts In Austin | 29 than it ever has before.