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Fourth-year theatre student Sarah Levy transforms herself into Brianna Bee, one of the characters in A Spider鈥檚 Tale. (Nick Pearce Photo) |
Binnie Brennan plays viola with Symphony Nova Scotia. One day in the middle of a performance, a spider swooped down on a trail of gossamer and made itself at home on her instrument. She continued to play. The incident made an impression, and Ms. Brennan committed it to paper as a short story. She gave the story to David Overton, a playwright and professor of theatre at 17吃瓜网在线.
Now A Spider鈥檚 Tale is enjoying its world premiere. The entire fourth-year acting class (almost 20 students), 37 members of Symphony Nova Scotia, students in costume studies and in a playwriting class, guest conductors, composers and designers are all taking part. Oh, and a guest director 鈥� Hans Boggild. He starts off our interview by estimating that bringing A Spider鈥檚 Tale to the stage has involved more than 200 people and been two years in the making.
See photo essay: A Spider's Tale. Photography by Nick Pearce.
鈥淚鈥檓 relatively late in the process,鈥� he adds, raving about the set design by Dal鈥檚 Peter Perina. 鈥淲e have an incredible design.鈥�
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The set is incredible 鈥� a mirrored spider web suspended over the heads of symphony players and platforms to add extra room and depth for performers. The space is still packed 鈥� especially during key sequences like an 18-person chase scene, accompanied by original music by Chris Palmer and Zach Florence.
Mr. Boggild has roots at 17吃瓜网在线 鈥� 鈥渨ay back about 30 years ago,鈥� he was an English major and already involved in the theatre. 鈥淭his for me,鈥� he says thoughtfully, 鈥渇eels like coming home.鈥�
Leading up to opening night, it's crunch time聽鈥� meaning聽four hours of rehearsal weekdays and a full day on the weekends. Performers are honing their mime and physical theatre abilities and, of course, their musical aptitude. A former artistic director of Eastern Front Theatre, Mr. Boggild speaks admiringly of the students; they鈥檝e risen to the challenge.
鈥淎lways with a new play, you discover things as you put it on its feet 鈥� (the students) are very dedicated and working very hard. But I don鈥檛 think about the fact that they鈥檙e students. I think of them as artists.鈥�
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