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| Opening night for a first time actress »
 It starts with a script of inanimate words and a bunch of everyday folks who probably have never met. Weeks and countless hours later, the people have become characters and those words have developed into a living, breathing play.
Save for the artistic release and the audience's applause, the actors and people behind the scenes don't get paid.
Welcome to community theater -- a place where everyone makes themselves useful.
Based on volunteer help, community theater is a reflection of the people where you live. They are real estate agents, painters, police officers, social workers, veterinary technicians and retirees.
So if you're new to it, or wondering about it, don't consider it as the type of place where only veterans perform and experience is the norm. While seasoned actors may have an edge, area directors say it's okay to waltz in and see what happens.
"We love having new people," said Dottie Hughes, who often directs plays at the Little Theatre of New Smyrna Beach. "We always say, no experience is necessary."
Newcomers have a pretty good chance of getting a part in community theater, Hughes said. There may not be a newbie in every play, because it depends on the size of the cast, but there's also the possibility that they'll need your help elsewhere.
There's set building and stage management. Maybe you can sew or create a costume or help with sound. And once they see how reliable you are, they may never let you go.
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Do You Want To Act?
If you're interested in acting, check out some of these playhouses to learn about upcoming auditions.
DAYTONA PLAYHOUSE
100 Jessamine Blvd., Daytona Beach, 386- 255-2431.
FLAGLER PLAYHOUSE
301 E. Moody Blvd., Bunnell, 386-586-0773.
LITTLE THEATRE OF NEW SMYRNA BEACH
726 Third Ave., New Smyrna Beach, 386-423-1246.
SANDS THEATER CENTER
600 N. Woodland Blvd., DeLand, 386-736-7456.
SHOESTRING THEATRE
380 S. Goodwin St., Lake Helen, 386-228-3777. |
Your chance of acting, of course, depends on how well you fit the part and the director you're working with.
Kendra Blazi, a New Smyrna Beach High School drama teacher and occasional director at the Little Theatre, said she tries not to think ahead of who she will use for certain roles, a practice known as "precasting." "My personal take on it is, I want to see what you bring to the audition."
New people may likely get a smaller part, she said, "but you never know."
"We love, as directors, to go to auditions and see people that we've never seen before," Blazi said. "There could be that diamond in the rough that has never auditioned before."
Take Steve Ballesteros, for example.
The first time actor got the leading role as McMurphy in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," a production of the Shoestring Theatre in Lake Helen.
Ballesteros is a painter by day, but has spent most nights for the last six weeks learning lines and co-starring with actors who've been in show business for more than 30 years. He's also lent his expertise, helping to paint the set alongside the director of the play, Sally Daykin.
Daykin, a Pine Ridge High School drama teacher, said everyone tends to lend a hand with whatever they're good at -- whether that's with sound effects or props.
In exchange for giving up nearly two months of their personal lives, they get the opportunity to bond with new people in an emotional, cathartic experience.
"You share chemistry between the audience and the actors on stage," she said. "It's something that you don't get at home watching the television or going to the movie theater."
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