Theatre Students Adapt to Virtual Directing

One of the most fundamental aspects of live theater is sharing the same room with the audience. Conversation is a two-way path and onlookers play an active role in the creative process. Laughs, gasps, and groans are all important components of the dialogue.

Due to virtual learning this semester, Washington College students enrolled in theater courses are being trained how to entertain spectators in a totally different manner. “I thought that teaching would be impossible when the pandemic hit,” admits Professor of Theater Dale Daigle, who is also the Director of the Daniel Z. Gibson Center for the Arts. “After talking with students and doing a lot of research, I decided that it was best to just embrace Zoom.”

Daigle, who has taught at the College for 30 years, has found that certain aspects of his Introduction to Directing class can be executed better virtually, such as creating a sound cue. “Students are able to google the sounds that they want and insert them right into a scene,” he states. “They are able to create really amazing environments in an easier way.”

The class held auditions in November for their final scenes that will take place in early December. Among others, students picked extracts from the Wizard of Oz, Annie, and James and the Giant Peach. In order to simulate an audience, everyone in the group has their volume on so that actors can still hear the reaction of their classmates.

"I think having the class be entirely virtual really required us to think more outside of the box then if we were in person; like if we had a scene with action, we would have to figure how to translate it into something the audience could see because really, they could only see the actors faces.  Due to this, a lot of thought and care went into the final scenes with how to give the audience a full theatre experience," freshman Sophia Rooks reflects.  "Others in the class were playing sounds off their computers, changing their screen names to the names of their characters, and using the "stop video" button to their advantage. " 

“The students have really stepped up and met the challenge of Zoom with incredible ingenuity and imagination,” Daigle declares. “They have managed to incorporate every element of design (sound, lights, props, and costumes) in really effective ways despite the obvious restrictions. They have been particularly resourceful in creating the feeling of characters, occupying the same space by passing props back, or the by the way they have choreographed movement,” he adds.

The College has produced a whopping 110 plays over the last decade. In that same time, Theater majors have attended graduate programs in their field at prestigious institutions such as Yale, Columbia, Carnegie Melon, NYU, Boston University, and the University of Washington. Graduates continue to work in significant roles at 22 professional theaters across the country. Notable Washington College alumni include award-winning playwright Stephen Spotswood, actress Linda Hamilton, and Oscar-winning digital producer Carey Smith.

“Our students work hard and are passionate about our field,” Daigle affirms. “We have successful people in the profession who are teaching or working in theaters around the country.”